Manager of Communications

West Coast LEAF Association; Vancouver; Hybrid; CAD 67,000 - 71,000; Full time

Job summary

West Coast LEAF is seeking a Manager of Communications to lead strategic communications that strengthen public understanding, organizational visibility and movement relationships. Reporting to the ED, the Manager will lead communications planning, media relations and public-facing content across channels.

The position provides leadership for external and internal communications, advocacy campaigns, media relations, digital communications and public-facing content.

Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience leading strategic communications in a nonprofit, advocacy, public-interest or community-based setting.
• Excellent writing, editing and plain-language communication skills for complex, sensitive, policy or legally significant issues.
• Experience developing and implementing communications strategies and plans.
• Experience creating accessible, ethical, consent-based or community-accountable communications across digital and print formats.
• Experience with digital communications, including websites, email, social media, media relations and campaigns.
• Strong relationship-building and collaboration skills.
• Experience supervising staff, contractors or volunteers.
• Strong project-management, planning and prioritization skills.
• Experience supporting fundraising, donor or event communications.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development and implementation of communications strategy and annual plan.
• Advise leadership on audiences, messaging, channels, timing and risks.
• Oversee communications across website, email, media, social media, publications and campaigns.
• Translate complex legal, policy and community-informed issues into clear, accessible content.
• Support advocacy, public legal education, fundraising and organizational events.
• Coordinate with the Manager of Community Engagement to share community-informed work ethically.
• Strengthen internal information-sharing across the organization.
• Supervise the Communications Coordinator and oversee contractors, vendors and workflows.
• Maintain accessible, consistent, ethical, and values-aligned communications standards.

Skills

Strategic communications

Writing & editing

Digital communications

Relationship building

People management

Project management

Fundraising communications

Content management

Job description

Manager of CommunicationsJob Posting

Reports to

Executive Director(ED)

Employment

Permanent, 0.8 FTE (30 hours/week)

Location

Hybrid

Compensation

$67,000 - $71,000 depending on experience, already prorated to 0.8 FTE

About West Coast LEAF

West Coast LEAF (WCL) is a feminist legal advocacy organization based in Vancouver, BC, on the homelands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and səlílwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. Through litigation, law reform and public legal education, we work toward gender justice in collaboration with people and communities most affected by overlapping systems of oppression. We are committed to decolonization, anti-racism, accessibility, movement solidarity and meaningful accountability.

We are a provincially based non-profit society and federally registered charity, funded through a mix of foundation and government grants, individual donations and sponsorships of our annual International Women’s Day Equality Breakfast. WCL is a unionized workplace.

Position Summary

WCL is seeking a Manager of Communications to lead strategic communications that strengthen public understanding, organizational visibility and movement relationships. Reporting to the ED, the Manager will lead communications planning, media relations, public-facing content and organizational storytelling, helping ensure that WCL's legal, policy and community-informed work reaches diverse audiences clearly, accurately and responsibly. The Manager will combine strategic thinking, communications expertise and practical implementation to support WCL's advocacy, public legal education, fundraising and organizational priorities.

The position provides leadership for external and internal communications, advocacy campaigns, media relations, digital communications and public-facing content. The Manager collaborates closely with program, legal, development, operations and community-engagement staff, supports fundraising and governance communications, and plays a key role in planning, executing and promoting major organizational events and initiatives. The role also supervises the Communications Coordinator and helps strengthen communication systems, knowledge-sharing and information flow across WCL.

We are looking for someone with strengths in strategic communications, relationship-building and project management who enjoys translating complex issues into accessible language and helping diverse audiences connect with WCL's work. This position is part of the Union and may require occasional travel and meetings outside of regular business hours.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the development and implementation of WCL's communications strategy and annual communications plan.
• Advise leadership and staff on communication approaches, audiences, messaging, channels, timing and risks.
• Lead communications across WCL’s website, email, media, social media, publications and public-facing campaigns.
• Translate complex legal, policy and community-informed issues into clear, accurate and accessible content.
• Support advocacy, public legal education, movement-building, fundraising and organizational events.
• Work with the Manager of Community Engagement to share community-informed work respectfully, ethically and responsibly.
• Strengthen internal information-sharing across the organization.
• Supervise the Communications Coordinator and oversee contractors, vendors and production workflows.
• Maintain accessible, consistent, ethical, and values-aligned communications standards.

About You

You are a skilled communications professional who can move comfortably between strategy and execution. You enjoy shaping communications direction while also writing, editing, coordinating projects and bringing content to life across multiple channels. You are comfortable balancing competing priorities and identifying what will have the greatest impact.

You can communicate about complex, sensitive or legally significant issues with clarity, care and sound judgment. You understand that effective communications require context, accessibility, consent and accountability. You build strong working relationships, welcome feedback and work collaboratively to help ensure communications support organizational priorities, community-informed work and available capacity.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

You bring:

• Demonstrated experience leading strategic communications in a nonprofit, advocacy, public-interest or community-based setting.
• Excellent writing, editing and plain-language communication skills, including communicating complex, sensitive, policy or legally significant issues.
• Experience developing and implementing communications strategies and plans.
• Experience creating accessible, ethical, consent-based or community-accountable communications across digital and print formats.
• Experience with digital communications, including websites, email, social media, media relations and campaigns.
• Strong relationship-building and collaboration skills.
• Experience supervising staff, contractors or volunteers.
• Strong project-management, planning and prioritization skills.
• Experience supporting fundraising, donor or event communications.
• Experience using content-management, email-marketing, customer-relationship or project-management systems.
• Demonstrated commitment to WCL’s values, which include decolonial, trans-inclusive, and intersectional feminism, and an understanding of the ongoing impacts of colonial systems and Indigenous-specific discrimination in British Columbia.

Assets

The following would strengthen an application:

• Experience in intersectional feminist, social-justice or movement-building communications.
• Experience working with Indigenous organizations, community partners or advisory bodies.
• Experience with media relations, issues management or public-interest media.
• Experience in graphic design, video, visual storytelling, analytics or event communications.
• Experience with accessible web practices and inclusive digital communications.

Read the full job description online.

Commitment to Equity and Accessibility

West Coast LEAF encourages applications from people with diverse experiences and perspectives, including Indigenous people, racialized people, people with disabilities, people from 2SLGBTQ+ communities, newcomers and people with relevant lived experience.

Candidates may self-identify any knowledge, experience or perspective they would bring to advance WCL’s commitment to equity and inclusion. Accommodation is available throughout recruitment and employment. Applications are kept confidential.