Director, Public Relations & Enterprise Reputation

The Director, Public Relations and Enterprise Reputation role will be a key builder of and contributor to the company's reputation through proactive and reactive media relations, issues and crisis management, public relations and thought leadership. The role interacts with and advises executives about public relations and issues management, including executive platform development. This role is the primary contact for national and local media and develops relationships with media contacts and keys influencers while also serving as a chief spokesperson for the organization. The director develops influencer engagement strategies for the enterprise with key stakeholders including the media, public officials, nonprofits, religious leaders, and regulatory bodies.

The role partners with varying business partners to ensure enterprise strategy and positioning is incorporated into public relations and social media campaigns. The role manages and helps mitigate negative media relations through effective crisis management. The role is responsible for having a broad vision and understanding of the internal and external business and political sensitivities that impact communication direction. The role stays abreast of communication, public relations, public affairs, and social media best practices and drives continuous improvement within the function. This leader will also collaborate closely with marketing, social media and others to ensure we have an integrated approach to storytelling and measurement. This position will serve as a key liaison between the Communications function and executive leadership.

• This role can be remote within the United States
  
  

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Lead the development and execution of storytelling for external audiences in order to support organization’s business objectives.
• Deploy effective communication strategies and content via a variety of channels, including traditional corporate communications, public relations, and social media activities. Develop communications strategies in alignment with marketing, social media, digital and more for an integrated approach to storytelling.
• Oversee the development of and positioning for external communications; supervises public relations and works with marketing teams to coordinate implementation of initiatives.
• Develop thought leadership strategies and ensure thought leadership content is maximized and leveraged appropriately to drive corporate reputation of our brand.
• Develop and implement consumer media strategies, tactics, and measurement benchmarks in close partnership with the business to identify risks, measure effectiveness and assess value to the organization.
• Oversee the reputation management program, including internal cross-collaboration, and manage opportunities and threats to the company’s reputation and brand. Anticipate and recognize stakeholder issues and manage the associated internal/external risks with advice and counsel.
• Partner with senior leaders to drive innovation, challenge the status quo and implement solutions and programs to advance priorities and our brand reputation. Serve as change agent, championing agile ways of thinking to enable teams and individuals to succeed.
• Regularly measure PR reach, impact and effectiveness against desired outcomes
• Partner with client insights team to align Thrivent and audience needs
• Build relationships with key stakeholders (internal opinion leaders; internal process owners for functions including marketing communication, government relations and community relations; or external business and trade media) to keep Thrivent positioned well with external parties.
• Represent the organization at relevant industry PR events and media conferences.
• Recruit, develop, and sustain a high-performing team while promoting a culture of shared accountability, operational excellence, and partnership across the organization.
• Model Thrivent’s leadership competencies – modeling the way, delivering outcomes and rallying the team by demonstrating resiliency, working together to make the best decisions, and holding yourself and others accountable.
• Support and/or develop an environment in which Thrivent employees and colleagues are focused on continuous improvement, exceptional employee engagement, and an unwavering commitment to our clients. Shapes and support a culture that represents the Thrivent purpose, promise and values, ensuring that Thrivent’s trust and reputation remain strong with its clients.
• Serve as a member of the Communications leadership team, advising on communications team, strategies and priorities for the department.
  
  

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS & SKILLS:

• Bachelor's degree in journalism/mass communications, public relations, business or equivalent work experience
• 10 + years’ professional communications experience
• A passion for people leadership with 5+ years’ experience inspiring, developing and mentoring diverse teams of both experienced and emerging communications professionals
• Demonstrated knowledge of a broad range of media and communication channels including traditional print, broadcast, digital and social, and emerging trends in each. Experience with media relations in the financial services sector.
• A keen sense for what makes a compelling news story, with demonstrated ability to mine for proactive story ideas to generate positive news coverage and manage negative coverage
• Demonstrated ability to deliver impactful results by designing, executing, and measuring internal and external communications programs
• Excellent human relations, listening, consulting and change management skills
• Operate with a high level of business acumen and good judgment
• Requires an attitude that actively seeks out change, embraces critical questioning, innovation, service and continuous improvement
• Ability to act as a poised and effective spokesperson for the brand and the ability to think and act quickly “on your feet”
• An inquisitive self-starter with a long track record of seeking and seizing opportunities to generate positive news coverage
• Comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty; able to adapt quickly, stay focused and lead others through sophisticated situations
• Demonstrated professionalism and ethics, with ability to earn credibility through integrity and transparency.
• Successful history of working effectively in a complex, matrixed and collaborative environment that expects and promotes teamwork
• Must demonstrate ability to manage sensitive, confidential, and proprietary information
• Understands the current state, develops a shared vision and is able to develop and drive strategies to move toward the vision
• Fosters an internal culture of positive teamwork and transparency that drives excellent service, quality, diversity, an engaging work environment and overall continuous improvement mindset
• Organization and prioritization skills, strong attention to detail, and the ability to simultaneously manage multiple, complex projects, under pressure and strict timeframes, without compromising quality
• Strong interpersonal skills, with the ability to effectively facilitate meetings, resolve conflict, build consensus, establish rapport and collaborate effectively across departments, internally and externally, and at all levels within an organization
• Highly developed verbal/written communications skills
• Prioritizes and focuses on the right work. Keeps self and others focused on the right priorities and fosters a sense of urgency and dedication to delivering on commitments
• Assesses risks and opportunities to make decisions that are best for the organization
  
  

Thrivent provides Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) without regard to race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy, national origin, age, disability, marital status, citizenship status, military or veteran status, genetic information, or any other status protected by applicable local, state, or federal law. This policy applies to all employees and job applicants.

Thrivent is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation, please let us know by sending an email to [email protected] or call 800-847-4836 and request Human Resources.