Director, Executive Communications

Covista; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 100,000 - 181,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, vision, life and_dis-

Job summary

Covista is seeking a strategic communications leader to own the CEO's external and internal platform and shape core narratives that align with business strategy and reputation goals.

You will elevate the CEO's authority by spotting moments across media, planning engagements, and guiding the editorial process from briefing materials to speeches and bylines. This role requires a track record advising C‑suite leaders and comfort with AI tools to move faster.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in communications, marketing, journalism or related field required.
• 10+ years of communications experience, including significant time advising a CEO or C-suite leader directly, whether in-house, at an agency or both
• Strategic judgment: a track record of building an executive's platform and choosing the channels, moments and opportunities that advanced business goals
• An exceptional editor's ear: the ability to absorb a leader's voice, sharpen their thinking and elevate their own writing across formats
• Executive social expertise: hands-on experience shaping a senior leader's LinkedIn presence with measurable impact
• Business fluency: comfort working at the intersection of corporate reputation, investor relations and company strategy, ideally at a publicly traded company
• Discretion and presence: trusted with sensitive information, steady in high-stakes situations, and confident counseling senior leaders
• Comfort with AI tools: you actively use AI to produce better work, faster

Responsibilities

• Lead preparation for high-stakes moments, including briefing materials, messaging, Q&A and rehearsal for media interviews, keynotes, panels and investor-facing settings
• Draft and edit when needed, including speeches, remarks, bylines and presentations, while also editing and elevating the CEO's own writing
• Build and run the CEO's communications calendar and operating rhythm with his chief of staff and executive assistant, making sure approvals, timelines and details are handled
• Define and report on success measures for the CEO's platform, connecting visibility and engagement to reputation and business outcomes
• Use AI and technology to work smarter, sharpen insight and move faster
• Help shape the CEO's external visibility across speaking engagements, conferences, media, industry forums, policy settings and executive social, choosing opportunities for business impact rather than volume
• Connect the CEO's voice to key business moments, including earnings, investor events, partnerships, research launches and major company milestones, working closely with Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
• Help shape the CEO's internal communications presence, including town halls, leadership forums and colleague messages, so his voice reaches our people as clearly as it reaches external audiences

Skills

Strategic thinking

Executive communications

Editing

Social media

Education

Bachelor's degree in communications

Job description

About Covista

Covista (NYSE: CVSA) is America's largest healthcare educator, serving 100,000 students and supported by a community of 400,000 alumni across five accredited institutions. Through personalized, tech-enabled education powered by 10,000 faculty and colleagues, Covista expands access to healthcare careers and addresses the U.S. healthcare workforce shortage at scale. Covista is the parent company of American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine, Chamberlain University, Ross University School of Medicine, Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine and Walden University. Our colleagues come from a wide range of backgrounds, business, academia, healthcare, government and nonprofits, and are part of a culture where doing exceptional work and making a meaningful difference for students and society aren't separate goals—they're one and the same. This means creating an environment where colleagues can develop new skills, build careers that match their ambitions and see the tangible impact of their work on healthcare education and workforce development. Colleagues who deliver results and embrace new tools to work smarter are valued for their contributions. But what makes working at Covista distinctive is our impact. Our faculty and colleagues don't just support healthcare education—they shape it. This isn't abstract purpose work. It's solving real problems for real people in real communities while advancing careers.

We operate on a hybrid schedule with four in-office days per week (Monday-Thursday). This approach enhances creativity, innovation, communication, and relationship-building, fostering a dynamic and collaborative work environment.

For more information, visit covista.com and follow us on LinkedIn , Instagram and YouTube .

