Organization:
NoVo Foundation is dedicated to catalyzing a transformation in global society, moving from a culture of domination to one of equality and partnership. NoVo supports the development of capacities in people—individually and collectively—to help create a caring and balanced world that operates on the principles of mutual respect, collaboration, and civic participation, thereby reversing the old paradigm predicated on hierarchy, violence, and the subordination of girls and women.

We structure our grant making around initiatives, rather than by program areas.  These initiatives are varied in form, but all reflect our commitment to building authentic partnerships with grantees and other funders, and to taking calculated risks. We invest in innovative strategic grant making and initiatives that we hope, in the near and long term, will lead to societal transformation. We are humbled and honored to be able to contribute to building a world based on peace, compassion, justice and love.

Position Summary:
NoVo Foundation seeks a Director of Communications to support all strategic communication activities and serve as the Foundation’s institutional memory and information hub.  This is an intellectually challenging senior position within the organization.

The Director of Communications will provide overall creative and strategic leadership and execution for a broad range of projects. Working closely with NoVo’s President, the Director of Communications will create and implement a Foundation-wide communication action plan that supports the Foundation’s mission and goals. The Director will develop strategies to enhance the Foundation’s initiatives and will be responsible for a wide range of printed and online communication product and services.

In collaboration with Foundation leadership and staff, this individual will serve as an internal advisor and thought partner who will work to create powerful and consistent messaging internally and externally. The Director must be a big picture thinker and a team player. As a member of the senior management team, the Director will be a dedicated advocate for the Foundation’s strategic initiatives.

Because NoVo Foundation employs a small staff, the Director will be responsible for a range of responsibilities and tasks associated with communicating and promoting our mission.  This is a newly created position, and the Director of Communications will be the only Foundation employee solely dedicated to these tasks.

Key Responsibilities:

 Internal Communications

• Develop and support organization-wide communications, clarifying and conveying the Foundation’s internal and external messaging;
• Develop and maintain a robust archive of relevant NoVo materials and libraries;
• Create, implement and oversee communication tools and processes to support and enhance internal communications;
• Gather, organize and provide the staff and Board with meeting materials, relevant documents, and other information in a timely fashion;
• Establish templates for standard communication pieces;
• Prepare annual report and coordinate activities to capture, retain and share institutional knowledge;
• Conduct research and prepare briefing packages for President and Initiative staff; and
• Work on special projects and participate in office workgroups, as assigned.

 External Communications

• Collaborate with President and Initiatives’ staff on public relations efforts including creating, proofing, and editing press releases, advocacy materials, written correspondence, speeches, talking points, annual reports, and any other related materials;
• Ensure accuracy, quality and consistency of external communications across all initiative areas;
• Identify opportunities for content development and distribution via relevant channels, including NoVo’s website, blogs, e-mail blasts, social media, and outside publications;
• Produce print publications, including, but not limited to creating original content, editing, establishing and monitoring production schedules;
• Handle all press communication and coordination;
• Manage relationships with communications and branding vendors and consultants (including writers, designers, and researchers) to ensure results are achieved on point, on time and on budget.  As needed, oversee vendor selection processes for design, printing, photography, media relations and other services;
• Conduct research and prepare briefing packages and fact sheets for outside audiences;
• Obtain necessary approvals for any materials to be released on behalf of the Foundation or its staff;
• Manage website to ensure that content is consistent, accurate and up-to-date, and enrich search engine optimization (SEO) by identifying and incorporating keywords in all materials; and
• Curate rotating photo gallery exhibits.

Key Competencies:

 Education


• BA or BS in relevant field

 Experience

• Minimum ten years experience in a marketing or communications role. Progressive experience, planning, writing, editing, researching and producing newsletters, press releases, annual reports, and other print publications in a communications department is desired.
• Minimum five years leading and managing the communications function.
• Demonstrated commitment to NoVo’s mission and an alignment with our values.

 Qualifications

• Proven ability to listen critically, and think and act creatively, strategically and nimbly.
• Experience in translating strategic thinking into action plans and output, with successful track record.
• Comfortable with and interested in implementing both strategic and tactical activities.
• Exceptional and engaging written and oral communications skills, and the ability to effectively interact with leadership, staff and Board of Directors. (Previous experience is a plus.)
• Astute and creative researcher and storyteller, with experience addressing different audiences across multiple mediums and platforms.
• Successful writing, editing, production and project management experience in a variety of print and online media, both internally and externally focused.  (Previous journalism experience is a plus.)
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with a variety of constituents.
• Solid consultative, facilitation and presentation skills.
• Excellent judgment and an innovative, pro-active problem solving orientation.
• Ability and interest in developing and maintaining collaborative, respectful, and honest relationships.
• Ability to simultaneously manage multiple projects while maintaining a firm grasp on individual project details.
• High proficiency in Microsoft Office and Mac applications, and some graphic design experience.
• Highly effective and transparent team leader who supports a positive performance culture; able to serve as a role model with initiative, high energy, a positive attitude and genuine respect for alignment and inclusion, both internally and with grantees and partners.

Compensation and Culture:
NoVo offers competitive salaries, excellent benefits, generous vacation, and a pleasant working environment. We employ a small staff and are dedicated to promoting an environment of collaboration and workplace flexibility. NoVo values diversity and is committed to the recruitment and retention of individuals of diverse backgrounds, gender, race, religion, and sexual orientation.

How to Apply:
Héctor Cariño at People Architects Group is managing search. All applicants should email the following to hector@peoplearchitectsgroup.com (Subject Line: Communications Director/YOUR NAME):

• Resume
• Thoughtful cover letter (including how you became aware of this opportunity: job portal, referral, etc.)
• Three writing samples (attached in PDF format):
  • One informal, such as a blog post or email alert
  • One that is marketing-oriented in tone and style, such as an editorial or press release
  • One that is a longer-form narrative piece on a specific subject

The application deadline is June 30.  Final applicants will be asked to complete a series of writing assignments, as directed.

Organization:
The Foundation Center is the leading source of information about philanthropy worldwide. Through data, analysis, and training we connect people who want to change the world to the resources they need to succeed. Our mission is to strengthen the social sector by advancing knowledge about philanthropy in the U.S. and around the world. Our vision is a world enriched by the effective allocation of philanthropic resources, informed public discourse about philanthropy, and broad understanding of the contributions of nonprofit activity to increasing opportunity and transforming lives.

Position Description:
Reporting to the Director of Communications, the Communications Associate will work closely with the organization’s marketing and communications team to help develop, implement, and monitor innovative strategies to increase the Foundation Center’s visibility, effectively communicate about our products and services, enhance our reputation and contribute to the successful achievement of the organization’s goals. The Communications Associate will have an acute understanding of Foundation Center resources, our target audiences, and the nonprofit sector as a whole. The person in this position will work on a wide variety of projects that strengthen both internal and external communications – in print, online, and in person.

Responsibilities:

• Communication Strategies: Assist with the development and execution of strategies that promote awareness of the Foundation Center brand, products, and services. Help coordinate activities across multiple channels, including social media and internal communications tools.
• Media Relations: Assist in fielding and tracking press/media inquiries and news coverage; work closely with communications staff and outside vendor(s) to ensure accurate and timely delivery of quarterly reports; support the production and dissemination of internal and external periodic reports and press coverage lists. Support e-mail and web posting of press releases. Carry out these responsibilities utilizing tools such as Cision, MS Office, and CheetahMail.
• Communications Materials Development: Assist with the development and maintenance of printed and online collateral, including the annual report, brochures, and select web pages (such as About Us and Press Room). Ensure the material is accurate and proofread, and handle distribution across channels (i.e. e-mail, web site, print, etc.) as required. Help develop and maintain digital press kit. Assist with editing of library newsletters, as needed.
• Support the organization’s digital strategy & emerging media goals/projects by collecting/assessing metrics, executing campaigns, and supporting special projects as required.
• Support for new strategic organizational initiatives, such as combined federal campaigns, convenings, knowledge services, content-sharing with partners, and the rebranding of specific programs.
• Support outgoing e-mail communications to the Foundations for Education Excellence (FFEE) community.
• Maintain communications contacts database and perform custom research for specific outreach campaigns/press releases, as required.
• Monitor the communications e-mail inbox on a daily basis, handling inquiries, reprint requests, and/or routing requests to internal staff as appropriate.
• Provide support for select communications-driven special events,
• Assist with proofreading, copyediting/writing, and fact-checking to ensure that communications materials are accurate, well-written, relevant to their target audience, and aligned with our style guide and brand identity standards.

Relationships, Roles and Requirements:

• Build trust, value others, communicate effectively, collaborate with others, solve problems creatively and proactively, and demonstrate high integrity.
• Maintain professional internal and external relationships that meet the core values of the organization.

Requirements:

• BA/BS degree, communications or related field preferred
• 2-3 years professional experience required; previous experience in the nonprofit sector and/or media relations preferred
• Excellent writing, editing, proofreading, administrative/organizational, and interpersonal skills
• Experience writing for print and web for a variety of audience groups
• Works effectively and efficiently in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment, – both independently and as part of a team – with minimal supervision
• Excellent time and project management skills, able to manage multiple tasks simultaneously
• Ability to work on everyday details with an eye towards long-term strategy
• Confidence and composure to represent the organization externally – on the phone, online, and at events
• Experience with PR software and media databases strongly preferred
• Strong computer skills and proficiency with Microsoft Office, basic HTML, and social media
• Knowledge of Photoshop, Quark and/or InDesign, Google Apps and Analytics; and popular e-mail service providers (especially CheetahMail) preferred

How to Apply:
Please send resume and salary requirements to:
E-mail: jobs@foundationcenter.org (Please put the title of the position you are applying for in the subject line)

or

Human Resources Manager
The Foundation Center
79 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10003

Do not telephone.

We offer a competitive salary and excellent benefits.

Judging from the thousands of votes cast and the jockeying for position up until the very end, it was a spirited competition.  With the voting behind us, we are in the process of  creating a session schedule for Thursday, Oct. 2 and Friday, Oct. 3 and will post that soon along with other details about the conference.  Keep checking for the latest information.

In the meantime–and now that the “crowd has spoken”–we will begin sending out invitations to people who asked for a chance to pre-register for the conference. If you’d like to be on be on that list to be assured a spot at the conference, please email info@comnetwork.org before June 3.  After that, we will open for general registration.  (If you need more encouragement, see our lineup of optional pre-conference training workshops and our stellar plenary speakers.)

2013 Fall Conference Winning Breakout Sessions

1. From Day One: Integrating Strategic Communication Deeply and Early in a Program Initiative

Presenters:
Stacey Easterling, programme executive, The Atlantic Philanthropies; Diana Doyle, initiative director, Community Experience Partnership and Principal, Community Planning and Research LLC; and Bob Tobin, senior consultant and president, Williams Group

Session summary:
The Community Experience Partnership, a six-year initiative involving 30-plus communities nationwide, was created with an ambitious goal: To demonstrate how older adults can lead local change in all types of communities. Initiative designers understood that communication was essential to success. The Partnership was branded from the start and communication professionals helped develop terms of engagement for prospective grantees, support growth of a vibrant learning community among grantees, build grantee capacity to use marketing and storytelling, inform evaluation approaches, and promote tested strategies and lessons to target audiences. Embedding communication early helped secure the right grantees, support their high rates of achievement, and transmit new knowledge to relevant audiences in a timely manner.

This Atlantic case study provides a touchstone for session attendees to share experiences about “early integration”of communication in their own foundation initiatives. Our panel features the Partnership’s program and communication leaders. Attendees will participate through a mini self-assessment charting the extent to which communication is embedded early in their foundation practices, a facilitated full-group discussion on overcoming barriers that keep communications people away from the program table in planning and implementing initiatives, and interaction with panel members regarding approaches used in the Community Experience Partnership. Visit www.ceplearning.org.

2. DIY Communications: Build a Strategic Message Starting at Home

Presenters:
Regan Gruber Moffitt, senior program associate, Takema Robinson-Bradberry, senior program associate, and Andrew Ford, program associate, Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation (proposed)

Session summary:
If you have ever watched the Property Brothers on HGTV, you know that a home improvement project can make your kitchen or bathroom feel brand new. If you’ve ever tried your own remodel, you know that that it is not always as easy as it looks. Like a “do-it-yourself” project, building a communications strategy has the potential to help foundations achieve tangible results, but presents challenges with budget and quality. Move over Property Brothers! In this engaging and interactive session, two program officers – the Program Sisters – share lessons learned from two distinct homemade communications campaigns.

In 2012, the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation launched two major communications initiatives. In the first – the Arkansas Campaign for Grade-Level Reading – the foundation customized the core messages of a national campaign for targeted audiences in the state with the goal that all students will read on grade level by 2020. In the other – the Why Arkansas? Campaign – the foundation sought to take the message of Arkansas as a state ripe for reform to national funders to encourage more investment in the state. Though the campaigns had significantly different messages and audiences, both shared common elements that made each successful.

Join us for conversation of what to “love” or “list” when creating an effective communications campaign.

3. New Media/Video to Aid in Advocacy Efforts of Underserved Communities

Presenters:
Cecilia Laiche, communications officer, The California Wellness Foundation; and Jim Miller, exective director, Brave New Foundation

Session summary:
Short videos and other new media tools are powerful in amplifying voices of underserved people. They integrate well in larger efforts and with web, mobile and social media tools. Helping disenfranchised people use such tools effectively with their own advocacy efforts can effect policy changes and foster a sense of personal power within the communities. Examples of such efforts will include working with low-wage workers at car washes, recycling plants and nail salons to help them influence employers to create improved health and safety conditions. In an interactive (get out of your chair!) format we will learn from the filmmakers at Brave New Studios who bring their top-notch skills to social justice causes.

4. Does Your Video Content Live Up to the Power of Your Story and Deepen Audience Engagement?

Presenters:
Kristina Robbins, director/producer, and Marjan Safinia, director/producer, Department of Expansion; and Christa Gannon, executive director, Fresh Lifelines for Youth

Session summary:
There is natural synergy between documentary filmmaking and getting people to take action. Films like An “Inconvenient Truth” and “Food Inc.” have transformed lives and started powerful movements. Not everyone has the resources to embark on a feature documentary and luckily that’s not where the biggest audience lies. Authentic online micro-documentaries are highly shareable, change minds and compel action.

So how can you take the best of the documentary process and dovetail it with your communications goals? How is the documentary approach fundamentally different from scripted communications? And what are the advantages?

In this interactive session, we’ll show you how to work with grantees to tell powerful stories from the field. Christa Gannon from Fresh Lifelines for Youth will discuss how their investment in a micro-documentary transformed program outreach, development and communications. Together, we’ll break down how successful films must start with the end goal in mind and a clear plan for distributing films through your communications channels. We’ll reveal how strategic story development pinpoints the right story to meet both communications and program goals. The results? Measurable return on investment, increase in community eyeballs, shareable media, and a powerful on-ramp into the essence of your work.

5. A Poverty of Language: How to Change the Dialogue about Economic Inequality in America

Presenters:
Doug Hattaway, president, Wendy Yaross, senior vice president of research, and Tess Hart, associate, Hattaway Communications; and Alfred Ironside, director of communications, Ford Foundation

Session summary:
In a climate where it’s tough to get a majority of Americans to support government action on anything, the Ford Foundation and Hattaway Communications developed an anti-poverty narrative that persuades 7 out of 10 Americans to support an active government role in helping people enter the middle class.

Insights and ideas from two years of in-depth message research and development on this topic were shared with advocates on the frontlines of policy change, as well as national decision-makers and thought leaders, who had a powerful new way to talk about an age-old problem. Media content analysis was used to measure whether the new language helped to change the national dialogue on poverty in America.

This session will share powerful language for fighting poverty–along with guiding principles for developing messages that build public support for government action on a wide range of issues. We’ll discuss the art and science of crafting an “aspirational narrative” to motivate and mobilize people in support of a cause. Participants will walk away with a checklist for applying these principles to their work.

6. Street Smarts: Engaging Community Voice to Advance Academic Achievement

Presenters:
Chana’ Edmond-Verley, senior program officer for community initiatives, Edwin Hernandez, senior program officer for community initiatives, Doug & Maria DeVos Foundation; John Helmholdt, communications director, Grand Rapids Public Schools (proposed); and Mary Greene, consultant, Creative Change Mission

Session summary:

Facing persistently low graduation rates, a concerned private foundation approached a public school district with a simple question: “What do you need?” Several years and several million dollars later, the foundation and the district have forged a cradle-to-career initiative modeled after Harlem Children’s Zone. It includes an intensive set of activist, “community voice” communication strategies.

15 minutes: documentary film and brief communication review: successes and failures.

20 minutes each: after a two-minute introduction, small groups tackle one vexing strategic question at a time (12 minutes each), then report back to entire group (eight minutes each).

Strategic mindset question: employing the community voice, we have embedded affirming, research-based messages in a rallying cry and a powerful “why” message platform–what other communication strategies might accomplish the goal of shifting mindsets?

Strategic affinity question: we have featured real people in billboards, brochures, videos, social media and ads… what other communication strategies might accomplish the goal of building affinity and engaging participation?

Strategic behavioral question: we have published five research-based behavioral tips as a memorable acrostic (B-GRAD) on billboards, backpack tags, magnets, frames, brochures, newsletters and stickers–what other techniques (apps? games?) might accomplish the goal of driving desired individual behavior change?

7. Empowering #SocialChange: How to Use Social Media for Advocacy

Presenters:
Aurora Matthews, senior communications associate, and Danielle Tarr, new media associate, The Hatcher Group (proposed); Jiva Manske, field organizer, Amnesty International; Mona Cadena, state campaign organizer, Equal Justice USA; and Syieda Penn, communications director, Maryland Citizens Against State Executions

Session summary:
A coalition of advocacy groups took communications efforts to the next step in 2013 after efforts to repeal the death penalty in Maryland failed year after year. Seizing upon resources and ideas from each other, the coalition — including The Hatcher Group, Amnesty International, Equal Justice USA, MD CASE and the office of Governor Martin O’Malley — embarked on a social media strategy designed to reach the most influential audiences: elected officials and their constituents. Using a variety of new media platforms, the campaign got creative with Twitter chats, Thunderclaps, Facebook, memes and a powerful video highlighting murder victims’ families’ needs. In March, the campaign met its goal: Maryland became the eighteenth state to repeal the death penalty.

In this session, panelists will demonstrate creative ways to use social networks to advance social change. The buzz from a well-run campaign presents an invaluable opportunity to harness the mass dissemination potential of online-networked communications. Activists can target key influencers in a public conversation where endless users can listen and join in.

Participants will learn how to take their social media efforts beyond the typical day-to-day broadcast and enter a new world of targeted networked engagement that can be used to influence public opinion.

8. Impact Litigation as a Tool for Social Change: Perry v. Hollingsworth and the National Conversation about Marriage Equality

Presenters:
Felix Schein, principal, Griffin Schein; and Elizabeth Riel, senior communications manager, American Foundation for Equal Rights

Session summary:
When supported by a robust communications campaign, impact litigation is an effective platform to fight imbalances of power and influence public opinion.

For non-profit organizations fighting for civil rights, there are a variety of tools to influence public policy and mobilize local communities. Many organizations conduct research, engage with elected officials, or launch public awareness campaigns. Yet one of the most powerful tools is also one of the most underutilized: impact litigation.

In response to passage California’s Proposition 8, we created the American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER) with the goal of fighting for full federal marriage equality. AFER is the sole sponsor of Perry v. Hollingsworth, the federal case heard before the Supreme Court in March 2013.

Our proposed session will cover the development of AFER, the process of building the legal case and the critical role of the communications campaign aimed at changing the public conversation about marriage equality. The session will examine in detail the role litigation can play in bringing about real social change and look at the application of impact litigation to other social issues, such as environmental sustainability and education reform.

9. Short Films, Big Impact

Presenters:
Natasha Deganello Giraudie, CEO, Micro-Documentaries; and Mabinty A. Koroma, communications officer, Mobile Alliance for Maternal Action (MAMA) at United Nations Foundation

Session summary:
Advancing your mission by producing bite-size, poignant, inspiring video content

Natasha Deganello Giraudie, ceo of Micro-Documentaries and Mabinty A. Koroma of Mobile Alliance for Maternal Action (MAMA) will discuss how, in parallel to your day job as a social and environmental innovator, you are being called upon to step into the role of “publisher” — a publisher of regular content that speaks to your supporters in a way that they care deeply about, that will entice them to watch everything you publish, and that will invite them to become a part of your envisioned future.

Short films, if done right, are the most engaging media on the web. Learn how to use them as a powerful way to captivate your audience and increase your influence on their actions. Watch a number of exemplary 1-2 minute films. Hear the story of one organization that has used short films to expand their impact. Hear about the common pitfalls you can avoid in film production and distribution. Walk away with a good understanding of how you can regularly produce short films for your audience that are authentic, affordable and actionable.

10. Bigger than You: Branding Social Movements

Presenters:
Emily Brew is the former brand creative director at the Nike Foundation, where she drove the launch and creative approach of The Girl Effect; Will Novy-Hildesley runs Quicksilver Foundry; Nathalie Laidler-Kylander is a lecturer in Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School and senior research fellow at the Hauser Center, Harvard University; and Jeremy Heimans is co-founder & CEO, Purpose. In 2011, he received the Ford Foundation’s 75th Anniversary Visionary Award for his work as a movement pioneer and the World Economic Forum named him a Young Global Leader.

Session summary:
GOT IMPACT?

“The 99″, “The Arab Spring,” “The Tea Party”: three brand identities that accelerated their respective movements’ reach and impact. How? By doing what brands have always done: help create communities of shared purpose. Today, with social media, such tribes form at astonishing speed and scale.

For change-makers in the public and private sectors, using technology and brand marketing to drive social movements looks like a no-brainer. But in reality, we’re challenged to deliver on this promise.

Among non-profits, the norm is like-minded organizations running parallel campaigns, competing for the very energy, eyeballs and dollars they should be concentrating.

For-profits largely confine their efforts to putting logos on charitable events, when their role in creating social impact via brand expertise could be so much greater.

What’s going on? Institutional brand identity routinely trumps impact.

BREAKING OUT
Recently, “bigger-than-you” brand concepts are charting a new course, with approaches that outgrow their parents to align tribes into fully-fledged movements. These brands are breaking out of institutions.

Our panel of pioneers will explore practical insights and potential pitfalls in trading impact for identity, and engagement for control. We’ll provide frameworks, tools and inspiration to apply this emerging brand thinking to your issue.

11. Helping Great Ideas Go Big: The Role of Communications in Scaling What Works

Presenters:
Susan Promislo, senior communications officer, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; Eric Antebi, senior vice president, Fenton; and Jill Vialet, founder and CEO, Playworks

Session summary:
Foundations play a vital role in supporting innovative solutions and scaling what works to reach more people and communities. How can communications help great ideas go big? Why should foundations invest in communications for organizations on the path to scale? And what needs are most essential to address at each stage of an organization’s growth?

Ten years ago, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) decided that the best way to improve the health of America’s most vulnerable populations was to identify promising models, see if they could be replicated and help the strongest ones spread. RWJF doesn’t just give grants; a key part of its strategy has also been to provide significant communications support to grantees, from branding and messaging, to public affairs and media relations, to social media. RWJF and its partners will share insights about how communications can foster “smooth scaling” and what constitutes the right support at the right time.

12. Transformative Capacity Building Models: Strengthening Grantee Communications Skills Beyond Funding

Presenters:
Michael Hoffman, CEO, See3; Beth Kanter, author and master trainer; Eva Penar, director of marketing and communications, The Chicago Community Trust; and Farra Trompeter, vice president, Big Duck

Session summary:
As nonprofits of all sizes struggle to keep up with social media, video and other communications strategies, foundations are looking for ways to transform the nonprofits they support and build the skills of staff to bolster the fields they serve. Through management assistance programs, peer-learning cohorts, train-the-trainers and grant-supported training there are a variety of options out there. Through a lively discussion of pros and cons of different models and examples, we’ll examine how you can structure (or restructure) your capacity-building programs, evaluate if grantees are ready and measure progress along the way. We’ll even share some of the moments of failure–and what we learned as a result.

Organization:
The Program Support Center (PSC), a component within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), is a fee-for-service organization which provides a full range of shared services to include financial management, real estate, facilities and logistics, occupational health, acquisitions, and other administrative operations to HHS and other federal agencies. Since 1995 PSC has been “Managing the Business of Government”, and was established to reduce government spending and increase the quality of administrative services. By delivering a high level of expertise, performance, and efficiency that most organizations cannot attain independently, PSC is able to reduce overall costs by using economies of scale.

Position Description:
The Director oversees all internal and external corporate communications and serves as a senior advisor to the PSC Director, executive team, and senior managers on all matters related to communications, to include current and prospective customers. He/she will:

• Support effective communication and enhanced relationships with external organizations in order to communicate program goals, priorities, and areas of concern to all stakeholders.
• Plan, develop, implement, and maintain policies, standards, programs and procedures governing internal and external communications. Ensure that the strategic plan, vision, mission, and values are communicated across the PSC product and service portfolio.
• Oversee development and implementation of the PSC brand and corporate image internally and externally. Identify marketing objectives, tasks, and methods for promoting PSC capabilities and service offerings to current and potential customers.
• Plan, design, prepare and distribute PSC corporate and marketing communications materials to include the annual service catalog, brochures, presentations, newsletters, and supervise production for print and/or digital media.
• Conceptualize, orchestrate, and execute against product and service marketing campaigns to include all aspects of communications and social/digital channels.
• Leverage a broad-based knowledge of the external environment and key stakeholders (media, customers, activists, policymakers, and community and industry influencers) to provide advice and counsel to enhance and protect the corporate reputation.
• Lead the strategic development, stewardship and execution of creative social media campaigns that target employees and customers.
• Manage all communications projects and assure high-quality deliverables for PSC-wide, HHS-wide and/or customer-wide distribution. Provide advice on best practices and procedures. Assist the staff in identifying issues and viable solutions. Articulate to the staff key milestones and/or program issues under review.
• Oversee the use of digital media for external communications to promote services to existing/potential customers and internal communications to improve and enhance employee engagement. Manage all aspects of PSC’s website and intranet website including day-to-day operations, maintenance and web content coordination.
• Present, justify, and/or defend programmatic information (including budget, status, and assessment information) in directing communications within PSC. Consult with the PSC Director on developing message, talking points, and materials for internal and external use.
• Serve as primary communications liaison between PSC functional offices and PSC and non-PSC components, establishing and fostering effective working relationships and information networks with other HHS components and outside agencies. Plan, direct, and execute liaison operations for critical PSC-wide programs. Advise and recommend innovative approaches for avoiding and/or resolving problems and reducing conflicts.
• Plan and conduct studies and analyses of fluctuating organizational and functional changes in PSC and complex program issues that require ongoing substantial changes in the nature and scope of support services provided. Develop effective tools (e.g., risk mitigation strategies, communication plans, training in change management).
• Conduct and analyze PSC customer satisfaction surveys and employee satisfaction surveys to prepare detailed statistical reports concerning PSC communications effectiveness and action plans to address deficiencies.

Requirements:

• Experience applying communications principles, methods, techniques, and analytical methods to develop new strategies and approaches in planning, integrating, and evaluating an overall communications program.
• Ability to effectively lead a diverse workforce to successfully accomplish PSC strategic goals and initiatives.
• Knowledge of marketing techniques and communications resources to produce and/or manage the production of a wide range of informational material delivered in a variety of media.
• Mastery of diverse communications styles to include writing and formatting, to prepare and/or manage the preparation of materials that convey complex, technical information to diverse audiences with varying levels of understanding.  

Education:
Bachelor’s degree in Communications desirable; Advanced degree  preferred.
 
Compensation:
To $155,500 plus eligibility for performance bonus. 

Assignment Term:
This is a term assignment for a maximum of two years, in one year increments. There is potential for conversion to a permanent federal position.

How to Apply:
Please send a copy of your resume and a cover letter outlining your interest and qualifications for this position to:  

PSC Office of the Director
7700 Wisconsin Ave, Suite 920
Bethesda, MD 20857
301-492-4600
pscofficeofthedirector@psc.hhs.gov

All candidates will be considered without regard to race, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, or disability. PSC provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities. 

Guest Post: Rebecca Arno

This time of year in Denver, gardeners know that deep freezes and spring snow are behind us and it’s finally safe to plant. It’s also when the residents of the Whittier neighborhood will begin putting in their community garden – on a site formerly used by gangs to hide drugs and guns.  They’ll need to recruit volunteers, but that shouldn’t be a problem, because they’ve already started telling their story and connecting their neighbors to the vision, through a new tool called Floodlight.

Floodlight is a partnership of The Piton Foundation, a private operating foundation created by energy entrepreneur and philanthropist Sam Gary, and The Denver Foundation, the oldest and largest community foundation in the Rockies, with generous support through the Knight Community Information Challenge. Both Piton and The Denver Foundation have longstanding commitments to helping people in low-income communities make change by using the power of data and storytelling. 

Floodlight provides an easy-to-use, intuitive set of story-building tools to help users create a visually rich, shareable story that is tagged by subject and geography.  The tool can embed video, audio, photos and data visualizations easily with text.  The design team, using the flexible Django open source platform, used research about effective storytelling to put together templates that walk users through the complex process of crafting a compelling story.

The site also contains numerous skill-building tools to help storytellers up their game.  They can learn from Denver writer Patricia Dubrava about the elements of an effective story (structure, detail, authenticity, and emotion), walk through a guide on data and visualizations, and discover how sound can bring an online story to life.

Since launch last fall, hundreds of Metro Denver residents, nonprofit staff, and community leaders have posted stories on Floodlight.  We’ve found that “story-raisings”– community events similar to the old-fashioned notion of barn-raisings – are particularly effective in sharing the power of story to change communities.  At these events, we’ve had experts on all aspects of storytelling – from using census data to drive a story’s point home, to using a mobile phone to effectively capture video.  New storytellers, set loose to share the magic happening in their communities, are telling stories about painting over graffiti,  building new parks, making kids safer, and doing yoga in public spaces.

What’s next? We’re continuing to build the reach of Floodlight, and to capture results.  As envisioned, we’re linking Floodlight to the newly-launched Colorado Data Engine, another Knight-funded project that puts powerful data in the hands of community leaders who need it to make change.  Both of the partner foundations are also working to incorporate Floodlight and data-driven storytelling into their grantmaking and reporting processes. The other big hill to climb is that we want community members to understand and access the power of data in supporting their stories; we’ve learned that many people can learn to tell a good qualitative story, but have more of a challenge backing that up with data and factual information.  Nonprofit organizations in particular can benefit and grow capacity when they learn how to connect stories with the power of data.

Rebecca Arno is the vice president for communications at the Denver Foundation and Communications Network board chair.

Organization:
Planned Parenthood is the nation’s leading sexual and reproductive health care provider and advocate.

Position Description:
Planned Parenthood Global, the international arm of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, seeks a motivated and dynamic individual for the position of Global Advocacy and Communications Officer. The Global Advocacy and Communications Officer monitors changing national and international policies related to sexual and reproductive health and rights and works to elevate the profile of Planned Parenthood Global’s work in 10 countries in Africa and Latin America.

Primary Function/Purpose:

• Generates compelling written content highlighting the innovative models and partnerships Planned Parenthood Global supports around the world.
• Manages Planned Parenthood Global’s social media presence.
• Monitors United Nations and other international human rights gatherings, rulings and agreements.
• Monitors and researches relevant policies affecting access to sexual and reproductive health and rights in Planned Parenthood Global’s 10 focus countries.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Assists with the development and execution of a strong web and social media plan to elevate the profile of Planned Parenthood Global and help to share stories from the field.
• Coordinates with Planned Parenthood Global’s regional offices in Nairobi, Kenya and Miami to monitor key policy changes in the organization’s focus regions and countries.
• Manages Planned Parenthood Global’s engagement at annual United Nations meetings on women’s rights, population and development; and Planned Parenthood Global’s participation in key coalitions.
• Drafts fact sheets, policy briefs, online and social media content.
• Assists Planned Parenthood Global staff in the creation of compelling presentations and presentation materials, including clear and compelling PowerPoint presentations.
• Assists in the development, execution and monitoring of global and regional strategic advocacy and communications plans.
• Travels as needed (up to 25 percent) to work with regional staff and attend key international meetings.
• Completes special projects as assigned and required.

Education, Experience and Skills and Knowledge

• Master’s degree in journalism, communications, public health, global policy or a related field required.
• Three to five years of directly related, progressively responsible work experience in global health, human rights or a related field required. Significant writing experience for a broad audience required. Project management experience preferred. Spanish language ability required; experience working outside of the United States preferred.
• Excellent interpersonal and communications skills, including writing and editing skills required. Knowledge of sexual and reproductive health and rights issues and policies a plus. Computer literacy, including knowledge of word processing and the Internet required.
• Knowledge of diverse groups, working with a multicultural workforce, and sensitivity and appreciation to cultural differences is required.

How to Apply:
Apply online here.

That said, none of us at the Communications Network realized it would be so tough.  Sorry about that

But, don’t blame us. Blame the smart and creative people who answered our call and sent in their ideas for our competition. It’s clear that folks who submitted sessions care deeply about their topics and have lots of knowledge and experience to share. They’re also doing their best to entice you to vote for them.  That could among the reasons why these aren’t easy choices to make.  The good news–there’s still lots of time decide. You have until May 22.  

If you haven’t done so yet, it’s worth spending time on our voting page. You’ll see a variety of sessions on topics that matter to communicators working in philanthropy.

Are you interested in sessions on storytelling? You’ll find a selection of choices here. How about branding, research or strategy? Plenty of those, too. Interested in videos and documentaries? Don’t overlook sessions proposed on advocacy, best practices, evaluation and of course, social media.  Sort through the list to find the one (or ones) you like. Be sure to pay attention to the impressive range of presenters from foundations, nonprofits, research organizations consulting groups as well as people from film and journalism.

A few final notes:  you don’t have to limit your choices to one or two (even if a best friend or valued colleague has encouraged you to vote for their session). Vote for as many as you like–or even just the 12 you think make a terrific conference line up. And if you’ve already voted for just a few, go back, take another look at the list and make any additional picks you’d like.  While you are sifting through the sessions, don’t forget to use the comment box to ask questions of the presenters, including their plans to make their sessions engaging.

The decision about which sessions will make it on the agenda is far from over.  There’s still jockeying going on as positions move up the list and into contention for a slot. That’s why we keep saying: every vote matters. 

At the outset, I said we were sorry for making the competition so tough. On second thought, we’re not sorry at all. We couldn’t be happier–for you or for us.

Happy voting!

P.S. To the friend who asked me to tell her “which sessions I should vote for (shhhh!) and I’ll vote for them…” — SORRY! — you’re on your own.

Bruce S. Trachtenberg is executive director of the Communications Network

A few years ago, I had a light bulb moment when talking with a branding expert about how the images that companies use – more than anything else – influenced how their products were perceived by their customers. The light bulb moment was not, however, the idea that good ads – in all their well-executed glory – get us to buy stuff we never thought we needed. Heck, even kids know that!

The a-ha moment came instead in thinking about whether the nonprofit community was adopting best practices from Madison Avenue and applying them to cause communications. Were there Mad Men amongst us? I compared notes with my colleagues. Our conclusion was that most nonprofits start their persuasion efforts in the opposite fashion from corporations – with words. Oh, my, we sweat over every word choice. But then we spend only a fraction of that time on finding a picture to go with our narrative, almost as an afterthought. This is the exact opposite way that our brains process information – the visual first, the verbal second.

Well, that branding guru put a bee in my bonnet. I wanted to learn everything there was to know about how corporations find the right images to sell us widgets and build affinity for their brands. What were their secrets? This was difficult to uncover. Some of those secrets had a name…trade secrets. Maybe there was a book I could read? Nada.

Not to be deterred, I spent the last two years hitting the stacks, researching how our brains process visual and verbal information and make decisions. I interviewed people in the fields of neuroscience, branding, marketing, public relations, opinion research, advertising, photography and social media to pull together best practices.

It was a fascinating learning curve, to say the least:

• Did you know that National Geographic photo editors will sometimes go through 10,000 photos to find that single perfect photo for an article? They have put their time and money in the photos and have earned their status as one of the most visually appealing magazines in the world fair and square.
• Do you know why those poorly designed ads with dancing men and women are so ubiquitous online? The designers know how distracting they are and that we look. Our peripheral vision is to blame. It is really good at assessing movement whenever and wherever it is happening. Researchers speculate this goes back to our earliest days on the planet. What’s that moving? Is it dangerous? Will it eat me?

Along the way, I came across quite a few standout visual communicators. World Wildlife Fund staff excel at visual storytelling. They recently ran an ad campaign with messages about poaching. They didn’t show those classic photos of the felled elephant with the tusks removed, bleeding in the dust. They’ve done market research. They’ve learned that people are more inspired to protect animals when they see their magnificence and beauty. Their anti-poaching campaigns show the animals looking strong and proud – a tiger with a message saying, “I am not a rug.” An elephant with beautiful white tusks saying, “I am not jewelry.” And we, their audience, agree. They also found that generational pictures, of mothers and their children, of all types of animals inspire people to protect them because we want to see the survival of the species. We instinctually want to protect the young, the vulnerable.

Communications Network members got a preview of some of our top recommendations on how to become master visual communicators in late February via Resource Media’s webinar, “Avoiding the Blind Spot.” Since then, we have distilled the information in a report called Seeing is Believing, a best practices guide on visual storytelling. Download the report, share it with your grantees and set yourself a mid-year resolution to join the visual revolution!

We are hoping that members of the Communications Network can participate in the new learning community we are building at visualstorylab.org. Please share your best practices – or those of your grantees – at this resource hub or by emailing me at vizcom@resource-media.org. We also welcome guest blog posts on your case studies and best practices.

Liz Banse is vice president at Resource Media

After years of throwing heart and soul into planning the program for the Network’s conference–one of the roles I play on the board–I reached a new level of zen this year;  I suggested that we let others into the fun of conference planning this year.  More specifically: you.  And my motives for doing so may not have been exactly pure.  On one hand, I’m genuinely interested and excited to see how the Network crowd will do in sourcing and picking sessions.  On the other hand, after years of reading delightful and not-so-delightful comments from the conference feedback surveys, I admit, there’s an element of, “Let’s see how YOU do in saving us all from the suckitude of bad sessions.”

So this year, we solicited session proposals.  THAT’S not the new part—we’ve done that before.  But this year, we’ve put the session proposals up for a vote.  Top vote-getters for a limited number of slots (12) get the green light. 

I have no idea if the competition helped galvanize people, or whether the stars just happened to align, but this year, we got overwhelmed by great proposals.  Ho-ly crowdsourcing, Batman!  The power and creativity of the Network crowd was really on display.   And I’m kind of pleased that my session proposal is jostling for love along with everyone else’s.  It’s like, okay, THIS is a real competition.  If my session doesn’t get picked, I’ll feel consoled by the fact that it was such a strong field.  (“It was an honor just to be nominated.”)  And even if your session doesn’t get picked you could potentially get a second bite at the apple, through a Network-sponsored webinar, a virtual meet-up, or some other type of venue.

Here are some suggestions as we enter the final phase of competition:

• One,  vote.   If you’re planning on attending the conference in New Orleans in October, it’s in your best interest to do so.  I always think it’s a little tragic when people say, “I didn’t think the conference sessions were any good, but I found value in the offline networking.” That, to me, feels like saying, “I went to a restaurant, and the atmosphere was great, but the food was lousy.”  Vote for the ideas that could help you learn and share and do your job better.  Vote, period.
• Two, cool idea does not always = great execution.  If you know anything about the people who are proposed for each session, factor that into your vote.  Frankly, I always vote for people who I know will be thoughtful AND funny, no matter what the topic.
• Three, don’t hate on your fellow Network members if you feel like they picked the wrong sessions.  We’re all passionate about strategic communications in the Network, but some of us want the pragmatic, tell-me-what-to-do advice, and others want meta-mind tickles.  If you feel like the program ends up skewing away from your tastes and interests, there’s always more stuff to come in future engagements.

May the best sessions win.

Minna Jung is communications director for The David and Lucile Packard Foundation and vice chair of the Communications Network

Four Reasons Why You Reserve a Spot  for Our Fall Conference:

First, we have a stellar line up of plenary speakers for Thursday and Friday. They are:

David Simon is the executive producer, writer and creator of the HBO series “Treme,” which is set in New Orleans, and previously he was the creator, show runner, executive producer and head writer of the other HBO hit series, “The Wire.”

Maria Hinojosa is the anchor and executive producer of her own long-running weekly NPR show, Latino USA, and anchor of the Emmy Award-winning talk show Maria Hinojosa: One-on-One. In April 2010, she launched The Futuro Media Group with the mission to produce multi-platform, community-based journalism.

Andrew Sullivan, a Newsweek and Daily Beast contributor, was one of the first journalists to experiment with blogging. He now writes 250 to 300 posts per week for The Dish.

Junot Diaz is the author of the critically acclaimed Drown; The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, which won the 2008 Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award; and This Is How You Lose Her, a New York Times bestseller and National Book Award finalist.

Second, as we did last year, we’ll be offering a series of pre-conference training workshops, taught by experts in the Communications Network. We’ll be announcing the workshops shortly so you can make your pick.

Third, we have a great location for this year’s conference, The Roosevelt Hotel, located in the French Quarter and a short walk from great New Orleans restaurants and entertainment.

Fourth, if the past is a reliable predictor of the future, we’ll have another great turnout and probably sell out like we always do.

So, with a set of crowd-sourced breakout sessions, excellent training workshops, a terrific lineup of plenary speakers, the perfect city to hold a conference in October and some great people to spend a few days with, New Orleans is the place to be in the Fall.  Once again, if you want an invitation to register early, and ahead of the crowd, send an email to reserve a spot NOW.

Junot Diaz Photo: Nina Subin

The “crowd” has until midnight PT, Wednesday, May 22, to choose the 12 breakout sessions for our Fall 2013 Conference in New Orleans, Oct. 2-4. We’ve set up a special site that lists 66 proposed sessions on one, long scrolling list. Below is some information on how voting works and how to make your choices. When ready, please vote.  (To help you keep track of the sessions up for a vote, we’ve created a pdf containing all the titles.)

For conference updates,  including our stellar speakers and how to reserve a spot, go here.

