Community Engagement Liaison

QTS Realty Trust; Cedar Rapids (IA); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

QTS Realty Trust, Cedar Rapids, seeks a Community Liaison to be the face of our datacenter initiatives in local communities. You will build trust with residents, businesses, and officials, share project updates, and address concerns with transparency and empathy.

You will lead stakeholder engagement, coordinate with government relations and communications teams, organize public meetings, and monitor feedback to inform project planning and risk management.

Qualifications

• Five or more years of experience in community engagement, public affairs, or a related field.
• Bachelor's degree in Public Affairs, Political Science, Communications, Business, or related field.
• Experience collaborating with communities on large-scale development projects.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration and crisis response skills.
• Excellent verbal and written communication for diverse stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Establish and maintain trust-based relationships with residents, businesses, and officials.
• Organize opportunities to share updates and solicit feedback.
• Lead Community Complaint Management as per policy, including timely escalation.
• Attend public meetings, hearings and town halls to engage stakeholders.
• Partner with Community Impact and Government Relations teams to align priorities.
• Support regulatory permitting and policy navigation to enable project milestones.
• Coordinate with Communications & Brand teams to tell the QTS story locally.
• Update stakeholder maps and annual engagement strategy.
• Provide insights on community sentiment and risks to internal teams.

Skills

Community engagement

Public affairs

Stakeholder management

Crisis communication

Public speaking

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

Who we are:

As a global leader in digital infrastructure, QTS designs, builds and operates advanced data centers that support strategic AI, cloud and digital transformation initiatives. We are driven by a mission to connect the world for good and our people make it possible. Every single day, the creativity, dedication and genuine care for our communities are what push us forward and make this a truly special place to be.

Who You Are: (Job Summary)

Dynamic and community-minded professional with a passion for building relationships and fostering trust. You thrive in fast-paced environments where you can serve as a connector between corporate initiatives and local communities. With strong interpersonal and communication skills, you’re adept at listening to concerns, navigating complex stakeholder landscapes, and representing your organization with innovation, integrity, and empathy. You are proactive, strategic, and comfortable working independently in the field while collaborating cross-functionally with internal teams.

The Impact You Will Have:

As the Community Liaison at a QTS Data Center campus, you will be the face of QTS in the communities where we operate and grow. Your work will be instrumental in building trust, addressing concerns in real-time, and ensuring QTS is seen as a responsible and valued partner. By executing a strategic and informed engagement approach, you will help build and strengthen local relationships based on respect, trust and transparency; identify, manage and mitigate opposition; support smooth project execution while upholding and demonstrating QTS’s core values. Your efforts will directly contribute to the success of our data center developments and reinforce our commitment to being a positive force in every community we touch.

What You Will Do: (Job Responsibilities)

Serve as QTS’s primary local representative to establish, strengthen and maintain relationships built on trust, transparency and respect in a geographic region, engaging directly with residents, businesses, government officials, civil society, faith-based organizations, and advocacy groups.

• Establish a QTS community presence, acting as a first point of contact to share project updates, field community questions, and address concerns.
• Organize opportunities to share project updates and solicit community feedback.
• Serve as lead on Community Complaint Management as detailed in QTS Complaint Management Procedure to ensure community concerns are managed fairly, transparently and in a timely manner – including escalation as needed.
• Attend public meetings, events, hearings, and town halls to engage with local stakeholders, share QTS updates, solicit feedback, and demonstrate that QTS is an active member of the community.
• Partner with the QTS Community Impact Team to assess community development priorities to identify fit-for purpose partnerships and volunteer opportunities that align with QTS values and goals.
• Support Economic Development and Government Relations teams to navigate regulatory, permitting and policy environments to enable business continuity and meet project milestones.
• Partner with Communications & Brand teams to ensure consistent messaging, enable telling the QTS Story, and support the media team to engage with appropriate local media.
• Update and utilize Community Assessment tool to inform development and execution of engagement strategy and plan.
• Provide insights to internal QTS teams on community sentiment, key stakeholders, community priorities, and existing and emerging risks.
• Consistently update the key stakeholder map.
• Lead annual stakeholder engagement strategy, planning, and resource requests.
• Adhere to QTS requirements for tracking and reporting community engagement activities.

What You Will Need to Be Successful: (Required Qualifications, Education, Experience, Certifications)

• Five or more years of experience in community engagement, public affairs, government relations, or a related field.
• Bachelor's degree in Public Affairs, Political Science, Communications, Business, or related professional experience.
• Experience collaborating directly with communities, particularly in industries involving land use, infrastructure, or large-scale development projects.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate cross functionally in a high volume, fast paced, dynamic organization.
• Experience in crisis response and managing public opposition to development projects.
• Demonstrable action-oriented leadership.
• Exceptional communication and public speaking skills, with the ability to engage with diverse stakeholders in a respectful and solution-driven manner.

Nice to Have: (Preferred Qualifications, Education, Experience, Certifications)

• Master’s degree in Public Affairs, Political Science, Communications, Business, or related professional experience.
• Experience in real estate development, energy, mining, or hyperscale projects is a plus.
• Military veterans with Civil Affairs Corps experience or professionals with a background in community engagement for regulated industries are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Ability to navigate local government processes, permitting, and regulatory frameworks while maintaining transparency and accountability.

Other Key Skills: (KSAs)

• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Ability to be flexible and adapt to changing situations at a high-growth company.
• Ability to prioritize, multitask, and deliver high-quality work in tight timeframes.

We conform to all the laws, statutes, and regulations concerning equal employment opportunities and affirmative action. We strongly encourage women, minorities, individuals with disabilities and veterans to apply to all of our job openings. We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin, age, disability status, Genetic Information & Testing, Family & Medical Leave, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We prohibit retaliation against individuals who bring forth any complaint, orally or in writing, to the employer or the government, or against any individuals who assist or participate in the investigation of any complaint or discrimination claim.

The "Know Your Rights" Poster is included here: Know Your Rights (English) Know Your Rights (Spanish) The pay transparency policy is available here: Pay Transparency Nondiscrimination Poster-Formatted QTS is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities.