Assistant or Associate Vice President, Strategic Communications

at  Penn State University

JOB DESCRIPTION AND POSITION REQUIREMENTS:

Penn State’s Office of Strategic Communications , the University’s central public relations and marketing division, is seeking an innovative and experienced leader to be the University’s Assistant or Associate Vice President (AVP) for Strategic Communications . This position will report directly to the Vice President for Strategic Communications, Rachel Pell, and will collaborate with academic, administrative, and communications and marketing leaders and staff across 24 campuses to provide overall vision and strategic leadership for internal communication, change management, issues management, and crisis communication.

POSITION SUMMARY

The Assistant or Associate Vice President for Strategic Communications will provide vision and leadership for crucial areas of communication at Penn State, including crisis and issues management, internal and change management communications, and HR/employee relations communications. This role will also collaborate with leadership in the Office of the Vice President for Commonwealth Campuses to provide strategic communication counsel and support that advances Penn State’s commitment to its Commonwealth campuses.
The AVP will lead a centralized team of talented professionals and be responsible for the following key areas:

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

Typically requires a bachelor’s degree in public relations, marketing, communications, advertising, journalism, business administration, or related discipline (or an equivalent combination of relevant education and experience). Qualified candidates will have ten or more years of relevant communications experience, an extensive background in issues/crisis management, a solid understanding of and experience with change management, and at least eight years of experience in a supervisory or senior management role. The position will be filled as an Assistant or Associate Vice President, depending on the selected candidate’s education and experience. Prior experience in higher education is not required.

Please refer the Job description for details