• Voting is open to everyone–Communications Network members as well as non-members (as is our conference).
• The voting page lists the titles for each session and presenters. Click the link below each blurb to read the full description. If you like what you read, vote for that session. When you are ready, click the link at the top of the page to return to the list of submissions so you can keep voting. Keep making choices until you’re done.
• You can pick as many sessions as you like. But once you vote for a session, you can’t change it. So think before you click yes. And you can’t vote more than once for a session–there’s no ballot stuffing.
• The right-hand sidebar lists the sessions with the most votes, and that tally will be updated in real time throughout the process.
• The list of sessions display in random order every time you visit the voting page.  This mixes things up and gives each session a fair chance to be considered.
• You can post comments about proposals using the comment box as well as to ask questions about the proposers. (We’ll make sure they get back to you.) Also, check the sidebar to see what comments others are making about the sessions.
• To help you choose among sessions that address similar topics — such as strategy, advocacy or evaluation — click any one of the tags listed on the right-hand side.

Final note: As you go through the list, choose sessions that appeal to you, ones that you think you’d learn the most from and that will make the conference a must-attend event. In other words, choose wisely! For some guidance on how to evaluate session proposals, see this blog post from Minna Jung, vice chair of the Communications Network board and communications director, David and Lucile Packard Foundation.  We’ve also created this list you can download that contains the titles of all the proposed sessions.  Use it to keep track of the descriptions you’ve read, the sessions you’ve picked or the ones you’re still thinking about.

Voting will run through May 22. The sessions that get the most votes will be selected for New Orleans. If you have questions, need assistance with voting, email info@comnetwork.org. In the meantime, don’t forget to vote!

Organization:
SEIU is the Service Employees International Union, an organization of more than 2.1 million members united by the belief in the dignity and worth of workers and the services they provide and dedicated to improving the lives of workers and their families and creating a more just and humane society.

Overview:
The Field Campaign Communications Coordinator will manage SEIU’s Property Services Division’s communications and media work; and provide high-level strategic advice and earned media support to local unions in support of SEIU’s growth priorities. This position will be based in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, Minneapolis, or New York.

Responsibilities:
Any one position may not include all of the specific duties and responsibilities listed.  Examples provide a general summary of the work required and should not be treated as a total and complete list of expected duties to be performed by employees in the classification.

Division Communications:

• Establish and manage relationships with the national and local media important to moving our message.
• Manage strategy and implementation of communications strategy.
• Manage creation of division communications content.
• Manage message development and work of pollsters.
• Manage communications with members of the division.
• Manage communications with potential members of the division.
• Provide spokesperson training for local leaders and members.
• Manage speech writing and other visibility work for leadership.
• Serve as a key contact for communications with allies and partners.
• Oversee work of communicators within locals in the division to ensure high quality standards, best practices, and consistency of message.
• Develop earned and paid media communications strategy for division growth and political/legislative/advocacy campaigns.
• Manage campaign event communications – strategy, message, look and feel, materials, marketing, media outreach, event flow and agenda.

Local Capacity:

• Train local communications staff on messaging, media relations, and media strategy.
• Provide strategic campaign advice and assistance to local union communications staff.
• Work with locals to build solid relationships with key reporters.
• Work with locals on establishing and maintaining union brand.

Management and Administration

• Help manage the communications work for the division, including planning, budgeting and project management, and coordinates with divisions, departments, and field on those issues.
• Perform other duties as assigned in support of the work of the department.

Contacts:

• Must be able to represent the International Union with local leaders, members, staff and outside organizations utilizing independent judgment and a high level of professionalism.
• Interfaces with high level organizational and external contacts, including:
  • SEIU officers, division leadership, International senior staff, project and program managers, field, political, and organizing directors, local union officers and staff.
  • External: news media, politicians, government officials, partners and allies.
  • Vendors: design and production companies, consultants, pollsters, freelancers, video and multi-media producers, advertising agencies.
  • Ensure that sophisticated choices are made about appropriate vendors and support services.

Direction and Decision Making:

• Reports to the Assistant Director of Communications and works with extreme independence.
• Must have demonstrated ability to manage own work and work of others without supervision.
• Requires a high level of judgment and ability to take initiative and work independently.
• Must use a high level of judgment and discretion in resolving problems within the Communications Department and throughout SEIU.
• Must maintain a high level of confidentiality in handling SEIU affairs.
• Must be able to work with International and local union elected leaders and senior staff in complex and sometimes politically sensitive situations.
• Must be able to act and organize time with extreme independence.
• Must be able to handle multiple “priority” projects simultaneously and set and meet deadlines, and ensure that staff team does the same.   

Qualifications:

• Bachelor of Arts or Science degree in Communications or another related field.
• Five to eight years of related work experience or a combination of education and experience that would provide for the following knowledge, skills and abilities:
• Thorough knowledge of media relations strategies. Proven ability to establish sold relationships with reporters and move message.
• Excellent writing, verbal, and analytical skills.
• Demonstrated capacity to continuously develop knowledge and skills related to use of rapidly changing technology.
• Knowledge of unions or other advocacy organizations.
• Experience managing staff.
• Experience developing and implementing strategy on a wide range of campaigns, including organizing, contract, political, and legislative, as well as experience working with community allies.
• Ability to think proactively and seize on opportunities to move our message forward.
• Strong existing relationships with state and national reporters.
• Thorough knowledge of paid media strategy and experience creating effective paid media.

Physical Requirements:
Work is generally performed in an office setting, but job may require work in the field or in other settings to perform the tasks required to complete assignments. Must be available for frequent travel with overnight stays.  Long and irregular hours.

How to Apply:
Go here and and follow the application instructions.

In what can only be described as a cautionary tale for people involved in public interest communications, a recent cover story in the New York Times Magazine  describes how the push to encourage women to be screened for breast cancer has done a great job raising awareness about the disease but little to save lives.

In her Times piece, “Our Feel-Good War on Breast Cancer,” author Peggy Orenstein singles out awareness campaigns focused on screening and early-detection and asks:

But how many lives, exactly, are being ‘saved,’ under what circumstances and at what cost? Raising the public profile of breast cancer, a disease once spoken of only in whispers, was at one time critically important, as was emphasizing the benefits of screening. But there are unintended consequences to ever-greater ‘awareness’ — and they, too, affect women’s health.

As she notes:

Recently, a survey of three decades of screening published in November in The New England Journal of Medicine found that mammography’s impact is decdedly mixed: it does reduce, by a small percentage, the number of women who are told they have late-stage cancer, but it is far more likely to result in overdiagnosis and unnecessary treatment, including surgery, weeks of radiation and potentially toxic drugs. And yet, mammography remains an unquestioned pillar of the pink-ribbon awareness movement.

Ironically, Orenstein notes that the heavy focus and expenditure on education and screening comes with another cost: less money has been flowing to research to better understand the causes—genetic, environmental and other—of this complicated disease, which is in fact, several different diseases.

It is not our intent here to side with Orenstein. Rather, we want to get a conversation going in our community about the important questions triggered by her article. In particular, what’s our responsibility as communicators working on social change issues?

We draft plans, design campaigns and direct resources to raising awareness and to promoting changes in attitudes and behaviors in support of the issues that we are dedicated to.

Often, our working assumption is that more awareness is what’s needed. If only people knew more; if they had the facts. We also want people to act differently: eat healthier, recycle, support an issue or speak out against it. While we can debate the efficacy of different approaches to raising awareness and changing behaviors—using intellectual arguments, appealing to emotions, frightening people or applying findings from recent brain science studies—to guide our work, there are bigger questions we also must tackle:

Do we know enough about the unintended consequences of the changes we are seeking to promote? Do we challenge our own assumptions about what more awareness might result in? Have we paid enough attention to all the effects that could be a product—directly or indirectly—of our messaging?

We think there’d be no harm having an open dialogue within our community about how to assess whether our work has the potential to do harm or have unintended consequences, and how to factor this knowledge into our strategic thinking.

A place to start could be to consider these questions as a necessary step in our communication planning process:

• What are some possible consequences that might arise from our change campaigns that could have negative or undesired effects?
• What could be done to mitigate them?
• Have we seen other examples when good intentions have led to bad outcomes? What can be learned from them?

Do you agree this is a concern, or is it an isolated case? What questions would you add to the list? Or, more so, what are examples that show how thoughtfully planned and executed campaigns based on rigorous knowledge, scientific findings, and ongoing evaluations of outcomes, have done good for people?

The pink-ribbon awareness movement is often lauded as one of the best examples of successfully increasing the visibility of an issue and changing people’s behavior towards it. Unintentionally, the movement has now given us communicators yet another important thing to reflect upon.

Edith Asibey is chief communications officer for The Atlantic Philanthropies and a Communications Network board member.  Bruce Trachtenberg is the Network’s executive director.

Guest Post: Kevin Rafter

As others have posted about on this blog, the meeting last week at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation provided an opportunity for a group of foundation staff, evaluation professionals and social media experts to talk about measurement and evaluation of social media. As someone who thinks about evaluating my foundation’s communications efforts and putting those evaluations in the context of our broader organizational goals, I found the meeting quite productive and helpful.

Also, because I’m an evaluator and not a communications professional, it’s rare that I get to offer my thoughts on communications outside of my own foundation. So I’m grateful for this opportunity to share some observations — both from an evaluator’s point of view and as someone who believes communications are important to effective philanthropy — with a pretty big and important audience of communicators who work in philanthropy.

Here’s what was interesting about the meeting to me.

First was the meeting’s primary goal to identify how best to measure social media indicators for a common set of outcomes identified by the participants. The common outcomes were:

• The foundation is viewed as a valuable information source
• The foundation is viewed as transparent
• Lessons are disseminated, multiplying impact beyond the foundation’s reach
• Public knowledge, advocacy, influence and action increases in strategic areas
• Our networks strengthen and diversify

I expect this list looks very familiar to foundation communications staff because these outcomes are not unique to social media: They illustrate the strategic goals that many of our communications departments have worked toward for years now. What is important about the current moment is that social media is part of a relatively new set of digital tools that allow us to reach longstanding goals in new ways.

What’s also important about these digital tools is the opportunities they provide to improve our measurement against our communications goals in ways that help us improve our work in real time. These new measurement tools provide data much faster than old methods, more precisely (i.e. downloads and page views vs. circulation) and at lower cost. One clear takeaway from the meeting is that the new digital metrics can definitely improve our understanding of outputs and short-term outcomes, but we still need the tried and true evaluation methods such as surveys and focus groups to assess our broader goals and ultimately our impact.

As the meeting illustrated, social media also changes some of the organizational habits and departmental boundaries that many foundations have developed. Evaluators are interested in working with communications staff to measure programmatic outcomes. Communications staffs are awash in data and might value some help from evaluators to turn it into actionable information. And both groups rely on IT and web developers to set up the technical infrastructure necessary to gather and report this data.

At Irvine we have found that bringing these three functional areas together to collaborate on measuring and analyzing our communications work has been a productive path forward. As we try new digital approaches to sharing our work and insights such as infographics and blogs, we have used digital metrics to test their effectiveness, which leads to conversations about how to improve our work going forward. By using digital methods of communicating findings such as infographics, we are able to track the average amount of time a reader spends on various parts of the page, which helps us understand what information is most valuable to our audiences. Making this data easier to gather and analyze will give us insights into more effective communications tactics that we can use to refine and adapt our efforts in the future.

If you are involved in evaluating communications at your organization, I welcome your thoughts and suggestions for useful tools or ways you have effectively worked together across your communications, evaluation and IT teams.

Kevin Rafter is manager, Research and Evaluation, for the James Irvine Foundation.

Cozine oversees the New York City-based foundation’s communications activities and is responsible for developing NYSHealth’s overall communications strategy to advance its mission to improve the health of all New Yorkers, especially the most vulnerable. Before joining the foundation in January 2010, Cozine held a number of positions at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), most recently as senior communications officer and director of policy connections. In that role, she managed RWJF’s relationships with federal policymakers and worked with grantees to communicate effectively and build relationships with elected officials, the media and other key audiences.

“We’re excited to have someone with Maureen’s talent, experience, and enthusiasm for the Network join the board,” said Rebecca Arno, Communications Network board chair, and vice president of communications, The Denver Foundation. “Her perspective and contribution will be especially important as we implement our new strategic plan.”

Cozine holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Colgate University and a Master of Public Health degree from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. In addition to the board of the Communications Network, she serves on the communications committee of Philanthropy New York and the advisory board of the Paul Jackson Fund.

Organization:
The Robert R. McCormick Foundation is a nonprofit organization committed to fostering communities of educated, informed and engaged citizens. Through philanthropic programs, Cantigny Park and museums, the Foundation helps develop citizen leaders and works to make life better in our communities. The Foundation was established as a charitable trust in 1955, upon the death of Colonel Robert R. McCormick, the longtime editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune. The Robert R. McCormick Foundation is one of the nation’s largest foundations, with more than $1 billion in assets.

Position Description:
The Robert R. McCormick Foundation is seeking a forward-thinking, smart, creative individual with excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, to work in its Communications Department. This individual should have a strong understanding of, and affinity for, the digital media landscape, including various social media platforms. In addition, the individual will be tasked with a variety of projects, while playing a role in developing public relations, digital marketing and social media growth for the Foundation.  The term of this position is over the summer (June-August). See more below.

Responsibilities:

• Help assess and refine the Foundation’s social media strategy. Duties include:
  • Research social media marketing trends and best practices
  • Create/curate content and foster communities  on social network pages such as Facebook and Twitter
  • Monitor, track and analyze social media results for a monthly electronic media report to share with CEO and staff
• Work with program areas to help develop Foundation blog
• Help publish the Foundation’s e-newsletter for employees, and assist team with the development of a new interactive internal communications vehicle for employees
• Attend events to capture content and multimedia for print and online communications
• Update website and online newsroom content
• Help write/ distribute press releases and conduct media outreach
• Monitor and track daily Foundation and grantee news for monthly electronic media dashboard
• Utilize a number of tools including Microsoft SharePoint, Blackbaud NetCommunity and HootSuite.

Desired Qualifications:

• Undergraduate senior  or graduate student (recommended, but not required)
• Currently obtaining a Bachelors degree in Marketing, PR, Advertising, English, Journalism or another related field
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills with the ability to create content in the appropriate voice for the organization
• Creative and innovative thinker with the ability to understand the role of social media in the nonprofit sector
• Excellent interpersonal  skills
• Team player, but also has the ability to work independently
• Graphic design skills recommended but not necessary

Learning Potential:
Our program is designed to introduce college seniors and recent graduates to the field of marketing and communications in the nonprofit sector. Interns will gain exposure in media relations, graphic design, development of internal and external communication strategies and much more.  Upon leaving the program, interns will have a deeper understanding of the marketing and communications field, as well as the experience of working in a professional office environment and cultural institution.

Schedules and Compensation:
The Foundation is looking for an individual that can work full time (a minimum of 10-20 hours per week) for at least three months. Start and end dates are negotiable. Internship compensation is $10/hour.

How to Apply:
Please submit resume, one letter of recommendation (sealed), at least two writing samples and any academic requirements to be considered for a 2013 internship position. Any offers are contingent upon successful completion of a criminal background check and illegal drug screening.

Internship Contact:
Abby Pfeiffer, senior communications officer, (312) 445-5066, APfeiffer@McCoormickFoundation.org

The Robert R. McCormick Foundation believes in equal employment opportunities for all, regardless of color, religion, sex, national origin, disability or any other legally protected classification. The Foundation’s policy is to hire and promote the most qualified applicants and to comply with all federal, state and local equal employment opportunity laws.

For instance, last week, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) held a day-long conference focused on how foundations can determine if social media is moving their work forward.  Over the course of large group and small group discussions and presentations, the questions that kept communications professionals and evaluators engaged were “what do we measure and what will success look like from using social media?”

The impetus for the gathering, as stated on the foundation’s website, was concern that the:

…state of social media measurement is still relatively nascent. Throughout the corporate and nonprofit worlds, individuals are talking about the wide array of metrics available to track page views, fans, followers…While current metrics provide critical insight into what draws audiences and engages them online, questions remain regarding what that means for changing knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors offline.

Among the purposes of the RWJF conference was to find ways to look beyond data that’s easy to capture–such as page views, likes, Tweets and downloads–and determine if all that activity leads people to do things differently or if it contributes to some kind of meaningful change.  As Alison Byrne Fields, founder and president of Aggregate, a creative strategy group that works with foundations and nonprofits, posted to Facebook ahead of the event:

For me, it’s about measuring outcomes: did you achieve the objective you set out to achieve? Yes? No? Pretty simple. Don’t be scared and don’t make excuses. Just understand why or why not. And — to be clear — an “outcome” is not “Did we get comments on our blog post? An outcome is “Did the program we funded achieve what it was meant to achieve.”

While last week’s meeting might have been just one step, it was an important one. And it’s likely to lead to serious work that participants who were at the meeting have pledged to continue in tandem with each other as well as their own colleagues. (For related posts, go here and here.)

Then yesterday, along came an announcement that the Norman Lear Center at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communications and Journalism is launching what it describes a “an ambitious new project aimed at measuring the social impact of media.” Funded with $3.25 million in grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the project is intended to:

Help media organizations, journalists, and social change-makers build on the power of storytelling through data and impact measurement. Despite advances in big data, surprisingly primitive metrics are still commonly used to assess audience engagement with content and its effects on individual perceptions and behaviors. Page views, TV ratings, “likes” and retweets alone don’t reveal how media influences people’s awareness or actions. This is a challenge for organizations that hope to connect audiences with important social issues and support long-term change.

It’s ironic that these conversations and call for more research efforts are taking place at the very moment the free and unfettered flow of information on the Internet and via social media channels is being singled out by some as not such a good thing.  From reading recent headlines, you might suddenly believe that overnight the Internet has turned into a force for no good.  Most of that concern is resulting from a spate of news stories and commentaries on how various hate websites are believed to have contributed to the radicalization of the two brothers accused of the Boston Marathon bombing earlier this month.  Other commentators have also been extremely critical of how the story played out on social media channels.

New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman minced no words in his April 28 Sunday column in which he wrote:

As for the role that Web sites apparently played in the “self-radicalization” of the two Chechen brothers, it is yet another reminder that the Internet is a digital river that carries incredible sources of wisdom and hate along the same current. It’s all there together. And our kids and citizens usually interact with this flow nakedly, with no supervision.

Friedman’s comments about how the disintermediated flow of information may sometimes do a disservice followed those of another Times columnist, Maureen Dowd, who a few days earlier had written:

Everybody is continuously connected to everybody else on Twitter, on Facebook, on Instagram, on Reddit, e-mailing, texting, faster and faster, with the flood of information jeopardizing meaning. Everybody’s talking at once in a hypnotic, hyper din: the cocktail party from hell.

So, here we are.  On one hand we are having an overdue and much-welcomed conversation in the foundation community about the role of social media in helping advance social change as well as a foundation-supported effort that looks at all forms of media and how much they can serve as a force for good. On the other hand, we’re hearing some full-throated commentary about the power of the Internet and social media to do bad things.

I personally think there’s no better time than now to be asking the kind of questions being raised on both sides.  I’m hopeful that whatever we learn, we’ll get valuable information we can apply to creating meaningful communications strategies that have impact. The more open we are to to measuring our communication activities and learning what works (something the Communications Network has been encouraging for years), the greater good we can do.

I like that. How about you?

Bruce S. Trachtenberg is the executive director of the Communications Network

When it comes to delivering great user experiences online, it’s ironic that one of the hottest new approaches to web design is inspired by a concept that is thousands of years old.  But perhaps that is just a testament to the durability of great ideas.

Way back when, if you wanted to write something important down, you generally had two choices: cave drawings or stone tablets. Permanent, yes, but also impractical. Eventually, scrolls were invented, providing the first continuous, editable medium. Ancient Egyptians used scrolls for record-keeping, while Judeans were the first to adapt the format to literature with their all-time best seller, the Torah. It wasn’t until the first century AD that the bound book came about, and it would be almost two thousand more years before the genesis of the modern medium—the digital screen.

The most interesting aspect of this evolution is how the medium continues to shape the message, and vice versa. Caves and tablets were condusive to artistic depictions and decorative narratives with limited written copy. Scrolls were just the opposite: well-suited to long, linear narratives, but with limited decoration. Bound books physically segmented scrolls’ continuous medium into individual pages, which in turn spawned content structures such as parts, sections and chapters.

If anything, the digital screen has brought the segmentation and structuring content a step further. By providing logical and organized navigation schemes, users have the freedom to explore websites according to their individual needs. Interactive has liberated the reader from the constraints of the linear narrative.

And yet, even as the digital screen has embraced alternative content formats and multimedia, it continues to rely on concepts rooted in the physical world. With individual content presentations called “pages,” the web has literally taken a page from books. Non-dynamic sites with evergreen content are commonly referred to as “brochureware.” And one of the most popular trends in digital design— skeuomorphism— is based on adapting the form and function of physical devices to digital applications, much the way Apple has done with the address book and calendar in iOS.

So it should be no surprise that scrolling pages are all the rage again. It’s understandable: deep, immersive pages provide healthy respite from the attention-deficit glut of tweets and other bite-sized content. By relying on the linear narrative rather than a navigation scheme, they provide a more directed reader experience that strengthens understanding. And in the right context, deeper site pages also help create a more intuitive experience, especially on mobile devices, that keeps audiences engaged and helps the medium get out of the message’s way.

With this in mind, here are a few examples of sites that successfully marry design and content to enhance the user experience with scrolling pages:

Linear Narrative

NYT Turmoil in the Sahara

A fantastic job connecting events across time, in far away places to impact. With a persistent timeline header at the top of the page, this design tethers together a series of articles, offering top-line synopsis of each event alongside a link the article. In doing so, the NYT reinforces a synthetic understanding of a sequence of events, while allowing audiences to investigate individual events at their discretion.

Linear Process

World Cocoa Foundation Value Chain
Ok, a small plug for us. Developed at MSDS for World Cocoa Foundation, this page offers a detailed look into every step of the chocolate production process, from farmer to consumer. A simple, step-by-step progression on the left provides context for the greater whole, while the content invites the reader to investigate each step of the process from growing to refining and production.

Interactive Process

The Dangers of Fracking

Conceptually, the content—illustrating the perils of drilling for natural gas—is perfectly suited to the scrolling format. This site uses a technique referred to as “parralax” which shifts the position of different onscreen elements at different speeds to create the illusion of user-controlled animation. The result is a site that takes us on a visual journey of the fracking process, layering on animation and interesting information as we go.

Interactive Online Report

Mailchimp 2012

This micro-site takes scrolling to the next level by integrating parallax scrolling techniques into its online report. This quant-heavy narrative is built from a variety of illustrated stats collected throughout the year; by grouping these by category, the report paints an unconventional but surprisingly meaningful picture of how the company, its customers and the market that has evolved over the past year.

One Page Website

Cambridge Healthcare

In contrast to other pages which simple present a linear narrative, this site does something different—it repurposes what might otherwise be a normal, segmented brochureware site into one contiguous narrative. For all the redundant content that we normally see in such sites, this one is remarkably efficient and immersive in its presentation.

Ryan Reynolds is the design director at MSDS Brand/Design in New York.

Guest Post: Mayur Patel

As social media tools have become ubiquitous, foundations have used them in a variety of ways to expand their networks, gather insights and build new relationships. As a result, there’s a growing interest in developing better ways to measure the impact of their online efforts.

At Knight, our approach to social media is based on using the tools to create opportunities for interaction and information exchange. As my colleagues Elizabeth Miller and Jon Sotsky recently wrote, we actively use social media to connect with our network, gather feedback, cultivate networks and promote our grantees and topics of interest. As a foundation, we’ve often used social media to disseminate publications and lessons learned, invite discussion on foundation topics, promote open contests and let people know about grant application deadlines. Our experience has demonstrated that social media tools have been powerful in pushing us to be more transparent. It’s opened up new channels for participation and feedback in our work.

Social media can be part of a broader shift in philanthropy as foundations seek to become better networked as organizations and more adept at building effective relationships. It can also help a foundation inspire and promote the work of its partners, and engage others in marshaling resources towards achieving social change. Steven Downs, director of IT at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, summarizes their investments in social media as part of a larger focus on greater “openness, participation and decentralization.”

We think these broader shifts in philanthropy are a good thing. At Knight, we try to use social media to mirror our programmatic goals. And we’re eager to learn how we can better use and track its impact on our work in the following areas:

• Transparency: Improving the transparency and responsiveness of our work and the openness of our strategy and grantmaking.
• Information Dissemination: Sharing lessons learned and helping shape best practices.
• Network Strength: Diversifying and growing our network to find new talent and sources of innovative ideas.

Several foundations now regularly collect basic social media analytics, which are monitored on a monthly basis and fed into program reviews. These measures tend to cover two areas:

• Reach and awareness, e.g., Twitter followers, Facebook fans
• Broader engagement and participation, e.g., retweets, Facebook like and shares, tweets using hashtags created by a foundation or program and click throughs.

These measures can be useful proxies for broader outcomes and are relatively easy to collect. But the difficulty is they tend to concentrate attention on measures of activity that don’t always connect to larger programmatic goals.

During the meeting at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, participants focused on how foundations can go beyond basic social media metrics to understand impact more broadly. Some of the questions we considered included:

• How to use social media analytics in combination with traditional evaluation data collections, such as surveys, interviews and content analysis?
• What’s the best way to examine outcomes, like improvements or challenges in brand perception?
• How do you better segment online audiences to go beyond aggregate data and develop meaningful insights into who views what?
• How can foundations better understand influence on knowledge and practices in the issue areas they care about?

To follow an online conversation about social media measurement, as well as find links to materials used at the event, use the Twitter hashtag #SM_RE

Mayur Patel is vice president/strategy and assessment at Knight Foundation

Organization:
The National Summer Learning Association (NSLA) is the preeminent national organization working to increase summer learning opportunities for America’s children. Our mission is to connect and equip schools, districts, providers, community organizations and families to deliver high-quality summer learning programs to our nation’s youth to help close the achievement gap and support healthy development. We are a 501c(3) non-profit organization that serves as a network hub for thousands of summer learning program providers and stakeholders across the country. NSLA offers professional development, quality assessment and evaluation, public policy leadership, best practices dissemination and strategic consulting to states, school districts, community organizations, policymakers and funders nationwide.

Key Responsibilities:

Marketing and Communications Strategy, Vision and Leadership

• Design and execute a comprehensive strategic marketing plan for the organization to build its brand and develop partnerships and products that advance tools and practices for summer learning while sustaining the organization.
• Lead communications strategy that will broaden awareness and visibility of its programs and priorities and allow leadership to cultivate and enhance meaningful relationships with targeted, high-level external audiences, including the media, education policymakers, summer learning program providers, and corporate and philanthropic funding partners.
• Collaborate with the CEO and leadership team to develop and implement a strategic fundraising plan that will guide the organization to meet fundraising goals and to maximize corporate and foundation support and drive organizational membership growth.
• Collaborate with the CEO and leadership team to ensure that there is an integrated and cross-functional approach to marketing, communications, and development.
• Serve as communications counselor to the organization’s leadership.
• Develop partnerships with corporate partners that will leverage summer learning tools and opportunities for students, schools and districts as well as revenue to advance organizational priorities.

Marketing and Communications Operations

• Oversee development of all print communications including publications, marketing collateral materials and electronic communications including the organization’s website and new media; manage relationships with associated vendors
• Serve as a spokesperson and lead point person on media interactions that help promote and/or impact the organization
• Exercise judgment to prioritize media opportunities, and direct the preparation of talking points, speeches, presentations and other supporting material as needed
• Actively engage, cultivate, and manage press relationships, using media relations consultants as a resource, to ensure coverage of priority issues, programs, special events, public announcements, and other projects
• Leverage the time spent by the CEO and other organizational leaders on high-impact fundraising activities.
• Oversee the day-to-day activities of the marketing and communications functions including budgeting, planning, and staff development, including managing the work of a media relations firm and other consultants.

Team Development/Management

• Supervise, manage and provide leadership to a team of staff and consultants whose responsibilities span marketing, communications, and development
• Promote a culture of high performance and continuous improvement that values learning and a commitment to quality
• Mentor and develop staff using a supportive and collaborative approach
• Establish and monitor staff performance and development goals, assign accountabilities, set objectives, establish priorities and conduct annual performance appraisals

Qualifications and Experience:
The ideal candidate is an action-oriented, dynamic, innovative marketing and communications executive who thrives in an entrepreneurial environment. He/she is a manager and leader, but also rolls up his/her sleeves to get the job done.

Key Professional Experience:

• A minimum of 10+ years of experience in marketing and communications in a non-profit or corporate setting
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple complementary project initiatives at once
• Excellent written and verbal communications skills with the ability to target a message to a variety of diverse stakeholders and purposes
• Experience developing and implementing strategic marketing and communications plans to increase visibility and opportunity for organizations and causes

Education:
Bachelor’s degree required

Travel:
Some travel expected, approximately 10 percent – 15 percent

Compensation:
Salary will be competitive and commensurate with experience; excellent benefits

How to apply: 
Please email cover letter and resume in confidence to Jody at jlibit@summerlearning.org (no calls please)

NSLA is an Equal Opportunity Employer and encourages candidates of all backgrounds to apply.

Organization:
Citizen Engagement Lab (CEL) is a home for people and projects working to shift culture and transform society. We support, start, and connect individuals and organizations that use technology-fueled approaches to close the gap between the world we live in and the more just and equal world most of us want.

We Are Looking For:
CEL is seeking an accomplished Communications Director who has at least 5 years of communications experience, ideally in an “in-house” leadership role within a complex (number and variety of constituents) nonprofit entity. Candidate should have a proven track record in successfully driving media messaging and managing website and social media content, newsletters, publications, and donor communications. A focus in technology and social change is a plus. The ability to take knowledge and transform it into exciting and useful messages, and disseminate it to the right audiences through the best distribution channels is critical.

You Will:
The Communications Director will set and guide the strategy for public-facing communications for the organization, including the website, donor communications and social media. The position will also write donor communications and website content, assist in the management of donor convening’s and teleconferences, and drive messaging and press through an outside PR company. The overarching goals of this position are to 1) ensure that CEL is “top of mind” with donors and in the media, and 2) establish CEL as a thought-leader with donors and in the field. The Communications Director will work closely with a senior peer group within the organization as the communications partner on a variety of strategic initiatives. Specific responsibilities include:

• Develop, implement, and evaluate an annual communications plan for the organization.
  • Lead the generation and dissemination strategy of written content that engages donors, press and the larger progressive movement.
  • Manage the development, distribution, and maintenance of all print and electronic collateral representing the organization’s work including, but not limited to, brochures, overviews, case studies, field research, website blog, social media, etc.
  • Design methodology to test the effectiveness of communications activities at CEL; track and measure the level of engagement over time
  • Coordinate staff to keep website and social media fresh—ensure new and consistent information (articles, stories, and events) is posted regularly
  • Work with out-of-house PR Company to generate and occasionally pitch press or story ideas and report all media hits/contacts.
• Oversee and produce donor communications for CEL and CEL supported organizations/projects.
  • Write special project and organizational short overviews for funder audiences.
  • Assist in the setup and management of donor convening’s and teleconferences.
  • Produce and disseminate regular updates for our donors about CEL and CEL-supported organizations, innovation projects and collaborations.

You Have:

• Excellent writing/editing and verbal communication skills.
• Highly collaborative style; experience developing and implementing communications strategies.
• Experienced writing communications, reports and other materials for the public and donors.
• Familiarity with progressive movements is key; familiarity with online organizing, incubation/capacity-building and/or field-building as social change strategies is a big plus.
• A strong track record as a doer who thrives on managing a variety of key initiatives concurrently.
• Relationship-builder with the flexibility and finesse to “manage by influence”.
• High energy, maturity, and leadership with the ability to serve as a unifying force and to position communications discussions at both the strategic and tactical levels.
• Self-starter, able to work independently, and entrepreneurial; enjoy creating and implementing new initiatives.

There’s no one path for accumulating all these skills, or single set of credentials that will indicate the right match. If you think you’re a fit, let’s talk.

Candidates who meet these qualifications are encouraged to apply. CEL is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity as central to our work serving underrepresented communities, and we encourage candidates from a wide range of backgrounds to apply.

Salary & Benefits:
Salary is determined by experience and qualifications. Competitive benefits package includes generous vacation, full health, dental, vision and flex benefits, ongoing training opportunities, and unlimited Yerba Mate in our Berkeley office.

How to Apply:
Please email a resume and cover letter to jobs@engagementlab.org explaining why you are our Communications Director. Position will remain open until we find the perfect fit.

Organization:
People depend on nature for many things. A stable climate. Clean air. Fresh water. Abundant food. Cultural resources. And the incalculable additional benefits the world’s biodiversity provides. Conservation International (CI) works to ensure a healthy and productive planet for us all. Yet economic and infrastructure development, which are so necessary for human well-being, can also have serious impacts on nature. That is why CI is working at every level – from remote villages to the offices of presidents and premiers – to help move whole societies toward a smarter development path.

Through science, policy and field work, we’re applying smart solutions to protect the resources that we all depend on. We help communities, countries and societies protect tropical forests, lush grasslands, rivers, wetlands, abundant lakes and the sea. Only through properly valuing the essential services these ecosystems provide can we create a sustainable development path that will benefit all people for generations to come.

Today, Conservation International is governed by a 35 person Board who comprise world, business, philanthropic and civic leaders.  The organization works in 28 countries and has a worldwide staff of approximately 900.  The annual budget for Conservation International is $140 million.

Position Description:
Reporting directly to the Chairman and CEO, the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) is a key member of the executive leadership team providing strong, creative, energetic, strategic leadership on all of CI’s marketing and branding initiatives. The CMO will build a clear vision and breakthrough marketing strategies to increase CI’s brand awareness globally. S/he will develop and execute consistent and compelling key messages that accurately portray the work and mission of the organization. S/he will oversee global advertising, collateral, promotions and other initiatives to drive familiarity, favorability and preference for the organization’s brand while supporting key organizational objectives, including raising funds, influencing key corporate and public-sector decision-makers and engaging in strategic partnerships.

The CMO will oversee a team of 32 professional staff and a budget of approximately $4 million.  Equally important, the CMO will work closely with the Vice President of News and Publicity to make sure there is a consistent and dynamic narrative conveyed to key policy, philanthropic, private sector and civil society leaders.

The broad objectives for the Chief Marketing Officer are the following:

• Set marketing and branding vision and high-level objectives to enable the organization and the division to achieve CI’s organizational goals.

• Lead effort to identify, segment and research key target audiences to drive general brand awareness and engagement objectives, key organizational objectives, including raising funds, influencing decision-makers and engaging in strategic partnerships.
• Oversee brand positioning, message development as a well as market research to help define relevant and compelling messages.

• Identify and pitch strategic marketing partners and opportunities, and oversee the implementation of marketing initiatives, in both traditional and non-traditional arenas that lead to increased brand awareness.

• Collaborate with other senior leaders in the development of relationships with partners in the public and private sector that are key to CI’s success.

• Develop proposals and project ideas to help raise funds from private sources, foundations and other partners or secure pro bono services for marketing and branding efforts.

• Collaborate with CI’s SVP of Development to develop the messaging and tools necessary to support CI’s fundraising initiatives from a variety of sources – public and private.

• Collaborate with CI’s SVP, Center for Environmental Leadership in Business on messaging, tools and pitches for cause-related marketing initiatives.

• Serve as staff liaison for CI Board on matters related to marketing and branding.

• Oversee division staff, budgets, programs & projects.  Ensure fiscal oversight of the division’s budgets.

• Align staff efforts toward overall objectives and manage performance.

• Represent the division on CI Leadership and other senior-level committees responsible for decisions affecting the institution.

Professional Qualifications:

• Advanced degree in business, marketing, communications or related field and a minimum 15 years experience in progressive management/leadership level positions in marketing or communications (or equivalent combination of education and experience).

• International experience developing and implementing branding and marketing programs and strategies and systems to support a multi-million dollar, multi-location global organization

• Experience working in a diverse decentralized international organization.

• Excellent verbal and written communications skills, including effective presentation and negotiation skills.

• Ability to create innovative strategies, partnerships and programs without existing models.

• Proven ability to formulate and execute results utilizing strong analytical, critical decision-making and strategic planning skills.

• Strong interpersonal skills, presence and ability to effectively build strong relationships both internally and externally.

• Capability to interact effectively with senior executives, celebrities, corporate leaders, heads of state and other non-governmental organizations.
•  Proven ability to lead, engage, and collaborate with individuals across various disciplines, cultures and backgrounds to achieve shared goals.

• Demonstrated ability in staff supervision and coaching, and building successful teams.

• A reputation for high ethical standards and integrity.

• Passion for international nature conservation and sustainable development, and commitment to engagement with public and private leaders to address environmental problems and promote healthy ecosystems essential for human well-being.

Personal Attributes:

• Energetic, collaborative and proactive.

• Entrepreneurial and dynamic thought leader.

• Highly adaptive and able to work well in high stress situations.

• Stature and confidence to gain the credibility, respect and buy-in for a wide range of audiences and stakeholders.

• Awareness of development and/or environmental issues.

• Outstanding interpersonal skills including a deep commitment to the program goals, intellectual curiosity, good judgment, honesty, and integrity.

How to Apply:
Qualified candidates should email a cover letter explaining how their skills and background fit this position and a resume to: Daniel Sherman, President, Explore Company at resumes@explorecompany.com.  Refer to CI in the subject line.  No phone inquiries please.

Conservation International is an equal opportunity employer.

All correspondence will remain confidential.

The director of communications & external relations will set, guide and implement the strategy for consistently articulating and promoting CCER’s mission and goals to multiple stakeholders groups, through various methods including owned media (website, social media, e-newsletter), earned media, events, public relations messaging, and marketing collateral.  The successful candidate will be responsible for all aspects of external communications by creating compelling and useful messages and disseminating them to various audiences via the most effective communications channel.  The director of communications & external relations must be passionate about advocating for education reform.

Key Responsibilities:

• Prioritize communication projects to ensure maximum impact and alignment with organizational objectives and strategic plans.
• Ensure timely identification and investigation of potentially critical issues that may generate external interest and collaborate with subject matter experts to develop action plans, briefs, articles, speeches and response documents.
• Increase regional, state and national recognition for CCER’s mission and results.
• Generate innovative and compelling communications strategies that target internal and external audiences through the traditional and non-traditional communication channels.
• Create and implement a proactive and sophisticated communications calendar to ensure frequent, consistent, and high-impact activities and brand messaging, including:
  • Social Media (Twitter, Facebook etc.)
  • Reports
  • Newsletters
  • Brochures
  • Website
  • Blogs
  • Press
• Promote external discussion and dialog by creating and implementing compelling and engaging communications initiatives.
• Develop and maintain effective relationships with CT media; continually work to deepen/grow these relationships.
• Manage relationships with external partners and vendors to effectively implement the communications strategy.
• Work closely with CCER’s research team to ensure research and data is presented in a way that will provide value to key external audiences.
• Develop and write opinion pieces that are insightful, topical and which generate debate, as well as assist members of CCER’s network to develop and write opinion pieces.
• Secure high-profile state and regional speaking engagements for CCER’s senior team; research and write important and impactful speeches.
• Provide media and communications training and support to CCER staff and network members.
• Identify and utilize the most cost-effective communication tools available.
• Other duties as necessary to ensure organizational success. All CCER staff members are encouraged to be flexible and responsive to changes in scope of duties.

Professional Experience: 

• Demonstrated track record of success in developing and implementing high-level and comprehensive communications strategies.
• Excellent writing/editing and verbal communications skills.
• Proven ability to appropriately distill a message for a variety of different audiences.
• Exceptional track record in working effectively with the media, including demonstrated success in pitching and placing news articles and opinion pieces in all media formats, and arranging events.
• Ability to work collaboratively with various stakeholders and constituent groups, including staff, board members and supporters.
• Demonstrated success working in a fast-paced, dynamic, results-oriented team environment.
• High-level project management experience.
• Strong technological skills.
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Preference will be given to candidates who have experience in:
  • Non-profits
  • Education Reform and/or Public and Private Education
  • Advocating for social causes

Personal Characteristics:

• A passion for CCER’s mission.
• Effectively engages with senior subject-matter experts on complex or nuanced issues and is able to distill key messages and frame them succinctly for verbal or written communications.
• Clear personal authority and credibility; excellent oral and written communications skills.
• High degree of intellectual curiosity – stays current and is an avid reader in the space; stays up to date on known issues and is able to spot new issues as they begin to emerge.
• Excellent influencing and presentation skills; an ability to gain significant buy-in both internally and externally.
• Independent, highly organized, and detail-oriented self-starter.
• Highly goal-oriented with a strong focus on delivery; structured, organized, and focused.
• Energetic, hard-working, and enthusiastic team player.
• Flexible, resourceful, persistent and willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done.
• Principled individual with high ethical standards.
• Sense of humor.

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree from a competitive college or university. Master’s degree in a relevant field preferred.

How to Apply:
Applicants should send their resumes to resumes@bridgepartnersllc.com

Fortunately, there are organizations out there like the Sunlight Foundation who make it their business to stay on the bleeding edge of web/mobile tools that help them do their work better. That’s why we recently invited Liz Bartolomeo, the foundation’s media director, to have a conversation online with our regular webinar host, Andy Goodman, about the best tools for outreach, engagement, productivity and research.  During the course of their 60-minute conversation, Liz and Andy discussed the tools and described how they can be mixed and matched for unique purposes. (Links to many of the tools discussed on the webinar are below.)

As you’ll see when you watch the replay, there is quite an array of helpful tools.  Here’s a handy list to get you started after you’ve watched the webinar.

• Google Alerts
• Rapportive
• Sprout Social
• Tumblr
• Foursquare
• Storify
• Kindle Store
• Tweetdeck
• Chartbeat.com
• Topsy.com
• Cover It Live
• Pinboard.in
• ifttt.com
• eventbrite
• Square
• Google hangout
• Etherpad
• Wayback Machine
• documentcloud.org
• Scout
• Google for Nonprofits

Organization:
The Robert R. McCormick Foundation was established in 1955 by Col. Robert R. McCormick, the long-time editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune.  The mission of the McCormick Foundation is to help foster communities of educated, informed and engaged citizens.  The Foundation makes grants in the areas of early childhood education, civic education, journalism, strengthening low-income families and communities, and veterans.  Cantigny Park, located on the grounds of Col. McCormick’s former estate in west suburban Wheaton, operates formal gardens, 27-hole championship golf course, two museums, and restaurant facilities.  The mission of Cantigny is to honor the legacy of Col. Robert R. McCormick, who provided that the former residence and 500-acres of land be held in trust as a museum and public park.

