Assistant Director Of Media Relations & Issues Management

One of the nation’s leading universities is seeking an Assistant Director of Media Relations & Issues Management to join its issues and crisis communications team. Reporting to the team’s director and working closely with the Strategic Communications’ vice president, this role will research, plan, execute, and evaluate communications focused on crisis and issues management.

Compensation: Base salary range is $85,000-$105,000, commensurate with experience. Generous and comprehensive benefits package, including education privileges.

Location: This is a hybrid position that combines remote and on-campus working.

What You’ll Do:

This individual will be part of a talented team that provides leadership advice, guidance, and materials on issues of critical reputational importance to the University. The successful candidate will be a strategic leader who can proactively identify issues and assess their potential impact; respond to reputational challenges; provide direction and leadership to others; and develop and implement a communications strategy that is aligned with institutional priorities and provides accurate messaging for the University.

What We’re Looking For:

• Be able to multi-task in a fast-paced environment and respond quickly and professionally under pressure and in crisis situations.
• Have 6-8 years of related media relations experience. Issues management experience highly preferred.
• Be able to effectively work independently and as part of a team.
• Have the ability to consistently reinforce University messages across all media and audiences.
• Have the creative and political acuity to develop messaging and tactics suitable for executive-level communications.
• Have superior writing, editing, and oral presentation skills.
• Be adept at working with others across the University to address, develop, support, and implement messaging and positioning statements.

About Our Client:

As the University’s central public relations and marketing division, Strategic Communications is a fully integrated, award-winning, best-in-class marketing, and public relations division defined by innovative strategy and breakthrough creative driven by measurable goals. We advance the University by strengthening and protecting the institution’s reputation in regional, national, and international spheres of influence in ways that serve recruitment, resource, and leadership goals. Spanning the University’s large-scale enterprise—including 20 campuses across Pennsylvania, more than 90,000 students, and an alumni base exceeding 700,000—Strategic Communications’ work encompasses all forms of communications and engagement, ranging from branding, marketing, and trademark and event management to internal communications, proactive and social media, research communications, and crisis and issues management. We’ve attracted talented and diverse team members from private and public sectors at all levels of our division, giving us the ability to build a strategic program of excellence recognized throughout the University. Strategic Communications values and reflects the University’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB), and our DEIB committee is actively involved in providing staff programming that helps incorporate DEIB principles into the fabric of our communications.