Founding Communications Lead

Listen Labs; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Healthcare benefits

Equity ownership

Learning stipend

AI tools budget

Meal program

Flexible time off

Team offsites

Growth opportunities

Job summary

Listen Labs, an AI-powered customer understanding platform in San Francisco, seeks a Founding Communications Lead to shape how the company is perceived by customers, candidates, reporters, analysts, and the tech community.

You will own communications strategy, narratives, and executive storytelling, working directly with the Head of Marketing to build the company’s messaging, media relations, and employer brand from the ground up.

Qualifications

• 5–8+ years in communications, PR, or related roles.
• B2B SaaS communications experience is important.
• Agency PR or journalism experience is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Own Listen’s communications strategy across media relations, executive communications, announcements, employer brand, and core narrative.
• Develop Listen’s narratives, talking points, and press materials for press, customers, analysts, and internal teams.
• Drive media relations in tech and B2B, identify stories, shape angles, prepare pitches, and build reporter relationships.
• Create high‑quality materials: press releases, media kits, fact sheets, exec bios, briefs, and interview prep.
• Prepare executives for media moments, events, and tough questions to stay on message.
• Shape executive thought leadership: founder narratives, bylines, op‑eds, speaking opportunities, and POVs.
• Partner with leadership on major announcements: product launches, funding, momentum, research, events.
• Build employer brand to attract elite technical talent and communicate culture of ownership.
• Support awards, analyst briefings, and stakeholder communications to strengthen credibility.

Skills

Storytelling

Media relations

Executive communications

B2B SaaS

C-suite partnerships

Job description

TL;DR We’re hiring a Founding Communications Lead to shape how Listen shows up in the market — with customers, candidates, reporters, analysts, and the broader technology community.

Listen is building the future of AI-powered customer understanding, and we need someone who can help polish and amplify the story we tell about ourselves. You’ll work directly with our Head of Marketing and leadership team to build Listen’s communications foundation across media, executive storytelling, announcements, employer brand, and internal and external narrative.

This role is for a sharp, polished, high-judgment communications professional who knows how to turn company momentum into clear, credible stories. You’ll help us earn attention from tech and B2B media, prepare executives to tell the story well, and make sure our message is consistent across every important audience.

This is a senior IC role with high ownership. You’ll likely replace much of what a PR agency would traditionally do, while building the communications function from the ground up.

Min. 5–8 years in communications, PR, media relations, executive communications, journalism, or related roles. B2B SaaS communications experience is important. Agency PR or journalism experience is a plus.

Background

Listen Labs is an AI-powered research platform that helps teams uncover insights from customer interviews in hours — not months. We help customers analyze conversations, surface themes, and make faster, smarter product decisions.

Company highlights

• World-Class Team: Founded by serial entrepreneurs (previous AI exit), former co‑founders, and talent from Jane Street, Twitter, Stripe, affirm, Bain, Goldman Sachs, and many more Sequoia-backed startups (plus IOI/ICPC backgrounds).
• Hypergrowth: We’re a fast-growing team backed by top-tier investors that’s grown several‑fold in the past year, and we’re set on multiplying that again. We move fast, care deeply about craft, and love working with people who take ownership.
• Traction: Rapid growth across segments with enterprise wins at Google, Microsoft, Nestlé, and P&G.
• Performance: Industry‑leading win rate driven by a highly differentiated product.
• Market Validation: Consistently winning customers across all segments with over six‑figure lands that lead to quick expansions.
• Viral Product: Interviews are shared with tens of thousands of viewers, fueling PLG, organic expansion, and daily inbound from Fortune 500s.

What You’ll Do

• Own Listen’s communications strategy across media relations, executive communications, company announcements, employer brand, and core company narrative.
• Develop Listen’s key narratives, talking points, and stories we use with press, customers, candidates, analysts, investors, and internal teams.
• Drive media relations across tech and B2B media, identifying the right stories, shaping compelling angles, preparing pitches, and building trusted reporter relationships.
• Create high‑quality communications materials, including press releases, media kits, fact sheets, executive bios, briefing documents, messaging guides, and interview prep.
• Prepare executives and spokespeople for media moments, customer conversations, events, and tough questions so they can stay clear, credible, and on message.
• Shape executive thought leadership, including founder narratives, bylines, op‑eds, speaking opportunities, social posts, and public‑facing POVs.
• Partner with leadership on major announcements, including product launches, funding news, customer momentum, research reports, events, and company milestones.
• Build Listen’s employer brand for elite technical talent by telling the story of our team, technical ambition, product velocity, and culture of ownership.
• Support awards, rankings, analyst briefings, and stakeholder communications that strengthen Listen’s credibility in the market.

Who You Are

• You are an excellent storyteller with strong instincts for what makes something newsworthy, credible, and memorable.
• You have real communications experience, ideally in B2B SaaS, tech, AI, enterprise software, or a high‑growth startup environment.
• You are polished and high‑judgment, with the ability to work directly with founders, executives, reporters, customers, analysts, and candidates.
• You can write clearly and quickly across many formats: pitches, announcements, founder posts, talking points, bylines, internal notes, press materials, and executive narratives.
• You are comfortable operating as a senior IC and building a function from zero to one.
• You care about both external reputation and internal clarity — because great communications should help the world understand the company and help the company understand itself.

You Might Be a Fit If

• You’ve led communications, PR, executive communications, or media relations for a high‑growth B2B SaaS or technology company.
• You’ve worked at a strong PR agency and want to move in‑house to build the function from the inside.
• You’ve been a journalist or worked closely with journalists, especially in tech, startups, business, or enterprise software.
• You’ve helped turn company milestones, product launches, founder ideas, or customer momentum into stories that earned attention.
• You are excited by the idea of building the communications foundation for one of the fastest‑growing AI companies in customer understanding.

Life at Listen

• Health, covered: Full medical, dental, and vision, with plans starting your first day of the month after you join. FSA/HSA and life insurance available too.
• Competitive compensation: Backed by world‑class investors including Sequoia, Ribbit Capital, Conviction, and Pear VC — we hire the best and treat them accordingly, with meaningful equity ownership.
• $1,000/year to keep learning: Books, courses, conferences, coaching, language lessons — almost anything that makes you sharper.
• $600/year for your health and headspace: Gym memberships, race fees, massages, ergonomic gear, and more.
• $300/month in AI tools: A dedicated budget for the software and GPU credits that make you faster.
• Fed, daily: A private chef serves lunch and dinner in our SF office; NYC and London teams get daily meal credit.
• Flexible time off: A take‑what‑you‑need vacation policy.
• We celebrate together: Company offsites (Hawaii this Summer!) and events like our annual holiday party — every win is a team win.
• Room to grow: As an early member of the team, you'll shape processes from scratch and grow alongside the company.