Communications Director jobs in Oakland, CA

Vote.org is hiring a Communications Director to support our work to permanently increase voter turnout in the United States of America.

Organization description

Vote.org is a nonprofit startup that uses technology to simplify political engagement, increase voter turnout, and strengthen American democracy. We believe that Americans want to vote and will vote in higher numbers -- and more consistently -- as voting becomes more convenient. We launched in April 2016, and have since helped millions of Americans register to vote and cast ballots through a combination of best-in-class technology and innovative outreach. Our work has the potential to impact the outcome of elections by bringing millions more voters to the voting booth.  

Vote.org is deeply committed to diversity. We strongly encourage women, Black, Indigenous, and people of color, first-generation Americans, new parents, single parents, people with disabilities, and members of the LGBTQIA community to apply. 

Job Description

We are seeking a Communications Director to join our team. Reporting to the COO, the Communications Director is responsible for how Vote.org’s work and brand is communicated to the press, stakeholders, partners, online, and more. This role is deeply integrated with our other departments and is a great opportunity for a seasoned communications professional who is looking to help amplify programmatic successes and translate our work for outside audiences. The ideal candidate should have strong written communications experience, experience developing communications plans, managing staff and consultants, and supporting stakeholders. This position will be fully remote but will require travel to support in-person events, activations, and interviews.

 What You’ll Do: 

• Develop and implement strategic, measurable communications plans that support Vote.org’s programs, fundraising, and organizational goals

• Raise the organization’s profile to drive support for Vote.org’s work and mission

• Develop messaging strategies for key initiatives and rollout plans for program and campaign launches, leading long-term planning for communications initiatives across the organization.

• Draft written communications, including speeches, talking points, briefing materials, press releases, newsletters, and more

• Oversee Vote.org’s digital communications, including social media and campaigns, keeping pace with the civic engagement movement and launching new initiatives to reach the organization’s target audiences.

• Use metrics and quantitative analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of Vote.org’s media relations, social media, and marketing strategies.

• Manage communications staff, consultants, and vendors, ensuring efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and high performance.

• Develop and manage the communications department’s annual budget.

• Provide crisis communications counsel to the CEO, board, and team as necessary; serve as the lead point of contact during crisis situations.

What we hope you’ll bring:

• Campaign or Hill experience is highly preferred

• A thorough understanding of the communications and media landscape

• Strong, self-directed work ethic

• 5 years of experience leading teams, setting goals, and developing strategies for major initiatives and projects

• On the record experience required

• Experience managing contractors, consultants, and freelancers

• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment, handle multiple projects and requests simultaneously, and re-prioritize as necessary

• Excellent editorial and creative copywriting skills that show a point of view; experience writing issue op-eds, personal essays, speeches, and press releases

• Contacts with journalists and media companies from previous work

• Demonstrated success in pitching stories

• Demonstrated success in creating or overseeing digital campaigns

• Problem-solving skills with a high attention to detail, accuracy, and quality

• Ability to build and maintain relationships with a network of journalists, communications consultants, media agencies, and others

• Up-to-date knowledge of current events, politics, tech, pop culture and more

Why join our team - why now?

• We exist in service of a critical mission - and we’re just getting started. Our team does high-impact, meaningful work every single day. Right now, our world often feels like a kick in the teeth. Working at Vote.org is an antidote to this feeling. Our staff members work actively each day to change this status quo. 
• We’ve got a track record of results. Vote.org reaches more voters of color and young voters than any other program in the nation. Over the course of the year, Vote.org ran the largest voter mobilization program in our history, making more than 650 million voter contacts among these traditionally underserved groups. Millions more used Vote.org’s digital tools to register, verify their registration, request an absentee ballot, find their polling location, and more.
• We believe that when you feel your best, you do your best. We are proud to offer excellent health benefits. We offer fully covered health, dental, and vision for our employees, and generous coverage for your partner and family. Our time off is generous.
• We reward our staff competitively. We offer 401(k) and a Roth 401(k) retirement options since we want you to retire one day. 
• We believe in cultivating a cohesive and inclusive team culture. As an organization, we are deeply committed to diversity. We strongly encourage women, people of color, first-generation Americans, new parents, single parents, people with disabilities, members of the queer community, and talented individuals from all backgrounds to apply to join us. 

To apply, submit your cover letter and resume via our website.

Vote.org is an equal-opportunity employer. This means that we don't discriminate against people because of their race, ethnicity, sex, age, religion, national origin, marital status, pregnancy, personal appearance, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, family responsibilities, matriculation, genetic information, or political affiliation.