Responsibilities

CEO Voice and Platform Strategy

Help build and steward the CEO's communications platform, including core narratives, signature themes and proof points that line up with Covista's business strategy and reputation goals

Elevate his authority by spotting the ideas, data and moments where Covista can shape the national conversation on healthcare and education, and finding the formats that carry them furthest

Stay at the leading edge of how executives break through: track what's working across media, platforms and formats and bring the ideas worth trying

Be a trusted editorial partner: a second set of eyes and a collaborator, keeping Covista's narrative consistent across every format and audience

Offer counsel on which moments to lead, which to amplify and which to skip, based on business priorities, news cycles and audience insight

Channels, Events and Moments

Help plan the CEO's external visibility across speaking engagements, conferences, media, industry forums, policy settings and executive social, choosing opportunities for business impact rather than volume

Connect the CEO's voice to key business moments, including earnings, investor events, partnerships, research launches and major company milestones, working closely with Investor Relations and Corporate Communications

Help shape the CEO's internal communications presence, including town halls, leadership forums and colleague messages, so his voice reaches our people as clearly as it reaches external audiences

Counsel, Preparation and Execution

Lead preparation for high-stakes moments, including briefing materials, messaging, Q&A and rehearsal for media interviews, keynotes, panels and investor-facing settings

Draft and edit when needed, including speeches, remarks, bylines and presentations, while also editing and elevating the CEO's own writing

Build and run the CEO's communications calendar and operating rhythm with his chief of staff and executive assistant, making sure approvals, timelines and details are handled

Define and report on success measures for the CEO's platform, connecting visibility and engagement to reputation and business outcomes

Use AI and technology to work smarter, sharpen insight and move faster

Who Thrives Here

You're a strategic communicator first. You know that the most valuable thing you can do for a CEO is help them say the right thing in the right place at the right moment, not write every word. You're a trend spotter by instinct, seeing what's breaking through in media, culture and executive communications before it's obvious and turning it into thought leadership worth acting on. You've earned the trust of top executives by being candid, discreet and consistently right on judgment, so you're confident pushing back and comfortable in any room with senior leaders. You have a great ear for voice, so the work gets stronger and still sounds like him. You're energized by building rather than maintaining, drawn to a mission bigger than any message and at your best as part of a team.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in communications, marketing, journalism or related field required.

10+ years of communications experience, including significant time advising a CEO or C-suite leader directly, whether in-house, at an agency or both

Strategic judgment: a track record of building an executive's platform and choosing the channels, moments and opportunities that advanced business goals

An exceptional editor's ear: the ability to absorb a leader's voice, sharpen their thinking and elevate their own writing across formats

Executive social expertise: hands-on experience shaping a senior leader's LinkedIn presence with measurable impact

Business fluency: comfort working at the intersection of corporate reputation, investor relations and company strategy, ideally at a publicly traded company

Discretion and presence: trusted with sensitive information, steady in high-stakes situations, and confident counseling senior leaders

Comfort with AI tools: you actively use AI to produce better work, faster

Preferred Background

Experience supporting executives at publicly traded companies is a plus, as is a background in higher education, healthcare or regulated industries. You move easily between strategic counsel and flawless execution. You build trust quickly with the executive office, internal partners and external stakeholders alike. A bachelor's degree in communications, journalism, marketing or a related field is required. If you want your best work to serve a mission this big, we'd like to meet you.

Additional Information

In support of the pay transparency laws enacted across the country, the expected salary range for this position is between $100,171.61 and $181,034.70. Actual pay will be adjusted based on job-related factors permitted by law, such as experience and training; geographic location; licensure and certifications; market factors; departmental budgets; and responsibility. Our Talent Acquisition Team will be happy to answer any questions you may have, and we look forward to learning more about your salary requirements. The position qualifies for the below benefits.

• Health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance
• 401k Retirement Program + 6% employer match

12 Paid Holidays

For more information related to our benefits please visit: https://careers.covista.com/benefits

You are also eligible to participate in an annual incentive program, subject to the rules governing the program, whereby an award, if any, depends on various factors, including, without limitation, individual and organizational performance.

Equal Opportunity – Minority / Female / Disability / V / Gender Identity / Sexual Orientation