The Associate Director for Marketing and Communications leads, supports, and executes marketing/communications and visibility strategies, tactics, campaigns, and plans in support of LMU Loyola Law School. The incumbent works across teams to develop comprehensive initiatives to raise the school's national profile, achieve enrollment objectives, position competitively faculty and academic programs, and engage target audiences as a fully integrated member of LMU's Marketing, Communications, and External Relations team. Reporting to the Director of Marketing and Communications, LMU Loyola Law School, the incumbent manages admissions marketing campaigns, social media outreach, data analytics, brand management, media planning, and writes and edits for multiple platforms and audiences, liaising with a diverse array of constituents, including Admissions, Advancement, and senior leadership.

The incumbent serves as a senior client relationship manager, project planner, and digital expert to ensure successful delivery of projects and tasks within established deadlines and budgets. The Associate Director leads a comprehensive portfolio of activities ranging from strategic to tactical, technical to creative, training to production--and in all aspects, ensuring excellence in quality. The position supervises professional staff, external partners, students, and/or other resources as assigned.

Communications Strategy, Management, and Planning

• Conceptualize, execute, and analyze comprehensive communications and marketing plans and projects that increase engagement with target audiences, drive admissions, align with the university's mission and brand strategy, advance strategic priorities, and enhance the school's visibility and exposure. This work includes, but is not limited to, developing a variety of traditional and digital marketing and advertising products, defining email and social marketing strategies with identified key performance indicators, and integrating with CRM-related tools.

• Position plays a major role in bringing a new brand identity to market. Support marketing and branding efforts by carrying key identity and messaging throughout daily work, on press releases, signage, emails, and other written communications.

• Monitor developments in legal education trends to aptly prepare law school pitches and responses to maximize value for LLS emerging storylines. Includes developing and maintaining relationships with the State Bar of California, Association of American Law Schools, and related institutions.

• Manage and implement concurrent, independent short-, medium-, and long-term communications projects that support the law school's goals and priorities, including overseeing LLS client project intake forms. Assist in development and implementation of communications plans, website maintenance and editorial schedules, and production schedules for LLS MarComm's communications efforts.

• Ensure projects are completed by identified deadlines and on budget. Assure successful outcomes by adopting best-practice project management methodologies, quality assurance metrics, and risk mitigation plans. Assure the integrity, high-quality, and consistency of the university's image, tone, style, narrative, visual identity, and brand.

Writing, Editing, and Producing

• Create and curate content (feature stories, spotlights, etc.) to be disseminated across various communications channels.

• Produce, edit, and approve traditional and digital communications products that support activities and programs and engage identified target audiences.

• Manage lls.edu website sections aimed at external audiences. Produce and edit content, including feature stories and videos, for the LLS website, publications and collateral materials. Maximize the impact of the website and other online materials through implementation and monitoring of search engine-optimization techniques and continuous analysis of their performance.

• Conceptualize, produce, and publish social media content intended to increase positive engagement with the law school. Respond to social posts within an established framework.

• Assist in managing the law school's blog network, including platforms for faculty, individual professors, students, and admissions officers. Conceptualize design, functionality, and editorial tone. Train users and publicize offerings. Maintain best practices and oversee quality assurance.

• Set and ensure high standards for accuracy, narrative structure, consistency and tone, voice and cadence, word usage, style, brand narratives, and other quality-assurance guidelines for communications from the law school.

• Assure attention to detail through fact-checking and verification protocols. Devise and implement production workflows to support objectives and streamline requests, reviews, and approvals.

Collaboration, Coordination, and Training

• Collaborate with Admissions, Advancement, MarComm colleagues, and other departments to raise awareness of academic programs and events and to promote recruitment efforts. The incumbent works closely with the MarComm Marketing team and is responsible for coordinating marketing plans, tactics, and campaigns to assure quality, integrity and synchronicity with the university's brand.

• Coordinate with MarComm colleagues to incorporate objectives into broader communications and marketing activities, talking points, presentations, reports, social media efforts, and other channels.

Quality Assurance, Reporting

• Implement and maintain systems to measure effectiveness of PR and marketing strategies through benchmarking. This includes the management and support of a data-driven and evidence-based decision environment. Collect, review, analyze, and evaluate email, social, and web metrics and analytics to inform strategy, measure performance and optimize campaigns. Help guide the brand's approach to promotional testing, learning and optimization.

• Ensure quality assurance standards are applied to and integrated with all work and projects. Review and monitor compliance with branding standards, visual identity, and messaging guidelines. Audit digital media channels and recommend solutions. Guide colleagues, content providers, faculty, campus administrators, and freelancers in a variety of topics including writing styles, design, and functionality. Recommend information architecture approaches and photography selections.

• Maintain the integrity and accuracy of public information while seeking new and innovative ways to improve the presentation of content, functionality, and design of all assigned communications.

• Complete other duties and projects as assigned.

