Senior Strategic Communications Specialist

POSITION SUMMARY

The City of Fort Lauderdale employees possess a passion for public service demonstrated by a high degree of enthusiasm, self-reliance, and job proficiency. They effectively convey the vision and mission of the organization and provide excellent service and satisfaction to our internal and external customers.

Plans, organizes, creates, develops and implements strategies, techniques, and campaigns to effectively communicate and market City programs, services, events, activities, and initiatives, in accordance with the City's mission, goals, and objectives.

This position will reside in the Strategic Communications Division conducting marketing and communications initiatives for various City departments and divisions as assigned.

The employee in this class is expected to establish and maintain effective working relationships with City staff, the media, and representatives of other governmental jurisdictions, private businesses, civic organizations, non-profit entities, residents, and the general public. Under the direction of the Strategic Communications Manager, the employee exercises considerable initiative and independent judgment in performing work assignments.

NOTE: The duties of this position will include all of those duties set forth in the official job description.

This position will remain open until a sufficient number of qualified applications have been received.

The City offers a wide variety of benefits to employees. In addition to the competitive benefits package and salary, the City participates in the Florida Retirement System (FRS) which offers an investment option and a pension option, and requires a 3% contribution from employees. New hires are automatically enrolled in FRS.

Say "Hello" to the City of Fort Lauderdale and Say "Goodbye" to Your Student Loan!

That's right! Under the U.S. Department of Education's Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, the remaining balance on your student loan may be forgiven after you have made 120 qualifying monthly payments while working full-time at the City of Fort Lauderdale! Please visit www.fortlauderdale.gov/PublicServiceLoanForgiveness for more information or to see if you qualify.

This job classification is in Management Category III for benefits purposes, which includes Six (6) additional management vacation days per calendar year and a monthly vehicle allowance of $250.00.

This is a non-classified "at-will" position and is not subject to Civil Service Rules or any collective bargaining agreement.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

Essential functions are the basic job duties that an employee must be able to perform, with or without reasonable accommodation. The list of essential functions, as outlined herein, is intended to be representative of the tasks performed within this classification. The omission of a function does not preclude management from assigning essential duties not listed herein if such duties relate to the position.

• Develops, designs and executes mission-focused integrated internal and external marketing and communications campaigns
• Manages high-profile City-wide communications and marketing projects
• Researches, writes, and disseminates news releases, media alerts, and other informational materials to newspaper, television, radio, and other media outlets
• Develops and implements a regular system of media monitoring
• Provides strategic communications support to City departments on branding, issue management, visibility and awareness, and methods to keep the public informed of programs, services, events, accomplishments, and activities
• Researches and analyzes information to develop communication materials including speeches, talking points, feature stories, social media content, web content, etc.
• Develops, creates, and produces brand-appropriate collateral materials including publications, brochures, pamphlets, newsletters, reports, etc.
• Handles complex crisis and issues management and implements crisis communication activities
• Reports to the City’s Emergency Operations Center or another designated location to prepare and disseminate information to the public in the event of an emergency
• Plans and implements special events, meetings, workshops, etc. including ribbon cuttings, groundbreakings, Telephone Town Hall meetings, and livestream events, often coordinating logistics and promoting events to maximize public attendance
• Utilizes social media tools to implement digital communications campaigns, measures performance to achieve objectives, and fulfills social media public records request using social media archiving tools
• Develops and produces photos and videos in accordance with City's communication and marketing objectives
• Conducts high-level research and analyzes the effectiveness of communication tools and offers input on ways to enhance scope, increase reach, and strengthen connections with target audiences
• Participates on internal and external project and strategy teams, serving as an ambassador for the City and/or as a department/division representative
• Performs related work as required

Video

• Creation of video content (shooting, editing, uploading, optimizing, effects generation) for use on the City’s video distribution channels.
• Coordinate with Program Manager I to develop videos that support messaging and bring awareness, relevance, and prompt call-to-action to viewers.
• Leverage interviews, testimonials, storytelling styles to meet the needs of target audiences. Strategically plan distribution of videos through social media marketing tools.
• Optimize videos for search engines and ensure videos have ADA compliance attributes.
• Tag, organize, and archive video and media in coordinated folder structure for ease of future accessibility.
• Write scripts, storyboards, coordinate shooting schedules, and programming of videos.
• Develop efficient strategies and tactics to ensure that programs deliver outcome desired by the department and City
• Develops and maintains process improvement strategies, identifying, managing, and improving core processes
• Performs related work as required

JOB REQUIREMENTS & WORK ENVIRONMENT

Bachelor's Degree in Public Relations, Marketing, Journalism or closely related field Three (3) or more years of experience in communications or public relationsPossess or be able to obtain a valid State of Florida driver’s license within 30 days of hire On-call availability to work nights, weekends and holidaysHigh proficiency in writing, editing and verbal communicationPrior relevant marketing and communications experience for a government entity preferred
As public servants, employees may be required to work immediately before, during, and/or after an emergency. All employees must be available and able to work assigned shifts as determined by their Department Heads.

PHYSICAL STANDARDS REQUIRED TO PERFORM ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:

The position is generally sedentary. Employees sit most of the time but may walk or stand for extended periods of time. The position involves light physical demands, such as exerting up to 20 lbs. of force occasionally, and/or up to 10 lbs. of force frequently, and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects.

Ability to lift, carry, climb, bend, stoop, kneel, crouch, crawl, reach, walk, push, pull, grasp, stand and access heights or areas where limited space is available.

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

HOW TO APPLY/ VETERAN INFORMATION

Applications will be reviewed, and the hiring authority will contact those applicants whose application reflects the best match of experience for the position.



The City of Fort Lauderdale offers a comprehensive benefits package to all regular full-time employees including vacation, holiday, and sick leave as well as medical, dental, vision, life and short-term disability insurance.

Click here for an overview of employment information including our benefits package.

Say "Hello" to the City of Fort Lauderdale and Say "Goodbye" to Your Student Loan!Under the U.S. Department of Education's Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, the remaining balance on your student loan may be forgiven after you have made 120 qualifying monthly payments while working full-time at the City of Fort Lauderdale. Click here for more information or to see if you qualify.

In addition to the competitive benefits package and salary, the City of Fort Lauderdale participates in the Florida Retirement System (FRS) which offers an investment option and a pension option and requires a 3% contribution from employees. All new City of Fort Lauderdale employees are automatically enrolled in FRS. Click here to view additional information on the Florida Retirement System.

Closing Date/Time: 12/13/2024 11:59 PM Eastern

• 

• City of Fort Lauderdale

• (954) 828-5300

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