Position Description:
The Director of Communications is responsible for all of the communications functions for the McCormick Foundation and Cantigny Park.

The objective of our communications work is to advance the mission of the Foundation.  On the grant-making side this involves building awareness and support for the Foundation’s work and the work of our grantees and other partners. In early childhood education, for example, our objective is to help give all children in Illinois, especially low-income and other at risk children, access to a system of quality care and education.  Our grantees develop and implement programs to improve early education practices and support their widespread adoption. We communicate with public officials, civic and education leaders, early education experts, and the general public about issues and progress in this work.  A major emphasis is on sharing the knowledge and lessons learned with others in our fields of work.

At Cantigny, proactive communications are used to attract visitors to the park and golf course, grow the park’s membership program, and increase revenues. Advertising and marketing activities support these efforts.

Responsibilities:
The Director of Communications reports to the President/CEO and is a member of the Foundation’s senior leadership team.  Specific responsibilities include:

• Helps develop communications strategies and plans to help achieve the Foundation’s objectives with CEO and colleagues
• Leads a team of five Communications staff (three in the downtown office and two at  Cantigny)
• Supports both grant-making and Cantigny operations, balancing time commitment and physical presence in the Chicago and Cantigny offices
• Represents the Foundation publicly and with media
• Supports the CEO and other Foundation leaders with their communications, including speeches and published articles
• Develops effective internal communications to build employee engagement and development
• Oversees all of our communications channels and materials including websites, newsletters, publications, and social media
• Develops evaluation measurement to ensure communication is relevant and effective
• Develops and manages the Communications’ department budget

Qualifications:
The ideal candidate will have 10+ years of communications and marketing experience in leadership positions and meet the following criteria:

• Hands-on leader with a proven track record of accomplishment
• Strong oral communicator, and a good writer and editor
• Strong media relationships to support media coverage and increase awareness about the Foundations and their work
• As a steward of the Foundation’s reputation, must have excellent judgment and a good ear
• Should have experience in advertising and marketing, ideally for a destination venue attracting public audiences and members
• Should be creative and strategic, and even better at taking a hands-on approach to the work
• Must have experience in digital communications, specifically web and social media
• Should be curious, and like to both learn and teach
• Should be excellent at listening, coaching, and collaborating with and among our program areas, departments, grantees and other outside partners
• Must have a passion for serving other people and making our communities better

How to Apply: 
Interested applicants should submit a resume and cover letter to Oscar Regalado, Human Resources Director at: ORegalado@McCormickFoundation.org

Organization:
The Environmental Grantmakers Association (EGA) is a non-profit membership organization comprised of over 200 foundations from across North America and overseas. EGA works with members and partners to promote effective environmental philanthropy by sharing knowledge, fostering debate, cultivating leadership, facilitating collaboration, and catalyzing action. EGA staff work in a fast paced environment, juggling multiple projects simultaneously.

Qualifications:

Qualified candidates must possess a Bachelor’s degree and a minimum of 2 years relevant experience in the following areas:

• grassroots organizing, philanthropy, or program outreach/support;
• producing high quality and engaging content for online and print materials;
• environmental communications; experience with managing online advocacy or engagement tools, and data systems;
• experience and enthusiasm for working with people and committee processes related to event planning and logistics coordination;
• enjoy engaging with a wide range of people in person at events, as well as focusing on small group work and individual areas of responsibility;
• creative, self-starting, super organized, highly detail-orientated individual with the ability to find innovative uses of tools and technology to implement effective and efficient engagement strategies;
• excellent oral and written communication skills;
• basic design and image formatting skills, knowledge of HTML, and best practices for publishing engaging web content.

Ability to multi-task and meet deadlines, work well independently and as a team are essential.

How to Apply: 
Please send a cover letter and resume to rgoldstein@ega.org by May 15, 2013. In the subject line, enter: Web and Communications Outreach Coordinator Search. No calls, queries, or faxed applications will be accepted.

EGA is an equal opportunity employer and invites applications from candidates regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability or religion.

What is a recent communications success you are particularly proud of?

The Wall Street Journal covered the launch of a new section of our Web site designed to help nonprofit afterschool providers improve their financial management skills. For the first time, we used a so-called “vanity url” – strongnonprofits.org – to take advantage of the search engine optimization benefits and we’re looking forward to seeing how it works.

When you were 13 years old, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Heading into college, I was sure I wanted to be a psychiatrist. I don’t own an analyst’s couch, but I do think that effective communication begins with careful listening. I try to follow the advice of the analyst Theodor Reik to listen “with the third ear” what is communicated through gestures, intonation and connotation.

What’s something unique about your organization that other foundation staff might not know about?

It’s not unique but it may be unusual: At The Wallace Foundation all initiative teams have representatives from program, research and evaluation, and communications. That ensures that communications aren’t an “add-on” but an integral part of the foundation’s toolkit for encouraging positive change.

Your hardest target audience to reach?

In an information-saturated world all audiences are hard to reach, so we try to rely on multiple and simultaneous approaches. People are more likely to notice something when exposed to a message several times, and credibility can be enhanced by seeing something endorsed by multiple sources. A special challenge is in fields like the arts or after-school where the knowledge-sharing infrastructure is either splintered into narrow segments or is thin.

What percentage of your communications is new media based?

Probably less than 5 percent by budget, but it is growing rapidly from a small base. Our Twitter followers grew 5 percent last month to its current total of 5,800, and we’re seeing increasing page referrals to our Web site from – surprise! – Pinterest.

What was your undergraduate major? How has it been useful?

English literature. I wouldn’t trade it for anything. It’s where I learned to love language, to read carefully and to write. Reading poetry out loud is the best way to hear nuance in expression.

Do you evaluate communications efforts? Any insights on new measurement tools and/or implementation plans?

We do more assessment than evaluation. We track downloads of the more than 400 publications on our Web site (our largest communication channel) along with other metrics, and we review the performance of our communication partners which include organizations like the Education Trust and the National League of Cities. We also periodically gather data using independent researchers on how both grantees and non-grantees perceive the foundation, and use the data to target areas of weakness.

Who is your favorite underappreciated journalist?

Not sure he’s underappreciated, but Atul Gawande’s stuff is fascinating.

Your favorite communications tool that you think more foundation folks should be using?

Diffusion of Innovations by the late Everett Rogers is the most useful tool I have ever encountered for communications. Based on hundreds of individual studies, it provides the single most powerful explanation for why some ideas spread and others do not. We’ve used it as the basis for our overall communications strategy – and it helps us ask the right questions. As Kurt Lewin said, “there is nothing so practical as a good theory.”

Biggest complaint about how foundations get covered in the media?

Philanthropy Awareness Initiative got it right: Foundations have not done a great job in explaining the value that foundations as institutions add beyond the money we give as grants. The result is an overall positive perception of our work, but with little understanding behind it, making us vulnerable. Hats off to the funders of PAI: Packard, Gates, Hewlett, Irvine and Robert Wood Johnson.

The last nonfiction book you read?

Stalingrad: The Fateful Seige, by Antony Beevor. It changes the way you think about how the Allies beat Hitler, and it’s like taking a course in strategy. I also recommend The Ghost of the Executed Engineer: Technology and the Fall of the Soviet Union by Loren Graham, the great historian of Soviet science. It’s a plea to avoid large-scale, national solutions that don’t take into account local variation and is thus relevant to foundations’ work.

Another foundation whose communication work you admire?

The Commonwealth Fund is blazing new trails in the presentation of complex data. They’ve found ways to reach decisionmakers while maintaining the credibility that is at the heart of the ability to influence policy.

Your favorite non-professional, non-general news blog?

I like trolling slate.com and politico.com, but I can’t say I have a single favorite blog.

The last time you learned something important from a communications colleague?

I’ve learned a lot about social marketing from our partners at Crosby Marketing Communications, including the need to break down the steps involved in decisionmaking. We’re working with them to help recruit students to a summer learning demonstration effort.

Can you recommend a contemporary film or documentary that you think tells a compelling, persuasive story?

“Sarah’s Key,” set in Paris during the present with flashbacks to the round-up of Jews at the Velodrome d’Hiver, is a painful but brilliantly told story of memory and repression – both social and individual.

What’s your poison: Pinterest, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or?

My first boss told me: “don’t just read newspapers or you’ll get stupid.” That’s still ringing in my ears 34 years later. I try to balance an interest in the immediate with the longer-form reflections in books. I find LinkedIn the most useful to keep up to date with new reports on communications and marketing.

What’s a question we should have asked you but didn’t?

Why Grand Central Terminal doesn’t have any benches, unlike most other railroad stations? Just kidding.

A big question is a version of the Goldilocks puzzle: How we could know whether we are investing too little, too much, or just right in communications around a particular initiative? That question – and a bunch of others – are things we’ll be looking at in the next six months as we update our communications strategy.

What’s a question you have for your Communications Network colleagues?

Has anybody found good software to help track both the production of publications and their dissemination? If so, please drop me an email! I have gotten enormous value from my colleagues in the Network over the past decade.

A Quick Word With… was created by Michael Hamill Remaley, vice president of communications & public policy, Philanthropy New York and a frequent Communications Network contributor. This interview was conducted and edited by Courtney Williamson, community manager, The Communications Network.

Organization:
Fair Food Network is a national nonprofit dedicated to building a more just and sustainable food system. We believe everyone has the fundamental right to healthy, fresh and sustainably grown food. We work at the intersection of food systems, sustainability and social equity to improve healthy food access, especially in underserved communities; shape public policy; inform funding strategies; and strengthen the network of organizations working to advance a healthier and equitable food system.

Fair Food Network is a national leader in sustainable agriculture and food systems, well known for its successful Double Up Food Bucks project that provides families who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits with the means to purchase more locally-grown fruits and vegetables while supporting local food growers and the local food economy. This project has become a national model, along with our Detroit Grocery Incubator Project and Fair Food Fund.

Position Overview:
The organization is poised to build upon these successes to bring greater visibility to the issues. We seek a dynamic and experienced Communications Director to guide the Organization’s evolution. The Communications Director will bring a strategic perspective to the Organization’s communications activities, working collaboratively with the President and program team to lead a comprehensive communications strategy that leverages the Organization’s strengths and focuses national attention on solutions for redesigning our food system.

The Communications Director will bring media relations expertise and relationships to build the Organization’s media presence, and will streamline and implement clear internal processes for managing communications opportunities to advance the Organization’s mission in a measured and coordinated manner.

This position reports to the President and is based in Ann Arbor, with some national travel.

Responsibilities:

• Work collaboratively with the President, senior staff, and an external agency to develop and lead a national, multi-year communications strategy designed to elevate the Organization and build sustained visibility and support for our initiatives.
• Build an expanded national media presence through targeted outreach, pitching and relationship building with key journalists, as well as maintain and broaden a strong presence in Michigan.
• Identify policy and partnership opportunities that can be leveraged to broaden the organization’s impact, and build and sustain relationships with policymakers, thought leaders and other key audiences.
• Work with program staff to integrate communications, providing advice and relating work to the organization’s strategic plan.
• Support organization spokespeople by writing briefing materials, press releases and op-eds, and preparing talking points and presentations.
• Serve as key contributor on the development team, conceptualizing and drafting grant proposals, as well as managing funder relationships.
• Manage the organization’s brand identity to enhance awareness of initiatives and maintain message consistency. Communications Director 2

Position Description:

• Lead expansion of communications channels including the continued use of social media to broaden our reach and engagement with key audiences.
• Manage an internal communications team, facilitating processes to ensure work is accomplished in a timely and professional manner.
• Produce content (e.g., write op-eds, brochures, reports) and manage the development and promotion of print, broadcast and online materials to ensure accuracy and consistency across all communications channels.
• Hire and manage an external agency to support strategic communications efforts.
• Develop and implement a system to evaluate the effectiveness of communications.

Qualifications:

• A minimum of 8 to 10 years of communications experience in marketing, media relations, communications, public policy or a related field.
• Bachelor’s and/or advanced degree in communications, public affairs or related field preferred.
• Demonstrated record of developing and effectively leading cause-oriented and digital marketing communications campaigns.
• Traditional and social media relations expertise and savvy in generating interest, as well as managing media inquiries, interviews and other requests.
• Adept at developing and navigating high-profile partnerships and funder relationships; and have existing relationships with national food and agriculture policy players and journalists.
• Exceptional written, spoken and visual communication skills.
• Proven ability to produce high-impact materials, as well as manage daily communications activities while maintaining a big picture, strategic mindset.
• Knowledge of and passion for fair food systems, social justice and an active lifestyle.
• Experience working in multicultural environments, and the ability to work collaboratively and incorporate multiple perspectives.
• Critical thinker with a high tolerance for ambiguity and ability to adapt to a fast-paced environment.
• Self-starter who thinks creatively, takes initiative and wants to be challenged.

How to Apply:
Please send a cover letter and resume to jobs@fairfoodnetwork.org.

We value the knowledge, skills and abilities that a diverse team brings to Fair Food Network. In your cover letter please explain how your background will prepare you to be successful in this role.

The organization hires without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, height, weight, marital status, disability or any other factor protected under federal, state, or local law. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.

No telephone calls, please.

Organization: 
Ocean Conservancy empowers people to take action for the ocean. Informed by science, our work guides policy and engages people in protecting the ocean for future generations.

At Ocean Conservancy, we’re working to ensure a healthy ocean because we know that the ocean sustains us. Much of the air we breathe, the food we eat, the water we drink and the moderate climates and outdoor activities we enjoy is thanks to the ocean. Keeping it healthy is not easy, however. The only thing growing faster than our population—2 billion more people by 2040—is our consumption. The world’s demand for protein, energy, minerals and more, is exploding. The ocean holds the key to satisfying much of that demand, and it is thus at the very center of the most pressing challenge of our time: how to create prosperity for all without destroying the natural world that sustains us.

With Ocean Conservancy’s 40 years of leadership on these issues, we have developed a reputation as the go-to organization for top officials in the Administration, the Congress and Agencies with ocean responsibilities. We champion science-based solutions to tackle the largest threats to the ocean, mobilize advocates to facilitate change and support efforts that benefit the people who depend on the ocean for food, jobs and recreation. We shape the political agenda for the ocean so sound decisions are made that sustain our planet and improve lives.

Ocean Conservancy’s headquarters are located in Washington, D.C., with offices in Anchorage, Portland, New Orleans and Baton Rouge, St. Petersburg, Austin and Santa Cruz.  We have a team of about 90 staff, more than 110,000 members and 600,000 international volunteers. Ocean Conservancy’s operating budget for the fiscal year ending June 30 is $19 million.

Position Description:
The Director of Digital Strategies is a senior leadership position at Ocean Conservancy reporting to the Vice President, Marketing and Communications. The key goals of the Marketing and Communications department are to build awareness of threats to and solutions for the ocean, to gain public and private support for Ocean Conservancy’s mission, and to encourage political action for a healthy ocean that can sustain us for future generations.

The broad objectives for the Director are to:

• Acquire a larger, more active online constituency.
• Lead content development that illustrates how the ocean are at the center of the most important resource issues of our time and provides a compelling experience for engaging constituencies.
• Spearhead digital advocacy, engagement and fund-raising efforts to support greater awareness of and actions for ocean health in general and the organization’s policy, program and fundraising goals.
• Strengthen Ocean Conservancy’s brand by building a world-class digital engine for ocean conservation.
• Build upon and mentor a growing digital team and serve as a key advisor to the organization’s leadership.

In the past year, Ocean Conservancy has invested in market research with its current and prospective constituencies, increased social media and online giving by two-fold, launched a new blog and mobile app, invested in online advertising, and redesigned their website to provide the framework for expanded acquisition, engagement and marketing strategies. This new investment provides the foundation to secure a dramatically increased constituency that is engaged across organizational channels taking action, sharing content, volunteering and providing financial support for key organizational policy priority issues. In the Director’s first year, the highest priority is to reach new constituencies, enhance their online experiences and develop new campaigns with compelling story telling, multimedia interactive features, and clear calls to action – all backed by acquisition and/or conversion strategies with continuous analysis to ensure impact and the highest return on investment. The long-term objective is to create a digital movement for the ocean and the solutions it provides.

As a leader in the organization, the Director serves in a strategic advisory role within the Marketing and Communications department, with conservation program directors, and with the executive team, including the President and CEO, who is committed to growing the digital constituency and its value in the organization and within the broader context of global ocean conservation.

The Director leads a team of six full-time employees focused on web content and production, email, social media, blog, video, graphic design, and manages the digital marketing and advertising consultants and vendors. The Director works collaboratively with strategic communications team members and with conservation policy leaders in the organization, who help generate compelling digital content.

Professional Qualifications and Personal Attributes:

• A passion for the cause and extraordinary professional ability to leverage digital communications in a manner that will advance the organization’s values, mission and goals.
• A demonstrated record of success as a leader in developing digital strategies that motivate audiences toward action in the social, political, environmental or other transformational movements.
• Significant experience leading the development of a mix of content and campaigns that effectively balance education, engagement, acquisition, advocacy and fund-raising goals.
• Proven management and budgeting experience, who is adept at managing up, down and across, coordinating internal and external partnerships, and supervising consultants and vendors on marketing products.
• A proactive, service-oriented ethic that ensures the digital needs of the organization is met with strategic acumen, a bias for action, and accountability for results.
• Ability to execute at a strategic and tactical level and to be accountable for accuracy, timeliness and excellence in all digital efforts.
• Ability to translate and generate ideas around how to communicate technical, scientific information in a way that resonates with the general public and converts them to action.
• An understanding of the importance of and role of media relations and traditional communications and development strategies.
• A commitment to fostering an environment that rewards innovation, curiosity, experimentation, participatory decision making and professional development.
• Degreed professional with 8-10 years of related experience, including proven experience directing digital marketing and communications programs and leading multidisciplinary teams, preferably with or for a movement building cause.

How to Apply:
Interested candidates should email a cover letter explaining how your skills and background fit this position and a resume to: Daniel Sherman, President, Explore Company at resumes@explorecompany.com.  Refer to Ocean Conservancy in the subject line.  No phone inquiries please.

Ocean Conservancy is an equal opportunity employer.

Organization:
The Open Government Partnership (OGP) is a new multilateral initiative that aims to secure concrete commitments from governments to promote transparency, empower citizens, fight corruption and harness new technologies to strengthen governance.

Position Description:
OGP is looking for a dynamic, self-motivated individual with strong experience in communications and public affairs to serve as Communications Manager for the OGP Support Unit. The Support Unit is a small team dedicated to advancing the Steering Committee’s strategic vision for the Partnership and leading OGP’s day-to-day operations.

The Communications Manager will work closely with the Executive Director to implement an external communications strategy for the Open Government Partnership, including overseeing all digital platforms, publications, and media relations.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Manage design, content and analytics for OGP’s website and blog.
• Manage OGP’s media outreach, including both traditional and social media
• Oversee public relations for OGP global and regional events.
• Develop promotional materials for OGP, including pamphlets, newsletters, annual report and short videos.
• Produce digital content – including country updates, event calendars, OGP case studies and examples, resource guides, etc.

Other Duties and Responsibilities:

• Track media coverage of OGP and post relevant news articles and links to the website or blog.
• Provide other strategic communications advice and support as needed.

Education and Experience:

• Advanced degree or equivalent experience in communications, journalism, or relevant field.
• A minimum of 5-7 years experience in developing and implementing external communications strategies for organizations (or businesses) that work internationally.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Familiarity with governance issues and/or international relations highly desirable.
• Experience with website design and understanding of web analytics.
• Excellent writing skills: ability to translate abstract concepts into clear, concise and compelling prose.
• Experience and creativity in naming, branding and marketing initiatives.
• Strong track record of meeting deadlines.
• Willingness to travel internationally.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, start-up environment, as part of a virtual team.
• Self-directed, but proactive in sharing information with team members.
• Strong diplomatic skills and ability to work and communicate effectively in a multi-cultural setting.
• Experience and comfort with public speaking, strong presentation skills.
• Humility and a healthy sense of humor; calm and poised under pressure.
• Detail-oriented with ability to step back and see the big picture.

How to Apply:
Please email an updated CV, cover letter and recent writing sample to info@opengovpartnership.org, with the subject line ‘OGP Communications Manager’

Applications must be submitted online by April 30th, 2013 at 9 pm EDT.

The Open Government Partnership, a project of Tides Center, is an “at-will” and equal opportunity employer. Applicants and employees shall not be discriminated against because of race, religion, sex, national origin, ethnicity, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, gender (including pregnancy and gender expression), identity, color, marital status, veteran status, medical condition, or any other classification protected by federal, state, or local law or ordinance.

Reasonable accommodation will be made so that qualified disabled applicants may participate in the application process. Please advise in writing of special needs at the time of application…

Organization:
Humanity United is a foundation committed to building peace and advancing human freedom. We lead, support, and collaborate with a broad network of efforts, ideas, and organizations that share our vision of a world free of conflict and injustice.

Position Description:
Reporting to the Senior Strategic Advisor, the Director of Partnerships serves as the coordinating lead within Humanity United for the development of strategic partnerships, donor and foundation collaboration, and corporate relationship development. Supporting Humanity United’s goal of leveraging collective impact to solve some of the world’s most intractable problems, the successful candidate will work with the Senior Strategic Advisor and other members of the leadership team to design and implement a comprehensive plan for developing key external alliances that will enable Humanity United to have a greater impact in our areas of human rights work.Essential Job Functions:

Guest Post: Regan Gruber Moffitt

At the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation (WRF), we aspire to “go viral.” Whether this sounds good to you may depend on your generation—or how recently you have battled a cold. I will put your mind at ease by saying that we aim to share messages rather than multiply germs. Similar to powerful examples such as the Arab Spring, and less powerful but more fun examples, like the viral video of a kid in a car seat dancing, we strive to engage people through communications. By doing so, we believe we can help our foundation fulfill its value around transparency and reach its mission. We believe that communications of any kind­—from convenings, newletters, and annual reports, to Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube—can help philanthropy achieve the outcomes it seeks.

So why should foundations communicate? Below are three reasons that drive WRF and that we believe should drive philanthropy to prioritize communications as a strategy to effect change.

BIG MISSION, SMALL STAFF: Communication is Engagement

WRF has a big mission—to improve the lives of Arkansans—and a small staff. That said, there are dozens of foundation grantees, hundreds of state policymakers, thousands of community and business leaders and three million Arkansas residents. If we are to achieve our mission, we must reach beyond the doors of the foundation, and with a clear vision, engage others in taking the actions necessary to improve Arkansas for all of its residents.

CHOIR IS STRONGER THAN A SOLO: Communication is Common Language

Like a soprano sings best from the high end of the scale, WRF speaks most authentically from the foundation perspective. A soprano solo is lovely, but to add richness, depth and volume to the music, a choir adds the voices of altos, tenors and basses. When adding new voices, the notes are not uniform for all singers, but the chorus is the same. For WRF, adding new voices can provide new perspectives and amplify our messages around what it takes to move the needle in Arkansas.

LIVE AND LEARN: Communication is Dialogue

It is easy to approach communications as a one-way street, with a foundation developing a message and hoping that those we communicate with will receive it. It is far more effective, however, to undertake two-way communications. WRF approaches communications as a dialogue, and therefore has the opportunity to learn and grow based on what its partners and the public communicate back.

We invite other foundations to join us in “going viral.” And of course, we should take this opportunity to encourage you to help us become a little more viral ourselves. You can find us at www.wrfoundation.org, and we encourage you to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

Organization:
Humanity United is a foundation committed to building peace and advancing human freedom. We lead, support, and collaborate with a broad network of efforts, ideas, and organizations that share our vision of a world free of conflict and injustice.

Position Description:
Reporting to the Senior Strategic Advisor, the Director of Communications will set, guide and execute the strategy for all communications and media relations in support of Humanity United’s peace building portfolio of work. The Director of Communications will work with the peace building team across Humanity United to employ communications in all its forms as a tool to achieve Humanity United’s goals in this area. The Director of Communications will also work with the Senior Strategic Advisor on overall branding and marketing for Humanity United and senior executive communications.

Organization:
Humanity United is a foundation committed to building peace and advancing human freedom. We lead, support, and collaborate with a broad network of efforts, ideas, and organizations that share our vision of a world free of conflict and injustice.

Guest Post: Debra Rubino

As a sector, the foundation community must have an enormously high IQ. If you take a quick look at the vitae of staff members of just about any foundation, you’ll find degrees in multiple fields—sometimes attached to just one individual. I know at our foundation most program associates have at least one master’s degree.

But when it comes to sharing ideas and convincing others outside the field? Not so smart there.

Despite the fact that everyone thinks they “get it,” most communications efforts are tacked onto projects, midway through or toward the end when everyone’s signed off and ready to share results. And frequently because of this approach, the best opportunities are overlooked and lost. Sometimes the message that would be most meaningful to make the argument never gets discovered. Sometimes the talking points get written before we know the language the audience speaks. And sometimes we are actually not talking to the most important audience—the one that has the power to make real change happen.

That’s why I was thrilled to serve as one of the judges for this year’s Wilmer Shields Rich Award. I was eager to see if there were some foundations that actually knew how powerful an integrated communications effort could be. I was hopeful that there would be at least one example of the kind of seamless communications work that can and should be woven into a foundation’s program as early as inception.

And the good news is there ARE foundations that work this way. In fact, the panel of judges selected four. The winners, announced last week, include The California Endowment, the Greater New Orleans Foundation, the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, and the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.

In the application from the Greater New Orleans Foundation, the author wrote:

It’s not entirely accurate to say that we’ve “integrated” communications into this work. Our communications staff members were and are critical to shaping and sustaining this initiative…This is one initiative where the line between communications and programs has become completely blurred—and this blurring of boundaries has become a model for our other work.

What a joy to read and what a goal to aspire to! Here’s hoping that “the line between communications and programs has become completely blurred” will be a mantra that stirs the soul of every program officer and foundation president! Building the case begins now.

Guest Post:  Rita Soronsen

Storytelling is at the heart of all emotions. Think about it. You hear a song, the lyrics move you, you have an emotional reaction. You see a sad movie, you may cry. It’s no different with brands that vie for emotional connections with their consumers. And nonprofits simply must use communications—storytelling—as a very important tactic to steward current donors and secure new funders.

Communications can now be in the form of almost anything—a blog, a video, a text, an e-mail, a printed piece, a “pin,” a “liked” comment, a tweet. The challenge is finding an audience in each of those outlets that will be receptive to our communications. Once the audience is found, another challenge is presented. How do we sound to them? Are we authentic? Are we engaging? We must be or we will not get a second chance to do so.

Our stories, our communications, are purposeful. We want to invoke emotion; cause a reaction in a person to do something—in our case to learn more about foster care adoption, donate to us, and ultimately adopt a child. So there really isn’t a Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption without communications. And not just from the communications team—from all of us. Each person here has an important story to tell. And every child waiting to be adopted deserves only our very best efforts.

Organization:
HiTOPS’ mission is to promote adolescent health and well-being.

Position Description:
Full-Time Development & Marketing Associate is a key member of a small fundraising team, and is integral to implementing HiTOPS’ fundraising plans/initiatives and increasing contributed income. The Associate will work closely with the Director of Development & Marketing to build community around HiTOPS’ vision by using communication strategies, technology, and strong personal relationships to meaningfully engage key decision makers and attract resources.

Responsibilities:
Communication

• Implement ongoing communications to increase awareness of HiTOPS’ brand and support fundraising, including monthly e-newsletters and quarterly Donor E-Reports.
• Write and edit press releases. Liaise with press. Look for and create PR opportunities.

Marketing

• Support and develop overall brand strategy, raise awareness and visibility of the organization
• Collaborate with print and web designers to create marketing pieces and ads.
• Manage production process with designers, printers, delivery, distribution.
• Manage inventory
• Manage website and social media presence
• Keep abreast of new market trends, news and issues, send relevant info to staff and Directors
• Continue to develop annual marketing strategy to support development and programmatic goals
• Determine annual fiscal marketing budget

Event Management

• Manage HiTOPS events and presence at public events (marketing materials, volunteers)
• Coordinate Princeton Half Marathon, including volunteers, sponsor recognition/benefits, Active registration website, Facebook and PHM website. Assist in securing sponsors.

Data

• Extract raw data from existing databases and derive market insights from data analysis to inform business planning and measurement
• Prepare summary reports for Directors with supporting data, graphics and charts
• Initiate research projects, market research and surveys to supplement internal data sources
• Troubleshoot IT problems, assist other staff with information management

Development

• Assist with developing/executing online and print appeals
• Assist with development in-house mail-outs

Volunteers

• Identify volunteer projects; promote positions and interview candidates; place and manage volunteers

Qualifications:

• Strong organizational and interpersonal skills (teamwork, communication and collaboration)
• Proven ability to manage multiple assignments to completion
• Accuracy, attention to detail, ability to prioritize and follow-through
• Good public relations skills
• Analytical and strategic thinker
• Ability to supervise and work with broad range of volunteers
• College Degree Preferred

Computer Skills:

• Demonstrated proficiency in Microsoft Office, Constant Contact, and excellent computer skills
• Knowledge and experience utilizing social media
• Experienced with use of design technology for in-house production
• Knowledge of print design process (digital and off-set printing), working with experienced graphic designers to manage print jobs and prepare artwork for print (experience with Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator a plus)
• Experience with updating website content management systems (knowledge of HTML and CSS a plus)
• Microsoft Excel: manipulation of pivot tables and reports for data analysis

How to Apply:
Send resume and cover letter (as writing sample) relating your experience/interests to job responsibilities to Catharine Vaucher, Director of Development & Marketing, HiTOPS, 21 Wiggins St., Princeton, NJ 08540  or email cvaucher@hitops.org

HiTOPS is an equal employment opportunity employer, and affirms its belief in the worth and dignity of all of its employees.  We intend to provide a workplace free of discrimination.  The policy and intent of HiTOPS is to provide equal employment opportunity for all persons regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, marital status, political affiliation, affectional orientation or gender identity, status with regard to public assistance, disability, sex, age or genetic information.

Guest Post: Robert K. Ross

When people think about improving health, the first thing that comes to mind is going to the doctor’s office or the gym. For a long time, public health experts correlated community health with medical settings and individual choices. But years of research, grantmaking, and listening to our community partners has given us greater clarity on how and where health happens. Research tells us that our health largely depends on where we live, learn, work and play.

Place matters when it comes to health, life expectancy and quality of life. That’s why people in one neighborhood can live an average of 16 years longer than those in another neighborhood just 12 miles away. If you live in a disinvested, low-income community, you are more likely to live sicker—and die younger—than someone who lives in a neighborhood with a grocery store, safe parks and good schools

Building healthier communities requires nothing less than a shift in awareness. The California Endowment recognizes the importance of communications in effecting social norms change, which is why we launched our “Health Happens Here” campaign. It supports our 10-year Building Healthy Communities plan to highlight how health happens in schools, in neighborhoods and with prevention. Both traditional and new media are intimately integrated in our work to raise awareness that staying healthy requires more than doctors and diets—our surroundings affect how long and how well we live.

But many decisions about our neighborhoods and schools are made by school administrators, city planners and local, county and state policymakers. It’s up to all of us to hold them accountable and to demand that they develop policies that support health. By raising awareness among decision makers about where health happens, The California Endowment is helping to build a healthier—and stronger—California.

Organization:
The Talloires Network (TN) is a coalition of universities – 270 institutions in 62 countries enrolling over six million students – that are moving beyond the ivory tower to tackle pressing societal problems. The Network is the primary global alliance committed to strengthening the civic roles and social responsibilities of higher education. It mobilizes its members to improve community conditions and, in the process, to educate students to be leaders for change. Our vision is that a decisive majority of universities worldwide collaborate actively with the communities where they are located; that institutions of higher education become dramatically more effective engines of social and economic development; that they systematically partner with NGOs, government agencies and private businesses; and that the gold standard in higher education is the “engaged university,” one that achieves both positive community impacts and academic excellence.

The Youth Economic Participation Initiative (YEPI) aims to address the global crisis in youth unemployment by supporting the efforts of universities in developing countries to develop and test innovative university-led models that enable upper-year university students and recent alumni to accelerate their transition to the work force.

Position Description:
This is a part-time position anticipated to work 18-20 hours per week with some flexibility of schedule.

The Communications and Learning Specialist will be responsible for leading the design and implementation of a global community of practice on university engagement for youth economic participation. S/he will establish and promote participation in online communication platforms, foster informal and structured online dialogues, organize webinars and conference calls, create opportunities for international collaboration among Network members, lead the development of content for the YEPI and contribute to developing content for other sections of the TN web site. S/he will promote and help coordinate the communications functions of all TN staff members and act as the key point of contact for all TN communications-related tasks. S/he will build the learning and communication capabilities of other team members and partners. With the YEPI Program Manager, s/he will develop and institute practices for internal learning and communications among YEPI and other TN staff. S/he will train and support demonstration grant recipients in developing their communications capabilities and contribute to the dissemination of learning from the YEPI and other TN programs via conferences and publications.

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree
• Three (3) years of related experience
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Power Point, Excel, WordPress.
• Experience managing communications projects in the field of international development;
• Experience leveraging key social media platforms for social change, including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and/or Ning;
• Experience with web site content development;
• Ability to draft concise, clear, informative and engaging written communications;
• Acute sensitivity to the requirements of effective cross-cultural communication and outstanding ability to communicate cross-culturally;
• Adept at international travel, including to less resourced settings.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master of International Affairs, Journalism, Communications or related field;
• Fluency in Spanish or French;
• Experience living and working abroad (including time in developing countries);
• Experience with web site design and editing;
• Experience with online learning platforms;
• Familiar with the effective nonprofit sector marketing and communications strategies;
• Proficiency in Vertical Response, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop;
• Basic video-editing skills.

Special Work Schedule Requirements:
To be determined: This position is anticipated to work 18-20 hours per week with some flexibility of schedule. Due to the nature of the required national and international work, the Communications and Learning Specialist will sometimes work and travel evenings and weekends. Please also note that this is a grant funded position and is not eligible for severance pay. The employee in this position must complete all appropriate background checks at the time of hire, promotion or transfer.

How to Apply:
Please submit a resume, cover letter, and writing sample (no longer than 5 pages) when applying for this position. Apply to this URL: http://www.Click2apply.net/2qxtrms

Tufts University is an AA/EO employer and actively seeks candidates from diverse backgrounds.

Organization:
Founded in 1949, the Council on Foundations (Council) provides the opportunity, leadership, and tools needed by philanthropic organizations to expand, enhance, and sustain their ability to advance the common good. As one of the largest and most diverse philanthropic associations, the Council represents over 1,700 grantmaking organizations helping meet the many needs of communities nationally and internationally. As a “voice” of philanthropy, the Council strives to create an environment that fosters philanthropic growth, independence and innovation.

The Council is a mission driven organization guided by the idea that organizational performance is greatly enhanced when people with different backgrounds and perspectives are engaged in an organization’s activities and decision making process.

The Council is currently undergoing a strategic redesign to strengthen it leadership role in the philanthropic field and to better serve its members. Central to its strategic realignment, the Council will be placing an increased emphasis on member stewardship and public policy.  In other words, the Council will position itself as a dynamic platform and network for cross sector collaboration, thought leadership, and raising awareness about philanthropy’s role in society.The Council is governed by a 25 member Board of Directors, who meets four times a year.  The Council’s annual budget is $18 million and the Council has a professional staff of 50.

Position Description:
Reporting to the President/CEO, the Vice President of Communication will be responsible for developing and implementing a dynamic strategic communications program which will proactively advance the interests of the Council’s policy and programmatic agenda. The Vice President will be a person who has a depth of understanding of the rapidly changing means in which content is aggregated and delivered and will work closely with other program leaders and staff in helping implement a mission-focused, enterprise-level communications strategy.

The Vice President of Communication will work to ensure there is a deepening interconnection and cross-pollination among the programs and initiatives of the Council. The Vice President will also work to align external stakeholders and consultants to leverage the Council’s visibility and brand in order to advance its policy and program initiatives. The Vice President of Communication will be an innovative, creative and strategic communications leader.

The Vice President will continually develop and improve approaches to advance the Council’s programs and initiatives. In this role the Vice President of Communication will effectively utilize social media and other online formats, as well as more traditional media/communications vehicles, to ensure information about the Council is accurate, consistent and accessible to external audiences. The Vice President of Communication serves as a member of the senior management team and is responsible for the overall planning, budgeting, staffing, and evaluation of all communications activities consistent with policies established by the President/CEO and the Board.

The broad objectives for the Vice President of Communication are the following:

• Create an impact-focused, metrics-driven communications and engagement strategy and plan to establish and sustain productive relationships with public, private, and non-profit sector partners, members, public policy leaders, etc.
• Efficiently communicate the Council’s image and positions to maintain or enhance credibility with key audiences; engage potential partners or allies who share similar goals; and, proactively engage critical stakeholders and members to advance the mission of the Council.
• Build and lead a team of communication and engagement professionals who are focused on outcomes and who know how to use traditional and new communication tactics and tools (e.g., media, publications, multimedia and online communication, etc.) to achieve those outcomes.
• Strengthen the Council’s brand and profile to enhance its reputation as a thought leader in the sectors it cares about most.
• Develop systems to track progress in achieving the goals of the plan.
• Continually develop and improve communications resources and approaches to advance the Council’s program strategies and initiatives; and, effectively utilize social media and other online vehicles to ensure information about the Council is accurate, consistent and accessible to external audiences and members.
• Reinforce, train, and grow the Council’s staff capacity to effectively engage with key audiences and members about the mission, program outcomes and goals in alignment with the Council’s core values.
• Provide regular strategic and tactical communication support to President’s Office in helping to advance critical impact goals and priorities.
• Provide communications oversight of critical information relayed to the Board of Directors and provide counsel to Board of Trustees on strategic communications as needed.

Professional Qualifications:

• Depth and breadth of knowledge and leadership for design, implementation, and management of issue-focused communication program.
• Finely honed skills in developing strategic communication plans, both proactively and responsively to breaking events; proven capacity to understand, use, and anticipate changes in new communication technologies and tactics.
• Demonstrated nonpartisanship and an ability and experience working across political ideological lines.
• Able to generate and deliver powerful verbal, graphic, and written communication.
• D
• emonstrated leadership and business acumen, a proven record dealing with the budgeting process and management of staff and financial resources.
• Management style that is goal oriented and flexible; that respects the capabilities and independence of staff and networks/partners.
• Experience and demonstrated success working with policymakers, preferably at senior legislative or executive level.
• Experience building effective networks, partnerships, and/or coalitions.
• A bachelor’s degree required. An advanced degree or equivalent experience preferred.

Personal Attributes:

• Personal creativity and strategic vision, coupled with an ability to listen to others and learn from their best ideas – a sense of inquisitiveness and intellectual curiosity.
• Demonstrated critical thinking and practical solutions based on thorough analysis of real-time issues.
• Ability to inspire trust, lead and facilitate with strong interpersonal skills and the capability to move from ideas to action – an enterprising and creative spirit.
• Outstanding interpersonal skills including a deep commitment to the program goals, intellectual curiosity, good judgment, honesty, and integrity.
• Ability to listen and process complex information quickly.
• Initiative to solve problems with energy and a positive attitude.
• A change leader at ease working with diverse stakeholders and teams.
• Demonstrated ability to anticipate, prioritize, and manage tasks collaboratively as a team player with grace and flexibility in a rapidly changing environment.

Compensation:
The Council offers an excellent benefits package and a salary which is commensurate with experience. This is a full-time, exempt position.

How to Apply:
Qualified candidates should email a cover letter explaining how their skills and background fit this position and a resume to: Daniel Sherman, President, Explore Company at resumes@explorecompany.com.  Refer to COF in the subject line.  No phone inquiries please.

We hear a lot of questions from foundations, grantees, nonprofits and NGOs about whether they should make their online communication “work” for mobile devices. Our answer is, yes, because mobile adoption is at high levels and increasing:

• Global smartphone shipments exceeded PC shipments in 2011.
• More than 50 percent of US adults and more than 60 percent of young adults own a smartphone
• 50 percent of U.S. smartphone users have sent/received email via their phones
• 31 percent of American adults own a tablet computer as of Jan 2013

The good news is that there are pragmatic steps to get started making websites and emails mobile-friendly.

How are foundations and the nonprofit sector doing with mobile?

As background, many foundations, NGOs and nonprofits are currently making mixed progress in communicating to mobile devices.  Currently, only a very few of the U.S. foundations have adapted by making their websites mobile friendly by adjusting font size, layout, navigation and links to be suitable to users navigating with their thumbs.

In terms of mobile-friendly emails, many foundations, NGOs and nonprofits still send out emails which don’t adjust to be easily read on a smartphones without clumsily “zooming-in.” The example (below righ) shows an email, ironically, from the Pew Internet and American Life Project. The second example (below left) from AlertNet, funded by the Thomson Reuters Foundation, is optimized for smartphone and can be easily read.

Pragmatic strategies to get started with mobile:

So – how to get started going mobile? We recommend a few pragmatic strategies:

1. Use the readily available (mobile) social web: Foundations, NGOs and nonprofits can reach a lot of mobile users by making use of existing social media services. Services like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram have mobile-friendly versions that work really well and are reaching millions (half of Facebook traffic from mobile in December 2012.) If you are already using Facebook and Twitter, great – and ramp it up – it is helping you reach mobile users.

2. Make your email mobile-friendly: You want the people on your e-mail list to be able to read, understand and follow links on your emails when they are checking email on the bus in the morning. Fortunately, many organizations use services like MailChimp and Constant Contact which have mobile-friendly options. Use ‘em!

3. Mobile-friendly websites via responsive design:  Reading a mobile-friendly email, and then following a link to a full webpage with tiny, unreadable text is a jarring experience. To make a website mobile-friendly, the approach we often take is to build websites using “responsive design” which allows web pages to be readable and usable whether being read on a desktop, laptop, tablet or smartphone.

