Chief Of Communications Jobs

The Role:

We believe we have an important story to tell about the transformative impact we, and the world, can have on poverty. It is a story of innovation, of possibility, and of human dignity. The Chief of Communications, will be a seasoned professional who thrives on taking the complex and making it meaningful, bringing that story to life, making it impactful, understandable, and personal.

This senior leader will have ultimate accountability for all communications, brand and marketing activities, across all Acumen entities which includes owned and operated regional offices, sponsored limited partnerships, subsidiaries, and affiliated organizations operating under the Acumen brand.

They will be responsible for audience definition, campaign strategies, creative and content development, adapting messaging to all online and offline channels, media, and PR, as well as increasing and promoting visibility to a wide range of audiences through communications linked to conferences, events, and other external settings.

This Chief of Communications is a member of the Management Committee and is responsible for communications planning and implementation across various functions with a focus on development & Partnerships, Insights and Strategy, and executive communications. The team has recently led the development of a new brand architecture and the roll out of a new website is forthcoming.

Reports to: President

Works closely with the CEO

Team: Global team of nine (seven in NYC)

Location: New York City

Acumen operates on a hybrid in-office basis.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead the global communications team.
• Evolve and execute a communication strategy that positions Acumen as a constructive and disruptive voice in the social enterprise and development sectors.
• Create a system of consistent guidelines on strategic messaging, brand, and language such that our leaders in country and affiliated entities can develop and execute their own communication strategies.
• Support the Insights and Strategy team to understand and capture our knowledge and impact, designing, producing and disseminating reports for specific audiences and determining when to make a splash.
• Originate, develop and publish compelling stories illustrating Acumen’s impact and work, in support of the goals of the Development and Partnerships team.
• Develop content, short films, videos, animations to share on our website and through other channels that ensure our audiences not only understand but, more importantly, viscerally experience our work.
• Directly support the CEO to ensure impact of all of her communications. She has her own voice… how do you recommend she use it?
• Develop and implement a multi-channel communications and messaging strategy that will resonate with our many audiences, partners, funders, entrepreneurs, fellows infusing our values throughout.

The Person:

Strong candidates will demonstrate aligned leadership values (see Acumen’s Manifesto) and 15+ years of professional experience that includes:

• Ability to provide clarity, direction, and development to the Communications team.
• Self-reflective and aligned with Acumen values.
• High capacity to collaborate across matrixed teams, as well as the ability to exert influence both with and without formal authority.
• Ability to understand the essence of our work, the uniqueness of our founder’s voice, and how to leverage it for influence.
• Network of effective media relationships and the capacity to enlist and engage leading thinkers to support our work.
• 15+ years of communications and marketing experience, ideally a blend of private, social impact, and/or non-profit sector.
• A track record of impactful communications, marketing, brand management, and storytelling. Aptitude for creating meaningful connections that drive action.
• Comfortable operating in a complex organization, with an ability to understand Acumen’s distributed network and our many uses of capital (the big picture, the requisite parts, the values, and stories that bind us together).
• Eagerness to travel globally across the developing world (anticipated 10-20% travel).
• Permanent authorization to work in the United States.
• A strategic thinker, passionate about products and initiatives that drive societal change.

Compensation:

• Acumen offers competitive compensation, excellent benefits, and a supportive working environment.
• For this position, the base salary range is $225K to $ 250K plus an annual bonus. Internal equity considerations and the average salary of the peer range will be reviewed before making a final offer.

Vaccination Requirements:

• Proof of vaccination required.

The Organization:

Acumen was founded by Jacqueline Novogratz in 2001 to use the power of entrepreneurship to build a world where everyone had the opportunity to live with dignity. Our goal was to invest “Patient Capital” to bridge the gap between the efficiency and scale of market-based approaches and the social impact of pure philanthropy.

Acumen is changing the way the world tackles poverty by investing in companies, leaders, and ideas. We invest patient capital in businesses whose products and services help people solve problems of poverty and build a world based on dignity. To date, Acumen has positively impacted 501M lives by investing nearly $150M in 161 innovative, early-stage companies in Africa, Latin America, South Asia, and the United States. But investment isn't just about capital; we've been supporting emerging leaders in their own countries and engaging them in extended collective dialogue, moral inquiry, and skill building.

Our Vision

Acumen is a global nonprofit that solves problems of poverty through three distinct strategies. 1) We invest Patient capital (long-term philanthropy-backed investment) in companies that solve the tough problems of poverty. 2) We build alliances across sectors to scale solutions not only to reach critical mass but to include the poor. And 3) from the lessons and insights gained in this work, we are building “the world’s school for social change” to equip a generation hungry for the tools, knowledge, and moral imagination required to solve tough problems.

Our global community includes individuals from some of the wealthiest communities to some of the lowest incomes across 192 nations. It represents a wide mix of ethnicities, races, and religions. What binds it is a commitment to human dignity and to creating new systems that put our humanity and the earth at the center.