Media Relations Manager

System1; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health Insurance

Medical Insurance

Dental Insurance

401K Plan

Flexible Hybrid Work

Educational Reimbursement

Leadership Exposure

Recognition Scheme

Social & Wellbeing Programs

Job summary

System1, a leading global marketing decision platform, is seeking a Media Relations Manager in Chicago to build our media presence, drive earned coverage, and generate high-intent leads through data-driven storytelling.

You will manage day-to-day media outreach, craft press materials, coordinate conference participation, and collaborate with Marketing, Partnerships, and Sales to turn coverage into business results.

Qualifications

• 3–5 years of experience in media relations, PR, or communications.
• Demonstrated track record of securing coverage in trade and business press.
• Experience managing conference speaking pipelines and/or awards submissions.
• Strong writing skills across press releases, media briefers, and spokesperson talking points.
• Comfortable working cross-functionally with sales teams to connect PR activity to commercial impact.

Responsibilities

• Handle day-to-day media relations (inbound requests and proactive outreach).
• Cultivate relationships with reporters and industry influencers; build targeted media lists.
• Prepare media briefers, Q&A docs, and talking points for interviews.
• Manage media attendees and press logistics at events.
• Draft owned materials like press releases and bylined articles.
• Identify speaking opportunities and manage award submissions.
• Support monthly PR recaps and share of voice reporting.

Skills

Relationship Building

Storytelling

Positive Attitude

Getting Things Done

Intellectual Curiosity

Meltwater

Tools

Meltwater

Job description

In the words of one of our senior clients recently…

\"Market research has changed more in the last 3 years than in the previous 40\"

System1 is the leading global Marketing decision making platform. We help brands measure and understand whether their marketing works. Predictive technology is our passion but our focus is very much human. We understand the power of emotion and capture the nuances of human behaviour to power data-driven decisions. We want to drive change and rewire behaviours, envisioning a world where our pioneering methodologies are embedded in the workflows of every marketing decision-maker. We are also who we are because of our people. So if you share our enthusiasm, are ambitious, creative, and highly motivated, then we’d love to hear from you! Join the System1 team to continue to help us remove the guesswork for marketeers everywhere, as well as secure our growth, ambition, and success.

Becoming part of our team

• AIM Listed, and with 10 Global Offices and over 150 employees, System1 is a fast-changing business. With exceptional IP, technological advantage and a world-class team we are very well positioned for rapid growth. Central to this is our people. We need to hire the right people, into the right roles, at the right time.
• Are you up for being a part of the Marketing team to promote System1, our thought leadership, partnership activity and product launches?
• Are you excited by working with leading edge IP and products that can make a huge impact on our customers’ businesses?
• Do you relish the role of being the disruptor in a category and rise to the challenge of stretching goals?
• Do you enjoy being able to utilise various skills, like research, media relations, copywriting and relationship building?

What will you be doing?

System1 is looking for a Media Relations Manager to build our media presence and generate quality leads through earned media, speaking engagements, and industry awards. This person will be the day-to-day driver of press outreach and relationship-building with reporters covering marketing, advertising, and research — translating System1’s emotion-based creative effectiveness work into stories that land coverage and drive high-intent leads. This role will report into the Global PR Manager and sit within the wider Marketing team.

Media Relations

• Handle day-to-day media relations, both responsive (inbound requests, HARO/Qwoted-style platforms) and proactive (storymining from daily news and System1’s testing platforms for real-time commentary opportunities)
• Cultivate and maintain relationships with reporters, journalists, and key industry influencers; build and maintain targeted media lists segmented by beat (adtech/martech, advertising trade press, business press)
• Prepare media briefers, Q&A docs, and talking points ahead of interviews and press engagements
• Manage media attendees and press logistics at events (System1-hosted and third-party conferences)
• Monitor industry and competitor coverage to spot newsjacking opportunities and track share of voice
• Support crisis/reactive communications and rapid-response messaging as needed

Content & Thought Leadership

• Draft owned materials like press releases, bylined articles and quotes
• Partner with subject matter experts internally to surface story angles from System1 research and product data
• Identify and manage the pipeline of speaking opportunities (conferences, podcasts, panels) alongside System1’s Partnerships team
• Draft and submit award entries promoting System1’s technology, executives and campaigns and thought leadership

Measurement, Reporting & Operations

• Support the preparation of monthly PR recaps reporting on media coverage, share of voice, and PR-sourced lead attribution
• Maintain internal documentation of all media coverage and work with the Digital Coordinator to add relevant media coverage to System1’s website and social schedule
• Serve as a connective point between Marketing, Partnerships, and Commercial to ensure media wins are surfaced into sales enablement materials and channels like LinkedIn

You need to be this kind of person:

• Relationship Builder – leveraging relationship-building skills to keep internal teams informed of the latest PR campaigns and updates, and external contacts updated on System1’s ongoing thought leadership
• Storyteller – you enjoy storytelling and finding creative ways to showcase data and thought leadership. We are looking for someone who will be able to propose compelling pitch angles around System1’s latest research and advertising and innovation insights
• Positive Attitude – enjoys working in a creative and fast-moving environment and thrives in a team role co-ordinating between different departments
• Getting Things Done – an ability to get things done on time and to a high standard. Enjoys working on multiple projects at once without sacrificing quality
• Intellectual Curiosity – given the thought leadership we create and foundation in behavioral science, an appreciation and curiosity in our research and the world of advertising would help

You need to have the following experience:

• 3–5 years of experience in media relations, PR, or communications, ideally agency or in-house at a B2B, martech/adtech, or research/insights company
• Demonstrated track record of securing coverage in relevant trade and business press (e.g., Ad Age, Adweek, Digiday, Campaign US, Marketing Dive, PRWeek, WSJ/business press a plus as well as other key verticals)
• Experience managing conference speaking pipelines and/or awards submissions
• Strong writing skills across press releases, media briefers, and spokesperson talking points
• Comfortable working cross-functionally with sales teams to connect PR activity to commercial impact
• Familiarity with media monitoring/coverage tracking tools like Meltwater
• Competitive salary + bonus scheme
• Health Insurance / Medical Insurance / Dental Insurance
• Pension / 401K Plan
• Flexible working arrangements (hybrid)
• Educational reimbursement opportunities
• Unlimited opportunities to interact with some of the leading thinkers in advertising and marketing fields
• A Recognition Scheme to say thank you!
• Regular socials, including summer and winter parties.
• Wellbeing resources, including “de-clutter days” for your personal and professional needs.

We welcome applicants from all diverse communities and encourage our candidates to ask us about reasonable adjustments that we may be able to make to support through our recruitment process and while in post.