Communications Director Job at City of Aspen
A Sign-on Bonus May Be Available as Well as Temporary Housing
Applications will be accepted on a continuous basis until a sufficient number of qualified applications have been received. The application must be filled out completely; stating "see resume" anywhere in the application, is not an acceptable substitute for a completed application.
Enjoy Industry Leading Benefits:
Generous paid vacation and extended sick leave, holidays, and flexible work arrangements.
Free and discounted transportation options to get around Aspen and the Valley.
Professional development and learning opportunities, including a tuition reimbursement program.
Health and wellbeing options that include Medical, Dental, Vision, robust and accessible employee assistance program, and nationally recognized wellbeing platform.
Monetary bonuses for healthy lifestyle choices and to use towards other personal needs.
Plan for your future with competitive employer contributions to a 401a retirement plans and Social Security, in addition to an individual 457b retirement plan and Roth IRA option. Have peace of mind with life and disability insurance.
The City of Aspen is an Equal Opportunity Employer
Job Title: Communications Director
Department: City Manager
Classification: Exempt
Position Summary: Provides leadership and strategic direction for determining priorities, goals and objectives to promote the City of Aspen’s communication initiatives and brand, consistent with the organization’s values and mission statement. Manages and develops written content for communications to include but not limited to communications plans, social media platforms, press releases, newsletters, city website, intranet, executive communications, and public information in alignment with the city’s strategic communications plan and through a diversity, equity, inclusivity and accessibility (DEIA) lens. Conceptualizes, develops, and implements comprehensive, multi-faceted and inclusive and accessible outreach and engagement, and crisis and emergency communications. May serve as spokesperson on city issues. Serves as an adviser to the City Manager for communications and community engagement.
Supervision Exercised and Received: Position works under the general supervision of the Administrative Services Director. Exercises direct supervision over the Communications Manager, Communication Coordinators, Digital Communications Coordinator, and other positions as assigned.
Communications Strategy
- Develops, leads, and evaluates a comprehensive, strategic communications plan, including internal and external communications, media relations, crisis communication, and multi-media integration that aligns with the city’s overall strategic plan, goals, values, and mission.
- Develops and executes the strategic framework to promote the city’s goal of building the city’s brand and enhancing community satisfaction with the city’s communication efforts.
- Develops and implements key performance indicators to demonstrate how effectively the city is achieving communication objectives. Meets strategy objectives including developing annual and multi-year communication plans for departments through a business partner model.
- Originates, develops, and directs diverse social media, intranet and website strategies, internal and external communications, public relations, and media campaigns, development of original and creative concepts.
- Responsible for managing multiple functions (public relations, digital engagement, crisis communication planning and management, media relations, and internal/external communications).
- Develops and implements city communication policies and procedures consistent with the city’s objectives and strategic communications plan. Maintains project management tools including intake form process.
- Monitors all communications projects through consistent follow-up and recalibration, if necessary, based on key metrics/data collection and analysis. Maintains an appropriate balance between successful implementation of strategic and tactical communication duties.
- Serves as internal communications consultant to City Council and City Management. Evaluates operations and direction of internal and external communications; serves as a business partner, and advocate as it relates to all areas in communications with departments and elected officials.
- Provides strategic advice to city departments in developing key messages and executive communications on high-profile issues.
- Participates in contract negotiations for departmental communications consultants.
- Helps craft speeches, talking points, presentations, and related materials as requested. May serve as a city spokesperson.
Community Engagement
- Serves as staff resource for the development, support, and implementation of the city’s community visioning and civic engagement efforts.
- Helps develop and implement a robust two-way communications program between the city and the various public and private agencies, residents, businesses, and citizen groups.
- Develops, implements, and periodically updates a Community Engagement Strategic Framework, including effective, diverse, inclusive, and accessible community engagement processes.
- Promotes community collaboration partnerships, including facilitation and participation on advisory boards and commissions.
- Provides coordination, support, and participates in contract negotiations to other departments who may be conducting community engagement activities or engaging communications consultants.
Public Relations
- Responsible for overall public relations. Advises management of public relations implications of organization policies. Responsible for preparation of news releases. Leads city-wide media relations efforts. Represents organization in various community engagements. Establishes and maintains proactive working relationships with media representatives.
- Acts as city’s principal spokesperson by arranging press coverage for a variety of public events and community outreach efforts. Oversees and coordinates the production and distribution of public information and announcements. Establishes and maintains effective, collaborative working relationships with employees, peers, community members, and other stakeholders including elected officials.
- May assist with intergovernmental relations with neighboring communities, state, and federal agencies and elected officials. Leads relations and manages contracts with key community partners such as Aspen Institute, Aspen Chamber Resort Association, Aspen Skiing Company, etc. Provides communication oversight and strategic direction on external communication and marketing initiatives as it relates to specific City projects.
Department Management
- Executes leadership and supervision responsibilities through sound judgment, focusing on quality improvement, managing, and resolving conflict, fostering a culture of collaboration and accountability, clearly defining responsibilities and expectations, setting goals, providing motivation and performance feedback, recognizing contributions, and encouraging training and development. Selects, trains, develops, and evaluates the work of staff.
- Provides leadership and advice to optimize external communications, enhance public relations, and work with department directors, program managers, and leadership on high-profile matters to benefit the residents of Aspen.
- Co-manages the Administrative Services budget in conjunction with the Innovation and Strategy Director.
- Contributes to the optimal management of vendors, consultants and financial resources to achieve strategies and objectives by managing and negotiating contracts, and vendors; may develop projections and fiscal impacts of new initiatives.
