Sr. Director, Employee Communications

Abbott is a global healthcare leader that helps people live more fully at all stages of life. Our portfolio of life-changing technologies spans the spectrum of healthcare, with leading businesses and products in diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and branded generic medicines. Our 115,000 colleagues serve people in more than 160 countries.

Our location in Lake Bluff, IL currently has an opportunity for a Senior Director, Employee Communications.

The Senior Director, Abbott Employee Communications (AEC), leads the corporate, company-wide, global employee communications function. This includes charting a vision and strategy for the team, turning them into actionable plans and ensuring their execution, aligning resources and skill sets with the strategy and team's needs, and managing the long-term as well as day-to-day short-term operations of the function charged with communicating with Abbott's 100,000+ employees worldwide. The Senior Director, AEC is responsible for Abbott World, the flagship company-wide portal that serves as the corporation's primary global communications vehicle. This person also is responsible for providing access to all of the function's vehicles, including CEO communications, to all employees worldwide. The Senior Director, AEC, plays a leadership role among internal communicators across the function, including, but not limited to, leading global and regional meetings on employee communications and organizing cross-company networks of internal communicators.

What You’ll Do

• Manages employee communications budgets and HR issues within the team.
• Oversees Abbott World, the corporation's primary global communications vehicle and most-visited portal, and other communication channels.
• Leads employee communications across the global Public Affairs function networks of meetings of the company’s internal communicators. Manages internal communications issues that cut across more than one of Abbott's businesses.
• Sets strategy, vision and plans for companywide, global employee communications function, aligning resources and skill sets in support of plans, ensures plans are completed on time, on budget and meet AEC standards for quality and excellence.
• Manages access to AEC content and vehicles, as well as to CEO communications.
• Partners closely with HR Communications, Global Information Services (GIS), Creative Network and other functions as needed to ensure resources are aligned in support of strategy, vision and plans.

POSITION ACCOUNTABILITY / SCOPE

• As the communications environment has changed, making it more difficult to compete for employees' time, the person in this position is also charged with developing strategies to make AEC offerings more competitive, engaging and social, and anticipate and plan for the long-term success of the function and the value it delivers to Abbott.
• Indicate the reporting relationships, products, budgets, throughput, level of contacts (internal and external), or other scoping measures this job is responsible for
• Outside of the function, the Senior Director, AEC, also works with employees at a variety of levels up to and including the most senior company executives, from Vice President up to and including the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.
• As Abbott has become a continually more globalized company, the Senior Director, AEC, leads efforts to change and better serve its diverse, worldwide and broader audience, which is growing as technology and translation allow. This includes investing more time in cultivating relationships with colleagues working outside the U.S., international travel, and meetings, interviews and focus groups with employees in affiliates throughout the world.
• The Senior Director, AEC, reports to the Divisional Vice President, Corporate Communications, and works closely with senior leaders of GMEA, HR, and IT, among others.
• Many of these communications involve sensitive and complex topics that need to be conveyed to employees worldwide working in a variety of businesses and countries.
• Abbott Employee Communications is the primary news source for all of Abbott's 100,000+ employees worldwide. The Senior Director, AEC, manages the long-term, as well as day-to-day short-term, operations of the function charged with communicating with employees through Abbott World, the company’s primary employee portal; aLIVE, the company’s social sharing app; company’s weekly news digest, “Office of the CEO" and other executive emails, and Abbott Information emails; video monitor content and more.

Education And Experience You’ll Bring

• Strong people and project management skills and being able to manage multiple projects and related deadlines and details with a consistent commitment to excellence and precision, are required.
• The candidate must also have experience working effectively across a matrixed environment and reporting structure.
• Experience managing other aspects of corporate communications is a plus.
• The successful candidate will possess the maturity and executive presence to work comfortably and influentially with the company's senior management.
• The person will also have very strong writing and editing skills.
• The candidate will be a sound strategic thinker with excellent judgment, have experience successfully navigating corporate environments, and with winning the support of others and building coalitions.
• The ability to communicate complex and sophisticated topics in a concise and understandable manner – whether from the company or directly from its executives – is a necessity.
• Experience managing teams, portals, electronic communications, budgets, public relations agencies, and internal services groups required.
• A bachelor's degree is required, preferably in journalism, English or another communications-related major.
• Direct experience leading effective employee and executive communications is required, as well as working closely with senior executives on employee communications.
• 15+ years of experience working in corporate (preferably global) or political communications.

What We Offer

At Abbott, you can have a good job that can grow into a great career. We offer:

• Paid time off
• Health care and well-being programs including medical, dental, vision, wellness and occupational health programs
• 401(k) retirement savings with a generous company match
• The stability of a company with a record of strong financial performance and history of being actively involved in local communities
• Financial security through competitive compensation, incentives and retirement plans
• Training and career development, with onboarding programs for new employees and tuition assistance

Learn more about our benefits that add real value to your life to help you live fully: 

www.abbottbenefits.com

Follow your career aspirations to Abbott for diverse opportunities with a company that provides the growth and strength to build your future. Abbott is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to employee diversity.

Connect with us at www.abbott.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Abbott and on Twitter @AbbottNews and @AbbottGlobal.

The base pay for this position is $176,000.00 – $352,000.00. In specific locations, the pay range may vary from the range posted.