Director, Communications

Overview

The Communications Director, reporting to the Vice President, Growth, will be responsible for crafting and executing a strategic content plan that strengthens our brand presence across multiple digital channels. This role focuses on developing compelling written and visual content that tells the stories of our clients and partners, helping to drive engagement and increase awareness. The Communications Director will take ownership of messaging tailored for specific audiences—including nonprofits, K-12 institutions, states and foundations—ensuring that each group’s unique needs are addressed. By overseeing social media, website content, and email marketing, this person will support growth objectives by enhancing our digital footprint and managing content distribution through HubSpot and other tools. Additionally, the Communications Director will bring experience in SEO, track metrics to measure content effectiveness, and adapt strategies based on analytics insights. This is an ideal role for a self-starter with strong editorial skills, creativity, and the ability to collaborate closely with cross-functional teams to build a cohesive, impactful brand narrative.

Who We Are

Catalyst:Ed is a national nonprofit that helps education organizations build capacity and deepen their impact by connecting them to the expertise, resources, and hands-on support they need to drive transformational outcomes for students, especially those from underserved communities. Our team is purpose-driven, innovative and inclusive, with a supportive culture where all team members have the opportunity to grow and contribute. Founded and led by a woman of color, Catalyst:Ed is committed to being a space where diversity is valued and all team members are able to bring their full, authentic selves to work.

In order to deliver on the mission, the Growth Team will:

• Tell the story of Catalyst:Ed, its network, and its impact through thought leadership and story-telling
• Share and amplify key messages through consistent messaging on traditional and new media channels
• Develop a coherent and compelling brand identity
• Develop new partnerships
• Execute activities to support the overall growth strategy and increase the base of paying customers

Key Components of Your Role

• Content Creation & Storytelling
  • Develop written and outbound content across various channels, including the website, social media (LinkedIn, Instagram), email, and newsletters.
  • Transform client stories and program impact into compelling narratives to drive engagement and increase usage.
  • Use provided templates for consistency in branding and format; create original graphics when possible (not required).
  • Execute storytelling as a primary function, with a focus on high-level strategy and messaging.
  • Differentiate messaging to effectively target specific audiences, such as nonprofits, K-12 institutions, stages and foundations.
  • Tailor content for each audience’s unique needs, such as foundations focused on capacity building or state agencies focused on workforce shortages.
  • Collaborate with the growth team to align messaging with overall marketing strategy.
• Customer Journey & Growth Strategy
  • Map and understand the customer journey to identify touchpoints and roadblocks, refining messaging to encourage engagement.
  • Work with Vice President, Growth to support marketing and Catalyst:ED growth efforts by creating and testing effective messaging that can be adapted based on data-driven insights.
  • Track and measure awareness and lead generation across platforms to evaluate and optimize engagement strategies.
• Digital Presence Management
  • Manage social media channels, primarily LinkedIn, to build brand presence through scheduled content, follower growth, and calls to action.
  • Utilize HubSpot or similar CRM tools to drive email campaigns, maintain a content schedule, and measure campaign effectiveness.
  • Ensure timely updates and track engagement metrics, clicks, impressions, and overall reach on digital platforms.
  • Regularly refresh website content to align with brand tone, simplify language, and ensure clarity for various audiences (philanthropy, K-12, state agencies).
  • Introduce clear calls to action on the website to guide users quickly into the engagement funnel.
  • Oversee SEO optimizations to improve visibility and track progress over time.

Supports you’ll rely on from others to be successful

• Your manager, VP, Growth, as well as the CEO, and other Partners will help you broaden your communication strategy’s application to problems and opportunities in the sector so as to allow you to cultivate opportunities and deepen our impact. These colleagues will also help as you strengthen your own strategic orientation, relationships and connections in the field, and leadership stance.
• The Growth & Programs teams will work closely with you as you deepen your understanding of the sector and Catalyst:Ed’s work.

