Director of Marketing and Communications

Responsibilities

As Director of Marketing and Communications, you will lead the organization's integrated marketing and communications strategy, develop a high-performing team, and ensure that all initiatives contribute to its broader mission and long-term objectives. Your key responsibilities will include:

• Build and lead a high-performing team: Recruit, coach, and develop senior leaders responsible for Media, Brand and Content, and Marketing, empowering them to build effective teams and deliver outstanding results. 
• Define the department's organizational structure, capabilities, priorities, and performance expectations while fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability, trust, and continuous development. 
• Develop and execute an integrated strategy: Establish an ambitious marketing and communications strategy that strengthens brand positioning, advances organizational priorities, and increases awareness and understanding of the movement and its principles. 
• Identify opportunities to reach new audiences, develop creative campaigns and initiatives, and convert awareness and interest into meaningful engagement and action. 
• Shape public narratives and protect organizational reputation: Guide external communications and ensure messaging is accurate, accessible, compelling, and appropriate for different audiences. 
• Exercise independent editorial judgment, oversee high-profile communications, and manage sensitive topics, public scrutiny, and potential reputational challenges. 
• Maintain trust and credibility with existing communities, major donors, senior leadership, and other important stakeholders. 
• Build strategic relationships across the ecosystem: Collaborate with leaders and communications teams at aligned organizations to identify shared opportunities, coordinate initiatives where appropriate, and strengthen public understanding of the movement. 
• Contribute to organizational leadership: Act as a strategic partner to the CEO and senior leadership team, helping shape organizational direction and ensuring communications priorities align with broader business and mission objectives. 
• Challenge established approaches, identify opportunities to build new capabilities, and introduce innovative initiatives that increase the organization's reach and impact. 
• Communicate strategic risks, trade-offs, and progress clearly to senior stakeholders while ensuring alignment across functions. 

Requirements

The ideal candidate is a strategic and entrepreneurial leader with deep expertise in at least one major marketing or communications discipline and the ability to lead specialists across complementary areas. You should bring:

• Significant professional experience and a strong track record in at least one of the following areas: marketing, communications, media relations, or brand strategy. 
• Broad expertise across marketing and communications disciplines, with the ability to develop integrated strategies and recruit, guide, and empower specialists with complementary skills. 
• Substantial experience leading teams through managers or senior leaders, including coaching, developing talent, building alignment, and delivering results through others. 
• Demonstrated experience building and scaling teams or organizational functions in startups or similarly fast-growing environments. 
• Proven ability to attract exceptional talent, establish clear expectations, manage performance, and develop high-performing teams. 
• Experience working in publicly visible or reputationally sensitive environments, with the judgment and composure to lead effectively under scrutiny. 
• Strong editorial judgment and the ability to independently assess the accuracy, clarity, and appropriateness of communications across different audiences. 
• An entrepreneurial and ambitious mindset, with the ability to challenge assumptions, develop new initiatives, operate without a predefined playbook, and translate strategic ideas into execution. 
• Excellent stakeholder management and cross-functional collaboration skills, including the ability to keep senior leaders informed about progress, risks, and strategic trade-offs. 
• Strong alignment with the organization's mission and core principles, together with the ability to engage thoughtfully with effective altruism's ideas, arguments, and debates. Previous employment in or long-standing membership of the effective altruism community is not required. 
• Excellent communication, leadership, and decision-making skills, with the ability to balance strategic direction and operational execution.