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Executive Director, Strategic Marketing & Communications

Who We Are
With three campuses along Colorado’s Front Range, Front Range Community College is the state’s largest community college. We enroll close to 28,000 students annually from our diverse service area, which offers a variety of cultural and recreational activities.

Each year approximately 5,000 FRCC students transfer to four-year universities. FRCC offers more than 36 career training programs that prepare students for immediate employment and rewarding careers. Last year, more than 5,000 high school students took concurrent enrollment classes with us, earning college credit without having to pay college tuition. And we were recently ranked as one of the “Top Online Colleges” in the country by Newsweek.

One of FRCC’s main goals is to offer educational excellence for everyone. The college’s strong commitment to student success means we start by creating an inclusive and equitable environment—one where both students and employees feel they belong and are supported. FRCC’s focus on diversity, equity and inclusion is woven into the fabric of our college conversations and decision-making processes. We are actively seeking to hire a workforce that reflects the diversity of our student body. 

The college is also an emerging Hispanic Serving Institution. For us, becoming an HSI is an intentional commitment to being a college where our Latinx (and other historically marginalized) students thrive.

FRCC employees and leaders work hard to create a culture of collaboration, innovation and pride. We’re looking to hire people who share these values—along with our commitment to student success, equity and excellence. 

Who You Are
As the Executive Director of Strategic Marketing and Communications and reporting directly to the Vice President of Strategic Initiatives, you will provide visionary leadership to all marketing, media relations, communication, and design functions to engage, inform, and inspire the Front Range Community College community. You will be responsible for building and leading a team to develop and implement data-driven, comprehensive marketing strategies designed to enhance the brand of the college, increase enrollment, encourage partner engagement, and highlight and advance the diverse programs and services of the college. This position is also responsible for elevating the college’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in messaging and branding efforts and for ensuring active engagement of the marketing and communications department in the process for the college to become a Hispanic-Serving Institution. 

As the Executive Director of Strategic Marketing and Communications, you will lead FRCC’s media relations, internal and external communication efforts, marketing campaigns, digital and social media engagement, executive level communication, crisis communication, vendor coordination, and internal communication standards and support. You will also partner with enrollment management and college departments to reach targets and with the Foundation to reach fundraising goals. 

You will design and implement strategies to raise awareness of the FRCC brand, increase visibility of the college, enhance its reputation, and increase constituent engagement with the goals of reaching student enrollment targets and gaining the support of alumni and friends. You will work closely with FRCC leadership to align strategies, tactics, and messaging with the college's strategic plan and objectives. In this role, you will develop vision and brand strategy for the college as it relates to all marketing platforms, i.e., print, internet, social media.

You will be joining the college and department at an exciting time, one where you have the opportunity to develop the department, team, strategy, and approach. Ideally, you are a highly collaborative, strategic thinker able to partner with key stakeholders to develop and execute strategic communication and marketing efforts. To be successful, you will be able to identify, interpret and capitalize on marketing trends in the rapidly evolving higher education environment.  

Please note: This is an on-campus position with an opportunity for remote work. You need to be a Colorado resident on your first day of employment.   

SALARY: $110,000 to $123,000 annually


SELECTION PROCESS: Position will remain open until filled with a priority deadline of April 9, 2023. 
Preliminary screening will be made on the basis of completed application package submitted by candidate. In your application please include a resume and cover letter that specifically addresses how your background and experience align with requirements, qualification and responsibilities of the Executive Director of Strategic Marketing & Communications. 

At FRCC, masks are optional, but we allow individual staff and faculty to request students and colleagues wear masks in offices or in class.  

