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Director of Strategic Communications & Outreach

The role

The Tobin Center for Economic Policy at Yale University works to strengthen families, communities, and the nation. We enable research on key challenges facing society and bring the resulting insights to the policy arena for impact. We do this by building purpose-driven partnerships across government, engaging with the media, and training a more diverse and inclusive generation of social scientists and policy leaders. Our work has been credited with making significant contributions to United States law and policy across health, climate, education, and economic opportunity.

The Tobin Center is seeking a Director of Strategic Communications and Outreach to amplify our impact. This individual will build the Tobin Center’s brand, establish an institutional tone and standard for public engagement, help attract new partners as philanthropic supporters, and demonstrate how Tobin’s commitment to rigorous research can move the needle for society.

We are looking for candidates with experience turning research insights into compelling content that motivates real-world action. The most competitive candidates will have experience creating, leading, and overseeing inspiring communications content, and a track-record of deploying innovative strategies for engaging key audiences. The Director must also understand economic and social policy issues and possess the unique ability to communicate complex research for non-academic audiences.

Principal Responsibilities

  • Build and lead an integrated communications program, combining online engagement, media relations, digital engagement, events, and outreach with government, nonprofit, business, private philanthropy, and other stakeholders to maximize the influence and impact of Tobin and our faculty’s work.
  • Create and implement a communications and engagement strategy to share our work with key audiences that includes concrete goals and clear metrics for evaluating progress.
  • Design new and pivotal ways - beyond traditional approaches - to make our work understandable and relevant, including generating core messages and language, developing timely content and analysis, and creating opportunities for engagement.
  • Build and maintain networks and relationships with faculty, media, government, private philanthropy, and partner organizations to inform our communications and outreach strategies and create opportunities.
  • Lead the coordination and execution of events and convenings, including managing team members who are supporting the event, on-site preparations, related communications plans, and general coordination of logistics.
  • Develop content style guidelines for communications activities.
  • Provide coaching and training on media engagement, public speaking, and presentations to staff and faculty.

Required Education and Experience

Bachelor’s degree in Communications, English, Journalism or related field and eight years of experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Required Skills

  • A skilled and professional communications leader with a track record of engaging a range of audiences, the proven ability to think independently and offer constructive upward feedback, and demonstrated experience building and maintaining relationships with senior staff at relevant media outlets.  

  • Rigor and fluency in communicating evidence-based social science research with demonstrated expertise writing about complex economic policy issues for non-academic audiences.

  • An entrepreneur and team leader who can thrive in a dynamic, collaborative, and lean start-up work environment, and who will take the initiative to identify and advance opportunities, providing just-in-time support when opportune moments arise.

  • A thoughtful relationship builder and engaging communicator who has successfully built and maintained networks with partners from government, nonprofits, philanthropy, business, and higher education institutions; and who will engage thoughtfully with issues related to race, class, identity, equity, ethics, and the multi-faceted complexity of relevant policy environments.

  • A flexible, resourceful, strategic, and well-organized project manager who can coordinate multi-faceted and complex projects, including the proven ability to anticipate issues, develop proactive solutions, and engage the right stakeholders to support and champion success.

Preferred Education, Experience and Skills

10+ years of relevant experience; a deep understanding of economics and social policy; demonstrated experience communicating quantitative research is strongly desired. 

To Apply

Search for job number 87068BR on Yale University's STARS Career Opportunities website and follow the instructions.