Description
Ocean Conservancy seeks a Director of Digital Marketing based in Washington, D.C.
About Ocean Conservancy
Ocean Conservancy is a nonprofit organization that educates and empowers citizens to take action on behalf of the ocean. From the Arctic to the Gulf of Mexico to the halls of Congress, Ocean Conservancy is leading the search for solutions to protect our water planet. Informed by science, our work guides policy and engages people in protecting the ocean and its wildlife for future generations. Founded in 1972, Ocean Conservancy has emerged as a trusted voice in its advocacy for the ocean that is essential to all life and provides much of the food we eat, water we drink and air we breathe.
About the Position
The Marketing and Communications Department leads strategies designed to reach key audiences in innovative ways to meet Ocean Conservancy’s program and policy objectives. The key goals of the department are to build awareness of threats to and solutions for the ocean, to gain public and private support for Ocean Conservancy’s mission, to encourage political action for a healthy ocean, and to build a larger constituency engaged in ocean protection.
In keeping with this overarching goal, the Director of Digital Marketing will provide leadership, strategic direction and implementation of Ocean Conservancy’s digital marketing and communications activities, ensuring that Ocean Conservancy’s brand and its programs’ conservation goals are integrated throughout all digital content. Ocean Conservancy has just launched a brand new web site, blog and mobile app, and stepped up production of strategic video and infographics. We are looking for the right leader to leverage these new tools in support of acquisition, engagement and fund-raising from our online constituency. Tracking and evaluating new digital strategies is vital, and the Director designs measurement frameworks and other data-driven tools and tactics that carefully align with programmatic and organizational goals to drive content through digital channels.
The Director reports to the Vice President, Marketing and Communications, and serves as a member of the Marketing and Communications Leadership Team. The Director has proven management experience and leads a staff of about four full-time employees focused on web, email, social media, video and graphics, and manages our digital marketing and advertising consultants and vendors such as Convio and Digital Assets Management. The Director promotes an environment that rewards innovation, experimentation, collective decisionmaking, professional development and work-life balance.
The Director serves in a critically important role within Ocean Conservancy. This person must embody a proactive “service oriented” ethic, working closely with the Vice President of Marketing and Communications to make sure the digital marketing needs of the organization are met. This is a hands-on role, requiring dedication to the organization’s mission, strategic acumen, a bias for action, and accountability for results. The Director must be able to execute at a strategic as well at a tactical level and be accountable for accuracy, timeliness and excellence in all digital marketing outputs.
Duties & Responsibilities:
The responsibilities for the Director include:
• Proactively designs and implements strategies that advance Ocean Conservancy’s brand through digital marketing channels, including the web site, social media, constituency emails, and online advertising.
• Generates and supervises staff on digital content creation, working with organization leadership on those communications.
• Creates and oversees a systematic and cohesive online editorial process that ensures excellence in storytelling – both written and visual – as well as integration across channels and conversion of visitors to action-takers and donors.
• Leads staff in developing messages for the online audience, including responding quickly to breaking news opportunities.
• Establishes protocols for online communications and leads training for staff to ensure integrity and consistency across the organization.
• Manages the tracking and evaluation of the representation of Ocean Conservancy online.
• Contributes to the overall organizational marketing and communications plan and budgeting process as well as individual program communications plans.
• Builds digital marketing partnerships with like-minded groups and companies that will expand Ocean Conservancy audiences.
• Assists with brand-related issues involved in strategic partnerships, alliances, and other external affiliations or relationships.
• Evaluates opportunities to leverage Ocean Conservancy’s impact, whether these are emerging issue areas or new technologies and platforms.
• Helps to build and reinforce an organizational culture in which each staff member embraces his/her role as a communicator and regularly contributes to the delivery of key messages via digital channels.
• Serves on Ocean Conservancy’s Marketing and Communications Leadership Team, with general responsibility for achieving annual goals and budgets, and specific responsibilities for defining and successfully executing marketing and communications objectives that advance Ocean Conservancy’s mission.
• Manages digital marketing staff and evaluates their performance.
• Recommends on when and how to outsource digital marketing needs, oversees recruitment, training and professional development, and defines contract terms and expectations.
• Exercises responsibility for the quality and timeliness of deliverables provided by contractors.
About the Candidate
Ocean Conservancy welcomes candidates with a dedication to conservation who can be impassioned spokespeople for both the health of the ocean and the organization.
In particular, Ocean Conservancy is looking for:
• A strategic thinker who can bring the creativity, energy, discipline and commitment needed to help grow the Ocean Conservancy brand and communications.
• A high-level performer who remains attentive to details and adheres strictly to deadlines and deliverables while keeping a larger vision in mind.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills with past success in deepening and leveraging the power of partnerships to affect change and build political will.
• Highly collaborative with an appreciation of the benefit of a multi-disciplinary team approach.
• Personable, passionate, productive, and focused to support accurate, timely, and powerful policy, products, and positions.
• Proven management and fiduciary experience in leveraging available resources effectively to meet program objectives.
• A leadership and mentoring style that supports and rewards the growth of staff with talent, promise and commitment.
Required Qualifications
• Degreed professional with 8-10 years of related experience, including proven experience directing digital marketing and communications programs and leading multidisciplinary teams, preferably with a nonprofit organization.
• Demonstrated success in increasing public awareness, building effective online engagement programs, and disseminating information through a number of promotional channels.
• Experience in developing and implementing strategies that develop, enhance and augment a brand.
• Proven ability to manage staff and develop and oversee grants and budgets.
• Possession of strong writing and verbal communication skills with the power to persuade.
• Attentiveness to detail and demonstrated organizational skills.
• Ability to adapt, seize opportunities and embrace change while managing core responsibilities to exceptional standards.
• Embodiment of the notion of “tough-minded optimist,” always acting with urgency, deliberateness, vigilance and initiative to solve problems.
Compensation
Compensation for the Director of Digital Marketing includes a competitive base salary and an excellent package of employee and health benefits.
The Ocean Conservancy is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes a diverse pool of candidates for this search.