Responsive design is not one specific technology; rather it is a way to use the current versions of HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript to customize web pages to be specific to the screen size a user is viewing. The key is the use of “media queries” in which the CSS code (on the web site) asks the browser (of the user) about the user’s screen size and then delivers the appropriate layout to fit that size. The example on the right shows examples of responsive design for the Solar Energies Industry Association.

It is easiest to implement responsive design if your website is already running on a fairly modern content management system, or CMS, such as Drupal and WordPress. (Tech note: the Drupal themes that we use most for responsive design are Zen, Omega, and Mojo.  You can see more on the Mojo theme here.)

4. Native mobile apps: The exciting potential of mobile devices is not (just) giving people on-the-go email and web pages, but services that combine location, social and contextual information to deliver the right information at the right time.  One example is a bus schedule app that could tell you how close the next bus is to you.

To provide this kind of experience generally requires “native apps,” meaning a software application written specifically for a mobile device and which the user has downloaded to their device.  Native apps do require some investment to build, so ask yourself:

• Goal: Is the goal for the app unique and clearly defined?
• Content: Do I have high value content or service that will benefit users on the go?
• User: Will users see enough value to download the app and use it often?
• Delivery: Do I have a plan to market the app to potential users so they will download it?

Some examples of native mobile apps that we think deliver smart and unique value: Yelp! The restaurant review app answers the perennial question “is there any good Chinese in this neighborhood?” Another is MyFitnessPal which you can use to scan the bar code on food items to look up their nutritional information and save the stats (i.e. calories!) right to your food diary.

5. Making Your Publications Tablet-Friendly: Another emerging trend is making key publications “tablet-friendly.” This goes beyond just viewing a PDF copy of your report or publication on a tablet, to creating an interactive experience with video, slide shows and active links to resources on the web. One key advantage of creating a tablet-friendly publication is that you can automatically notify and deliver these publications to users when a new edition is ready. We recently developed a tablet version of a quarterly periodical of the Economic Research Service of USDA which will allow them to do such notification.

And, another great example is National Geographic Magazine’s tablet version.

If you want to dig deeper into some of the topics in this post, here’s a helpful list of links.

Cisco: http://www.cisco.com/en/US/solutions/collateral/ns341/ns525/ns537/ns705/ns827/white_paper_c11-520862.html

Pew Internet:  http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2012/Smartphone-Update-Sept-2012/Findings.aspx

Canalys: http://www.canalys.com/newsroom/smart-phones-overtake-client-pcs-2011

Pew Internet:  http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2012/Cell-Activities/Main-Findings.aspx

Nielsen: http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/who-owns-smartphones-in-the-us/

Pew Internet: http://pewinternet.org/Commentary/2012/February/Pew-Internet-Mobile.aspx

MPA: http://www.magazine.org/timecom-gm-craig-ettinger-bringing-responsive-web-design-iconic-brand

Facebook statistics: http://newsroom.fb.com/Key-Facts

ComScore: http://www.comscoredatamine.com/2012/12/email-is-top-usage-category-for-eu5-smartphone-audience/

Please send your examples of responsive design and other mobile-friendly tips and techniques–we’d love to share them.

Chris Wolz is CEO of Forum One Communications. Nam-ho Park is Director of Mobile Services, and manages their Seattle office. Forum One is a digital strategy and technology consulting firm based in Washington DC.

In past years, the Wilmer Shields Rich Awards honored foundations and corporate giving programs for exemplary communications products—annual reports, newsletters, and, more recently, websites.

The Council and the Network have reimagined the program to showcase foundations that integrate communications into their strategic operations to achieve greater impact. The four award recipients were selected from a highly competitive field of entries:

• The California Endowment
• Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption
• Greater New Orleans Foundation
• Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation

“The Wilmer Shields Rich Award program recognizes those who excel at integrating communications into the important work they do to advance the common good,” said Vikki Spruill, the Council’s president and CEO. “These foundations continue to be leaders in the field, and their ambitious work helps us tell philanthropy’s stories of positive impact to both lawmakers and the public.”

“It was gratifying to see that many foundations recognize that communications is an essential element of effective philanthropy,” said Bruce S. Trachtenberg, executive director of The Communications Network and chair of the Wilmer Shields Rich Awards Selection Task Force. “While each entrant offered a different rationale for why strategic communications matters, one summed it up best by saying communications work is not something that is set apart from the foundation’s program activities but is instead an integral part of the overall work of the organization.”

The award is named after the woman who served as executive director of the National Council on Community Foundations (now the Council on Foundations) from 1957 to 1968. During her tenure, Rich championed public accountability by charitable foundations, urging them to effectively communicate their stewardship via publications and other forums.

Organization:
Corporat Accountability International is committed to stopping life-threatening abuses by global corporations and increasing their accountability to public institutions and people around the world.

Position Description:
Reporting to the communications director, the press secretary is responsible for conducting Corporate Accountability International’s media outreach and overseeing effective operation of this program. The press secretary communicates regularly with journalists, drafts and edits press materials, maintains records of Corporate Accountability International’s media coverage, and assists in training staff and grassroots partners in working with the media, while working in a fast-paced, campaign-oriented environment. We’re looking for a team player with the drive to extend the already considerable media reach of the organization and its campaigns and rapidly advance within the organization.

Major Responsibilities:

• Play a key role in the development and implementation of Corporate Accountability International’s media outreach plans.
• Identify, build and maintain relationships with key journalists
• Generate significant media coverage across all campaigns, with particular focus on the nation’s leading news outlets.
• Draft, edit and proof press releases and other written materials.
• Assist in training staff spokespeople and media activists nationwide.
• Maintain up-to-date files, records, and systems, including a comprehensive reporter database.
• Assist in developing and evaluating Corporate Accountability International’s overall media strategy and media outreach tools.
• Participate in campaign activities and fundraising drives such as shareholders’ meetings and phone banks.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Demonstrated commitment to social justice and progressive social change.
• At least three years full-time staff experience in grassroots organizing or non-profit communications. Experience in fundraising a plus.
• Talented and experienced copy writer and editor, with a strong attention to detail.
• Excellent verbal and written skills — enthusiasm for talking on the phone and writing. Sense of humor a plus!
• Strong administrative skills.
• Working knowledge of dominant social media platforms with competency using them to engage media, thought leaders, and extend the grassroots reach of campaigns.
• Proven ability to work hard and collaboratively with a diverse group of people.
• Enthusiasm for travel.

How to Apply:
Email letter of interest, résumé, two writing samples, and three to five references to Sarah Bennett at jobs@stopcorporateabuse.org.  Please let us know where you heard about the position.

Corporate Accountability International is an equal opportunity employer and an inclusive organization. People of color, women, and LGBTQ people are strongly encouraged to apply.

Organization:
New Profit is a nonprofit social innovation organization working to increase social mobility by accelerating the best ideas across the nation.

With our signature partner, Monitor Deloitte, and a network of philanthropists, we support a portfolio of social entrepreneurs in growing their impact in education, jobs training, early childhood, health and other levers of social mobility, and build communities of leaders from all sectors around bold visions and systems-changing agendas to fuel social innovation. New Profit has committed more than $65 million in financial and strategic resources to 32 organizations, including such groundbreaking organizations as Teach For America, Year Up, and Health Leads, and has played a leading role in the creation of cutting-edge policy and partnerships, including the Social Innovation Fund and new “Pay for Success” public-private partnerships.

This is an important moment in New Profit’s history.  The organization has launched an ambitious new plan for a series of portfolio investments, structured in domains (early childhood, learning disabilities and social-emotional learning, and others) that are designed to strengthen and grow individual organizations while building aligned communities of investors and practitioners to drive field-level agendas.  In recognition of New Profit’s upcoming 15^th anniversary – and to chart a course for the next fifteen years – the organization is accelerating its field leadership efforts through new investments in community building, content generation and distribution, R&D, and policy work. Correspondingly, New Profit is intensifying its focus on communications as a core component of its strategy.

Position Description:
New Profit seeks a strategic, entrepreneurial, and intellectually curious Communications Director to set, guide, and implement an organization-wide communications strategy for the firm.

Reporting to a Managing Partner, the Communications Director will serve as a thought partner to executive leadership on communications-related priorities, opportunities and challenges, and develop and implement an annual communications plan to serve the organization’s goals. A consummate team player, he or she will be capable of enlisting and supporting the participation of individuals across the organization in meeting New Profit’s communications objectives.

An exceptional writer and creative thinker, the Communications Director will be knowledgeable about print collateral and design, website development and maintenance, social media, emerging communications technologies, conferences and other speaking opportunities, and media relations. He or she will be action-oriented and capable of executing on a variety of day-to-day responsibilities. A collegial, collaborative and accessible working style, well suited to a dynamic and often changing atmosphere is a prerequisite, as are the creativity, energy, and political savvy needed to introduce and champion new ideas.

To support the evolution of the communications function at New Profit, the Communications Director will build a small, focused team, and will partner and collaborate with a broad range of departments and functions at the organization, including Development, Portfolio Investment, America Forward, Convenings, Talent, and the Executive Office.

The Communications Director can expect to engage the following immediate opportunities and challenges in the role:

• With New Profit senior leadership, the CD will develop and implement annual communications goals and an associated operating plan that details the activities and metrics to support those goals.
• Leverage leaders across the organization to synthesize ideas and develop cohesive communications products, and play an integral role in shaping content and strategy.
• Work with senior leadership as well as relevant consultants to drive and integrate a brand strategy to tell New Profit’s story and clearly articulate its mission and scope.
• Develop and execute on a proactive media and crisis preparation and prevention strategy; build relationships with key stakeholders in the field, including journalists and bloggers.
• Collaborate with New Profit team members and external vendors to develop a range of print, online, and multimedia materials
• Write, edit, and/or proofread content for print materials and online, including New Profit websites and social media; help facilitate and ensure integration between online communications and traditional print collateral.
• Stay current in communications best practices, supporting evaluation and implementation of new technology, features, and platforms.
• Analyze and measure the performance of New Profit’s communications activities, including websites and social media.

Qualifications:
The Communications Director can be expected to have the following personal characteristics and professional experience:

• Demonstrated success in crafting a substantive and cohesive set of messages for an organization, which has been successfully communicated to key audiences and resulted in a measurable difference (e.g., elevated profile, broader visibility, increased funding or donor support) to the organization.
• Demonstrated experience building and managing professional relationships to support a broad number of team members in the conceptualization, development, and implementation of communications strategy and plans.Topical press and policy relationships are preferred.
• Ability to actively and thoughtfully listen to and incorporate ideas to influence strategy and shape content.
• Exceptional original writing skills, including the ability to synthesize and improve existing written material, keen editorial judgment, and the ability to write for different audiences and delivery channels (print, websites, social media, etc.) to effectively communicate New Profit’s mission, impact, and value proposition to a wide range of stakeholders.
• Cultural sensitivity, sound judgment, and strong interest in working in a demanding and intellectually challenging environment, with the organizational ability to handle multiple tasks and ambitious deadlines.
• Ability and willingness to play a range of roles from adviser to strategist to hands-on implementer.
• Creative thinking with the ability to identify innovative ways to communicate and engage audiences through a variety of avenues.
• Demonstrated passion for and commitment to New Profit’s mission and vision exemplified through professional background or a history of community involvement.
• Exhibit a lively, curious, and creative intellect; a style that includes flexibility and inventiveness - understanding that goals and mission are moving targets and require adaptable, realistic strategies.
• Broad understanding of, and willingness to stay abreast of, new media technologies, applications, and processes.
• A bachelor’s degree is required, preferably in communications, policy, or a relevant field; advanced study is preferred.

How to Apply:
Please send a resume and thoughtful cover letter to talent@newprofit.com with the following subject line: “Application – Communications Director.” Letters should be addressed to Alena Guerra. In your letter, please outline how your skills and experience meet the qualifications of the position and state how you heard about this opportunity. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

New Profit offers a competitive salary and benefits, commensurate with experience and skills. New Profit is an equal opportunity employer.

Organization:
The W.K. Kellogg Foundation is a nonprofit organization, based in Battle Creek, Mich., whose mission is to support children, families and communities as they strengthen and create conditions that propel vulnerable children to achieve success as individuals and as contributors to the larger community and society. Its founder, W.K. Kellogg, the cereal industry pioneer, established the foundation in 1930. Since its beginning, the foundation has continuously focused on building the capacity of individuals, communities, and institutions to solve their own problems.

Position Description:
Contribute toward increasing awareness and support for the foundation’s vision through a comprehensive strategic communications program. Responsible for implementing a wide range of communications tools that help deliver priority messages to the foundation’s internal and external audiences.

Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in communications, marketing, journalism, public relations, English or related field required.
• Minimum 4 years of communication, media or marketing experience with an agency, corporation or non-profit organization.
• Three to five years of project management experience.
• Experience working effectively with people from diverse cultural, social and ethnic backgrounds.
• Experience with graphic production and/or online media development
• Experience with writing and editing

How to Apply:
Send your resume and cover letter to employment@wkkf.org. Please indicate that you are interested in applying for the communications analyst position.

Organization:
AJWS is a human rights organization that makes grants to support grassroots advocacy in Asia, Africa and the Americas. In addition, AJWS mobilizes American Jews to support U.S. policies that will benefit the most marginalized people in the developing world, including women and girls and LGBTI people. While AJWS draws inspiration from the Jewish commitment to justice, applicants of every background are strongly encouraged to apply for this uniquely rewarding position.

Position Description:
The Senior Press Officer is responsible for contributing to and implementing a strategic media relations plan for AJWS in conjunction with the VP for Communications and outside media relations contractors, and will act as the media relations point person for AJWS. The Senior Press Officer will manage all aspects of AJWS’s media relations operation from generating strategically valuable media coverage of AJWS, its work and that of its grantees to maintaining lists of contacts in the media and drafting press releases and briefing materials.

The Senior Press Officer will be an enterprising, creative self-starter with significant media relations experience, who can work with a wide array of journalists, spanning those from major news organizations to others working for local Jewish community newspapers. The ideal candidate has a track record of building relationships with journalists and relevant media outlets and has experience in generating strategically significant coverage of previous employers and clients, especially non-profit organizations, foundations, advocacy and political campaigns and elected officials.

The Senior Press Officer understands how to work effectively with writers, reporters, producers and others, as well as with a creative and diverse staff in a global organization, and he/she should have outstanding interpersonal skills.

Roles & Responsibilities: 

• Enrich and implement AJWS’s strategic media plan;
• Work collaboratively with AJWS’s outside media relations contractors;
• Oversee the generation and success of all earned media;
• Pitch reporters, editorial board writers, columnists, producers and bookers;
• Build relationships of trust and mutual respect with reporters, producers and partners;
• Maximize promotion of AJWS programs and news by identifying newsworthy trends and angles;
• Create and produce materials for effective communication with news media;
• Develop systems for measuring the effectiveness of the media relations effort;
• Regularly update AJWS staff on media relations activities;
• Manage clipping services, including archiving clips and reproduces clips as needed for press kit and outreach purposes;
• Manage press database, including tracking press coverage by reporter and news outlet, updating database with new contact information and researching new media niches;
• Assign work to half-time communications associate, who assembles daily media digest and carries out other media relations functions;
• Recruit and manage a communications intern, who will assist with clippings and the press database.

Qualifications:

• Minimum of seven years of experience in media relations;
• BA and/or Masters degree;
• Must be a major consumer of relevant news with a ceaseless appetite for news coverage and information about news organizations;
• Keen understanding of what constitutes a good news story and what reporters and producers need to create a story of their own;
• A love of talking to reporters and producers, building relationships, and pitching stories;
• Excellent writing, editing, proofreading and verbal and written communication skills;
• Successful track record of pitching stories to media and generating strategic coverage of individuals, issues, organizations, and campaigns;
• Experience organizing press conferences, calls, and webinars and major events;
• Contacts within mainstream national press;
• Experience with Cision’s Media Source, Burelles, Meltwater or other online media management and evaluation tools a plus;
• Knowledge of global human rights and development issues and U.S. politics and advocacy preferred;
• Prior experience in a fast-paced, domestic or global organization;
• Ability to meet deadlines, work unusual hours, often within very tight timeframes;
• Exceptional attention to detail and organizational skills;
• Highly professional demeanor;
• Able to work proactively with focus, making and carrying out recommendations;
• Strong interpersonal skills and judgment;
• Capable of working well with a variety of personalities and leadership styles; and
• Demonstrated strong leadership capabilities.

How to Apply:
Apply by email to opportunities@ajws.org and indicate “Senior Press Officer” in the subject line. Please send your résumé and cover letter with a summary of your interest and qualifications for this position. No phone calls please, we will only respond to candidates in whom we have an interest.

We thank you for your interest in career opportunities with AJWS. Due to high volume, only those candidates selected for an interview will be contacted. AJWS is an equal opportunity employer and provides competitive salaries and benefits.

Organization:
New York University’s Marron Institute on Cities and the Urban Environment is an interdisciplinary and international effort to advance vital new research and teaching on cities and the urban environment.

Position Description:
The Communications Analyst in the Marron Institute supports efforts to communicate NYU’s expertise and promotes the Institute as a global leader in the research and teaching of cities and the urban environment. The role will support the development of creative and flexible strategies that connect NYU’s experts with media, the public, and research and policy organizations to advance global research on cities and the urban environment. The Communications Associate enhances internal communications to support the development of a strong, interdisciplinary community within the University. The position reports to the Director of Communications, Global Strategy and Partnerships.

Qualifications/Required Education:

• Bachelor of Arts degree

Required Experience:

3+ years’ experience in nonprofit communications

Preferred Experience:

• Experience and comfort working in an academic environment;
• At least 2 years experience with updating/maintaining Drupal (mainly Drupal 7), including knowledge of ‘Views modules,’ PHP, HTML/CSS, JavaScript & AJAX

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Excellent writing, editing, and verbal communication skills;
• Demonstrated capacity for critical, independent, and creative thinking;
• Fluency and creativity in using social media tools; Experience in Drupal or comparable CMS;
• Passion for and interest in urban research

Preferred Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Familiarity with iMovie and/or Final Cut Pro.

How to Apply:
Visit NYU’s website and complete an online application.

Organization:
Muslim Advocates (MA) is a national legal advocacy and educational organization based in San Francisco. Its mission is to use legal advocacy, policy engagement, and education to promote and protect equality, liberty and justice for all, regardless of faith, and to promote the full and meaningful participation of Muslims in American public life. Muslim Advocates is a dynamic, growing organization created by a group of experienced lawyers and policy experts to address some of the most pressing civil rights and human rights challenges facing our nation today.

Position Description:
The Communications Director will play a critical role in shaping and implementing communications strategies to promote MA’s work in pursuit of its mission. Candidates should have substantial, broad-based communications experience.

The successful applicant will be expert in developing and implementing organizational strategic communications plans. He or she will be comfortable with and able to master the substantive knowledge of Muslim Advocates’ work and will also be able to collaborate with and support development and federal relations activities. He or she will be a thoughtful supervisor and disciplined operational manager.

The successful candidate will have the judgment needed to produce persuasive material–written, visual, and electronic–that is appropriate to different platforms and audiences. Candidates should have substantial experience in developing media relations approaches and in planning and executing sophisticated outreach campaigns.

Role & Responsibilities:

• Work with program directors to define effective communication and media strategies for our projects ending racial and religious profiling, strengthening Muslim charities and combating anti-Muslim hate.
• Create a press strategy and build organizational capacity for increased media relations activities, including updating the strategic communications plan as necessary. The Communications Director will serve as the primary MA liaison with reporters, manage incoming media inquiries, maintain press lists, pitch stories, write and review communications materials (op-eds, press-releases, talking points and speeches), provide rapid and strategic response to queries to increase visibility and stature of the organization.
• Manage online communications, including a redesigned website, blog, Facebook, Twitter, and e-communications and mailings to supporters; oversee content development, maintenance and coordination of production for Muslim Advocates external communication channels including: electronic and print newsletters, annual reports, etc.
• Coordinate discussions among allied groups to respond rapidly to breaking news and events.
• Collaborate closely with and support Development Department in its work.
• Oversee production and dissemination of MA publications.
• Set Communications Department goals, policies and procedures.
• Hire and supervise staff.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree required, advanced degree preferred; at least 8-10 years of communications experience, especially media relations; drafting press releases, op-eds, talking points; and developing media strategies for social justice causes.
• Excellent writing and oral communication skills.
• High level of initiative, reliability, creativity and strategic thinking.
• Strong interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to work both independently and as part of a team.
• Strong leadership, organizational and time management skills and a proven ability and desire to work efficiently and effectively to deliver high quality results in a demanding, fast-paced, multi-tasking professional environment.
• Established relations with media organizations preferred.
• Experience managing and maintaining online content; familiarity with NationBuilder a plus.
• A strong commitment to social justice and Muslim Advocates’ values and mission.

How to Apply:
Submit a cover letter describing your interest, skills and experience, a resume, and three writing samples. Please email your application to settleson@verizon.net, subject line: Muslim Advocates — Communications Director.

Applications will be considered as they are received, and interviews may be scheduled on a rolling basis. If you are interested in applying, please contact us immediately to inform us of your interest and intention to apply.

Organization:
The mission of the Bush Foundation is to be a catalyst for the courageous leadership necessary to create sustainable solutions to tough public problems and ensure community vitality. The Foundation was established in 1953 by 3M executive Archibald Bush and his wife, Edyth, and today works in communities across Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and the 23 Native nations that share the same geography.

Position Description:
The Communications Director will provide strategic leadership of and daily direction for the Communications team to assure effective management of the Bush Foundation’s  communication activities and assets in order to build public understanding of and promote the Foundation’s strategy.  S/he will facilitate transparent and dynamic communication with our partners, stakeholders and the broader community.

Key Job Responsibilities:

• Provide thought leadership across the Foundation on strategic and tactical communication.
• Provide strategic leadership to the Communications team to meet the team’s goals and Foundation-wide objectives; manage and coach team members.
• Create and continually refine a strategic communication plan that:
• Manages and refines the Bush Foundation brand and other communication assets to create a positive, cohesive image of the Foundation’s work with both internal and external audiences.
• Maximizes a wide range of existing and new communication assets and channels (i.e., website, marketing collateral, social media, etc.).
• Engages Bush Fellows and other key allies in the work of the Foundation.
• Utilizes established and new media partnerships.
• Builds networks of individuals and organizations.
• Uses storytelling to capture and share lessons, stories and qualitative/quantitative data related to the Foundation’s work.
• Implement and direct management of new and existing internal and external communication initiatives, including Foundation special events and networking convenings, working closely with the Communications team and other staff.
• Complete tactical communication tasks as needed to balance Communications team workflow and/or workload.
• Maintain positive reactive and proactive media relations.
• Direct annual budgeting and quarterly forecasting for the Communications team;  advise other teams on budgeting for their communications-related needs; manage the Communications budget on a daily basis.
• Serve as a member of the Foundation’s management team, including interacting with the Board of Directors

Education & Experience Requirements:
A bachelor’s degree is required. Experience working in or with rural/non-metro media partners is preferred. Knowledge of or experience in philanthropy is preferred. Candidates must have a minimum of seven years experience leading and managing work projects in public, nonprofit and/or for-profit industries.

How to apply:
Please send resume and cover letter, preferably by Monday, April 22, 2013, to Ann Yelich, Human Resource Consultant, Bush Foundation, 332 Minnesota Street, Suite E-900, St. Paul, MN  55101.  Initial screening of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled.

Organization:
The Hartford Foundation for Public Giving  is among the country’s oldest and largest community foundations. Established in 1925, the Foundation serves the Capitol Region of Connecticut, including Hartford and 28 surrounding towns.  The Foundation is permanently committed to improving the quality of life for residents throughout the region.

Position Description:
The Vice President for Communications and Marketing provides strategic vision, leadership and oversight of all communications and marketing activities to support the Hartford Foundation’s mission and work.  S/he ensures that the Foundation’s communications and marketing programs build and sustain awareness of and engagement with the Foundation among donors, potential donors and other funding partners, professional advisors, nonprofit organizations’ boards and staff,  business, and Greater Hartford residents, as well as civic and opinion leaders.

Reporting to the President, the Vice President for Communications and Marketing will manage a team of four and work closely with colleagues across the organization to further the Foundation’s role in the community.  The Vice President position is both an internal and external leadership role which calls for excellent conceptual abilities, and skills in communications, collaboration and team building.

Education & Experience Requirements:

• Five or more years of demonstrated successful experience leading the communications and marketing function for a complex, highly visible organization achieving significant positive, measurable impact; strong project management experience; volunteer leadership and executive experience in the philanthropic or nonprofit arena is desirable
• Broad and deep understanding of a variety of communications disciplines, including writing and editing, oral presentations, branding, messaging, media relations, and public relations and social media, including experience devising and implementing effective strategies for the use of a variety of social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, e-newsletters, etc.) to build networks and advance collaboration
• Proven ability to collaborate and build consensus among individuals with a wide variety of roles, interests and backgrounds to accomplish shared goals; highly developed listening skills
• Proven ability as both a strategic thought leader and a producer of high quality products and services on time and on budget
• Successful experience leading a team, including facilitating collaboration among staff to optimize individual and group performance, development, and job satisfaction
• Experience in knowledge management, coupled with a commitment to organizational learning
• Solid track record of building and sustaining relationships with the media, placing op-eds, and securing coverage of vital stories and issues
• Significant experience representing organizations at high profile events and in meetings with major public, private, and nonprofit partners
• Experience in the Hartford region and knowledge of local communities ,business, nonprofit and government sectors, and media markets is a plus
• Bachelor’s degree required, graduate degree highly desirable
• Passion for the Foundation’s core mission and values, including a commitment to the value of diversity and inclusiveness
• A direct, honest and respectful approach to problem solving, with the ability to foster collaboration and contribute to a strong sense of community
• The presence, credibility and skills to develop and sustain a broad range of relationships
• Entrepreneurial spirit and drive, willingness to take risks, to advocate for new ideas, coupled with a commitment to measure and be accountable for results
• Keen analytic and intellectual abilities
• An informed appreciation for the ways technology can support the Foundation’s work
• Curiosity, creativity and a high level of energy, with a sense of humor to maintain balance and perspective.

How to Apply:
Please submit a current resume and a substantive cover letter in confidence to: Lauren I. Gumbs, Senior Partner, Gumbs + Partners via applications@gumbspartners.com

Hartford Foundation for Public Giving has a longstanding commitment to diversity among its board, staff, donors, grantees and volunteers and actively seeks a diverse pool of candidates.

Organization:
The Family League of Baltimore is a nonprofit organization that works with a range of partners to develop and implement initiatives that improve the well-being of Baltimore’s children, youth and families. The Family League’s work touches the lives of tens of thousands of Baltimore families each year.

Position Description:
The Family League of Baltimore City is hiring a Communications Specialist to lead our marketing and communications work. The Communications Specialist will be responsible for the planning and implementation of a marketing and communications plan for the Family League that increases the visibility of the organization, raises awareness in the public and philanthropic sectors and increases community awareness of the Family League’s work. The Communications Specialist will guide the strategy for all communications, website, public relations messages and collateral material to consistently articulate the Family League’s mission and will work closely with leadership on a variety of strategic initiatives.

Essential Functions

• Plan and implement a marketing and communications plan for the Family League, including the use of online tools, social media, and mobile technology to promote the Family League’s organizational goals and mission.
• Coordinate development, distribution and quality control of mass communications for all Family League initiatives, including e-newsletters, website(s), social media, press releases and print materials.
• In collaboration with program staff, develop messaging strategies and content related to Family League program/initiative activities.
• In collaboration with grants management and development staff, develop messaging strategies and content related to the Family League’s fund development activities, such as fundraising campaigns, solicitations and events.
• Coordinate webpage(s) and social media maintenance—ensure that new and consistent information (article links, stories, and events) is posted regularly.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of the Family League’s communications, including the tracking and measurement of the level of engagement through various mediums over time.
• Support and coordinate the relationships with outside communications consultants, including graphic design, website development/management and PR/media relations.

Other Functions

• Act as the primary writer for the President & CEO.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Director of Community Relations or President & CEO.

Education & Experience Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in communications or related required.
• Three to five years of demonstrated experience in an organizational communications setting, with hands-on experience in public relations, communication strategy, marketing and/or nonprofit management.
• Experience using social media, online tools and/or mobile technology to promote organizational goals and mission.
• Experience managing several complex projects simultaneously.
• Proficiency in MS office, Adobe Professional suite, websites and social media management software. Strong aptitude for learning new software programs and identifying appropriate software tools to meet organizational needs.
• Ability to take knowledge and transform it into compelling and useful messages.
• Ability to be focused and detailed, meet deadlines and juggle multiple tasks and work as part of a team.
• Must have excellent written and oral communications; with a focus on strong writing, proofreading and copy-editing skills.
• Knowledge of social service field is a plus.

How to Apply:
Please submit a cover letter, resume and two writing samples to familyleaguejobsearch@gmail.com by 5 p.m., Friday, April 12, 2013.

The Family League of Baltimore is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, religious and/or political beliefs. We recruit, employ, retain, compensate, train, promote, discipline, terminate and treat all employees and job applicants based solely on qualification, performance and competence.

What is a recent communications success you are particularly proud of?

Helped manage the handover by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to Afghan President Hamid Karzai of the first of what will eventually be hundreds of thousands of digitized manuscripts, rare books, maps, and photographs related to Afghanistan’s history.  Afghanistan lost access to many culturally significant items through colonialism, war, internal upheaval, or natural disasters.  Our grantee, the Library of Congress, has helped to virtually repatriate these treasures.

When you were 13 years old, what did you want to be when you grew up?

A cartoonist for the New Yorker. I couldn’t believe people actually got paid to do that.

What’s something unique about your organization that other foundation staff might not know about? Are there ways in which its long history influence communications practice in unusual ways?

Carnegie Corporation was the first foundation to embrace a philosophy of giving once known as “scientific philanthropy.”  Though now almost a century old, and referred to as strategic philanthropy, this approach to grantmaking applies the knowledge of experts to the problems donors wanted to address.

Your hardest target audience to reach?

The so-called “well-informed public.”  It’s so broad an audience as to be meaningless. But still, some colleagues tell us that is who they want to reach.

What percentage of your communications is new media based?

Can’t give you a percentage except to say ‘more and more.’

What was your undergraduate major? How has it been useful?

My major in Political Science became a lot more useful when I later paired it with a master’s in economics.  They’ve helped me better understand the complexities behind certain trade-offs–like a country’s desire to increase consumer demand versus the need to minimize resource depletion.

Do you create an annual communications plan?

Yes. However I think annual plans must be flexible enough to allow you to respond quickly to new opportunities.

Do you evaluate communications efforts? Any insights on new measurement tools and/or implementation plans?

Certainly not as rigorously as any of us would like.  I am wary, though, of measurement tools that are purely quantitative.  And I certainly think communications has moved far beyond exercises like counting press clips.  But we all need to find a better way to gauge actual impact.

Who is your favorite underappreciated journalist?

David Leonhardt of the New York Times is wonderful.  He wrote the paper’s Economic Scene column and helped make sense of the housing bubble, the economic downturn, the budget deficit, and health reform.

Your favorite communications tool that you think more foundation folks should be using?

Reflection.  We’re all incredibly busy—managing complex projects and less-taxing, but important every day duties.  But there’s often little time to reflect on what you’ve just done.  Was it effective? Should we try it again? How can we do it better?

Biggest complaint about how foundations get covered in the media?

There’s still far too much emphasis on the dollar-size of a program or grant.  A big investment is not necessarily significant or especially innovative. It’s just big.

The last nonfiction book you read?

Nate Silver’s The Signal and the Noise is a great read. It’s an examination of the science behind forecasting everything from storms and the World Series, to the market, and pokers games.  You’ll enjoy it even if you’re not a data junkie.

Another foundation whose communication work you admire?

I won’t pick a single foundation.  But I’m a big fan of focusing the spotlight more intently on grantees’ work, and identifying stories from that work that remove it from the realm of abstraction.  Also, I heartily applaud those foundations that are bold enough to move toward far greater transparency—revealing how a foundation places its bets, when it has failed, and why.  Might be painful in the short-run but will lead to much better grant making.

Your favorite non-professional, non-general news blog?

I like bikeradar.com.  Really useful information for cyclists.

A big event or initiative you’ve got coming up that you think everyone should know about?

The New Americans Campaign in which we are partnering with a group of other foundations in an effort to modernize the system of naturalization assistance and to help more immigrants who are legal permanent residents become U.S. citizens.

The last time you learned something important from a communications colleague?

I read two great pieces recently in the Stanford Social Innovation Review.  One, by Mark Tobias, was a tip sheet on what nonprofits should consider as they develop their 2013 technology strategies.  And another fantastic blog, by a consultant named Eric Friedenwald-Fishman, made the case (yet again) for the importance of storytelling.

Can you recommend a contemporary film or documentary that you think tells a compelling, persuasive story?

Despite being a pacifist, I loved “The Great Escape.”  It’s a tale of how men with nothing more than perseverance and ingenuity, plan a massive project—escaping from a POW camp.  A project team carefully plans the escape with full knowledge that many, if not most, of the soldiers will die.  And, great acting with Steve McQueen and Richard Attenborough.  O.K., so it’s almost 50 years old.  Hardly a contemporary film, though.

What’s your poison: Pinterest, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or?

LinkedIn.

What’s a question we should have asked you but didn’t?

Has communications become a full partner in decision-making on par with program?

What’s a question you have for your Communications Network colleagues?

Do you think foundations have become more or less accountable in the past decade?  And to whom are (or aren’t) they accountable?

A Quick Word With… was created by Michael Hamill Remaley, vice president of communications & public policy, Philanthropy New York and a frequent Communications Network contributor. This interview was conducted and edited by Courtney Williamson, community manager, The Communications Network.

Organization:
Founded in 1966, Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) is recognized nationwide for taking on complex issues, sticking with them and getting results that make New England a better place to live, visit and do business, including: cleaning up Boston Harbor, restoring New England’s cod population, blocking oil and gas drilling on Georges Bank, preserving wilderness areas in Vermont and New Hampshire, reducing emissions from cars and trucks, laying the groundwork for widespread implementation of renewable energy, and winning some of the country’s strongest protections for clean air and clean water. CLF is headquartered in Boston. with offices in Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.

Position Description:
CLF is seeking a tech-savvy, creative, social communicator with 1-3 years of digital marketing experience to become an integral member of our growing team. The communications associate will assist with the presentation and distribution of the content that fuels CLF’s digital marketing strategy to increase user engagement, online activism and online fundraising. Reporting to the senior communications manager, the communications associate will keep our digital platforms running smoothly and track and report on our success.

Responsibilities Include:

• Develop email campaigns from set up to send; Convio or other CRM software experience required;
• Manage CRM back-end to ensure integrity of email lists and improve targeting;
• Work with advocates, development and communications staff to keep campaigns on track from concept to completion;
• Manage outside programmers and designers as needed to assist with implementation;
• Track performance of email campaigns and prepare and present reports;
• Coordinate with Raisers Edge practitioners on tracking and reporting;
• Make updates to CLF’s websites and maintain site performance;
• Create and curate engaging content for CLF’s digital platforms, including website copy, blog posts, photos, videos, infographics, action alerts, appeals, e-newsletters, search ads and more;
• Engage CLF’s followers on social media channels, including Facebook and Twitter;
• Manage organization and ongoing development of CLF’s digital photo library;
• Assist with general departmental tasks, including the creation and production of print materials, as needed.

 Required Skills:

• Hands-on experience with email marketing and content management software;
• Ability to convert images and text into a cross-platform marketing campaign;
• Ability to manipulate and analyze behavioral and demographic data to improve performance;
• Organized and self-motivated with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously;
• Detail oriented, with an eye for identifying and fixing problems proactively;
• Ability to translate complex legal, technical and scientific information into stories for a diverse and broad audience;
• Hands-on experience with a variety of software platforms (see below) and ability to quickly pick up new skills as needed;
• Flexible and open to taking on new responsibilities as circumstances warrant;
• Ability to address the needs and interests of a racially, ethnically and otherwise diverse community, both internally and externally.

 Technical Experience:

• Knowledge of CRM software systems, with Convio experience strongly preferred;
• Fluent in HTML and content management systems, with Word Press highly preferred;
• Social media savvy across multiple platforms, including analytic software;
• Familiarity with Google Analytics and Google Adwords;
• Photoshop capable with some InDesign preferred;
• MS Office: Word, Excel and Power Point.

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited four-year college preferred.

Salary and Benefits

CLF offers a competitive salary, an extensive benefits plan, and an open and accepting work environment where differences are highly respected.

How to Apply

Send your resume titled “your last name-first initial-resume” (e.g. “SMITH J RESUME”) and a detailed cover letter titled “your last name-first initial-cover” (e.g. “SMITH J COVER”) to careers@clf.org.  No phone calls please.

CLF is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Organization:
BerlinRosen is a leading national progressive political consulting and strategic communications firms specializing in public affairs and issue campaign management for political, corporate and non-profit clients. BerlinRosen’s current and recent clients are at the forefront of progressive work around low-wage worker advocacy, creative union organizing, women’s issues, voting rights, the environment, Wall Street accountability, human rights, LGBT issues, healthcare, education, money in politics and ending mass incarceration.

Postion Descriptions:
BerlinRosen is seeking a senior account associate and account associate to work with senior members of our team to meet a wide range of campaign goals for our labor and issue advocacy clients in a changing media environment.  These positions provide candidates with a unique opportunity to join a talented and growing team working with major national progressive organizations on some of the most high-profile issues of our time.

Job responsibilities will include:

• Drafting and editing press releases, op-eds, fact sheets, talking points, editorial board memos, and other communications documents
• Managing clients and campaigns as part of a larger team
• Developing communications plans with the assistance of senior staff
• Building press lists and pitching reporters to get media attention for events, ideas, and breaking news
• Researching issues, candidates, and past media coverage of a diverse range of topics
• Proactively proposing creative ideas for helping clients achieve their goals
• Monitoring various forms of media on a daily or more frequent basis to help aid in rapid response
• Providing advice on creative, effective social media strategies

Applicants should possess:

• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Excellent computer skills including Word, Excel, Powerpoint
• Attention to detail
• Ability to handle multiple assignments at once, work quickly and meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment
• Ability to work with a team to meet group objectives
• Bachelor’s degree or experience in a communications-related field
• Familiarity with social media
• Familiarity with and interest in local, state, and national politics and a commitment and passion for progressive politics
• A sense of humor!

Salary:
Very competitive

Benefits:
401K, Bonuses, Dental, Vision, Health

Opportunities for advancement exist, and BerlinRosen is committed to helping staff develop and grow.

How to Apply:
Please send a cover letter, resume and two writing samples to jobs@berlinrosen.com with Senior Account Associate in the subject line.

Women, people of color and people with disabilities strongly encouraged to apply.

During the past decade, a protracted debate raged as to whether foundations should produce printed annual reports in this digital age. (For the low down on the debate, check out this microsite, produced by the Communications Network and Philanthropy Awareness Initiative in 2010.)

Two new digital annual reports from two foundations – The Atlantic Philanthropies and The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation – suggest that a lot of arguments fueling the conversation back then have been rendered moot as foundations have found ways to breathe new life into their annual reports.

The Gates report, which is billed as an interactive experience, is a notable example for several reasons:

1. A real live person speaks to us in a real live voice.  The energy behind this communication is Bill and Melinda Gate’s passion. As a field, philanthropy is still largely speaking in “institutional voice.” It’s dull. Other foundations may not have a Gates (or two), but the energy that makes for engaging communications can only be found in the voices of real live human beings.
2. Gates uses the annual letter to advance a provocative idea: the case for using clear goals and measurement to improve the health and welfare of more of the world’s people. This report isn’t just a record of grants made and the stories behind those grants, it’s a persuasive argument for a position that has been hotly debated in the sector over the past decade. (For a taste of who stands where on the issue, check out the “impact” landing page of The Ford Foundation under the headline “What We’re Following”.) This theme of measurement is central to the Gates Foundation’s positioning and brand and is advanced consistently throughout the site. One can agree or disagree with the central point, but the Foundation’s position is crystal clear, and it’s engaging.
3. The letter uses a variety of media formats to hook us.  It  includes easily digestible segments, lots of images, infographics and options for sharing. A video version that blends Bill’s talking head with key words and images is central. If I want an even tighter version, the site sends me to “10 Key Take-Aways from Bill Gates’ Annual Letter” on Mashable, making it yet more shareable. So smart.

What’s most notable about Atlantic’s 2013 report is the ways that it has evolved in format over past three years. The 2010 letter was long on text and short on images. In 2012, the Foundation released “Giving While Living: Marking 30 Years of Achievements: 1982-2012.” It’s gorgeous, but, at 58 pages in PDF form, not ideal for online consumption. The digital version feels like a companion to a printed piece—which it is.

This year’s “letter” is a different animal entirely.  Filled with images and multimedia riches — this thing is alive.  Heck, it’s even got an exclamation point in the first paragraph!  When was the last time you saw one of those in a report from a foundation?

Because Atlantic funds a wide and seemingly disparate set of issues, this report was crafted so that visitors could easily access and share the pieces that most resonate with them.  According to Atlantic’s Senior Web Strategist Elizabeth Cahill, “Social sharing lets us meet people where they are and helps build credibility with a wider – yet still targeted – audience.”

Click on the Twitter icon next to a piece about Atlantic’s efforts to improve education in Ireland and up pops this Tweet replete with robust hashtags:  How Ireland said YES for children via @atlantic’s annual letter http://bit.ly/12U31Vx #thinkbig #philanthropy #policy #ccref

I don’t have the type of mind that thinks in Twitter hashtags so make me look like I do and I’ll share your content all day long.

In talking to others who make a point of paying attention to the kinds of annual reports foundation produce, I’ve heard some folks say they are pleased to see the emergence of “performance reports” that go the extra effort to show what’s being done and what’s being accomplished. Others also say that maybe earlier suggestions that the annual report was nearing extinction — or should have been put out to pasture — were premature.  Some people also say they’re hopeful that more innovation and experimentation could make the annual report a useful communications tool.

I’ve worked in and around the field of philanthropy for almost 30 years because I still thrill to strategy that makes scarce resources go farther in advancing social change. These two reports remind me why I’m still here.

 Susan Herr, a regular Communications Network contributor, is a principal of  Trigger Creative.

