Senior Managing Director of Communications and External Affairs, Flamboyan Foundation

Senior Managing Director of Communications and External Affairs

Reports To: DC Deputy Director

Direct Reports: Manages a Team of 3-4

Location: Onsite 4 days/week; Washington, DC

About Flamboyan Foundation

Guided by the belief that all children deserve the opportunity to live a fulfilling life, the Flamboyan Foundation works to ensure every child in the US and Puerto Rico receives an outstanding education. In Puerto Rico, we are focused on improving reading proficiency for students in the early grades and revitalizing the island by making strategic investments in arts, culture, and education. Our work in Washington, D.C. centers on strengthening family engagement in schools and school systems across the country through trainings, fellowships, and school-based partnerships. 

Role Overview

Based in Flamboyan’s Washington, DC office, the Senior Managing Director (SMD) of Communications and External Affairs is responsible for setting the vision, strategy, and long-term management of communications, branding, marketing, and external relations for the priorities of Flamboyan DC. Specifically, they will craft and execute strategic communications strategies that increase public visibility of Flamboyan’s programmatic work, locally in DC and across the United States. The successful candidate will be responsible for ensuring consistency in all communications and marketing activities in DC and across the United States; promoting Flamboyan’s brand among multiple audiences; ensuring that Flamboyan’s message is distributed effectively across all channels (digital and traditional) and to targeted audiences; and increasing constituent and media awareness of the vital role that REAL Family Engagement plays in student success.

The SMD, Communications and External Affairs will collaborate with team leads across the office to create messaging, secure speaking engagements, and help grow social media reach for Flamboyan as an organization as well as Flamboyan’s CEO and Board Chair and President and COO. In addition to our impact priorities, the SMD is responsible for the overall strength of the Flamboyan Foundation brand in partnership with the SMD of Communications based in our Puerto Rico office. Together, they partner to ensure an organizational cohesion that serves all internal and external constituencies – including staff. The SMD will partner with stakeholders across the organization to cultivate productive relationships and execute on communications and marketing priorities across internal teams.

This is a unique opportunity for a strategic communications leader to join a collaborative, caring, and inclusive team and design a communications and marketing strategy to help Flamboyan amplify its impact in Washington, DC, and nationwide. The ideal candidate is deeply rooted in equity, brings an open, transparent, asset-based, and uplifting approach to management and teamwork, and has an authentic and unwavering commitment to Flamboyan's mission.

Job Responsibilities

Strategic Visioning & Implementation of Marketing & Communications

• Develop and implement a vision and strategy for Flamboyan’s marketing and communications (including roles, goals, and metrics) to help build public visibility and awareness of REAL Family Engagement in alignment with organizational objectives.
• Develop and lead a press and media strategy focused on increased brand awareness; strategy should include designing media engagement strategy; initiating media pitches and interviews; providing talking points and other materials as needed for senior staff; and responding to media inquiries quickly and effectively, ensuring our communications amplify our core values and commitment to equity. Define a strong and relevant brand narrative and image as articulated by the organization’s mission, core values, value proposition, aspirations and impact.
• Foster a cohesive organizational look, feel, and tone across all communications channels and initiatives. This includes ensuring consistency of design standards, quality, and tone.
• Develop, implement, and optimize a social media strategy for Flamboyan, including Flamboyan’s Senior Leadership Team, and report out on results
• Identify the organization’s communications and marketing related technology needs, and develop a roadmap, budget, and execution plan
• Maintain a strong understanding of best practices, key trends, target market needs, and industry changes to inform future communication and marketing strategies
• Foster and develop the reputation of Flamboyan as the leader in the education and family engagement spaces in DC and nationally

Expand External Recognition & Influence

• Translate research and data into compelling storytelling to expand the reach and impact of the organization, with a focus on system-level leaders and convenings
• Manage the day-to-day operations of Flamboyan’s communications function, including branding, planning, and overseeing the execution of the communications editorial calendar; proactively planning end-to-end workflows; and remaining knowledgeable and informed about the status of all tasks that fall under the communications function
• Lead strategy and execute approval for all earned media, including articles for publication, press releases, letters-to-the-editor, and opinion pieces
• Build and maintain strong working relationships with key local and national education reporters, editors, and journalists
• Manage Flamboyan’s event and initiative sponsorships, ensuring that the organization is maximizing visibility and engagement with its partners and meeting our intention to uplift the voices of marginalized people and creating spaces that are infused with diversity, equity and inclusiveness  
• Build a digital strategy that optimizes Flamboyan’s reach and presence and drives deep audience engagement and adoption of our products and offerings
• Incorporate inclusion and equity into all internal and external branding and communications

Team Leadership

• Build and develop a cohesive, high performing team, driven by impact and accountability to organizational culture and goals
• Set annual measurable success metrics for Flamboyan’s communications strategy, including media coverage, thought leadership writing, speaking engagements, and social media impact
• Steward a culture of innovation, leveraging existing Flamboyan assets and designing with an eye to the future
• Promote collaboration and accountability within and across teams, leading with optimism and building trust and credibility internally and externally
• Oversee the Communications and External Affairs budget, delivering communication and marketing initiatives within established budgets and identifying opportunities to reduce spending or increase value at all times.