Primary Duties:
  • Provides inspirational leadership for the team that executes all aspects of media relations, marketing, and internal and external communications for the college that lead to and grow applications, enrollments, and student retention in support of achieving student success.
  • Develops and implements an annual, comprehensive strategic marketing and media relations plan to support overall marketing and communications strategy in alignment with the college’s student enrollment and retention goals.
  • Leads the all-inclusive marketing approach and brand development of all external communications such as, but not limited to, major publications, digital presence, and videography. Aligns departmental and other college initiatives with major publications, strategic communication development, and digital strategy.
  • Develops and conducts a public relations strategy that results in on-going public support for the college as well ensuring that the college is top of mind with those considering engaging in higher education.
  • Directs the production of the creative development of all print and digital materials including cohesive social media efforts. 
  • Leads the college in a transition from a traditional marketing approach to a digital focus with an emphasis on bringing responsive marketing support in-house. Ensures responsive marketing and graphic design support for the college for ongoing projects and activities.
  • Leads the creation and execution of an impactful and integrated brand strategy built on a culture of data-driven, high-impact marketing practices for diverse communities that will influence and inspire target audiences. 
  • Collaborates with all college areas to develop clear communication and promotional strategies with a focus on relationship building to support their unique needs and increase visibility.
  • Partners with Enrollment Management and Student Communications to review annual strategic enrollment and marketing plans to continuously use enrollment data, student feedback and marketing analytics to facilitate crucial conversations and develop intentional, collaborative plans. 
  • Partners with the Foundation to strategize and execute plans to reach fundraising goals, engagement goals, and to support donor and alumni engagement. 
  • Partners with the Vice President of Academic Affairs and academic leaders to market programs and initiatives.
  • Informs and consults with college leadership and the college community regarding strategy, outcomes, trends, and offers suggestions and input for continuous improvement. 
  • Develops marketing analytics accessible to the internal college community to further enhance data-driven decisions and transparency, including Google Analytics, social media data, digital advertising analytics, etc. Analyzes, evaluates, plans, and executes both existing and potential marketing activities and strategies.
  • Builds a high performing team that is results-driven and characterized in inclusivity, collaboration, cooperation, and trust. 
  • Hires, supervises, directs and evaluates the Marketing and Communications staff. This includes coaching, developing staff, evaluating performance, responding to employee concerns, and effectively recommending various personnel actions. 
  • Provides mentorship, support, and guidance to all direct reports and their teams to foster data-driven, care-centered, and equity-minded decision making.

Required Competencies:
  • Commitment to Values: Demonstrates leadership and collaborative behaviors and actions that support FRCC values.
  • Student Success Focus: Demonstrate behaviors and actions that support a student-first culture.
  • Equity, Inclusion and Diversity: Champions equity through reducing or eliminating barriers within departmental practices, policies and processes. Uses an equity lens to guide decisions.
  • Strategic Planning: Develops a vision for the future and creates a culture in which long-range goals can be achieved.
  • Change Catalyst: Ability to encourage others to seek opportunities for different and innovative approaches to addressing problems and opportunities.
  • Communication: Communicate effectively with many types of individuals and the ability to communicate clearly and persuasively. 
  • Consensus Building: Ability to bring about group solidarity to achieve a goal.
  • Leadership: Ability to influence others to perform their jobs effectively and to be responsible for making decisions.
  • Team Building: Ability to convince a group of people to work toward a goal.
  • Collaboration: Ability to connect stakeholders from across areas to develop and support cohesive enrollment initiatives. 
  • Cultivating Relationships: Lead efforts to engage in and support collaborative efforts across divisions and to understand the unique marketing needs of each area. 
  • Data Analytics: Uses data to determine trends and issues impacting the college, as well as identifying future impacts to students and/or the institution.


Required Education/Training & Work Experience:
  • A Bachelor's Degree from a regionally accredited institution in public relations, marketing, journalism, fine arts or related field.
  • Five (5) years of public relations and marketing experience that includes planning, managing, and implementing associated programs and marketing campaigns and two (2) years of management and supervisory experience with creative teams. 
  • Knowledge of emerging digital technologies and their potential uses for marketing and communications.
  • Experience managing social media profiles on behalf of an institution, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc.
  • Understanding of data and analytics in informing strategies and tactics. 
  • Demonstrated financial acumen to evaluate marketing investments and their ROI. 
  • Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and community engagement.
  • Ability to work a flexible schedule, including evening and weekends.
  • Ability to utilize Microsoft Office Suite and customer relationship databases.

Preferred Education/Training & Work Experience:
  • Experience at various organizational levels in marketing, either in higher education or the private sector
  • Bilingual, Spanish and English
 
Welcoming. Respectful. Inclusive. Together, we are FRCC.