Organization:
Since 1924, The New York Community Trust has built a permanent endowment to support the nonprofit organizations that make our city a vital and secure place in which to live and work, and made it easy for New Yorkers to be philanthropists. With thousands of charitable funds set up by individuals, families, and businesses, and an expert staff, we help donors with their giving today and enable their generosity to continue after their lifetimes, supporting the causes they cared about and solving problems we can’t now imagine.

Responsibilities:
The director of communications and marketing is responsible for communications and public relations efforts to support The Trust’s mission and organizational objectives. These include increasing the visibility of The Trust among wealthy individuals and their financial advisors, and the trust & estates community; increasing the number of donors who name The Trust in their wills; promoting the grantmaking program and staff expertise; and maintaining The Trust’s strong and positive reputation. The director:

• Develops and implements an annual communications and marketing plan working with the president, the communications officer, and other departments.
• Develops overall messaging for current donors, potential donors, and professional advisors and monitors consistent use.
• Writes and edits print and electronic publications, including the annual report, marketing materials, newsletters, speeches, etc.
• Supervises the communications officer, who is responsible for the website and social media platforms, design and production, including video, and pitching the media.
• Develops collateral to meet various departments’ needs.
• Manages public relations efforts and responds to media inquiries.
• Hires and manages communications consultants.
• Keeps up with trends in philanthropy and The Trust’s grantmaking areas.
• Performs tasks for the president as required.

Qualifications: 

• At least 10 years of experience in communications, public relations, marketing, or journalism, some in the nonprofit sector, including 5 years of supervisory experience.A bachelor’s degree in any of the above or related fields.
• Exceptional writing and editing skills.
• Demonstrated leadership/management skills.
• Familiarity with disciplines involved in communications, including graphic design, print production, media relations, etc.
• Facility with web and social media
• Ability to work cooperatively with a diverse set of people and departments.
• Familiarity with New York, its nonprofits, government, and media a big plus.
• Some advertising experience, especially in financial services or wealth management and working with the legal community a plus

How to Apply:
Please submit a cover letter explaining your interest in the position and what you would bring to it. Include a resume and two writing samples (neither to exceed 4 pages) with your submission addressed to Ms. Ani F. Hurwitz, VP for Communications, The New York Community Trust, 909 Third Avenue (22^nd Floor), New York, N.Y. 10022 or email to afh@nyct-cfi.org

Salary: Competitive salary (range is $130,000 to $170,000) and benefits.

Application Deadline: April 5, 2013.

Organization:
The College Access Foundation of California is a private foundation committed to increasing the number of low-income students who attend and complete college across the state.

We believe improving college achievement is central to preserving California’s future, and the Foundation works to provide low-income and historically underrepresented students with the knowledge, resources, and tools they need to make that achievement possible. Our funding supports programs and organizations that offer college scholarships, financial aid advising, and specialized college support services to these students.

Each year, the Foundation awards grants to dozens of partner organizations across California. This funding helps finance college scholarships for approximately 4,500 low-income and historically underrepresented students and supports efforts to help even more students enroll in college and graduate.

The Foundation is committed to thoughtful, strategic grantmaking, informed by data-driven assessments of our impact and outcomes. We also aim to cultivate a learning community of grantees and stakeholders to share and promote best practices for improving college access and success for California’s low-income and underrepresented students.

With an endowment of over $400 million, the Foundation is one of the largest independent college scholarship providers in California. In 2013, the Foundation expects to award over $15 million in grants during three funding cycles.

Position Description:
Reporting to the vice president for programs, the communications officer will be responsible for all communications related to the Foundation and its work, including messaging, media relations, publications, the website and special initiatives. This is a full-time position.

Responsibilities: 

• Work with the president and vice president for programs to develop and implement a strategic communications plan to support the Foundation’s organizational objectives.
• Lead and supervise all aspects of communications efforts targeting grantees, partners, thought leaders in the field and general audiences. The officer will be responsible for developing messaging, creating publications, writing press releases, drafting letters and talking points, creating promotional materials and presentations, and maintaining a monthly online newsletter.
• Maintain a growing social media presence (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube) that provides a steady flow of information and resources to the Foundation’s core audiences.
• Manage digital media and content, including creative and editorial oversight of the Foundation’s website. Starting in summer 2013, the communications office will be expected to lead efforts to revamp and update the Foundation’s website.
• Facilitate relationship building with the journalists and media outlets to increase the Foundation’s profile statewide.
• Actively identify important events and conferences that increase the Foundation’s visibility to a broader network of statewide constituents.
• Manage the design and production of Board meeting materials.
• Co-lead in event planning for grantee convenings, networking, and other events that increase the Foundation’s visibility and influence.
• Collaborate with the program team and president to develop and produce various communications products to illustrate the Foundation’s work.
• Serve as communications counselor to Foundation staff and Board.
• Coordinate and manage activities of all communications-related consultants and vendors.
• Serve as an active member of the Program team, providing input, feedback and support on communications activities related to all programmatic work.

Qualifications: 

• Minimum of a BA with a background in communications, journalism, or related field preferred.
• 7+ years of paid work experience in communications, media, social marketing or public relations, with knowledge or experience in the nonprofit field encouraged.
• Exceptional writing, editing and communication skills
• Strong interpersonal skills.
• A track record of successful externally focused writing and editing projects.
• Ability to work independently and remain organized, pay close attention to detail in all aspects of work, and maintain composure during variations in production and work schedules in order to meet deadlines.
• Uses discretion, sound judgment, and maintains the strictest confidentiality when handling sensitive materials and information.
• Strong skills in MS Word, MS PowerPoint, Outlook and Adobe Acrobat. Familiarity with Salesforce and Adobe Photoshop and a plus.
• Familiarity with web, mobile and social networking technologies.
• Excellent time management, task prioritizing and project tracking skills.
• A strong sense of purpose and an awareness of the important role that philanthropy can play to advance educational opportunity.
• A sense of humor, flexibility, and the ability to contribute to a collegial, respectful, and supportive office environment.

How to Apply:
Please submit your credentials and a letter of interest by March 31, 2013 to:jobs@collegeaccessfoundation.org

No calls, please.

Organization:
InsideNGO is a membership association that assists the staff of international development and relief organizations to improve their capacity to deal with the specific operational challenges involved in working internationally. Our 300 member organizations share practical approaches to problems faced by finance, human resource, grants/contracts, technology, legal and other staff. We help the NGO community tap into the experience of peers and operational experts managing activities in the most challenging places in the world. By offering a variety of services to our members such as workshops, webinars, roundtables, and an online Member Community, InsideNGO has been supporting the NGO community for more than 35 years.

Position Overview:
Reporting to the COO, the Director, Communications & Marketing will work with senior leaders within the organization to develop, direct and implement an integrated strategy for all InsideNGO communications. These efforts will include print, online and website marketing and communications for Members and the external community of international relief and development NGOs.

The Director, Communications & Marketing will not only focus on the overall communications and marketing strategy, but will also be responsible for directly producing, reviewing, and managing communications and marketing materials. Through the development of collateral and content that articulates InsideNGO’s mission, value and benefits of its unique Programs, products and services, he/she will work to promote, enhance and protect InsideNGO’s brand identity. The Director, Communications & Marketing, will also actively support InsideNGO’s communications and outreach to existing and potential Members.

Working across the organization, the Director, Communications & Marketing will ensure that InsideNGO is viewed as the primary institution working on behalf its 300 Members and the broader community to support Operational Excellence for international NGOs.

Essential Responsibilities:
Marketing and Communications Strategy and Leadership

• Develop, implement and evaluate an annual communications plan, in collaboration with senior leaders as well as InsideNGO’s Membership and Program teams, to advance InsideNGO’s brand identity, broaden awareness of its programs and priorities and increase its visibility with Members and the international NGO community;
• Develop communications and marketing activities to support InsideNGO’s overall strategic priorities and annual planning process, focusing not only on Membership development and Program growth, but also finding key ways to develop our brand and promote our services with global members; and
• Oversee day-to-day activities of the Marketing and Communications function including vendor relations, budgeting, planning and functional development.

Communications Operations
The Director, Communications & Marketing will be tasked with managing our brand and voice to ensure a cohesive message across all areas of the organization. Specific responsibilities include:

• Implement communications and branding approaches to better engage our existing members but also raise overall sector awareness for new members both within the US and globally;
• Direct ongoing efforts of Events Marketing team to identify, engage and solicit participation in InsideNGO training events and the Annual Member Conference;
• Establish guidelines and create cohesive messaging and voice, as well as develop content, for all print and electronic collateral to support increased participation in InsideNGO member services (such as Webinars, Roundtables, Member Community);
• Working with each Director of Programs, create comprehensive promotional plans and primary collateral content for each Program area (Finance/Grants/Contracts, IT and HR), and for overall Operations advocacy efforts;
• Direct InsideNGO’s social media strategies and website to ensure that new and consistent information is available regularly and best reflects the overall engagement and growth strategy of InsideNGO in the US and globally;
• Act as InsideNGO’s “PR” office to handle all external inquiries and ensure that all messaging and published pieces are branded appropriately;
• Track, measure and evaluate the effectiveness of InsideNGO’s marketing and communications strategies; and
• Manage all media and marketing vendor relationships on behalf of InsideNGO.

Qualifications and Desired Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree; with steady advancement and assumption of increasingly senior responsibilities at a membership organization or association;
• International/NGO experience and exposure highly desirable;
• Accomplished communications and marketing practitioner who has 10 years of experience within the international nonprofit sector, at a membership organization, or association;
• Demonstrated ability to take Program content and overall communications and marketing objectives and create exciting and meaningful messages for dissemination to the right audiences through the best channels is critical;
• Clear expertise and creative thinking on state-of-the-art communications and marketing approaches and tactics including but not limited to: use of innovative analytics, integration of social and traditional media, and custom segmentation and engagement strategies; and
• Ability to manage outside communications and marketing experts and specialists as needed to support the overall annual plan and strategies of InsideNGO.

Skills and Attributes:

• Extensive successful writing and editing experience (externally focused) and demonstrated excellent verbal communications, presentation and organizational skills is essential;
• Highly collaborative style in developing and implementing communications strategies across diverse internal and external constituencies; ability to influence and engage peers and the organization;
• Ability to make decisions in an evolving environment and anticipate future needs;
• Demonstrated excellent judgment and creative problem-solving abilities;
• Self-starter, with clear track record as an implementer who thrives on managing a variety of key initiatives concurrently;
• High-energy, maturity and leadership to serve as a unifying force to lead marketing and communications discussions at both the strategic and tactical levels;
• Background in social media and online marketing is helpful; and
• Strong analytical expertise preferred.

How To Apply:
Qualified applicants should submit a résumé, cover letter with salary requirements, and two writing samples to: jobs@InsideNGO.org. Applications without a cover letter will not be considered.

InsideNGO is an at‐will employer in Connecticut and the District of Columbia. Employment regulations applying to the state of each employee’s job assignment apply.

To answer these questions we recently held a webinar, Avoiding the Blind Spot: Telling Your Story With Pictures. During the webinar Liz Banse and Scott Miller of Resource Media shared the neuroscience behind image processing, strategies for effectively communicating using photos and video, examples of extraordinary visual storytelling and practical, low-cost tips for better visual communications.

In the mysterious inner world of the brain, visuals take primacy over words each and every time. To learn more, watch the replay below. And for additional helpful resources on how to tell compelling visual stories, check out the links at the bottom of the post.

For additional resources you can can go here for more on visual storytelling with infographics, as well as to Resource Media’s toolbox page.

In what’s been referred to by The New York Times as a “saucy” new marketing campaign, Chicago’s venerable NPR affiliate is pushing procreative sex. Advertisements plastered around the area, including on the sides of buses, are asking Chicagoans to “do it for the city” and “make babies today” in an effort to create a new generation of WBEZ listeners.

Like much of old media public radio knows it desperately needs to appeal to a new generation of potential listeners who have a smorgasbord of options that were unavailable to their parents and grandparent. If you believe WBEZ’s marketing department, the campaign is satire, designed to be provocative and grab attention. That it did, in a “what the hell were they thinking” sort of way.

For the most part, the public radio brand is associated with in-depth, high-quality coverage of and discussion about politics, policies, and issues that impact the lives of its listeners, who tune in because they assume a half hour later they’ll come away a bit smarter about their community or their world. It’s for that reason public radio – like public television – has consistently attracted substantial support from foundations that believe it helps burnish their brands.

I can understand how that cultivated image of self-restraint makes it difficult to gain traction with the Instagram generation, who seem to demand a slice of your soul in exchange for their attention.

But this campaign could be for Doritos or Snapple or, for that matter, the Howard Stern Show. Every organization wants their customers to pass along their brand loyalties to their kids. Even if it’s all tongue-in-cheek, the campaign has the hallmark of a battle between old and new that neither side won. It fails to sell anything.

In addition it’s remarkably tone deaf. Public radio is one of the few news organizations that seriously covers the environment and other issues closely associated with population growth. That’s yet another reason it gets a fair chunk of funding from private foundations that are financing efforts to limit over-population and its deeply negative impacts on the planet.

I’ll keep listening to WBEZ because it rises well above the news and talk claptrap offered by money machines like Clear Channel. But it’s put a dent in its brand by launching a campaign that does nothing to highlight its distinguishing virtues.

Communications Network board member Mitch Hurst is founder of MH Communications and a frequent contributor to our blog.

Organization:
The Opportunity Agenda, a project of Tides Center, was founded in 2004 with the mission of building the national will to expand opportunity in America.  Focused on moving hearts, minds and policy over time, the organization works with social justice groups, leaders, and movements to advance solutions that expand opportunity for everyone.  Through active partnerships, The Opportunity Agenda synthesizes and translates research on barriers to opportunity and corresponding solutions; uses communications and media to understand and influence public opinion; and identifies and advocates for policies that improve people’s lives.

Position Description:
The Opportunity Agenda seeks an Events and Outreach Coordinator for its New York office.

The Outreach and Events Coordinator is responsible for planning, managing, improving, and implementing The Opportunity Agenda’s convenings, briefings, webinars, and events, as well as growing and maintaining the organization’s electronic database of partners and stakeholders from around the country.  The successful candidate will be innovative, proactive and detail-oriented, capable of working effectively with a diverse range of staff, consultants, and field allies.  The position requires discretion and independent judgment as well as strong planning, logistical, and event management skills, and a commitment to social justice.

Working under the supervision of the Director of Communications, and in coordination with program and development staff, this position’s responsibilities include:

• Oversee planning, budget, contracts, venue selection, and implementation of organizational convenings, events, and trainings, including an annual Communications Institute, Creative Change retreat, and other gatherings.
• Logistical planning and implementation of the organization’s telephonic briefings and webinars, including technological and administrative tasks.
• Maintain and grow the organization’s database of advocates, policymakers, donors, and other social justice leaders, developing systems for effective data management.
• Maintain organization’s tracking system for internal metrics.  Monitor, analyze, and evaluate metrics to inform program strategy, and for reporting to leadership, development staff, and other stakeholders.  Assist with the planning, monitoring, and evaluation of partnership activities.
• Collaborate in the planning and sustaining of organizational knowledge management and internal information flow.
• Collaborate with Web Strategist to maximize interface of database and website, including audience segmentation.
• Developing and maintaining systems for the dissemination of printed and electronic publications and materials.
• Occasional administrative tasks, such as scheduling of meetings and staff travel.

Education and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in and knowledge of logistical, research, and writing tasks;
• Three to five years minimum work experience;
• Project management experience.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Demonstrated commitment to social justice.
• Ability to develop and implement complex programs.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with ability to interact with diverse audiences.
• Experience assisting or managing public activities or events.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite and database programs.
• A sense of humor, modesty, and enthusiasm for our work and mission.
• Bilingual skills in Spanish and English are desirable.

Salary, and Benefits:
The salary range for this position will be determined based on experience and skills.  Medical and dental insurance provided as well as short-term disability, flexible spending, and 403(b) accounts. Generous vacation package.How to Apply: 

Applicants should send a letter of interest, resume, and writing sample to jobs@opportunityagenda.org and let us know how you found out about this position.  No phone calls please.

The Opportunity Agenda is an equal opportunity employer. We strongly encourage and seek applications from women, people of color, including bilingual and bicultural individuals, as well as members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities. Applicants shall not be discriminated against because of race, religion, sex, national origin, ethnicity, age, disability, political affiliation, sexual orientation, gender identity, color, marital status, medical condition (cancer-related) or conditions Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and AIDS-related conditions (ARC). Reasonable accommodation will be made so that qualified disabled applicants may participate in the application process. Please advise in writing of special needs at the time of application.

Mullainathan, whose work touches on how people’s brains process messages, has a sobering message for those of us whose jobs depend on getting people to listen, pay attention and–most important of all–act on what they’re hearing.

According to Mullainathan, a challenge facing communicators is that just because we have something important to say, people don’t always listen. Even if it is something people might want  or need to know about, they just might not be able to listen because we’re taxing what he calls their available “mental bandwidth.”  The more information we ask people to process or the greater the behavior change we’re hoping to encourage, the greater the strain on bandwidth. “It’s not as if we can communicate everything we want,” says Mullainathan, “and get them to listen to everything and there’s this free resource, the human mind, that’s going to absorb everything.”

So, what to do about that conundrum?

Watch the  video below of Mullainathan’s talk, held February 19 at the Ford Foundation, and the conversation that follows with NPR Science Friday’s Ira Flatow. You’ll hear lots of helpful insights and suggestions.

The Science of Communication series is jointly sponsored by the Communications Network and Spitfire Strategies. Go here for more information or to receive notices of upcoming events. Go here for a summary and video highlights of the first talk in our series, featuring Dan Kahan, Professor of Law and Psychology at Yale University. As a member of Yale Law School’s Cultural Cognition Project, Professor Kahan examines how our cultural values shape our beliefs and perceptions of risk.

When Kaiser Permanente Northern California created its In-Kind Communications Program, the intention was clear. By providing communications consulting, communications products (like videos, brochures, and websites) and capacity-building training to our grantees from within our own offices, we would contribute to the success and long-term stability of our grantees. The pleasant surprise was how the In-Kind Program improved our own communications practice, often in striking ways.

A More Strategic Approach
Kaiser Permanente’s Community Benefit Program is a direct extension of our organization’s 65-year-old mission: to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. Because we are both a health plan and a care provider, we are able to go beyond traditional corporate philanthropy to pair grant funding with shared expertise: medical research, clinical best practices—and communications products and consulting.

For many years we had offered communications support to a handful of Northern California community organizations each year, using an ad hoc approach. Grantees would inquire about Kaiser Permanente’s ability to provide a specific product (like a brochure or video), and the requests were handled on a case-by-case basis.

That changed when Denice Alexander, our External & Community Affairs communications manager, began to work with our colleagues in Community Benefit and our in-house creative department, called Multimedia, to make the In-Kind Program more strategic.

She solicited involvement from program staff in nominating grantees, instituted a more rigorous application process and selection criteria, and added a consulting component to ensure that the product created for the grantee best fulfilled their organization’s larger needs.

For example, one organization asked for a training video. But after multiple consulting sessions, Kaiser Permanente came to the conclusion that what would be most effective in helping them reach their goal was a public service campaign. Kaiser Permanente then created a series of three Public Service Announcements for them—and even ended up winning industry awards for these pieces.

Two for the Price of One
The videos, photo essays, web content and other material that our Multimedia department created for grantees in many cases turned out to be material we could use for our own message making, too.

For example, in the process of producing a photo essay for a community clinic’s fundraising efforts, we added a few interview questions about Kaiser Permanente as a partner—and struck gold. The clinic director articulated the value of our support better than anything we could have scripted. So a second version was born: one for Kaiser Permanente to describe the work we do, with the powerful example of the people that the clinic helps. The process was wonderfully efficient. We were already in the editing room; we just made two different cuts.

Telling Stickier Stories
Interestingly, working with grantees in this way helped us revitalize our own practice. It reminded us that one powerful example is better than a list. As we all know (but sometimes forget), if you can pull at someone’s heartstrings, you’ll find your way into their memory.

Alexander put our new thinking best in describing how our internal and external communications now tell a more comprehensive “Kaiser Permanente in the Community” story: “It features specific examples from real people who are touched by our longstanding commitment to community involvement.”

We also used the stories we were helping our grantees to tell  to engage our own internal audiences. Sharing our grantees’ stories back to Kaiser Permanente’s own employees and physicians helped inspire a new, more personal understanding of the organization’s mission.The stories—which have been shared on our employee portal, used in presentations, and are the foundation of our annual report—have become our calling card in describing the work we do in the community. And we can’t help but think that those stories were a key factor in consistently increasing scores on our annual survey measuring employee awareness about Kaiser Permanente’s work in the community.

Adding Training to the Mix
Through the consultations, as well as working with other grantees, we saw the need for communications tools and training. Enlisting the expertise of communications colleagues across Kaiser Permanente, we designed a webinar-based training program as another component of the In-Kind Program.

The curriculum offers basic building blocks of strategic communications—communications planning, brand, messaging, storytelling, and social media. The trainings are targeted to nonprofits—especially the smaller organizations, which often have the least capacity, in terms of tools, staff and strategies, for getting out their messages and sharing their stories. The goal was for participants to be able to implement what they learned right away, so all the trainings include an emphasis on the practical and the immediate.

Finally, we were able to use the webinar content to build a comprehensive and content-rich grantee resource page on our website. Webinar recordings, exercises and resource sheets from the trainings, and examples of products telling grantee stories are available for our grantees—and yours.

You Can Do This Too—Really
Having an in-house creative department is a tremendous advantage to Kaiser Permanente’s In-Kind Program, but it’s by no means essential. The consulting has proved to be one of the most valuable pieces—and almost anyone reading this post has expertise that would be of great value to grantees.

The same is true of the training curriculum. Having so many in-house experts helped a great deal, but some of the best return on investment came from simple “coaching calls,” in which grantees “workshopped” a story or message, with input from peers and an expert, usually me.

It gave participants the chance, and prompting, to start crafting their message or story, which became even stronger through input from other grantees and an expert, all in the space of an hour. It’s a piece we are building on for this year’s In-Kind Program—and the kind of grantee support that any communicator would be well positioned to offer.

“The In-Kind Communication program is a shining example of how Kaiser Permanente works on so many levels toward the same ultimate goal,” explained Jean Nudelman, director, Community Benefit Programs, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, “which is using the many unique assets of our organization to help our grantees achieve long-term sustainability.”

Suzanne Samuel is senior communications consultant, External & Community Affairs, Kaiser Permanente Northern California

Organization:
Mercy Corps helps people turn the crises they confront into the opportunities they deserve. Driven by local needs, we provide communities in the world’s toughest places – places like Afghanistan, Haiti, and Somalia – with the tools and support they need to transform their own lives.

Program/Department Summary:
Resource Development (RD) staff work in three main areas: 1) raising private funds and cultivating and maintaining relationships with private donors; 2) defining the agency’s brand, raising our public profile and sharing stories about our work by engaging with the media, the public, and our supporters and producing a wide range of online and offline communications; and 3) teaching visitors to our Portland Action Center about issues of global poverty and engaging them in efforts to end it.

The RD team includes several dozen dynamic professionals who possess a wide range of skills. We are database managers, web developers, online marketers and public relations experts. We are writers, designers, photographers and teachers. We are fundraisers with expertise in direct response, online, community, major gift and corporate giving. We are specialists in fundraising analysis, stewardship, prospecting and customer service. Most of all, we are passionate about Mercy Corps’ mission and dedicated to supporting our worldwide team that’s improving the lives of 19 million people in more than 40 countries.

Position Summary:
Mercy Corp seeks a global leader of Marketing and Communications. We are looking for a smart, aggressive, connected 21stcentury communicator to raise our profile and tell the best stories we can, for the purposes of mobilizing more support for our mission.

Essential Job Functions:

• Oversee Mercy Corps’ global marketing and communications efforts.
• Build the brand marketing function — which will leverage the department’s online, creative, partnerships, executive positioning, and earned media assets – for the purposes of connecting Mercy Corps with target audiences on a greater scale.
• Work with fundraising colleagues ensuring that our marketing and communications advance fundraising goals.
• Lead the media relations team in identifying, pitching, and placing great Mercy Corps’ stories in media outlets that speak to our target audiences.
• Build media/entertainment partnerships that leverage others’ platforms to advance our mission.
• Drive research on supporter profiles and Mercy Corps’ position in the marketplace.
• Manage MC’s brand identity and evolution.
• Serve as message and content czar, ensuring we are telling consistent stories across Mercy Corps’ various platforms.
• Work with the corporate relations team to advance Mercy Corps’ cause marketing strategy.
• Manage Mercy Corps’ entertainment industry strategy.
• Help add several high-value media, creative, and/or entertainment leaders to the MC board.

Organizational Learning:
As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve – we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.

Accountability to Beneficiaries:
Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts towards accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Supervisory Responsibility:
Twelve Marketing and Communication team members in Portland, Seattle, DCand Europe; the media relations and creative services teams, plus the Director of Multimedia Projects, the Senior Writer/Editor, and the Community Relations Officers – approximately 12 people total.

Reports Directly To:
Chief Development and Communications Officer

Works Directly With:
Communications and Creative Services Teams, Interactive and Direct Marketing Team, Executives and Program Leaders, the Chief Development and Communications Officer and the CEO. This position will sit on Mercy Corps’ Leadership Council, a group of 30-plus top global leaders.

Knowledge and Experience:

• 10-12 years agency and/or in-house media relations and marketing experience.
• Experience leading high-performing teams.
• Ability to understand a complex competitive landscape, define our position and raise profile.
• Experience managing complex news stories for a high profile company or organization.
• Track record of building creative, productive partnerships.
• Strong personal network of media and creative relationships.

 Success Factors:

A successful candidate will contribute to a vibrant, relevant brand positioning that informs great awareness and fundraising campaigns. S/he will be a smart, aggressive, pro-active media relations operation that gets us in front of media that matter most to us, with powerful creative products that cut through the clutter and collaborate in partnerships that use others’ platforms to bring honor and glory (and financial support) to our mission and the people we serve.

Living/Environmental Conditions:

The position is based in Portland, Ore. As much as 25 percent travel required in the US and abroad.

Mercy Corps Team members represent the agency both during and outside of work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit/TDY to a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC’s policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

How to  Apply:
Visit the Mery Corps website and scroll to the bottom of the page.

A recent communications success you are particularly proud of?

The Colorado Health Access Survey. Staff from our communications, evaluation/research and program areas collaborated to develop this long-term strategy to support our state’s most extensive survey of health coverage, access and utilization, coupled with a robust communications strategy. Already the CHAS is becoming well known, and the data widely used by many.

When you were 13 years old, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Wait, I was once 13? I vacillated between a ballerina and an attorney. I spent many years dancing, became a paralegal and made the obvious transition to philanthropic communications.

What’s something unique about your organization that other foundation staff might not know about? 

In 1985 when the PSL Health Care Corporation (Presbyterian-St. Luke’s hospitals) was sold to a for-profit organization, the proceeds of the sale were used to create The Colorado Trust, the first foundation dedicated solely to the health of the people of Colorado. We are fortunate to now have three additional “health conversion foundations” in Colorado.

Your hardest target audience to reach?

One of our toughest audiences is us – our staff and trustees. When the issue we address – health – is our passion, area of expertise and daily work, it is sometimes a challenge to communicate effectively with others who feel differently or may not know much about health beyond their own personal health.

What was your undergraduate major? How has it been useful?

Business. I had a minor in Communications which provided me with a solid base for the work I went on to do. It also made me eternally grateful that post-degree I no longer had to do accounting.

Do you create an annual communications plan? 

We have long had a strategic communications plan that we review, update and refer to on an ongoing basis. It helps us to focus on the right work and not get sidetracked by an endless stream of opportunities.

Do you evaluate communications efforts?

Yes, we just completed an audit of our strategic communications plan, which we do every few years. Key findings: nearly 90% of our stakeholders find foundations to be a credible, unbiased source of information; it’s important we continue to translate complex issues so that they are easy to understand; and our audiences want “layered” information so they can drill down in what matters most to them – from a catchy subject line in an email, to a paragraph or two description, with a link to a high-level summary and a link to an in-depth report. Most valued is our extensive offering of issue briefs.

What percentage of your communications is new media based?

According to findings of our communications audit, too much. Fewer than 15% of our core audiences view any social media. They told us email rules. Still, a small number of our stakeholders rely solely on social media. We’re now focused on tailoring our efforts to this group of power users and working to grow this group over time.

Your favorite communications tool that you think more foundation folks should be using?

This is a bit dated, but I remain a big fan of the Framework to Inform Public Policy Grantmaking that Julia Coffman developed for the James Irvine Foundation. Under the guise of policy, this framework is chock-full of communications-based strategies.

Biggest complaint about how foundations get covered in the media?

Generally I think we get what we give. When we take the time to nurture relationships with reporters, and provide them with clear, concise information – data, analysis and examples/stories – we often get decent coverage.

The last nonfiction book you read? 

This I Believe II: The Personal Philosophies of Remarkable Men and Women. This collection of essays offers an incredible range of views, values, life circumstances and paths chosen. They are humbling and inspiring.

A big event or initiative you’re working on that you think everyone should know about?

We’re beginning a series of events and reports on health equity. Our first event – a community forum and live streaming – made its debut at the end of January. National health disparities expert Paula Braveman, MD, with T.R. Reid facilitating, discussed the barriers to good health faced by racial and ethnic minorities and low-income populations.

What’s a question you have for your Communications Network colleagues?

How can foundations continue to eliminate silos so that program, evaluation and communications can work together collaboratively and most effectively?

A Quick Word With… was created by Michael Hamill Remaley, vice president of communications & public policy, Philanthropy New York and a frequent Communications Network contributor. This interview was conducted and edited by Courtney Williamson, community manager, The Communications Network.

Organization:
The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation was created in 1944 by international business pioneer Conrad N. Hilton, who founded Hilton Hotels and left his fortune to help the world’s disadvantaged and vulnerable people. The Foundation currently conducts strategic initiatives in six priority areas: providing safe water, ending chronic homelessness, preventing substance abuse, helping children affected by HIV and AIDS, supporting transition-age youth in foster care, and extending Conrad Hilton’s support for the work of Catholic Sisters. Following selection by an independent international jury, the Foundation annually awards the $1.5 million Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize to a nonprofit organization doing extraordinary work to reduce human suffering. From its inception, the Foundation has awarded more than $1 billion in grants, distributing in 2011 $82 million in the U.S. and around the world.  The Foundation’s current assets are approximately $2.2 billion.

Position Summary:
The Communications Coordinator reports to the Senior Manager, Communications and works with all departments on the Foundation’s communication activities, including internal and external publications, the website, writing and/or editing official Foundation documents, and special projects, as needed.

Key Responsibilities:

General

• Produce content for organizational materials and communications.
• Schedule and coordinate Foundation media relations.
• Maintain communications calendar and coordinate meetings.
• Monitor incoming emails, respond to inquiries, and field press requests.
• Provide assistance with Foundation events and presentations.
• Track and update communications budget.
• Manage and update Foundation contacts and mailing lists.
• Review and process invoices, credit card bills and travel reimbursement forms related to the Communications Department
• Facilitate communications across and among all departments.
• Work with vendors and consultants to oversee production of materials.

Website

• Edit website content and post time-sensitive material.
• Update and maintain list of all documents on the website.
• Coordinate with other departments to keep track of revisions.
• Assist with maintenance of website, ensuring consistency and accuracy.
• Ensure proper functionality and make recommendations for improvements.

Social Media

• Assist the Senior Manager and other departments to maintain and increase the Foundation’s presence on social platforms (Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Vimeo, LinkedIn, and Google+).
• Program content using third-party software and post updates when needed.
• Coordinate content across platforms, while ensuring consistency.
• Keep up-to-date on social media trends and adapt to new platforms.

Writing and Editing

• Write press releases for new grants and other relevant announcements.
• Work with colleagues in other departments for editorial content.
• Assist in writing, editing, and proofreading official Foundation documents.
• Edit materials for Board members and meetings.
• Prepare speech drafts for Foundation spokespersons.

Publications

• Assist with creation of Annual Report and other printed materials.
• Work with designers, photographers, and internal clients.
• Assemble materials for production of publications.
• Organize the Foundation’s digital photo archive, historic photos, and videos.

Core Qualifications:

• Interest in the Foundation’s humanitarian mission and its goals and operations.
• Excellent writing, editing and verbal communication skills.
• Excellent problem solving skills; ability to think strategically to achieve goals.
• Strong project management skills; ability to multitask, organize and prioritize to stay within budget and on deadline.
• 3-5 years relevant experience, preferably within a public relations firm or nonprofit organization.
• Basic budget and accounting knowledge, including expense tracking and reporting
• Advanced knowledge of Word, Excel and PowerPoint for PC
• Intermediate knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite for PC
• Knowledge of HTML and CMS systems a plus
• Ability and willingness to learn and travel
• Relevant Bachelor’s degree (BA/BS) or equivalent with emphasis in English, communications, marketing, journalism, and/or computer science preferred.

Compensation:
A competitive compensation package is available, including a salary commensurate with qualifications and experience, and a comprehensive benefits package.

How to Apply:
Interested candidates should send a cover letter, resume, and salary history by email to Human Resources at hr@hiltonfoundation.org. Please note “Communications Coordinator” in the subject line. No phone inquiries, please.

The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes a diverse candidate pool.

To provide answers to these questions, we recently held a webinar, Seeing is Believing: Data Visualization for Philanthropy (Replay available below.)

During the webinar, Lisa Philp, vice president for strategic philanthropy at the Foundation Center, spoke with our frequent host, Andy Goodman, director, The Goodman Center, about how you can turn your data into interactive charts, graphs and maps to inform key audiences about your organization’s work, its priority issues, how it’s allocating resources to solve problems — or identify solutions — and what’s being accomplished.

Watch the replay to see some powerful examples of how others are using data visualization to enhance their communications activities–from media relations to informing policymakers to supporting advocacy efforts.

Please leave your comments and questions about the webinar below.

When the Communications Network conducted its 2011 “State of the Practice Survey,” foundation communications practitioners said their biggest frustration — “far and away” — was not having enough time to do all that is being required of them as their roles grow.  If finding more time to get everything done isn’t an option, perhaps some help can be found in taking advantage of online project management tools.

Here are six we identified, including five that are free:

Overview

We’ve focused on options that pack a project management punch. Among their features, these tools allow you to:

• manage multiple projects
• break those projects down into tasks
• assign those tasks to people or teams and prioritize them
• set and track deadlines and timelines
• track decisions and changes
• facilitate team collaboration and communication
• upload and share files
• update team members about project status
• run reports on projects

See if you find one or more you like from the list below.

Free Project Management Software

1. Asana

You can’t beat the price point of Asana – it’s free for teams of up to 30. Asana offers multiple workspaces, real time updates, subscriptions to projects and tasks, activity feeds and much more. It also includes priority headings and tags. One of its best features is the ability to handle most functions via email. This web app (also available on iPhone) is known for its speed and responsiveness, incorporating a range of keyboard shortcuts to ensure that you can get things done quickly. People use it for everything from simple task lists to complex projects using agile project management methodologies.

2. Trello

Trello takes a different approach to project management. The workspace is like a big, supercharged whiteboard, where you put your tasks on cards and then arrange them in lists. Each card includes notes, due dates, checklists, labels, collaborators and attachments and there are good filtering options so you only see the cards you want. All activity on each card is tracked and saved so you always have a project history. To collaborate with others, just add them to a board, and then assign cards. People can even vote on the info on cards if you need to poll opinions and the site includes real time notifications.

3. Freedcamp

Freedcamp is a web app that incorporates easy management of user permissions, instant notifications (with email reply), an all-in-one project dashboard, a group wall for project communications (great for easy information sharing), project templates for repeated tasks and milestones. The customizable dashboard includes widgets to pull in project information from different sources and it integrates with a range of add-on apps.

4. Moovia

Want to add a bit of pizzazz to your project management tasks? Then try Moovia, which has one feature that sets it apart from the rest. It uses gamification as a tool to encourage teams. That means team members’ profiles include badges for teamwork, engagement and personality – what fun! Apart from that, Moovia includes a project dashboard incorporating the same type of updates you’d see on social networks to make sure everyone is kept up to speed. Behind the scenes it works with various project management methodologies. It also incorporates Gantt charts and integrates with Google Docs.

5. Teambox

Teambox is another popular online collaboration and project management tool, which is available not just on the web, but for iOs. It also integrates with Gmail, Google Chrome, Google Drive, Dropbox and Box, and includes a whopping 15GB of free storage. The basic level is free for up to 5 users, and it’s only $5 per month per user for more than that. Teambox integrates tasks, conversations and files into a single workspace. Discussions are also centralized and can be shared with clients. Additional features include pages for notes, time tracking, group chat, calendar sync and Gantt charts.

6.  Basecamp

Basecamp is one of the most popular paid, or “enterprise” project management tools online. One of the key features for Basecamp is that everything that relates to a project is on one page – which means there’s just one place to check for project parameters, lists, files, and brainstorming. There’s fine control over who sees what and all discussions are in one place. It even incorporates a team calendar. The app includes real time project updates, a daily email report and the ability to track every single project change and see who’s made it. You can even recover deleted material. With prices ranging from $20 to $150 a month, there’s a level for every type of user.

What management tools are you and your team using? We’d like to know more about how our members are collaborating!

Sharon Hurley Hall has worked as a blogger, journalist, academic and ghost writer over a career spanning more than 20 years. Connect with Sharon on her website.

Cloud Map Image: Martin Burns/Flickr

These changes also provide opportunities for new approaches. Take The Commonwealth Fund, which is investing in several new — what might be called — “media relations 2.0″ strategies. In one case, it is piloting a program to provide content for small-town newspapers.  In another effort, it is complementing pitching new journalists with educating them.  As a third way, the Fund is partnering with a venerable  journalism institution to provide cutting-edge health care reporting online.  In each case, the focus is on cultivating and maintaining cadres of professional, trained health care journalists and relationships with traditional, trusted publications. As part of The Commonwealth Fund’s mission to promote a high-performing health care system that achieves better access, improved quality, and greater efficiency for all, these programs are designed to put well-researched information about health care issues in front of a broad audience.

“Media organizations – especially the smaller ones — are so strapped for resources right now that quality material is sometimes hard to come by, and journalists are often hard pressed to stay up to date,” says Barry Scholl, Commonwealth Fund senior vice president for communications and publishing. “If we can help reporters and editors stay informed, and support good health care journalism at the same time, we have to try and do it.”

Scholl has a small grant fund that he can draw on to help advance the foundation’s strategic communications activities. This means he can play program officer to underwrite select initiatives designed to boost the visibility of The Commonwealth Fund as a significant source of health care research, as well as encourage high-quality reporting on important issues in the field.  Scholl emphasizes “small” when it comes to his office’s grantmaking – it’s a relatively tiny discretionary budget that he uses judiciously by working through intermediaries such as national and regional news associations.  According to Scholl, it’s a way to go “beyond meeting the usual suspects – the key reporters from major organizations who already know us and understand our content. This is a way to reach a broader group of journalists, and — in some cases — a consumer audience more directly.”

Here are the details:

Pilot Model for Creating a State Rural Health News Service

Working with the Nebraska Press Association (NPA), one grant provides member newspapers with bi-weekly columns on health policy. The NPA contracts with veteran journalists to produce the pieces and tip sheets to help newspapers generate their own stories. The Fund provides infographics for some of the articles.  There are approximately 185 daily and weekly local newspapers in Nebraska and, according to Scholl, their readership can exceed 90 percent.  Three packets have been distributed so far and more than 40 papers picked up each.  “It’s admittedly a low-tech approach,” says Scholl,”but if it is successful we’ll think about how we might scale it for other state press associations.” The grant pays for a writer and in-kind support from Commonwealth’s in-house designers. It is a low-cost, high-yield method for supporting local media and educating a rural population.

The Business of Health Care: A Symposium

The Fund has also partnered with the Society of American Business Editors and Writers (SABEW) to provide a select group of business journalists with training on complex health reform and health care topics.  The 17 reporters and editors, chosen from a national pool of more than 50 applicants, attended a two-day symposium this January, held in New York and hosted by SABEW, where they received “an intense education on health care issues that would be unavailable to them otherwise,” says Scholl. The group heard from national policy experts, former administration officials, small business people and veteran health care journalists. By funding this event, Scholl’s offices cultivate informed journalists on the subject of health care, and also position the Fund as an ongoing source of information for future reporting – a key component of its mission. This article in NewsOK, the online branch of The Oklahoman was one of the first results to come out of the symposium.

The Second Opinion: Elevating the Coverage of Health Care Policy

Finally, the Fund is partnering with the Columbia Journalism Review (CJR), a highly respected, 50-year-old journalism criticism magazine, that has, of late, been greatly expanding its online content. CJR is principally known for its fair, useful and in-depth criticism, which results in credibility with national reporters and editors.  “CJR’s frank assessments,” says Scholl, “spur real changes in newsrooms.” Scholl was able to make a grant to CJR to support the creation of a health care journalism blog called The Second Opinion that launched this month. As with the rest of CJR’s policy coverage, staff writers will produce explainers to help regional and national journalists find their way through complicated issues.  The partnership will help journalists call out weak coverage on health care issues and champion good work.

“The Affordable Care Act is going to bring vast changes to the U.S. health care system over the next two years,” says Scholl. “There’s plenty  The Commonwealth Fund, and other foundations, can do to help ensure that the media are ready to report accurately on the impact of this landmark law.”

Organization:
The Southern Poverty Law Center is a nonprofit civil rights organization dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry, and to seeking justice for the most vulnerable members of society.

Founded by civil rights lawyers Morris Dees and Joseph Levin Jr. in 1971, the SPLC is internationally known for tracking and exposing the activities of hate groups. Our innovative Teaching Tolerance program produces and distributes – free of charge – documentary films, books, lesson plans and other materials that promote tolerance and respect in our nation’s schools.

We are based in Montgomery, Ala., the birthplace of the modern civil rights movement, and have offices in Atlanta, New Orleans, Miami, Fla., and Jackson, Miss.