Organizational Stewardship

• Serve as an ambassador for Flamboyan’s organizational brand generally and our family engagement work specifically locally and nationally
• Model and foster the Flamboyan core values of People, Impact, Catalytic Action, and Equity
• Responsibly steward financial and human resources
• Continuously deepen your expertise and readiness to be an equity-centered team member and contributor in our REAL Family Engagement efforts, self-awareness, inclusivity in your work, and serve as an agent of change for Flamboyan.
• Other duties as assigned.

Organizational Equity + Culture Responsibilities

In addition to the responsibilities of the role detailed above, as a member of the Flamboyan team, you will be expected to carry high standards, contribute to a positive workplace culture, and exercise a deep and active commitment to equity and inclusion. As a member of the staff, you will be expected to:

Self Awareness + Maturity

• Carry a strong sense of your authentic self.
• Carry high self-efficacy and ownership of goals.
• Acknowledge and correct mistakes without ego.
• Maintain a willingness to learn and grow.
• Understand where your strength and growth areas are.
• Actively and with confidence upward manage proactively.
• Be discrete and trustworthy, able to handle confidential information with care and grace.
• Have high emotional intelligence and be able to navigate nuance.

Anti-Racist + Bias Competence

• Actionably live your commitment to social justice.
• Confidently speak openly and courageously about your own equity journey.
• Be willing to confront your own biases and hold yourself accountable for disrupting them.
• Ask who is not at the table.
• Build time into projects to prioritize the voices that are not historically heard or valued.

Collaboration + Influence

• Be a skilled collaborator and look for ways to include internal and external stakeholders in your work.
• Know how to get results by leveraging the power of your expertise and informal authority to influence internal and external stakeholders, and discern which to use, and when.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in strategic communications, marketing, or public affairs
• 12-15+ years of related professional agency or in-house experience with a demonstrated track record of raising visibility and building credibility of mission-driven organizations
• 5+ years leading a communications or marketing division and setting vision and strategy at an organizational level in an education, social service, or non-profit sector context
• History of creating leading innovative, multi-strategy marketing and communications campaigns with demonstrated amplification of missions and brands that advance influence and impact
• Experience building highly engaging owned media platforms and garnering earned media coverage in local, national, and/or trade contexts
• Proven ability to lead organizational brand narrative development and adoption in collaboration with internal stakeholders
• Track record of developing strong, collaborative partnerships with other executive leaders to drive organizational cohesion and deepened outcomes on work product
• Excellent writing and presentation skills, experience developing and delivering external presentations
• Strong and highly-accountible team leader, as demonstrated by history of creating diverse, inclusive, and engaged teams
• Proven ability to break down silos and promote cross-functional communication and collaboration

Compensation

The salary for the Senior Managing Director, Communications and External Affairs role is $158,610. At Flamboyán, our starting salaries are based on four beliefs: we are competitive, we maintain internal equity across functions, there is room to develop, and salaries are aligned with the market. We avoid negotiating starting salaries to create equity across our team, and we set our salaries in such a way that staff can increase their compensation as they develop over time within their role.

Our Total Rewards program includes an excellent benefits package designed to help you maintain work-life integration. Evaluated each year, we offer staff a comprehensive set of benefits. Currently, medical and dental insurance are included. We offer a generous leave package, including 15 days of vacation, 12 days of sick leave, 10 holidays, three days of mourning, full pay during grand jury and small jury service, up to two days for approved professional development, closure of the office for winter holidays between Christmas and New Year's, and 9 Summer Fridays which are 4-day work weeks in July and August. We also offer medical leave and maternity/paternity leave. We make a retirement contribution with an additional 3%. We provide individual professional development and skill development opportunities throughout the organization. We give you long-term disability insurance. We refund the mobile phone payment (only for specific functions.

Work Location + Schedule

• This position is based out of our Washington, DC office in Dupont Circle. All staff are required to live a commutable distance to our office at 1730 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC.
• Flamboyan has a hybrid work schedule which is 4-days in the office and 1-day remote each week along with 1 fully remote week quarterly. Our in-person workplace design is based on our belief that being physically present with colleagues internally and partners externally is essential to building relationships and optimizes our ability to achieve our individual and collective goals.
• Local and national travel may be necessary.