Loyola Marymount University Expectations

Exhibit behavior that supports the mission, vision, and values of the university. Communicate and employ interpersonal actions that model high standards of professional, responsible, accountable and ethical conduct. Demonstrate a commitment to outstanding customer service.

The incumbent must have the ability to supervise creative, communications, and technical personnel and manage complex projects with dependencies, deadlines, budgets, and outside resources. The incumbent must possess the ability to implement marketing and communication principles and strategies in the execution of complex communications projects. The incumbent must have the ability to initiate ideas, develop concepts, and review the effectiveness of processes to ensure professional standards and high quality. The incumbent has the ability to assess the needs of internal clients and suggest appropriate measures to meet those needs or redirect those requests to the appropriate areas. The incumbent is able to work effectively and independently with internal and external constituencies. The incumbent has the ability to operate in an environment in which skilled relationship management and consensus-building is required to deliver successful outcomes.

Requisite Qualifications

• Typically a bachelor's degree or equivalent experience. A master's degree is preferred. Degree in communications, marketing, journalism, or business management is preferred. Incumbent will be expected to continue upgrading knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to stay abreast of best practices and industry trends.

• Minimum five years' experience in an institutional, corporate, or executive consulting role coordinating digital strategy and marketing/communications with progressive managerial and supervisory experience.

• Experience and working knowledge of organic and paid social media advertising strategies and techniques across various social media platforms.

• Experience working successfully in a complex organization, preferably in higher education.

• Evidence of high-energy leadership style with a track record for leading both strategic and tactical marketing efforts.

• Demonstrated computer competency with common and specialized production software suites, such as photo editing software, email marketing platforms, social media monitoring and tracking suites, and analytics reporting software. Experience with CRM tools required. Proficient in current web technology; Google analytics; search engine optimization, schema; best practices for content marketing, responsive design; usability testing and tools; HTML email tools; content management systems (in particular, Terminal 4 and WordPress); proven ability to generate, analyze, and interpret web metrics to inform strategic decision making; visual design, Adobe Creative Suite, web animation, audio/video; knowledge of best practices for user interface (UI) and user experience (UX).

• Ability to produce high-quality deliverables with meticulous attention to detail. Must be metrics-driven and results-oriented with demonstrated analytical skills.

• Ability to provide quick turnaround and updates for multiple requests while maintaining strong reputation of high-quality work

• Effective project planning and project management skills are required along with the ability to multi-task.

• Strong written and oral communication skills are essential, as is the ability listen with the skill to gather critical, accurate information.

• Ability to brainstorm, synthesize multiple concepts and think strategically and creatively

• Must be able to demonstrate experience and commitment in aligning with an organizational brand and be able to articulate support for the university's DEI commitments through role.

• Demonstrated expert-level understanding of creative process and ability to synthesize highly complex information into the formulation of editorial concepts. Demonstrated ability to implement communications projects to satisfy objectives.

• Possesses exceptional verbal and written communications skills and compelling and impactful presentation abilities. Can demonstrate the ability to motivate and inspire teams as well as colleagues, constituents, and audiences.

• Highly collaborative style with experience developing and implementing communications strategies successfully; background that demonstrates relationship cultivation, consensus building, flexibility, team orientation, and managing through influencing.

• Must be able to perform effectively in a fast-paced, intellectually intense, creatively challenging, service-oriented environment, while also managing multiple projects with varying deadlines.

• Willing and able to adjust to changing demands and shifting priorities, and address urgencies that arise on evenings or weekends.

• Evidence of positive, energetic, and flexible leadership style with a track record for producing high-quality deliverables with meticulous attention to detail. Must be metrics driven and results oriented with excellent analytical skills. Ability to provide quick turnaround and updates for multiple requests while maintaining high quality work.

• Self-starter, able to work independently and entrepreneurially; experience creating, developing and implementing new initiatives.

• Excellent judgement and creative problem-solving skills, including negotiation, mediation, and conflict resolution skills.

Required Education

• Typically a bachelor's degree or equivalent experience. A master's degree is preferred. Degree in communications, marketing, journalism, or business management is preferred. Incumbent will be expected to continue upgrading knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to stay abreast of best practices and industry trends.

COVID Vaccination Requirement

To ensure the safety and well-being of our community Loyola Marymount University requires that all students, faculty and staff are vaccinated or have been approved for a qualifying medical or religious exemption

#HERC# /#HEJ#

Reasonable Expected Salary - $85,000.00 - $90,000.00

Staff Regular

Salary range

$64,480.00 - $83,600.00 Salary commensurate with education and experience.

Loyola Marymount University, a Carnegie classified R2 institution in the mainstream of American Catholic higher education, seeks outstanding applicants who value its mission and share its commitment to inclusive excellence, the education of the whole person, and the building of a just society. LMU is an equal opportunity employer committed to providing an environment free from discrimination and harassment as defined by federal, state and local law. We invite all persons in the full diversity of their being, life experience, and beliefs to apply. (Visit www.lmu.edu for more information.)