Position Description:
The Public Affairs Manager develops comprehensive communications plans, integrating media relations, policy advocacy, publications, social media and events, and manages their execution; manages outreach to SPLC strategic policy, media and community audiences to raise awareness and gain support for organizational goals; leverages relationships with key journalists, columnists and media outlets. The candidate must have excellent writing skills, and be a politically-savvy, team-oriented professional with solid people and project-management experience.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities:

• Works across all programs and campaigns, assists Director of Public Affairs in developing and executing SPLC national, regional and state-based outreach
• Identifies opportunities and initiates plans to deliver and promote SPLC messages, expertise, and achievements.  Pitches and places news, features and opinion articles in top-tier media
• Develops and implements public affairs and media relations for SPLC’s policy advocacy and litigation efforts in Florida, and for Legal Department’s “New Opportunities” (aka RIS) portfolio
• Collaborates with Design Director, New Media Manager and Editorial Manager to execute organizational priorities across all communications channels, including social media, e-newsletters, website
• Manages online Newsroom on SPLC website. Creates content for print and electronic platforms including news releases, opinion pieces, speeches, social media press packets, reports, newsletters, blogs and employee Intranet
• Coordinates workflow of Communications Associates with Director of Public Affairs and senior program staff.

 Qualifications & Requirements:

• A bachelor’s degree in communication, journalism, marketing or a related field required. Advanced degree is a plus
• 7 to 10 years of progressively-responsible experience in a public affairs or communications capacity required
• A minimum of 5 years of experience as a supervisor of professional staff or as a project manager preferred
• Experience managing staff and/or leading a team responsible for reaching multiple internal and external audiences, including legal experts, policymakers, community stakeholders, advocacy partners, journalists and donors is essential
• Experience in traditional media and social media strategy and implementation required

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Exceptional writing, content development, editorial and oral presentation skills are required
• Must possess the ability to provide leadership and work cooperatively in a team-oriented environment
• Must be a skilled public affairs writer, able to translate complex issues into consumer-friendly content and have the proven ability to write opinion articles and commentaries, feature stories and other media materials
• The ability to multi-task, handle high-pressure situations, well as plan and execute longer-term projects and the demonstrated skill in organizing complex projects and setting work priorities, ensuring the timely completion of all activities.
• Political savvy, with success managing projects in electoral or advocacy campaigns is a plus, as is expertise advising stakeholders from diverse racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds

 Other Special Considerations:
This position requires regular local and overnight travel

How to Apply:
Please CLICK HERE to submit a cover letter and resume along with three references and two writing samples.

The Southern Poverty Law Center is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, or status with regard to public assistance.

Guest Post: Sharon Hurley Hall

Google Analytics is not the only game in town when it comes to web analytics.

There are a number of reasons you might be looking for alternatives to Google Analytics.

1. You want two analytics programs — You want to use two analytics packages to cross check for accuracy and for redundancy
2. You don’t trust Google – You have privacy or other concerns with Google as a company
3.  You need additional functionality – Google just isn’t getting it done for you

Whatever the reason we have reviewed some analytics options here.

Let’s get started.

Clicky

Clicky has a long list of the ways in which it is better than other services, but here are some of the features I like.

Way before Google Analytics got its interface upgrade, Clicky had easy to understand charts and graphs – and a couple of unique (at the time) features too. One of these was its real-time view of who’s on your site. Called Spy, the feature includes countries, referrers, domains and searches and a map you can zoom in on. Clicky also offers the option to see live web analytics while you are on your site, so you can see how many people are visiting the page you are on.

Clicky has two more excellent features: the ability to set up alerts triggered by certain actions on your site, and the option to get analytics for your Twitter account. The Twitter interface looks at senders, recipients, hashtags and links as well as sentiment. Clicky has recently introduced heatmaps and soon plans to include uptime monitoring for paid users, making it a good all-around solution.

It’s got an attractive interface and you can track multiple sites if you upgrade to one of their paid plans. These range from $9.99 to $19.99 a month, with custom plans also available.

GoSquared

The GoSquared web interface is a dashboard with a number of widgets to show important metrics such as traffic, popular content and more.

GoSquared allows you to set custom events and get dashboard notifications.

Plans range from $9-$99 per month, based on the number of pageviews your sites generate.

However you can also unlock additional pageviews by completing certain actions to earn rewards. Once you have used up your monthly pageview allocation, you can’t see data till the start of the next month, though GoSquared keeps monitoring behind the scenes. This could be a problem if you are using it as your main analytics package and get a traffic spike.

Woopra

Woopra also has an attractive web dashboard featuring many of the standard analytics reports.

It’s a great way to instantly view what’s happening on your site.

One interesting feature in Woopra include the ability to track blog authors, categories, comments and search via its WordPress plugin which also allows you to ignore administrators.

It also has customer tagging, a retention report (good to see if your content remains popular with visitors) and the creation of custom events to track. Another of Woopra’s strengths is its filtering capabilities which you can use to refine almost any aspect of web metrics you want to track.

Interstingly, Woopra includes a live chat feature which you can use to talk to your customers the moment they pop up on your site.

KISSMetrics

The headline on the KISSMetrics home page reads “Google Analytics Tells You What Happened, KISSmetrics Tells You Who Did It.”

KISSMetrics is focused on web analytics at the individual level, with the “Customer Lifetime Value” metric being a centerpiece of their analytics reporting.  With KISSMetrics you are able to go back and look at an individual’s interaction history.

KISSMetrics has solutions for SaaS, mobile apps, ecommerce platforms and more.

It offers funnel reports, detailed visitor actions and easy ways to segment your visitors and track the user life cycle (which is something you can’t get from other tools). Pricing starts at $49 per month for basic plans, with advanced plans starting at $499 per month.

CrazyEgg

Finally, there is Crazy Egg. Crazy Egg tracks clicks to improve the User Experience and/or conversion rates on your web pages.

Crazy Egg is superior to the Google Analytics Overlay Report for a number of reasons.

First, Crazy Egg allows you to view clicks as a heat map, confetti map or overlay report or in a list view (which is exportable.)  Google Analytics only has an Overlay report.

The confetti map allows segmentation by referral source, keyword, country, time of day, etc.

Second, Google Analytics tracks all clicks to the same URL together.  In other words, if you have three links to the same page, the Google Analytics Overlay Report doesn’t differentiate between the three.  Crazy Egg does.

Lastly, Crazy Egg provides a scroll map report that shows your visitors scrolling behavior on the page.

Plans range from $9 to $99 per month.

Other Alternatives to Google Analytics

In addition to the services listed above, there are plenty of other analytics packages you can try. Here are some of them:

• Advanced Web Stats has a free version which allows you to track goals, geography, navigation, filters, visitor segmentation, server traffic and more. Licensed use starts at $395 though bloggers who review the software can get it for free.
• AwStats is the program that most web hosts make available for free (along withWebalizer). It analyzes you server log files and you can find out what robots and spiders do on your site. The trouble with packages like these is that you are not sure what happens after people visit a page on your site.
• Chartbeat offers a live dashboard showing data including desktop and mobile users, Twitter links and mentions, traffic sources, page and server load, top pages and more. It includes scroll mapping and the ability to figure out whether visitors are idle or are actually doing something on your site. There’s just one plan at $9.95 a month.
• FoxMetrics provides person-level visitor tracking and allows unprecedented customization for tracking events such as installation of software and downloading media. Plans start at $20 a month.
• GoingUp adds something to the analytics mix with SEO rank tracking, keyword position tracking, page optimization and additional SEO tools.
• Hubspot offers a marketing analytics service focusing on social media and other channels and how these relate to leads, ROI, and search. Prices for its marketing package start at $200 a month.
• Mint is hosted on your website. As well as the standard metrics, you can also track feed subscriptions and image search and it has a number of plugins to enhance functionality. There is a one-off charge of $30 for this software.
• MixPanel’s strength is conversion funnels and visitor retention tracking. You can set up complex queries easily without the need for programming skill. Pricing is based on event tracking. There is a free level up to 25,000 data points and paid plans start at $150 a month.
• Piwik is an open-source software alternative to popular analytics programs which has many of the same features as other solutions.
• Reinvigorate offers desktop and web tracking, heatmaps, live visitor tracking, visitor naming, referral tracking and page level statistics with prices starting at $10 per month.
• StatCounter offers many of the same features as other analytics programs. There is a free level, with pricing starting at $5 per month.

If you have a favorite Google Analytics alternative that’s missing from this list, let us know in the comments!

Sharon Hurley Hall has worked as a blogger, journalist, academic and ghost writer over a career spanning more than 20 years. Connect with Sharon on her website.

Organization:
The Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) is the central public affairs arm of the organized Bay Area Jewish community. It represents Bay Area synagogues and Jewish organizations on issues impacting the rights and protection of Jews as individuals and as a community.

Position Description:
The Jewish Community Relations Council seeks a dynamic, articulate, seasoned, and creative Communications Manager. 

Responsibilities include:

• Developing and implementing a strategic communications plan that utilizes traditional and new media channels to reach stakeholders and target populations for education, advocacy, and fundraising purposes
• Sourcing and writing content for fundraising, outreach, advocacy, and issue campaigns, and managing the design and production processes
• Developing and implementing an effective distribution process to reach target audiences
• Media relations with television, radio, print and new media
• Creating and managing a robust online presence for the organization
• Crisis communications messaging
• Evaluating effectiveness of communications and marketing strategies

 Qualifications and Requirements:

• University graduate
• Highly articulate, with demonstrated savvy and great skill in writing, and able to distill complex ideas into easily understood messages
• Demonstrated experience in strategic communications, project management, digital marketing, and media relations

Skills: 
The successful candidate will bring energy and communications savvy to this position, as well as proven experience in communications, project management, and marketing operations. He/she has demonstrated skill in developing and implementing communications plans to engage a diverse audience, and has developed proven marketing tactics to support this effort.  Must believe strongly in the mission of the organization, be an excellent communicator, and possess strong organization, writing, presentation, verbal, and interpersonal skills.  He/she will be able to motivate and influence others, be a self-starter, think creatively and strategically, demonstrate excellent judgment, and work effectively in a fast-paced, dynamic environment. Background in SEO helpful.

Salary is commensurate with experience.

How to Apply:
Please send cover letter and resume to:
Isabel Duarte Gray
Jewish Community Relations Council
121 Steuart Street, Suite 301
San Francisco, CA  94105
iduartegray@jcrc.org

Guest Post: Tony Proscio

In the year just past, the eminent sports writer Frank DeFord devoted part of a column to an exposé of athletic-sounding phrases that are never used by actual athletes. Instead, they seem to turn up only when some armchair quarterback is trying to sound muscular. “Now,” DeFord wrote last September, “we have a very popular new sports term that is never used in sports: ‘game changer.’ Where did that come from? Nobody who plays a game ever says the game had a game changer.” Yet find me a foundation CEO or a think-tank Archimedes who has never used the phrase, and I will make a donation to that person’s favorite cause.

People who play games would never bother with a meaningless term like “game changer,” for one simple and possibly obvious reason: Everything that happens in a game changes the game. Every stupid fumble, every dropped handoff, every time out or foul ball changes the game, even if only by a little. It may not change the direction of the game — the winner and loser may still be winning and losing — but the game is no longer quite the same. When the direction changes, as Mr. DeFord points out, “it has forever been obligatory in sport to say ‘turning point.’”

Why don’t foundation annual reports talk about turning points?

It may be unkind to speculate, but here goes: a “turning point” is a much more specific and serious claim. You can easily pretend to have “changed the game” with some little accomplishment here or there, even if it is barely noticed outside your field. Just as in sports, everything changes the game to some degree or another. But if you claim to have brought about a “turning point” in education or the environment or scientific research, then you are claiming (in the parlance of the old Superman TV series) to have changed the course of mighty rivers. You are going to be pressed for specifics, and they had better be monumental

So instead, you go for the Charles Atlas term that doesn’t require you to lift any actual weights. The same goes for “transformation” and its sibling “transformative.” Unless you believe, like some pundits of technocracy, that these words apply only to unprecedented wonders that reorganize our very existence (see Part I of this post), almost anyone can plausibly claim to have transformed almost anything, just by showing up. As Heraclitus of Ephesus pointed out almost a century before Socrates, “Everything changes and nothing remains still; you cannot step twice into the same stream.” The minute you take your toe out of the water, the stream is transformed — no thanks to you, perhaps, but then again, who’s to say?

Now, there is historical justification for treating “transformation” as a profound and radical term, something that applies only to the most thorough kind of change. The word seems to have entered English through the doorways of religion and myth, used to describe a metamorphosis that alters the very essence of something, as by miracle or magic.  (The Anglo-Norman writer Sir John Mandeville wrote in 1400 of someone’s “daughter transformed from a womman to a dragoun.”) But 600 years later, all that hocus-pocus is pretty much gone. In a 2010 report calling for improvements in the nurse-training curriculum, a prominent foundation recently had to demand not merely a transformation of nursing education, but a “radical transformation.”  The once profound word was no longer mighty enough to stand on its own, without a crutch of radicality. The foundation world is overrun with initiatives to transform schools, hospitals, art galleries, inner cities, community colleges, soccer fields, criminal justice, and the experience of aging, among many other things. If the word actually meant today what it meant to the Anglo-Normans, we would not recognize anything in our world from one day to the next. Everything would constantly be turning into dragouns.

But probably the weirdest and most vainglorious expression for changing things — a phrase equally popular in government, business, and philanthropy — is “moving the needle.” “We seek a strategy,” one foundation writes, in a reflection on forthcoming changes in its program, “that will definitively move the needle.” “To move the needle,” a product-development executive writes on his blog, “we need to create a product that champions change.” Another foundation trumpets “investments in capacity-building that move the needle for enterprising nonprofits.”

When I write about phrases like this, I do my best to come up with some kind of insight about the intended meaning, or the historical meaning, or at least some sources of knowledgeable speculation that I can consult and summarize. But on this one, no matter how hard I try, I come up stumped. What needle? on what?

Obviously several possibilities come to mind: a seismograph, maybe, or a compass, a speedometer, an audience-response clicker, certain kinds of thermometer, a blood-pressure dial, or an applause meter. All these things have needles which, if accurate, move in response to changes in the environment. Sometimes we want the needle to move only in one direction (the audience-response devices), sometimes only a certain amount (the thermometer or the blood-pressure monitor), and sometimes not at all (the seismograph). Does any of this provide a useful metaphor for anything?  I don’t see it, but even if so, every possible metaphor is markedly different from every other one. What do they have in common? Only one thing: something is changing. Big deal.

Yet if you enter any discussion of public policy, business strategy, or philanthropy, you’ll soon find yourself stretched out on a whole bed of needles, all of them in motion. It’s the phrase of choice among the movers, shakers, and needle-wigglers. Why? Beats me.

If I were to guess, I’d say that real change — fundamentally shifting how people behave, what markets reward, what judges condemn or investors support — is punishingly hard work, as rare as wommen changing into dragouns. Yet nearly all great institutions try to make these kinds of dramatic changes. Most fail, most of the time. Since human nature propels us to dwell on success rather than failure, we have adopted increasingly fanciful terms to ennoble whatever small improvements we do, somehow, manage to make. They may not be turning points, but in their little way they blow a cheering trumpet. And the game, thus changed, moves on.

Tony Proscio, a planning, evaluation, and communication consultant to foundation and large nonprofit organizations, is also the creator of the Communications Network’s Jargon Finder.

Organization:
Inspired by Judaism’s commitment to justice, American Jewish World Service (AJWS) works to realize human rights and end poverty in the developing world.

Organization:
Maimonides Medical Center is Brooklyn’s preeminent hospital and healthcare institution. Founded in 1911 as the New Utrecht Dispensary, the Medical Center has been providing high quality patient care for over 100 years while respecting and celebrating the diversity of its patients. A nonsectarian, nonprofit institution, in 2011 the Medical Center had over 46,000 inpatient admissions, over 221,000 outpatient clinic visits and over 113,000 emergency room visits. It is committed to clinical excellence and is ranked in the top 5% of hospitals in the US for stroke, cardiology and critical care. It also delivers more babies than any other healthcare institution in New York State.

Maimonides is a complex, multidimensional institution that functions as both a community hospital and a major specialty care teaching hospital. Maimonides trains over 400 fellows, residents, and interns each year. It is also a leader in innovative treatment techniques, regularly wins awards for its advanced information technology, and has pioneered a number of procedures that are now accepted as regular medical treatment.

At its core, the Medical Center is dedicated to offering high quality, compassionate and patient-centered healthcare while being responsive to the diverse communities it serves. In furtherance of that mission, the hospital is growing in size and increasing its treatment options to meet the changing needs of the community. Key to that growth is a relevant and robust marketing plan that raises awareness of the hospital and its services.

Position Description:
Maimonides Medical Center is seeking a Chief Marketing Officer. He or she must be a highly energetic, smart, outgoing and experienced marketing professional who will help increase awareness and preference of Maimonides. Reporting to the Vice President for External Affairs and working closely with the Medical Center’s President, Board, and other staff, the CMO will set the direction and focus for internal and external marketing strategies including managing online initiatives through the internet, the hospital intranet, partner sites and social networking resources. In addition, he or she will work in partnership with advertising agencies and other vendors to design and implement traditional and interactive marketing campaigns for centers of excellence, service lines and physicians.

The CMO must be a hands-on manager, a strategic thinker and planner, a problem solver, and be able to respond to crises quickly and effectively. Excellent negotiation and communication skills are very important. He or she must be able to work closely with the Board and staff to promote an open, inclusive environment that emphasizes cooperation and teamwork with a minimum of ego. In addition, he or she will be bright, diplomatic, analytical, of the highest integrity, and possess sound judgment as well as a sense of humor.

Specific Responsibilities:

• Develops short-and long-term marketing plans to meet the goals and objectives of the Medical Center.
• Responsible for internal staff e-communications. Works with other departments as appropriate to develop key messages and communications strategies for internal staff communication. Develops strategies to engage senior leadership in communications.
• Determines priorities of advertising and related marketing projects at the Medical Center and develops schedules to meet those priorities.
• Maintains communications intake request system and determines priorities in consultation with the Vice President and other external affairs staff.
• Institutes tracking of marketing efforts where appropriate. Reviews the results of marketing efforts and adapts the efforts accordingly.
• Collaborates with physicians, administrators and other employees to acquire information to be used in support of various marketing projects.
• Analyzes information about research, services, and physician activities at Maimonides for potential marketing programs.
• Analyzes department and physician needs and advises on appropriate promotional plans to meet those needs.
• Determines appropriate communication vehicles for presenting information to communities.
• Oversees preparation of written materials in support of marketing, advertising and special events.
• Supervises the Director of Marketing, and other appropriate staff.
• Coordinates with the VP of Public Affairs and Chief Development Officer.
• Manages the website, intranet and other digital marketing efforts.
• Writes and edits marketing materials including print, video and radio scripts and web page content.
• Responsible for reviewing, editing and proofreading a wide range of other collateral material.
• Maintains and adapts the Medical Center branding and visual identity plan, as necessary.
• Maintains established departmental policies and procedures, objectives, quality assurance program, safety, environmental, and infection control standards.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited four-year college or university; advanced degree preferred.
• Outstanding written and verbal skills as demonstrated in reports, correspondence and/or presentations.
• A team player who is comfortable working with volunteers, development and public relations professionals, physicians and hospital-wide staff.
• Experience in building, mentoring and motivating a team in a complex organization.
• Strong leadership ability, including management, strategic and analytical skills required.
• Excellent organizational skills with close attention to detail.
• Superior interpersonal skills with the ability to project professional competence, leadership capability and personal maturity.
• A self starter and independent thinker with good judgment, sensitivity and common sense.
• Experience as a website administrator with html coding experience preferred.

How to Apply:
Maimonides Medical Center has retained the services of Harris Rand Lusk to conduct this search. Inquiries, nominations, and applications may be directed in confidence to:

Jack Lusk, Managing Partner
Or
Deborah Farrell Nelson, Practice Leader for Development
Harris Rand Lusk
261 Madison Avenue, 11th Floor
New York, NY 10016
MMCMarketing@harrisrand.com

What is a recent communications success you are particularly proud of?

We just gave $1 million dollar grant to UC Berkeley in support of scholarships for undocumented students. The grant has gotten a lot of media play across the country, and it stirred up a lively debate on an issue that is important to the Fund.

When you were 13 years old, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I entered a Franciscan seminary at 13 to study to be a priest. It only took me nine years to realize that wasn’t the path for me.

What’s something unique about the Haas, Jr. Fund that other foundation staff might not know about?

The Haas, Jr. Fund was the first foundation in the country to embrace marriage equality as a priority. It helped create Freedom to Marry and the Civil Marriage Collaborative and has played a leadership role in numerous other initiatives to advance equal marriage rights in California and across the country.

Your hardest target audience to reach?

Whether the issue is immigrant rights or gay and lesbian equality, it’s hard to break out of the bubble of people who are already on our side. And social media doesn’t really make it any easier because most of it is happening in that same bubble. We want to change hearts and minds on these issues, and so we’re always wrestling with the question of how you reach people who don’t necessarily agree with you. That can be tough.

What percentage of your communications is new media based?

Not enough.

What was your undergraduate major?

English. I expected to work as a college professor. But after working as a teaching assistant, I decided a life in academia wasn’t for me. I ended up getting a master’s degree in journalism.

Does Haas create an annual communications plan? 

Always … and with the best of intentions.

Your favorite communications tool that you think more foundation folks should be using?

We’ve started to use Trello to track different projects and to keep staff and consultants on the same page about where everything stands.

Biggest complaint about how foundations get covered in the media?

There’s too much focus on the amount of money being given rather than the impact of the work.

The last nonfiction book you read? 

Thinking, Fast and Slow by Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman. It opens a window to the importance of understanding how people take in information so we can design and deliver more effective messaging in all of our communications.

Another foundation whose communication work you admire?

It’s not a foundation, but as we have been thinking about where we want to go with our communications, we have been spending a lot of time on the website of charity: water.  They do a great job telling their story and explaining why their work is important — and here’s the kicker: lots of great pictures and video and infographics, not a lot of text.

A big event or initiative you’ve got coming up that you think everyone should know about?

We are one of six foundations collaborating on a citizenship initiative to support legal permanent residents in becoming citizens. It’s called the New Americans Campaign, and it’s bringing together legal-service providers, faith-based groups, businesses and others to obliterate the many barriers that stand between legal permanent residents and citizenship.

The last time you learned something important from a communications colleague?

Mark Fest, former VP of Communications at Knight, is heading up the communications work for the New Americans Campaign.  He introduced us to the simple but effective tool called “The Message House” for keeping everyone on the same page. It’s worth checking out.

Can you recommend a contemporary film or documentary that you think tells a compelling, persuasive story? 

If you want a real treat, see The Intouchables, a film that was based on the book You Saved My Life. It tells the extraordinary true story of an Algerian con-man and his friendship with a disabled French aristocrat. It is a great reminder to quiet our judgments about people and situations. The film is a pleasure in the ways it both inspires and moves you to laughter.

What’s your poison: Pinterest, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or ?

Would you judge me if I said Pinterest?

What’s a question you have for your Communications Network colleagues?

How can foundations push the envelope and communicate in ways that bring in new allies and partners and converts to the causes we support?

A Quick Word With… was created by Michael Hamill Remaley, vice president of communications & public policy, Philanthropy New York and a frequent Communications Network contributor. This interview was conducted and edited by Courtney Williamson, community manager, The Communications Network.

In a recent opinion piece in the Chronicle of Philanthropy, Vince Stehle, executive director of Media Impact Funders, asked why so few foundations had “made any notable calls for action” on gun control or gun violence in the wake of the “horrific bloodbath” at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Stehle argued that instead of sitting on the sidelines and letting others shape the debate and discussion, “foundations need to pay attention to the high cost of gun violence to our nation.”

Is — as Stehle suggests — philanthropy missing an opportunity to contribute to the gun violence debate similar to the ways it has addressed other major social issues, ranging from health care to immigration reform to climate change to education reform? Should — and can — foundations, in particular, do more?

That question will be explored during a special event — to be webcast nationally on January 15, beginning at 3 pm ET.

Jointly hosted by Media Impact Funders and Philanthropy New York, “Reframing the Debate Over Gun Violence: Advocacy and Education Efforts and Working with Partners in Media,” will look at what philanthropy can do to support efforts — including using the power of communication — to change the national conversation about sensible gun regulations.

Featured presenters are:

• Dan Gross, President, Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence
• Maria Cuomo Cole, Filmmaker, Philanthropist, and Chairman, HELP USA
• Jackie Hilly, Executive Director, New Yorkers Against Gun Violence
• Roderick V. Jenkins, Program Officer, Children, Youth & Families, The New York Community Trust
• Vince Stehe, Executive Director, Media Impact Funders (Moderator)

The webcast will be available online beginning at 3 pm ET, Tuesday, Jan. 15. To tune in, click here.

Among the pleasures of the past year was my introduction to a new friend, Karl Brown of the Rockefeller Foundation, who wrote last March to ask why I had never included “innovation” on my list of public-interest jargon. After all, it has most of the characteristics that grate on people who pay attention to the language of civic and public affairs: it’s vain and self-glorifying, it’s numbingly overused, and its meaning has become so stretched out of shape that it can be (and is) easily stuck onto anything more recent than the Pleistocene megafauna. As Karl pointed out, “everything you do is technically ‘new’, in that this particular thing has never been done by you in that particular moment.” Consequently, from the minute you pour your first cup of coffee, you’re “innovating” left, right, and center. Got to be jargon, no?

I answered that, to my eye, not every obnoxious, overused word or phrase is jargon. For me, the test of jargon is whether the meaning is either too abstruse for an ordinary reader to decipher or else has become so distorted, weasely, or chameleon-like that it’s hard to know, in any given context, what the author might be trying to say. To me, the history of “innovation” looked pretty consistent: it was never a very precise word to begin with — even the original Latin simply means “make new” — and whatever you may think of the vanity and smugness of people who overuse the term, it’s never hard to guess what they’re trying to say. It’s just “Look, ma! I did something new!” Tiresome, yes; but obscure? Hardly.

To this, Karl (an expert in applied technology) explained that “innovation” actually does have, at least in recent years, a more precise and abstruse meaning than just “something new.” And most of the people who slather it all over their annual reports miss that narrower meaning entirely. In business-management circles — a burbling cauldron of jargon at the best of times — “innovation” refers to “the use of a new idea or method” that is then “accepted by markets, governments, and society.” The quoted phrases come from a Wikipedia article, but they evidently reflect some kind of intellectual orthodoxy venerated at the more expensive consulting firms.

So if I have this right, to be a real innovation something has to be, first, an original concept or technique — not just an adaptation or variation on something that happened yesterday — and second, eventually accepted for general use by some mass of people who matter. Other uses of “innovation” are just poseurs.

Gee, who knew? What we’re seeing here is the rise of a whole new piece of technical jargon, disguised as an ordinary term whose meaning all of us thought we understood. By way of example, Karl posits that the iPhone was a true innovation — a completely different approach to mobile phones, which then became wildly popular, successful, and imitated. By contrast, he wrote, some foundation that sets up a grantee network cannot claim to be innovative, because “networks of grantees are as old as the hills.” (Mind you, writing as someone who is now slightly older than the hills — but still younger than the Pleistocene megafauna — I remember a time when foundations actively discouraged their grantees from speaking to one another. “They’ll gang up on us,” one foundation greybeard warned me, back in the ’70s. But that’s another topic.)

With due respect to the iPhone, and to all those management consultancies that charge so much to redefine ordinary words for us, I still think this distinction between innovation and mere novelty is largely made up. It certainly has no basis in longstanding English usage. Although it may be useful to engineers and market analysts to have a word specially set aside for the really new-new and really successful ideas, I think it’s asking too much of ordinary English speakers to expect us to know that, henceforth, a plain old word meaning “something new” must now be reserved only for revolutionary gadgetry that changes the world.

Among other things, consider how blinkered this new definition is. If something has to be “accepted by governments, markets, and society” in order to be an innovation, then the Large Hadron Collider, the superconducting gizmo in Switzerland that may have found the Higgs boson, is not innovative. Say what? Well, sorry, LHC folks. But as of right now, there are hardly any governments and no markets — never mind society at large — scrambling to put supercolliders into general use. Scientifically breathtaking? OK, we’ll let you have that. But “innovative”? Don’t make us laugh.

But never mind. The whole argument may already be obsolete. Out there among the hyper-networked consulting classes, even this fancy new definition of “innovation” is evidently becoming passé — out-innovated by an even trendier word: “transformation.” Karl pointed me to a Bloomberg blogger, a specialist in business innovation and design, who declared as long ago as 2008 that “Innovation is dead.” The word, he writes,

is too narrow to generate radical alternative options and build risk-taking frontier skills needed to remake and restructure our lives, our economies, and our countries. We need a deeper, more robust concept. “Transformation” captures the key changes already underway and can help guide us into the future. It implies that our lives will increasingly be organized around digital platforms and networks that will replace edifices and big organizations …(Bruce Nussbaum, in the blog Nussbaum on Design, Bloomberg/Businessweek, Dec. 31, 2008)

When you see the word “transformation,” are digital platforms and networks what come to mind? Do you picture an apocalypse of Edifice Wrecks? A display of “risk-taking frontier skills” that would throw Buffalo Bill right off his galloping cayuse? If not, check back here next week for Part II of this entry: a closer look at “transformation” and its more athletic cousin, “game-changer.”

Tony Proscio, a planning, evaluation, and communication consultant to foundation and large nonprofit organizations, is also the creator of the Communications Network’s Jargon Finder.

Organization:
For nearly 100 years, Planned Parenthood (PPFA) has promoted a commonsense approach to women’s health and well-being, based on respect for each individual’s right to make informed, independent decisions about health, sex, and family planning.

Position Description:
PPFA is currently seeking an experienced speechwriter. S/he will play an instrumental role in developing core speech content for the President of PPFA. The speechwriter will be responsible for drafting full length speeches, brief remarks, talking points and speech frameworks for the President, and from time to time key senior staff. The position is based in New York City.

Reporting to the Vice President of Communications, the Speechwriter will partner closely with the PPFA President, the Office of the President, divisional heads and other key leaders across the country to develop original content and ensure that key messages are consistently communicated. In addition, the Speechwriter will monitor speeches given by other healthcare, policy, and political leaders, identify effective speech techniques, integrate model approaches into Planned Parenthood speeches and serve as a thought partner to the President, Executive Vice President and Vice President for Communications on effective speechmaking. The primary focus of the position is writing speeches, but it will also include writing and/or editing other content, such as op-ed pieces.

Note: This is a temporary staff position for six months. After a six-month period, the position may become permanent.

Duties & Responsibilities:

• Write speeches. The successful candidate should be able to produce effective, lively, relevant, persuasive and well-researched remarks in the speaker’s voice for a wide range of events and audiences.
• Collaborate with President, Executive Vice President, and Vice President for Communications to develop themes and content for speeches.
• Regularly monitor speeches by other leaders in health care, politics, and policy, and identify effective techniques and narratives, and apply those models to Planned Parenthood speeches.
• Help identify speaking venues and engagements that strategically position PPFA and its President and leaders in the heath care and policy arenas.
• Provide research, writing and/or editing and fact checking for other writing projects, such as op-ed pieces.
• Execute special projects as assigned.
• Build relationships between and among peer groups and senior leaders.

 Core Skills:

• Exceptional writing, messaging and positioning skills. S/he must possess very strong writing skills, and be able to write fully-scripted speeches that span a wide variety of women’s health and reproductive health issues for a multitude of audiences.
• Creativity and ability to tell a compelling story. The successful candidate must be able to combine visual and written tools to effectively tell stories.
• Leadership orientation and respect for discretion. S/he must be able to build consensus among a diverse leadership team and manage sensitive situations in a confidential and discreet manner.
• Strong multitasking, prioritization and project management skills. The successful candidate must be comfortable with ambiguity and able to juggle multiple time-sensitive demands simultaneously.
• Clear detail orientation. This position requires that an exceptional level of detail, fact checking and due diligence be applied to all speeches – including all briefing materials, slides and statistics included in those speeches.
• Optimism and resilience. S/he must be able to remain positive amid constructive criticism and quickly and effectively incorporate feedback into written product.
• Ownership and accountability. The successful candidate must own the quality of the end product and ensure deliverables are made on-time, every time regardless of complexity.

Success Factors:

• Established track record writing for a political campaign (state rep or higher), elected officials, or high-profile organizational leaders, and successfully positioning these leaders.
• Established track record of writing both political and energetic speeches, and using anecdotes and stories to illustrate points and to connect with audiences.
• Inquisitive, disciplined, intelligent, confident and flexible.
• Affinity for speechwriting and effectively communicating with key audiences.

Position Requirements:

• Education: Bachelor’s Degree in English, Communications, or related field, plus additional related college courses or professional training desired.
• Experience: Speechwriting and project management experience required.
• Travel: Regular travel between New York City and Washington, DC, and occasional travel throughout the US.

 Related Skills or Knowledge: 

• Strong communications skills, including speechwriting, researching, copyediting, proofreading and editing high-level, public and sensitive communications documents.
• Computer literacy.
• Knowledge of diverse groups, experience working with a multicultural workforce and sensitivity to and appreciation of cultural differences are required.

How To Apply:
Submit your application via Planned Parenthood’s online system .

Whether intended to expand the audience for a small discussion or curate content from a large conference, live-tweeting events is becoming the norm in philanthropy.

Too often people see it as an add-on, or even a hassle in the flurry of putting on an in-person event. Done right, though, live tweeting can be a core tool to spread information and engage people in issues important to your work. It’s also a unique opportunity for you to show the personality of your organization; people will respect you for being authentic and showing your true voice.

Below are some tips and tricks that may help you use Twitter to accomplish a range of goals. Although designed for organizations, many of the tips below can also be used to help conference participants who want to up their Twitter game.

Prepare, prepare, prepare

• Have an up-to-date run of show or agenda. See if speakers or presenters are willing to share their remarks or speeches with you ahead of time so you know what you’ll be tweeting about (of course these things can often change up to the last minute).
• Gather Twitter handles in advance. Ask attendees when they register for their handle and consider creating a public list of them so others can find people who will be participating in advance.
• Pre-write tweets for the beginning of sessions – it’s often when you’re busiest, so this can be a time saver. Make sure you’re linking to content online, like a livestream page if available, an agenda or speaker’s bio. It’s helpful to give people who are following virtually the right context.
• Create short links to content early using bit.ly or ow.ly so you aren’t frantically doing it at the last minute.
• Know that no matter what you’ll never account for everything that could happen. Last year during the MIT-Knight Civic Media conference a bird found its way into the lunchroom, the irony of tweeting about a bird was not lost on anyone! It’s OK, even necessary, to take part in these kinds of dialogues because Twitter is fun.

Use hashtags wisely

• Decide on a hashtag for your conference in advance and make sure all your promotional materials, both online and off, reference it. If you’re trying to find out which ones are popular to let others in the field know about your conference, use a free service like hashtracking.com or topsy.com.
• After you decide on a hashtag, track it consistently. Make a column in your Tweetdeck account so you see all mentions of it. This will also help you keep an eye out for things you may want to retweet.
• Don’t get too crazy with hashtags. Although research shows URLs and hashtags can increase engagement, it also shows that using too many can turn users off.

Make tweets accessible; engage others to participate

• In order to engage others in the room, consider publicly displaying a Twitter feed. Services like Twitterfall allow you to track hashtags over time and works well especially for larger conferences where the feed can be projected.
• UStream, a popular livestreaming service, makes it easy to embed tweets with a certain hashtag on your site. If you aren’t livestreaming, you can still embed a Twitter widget on you site to make it easy to syndicate content.
• Consider taking Twitter questions from people who are following remotely, it’s a good way to involve more people. Tweet photos to add visuals when people aren’t, or can’t, connect via livestream. (People love them and they add a human element.)
• Engage others. Know a staff member who is a great live tweeter or knows the content well? Ask if they’ll tweet from their personal account for a session or two and keep an eye on their feed. Know a colleague who has attended your conference for several years in a row? Tell them you’ll be keeping an eye on their feed. This will also bring more of a personal and friendly aspect to your tweets.

Capture a conversation’s essence

Don’t try to be a court reporter: concentrate on tweeting out top-level insights. Look for sound bites that really hit at the core of a session or speech.

• Make sure it’s clear to whom you’re attributing tweets. Make it obvious if it’s a quote, if you’re paraphrasing or if you’re adding additional commentary from your organization’s perspective. If you’re adding something, make sure it’s consistent with your own organization’s messaging and mission.
• Live tweeting requires you to think fast and on your feet so make sure you aren’t distracted. This can mean letting colleagues know in advance not to interrupt you (they’ll know it’s nothing personal!)

Be on high alert – but have fun!

• There’s a heavy customer service component to live tweeting, so be on alert. If you’re livestreaming, folks following remotely may be the first to alert you of a problem. Others may want to know where they can find out more information about your organization or the conference. Try to respond timely to requests.
• Be gracious. Thank others who are tweeting the event and retweet them. No matter how efficient you are, you’ll never be able to tweet insights from every speaker or session, so the more you can share knowledge from others, the better.
• Never forget that you have a unique voice and perspective. Know who you are as an organization so you can tweet confidently with that voice.

An added bonus that shows why live tweeting is important and that you can actually learn from it happens after a conference ends. While you’re decompressing, take time to look back at your Twitter feed, notice what kinds of content got retweeted and which speakers or sessions set off sparks. Having this information can help you learn what to do better for the next time around.

Elizabeth R. Miller is a communications associate at Knight Foundation

Guest Post:  Marc Fest

Whether you draft news releases for a living, or are trying to persuade a cop to not give you a speeding ticket — all of us always send messages. Here are five ways to make them more effective.

TIP #1: Get over your SELF

GMF does this by supporting individuals and institutions working in the transatlantic sphere, by convening leaders and members of the policy and business communities, by contributing research and analysis on transatlantic topics, and by providing exchange opportunities to foster renewed commitment to the transatlantic relationship.

In addition, GMF supports a number of initiatives to strengthen democracies. Founded in 1972 as a non-partisan, non-profit organization through a gift from Germany as a permanent memorial to Marshall Plan assistance, GMF maintains a strong presence on both sides of the Atlantic. In addition to its headquarters in Washington, DC, GMF has offices in Berlin, Paris, Brussels, Belgrade, Ankara, Bucharest, Warsaw, and Tunis. GMF also has smaller representations in Bratislava, Turin, and Stockholm.                                                                                                   

Position Descripition:
The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) seeks an Online Communications Specialist to serve the web needs of a dynamic transatlantic organization. This position is based in Washington, DC, and is part of GMF’s Communications Team.

Key Areas of Responsibility:

• Editing the GMF website, including posting content such that it attracts users and search engines, managing across the organization to identify and encourage (and even self-produce) new and relevant content, and generally ensuring that the GMF website is timely, relevant, and newsworthy;
• Mastery of the content management system (WordPress) for the GMF website;
• Promoting GMF content through social media and web promotion and partnerships;
• Monitoring Google Analytics, setting traffic goals, and developing and implementing strategies—including SEO—to drive traffic to the GMF website;
• Monitoring, utilization, and promotion of social media assets; stimulating conversation and engaging with followers of GMF social media handles;
• Managing a set of related GMF web properties, including blog.gmfus.org,www.brusselsforum.org, www.atlanticdialogues.org, www.menapartnership.org, and www.transatlantictrends.org;
• Working with and managing outside website vendors and contractors when necessary, including budgeting and priorities management;
• Managing the livestreaming of GMF events and conferences;
• Serving as part of a communications team, with additional duties as warranted, including event management, media relations, drafting of press releases and media advisories;
• Participating in communications team effort on major international conferences; and
• Liaising with other departments to share information throughout the organization, and to ensure quality and consistency of external communications. 

Qualifications and Requirements: 

• A detail-oriented and strategic thinker with a strong interest and understanding of transatlantic issues and international relations.
• A minimum of a bachelor’s degree in English, Communications, Journalism, International Relations, Computer Science, or related field and 3 years of experience in managing web content, particularly with a policy-oriented focus.
• Experience promoting online material and generating traffic through SEO, social media, and AdWords.
• Excellent English-language skills, experience in editing copy.
• Excellent organizational, multi-tasking, and time management skills.
• Experience managing vendor relationships and projects.
• Strong editing, website design/management, and technical skills, including familiarity with HTML5, CSS, AJAX, Git Version Control System, Dreamweaver, and Photoshop software.
• Experience working on a website through a content management system (please specify).
• Demonstrated entrepreneurial initiative.
• Experience building and editing WordPress themes, developing plugins, and knowledge of reactive and mobile web standards is a plus.
• Experience tracking web traffic metrics in Google Analytics a plus.
• Proven ability to work independently within a team environment.
• Ability to travel internationally on occasion to support large international conferences.

How to Apply:
To be considered for this position, please submit your cover letter, current resume, and URLs of websites you have built, developed, or managed, along with your salary requirement (Please save this as one file) by applying at  https://home2.eease.adp.com/recruit/?id=4982112.  Due to the high volume of responses, we will only contact candidates of interest.

GMF is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

To help people understand this new research and learn more about how to use it in their communications practice we recently held a webinar, The Art and Science of Storytelling. (Replay available below.)

Doug Hattaway, president, RJ Bee, vice president and Tess Hart, associate, all of Hattaway Communications, led an hour-long presentation focused on the cognitive psychology and neuroscience behind good storytelling. They also showed models for putting this research into action. Watch the replay below to learn:

• Insights from social and cognitive psychology about human decision-making and behavior
• A simple, powerful narrative structure that will inspire and motivate your audience
• How to apply lessons from science to create meaningful messages that further the mission of your organization

We hope the research and ideas presented here will help you as you unlock the secrets of what makes a good story.

Please leave your comments and questions about the webinar below.

Organization:
The Council on Foundations is a national nonprofit association of approximately 1,800 grantmaking foundations and corporations. As a leader in philanthropy, we strive to increase the effectiveness, stewardship, and accountability of our sector while providing our members with the services and support they need for success. We are located in Arlington, VA, and serve foundations and philanthropists of all types as a resource for education, innovation, legal expertise and networking opportunities.

Position Description:
We are seeking a webmaster who will provide day-to-day updates and revisions to the Council’s website(s); highlighting Council activities and products digitally; and supporting the growth of the Council website(s), including continually improving the front-end experience for site visitors, Council members, program/event participants, and staff.