Emergency Management
- May serve as Public Information Officer (PIO) during incident response and is on-call to disseminate emergency messages to the public, media, and other partners. Coordinates with PIOs and distributes key, emergency messages.
- Supports and models the City of Aspen organizational values: Service, Partnership, Stewardship, and Innovation. Organizational values are shared principles that guide behavior across the organization. This position is responsible for upholding and applying these values while performing daily work functions.
Displays the following key competencies in the overall job performance to include knowledge, skills, and abilities:
- Service: Provides service with excellence, humility, integrity, and respect in daily work, builds trust by listening, treats people with respect, acknowledges opportunities for improvement, and follows through with commitments.
- Partnership: Actively creates strong, supportive internal and external relationships to attain a common goal and achieve greater impact together.
- Stewardship: Balances social, environmental, and financial responsibilities, evaluating the impact of decision making on a thriving future for all.
- Innovation: Develops technical expertise to pursue new ideas and creative outcomes, grounded in Aspen’s unique culture, opportunities, and challenges.
- Communication: Knowledge of effective and appropriate communication. Ability to use knowledge effectively in various contexts which may require oral, written, visual, and non-verbal communication.
- Interpersonal: Works to develop strength in interpersonal skills. Has the ability to work well with diverse groups of people, both inside and outside the organization.
- Technology: Demonstrates technology skills sufficient for the nature and level of position. Demonstrates a willingness to learn new technologies and transition job duties accordingly to support technological advances and innovation.
- Team Building: Works to build and maintain high performing teams to includes appreciating differences and reinforcing a sense of belonging.
- Accountability & Trust: Follows through on commitments, takes responsibility for outcomes, and values relationships.
- Strategic Thinking: Works to bring a strategic focus to daily work, anticipates problems and considers solutions.
- Business Acumen: Demonstrates understanding of business processes, objectives, and goals.
- Visionary Mindset: Ability to consistently demonstrate a strategic and visionary mindset, is big-picture oriented, and able to anticipate future trends and implications while motivating others to action.
- Problem Solving: Ability to recognize complex problems and effectively work independently or with others to reach a viable solution. Ability to work though challenges with a sense of urgency.
- Optimization: Skill in continuous improvement and optimization of work processes. Skill in planning and aligning work plan with communications team and citywide.
- Communications Expertise: Knowledge of current trends and best practices in the fields of communications and public administration. Knowledge of communications technology and social media platforms. Development, oversight, execution, and tracking of communications plans and programs to support organizational goals. Ability to simplify complex information for a variety of audiences and writing a variety of communication piece for multiple stakeholders. Skill in multi-mode, effective communications delivery.
Minimum Requirements:
Education: Bachelor’s degree in Public Relations, Communications, Journalism, English, Business Administration, or related field.
Experience: Seven years of progressively responsible professional experience managing in the communications field and demonstrated excellence in written, oral and presentation skills. Demonstrated supervisory experience that includes hiring, performance planning, evaluations, coaching and mentoring, and conflict resolution.
Technical Knowledge: Must be proficient with Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, OneDrive, and SharePoint. Must be familiar with a variety of social media sites. Must have a basic understanding of graphic design and familiarity with Adobe applications. Must have a basic understanding of computers, mobile devices, and online computer-based technology applications, which includes accessing web-based platforms.
Licenses & Certifications: Must possess a valid Colorado Driver’s License or be able to obtain one within 30 days of start date. Must possess Incident Command System (ICS) Level 100, 200, and 300 Certification or be able to obtain within one year of start date.
NOTE: Any combination of experience and education that would likely provide the required abilities, knowledge, and skills as determined by the City of Aspen may be substituted for the requirements above.
Preferred Candidate: Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA), Public Relations, Communications, Public Administration, or related field. Governmental or public sector experience. Experience in handling sensitive and confidential materials. FEMA Public Information Officer training.
NOTE: This position requires a Criminal Background Check upon hire. Employment is contingent upon successful completion of a Criminal Background Check.
- Regular full time, hours may vary with workload.
- Evenings/Weekends will frequently be required depending on department needs and special projects.
- Indoors: Office environment.
- Outdoors/Off-Site: Meetings, trainings, and site visits at a variety of city facilities and areas.
Physical Demands:
Bending: Bending or position oneself to move an object from one level to another.
Gripping/Grasping: Ability to apply pressure with fingers and palm.
Handling: Seizing, holding, grasping, through use of hands, fingers, or other means.
Hearing: Perceiving and comprehending the nature and direction of sounds.
Reaching: Extending the hands and arms or other device in any direction.
Repetitive motions: Making frequent or continuous movements.
Sitting: Remaining in a stationary position.
Standing: Ability to sustain position for a period of time.
Stooping: Bending body downward and forward by bending spine at the waist.
Talking: Communicating ideas or exchanging information.
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
This job description is designed to indicate the general nature and level of work. It is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive list of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required of employees assigned to this job. Duties and responsibilities may change at any time with or without notice.
Please Note :
chrismaxcer.com is the go-to platform for job seekers looking for the best job postings from around the web. With a focus on quality, the platform guarantees that all job postings are from reliable sources and are up-to-date. It also offers a variety of tools to help users find the perfect job for them, such as searching by location and filtering by industry. Furthermore, chrismaxcer.com provides helpful resources like resume tips and career advice to give job seekers an edge in their search. With its commitment to quality and user-friendliness, Site.com is the ideal place to find your next job.