Director, Communications and Marketing

Queen's Student Alumni Association; Kingston; On-site; CAD 104,000 - 142,000; Full time

Job summary

Queen’s Student Alumni Association seeks a Director of Communications and Marketing to lead strategic initiatives that enhance engagement and elevate the Faculty's reputation. The ideal candidate will possess extensive experience in communication strategies, budget management, and teamwork within a complex organizational environment.

Qualifications

• Minimum 10 years of progressive experience in a senior leadership role.
• Demonstrated strategic communications acumen with expertise in multiple content formats.
• Experience in budget and financial management.

Responsibilities

• Oversee communications and marketing strategies for the Faculty.
• Measure the effectiveness of programs and initiatives using data analytics.
• Provide coaching and leadership to the communications team.

Skills

Strategic planning

Exceptional writing

Leadership

Analytic skills

Education

University degree in Business, Journalism, Public Relations, or Communications

Job description

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Competition Number: J0425-0905

Position Title: Director, Communications and Marketing

Position Number (Final): 00501351

Employee Group: Managerial & Professional

Job Category: Communications and Marketing

Department or Area: FAS_Marketing & Communications

Location: Kingston, Ontario, Canada

Salary: $104,000.00 - $142,000.00/Year

Grade: 11 Review Salary Information Here

Hours per Week: 35

Job Type: Permanent (Continuing)

Shift: 7 Monday - Friday

Number Of Positions: 1

Date Posted: June 9, 2025

Closing Date: July 1, 2025

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COVID 19 On-Campus Requirements

Prior to May 1, 2022, the University required all students, faculty, staff, and visitors (including contractors) to declare their COVID-19 vaccination status and provide proof that they were fully vaccinated or had an approved accommodation to engage in in-person University activities. These requirements were suspended effective May 1, 2022, but the University may reinstate them at any point.

About Queen's University

Queen’s University is the Canadian research intensive university with a transformative student learning experience. Here the employment experience is as diverse as it is interesting. We have opportunities in multiple areas of globally recognized research, faculty administration, engineering & construction, athletics & recreation, power generation, corporate shared services, and many more.

We are committed to employment equity and diversity in the workplace and welcome applications from individuals from equity seeking groups such as women, racialized/visible minorities, Indigenous/Aboriginal peoples, persons with a disability, persons who identify in the LGBTQ+ community and others who reflect the diversity of Canadian society.

Come work with us!

Job Summary

The Director, Communications and Marketing is a member of the Faculty of Arts and Science (FAS) Leadership Team and is responsible for the overall vision, strategy, and leadership of the Faculty’s communications and marketing portfolio. The Director works in a highly consultative environment, with Faculty and campus partners, to build and strengthen relationships that cultivate engagement and interest in the institution, elevate and differentiate FAS from its competitors and comparators, both internal and external, and amongst diverse stakeholders. Additionally, this position provides coaching and leadership to the FAS Communications and Marketing team in support of the Faculty’s objectives. This position currently has five team members.

Job Description

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Planning and Program Management

• Oversees FAS communications and marketing team and initiatives through consultation with key stakeholders.
• Develops, directs, and implements integrated communications and marketing strategies centered on the engagement of FAS faculty, staff, and students through consultation with key stakeholders and team members.
• Strengthens relationships within the Faculty (between faculty office units, individual academic departments, and faculty members, staff, and students), through clear and consistent messaging.
• Provides advice to the Faculty’s leadership team on strategic communications and marketing to support the Faculty Office strategic initiatives.
• Takes initiative and ensures that FAS stays abreast of new and emerging communications and marketing practices, as well as marketing trends in both traditional and non-traditional platforms.
• Measures the effectiveness and efficiency of programs, initiatives and expenditures, and takes corrective action where and when needed. Uses data analytics to inform strategy and measure performance to ensure objectives are delivered according to plan.
• Conducts comprehensive market research in support of new program developments using both primary and secondary methods such as focus groups, surveys, and environmental scans; analyzes data and prepares reports required to formulate, execute, evaluate and benchmark strategic and priority driven implementation plans; reports findings to the FAS leadership team and other senior stakeholders; and implements changes in strategy as required.
• Works closely and collaboratively with University Relations to ensure that external communication and marketing strategies and programs designed to enhance FAS’s brand, image, and reputation are aligned with those activities that enhance and protect the reputation of Queen’s overall.
• Ensures strategic communications and marketing initiatives are timely, error free, and of high-quality, in accordance with the university’s brand and visual identity standards.
  