Key Responsibilities include:

• Publish daily content edits to Council website.
• Regularly monitor website traffic and user engagement; provide regular insight to support changes.
• Assist with managing, editing, and improving Council website; continuously evolve the front end web experience into a cutting-edge contact point for the philanthropy industry.

• Undergraduate degree required, preferably in information systems, marketing, or communications.
• 3-5 years of experience in website management and maintenance.
• Proficiency in HTML and CSS.
• Solid understanding of web content management systems (preferably open-source).
• Familiarity with web scripting languages (ASP/PHP/JavaScript/jQuery) and database-driven application methodologies.
• Proficiency in Photoshop and/or other digital imaging software.
• Knowledge of video and audio editing software a plus.
• Deep understanding of social media and Web 2.0 technologies.
• Excellent writing skills, including experience writing for the Web.
• Strong organizational skills; great attention to detail.
• Demonstrated ability to learn and apply new technologies quickly.
• Capacity to work cooperatively with staff across all functions and levels.

How to Apply:
Candidates should submit their resume, cover letter, and salary history to: Council on Foundations, email to:  employment@cof.org.   Please reference:  Web Master

Have you jumped on the “data analytics” bandwagon yet? Or are you worried it has passed you by?

If you haven’t made the leap, you’re not alone. Data analytics – the use of tools that can help you better understand the effectiveness of your communications strategies (or any organizational strategies) – are still in the “emerging state.” A recent Bloomberg Businessweek study notes that despite the growth of powerful and relatively easy-to-use software that can help organizations make meaning of valuable data (such as the well-known Google Analytics), spreadsheets are still the number one tool used for data analytics.

That said, there’s neither a reason to fear nor to be overly cautious about integrating data analytics into your work.  The most important reason is that by making a better effort to analyze the data your work is yielding, you (and your organization) can move from a “measure and respond” mentality to “predict and act.”

Simply put: an analytical mindset enables organizations to have a closer relationship with their audiences.  The closer you get, the better able you are to make decisions about how to deepen those relationships and increase the overall effectiveness of your communications.

Here’s an example from our experience at the Foundation Center. One of our primary products is Foundation Directory Online (FDO) – a tool we offer for a subscription fee that helps grantseekers identify funding prospects.

We recently implemented a “pay per click” (PPC) campaign that uses targeted ads based on keywords to drive potential users of FDO to our site. Although we saw a jump in visitors to our site as a result of the PPC campaign, we discovered only a few completed the sales cycle.

That puzzled us until we came across an article that shared this startling finding from research Google had done: “97 percent of new visitors don’t convert the first time they arrive at your site.”

Put another way, while you might be successful at increasing traffic to your site, only 3 percent of those new visitors will take an action you’d like during that first visit.

So what can you do to increase visitor engagement?

In our case, we took advantage of a tool that Google Adwords offers called remarketing. Remarketing lets you show ads to users who’ve previously visited your website as they browse the Web. Now, when a visitor spends a certain amount of time on our website, Google adds a cookie to their browser, and our FDO ads will be displayed on other websites they visit  - like the New York Times. The way we like to think about it, remarketing allows us to keep FDO top of mind for those who aren’t ready to subscribe.

The best part is that we can tailor this tool to target specific visitors. For instance, it can be set up to target visitors to specific pages – everything from our home page to individual content pages. By combining the ability to target with data about where people are most likely to be on our site, we’re able to increase the likelihood of driving them back again, keep them on the site longer, and convert a visit into an action.

In addition to helping boost traffic and increase engagement, analytics also helps you with other decisions about how to make your communications more effective – and can even serve as strategic content itself.

Earlier this year, the Foundation Center hosted a friendly internal competition with the aim of gathering data to weave into various communications platforms – from presentations to marketing e-mails to tweets – to strengthen our messaging to specific audience groups. We challenged staff to a 24-hour “sprint” to find the most intriguing and impressive factoids about the Foundation Center using Google Analytics, our website tracking software.

The result? More than 150 pieces of data about the Foundation Center submitted by our colleagues – many of which have already been integrated into infographics, speeches and funding proposals and reports. Bolstering these things with concrete data has helped us to differentiate our organization, clearly tell the story of our impact and make our communications more memorable.

(For more on this topic, please see this handout from the 2012 Communications Network Conference. It provides an action plan template and a list of resources to get you started.)

Organization:
For 97 years, The Chicago Community Trust, our region’s community foundation, has connected the generosity of donors with community needs by making grants to organizations working to improve metropolitan Chicago. In 2011, the Trust, together with its donors, granted more than $100 million to nonprofit organizations: developing new audiences to sustain Chicago’s vibrant arts organizations, protecting the human success safety net for those hardest hit by the recession, stemming the devastating effects of foreclosures on our communities, elevating teaching to meet world class standards, and improving conditions for healthy and active lifestyles.To learn more, please visit the Trust online at.                                                                                                            

Position Description:
Reporting to the Director of Marketing & Communications, the Associate Director of Marketing and Communications will assist with the development, implementation and management of an integrated communications strategy to raise the visibility and brand of The Chicago Community Trust.  The Associate Director will create and manage several projects, including, but not limited to, the production of publications and marketing materials; writing of brochures, reports and program materials for public distribution via print and electronic media; and execution of the Trust ‘s public relations strategy.

Job Duties:

• Implement a comprehensive communication plan for the Trust including web, e-newsletters, events, printed materials and social media
• Assist with the development of a departmental strategic plan, setting department goals, objectives, timelines and budget
• Plan and implement programs designed to cultivate, maintain and strengthen the Trust brand
• Plan, develop and disseminate information designed to keep key audiences informed of the Trust’s programs, accomplishments and projects funded
• Assist  with creating  strategies and messaging for specific Trust programs and initiatives
• Manage brand integrity for the Trust, both visually and rhetorically
• Write and edit a wide range of materials, including but not limited to reports, articles, advertisements, collateral, online content, profiles, emails, speeches and customer communications
• Ensure consistent messages are incorporated in the various vehicles used by the Trust by working with department managers
• Write effective press releases and identify media strategy for promoting the work of the Trust
• Develop and foster relationships with members of the media
• Assist Trust affiliates with the development and implementation of marketing, communications strategy and branding
• Work collaboratively with Manager of Web Content and Electronic Communication to create content for the Trust’s website and develop strategy for expansion of Trust’s digital presence
• Assist with the production and writing of the Trust annual report; leading the discussion of the creative messaging ; managing the work flow of the print piece and web site of the annual report
• Conduct ongoing market research to evaluate current and future marketing and communications efforts, including events.  Conduct research on specific competitors, products, market trends and market segments, as requested
• Enhance the Trust’s brand visibility utilizing creative methods and up to date communication techniques
• Provide support to newsletter and Web projects when appropriate
• Serve on various internal and interdepartmental committees
• Perform other duties as requested

Qualifications:

• Minimum 7 years of experience in integrated marketing communications, public relations and communications
• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications, public relations or related field (Master’s degree preferred)
• Excellent project management skills and attention to detail
• Proven track record of successful strategic planning
• Excellent writing skills
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to work effectively with a wide range of constituencies
• Knowledge of budgeting procedures
• Proficiency in MS office software to include: Word, Excel and PowerPoint
• Experience with negotiating and managing contractual arrangements with vendors
• Knowledge of print publication processes and web publishing

Interested individuals should submit resume, cover letter, salary history, and names of references to:  resumes@cct.org

Please enter “Associate Director, Marketing & Communications” in the subject header of the email.

In her recent post about the survey results from last October’s Fall Conference, Minna Jung, our vice chair, mentioned that I was planning to share some additional insights about the Communications Network’s revised mission and strategy that we previewed in Seattle and subsequently discussed on our blog.

Last week, I sat down with long-time Network contributor, Susan Herr, principal of Trigger Creative, to talk about our new mission.  Because of comments and questions we heard during and since Seattle, we decided to record two separate conversations.

The first video of our conversation (below) is an overview of the mission, its supporting strategies and what we hope this work will achieve.

In the second interview, Susan and I discussed what led the Network board to decide to focus our future work on supporting foundations and nonprofits to use communications to help improve lives.

I hope you’ll agree that we made a wise choice in deciding on a two-track approach. First, we will continue to do what we already do well: provide useful tools, create connections and advance the conversation about why communications needs to be a key element of effective philanthropy.  Second, we will step up efforts to bring others within foundations – program staff, evaluators and leadership – into conversations about the important role of communications. At the same time we will explore ways to bring the most forward-thinking nonprofits into the mix – as Network members, as advisors, as contributors to our programming and as champions, along with the rest of us, for the power of smart communications to improve lives.

Please let us know what you think by leaving comments. If you’d rather share your thoughts with me directly, please email me at rarno@denverfoundation.org.

Rebecca Arno, Vice president of Communications, The Denver Foundation and Chair, Communications Network

The idea of “civic journalism” instigated one of the more provocative debates within the mostly collegial world of institutional philanthropy back in the early to mid-‘90s. On one side you had program directors and officers, and maybe a few foundation CEOs, who wanted to poke around to identify ways that foundations could partner with media to infuse their news coverage with some social conscience.

On the other side you had the fourth estate-loving purists who were aghast at the idea of foundations pushing their weight around the newsrooms of America’s finest broadsheets. This camp included many former journalists who had transitioned to the PR departments of private foundations and viewed even those roles as being primarily journalistic.

There have been attempts to revive the civic journalism movement, particularly with coverage of political campaigns, but I was reminded of the earlier debate while reading Dan Green’s excellent piece on Forbes.com about media influence and social change. Green, who manages the Gates Foundation’s media and information grants, writes that an important transition has taken place in the media’s approach to advocacy:

“In just the past year, we have seen the beginnings of an important evolution:  many media organizations are moving from a largely agnostic relationship to their role in social change to openly discussing, pursuing and even attempting to track their impact on the issues they address.”

Green cites efforts by The New York Times to measure the impact of its news coverage and news operations like ProPublica that have publicly stated social-change missions. One could also point to The Huffington Post, or Fox News for that matter, as having unabashed agendas to influence readers and viewers in one direction or the other.

While Green focuses primarily on measurement and the need for media companies that are more directly involved in social change to use measurement tools that provide an honest picture of their impact, it has almost gone unnoticed that the journalism purists from back in the day didn’t just lose the debate; they got trounced.

It all started when those unshaven, pj-wearing bloggers posting online from their parents’ basements were roundly and wrongly dismissed by the mainstream media as irrelevant and, worse, unreputable. Now online citizen journalism has been mainstreamed and traditional media continues to grasp for an economic model that will keep it from suffocating.

The advocates for civic journalism back in the ‘90s were unfortunate to be too ahead of their time. They had to wait for the force of online technology and the flattening of the journalism landscape for their vision of how the media could both report the news and be a force for change to take hold.

Communications Network board member Mitch Hurst is founder of MH Communications and a frequent contributor to our blog.

Organization:
The World Jewish Congress is a globally renowned organization that promotes the interests and needs of Jews and Jewish communities around the world.

Founded in Geneva in 1936 to unite the Jewish people and mobilize the world against the Nazi onslaught, the WJC is the representative body of Jewish communities and organizations in 100 countries from Argentina to Zimbabwe, across six continents. It seeks to safeguard Jewish security, support Israel and advance Middle East peace, advocate on issues of universal concern, promote positive interreligious and interethnic relations and strengthen the bonds of world Jewry.

Towards these ends, the World Jewish Congress works in coordination with governmental, intergovernmental and other international authorities on matters concerning the Jewish people; and in close cooperation with the democratically elected representatives of the Jewish communities in the 100 countries in which they serve.

Membership in the WJC is open to all representative Jewish groups or communities, irrespective of the social, political or economic ideology of the community’s host country.

The World Jewish Congress is supported by individual donors who identify with WJC’s mission.

The WJC maintains offices in New York, Brussels, Geneva and Jerusalem.

Position Description:
Reporting to the Executive Director, the Director of Public Relations is responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive, strategic and targeted media relations program to build awareness for the organization’s mission, strengthen and broaden donor relations, enhance fundraising activities, increase visibility for WJC, and position and promote WJC President Ronald Lauder before a wide range of media audiences. This professional will communicate WJC’s agenda, while building and clarifying a cohesive and compelling WJC narrative that will be shared with global media.

The Director of Public Relations will establish effective public relations policies and procedures and produce and manage public relations resources, including organizational pamphlets and brochures, promotional videos, website content, direct mail and social media. The Director will also provide ongoing executive communication support to WJC President Ronald Lauder.

The successful candidate is a superior writer and communicator, creative thinker and skilled diplomat with extensive media contacts and experience developing strategic media relations plans and implementing programs in a collaborative environment.

Responsibilities:

• Develop and implement a public relations strategy for WJC to promote and increase visibility of the WJC’s mission and WJC President Ronald Lauder.
• Spearhead the creation of a distinctive and effective WJC public image; seek out and identify opportunities to position WJC President Ronald Lauder within key public platforms. Create news releases, talking points, speeches, white-papers, letters-to-the editor, op-eds and various promotional materials with this strategy in mind.
• Develop and maintain a working relationship with key reporters, publications and other media outlets. Organize and implement select media campaigns including press conferences and appropriate interview opportunities for WJC President Ronald Lauder in both print and broadcast media.
• Produce website content and oversee its strategic direction. Create and implement WJC’s social media presence.
• Manage advertising campaigns, including direct mail, email blasts and video production.
• Partner with Director of Campaign Relations and Communications and other internal constituents to broaden WJC’s donor base, enhance fundraising activities and ensure consistency of message across all channels.
• Interact regularly and closely with WJC President Ronald Lauder and other leadership to provide communications counsel.
• Identify causes, connect them to WJC’s work, and tell the story in the national and international media.

Requirements:

• Minimum 10 years of relevant experience and bachelor’s degree.
• Exceptional writing and editing skills.
• Proactive approach, energy and assertiveness to develop and direct public relations for WJC and collaborate effectively across the organization.
• Hands-on media relations experience and established media relationships.
• Top-notch interpersonal skills; ability to advise senior leaders.
• Outstanding personal communications ability with the stature and presence to represent WJC externally and act as spokesperson.
• Ability to travel nationally and internationally.

How to Apply:
Interested candidates should contact:
Jenn Wilson, Associate
Heyman Associates
jwilson@heymanassociates.com
212-784-2711

So, last year I started sharing, on behalf of the Network Board and staff, what it takes to organize our annual fall conference, and I also posted last year about the results from our conference survey. So here’s my recap of the survey results about this year’s conference in Seattle that many of you (about 2/3) filled out, plus some additional ruminations/background on the Network’s revised mission.

Each year, some things stay the same with the Network conference, and then we switch other things up. This year, we still tried for boffo speakers that would knock your socks off, but we engaged only two—Sherman Alexie and Jane McGonigal—because we wanted to try a day of workshops preceding the conference for those of you who were yearning for flat-out skill-building or training, and we wanted to leave Friday to share our new mission in plenary session.

So how did you feel about this year’s conference?

In general, the overall positive feelings about our conference stay steady over the years, and the differences come out in degrees on particular segments. For example, we know that most of you seem to like coming back year after year. And, we get a good chunk of newbies each year. After years of reading these survey results, I like to spend the most time with the responses that give us insights into what we might do better or experiment with in the future. This year’s survey, for example, yielded great ideas for speakers next year. And we are always reminded that attendees expect quality speakers and want us to deliver breakout sessions that offer solid substance.

So onto the different days:

DAY ONE, WORKSHOPS: For the most part, these were rated pretty positively and they were super well-attended, too. Some people thought they got their extra hundred bucks’ worth, some people didn’t. One of the things for us to explore for next year — based on some of the comments — is whether these workshops should be offered again exclusively on the day before, or whether we intersperse them with breakout sessions during the conference.

DAY TWO, SPEAKERS/BREAKOUT SESSIONS: In 2011, we had six boffo speakers, although one didn’t go over so well. This year, we had two. Six felt like too many to us, and they were a nightmare to schedule, and speakers are often expensive. But two felt like too few to all of you. Also, this year, Sherman Alexie was a highly polarizing speaker. I don’t think there’s any response to that from our end—you know our criteria, we above all try to avoid speakers who will bore you to death. And we aim for diversity in our line-up. So all I’m going to say is, we’re aiming for less than six, more than two plenary speakers for New Orleans.

On breakout sessions: wildly uneven reactions to those. But there is one lesson that we’re learning over time, which is this: some topics are perennially hot, like anything that touches the digital space. As a Board, we can do a better job to ensure the quality of the breakout sessions that we know are going to be standing room only. Other topics are hot, but not so easily adapted to a breakout session, like the perennial program-communications divide we keep on talking about but don’t really know how to fix.

DAY THREE, MISSION PLENARY: Oh, where to begin? While we always get a wide range of reactions to our conference content, the comments for Friday’s plenary session, during which we unveiled the Network’s revised mission and asked you what you thought of it, had some particular heat behind them. A few observations:

–Well, number one, a lot of you weren’t there. Well over 300 people attended the conference—it looks like a little more than half were at this session. We knew that would happen: that’s why we offered an iPad giveaway. And, we were fine with a smaller crowd.

–Some of you had strong reactions to the “how” and the “why” of doing this session at all—like, if the Board already decided where the Network was going, what the heck was the point of asking you what you thought, if you couldn’t really change the outcome? (You all seemed to like the video, though.) Well, I take full responsibility for that one. I’ve been the lead on planning the conference content for years, and I knew it was a pretty dicey proposition to try and share the Network’s mission when none of you had the benefit of the research the Board commissioned about the Network’s place in the world and potential scenarios for our future, and none of you were sitting in the room while the Board and Bruce Trachtenberg, our executive director, were wrestling with options and choices. I simply came down on the side of, better to share than to not share—and to do it with a nod to history and where we’ve been as an organization (hence, the video). Really, I just wanted to give you all a chance to sort through your initial reactions and feelings, and have us learn from that. And that’s pretty much what happened.

–Some of you had strong reactions to the “what” of the revised mission statement. There were comments like, “Yay, bring in the nonprofits, more sources for good communication ideas!” And still others were like, “if the Communications Network brings in more nonprofit organization members, it will become dead to me.” I think we will learn a lot from who we can engage around our revised mission, and who we can’t. Isn’t that what communications is all about?

As next steps, Rebecca Arno, our board chair, is planning to share a video that explains a bit more about how we got to the revised mission, including the research and discussions, that informed our decisions. And then after the Board goes on retreat in January 2013, we’re going to commit to a set of activities, some of which we hope involve YOU. Stay tuned for more. And thank you, as always, for taking the time to come be with us in person and give us your feedback. You may love us and hate us (sometimes on the same day), but your passion for strategic communications and for the Communications Network is, ultimately, what keeps us going.

If you want to share your thoughts about the conference, the mission, or anything about the Network, please do. We really want to hear from you. We also hope to see many, if not all of you, at our next conference, Oct. 2-4, in New Orleans.

Minna Jung is communications director at the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and vice chair of the Communications Network.

Organization:
For nearly 100 years, Planned Parenthood has promoted a commonsense approach to women’s health and well-being, based on respect for each individual’s right to make informed, independent decisions about health, sex, and family planning.

The Vice President of Marketing and External Affairs provides strategic planning and operational leadership to ensure sustainable growth of the affiliate’s patient base, market share, revenue and visual presence in the community. This position oversees external initiatives to achieve the goal of increasing Planned Parenthood sphere of influence in the communities we serve. Major responsibilities include indentifying new and alternative revenue generation sources, liaison with the media, public relations, production of the agency collateral materials, and website maintenance. The Vice President also supervises community health education department, outreach activities and volunteer initiatives. Reports to: President/ CEO.

Position Description:

Marketing

• Leads an organization-wide strategic planning process which develops a marketing plan that will drive growth of our patient base.
• Develops specific goals for patient acquisition per quarter.
• Plans advertising and marketing campaigns with health center staff and makes recommendations based on research, state and national trends.
• Produces and places advertising for multiple media outlets, display advertising, social media and yellow pages.
• Orders and produces collateral materials for distribution.
• Identifies new sources to generate revenue with an emphasis on social media,

Media and Communications

• Stays current on emerging issues related to reproductive health and policy, sex education programs and policy, and youth development.
• Acts as media spokesperson and provides media training for staff, board and volunteers, as appropriate.
• Produces communications pieces including annual reports, agency brochures and employee newsletter in adherence with agency brand filter.
• Assists other staff in producing department-specific communications.
• Keeps all departments current on message development and language usage changes.
• Maintains PPSE websites.

Education

• Supervises education staff, programs, evaluation and data collection.
• Liaison with comprehensive sex education community in the southeast and nationally.
• Leadership on Real Life. Real Talk. social marketing initiative.
• Stays current on best practices and evaluation of education programs.

Outreach

• Supervises Outreach Coordinator, volunteer recruitment and interns.
• Represents PPSE in local coalition, agency and community group meetings.
• Provides Speakers Bureau presentations and support materials for other agency speakers.

Administration

• Works with the CEO, COO and CFO on management and administrative issues.
• Supplies reports and strategic plan updates on a timely basis.
• Maintains budget records by program.
• Assist with grant applications and reporting.
• Tracks time spent and expenses as required.
• Coordinates training for new staff, and participates in training of volunteers and interns, with HR and Outreach staff.

Management

• Administers HR policies and procedures fairly and consistently.
• Implements the strategic plan
• Demonstrates leadership
• Runs the department effectively
• Communicates effectively throughout the organization.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

Education

• Bachelor’s degree, preferably in Marketing, Communications or related field

Experience

• Four years experience in Marketing, Communications and/or Media or Public Relations
• Demonstrated achievement in developing and implementing Marketing plans which have consistently increased revenue.
• Knowledgeable about issues of health, sexuality, education, diversity, sexual orientation and social justice
• Background in either Youth Development or Community Health Services preferred.
• Basic knowledge of program development principles desired

Skills                  

• Excellent writing skills and verbal communication skills required
• Excellent computer skills, including Microsoft Word, desk top publishing, and web design skills necessary and familiarity with internet
• Ability to demonstrate public speaking and training skills
• Ability to gracefully manage multiple projects and to meet multiple deadlines
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team
• Ability to plan multiple department programs, manage data and support agency strategic plan goals

Physical Demands

• Valid driver’s license and reliable transportation to travel within the community for programs
• Flexibility in work hours as some evenings and occasional weekend hours are necessary

Languages Spoken

• English required, some Spanish preferred

Essential Characteristics   

• Commitment to excellent customer service
• Flexible, positive, team player
• Commitment to quality health care

H0w to Apply:
Apply online at the Planned Parenthood web site.

PPSE is committed to hiring and fostering a diverse and inclusive workforce that leverages the skills and talents of all employees in our organization, regardless of race, gender, national origin, age religion, sexual orientation, size, physical ability or socioeconomic status.  We encourage diverse candidates to apply for this position.

It’s a long-held belief among foundations that sharing knowledge learned from grantmaking and from funded research is a key element for advancing social change. However, to have meaningful impact, it’s not enough just to inform people–instead knowledge has to be turned into something that touches the heart and offers a specific course of action.  Knowledge—in this context—must be used to engage, inspire, educate and motivate.

How do you do that?

A good example is the Get Schooled Foundation, an initiative created through a partnership between Viacom and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which relies on knowledge-based social marketing to encourage young people to stay in high school and to graduate from college.

Get Schooled used market research tools to understand how young people spend their time online as well as to discover what content they were passionate about.  From there they developed a strategy that paired the data on kids online habits and interests with a targeted message that could be delivered right where kids are.

From Get Schooled’s home base online – a website featuring bright, attention getting information on the benefits of school alongside kid-authored testimonials and celebrity messages – the campaign uses social media and mobile apps to reach young people squarely in the context of their lives and their interests.

“You look at the numbers,” says Carol Rava Treat, the director of strategy and technology at Get Schooled, “and it’s easy to be judgmental, because kids spend an awful lot of time on things adults don’t think are worthwhile.  But if we want to reach them, we’ve got to put aside those judgments and talk to them in ways that are meaningful for them.”

Having the data helped Get Schooled get specific about what intrigues and motivates young people. One of the most heavily trafficked pages on the platform is the celebrity profiles area.  What they realized, explains Rava Treat, “was that for us to hook kids, we need to lead with celebrity sizzle.”  One of the outcomes of this observation was a section of the site called “Celebrity” where students can sign up for celebrity wake-up calls to help them get to school on time. The idea is to pay as much attention to the messengers as to the message. Treat says, “this fall we have the boy band, One Direction, doing a wake-up call for us.  They have seven million Twitter followers.  We’ve tapped their influence to deliver an important message to kids: show up!”

While the goal of Get Schooled is to ensure that many more young people graduate from high school and from college, its basic call to action for youth is very direct and simple:  “Show up at school.”

Once Get Schooled reaches a young person with that simple message, its second goal is to engage him or her to stay connected through the activities and information on the site, including celebrity profiles and messages, games and resources.  The purpose is to get individual youth really thinking about their own education and to offer them actionable knowledge.

The approach has proved extremely effective for Get Schooled.  Since its inception in 2009, the organization has reached 156 million young people and has engaged over 1.4 million in taking an active part in their education.  These remarkable numbers are translating into real behavioral change.  In the past two years, schools that partner with the organization and take an active part in its initiatives have shown, on average, a 3 percent improvement in attendance.

“In building and refining our model,” Rava Treat says, “we have also challenged ourselves to use information to be more responsive and effective. We monitor our reach and engagement numbers on a weekly basis and analyze the response to all our activities very closely.  If something doesn’t appear to be working the way we think it should, we adjust until it produces the results we want.  We feel that to keep our audience engaged, we need to understand how quickly they move and be able to respond.”

From a grantmaking perspective, Get Schooled offers an exciting perspective on the power of social marketing to leverage knowledge to affect behavior directly.  The Gates Foundation contributed its world-class research on educational attainment, and Viacom brought its leading-edge expertise in market research.  Together, they created a winning initiative by:

• Focusing on a specific issue to address: Completing high school and graduating from college
• Clearly identifying the target audience: Young people in middle- and high school
• Identifying the necessary behavioral change: Not skipping school
• Fostering engagement: Meeting youth where they are online and using messengers that appeal to them
• Delivering a clear, accessible call to action: Don’t skip school
• Reinforcing the behavioral change using the same student-centered techniques

Amy Sutnick Plotch and Alexander Kopelman are partners at Stir Partners, Social Marketing for Social Change

As a member of Yale Law School’s Cultural Cognition Project, Professor Kahan examines how our cultural values shape our beliefs and perceptions of risk. The Project explores public disputes over science on a wide range of issues, from the HPV vaccine to gun control to emerging technologies. Kahan discussed why “scientific consensus” often doesn’t settle disputes around issues like climate change or the death penalty and what actually influences the decision-making process.

Listen to Professor Kahan talk about what’s called “protective cognition” and why we tend to accept information that reinforces what we already believe and dismiss information that would require us to change our minds. Professor Kahan explains that it’s actually a very rational thing to do: Why would we want to drive a wedge between ourselves and our peers when instead we could filter out information that conflicts with our beliefs and values?

ArtCreative Design and Custom coding

On culturally polarized issues (like climate change, gun control or counter-terrorism), people take their cue about what they should feel, and hence believe, from what Professor Kahan says the “cheers and boos of the home crowd”.  Listen to Professor Kahan talk about the phenomenon of  “motivated reasoning” and a famous 1950s psychology experiment:

ArtCreative Design and Custom coding

One theory about why we dispute the “science” of an argument is what Professor Kahan calls the “public irrationality” thesis. That is, people don’t understand science or are easily misled and that’s what causes controversy and a lack of concern.  In fact, the opposite is true.  As people become more science literate, they become less concerned:

ArtCreative Design and Custom coding

If people don’t believe your facts, are they anti-science?
No – they just disagree about what the scientific consensusis on a polarized issue. Listen to Professor Kahan talk about a study they conducted where they constructed arguments in favor and against an issue and matched them with fictional male experts:

ArtCreative Design and Custom coding

How can you apply these insights to improve your communications?
According to Professor Kahan, you should present your information in a way that confirms, rather than threatens, someone’s values. And ensure your information is vouched for by a diverse set of experts. Listen to Professor Kahan’s suggestions on how we can resolve these culturally grounded differences:

ArtCreative Design and Custom coding

Full recording of Professor Kahan’s talk:

ArtCreative Design and Custom coding

Full details about the awards program are here and an online application form is here.

On Tuesday, December 18th from 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM EST/11:30 AM – 12:30 PM PST we’ll explore the Art and Science of Storytelling in a webinar that everyone is invited to attend. There’s no charge, but space is limited. So sign up today.

During our webinar, presenters Doug Hattaway and RJ Bee of Hattaway Communications will discuss how you can use the latest scientific research to help you create inspiring and persuasive stories

Join us to learn more about:

• Insights from social and cognitive psychology about human decision-making and behavior
• A simple, powerful narrative structure that will inspire and motivate your audience
• How you can apply lessons from science to create meaningful messages that further the mission of your organization
• We’ll leave plenty of time for audience Q & A at the end.

About the Presenters:

Doug Hattaway, president, Hattaway Communications, has 25 years of experience serving as a spokesperson and consultant to high-profile leaders in politics, government, business, advocacy and philanthropy. He has worked closely with leaders such as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Vice President Al Gore, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, and successful candidates for the U.S. House, Senate and Governor. He has also traveled to more than 30 countries to work with government leaders, political parties and civil society organizations in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Europe.

RJ Bee, vice president, Hattaway Communications brings a wide range of experience in politics, strategic communications, policy research and media relations to his work with Hattaway clients. He has led message and strategy development projects for a wide range of U.S. and international organizations, including the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Halifax International Security Forum, America’s Promise Alliance and the Packard Foundation.

Sign up for the webinar here.

If you have questions, please email Courtney Williamson

How do you make your communications stand out visually without spending a fortune? There have never been more options for finding free photos online or ones you can license for a modest fee. Using some of the tools below, the perfect image to help drive your message home could be only a few clicks away.

Creative Commons Images The proliferation of Creative-Commons-licensed photography — images that owners of copyrighted artwork make available for others to use in return for credit – opens a world of opportunity to find high quality photos. Flickr announced in October 2011 that it was then home to more than 200 million CC-licensed photographs. Now more than a year later, that number has surely grown by tens of millions.

You can find CC-licensed images by searching Flickr directly – different libraries are available for different types of licensing restrictions — or by using the excellent CCSearch tool from creativecommons.org. CCSearch acts as a front-end for searching Flickr and a variety of other sites. This provides access to CC-licensed music, video, clip art, and photos from sites other than Flickr. If you do use CC-licensed media, you must comply with the licensing requirements, including how you attribute the copyright holders.

Creative Commons has posted a set of best practices for citing CC-licensed media. Sometimes meeting the requirements of the licenseholder — such as how the work is attributed — can require a few extra steps. But it is a small price for the right to use high quality media at no charge. It is also important to review each license — especially to make sure you are not violating any terms of use or are aware of special restrictions.

iStockphoto and Shutterstock
Though there are some really great Creative-Commons-licensed images available online, sometimes it can be difficult to find exactly what you need. If your needs are specific, or if you are simply looking for a level of polish beyond that which Flickr provides, you will need to turn to stock photography sites. Two of the more prominent services are iStockphoto and Shutterstock. At a glance, the services appear quite similar.

Shutterstock is home to more than 22 million photos, whereas iStockphoto advertises “millions.” iStockphoto does, however, make audio and video available for licensing. Shutterstock does not. Regardless, it would be extremely difficult to identify either service based solely on the results provided for a common search term like “burger” — compare iStockphoto’s results to those for Shutterstock. The services differ in their pricing and the nature of their licensing.

Though Shutterstock does have pay-as-you-go plans, it is a subscription service at heart. Shutterstock’s most popular plan provides 25 images per day for $249 per month or $2,559 per year. Conversely, while iStockPhoto has several bulk purchase options, its photos are instead licensed for varying numbers of credits. iStockphoto’s images can cost just one credit (equivalent to about $3) or hundreds of credits (equivalent to more than $250 in some cases). iStockphoto sets these prices based on the image’s “size, complexity, and the collection it belongs to” (borrowing iStockphoto’s own language).

There is fine print to consider. For example, if you plan to use one of their licensed images online, Shutterstock limits the resolution you are allowed to use to 800×600. iStockphoto limits that resolution to 1200×800. There are also limits to the number of copies of the media that can be reproduced. If you plan to use photos from either service, it is a good idea to review the approved uses in that service’s licensing agreements. iStockphoto describes their licensing policies here. Those for Shutterstock can be found here.

The stock photography space certainly doesn’t end with iStockphoto and Shutterstock. Rather, they are but two entrants in an increasingly crowded space that also includes more traditional heavyweights like Getty Images and The Associated Press. Some services will provide better access to certain types of images than others. Prices and licensing agreements will also vary, so be sure to do your homework before you select a service. No matter where you find your images, you have to make choices that best support your messages. With so many options to choose from on today’s web, though, it should almost always be possible to find an image to help you make your point.

Other Resources

• 6 Powerful Reasons Why you Should include Images in your Marketing – Infographic from Jeff Bullas An infographic promoting image use in communications from MDG Advertising (cited by Bullas)
• 10 Pitfalls to Avoid When Using Stock Photography from designshack.net
• Getty Vs. IStock Vs. Shutterstock Vs. Fotolia Vs… - A comparison of more than a dozen stock photo services by werockyourweb.com
• iStockphoto vs. Shutterstock – Credits vs. Subscription - More detail on the differences between the services from stockphotosecrets.com

Has your foundation or nonprofit had significant success using images to increase image impact? If so, I’d love to talk to you! Please contact me at louie.herr@gmail.com.

Louie Herr has consulted for organizations like Lumina Foundation for more than six years. He also writes, runs and records audio. He is based in Portland, Oregon.

*Editor’s note:  In an earlier post, “When Photos Do What Words Alone Can’t,” we featured a program of the Magnum Foundation to make images from Magnum Photos’ extensive documentary collection available for free or at reduced rates to qualifying nonprofits.  You can read more about the  BE SEEN initiative on the foundation’s website.

What is a recent communications success you are particularly proud of?

Hiring communications officer Krista Jahnke, who was a rising star at the Detroit Free Press. She’s a talented storyteller, and has hit the ground running since joining the foundation in July.

When you were 13 years old, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Understood. The dream of 13-year-olds everywhere.

What’s something unique about Skillman that other foundation staff might not know about? 

We’re like a family. A big blended family, to be sure, with sibling rivalries and quirky in-laws. But we get along and get things done because we have a common goal of changing the odds for kids in Detroit, a place we all love and care for deeply.

Your hardest target audience to reach?

The next one.

What percentage of your communications is new media based?

Pretty much everything. We just view it all as content now.

What was your undergraduate major?

Communication.

Does Skillman create an annual communications plan? 

Yes. Every department here is accountable for an annual plan of work.

Does Skillman evaluate communications efforts? 

We do, and we’re getting better at it. Like everybody, we’re trying to get more sophisticated at measuring impact. But we’re very entrepreneurial here, which I’m proud of, and there is no fear of experimenting.

Who is your favorite underappreciated journalist?

The good ones are always underappreciated. But if I had to name one it would be Seymour Hersh. I spent an evening with him in Detroit when I was a college journalist at the Michigan Daily. He was promoting a book about Henry Kissinger, and after doing Dennis Wholey’s “PBS Latenight” show, was gracious enough to spend the midnight hours with another Daily editor and me, talking about his book, and the craft of journalism. A great guy — a Pulitzer-winner, mind you – talking shop and drinking beer with a couple of earnest Midwestern college boys.

Tell us about Skillman’s “Grant Maps.”  It’s in partnership with the Foundation Center, correct? What were your goals for it? What sort of feedback are you getting? 

It’s a wonderful tool. Data visualization is a hot topic, of course. We’re really just scratching the surface right now, but we wanted to partner with our friends at the Foundation Center to help show our grantees and fellow place-based funders what was possible.

Your favorite communications tool that you think more foundation folks should be using?

Building meaningful and mutually respectful relationships with the media.

Biggest complaint about how foundations get covered in the media?

There’s nothing unique about how our sector is covered. The media will always look for quick and simple ways to tell stories. Program experts at foundations – like baseball managers, lawmakers, bankers, and cops — are regularly frustrated by this fact. It’s the job of a good communications department to help broker and validate these relationships.

The last nonfiction book you read? 

The Swerve, by Stephen Greenblatt, which is a beautiful book about the ancient Roman Lucretius’ epic poem “On the Nature of Things.”

Another foundation whose communication work you admire?

I learned much about the philanthropic sector when I worked as a communications officer at the Mott Foundation 15 years ago, and I have remained an admirer of its mission and work. Michigan has a vibrant philanthropic sector, and I’m fortunate to have good friends at the Mott, Kellogg, and Kresge Foundations. We’re competitive, of course, and each of our communications departments is very different, but we support each other and share ideas all the time.

Your favorite non-professional, non-general news blog?

Nate Silver’s FiveThirtyEight blog. I’m speaking to you the day after the election, and he’s a native Michigander. What else am I gonna say?

The last time you learned something important from a communications colleague?

The Network’s annual meeting in Seattle, in a session run by my friend Lisa Witter of Fenton Communications. Pick one or two communications tools or competencies, she said, and do them well.

Do you have a book deep down inside you?

Of course I do. But I’m not sure I want to spend that much one-on-one time with myself. I’d probably tire of the company.

What’s a question we should have asked you but didn’t?

Am I overwhelmed and stressed out by the ever-changing fragmented communications and media landscapes? Yes, I am, when I stop to think about it. But the good news is that I’m surrounded by smart and supportive colleagues, and we have as good a shot as anyone to figure it out, and focus on the things we do well.

What’s a question you have for your Communications Network colleagues?

See above. And I already know their answer.

A Quick Word With… was created by Michael Hamill Remaley, vice president of communications & public policy, Philanthropy New York, and a frequent Communications Network contributor. This interview was conducted and edited by Courtney Williamson, community manager, The Communications Network.

Katya Andresen, chief operating officer and chief strategy officer of Network for Good, wrote about Kahan’s presentation on Katya’s Non-Profit Marketing Blog, from which the post below is adapted.

Guest Post: Katya Andresen

This is a post about “cultural cognition.”  I know what you’re thinking.  But wait!  Don’t stop reading!  You need to read this post.  If you work for a good cause in this polarized United States, this is vitally important.

Cultural cognition is simply a way of describing the very human habit of conforming to your group’s core beliefs when confronted with disputed matters of fact.  The guru on this topic is Dan Kahan, and he shows how our opinions about everything from climate change to gun control aren’t shaped by facts as much as our cultural identity – which we then bolster by cherry picking information that supports that collective sense of self.  This is why you could put the same set of data in front of people on opposite extremes of controversial issues, and they’d both come out of that experience only more entrenched in their positions.

I got introduced to these ideas by my friend and colleague Alia McKee, who wrote about cultural cognition here, and so I jumped at the chance to hear from Kahan himself.

Kahan describes the groups with which we align ourselves according to the following continua, which Alia describes this way:

• Individualists, who think that society should mostly let each member do his or her own thing. At the other end of that spectrum are Communitarians, who think we all are in it together and society should operate more as a whole rather than a bunch of independent members.
• Hierarchists, who prefer a society with well-identified class and authority structures and a firm and predictable status quo. At the other end of that spectrum are Egalitarians, who prefer a more open society with fewer pre-determined class and authority structures and a less rigid status quo.

Kahan tells us that these characteristics are better ways to predict people’s positions than the traditional demographics of political party, age and education. For example, communitarians and egalitarians show more concern about climate change because the solutions challenge the status quo and will require a joint response by society. Individualists and hierarchists are much more likely to be climate change skeptics, because they believe pro-environment policies lead to restricted commerce and markets, which they equate with human excellence.

As Kahan explained, “This is motivated cognition.  Neither group is anti-science. They process information that matches their group. You can survey people in the same locale, and depending on their view, they will describe how hot (or not) the weather has been.  They feel temperature differently. People are all like pollsters engaged in biased sampling.”

The reason this matters to you is that if we accept that cultural values trump facts (which I do), then your efforts to persuade with information and experts won’t work.  In fact, Kahan has showed people will only listen to experts who bolster their world view.

Remember: People take their cue about what to think and do “based on the cheers and boos of the home team,” says Kahan.  So don’t be the opposition.  Here are three ways Kahan shares to step out of our polarized approach to issues.

1. Stop trying to convert people.  You can err to a much greater extent by being too confident and assertive than by being too cooperative.

2. Present information that confirms, not threatens, values.  Group ties motivate people.  Find a common value that unites everyone around an issue. It may be local pride or energy independence or safety.  Focus on the tribe to which we all belong and tie the issue to that frame.

3. Make sure a diverse set of experts speaks to the evidence. Picking partisan folks from the extreme sides of the cultural cognition spectrum won’t persuade people on the other side.  Values polarize.  Find messengers to whom your audience relates if you want them to listen.

Kahan concluded by urging organizations to try these approaches and share results.

I agree.  I also I believe fervently that there has to be a better way to bring people together. So let’s create a community of knowledge that does just that.  What can you draw from cultural cognition that unites people behind your cause?  And how can the rest of us get on board with this constructive way to make change?

If you’d like to know about upcoming Science of Communication presentations — lectures, webcasts and webinars — please email info@comnetwork.org.

Before you answer that – here’s a bonus question: If you had research on those – and other topics – where would you turn for help in getting this knowledge into the hands of people who need to see it?

In both cases, the correct answer is IssueLab.

Billed as the “online home to the collective intelligence of the social sector,” IssueLab has recently undergone a major upgrade and has been integrated with the Foundation Center’s PubHub, an annotated catalog of of more than 7,000 annotated links to foundation-sponsored reports.

The service, which now contains more than 11,000 documents, represents “one of the largest collections of social sector knowledge, spanning 40 issue areas, from agriculture to immigration to welfare,” says Gabriela Fitz, director of knowledge management initiatives at the Foundation Center.

IssueLab has been in operation for several years, but thanks to the Foundation Center’s recent acquisition of the service, it’s now poised to do more and for more people.

Among IssueLab’s key services and activities are these:

• Providing easy online access to a digital archive of foundation and nonprofit research.
• Offering users a fast and efficient way to distribute their own research widely through IssueLab’s channels, which can increase the chances it will be seen by policymakers, journalists and other key audiences.
•  Helping foundations to better manage and publicize the research work of their grantees.

