Communications Manager

Broad Institute; Cambridge (MA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) plan

Paid holidays

Job summary

The Broad Institute seeks a Communications Manager to lead Sentinel's external communications across channels, translating complex science into compelling content for donors, partners, governments, and the public.

The role requires exceptional writing, editing, and design sensibilities, with strong independent work capability and brand-aligned, audience-focused output.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in communications, journalism, public relations, public health, or related field.
• 5+ years of professional experience in communications, science communications, or nonprofit communications.

Responsibilities

• Own editorial output across all external communications channels and serve as primary writer/editor for newsletters, reports, and briefs.
• Draft and edit donor-facing and government/multilateral-facing materials to ensure clarity and audience appropriateness.
• Produce program-wide Sentinel newsletter and donor communications with calendar and distribution ownership.
• Manage Sentinel website updates and social media content, focusing on LinkedIn and audience engagement.
• Coordinate with Broad Communications and IGH to ensure brand consistency across institutional communications.

Skills

Outstanding writing

Editing skills

Editorial judgment

Independent work

Strategic communications

Education

Bachelor's degree in communications, journalism, public relations, public health, or related field

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite

Canva

Content Management Systems

Job description

Description & Requirements

About the Communications, Partnerships, and Policy Team

The Communications, Partnerships, and Policy (CPP) team advances Sentinel's external mission by managing the relationships, communications, and policy engagement that connect Sentinel's scientific work to the partners, donors, and institutions that make it possible. The team operates under the direct supervision of the Managing Director and works in close coordination with Sentinel's scientific and program leadership. The Communications Manager is a founding member of this team and serves as the primary content and production engine across all of Sentinel's external-facing communications.

Position Summary

The Communications Manager leads the development, production, and management of Sentinel's communications across all channels and audiences. This role owns Sentinel's content strategy and editorial output, translating complex scientific and programmatic work into compelling, high-quality communications for donors, partners, governments, scientific communities, and the broader public.The Communications Manager serves as the primary writer, editor, and production lead for the CPP team, working in close coordination with the Partnerships Manager on donor-facing communications and with the Manager of Policy on government and multilateral-facing content. The ideal candidate is an exceptional writer and editor with strong visual communication skills, deep organizational ability, and the editorial judgment to produce polished content across a wide range of formats and audiences with limited supervision.

Key Responsibilities

Content development and editorial leadership

• Own Sentinel's editorial output across all external communications channels, serving as primary writer and editor for program-wide content including newsletters, impact stories, website content, blogs, case studies, annual reports, program briefs, and one-pagers.
• Draft and edit donor-facing written products, including donor reports, impact updates, and stewardship communications, ensuring final products meet high standards of quality, accuracy, and audience appropriateness.
• Draft and edit government and multilateral-facing written products, including policy briefs, white papers, and talking points, ensuring final products are clear, precise, and appropriately framed for their intended audiences.
• Produce and distribute the program-wide Sentinel newsletter, directed at the broader Sentinel community including collaborators, colleagues, and training alumni, with full ownership of content development, editorial calendar, and distribution.
• Produce the donor-facing communications stream, including a tailored newsletter or equivalent, ensuring consistency with program messaging and donor relationship priorities.
• Draft presentation materials, conference content, talking points, and abstracts for program leadership across a range of external audiences and engagements.

Digital communications and channel management

• Manage and regularly update the Sentinel website, ensuring content is accurate, current, and aligned with program messaging and brand standards.
• Develop and execute Sentinel's social media strategy, with a primary focus on LinkedIn, including content creation, scheduling, and performance monitoring.
• Manage email communications platforms and newsletter distribution across program and donor-facing channels.
• Monitor digital channel performance and recommend adjustments to increase engagement and visibility.
• Coordinate communications surrounding scientific publications, conference presentations, and major program announcements, including drafting press releases and external announcements as appropriate.

Graphic design and brand management

• Design and produce reports, presentations, brochures, conference materials, posters, and other branded communications products.
• Develop infographics and visual content that communicate complex scientific and programmatic information clearly and accessibly.
• Maintain branded templates and visual standards across all Sentinel communications, ensuring consistency with Broad Institute communications standards.
• Coordinate photography, graphics, and multimedia assets in support of program communications.
• Coordinate with the Broad Communications team on brand, institutional messaging, and external announcements, and maintain a lateral coordination relationship with IGH's communications counterpart to ensure consistency across institutional communications.

Editorial and production calendar

• Maintain an annual communications and editorial calendar across all CPP team communications streams, ensuring alignment with program priorities and external engagement schedules.
• Manage production timelines for all communications outputs, ensuring consistent quality and on-time delivery across concurrent streams.
• Support conference presence and external events, owning materials production and channel management.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor's degree in communications, journalism, public relations, public health, or a related field.
• 5+ years of professional experience in communications, science communications, or nonprofit communications, with demonstrated progression in responsibility.
• Outstanding writing and editing skills across multiple formats and audiences, with a portfolio demonstrating high-quality communications materials.
• Strong graphic design experience using Adobe Creative Suite, Canva, or equivalent tools.
• Experience managing websites using content management systems and organizational social media accounts.
• Ability to work independently with limited supervision, exercising editorial judgment across multiple concurrent communications streams.

Preferred

• Experience communicating scientific research, public health, or global health programs to diverse audiences.
• Experience supporting communications for donor-funded or internationally operating programs.
• Familiarity with infectious disease, genomics, laboratory systems, or global health surveillance.
• Experience with photography, videography, or multimedia content creation.
• Experience with email marketing platforms, website analytics, and digital performance monitoring tools.

The ideal candidate is an exceptionally skilled writer and editor who produces polished, audience-appropriate content quickly and independently. They bring strong visual instincts and are equally comfortable drafting a donor impact update, designing a conference poster, and managing a website refresh. They understand that in this role they are the content engine for a team whose other members bring deep relationship and policy expertise, and they take pride in translating that expertise into communications that are clear, compelling, and precisely right for their audience. They are highly organized, proactive, and able to manage multiple concurrent production streams without losing quality or missing deadlines. They are curious about science and global health, and committed to making complex work accessible and visible

The Broad will not offer Visa Sponsorship for this opportunity.

The expected base pay range for this position as listed above is based on a 40 hour per week schedule. Broad provides pay ranges representing its reasonable and good faith estimate of what the organization reasonably expects to pay for a position at the time of posting. Actual compensation will vary based on factors including but not limited to, relevant skills, experience, education, qualifications, and other factors permissible by law.

At Broad, your base pay is just one part of a comprehensive total rewards package. From day one, this role offers a competitive benefits package including medical, dental, vision, life, and disability insurance; a 401(k) retirement plan; flexible spending and health savings accounts; at least 13 paid holidays; winter closure; paid time off; parental and family care leave; and an employee assistance program, among other Broad benefits.

The Broad Institute is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, religion, age, color, sex, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by local, state, or federal laws, rules, or regulations.

Should you need a reasonable accommodation to complete the application or interview process, please contact [e-mail] for assistance.