Skills and Qualifications

• Creative thinker: Can create outbound written marketing content to be used on multiple channels including website, social media (LinkedIn, instagram), email, SEO
• Content creator: Possess the ability to hear/experience feedback from internal and external sources and convert that information into meaningful content
• Customer focused: Ability to understand a customer’s journey, identify and improve on areas within that journey where they are experiencing roadblocks
• Strong communication skills: can create content/communication plans, marketing campaigns, branded materials and visual graphics that are effective and clear
• Strategic thinking: You can quickly analyze complex and ambiguous situations and challenges and determine what needs to be done and how. You have deployed this skill across multiple contexts through your experiences in different organizations or teams.
• Organizational and team leadership: You are a thoughtful, caring, inclusive team member with an orientation toward feedback and growth. You can set a vision for growth and success and bring others along on that vision with you.
• Relationship management: You maintain good relationships with clients, potential clients, mentors, learning partners, etc to further your understanding of issues in the sector, career goals, skills development, and/or business opportunities.
• Equity orientation: You have demonstrated your equity values through decisions you’ve made, priorities you’ve placed on time, actions, or resourcing, team leadership choices, and have a personal commitment to equity, and specifically, antiracism.
• Operational excellence: You have experience leading complex projects with multiple work-streams, tight deadlines, and numerous staff members working on different pieces. You demonstrate consistent team member support and individual follow-through.
• Ownership: You’re a highly motivated self-starter and have proven experience bringing projects from concept to completion, persevering in the face of challenges and doing everything possible to ensure project success.
• Service orientation: You seek ways to be helpful and add value to others and know how to build strong relationships. You have experience working with external partners or clients and can quickly establish trust.
• Self-confident integrity: You are grounded in your values and are able to influence others without relying on hierarchy or positional authority.
• Education and experience:
  • 7+ years of professional experience with progressive levels of leadership responsibility
  • Experience in education or non-profit organizations preferred
  • Familiarity with Hubspot or similar CRM tools is preferred

Success markers

• At the end of 30 days
  • Complete a comprehensive needs assessment by reviewing existing content, communication plans, and current marketing efforts.
  • Establish working relationships with internal teams (marketing, product, executive leadership) and an understanding of external stakeholders (partners, providers).
  • Familiarize yourself with the tools and platforms used by the team, including HubSpot or other CRM tools, social media platforms, and website CMS.
• At the end of the first quarter
  • Begin producing content pieces (e.g., blog posts, social media snippets, email drafts) based on learnings and aligned with current priorities.
  • Take ownership of an external content calendar, producing and distributing content across multiple channels (social media, email, website) regularly.
• At the end of the first year
  • Execute a comprehensive content strategy, ensuring all materials (video, written, and graphic) are aligned with the organization’s goals and audience needs.
  • Support the Growth team’s continual assessment and refinement of the customer journey by developing content that addresses pain points and improves the overall customer experience.
  • Deliver multi-format content across channels, repurposing long-form content into shorter snippets for targeted audiences.
  • Play a key role in supporting internal and external events, including managing content needs for conferences, presentations, and marketing campaigns.

Good to Know

• Compensation: This is a full-time, salaried position with full health benefits (medical, dental, and vision) and a generous 403(b) plan with up to 5% match. Salary range: $92,400 – $105,000
• Start date: Ideally January 13, 2025 (some flexibility for the right candidates)
• Location: Catalyst:Ed works nationally. The Director, Communications can work remotely within the US from a location of their choosing.
• Travel Requirements: 5% travel required for attendance at in-person team retreats and professional conferences
• Physical Demands and Working Environment: The bullet points below are representative of the physical demands and working environment that must be met by a team member to successfully perform the essential functions of this role. Reasonable accommodations may be made for individuals with disabilities to perform the essential job functions.
  • Standard/remote office setting; proximity to office equipment that includes electronic devices.
  • Multiple people-facing meetings and interactions a day using Zoom or other video call software
  • Must remain at a workstation for at least 50% of the time; will need to use equipment that includes electronic devices.
  • Perceive and interact with text, media, and people.
  • Communicate and accurately exchange information with text, media, and people.
  • Additional Note: This is a people-facing position, and to be successful, you will need to have comfort interfacing regularly with team members and external stakeholders as well as dealing with a range of personalities across multiple domains.

How to apply

Please follow this link to complete an application. The deadline to apply is Thursday, November 27th, 2024. We will review applications on a rolling basis shortly after they are received.

Catalyst:Ed has a strong commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. We encourage candidates of all backgrounds to apply, particularly folks who identify as people of color, first generation, low income or LGBTQ.