Charlotte, NC

Associate Director, Communications, The Duke Endowment

The Organization

About The Duke Endowment

Since 1924, The Duke Endowment has worked to help people and strengthen communities in North Carolina and South Carolina by nurturing children, promoting health, educating minds and enriching spirits. Located in Charlotte, N.C., the Endowment seeks to fulfill the visionary genius and innovative legacy of James Buchanan Duke, one of the great industrialists and philanthropists of the 20th century. With assets of $5.5 billion in 2021, the Endowment is one of the nation’s largest 501(c)(3) private foundations. It shares a name with Duke University and Duke Energy, but all are separate organizations. In 2015, the Endowment moved to a state of the art building that increased capacity to support our mission, as it is available for grantees to use for events and meetings. On December 11, 2024, The Duke Endowment will celebrate 100 years, achieving a milestone very few private foundations reach.

The Communications Department aims to build awareness of the Endowment and its grantees’ impact on the Carolinas, support the organizational mission and program area strategies and position the Endowment as a leader in the field by highlighting staff and Trustee expertise. We ensure all communications reflect an inclusive vision and authentically elevate diverse voices and perspectives. To accomplish these goals, the department employs a wide range of internal and external communication tactics across digital platforms, media, publications, collateral materials and events.

For more information on The Duke Endowment, please visit their https://www.dukeendowment.org/.

Commitment to Racial Equity

At The Duke Endowment, we work toward one over-arching goal: To improve life for the people of North Carolina and South Carolina.

To meet that ambitious standard, our work must reach those of all races, ages and backgrounds. As we strive to improve health care, child and family well-being, higher education and rural churches and communities, deep-rooted racial disparities impede the positive outcomes we seek.

We can’t truly advance when large swaths of the population get left behind. With that in mind, the Endowment strives to be intentional about the role it can play to address and mitigate racial and economic disparities. We apply a racial equity lens to both our grantmaking and our internal operations.

We are committed to maintaining momentum with our efforts, but it is important to realize that this a long-term process. We will not achieve our goals in a year or two, and the quest to refine our approach and our initiatives must advance in a spirit of transparency, humility and continuous learning.

Learn more about the Endowment’s commitment to racial equity https://www.dukeendowment.org/about/about-the-endowment#racialequity.

The Opportunity

As the Endowment prepares for it’s upcoming Centennial year, it seeks an experienced and dynamic communications professional to join its team as Associate Director of Communications.

This position is full time, reports to the Director of Communications and works closely with other members of the team including the Digital Communications Strategist and half-time Project Specialist.

The Associate Director will work in partnership with the team to develop and execute an integrated communications strategy that includes multi-media storytelling, public relations, social media, content/messaging strategy, crisis communications, internal communications, and more. Additionally, the Associate will oversee the Events Manager.

This is an exceptional opportunity for a strategic thinker and strong writer/editor to serve as a leader in the Communications department and a key member of the team. With exposure to organizational leadership, this position is ideal for someone who is excited about the opportunity to network locally, regionally and nationally and to share the good work of the Endowment and its grantees.

The ideal candidate is a creative leader who will be responsible for:

Communications Strategy

• In collaboration with the Director, developing and implementing communications strategies and related budgets for the Endowment and its four grantmaking program areas, including initiating and managing contracts with consultants and working closely with grantees

• Working with the communications team to develop strategies and evaluation measures for the Endowment’s website, social media channels and e-mail marketing

• Working with the communications team to provide guidance and support for annual communications trainings for grantees

Online Communications

• Keeping the website up to date by researching and writing stories and blogs, producing videos and populating with relevant links and resources

• Overseeing the research, writing and production of the e-newsletter and blog posts

• Assisting with writing and posting news and stories on the Endowment’s intranet to ensure staff, Trustees and retirees are informed of Endowment grants, staff updates and trends in the field

Print Materials

• Assisting the communications team with theme development and writing of the annual report

• Editing and proofreading staff communications, including all Trustee board and committee books

Event Management

• Managing the Endowment’s Events Manager, including professional development

• Developing/overseeing protocols for event management; assisting with annual budget and tracking facility usage

• Assisting the Events Manager with internal meetings and external grantee events as needed

• Overseeing the development and execution of key activities for the Endowment’s 100th anniversary celebration such as the storytelling project and symposium series. This includes hiring and overseeing consultants

Media Relations

• Reviewing grantee news releases and writing staff/Trustee quotes for inclusion

• Coordinating news conferences for special Endowment and grantee announcements including writing comments/speeches for staff and Trustees

• Researching, advising and budget development for nonprofit media opportunities

• Working closely with the communications team to cultivate and maintain relationships with local, regional and national media

General Communications

• Serving on internal ad hoc work groups to ensure a communications perspective is included

• Participating in local, regional and national philanthropic and professional organizations that contribute to the visibility of the Endowment

Candidate Profile

The following offers an aspirational view of the ideal candidate profile; we encourage applications from candidates with a wide range of experience and backgrounds, especially those from underrepresented groups:

• Bachelor’s degree and at least 8 years of relevant professional experience in communications, marketing, journalism or a related field

• Visioning and leadership skills—able to advise and guide on sound practices and ask hard questions to drive important decisions

• Dynamic and exceptional communication skills, including the ability to reflect nuanced issues in a meaningful way for diverse audiences

• Committed to principles of racial equity, diversity and inclusion, and operates in the spirit of transparency, humility and continuous learning

• Ability to effectively deal with change and ambiguity

• Demonstrated proficiency in corporate or nonprofit meeting and events management/planning

• Experience with online communications strategy, including web content development and familiarity with digital media platforms and tools such as Mailchimp, Constant Contact, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter

• Ability to work collaboratively and build strategic alliances

• Creative, strategic thinker with ability to synthesize material and focus quickly on the essence of an issue; identify major opportunities and see the big picture

• Strong ability to manage competing deadlines and complete tasks on time

• Ability to work independently and on diverse teams, and respond well to guidance and direction

• Strong problem-solving and critical thinking skills

• A sense of humor

Compensation and Benefits

Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience.

Work and Vaccine Policy

The Duke Endowment currently is working under a hybrid in-person/remote work arrangement. All staff are asked to be either fully vaccinated with one of the FDA-approved COVID-19 vaccines or conduct a weekly Covid-19 test.

How To Apply

Contact

Erin Reedy and Turner Delano of Koya Partners have been exclusively retained for this search. To express your interest in this role, please submit your materials https://apptrkr.com/2817779. All inquiries and discussions will be considered strictly confidential.

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