  

Administration

• Oversees the department’s budget and participates in budget submission activities including analyzing data, forecasting resources, and developing and preparing annual budget documents.
• Provides budget and staffing leadership for the Communications and Marketing team
• Oversees communications tools for FAS including the Faculty’s website, e-Newsletters, Faculty social media platforms, and face to face strategies.
• Writes, edits, and oversees other communications for the Faculty including key messages, speeches, Q’s and A’s, stories, and web content.
• Oversees speech writing and remarks for the Dean.
• Represents FAS on university-wide committees and working groups where a communications presence is required.
• Undertakes other duties as assigned in support of FAS.
• Plans, prioritizes and manages the work of employees, providing strategic and tactical advice, guidance and coaching.
• Identifies the need for staff resources, and makes recommendations regarding employee selection for the department.
• Manages performance by establishing performance standards, reviewing and evaluating performance and conducting formal performance reviews on an ongoing basis.
• Assesses staff training and development needs and ensures that employees receive training required to improve and sustain successful performance.
• Investigates, addresses and resolves employee/labour relations issues, including making decisions regarding disciplinary and discharge matters.
  
  

Required Qualifications

• University degree in Business, Journalism, Public Relations, Communications or related field.
• Minimum 10 years of progressive experience and a demonstrated track record of success in a senior leadership role within a large, complex, multi-stakeholder organization, focused on strategic communications and marketing, and leading teams.
• Demonstrated strategic communications acumen with multiple content formats and content marketing expertise
• Exceptional writing skills
• Proven management and leadership experience, with a demonstrated ability to promote inclusion in the workplace and effectively organize, motivate, and direct professional staff and colleagues to achieve objectives; and works effectively with senior leadership.
• Experience working in a post-secondary field preferred.
• Comprehensive knowledge of accessibility issues, and federal and provincial legislation pertaining to electronic communications regarding accessibility, privacy, electronic security, and anti-spam.
• Demonstrated successfully experience in strategy development, project planning and implementation.
• Experience with strategic budget and financial management, including budget forecasting.
• Consideration may be given to equivalent combination or education and experience.
  
  

Special Skills

• Strategic planning skills to provide clear, focused leadership and advice on communications and marketing initiatives for FAS.
• Excellent business insight, with the ability to place communications and marketing objectives in a larger organizational context and use this knowledge to make strategic choices in developing and managing a variety of projects.
• Ability to match the interests of internal and external stakeholders with the strategic needs of the institution.
• Exceptional writing, editing, and verbal communications skills to develop, implement, and oversee comprehensive and measurable strategic communications and marketing plans and products, with a high degree of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Recognize diversity of abilities and adapt content, tone, medium and style to audience to be inclusive.
• Strong analytical and interpretive skills, with the ability to think about institutional information in an interdisciplinary way, and strategically use information gleaned through market research to improve and enhance communications and marketing initiatives to target audiences.
• Ability to recognize and make complex decisions with good judgement and acute sensitivity to the political environment and their implications on brand image, reputation, and goals.
• Ability to become rapidly familiar with changing new technology and trends, assess innovation for institutional benefit and impact.
• Proactively identify operational improvements to the unit necessary to deliver required services.
• Capacity to build consensus, recognize decision-making responsibilities across units, and work collaboratively to achieve superior outcomes.
• Strong interpersonal, coaching, and relationship building skills required to work well in a complex, decentralized environment with a wide variety of constituents. Ability to build / nurture strong relationships, in addition to the ability to work constructively in a consultative environment.
• Ability to cope with multiple demands and resolve priority conflicts while working under time constraints and deadlines.
  
  

Decision Making

• Determine the most effective communications and marketing strategies to deliver on strategic and operational objectives of FAS.
• Assesses issues/priorities and provide guidance as a subject matter expert.
• In collaboration with stakeholders, determines how plans will be developed and managed, including tone and content of information that makes it accessible and understandable to the intended audience. Determines how to harmonize the Faculty’s communications and marketing activities and initiatives with those across the university including University Relations.
• Decides among competing constituencies and priorities with complex political considerations. Maximizes benefit of efforts so result is effective internal and external communications.
• Respects decision making as part of a collaborative process.
• Determines how to protect and enhance the Faculty’s and university’s reputation and image in all communications, and marketing objectives.
• Exercises judgement on whether to involve other senior university administrators in the development and implementation of strategies.
• Evaluates job candidates and makes effective recommendations on suitable hires.
• Decides and/or makes effective recommendations regarding transfer and promotions.
• Evaluates employee performance and decides on appropriate training or coaching to address lack of proficiency in carrying out responsibilities, or remedial action for staff disciplinary situations.
• Assesses investigation outcomes of grievances and makes effective recommendations on appropriate course of action or next steps on grievances.
• Makes effective recommendations on level of discipline up to discharge and probationary termination.
  
  

Employment Equity and Accessibility Statement

The University invites applications from all qualified individuals. Queen's is strongly committed to employment equity, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace and encourages applications from Black, racialized persons, Indigenous people, women, persons with disabilities, and 2SLGBTQI+ persons. In accordance with Canadian Immigration requirements, priority will be given to those who are legally eligible to work in Canada.

The University provides support in its recruitment processes to all applicants who require accommodation due to a protected ground under the Ontario Human Rights Code, including those with disabilities. Candidates requiring accommodation during the recruitment process are asked to contact Human Resources at [e-mail].

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Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Director

Employment type

• Employment type

  Full-time

Job function

• Job function

  Marketing, Public Relations, and Writing/Editing

• Industries

  Strategic Management Services

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