There’s no cost to use IssueLab and it’s easy to set up an account. Once you do, you can upload electronic versions of your organization’s white papers, reports and other publications so they become part of the site’s permanent collection and available for anyone searching for information on those topics.  As a user you can also use IssueLab’s tools to search by author, issue area, geography or by name of organization.

“Our goal is simple,” says Fitz, “to collect and share the intelligence of the social sector.” She adds that “we also know that nonprofit research deserves a lot more exposure than it currently gets. We’re talking about an incredibly diverse body of research that dates back decades and simply lacks a publishing platform. There is no reason that this body of work can’t be more effectively made available to the very people who need it  need it most, such as nonprofit practitioners, program officers, researchers, librarians, students, advocates, and evaluators.”

Take a tour of IssueLab today.  Also, if you are an IssueLab user and want to let others know how to get the most of the service, use our comments box to share your tips.

No matter where you live, disaster can strike.  If not a major hurricane like we had here on the east coast last week it will be an earthquake, a cyclone or a massive storm that causes historic flooding. Regardless, just a little bit of forethought and planning can make a big difference to your ability to keep communicating during a disaster.

Still, even the best of plans aren’t going to cover everything that can go wrong – especially when you can’t anticipate the full extent of nature’s wrath. But it can help a lot. And once you go through a disaster you’ll have a much better idea of what to expect next time trouble strikes.

That’s Lesson One for many of us at Philanthropy New York who experienced Hurricane Sandy’s devastating blow to our region last week.  We learned a few other lessons, which I’m grateful to share (especially now that the power is back on and our office is fully functional again).

Four days before Sandy hit when it became apparent that things might get bad, we started drawing up a post-hurricane to-do list, which we figured would enable us to able to stay in contact with staff members, government officials and the rest of the philanthropic community to react, plan and take action.

As much I’d like to say we were fully  prepared, that would be an overstatement.

For instance, we didn’t know that our website infrastructure, which like many Regional Associations is based on a platform housed within the Forum of Regional Associations of Grantmakers in Washington, D.C., would be shut down temporarily the night the storm hit to avoid possibly larger technical breakdowns. We also did not anticipate losing power for such a long time in all of lower Manhattan, which is where our offices are located. The loss of power meant that our servers went down and we had no access to our proprietary email system, our electronic documents, our phone system or the physical space of our office. In lower Manhattan, where I also live, there were no cell towers working and no cell phone service.  I woke up Tuesday morning literally and figuratively in the dark, completely disconnected from the rest of the world.  It was SO quiet.  And scary.

With absolutely no access to any information, I really didn’t know what I should do. Having lived through 9/11, I guess something primal kicked in and I just started walking north from my apartment on the Lower East Side and kept on walking until I hit a cell phone signal 35 blocks later.  Lesson Two:  After disaster hits – as does the unexpected – be ready to improvise

With our work phone and email systems down, all staff were accounted for using cell phones and personal email addresses. Lesson Three: Make sure you have personal email addresses for all staff, emails that are cloud-based like Google.com addresses.

On that first day, we were already working to organize a conference call for members who wanted to coordinate responses to the disaster and assembling information for all types of donors about how they could help, and which now resides on our frequently updated hurricane response page at philanthropynewyork.org/sandy. Also on that first day, we were working with our amazing colleagues at the Council for New Jersey Grantmakers to pull together a conference call for regional associations throughout the affected area.

Our website was back up fairly quickly – within 24 hours.  So we were able to put a temporary message on our home page giving updates about office closures and what we were planning on doing to react to the situation.  We set a time and date and figured out the technical aspects of hosting a large conference call where we could easily manage questions, potentially from a lot of people.  Even though we did not have our email system, we were able to tap into our database, which is also based at the Forum, to send out an email to members from a newly created Gmail email address.

With the power completely out at our office with no end in site, all staff had to work remotely.  Thankfully, most were in areas of the city that maintained power and internet connections.  Lesson Four: To be an effective communicator during a crisis, you have to already have an established, loyal audience that follows you on a number of channels – blogs, websites, placed media, Twitter, Facebook, etc.

By the time we had our big funder conference call last Friday, which included the Governor’s InterAgency Coordinator for Non-for-Profit Organizations and a representative from the City’s Health and Human Services Department, we were already collecting lots of information about where funds were needed and who was contributing.  On that call, we had more than 90 members, who mostly listened in, but also asked important questions about what we could do as a community.

We also had a call that morning with other regional associations in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and throughout the affected area to coordinate our responses. The power came back on at our offices Saturday, and that’s when we got our email system back.  After technicians rebooted our systems, we were able to access our electronic documents again.

My biggest take-away – and Lesson Five – about communicating during a crisis like this is pretty simple: When you have a great team of people who are determined to stay connected, you can find mechanisms to make it work. Perhaps I wouldn’t be saying that if cell phone service to the entire region went down completely. But there are so many channels for communicating now that, unless there is absolutely no cell service at all, you can find ways of establishing two-way communication with your key audiences even amidst significant system compromises.

Have you had experience with disaster communications?  Any other lessons learned to share? Please use the comment box to tell us your story.

Michael Hamill Remaley is Vice President of Communications & Public Policy, Philanthropy New York, and a frequent Communications Network contributor.

By raising this question, I risk putting myself out of business. But it’s a sincere question, and I honestly don’t know the answer:

Is there a future for the long-form report in philanthropy? Does anyone read even the most crisply written Big White Paper? Fifty or sixty pages on the benefits of preventive family medicine in Oakland? Or the economic development multiplier of community arts organizations in Cincinnati? If, as we’re constantly being told, the attention span of even the most educated and sophisticated person is plunging, do we still have an appetite for 25,000 words on the intricacies of foundation affinity groups or high-engagement philanthropy? Or do we need to start breaking most topics down into 400-word blog posts and 5-page fact sheets?

I enjoy writing long, reflective reports. I even like reading (some of) them. I think it’s possible to make them more than worth the time they take to digest. But just because something is important and worthwhile doesn’t mean that people will actually do it. If the length of a paper scares readers away, they won’t ever find out how rewarding it would have been to invest an hour in reading it. There’s a place for everything, and I can’t help wondering: What place do long reports still have in our work? And if there is still a place, what pieces belong in it, and what makes those successful?

If anyone has a thought on this — especially if it involves not giving up my livelihood — I’d love to hear it.

Tony Proscio, a planning, evaluation, and communication consultant to foundation and large nonprofit organizations, is also the creator of the Communications Network’s Jargon Finder.

At the recent Communications Network Conference, Kevin Corcoran from Lumina Foundation and I set off on a journey to try to bridge the divide between communications and program. Since we are both program officers, we began by asking our audience to rate their relationships with their program colleagues, identify how often they proactively offered input to program staff and share how many of them wished they were brought in earlier on projects. What we found was a group of communication professionals who were really interested in working together with program staff from the beginning of an idea.

Communications staff want to be part of the program team and not be seen as a hindrance or in the way. But how to do that? Become a “mole” on the program team? Take a program officer to lunch? Join the program team meetings/email groups? All of these ideas were raised in the group. One of the most popular ideas, however, was to have strategy sessions with program staff. Note that says strategy sessions and not communications sessions. Communications staff have much more to offer beyond being “pizza delivery people” as one person described it – the feeling that program staff just place orders for press releases, tri-fold brochures (“what’s with the tri-fold?!”) and expect the communications staff to deliver.

That sounds great but what about when program staff don’t really know what communications staff do? How would you describe your work to a program officer? Maybe take her/ him to lunch, talk about your work and share your ideas about how you might work together. Otherwise we program officers will tend to wait until a crisis or just ask you for the press release or dreaded tri-fold brochure. We need to learn more about you and your work, and we need to build trust with each other.

That trust and ability to work effectively together can best come from many little, informal conversations that can add up to a big thing. Our relationship would not be built on crisis management, or “pizza delivery”, but rather built on authentic conversations over time. When you establish those relationships and trust it allows the communications staff to have greater empathy for the needs of the program staff. It also allows program staff to empathize with communications when they are told no or not now.

In fact, instead of saying no, trying saying “you are really passionate about this idea, let’s figure out the best way to channel it.” I love that language because then it does feel like we are in this together and that we have a shared goal. And in the end, isn’t that what we are all here for—our shared interest in the work of our grantees?

We’d love to hear more about what works for you in engaging program staff.

 Suzanne Walsh is a senior program officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Are stereotypes about the people you serve getting in the way of achieving your communications goals? All kinds of labels—from “low-income people,” “ex-convicts” or even “climate scientists”—can activate negative stereotypes that undermine support for a cause. So how do you improve public attitudes toward the people you serve? Start by thinking about the four questions below – all of which can help you focus your strategy to address the real concerns of your audience.

To ground your thinking in a real-world example, I’ve provided some lessons learned from work the Woodcock Foundation has supported to bust stereotypes of American Muslims (a topic we explored during a session titled, The Art and Science of Strategic Storytelling: Disrupting Stereotypes of American Muslims, at the recent Communications Network Conference in Seattle).

1. What does the audience currently feel about the people involved—and what do you want them to feel?

In the case of American Muslims, research revealed that the public is fearful that American Muslims are associated with terrorists and not loyal to the country. Because the audience is currently in a state of fear, our message must first make them feel safe.

In order to accomplish that, we have to deliver a message that connects treating American Muslims fairly to safety—not simply “fairness” because it’s the “right” thing to do. One message along these lines that tested especially well in a national survey: “Target terrorists based on evidence, not an entire group of people based on their religion. That targeted approach is more effective at keeping us safe.”

2. What are the misperceptions about the people involved—and what does the audience not know that would make them feel more positively?

In focus group after focus group we conducted on this issue, the audience commonly misperceived all American Muslims to be recent immigrants, which brought with it many anti-immigrant feelings commonly harbored toward other “immigrant” groups. This perception bears out in polling as well—and what’s worse, American Muslims are viewed as immigrants that don’t share American values. Close to a majority of the public believes that “the values of Islam are incompatible with American values.”

Interestingly, while the audience widely believed all Muslims were immigrants, they didn’t have a narrative in their heads about why Muslims come to America. Through our research, we uncovered that hearing heritage stories about Muslims who came to America for positive reasons—to seek opportunity or to make a better life for their families—helped to address (anti-) immigrant stereotypes and replace them with a narrative about the positive contributions American Muslims make to our country.

3. What would surprise the audience about the people involved?

If the broadly held misperception is that all Muslims are immigrants, it’s actually a revelation to most people that American Muslims are American. In focus groups we conducted, just switching the order of two words—“Muslim American” to “American Muslim”—evoked more positive feelings. When the word Muslim came first, it suggested to the audience that the person valued their religion above the country. When the word American came first, it suggested that the person was a citizen, loyal to the country, shared their values and contributed to society.

5. What value do you want to activate?

Even if we succeed in busting stereotypes and make the public feel more positively toward American Muslims, many non-Muslims will always view someone who is Muslim as different—that’s just a fact. To get our audience over that final hump, we have to appeal to the deeply held American value of treating everyone with respect—even those who are different.

Alexandra Christy is the executive director of the Woodcock Foundation

Guest Post:  Doug Hattaway

Storytelling is all the rage in business and philanthropy. It should be: narrative is a powerful tool to inform, inspire and engage people.

There are a number of ways to use narrative in strategic communications. One is to tell stories about specific people and situations, which can help to put a human face on abstract issues. That’s what we usually mean by “storytelling.”

Human-interest stories are great for creating emotional connection and encouraging your audience to care about a cause. But there’s a downside to relying on stories about individuals to illustrate complex issues: The “big picture” can get lost.

People need to hear those stories within a framework that helps them interpret their meaning. They need to understand the larger context in order make judgments that lead to changes in attitudes and behavior.

You can dial up the persuasive power of stories by presenting them within an overarching narrative that creates context and enhances the meaning of the anecdotes. In literature, psychology and other fields, this is known as a “meta-narrative.”

A Simple, Powerful Narrative Structure

Psychological studies show that the best way to motivate people is to offer a vision of a desired future, explain the challenges that must be tackled to achieve the vision, and show how those challenges can be overcome. That’s exactly what a narrative structure allows us to do.

The most basic narrative structure involves a protagonist seeking to achieve a meaningful goal, who must overcome obstacles to achieve it. In one variation of this classic structure, a helper figure aids the protagonist. (Think Yoda to Luke Skywalker, or the Fairy Godmother to Cinderella.)

We use this structure to develop messages about the PEOPLE involved in a cause, the PROBLEM they face in realizing their GOALS, and the SOLUTIONS offered by our client to overcome the problem.

This structure allows us to communicate with maximum motivating power. It puts the audience–and their hopes and values–front-and-center in the message. It positions the problem as an obstacle to people’s aspirations, which makes it personally relevant. And it shows how the solutions offered by our client help people achieve their goals.

This approach goes a long way in helping people care about a cause–and intuitively understand the problems and solutions.

Narrative Helps Achieve Impact

In 2009, when the nation was reeling from the worst financial meltdown since the Great Depression, a major foundation asked us to develop a narrative about what happened. Media content analysis and policymaker interviews found that commentators and policymakers blamed consumers for causing the crisis, which diverted focus from the real cause and blocked meaningful reform.

We used this simple narrative structure to reframe the debate:

PEOPLE

Responsible, hardworking Americans who lost their homes and life savings

HOPES & VALUES

Own a home and achieve the American Dream

PROBLEM

Fast-talking mortgage brokers, Wall Street speculators—and a system that failed to protect consumers

SOLUTION

Stronger consumer protections, effective regulations and greater transparency

We fleshed out this basic structure into a one-minute message about the financial crisis, and backed it up with stories and data. This provided the core content for an in-depth Message Manual and toolkit used by a coalition of advocacy organizations that helped win the passage of landmark financial reform legislation.

On our site, you can download a simple tool with a set of guiding questions to help you use the power of narrative to craft meaningful messages for your organizations.

Doug Hattaway is president of Hattaway Communications, a strategic communications firm that adapts tools from business, politics, psychology, linguistics and other fields to help visionary leaders and organizations achieve ambitious goals.

Last week, I attended the annual Communications Network conference in Seattle and picked up some great ideas from some of the best and brightest in philanthropy-related communications. After sessions on storytelling, using data and analytics and media in the community, three ideas in particular stayed with me.

1.    Be more authentic. Author Sherman Alexie, the plenary speaker, delivered a powerful speech on storytelling. In it, he made the provocative suggestion that “the key to really communicating is narrowing the gap between your public and private lives.” We connect when we are authentic, when we speak from a place of genuine commitment and concern—even though doing so makes us vulnerable. He used the podium on stage as a metaphor, calling it “armor” and arguing that he shouldn’t be standing behind it. “Politicians use these,” he noted, “so you know it’s wrong.” (Turns out humor is key to communicating, too.) As people pursuing social impact, we have powerful stories to tell. Too often, the niceties, proprieties, and formalities of our positions stand in the way of simple testimonial—of telling the honest truth as we see it. “Don’t be shy,” Alexie suggested. And that struck me as right.

2.    Integrate story and data. In a later session on using data and analytics, discussion turned to the relation between “big data” and “storytelling.” Nearly everyone in the room seemed to accept that an implicit tension exists between them—what I would describe as the tension between analytics and anecdotes—yet everyone also seemed to accept that the tension need not exist. In fact, these two “opposed” poles increasingly need each other: data needs to be effectively interpreted and shared (classic elements of storytelling) to have impact, and the stories we tell increasingly need to be supported by data to be truly persuasive. Given the growing interest in data across our culture, meeting both of these needs is likely to become more critical.

3.    Recognize information gaps as opportunities. In a session on “The Art and Science of Strategic Storytelling,” the presenters described their effort to disrupt stereotypes of American Muslims and pointed to the importance of information gaps that existed before they began their work. Simply put: many Americans lacked personal experience with Muslims and had no understanding of how and why they had come to the United States. Obviously, this information gap was a barrier that enabled stereotypes to function. But it was also an opportunity for the strategic storytellers. The same lack of personal experience with and knowledge about Muslims that left people vulnerable to stereotypes also left many of them ready and willing to learn more. Simply put: they were not “set in their judgments.” They just didn’t know what they didn’t know. Realizing what your audience just doesn’t know is often crucial to getting your message through.

The conference offered many other ideas, including an inspiring look at the implications of games by Jane McGonigal. Next year, the Communications Network will reconvene in New Orleans. I’m looking forward to all the ideas that will bring.

Steve Sampson, senior director, creative services, oversees writing and learning programs throughout Arabella Advisors.

After the networking, the mark of a good conference is its takeaways, right?

So, here’s a to-do list for your next speech:

• Remove your fake teeth and smile wide
• Make racial, religious, and political jokes
• Describe your pre-teen son as an “arrogant a–hole”
• Insult your audience and the timidity of its work
• Admit you are just saying whatever comes to mind

Sound like a Green Day meltdown?

How about the opening plenary by Seattle author Sherman Alexie at the Communications Network 2012 conference?

Let me be clear, I really enjoyed Alexie’s speech. I laughed at his jokes. When it was over, I stood in one line to buy and then another line to have him sign a copy of his latest book. I tweeted away  as he spoke to catch some of the golden, if sometimes also perplexing nuggets, like:

• “if it’s fiction, it better be true”
• how much damage is done by people thinking they belong to only one tribe
• “binge writing towards a deadline” (on his creative “process”)
• the power of silence, vulnerability, humor, inappropriateness, and insults that challenge

Listening to Alexie, I admit feeling a little like I’ve felt watching episodes of Mad Men—utterly absorbed in rich storytelling, fascinating character, delightfully unexpected turns, and then at the end of it all wondering, “What just happened?”

Though, after Alexie’s talk was over, I also found myself returning to his remarks again and again.

So, later that night, I was glad to discover Scott Miller and Nora Ferrel’s reflections already here on this blog. I didn’t mind them beating me to the punch. I was glad for their help in sense-making. Talking to others during our remaining time together in Seattle, Sherman Alexie was my Rorschach test.

What did you see in the ink blot?

Some loved it. Some were unimpressed. Some weren’t sure what to make of it.

It certainly wasn’t formulaic. There was no, “Here’s what I’m going to tell you,” followed by, “Here is me telling you what I told you I’d tell you,” followed by, “Here’s what I just told you,” landing on a single, clear call to action.

But without question it was an EXPERIENCE we all shared.  It was communication in the sense of the word’s original meaning, “to share” or, “to make common.”

At one point in his meandering talk, Alexie joked that the scariest thing to hear on a reservation is the voice of an elder taking the microphone to say, “I have a few words.”

That’s true to be sure for the audience of any speaker whose words (God help us if they were penned by any of us!) instantly set minds wandering or hands reaching for smart phones or other literal or figurative emergency exits. In the business of doing good, there is copy aplenty that is mealy-mouthed, plain vanilla, jargon-drenched, and platitude-y. And who cares if there is a clear call to action at the end, if you lose them at, “Hello?”

Storytelling step one, said Alexie, is to be “immediately, totally, vulnerable.”

So, I’m not ashamed to say, I still don’t quite know what happened in Seattle.

But I know it was fantastic.

And somehow my work is going to be better as a result.

Stefan Lanfer is the knowledge officer at the Barr Foundation

The last session of the Network’s meeting in Seattle was a lively and serious discussion about who we are as an organization and what we stand for. I heard a degree of angst about the new mission, which opens our doors more widely than ever before to our nonprofit colleagues.

I am an “elder” in this ever-growing organization. I have served on both sides of the philanthropic highway, spending a decade as communication director at the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation and now working as a communication consultant for both nonprofits and foundations.

When I first joined the Network 23 years ago, we were a small and intimate group of foundation colleagues eager for connection and in search of knowledge to help us do our job better. We griped about skimpy communication budgets and lack of understanding from our program peers, who we believed could use our input if they only knew they needed it. We shared the best and brightest ideas about thoughtful, targeted communication efforts in an increasingly complex field. Even then, we included nonprofits in our meetings to showcase what foundations could do when they funded communication.

Over the years, our sophistication grew along with our membership. The Network became a nonprofit and we beat the drums for including communication every step of the way as an essential ingredient of effective philanthropy. We brought program and executive staff to our meetings. We welcomed nonprofits to tell their stories of communication activities that advanced foundation goals.

Soon nonprofits came as attendees, as well as presenters. It was understood that our meetings were for learning and relationship-building, not for pitching. I realize, of course, that this is a fuzzy distinction, but I believe fear of pitching is also a false fear. We should welcome communication expertise wherever we can get it. Our goal is a wider conversation, not an insular one.

Nonprofit organizations are a foundation’s constituents. Without them, foundations could not do their jobs. Thus, the more we learn about each other’s work, the better we will be able to do our jobs together. The most successful communication officers, in fact, seek out nonprofits to learn from, even those that are not grantees.

If you believe, as I do, that smart communication is fundamental to foundation success, then we all need the best minds in the room to guide us on our way. My life as a communication professional, both inside and outside the foundation world, has always been intimately connected to nonprofits. I embrace the Network’s expanded mission and look forward to the continuing dance of wisdom across philanthropic and nonprofit boundaries.

Joanne Edgar, who served as a co-president of the Communications Network from 1997-1999, helps foundations and nonprofits tell stories of social change.

The Association of National Advertisers, the Madison Avenue trade group, held its convention last week. Part of that event is an annual send-up of the industry’s latest jargon. Here’s how the New York Times reported this year’s installment:

JARGON WATCH

Those who enjoy collecting samples of marketing buzz words and phrases have a field day each year at the conference. This time around, specimens included “thought leadership” and “thought experiment.” “Right-sized nutritional option” described a McDonald’s Happy Meal. Others: “choiceful,” “stakeholder engagement,” “leveraging our leadership to take positive actions,” “purposeful brand growth,” “consumer decision journey” and “change organization.”

Unless you work at the Don Draper Foundation, you may find it a little disquieting to see how many of the favorite buzz-phrases of the philanthropy world are just as trendy among the people who hawk Happy Meals: “thought leadership,” “stakeholder engagement,” “leveraging leadership,” “change organization.” We’ve had ‘em for years.

I think we’re innocent (so far) of “purposeful brand growth,” and I’ve yet to see any equivalent of “consumer decision journey” (or, God forbid, “choiceful”) in our world. But it’s probably just a matter of time.

Tony Proscio, a planning, evaluation, and communication consultant to foundation and large nonprofit organizations, is also the creator of the Communications Network’s Jargon Finder.

The revised mission, which came out of a year-long strategic review led by the Network’s board, was part of an effort to determine how our organization can help foundations and the larger field of philanthropy have greater impact.

On one hand, the changes we are proposing to our mission–detailed below–would enable us to do more of what we already do well: provide useful tools, create connections and advance the conversation about why communications needs to be a key element of effective philanthropy.

Also, as an extension of an effort we started in recent years to bring others within foundations–program staff, evaluators and leadership–into conversations about the important role of communications, we now want to bring nonprofits into the mix as well — as Network members, as advisors, as contributors to our programming and as champions, along with the rest of us, for the power of smart communications to improve lives.

As the revised mission states:

The Communications Network supports foundations and nonprofits to improve lives through the power of smart communications – offering evidence, fresh thinking, and collegial encouragement.

Many of you expressed immediate support, saying that the Network could gradually expand the circle of conversation while still keeping our special sense of camaraderie and purpose intact. Others seemed intrigued but waved a yellow flag of caution, asking us to tread carefully forward. And still others seemed mortified, almost immediately going into mourning for the Network that exists today.  It was a fascinating, fun and illuminating conversation. And it told us that we should give you more time to let this sink in. This is not a change that can or will happen overnight or it is something that will happen without more refinement and thoughtful comments from members, friends and current and potential partners to the Network. The Board has a lot more work to do on making our future real, and so do you.

So, with Seattle behind us, we’re going to continue the conversations. For example, we’re starting a fresh round of conversations on our blog. Take a moment to read and ponder the mission statement. And then let us know what you think. Also, to help put these changes in context and to see how they are an extension of the Network’s continuing evolution over the past three decades — from a volunteer group to a standalone 501(c)3 — watch the video below.

We look forward to hearing from you. Feel free to post comments here or email brucet@comnetwork.org.

Video credits:
Minna Jung-script; Eric Brown-narration; Jai Sen-direction; Bishakh Som-illustration

In earnest pursuit of the elusive sweet spot of program/communications integration, I attended We’re from the Program Department:  We’re busy doing the work.  Why should we care about talking about it? at the 2012 Communications Network Conference. The breakout session was facilitated with humor and openness by Kevin Corcoran and Suzanne Walsh, two senior program officers who “get it.”

Upon entering the room, participants were invited to anonymously text where they fell across the program/communications divide using www.polleverywhere.com, an instant audience feedback tool.  I cannot wait to subject colleagues to this tool when I am home.  Consider yourself warned, Connecticut. 

It quickly became clear that the audience was dominated by communications folks with strong opinions about the topic at hand, which I suppose was to be expected.  As such, the conversation was somewhat one sided.  Through the poll results, I know there were a few program people in the room, but aside from the facilitators, only one program officer identified himself during the lively discussion. 

I chose to use the session as an opportunity to practice level II listening – listening to understand.  I enjoyed feeling like a fly on the wall.  Typically, I would have piped in with program officer rebuttals and indictments.  In fact, my former colleague, Ben Rodriguez, offered a program officer’s POV after the 2011 conference that reflected the ongoing conversation in the field and within the walls of the Connecticut Health Foundation.

Why did I hold back?  Today I am a senior program officer.  If you talk to me in two weeks, you will be talking to a green vice president of policy and communications.  The Connecticut Health Foundation CEO is serious about aligning the staffing structure to support an era of integration as we enter into a new strategic plan.  It is going to be great and we have work to do.  In order to serve as a bridge, I need to deeply understand where my communications colleagues are coming from.  I could not do this if I was participating at level I – listening to formulate my arguments.

The session contained a good amount of what I will call catharsis.  By the way, in order to attend the Communications Network conference, I had to step down from serving as a panelist at the American Evaluation Association’s conference this month.  The name of the panel:  Foundation Program Officers: Heart and Ego-Driven Decision-making? Or Responsible Consumers of Strategic Learning and Evaluation?  Do I detect a theme?  But it is progress that we can have these conversations.

In order to move the discussion in a productive direction, the facilitators crowd sourced solutions.  The ones that resonated most with me were:

• Practice empathy
• Understand each other’s jobs
• Invite each other to key meetings and conversations, formal and informal
• Build trust
• Cultivate a “we’re in this together, we share the foundation’s priorities” culture
• Get senior leadership behind you

When people have asked me how my transition into my new role is going, my answer has generally contained something about the challenges of having a foot in both program and communications worlds.  I appreciated keynote speaker Sherman Alexie’s reframe – it’s easy to live in two worlds, we are all actually straddling 10,000 worlds.  Let’s hold this perspective as program and communications rock each other’s worlds.

Elizabeth Krause is a senior program officer at Connecticut Health Foundation

At The Atlantic Philanthropies, we talk about legacy a lot. With only four more years of active grantmaking left, what we leave behind is becoming one of the biggest and most important questions we ask ourselves.

How we are remembered after we’re gone will depend a lot on how we communicate while we’re still here, and thanks to the time I spent at the Fall Communications Network conference in Seattle, I am going back to New York with lots of things to think about and incorporate into our communications strategy for our final years.

What is your brand?

Pyramid Communications’ Sally Bock and Lyric, Inc.’s Ann Bradford helped me think this through during the pre-conference breakout session Brand Strategy: Moment of Truth.

They challenged us to distinguish our brand personality from our mission, and to view it as an opportunity to reach people on an emotional and aspirational level.

Almost all foundations have a pretty inspirational story behind them – how else are you able to spend your days working to make the world a better place? But for many foundations, the aspirations undergirding everything they do are buried under dry, academic language and mission statements. If we wore our hearts on our sleeve, people would understand not only the “what” and “how” of what we do but, more importantly, the “why” – which has the most power to inspire and activate others.

Tell stories. And tell them better.

Given Atlantic’s limited life, we are committed to capturing and documenting our history, experiences and lessons learned, and we view these as a significant component of our legacy. Edith Asibey and Atlantic President and CEO, Chris Oechsli, talked about our experience with this in the session Serving, Creating and Sharing Legacy: Lessons from a Young and Time-Limited Foundation, and highlighted some of our work with Tony Proscio and Thaler Pekar to document Atlantic’s history and the achievements of our grantees.

I was really inspired (and based on the Twitter activity, so was the rest of the room) by Sherman Alexie’s keynote. If we all follow his recipe – be immediately vulnerable, use humor, and politely offend (to activate people) – we can tell better stories, that people want to re-tell, and which can bring about significant and lasting change.

Use technology to share with and engage people.

I learned an overwhelming amount in the Smart Tech for Smart Communications session facilitated by the Sunlight Foundation. I am going back to work with a huge list of resources and tools that can be used to reach people and share information in myriad ways. (Email smarttech4comms@gmail.com if you want the list.)

These tools will be invaluable since information and lessons are not one-size-fits-all, and communication needs to be tailored to the audiences we want to reach – not just in format, but also in venue.

Katie Butterfield is a communications executive at The Atlantic Philanthropies 

Much like Sherman Alexie, I have to admit that I am often perplexed by the Internet and its vast reach and power.  There are so many tools out there designed to make it less intimidating, but they come online at a pace I can’t seem to manage. And that depresses and scares me.

But, fortunately, there are organizations out there like the Sunlight Foundation who make it their business to stay on the bleeding edge of web/mobile tools that help them do their work better. In their session, Smart Tech for Smart Communicators, Gabi Schneider and Liz Bartolomeo shared with us some of the tools that they use in their communications shop.

The list of these tools are divided into four categories: outreach, engagement, productivity and research. But, really, they can be used and remixed for an endless number of purposes.

Share with us how you might be using these or other web tools in your work.

Outreach tools:

·      Google alerts: this is a great free tool to track mentions of your organization and the issues you support. They are easy to set up and are delivered directly to your in-box.

·      Rapportive: this is a free service that aggregates information from the web about the people who email you.  It’s a great way to learn about reporters who reach out to you – you just need their email!

·      Sproutsocial: this is a social media management tool. It is integrated with Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other networks.

·      Tumblr: this is a great way to share stuff from the Internet you think is cool and brand it with your foundation’s visual identity. It is a highly visual tool that is popular with the kids! The Sunlight Foundation uses it to share visualizations of government data.

·      Foursquare: this is a free app that allows users to share and save the places they visit by “checking in”.  But you can also leave tips associated with specific locations. The Sunlight Foundation uses it leave tips related to political hot spots.

·      Storify: this tool helps its users tell stories by curating social media.  The Sunlight Foundation has used it to show participation in an event for those unable to attend.

Engagement Tools

·      TweetDeck and Hootsuite are a great way to monitor Twitter conversations. It allows you to follow keywords, hashtags, people/twitter accounts.

·      Chartbeat: this is a paid service that sends you analytics about your website in real-time. There is even a mobile version so you can receive updates on your phone!

·      Topsy: this is a free tool to search what is trending in social media and who is the most influential people tweeting about your work.

Productivity Tools

·      Pinboard.in: this is a great tool to archive press clippings.

·      Eventbrite: is a great way to track rsvps.

·      Square.com: this tool allows you to take credit cards at events. You can use it to collect small donations at your events.

·      Google hangout: this is an awesome video-conferencing tool that puts Skype to shame. It is the best part of Google+.

·      Etherpad this tool enables collaborative, real-time note-taking. It’s a great way to share notes during a conference call.

Research Tools

·      The Wayback Machine: this Internet archive is a great way to find web content that is no longer live.

·      Scout: this is an awesome new tool created by the Sunlight Foundation that provides policy alerts about legislation at the federal or state level.

Jennifer Humke is a Program Officer for Digital Media and Learning at The MacArthur Foundation

As my organization begins to ask how it can achieve the most positive impact on the health of its region, I found the Communications Network workshop, Brand Strategy: Moment of Truth to be timely and helpful.

A few takeaways from the session, before I get to the title of this post:

1. According to facilitators Sally Bock and Ann Bradford, “branding is not a communications process, it’s a strategic process with communications outcomes.”

2. Some people, especially in the nonprofit and foundation world, wince at the term “branding.” For these folks, “identity” can be a useful alternative.

3. We looked at one approach to branding, conceived by Simon Sinek, where an organization begins with the “why” you do what you do, and then, move onto “how,” and finally “what.” According to Sinek, most organizations address these issues in the wrong order, leaving the critical “why” as an afterthought. The “why” is, in fact, your most important consideration, and should be your primary concern in the branding process. It’s the inspiration behind your brand. Another way to look at is is the difference between the “what” and the “so what.” 

We also spent a lot of time talking about Apple, and their successful branding work. Their first “think different” spot featured powerful individuals, such as Maria Callas, Muhammad Ali, and Buckminster Fuller, and this got me thinking: what about our own personal brands?

That’s right – I’m talking about you and me.

Do we think strategically enough about our own “why” and “so what.” Just as some people bristle at “branding” for nonprofits, many surely feel likewise when we talk about human beings.

But seriously, it might be helpful for us to ask some of the same questions we ask about our brands about ourselves. Why do we bother? Is it to make it through the end of the day or to do something more? How does that translate to our jobs? Our families, etc?

Sherman Alexie even addresses some of these questions in his plenary address. He spoke to serious identity issues, calling himself a writer and a comedian. And he also touched on more superficial labels, referring to himself as the erstwhile “androgynous skinny Indian”

Just as your organization’s logo is not its identity, neither is your size or hairstyle yours. Nor is your clothing style. But those are indeed part of your brand. Are you “athletic?” “Urban” “County” “Smart?” “Bookish smart?” Academic smart?” “Street smart?”

Those considerations may be part of your identity, but what’s at its core? Providing for your family? Serving God? Making your city block the most fun place in the world?

For many of us, our brand might just be surviving, making it through a long day of work. But maybe if we think more intentionally about what we want our personal brand to be, it might help our professional efforts, and vice versa…

I thank the conference and the branding session for getting me to think a little more seriously about this.

Chris Palmedo is the director of public affairs at Northwest Health Foundation

There was nary a seat available in the packed room at the Thursday afternoon breakout session on Seeing is Believing: Data Visualization for Philanthropy. The first data visualization exercise was performed by the Hyatt hotel staff who eyeballed all the people standing or sitting on the floor and made a guesstimate at how many additional chairs were needed and would fit in the room.

Lisa Philp, William Hanson, Christine Haran and Diane DiGiacomo shared their own experiences with taking their data and making it visual…and much easier to consume. As Diane said, “We get more reaction from people like the mayor of Denver from our (data) maps than anything else. They see it and say, ‘Wow, I get it.’”

Since we are all communicators in this group we are well aware that people process information best when it is presented in the form of a story, not a list of facts. Data visualization takes a different approach to storytelling that is visual. What better way is there to live and die by the adage to “Show, not tell”?

Lisa noted that while their reports might be popular for a short time, their visuals are circulated and viewed for up to a year after they are published.

There was a robust discussion on infographics, everything from who recommends which designers and what web resources were available to a question on how one might approach visualizing qualitative versus quantitative data.

Since infographics seem to be all the rage among nonprofits and foundations alike, not to mention flying across social media everywhere and on every topic imaginable, I wanted to share some additional thinking on best practices in this realm, though this is certainly not the only approach to data visualization out there.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy had an article in March with good guidance on infographics. Below, I’ve combined the Chronicle’s excellent advice with some of Resource Media staff’s own thoughts, based on experience communicating issues as complex as climate change and biofuels visually.

1. Get clear on goals. Is the infographic designed to raise awareness, mobilize supporters, generate media coverage?
2. Compile the data you need, cite the sources, and make sure they’re credible.
3. Translate numbers into concepts people can relate to: a bushel of corn is enough to feed a person for six weeks, 1,000 acres is the size of Golden Gate Park.
4. Keep it simple. Streamline information and visuals so the infographic can be viewed without scrolling.
5. Make it look good. Graphs and tables will not inspire people to share. Use figures that tell a story at a glance.
6. Create a media plan. Treat it like a report release and come out with guns blazing in the first day (while knowing you can keep pushing it out for days afterward, unlike a traditional press release).
7. Develop pitches, template tweets, and Facebook posts ahead of time using buzz-worthy keywords.
8. Time strategically. Connect the infographic to breaking news or a current trend.
9. Publish the infographic online and make it easy to share on social media or embed in a blog or website.
10. Use bit.ly to track clicks from your outreach efforts, and document lessons learned.

Have tips to share from your own infographic or other data visualization adventures? I am sure your fellow Communications Network peers would love to hear them!

 Liz Banze is an associate director at Resource Media

The Communications Network 2012 conference kicked off this morning with speaker Sherman Alexie, an author named one of the 21^st century’s 20 top writers by The New Yorker, and what a way to start the day. Amongst hilarious personal anecdotes, biting political observations and insightful social commentary, Alexie told us (and showed us) some important tips for being good communicators in our day-to-day lives and work.

• Know your audience. On knowing the Communications Network audience, Alexie shared, “I’m used to making rich people cry but not talking to the people who want me to make rich people cry.”
• Be vulnerable and authentic in your storytelling. As Alexie said, the key is to narrow the gap between your public and private lives. Fantastic anecdotes from Alexie about his knocked out tooth, a six-foot balloon orca and his three-shower-a-day routine (cut down from six) definitely put the entire room at ease and had people rolling with laughter.
• Be funny. “I can talk to anyone because I’m funny,” said Alexie. On how to be funny, Alexie made two important points. First, not everyone is funny (know your strengths). Second, you run the risk of being inappropriate when being funny, and that’s okay. In fact, it’s necessary, he said.
• Be silent. Remember to give your audience time to react to what you’re saying, to make judgments about you and what you’ve presented to them. He also said it’s a great tool to cover up a stutter. It makes you look thoughtful.
• Be honest. “Honesty in all things,” said Alexie. “Even when you’re lying.”
• Don’t be shy. Did you know more people are afraid of public speaking than of dying? Get out there, tell your stories, take a drama class. Above all, don’t be shy.

On the eve of a big election and on the morning of my first Communications Network conference, I found Alexie to be so refreshing. I was entertained, riveted and ready to go deeper on the how and why of the communicating we do each day in our jobs at foundations and nonprofits.

Alexie made the observation that the gap between those who have and those who don’t is a measure of how great a society is. Many of us spend our days engaged in work that aims to close that gap, and I’ll be thinking about how communications can help.

There are gaps to close between audiences, bridges to cross between beliefs, and a Grand Canyon-size gulf between those who have money and those who don’t. With great advice from people like Alexie and others over the next two days, I like to think all of us can do our jobs a little better and little smarter to help close those gaps moving forward.

Nora Ferrell is the director of communications at the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust

In anticipation of our gathering at the Gates Foundation, I can’t help but ponder the notion of transparency. It seems to be a clear theme of the building’s architecture, with windows inviting a view from the street into the hallways, offices, and conference rooms of what is, technically, “the largest ‘transparent’ foundation in the world.”

As we begin to file into the Gates Foundation, I wonder what we would look like to someone standing outside the building. What kind of people do we look like – both as individuals and as an assembly? Do we look like an interesting bunch? Do we look compassionate? Engaged? Do we take our work seriously? Are we having fun?

I also wonder what we sound like. What if a passerby from outside the building could hear our conversations? Are we talking about issues an anonymous observer would expect us to talk about? Would want us to talk about? Are we using insider jargon or language they would understand?

I hope we’ll be having honest and open conversations throughout the conference, and that we feel this is a safe environment to say things we might not say when we’re back at the office. This kind of sharing is important, and not antithetical to my idea of transparency.  In fact, it’s ironically this kind of candid, safe, conversation, that is ultimately one of the many useful purposes of the conference.

With that, I look forward to having some good, honest, and yes “transparent,” conversations with many of you at ComNetwork12!

Chris Palmedo is the director of public affairs at Northwest Health Foundation

This post is the second in a series on the science and art of strategic communications. The first offered a Road Map to Impact to help you set communications objectives. This article introduces an important insight from the field of cognitive psychology.

Psychology and neuroscience are quickly evolving fields, with huge potential for enhancing the impact of our work.  Among the findings we are learning from the scientific study of communications are new insights — such as those that follow – about how people make decisions. As communicators, we have the opportunity to put these powerful insights to work for good.  This post also suggests ways to do that. 

The first is intuition. The intuitive system dominates the mental process. It kicks in automatically, in response to a new stimulus or situation—generating first impressions, gut reactions, snap judgments and emotional impulses.

Intuitive processing requires little effort; we’re not even aware it’s happening. Intuition activates before language and conscious thought, and has a tremendous influence over our thinking.

The second mental system is cognition. The cognitive system is, indeed, secondary—it kicks in after intuition, and we use it much less often.

It performs what we call reasoning: Thinking through alternatives, searching memory for data, processing information, weighing alternatives, contemplating outcomes, calculating costs and benefits.

Most people believe that we are guided entirely by reason, but intuition and emotion dominate most of our mental processes. Cognition only comes into play when we need to “think through” a situation.

Cognition requires attention and effort that drains people of mental energy.  Our brains are wired to conserve that energy and avoid investing the mental effort required for intentional decision-making and behavior.

In fact, mental tasks are de-motivating—people lose focus and stop paying attention when their cognitive system is taxed. So you must really care about an issue to “stop and think” about it.

What does that mean for strategic communications?

Because of the misperceptions about the way people think, many leaders and organizations tend to rely on information and reason to persuade—ignoring or misunderstanding the primary role of intuition. Purely cognitive approaches can waste time and resources on communication that just won’t work.

Effective communication will influence both intuition and cognition—encouraging instant intuitive judgments and enabling fluent cognitive reasoning.

Insight 2: People are more likely to trust information that they easily understand.

“Fluency” theory holds that if people readily comprehend an idea or information, they are more likely to believe it. Being easy-to-understand obviously doesn’t mean the information is more reliable, but people are more likely to perceive it as true.

Conversely, complexity can evoke suspicion. Anything that inhibits fluent mental processing raises a barrier to both understanding and trust.

Taxing people’s limited store of mental energy can also de-motivate them: Throwing unfamiliar words, complex data or convoluted sentences at people distracts the brain, as it searches “working memory” and attempts to process all the information. People literally stop listening—and miss the whole point. Most won’t invest the energy to figure it out.

To facilitate fluency, strictly avoid jargon, abstract language, complex sentences and complicated data. This poses a real challenge for communications professionals who work with experts in various fields. Experts tend to use unfamiliar vocabulary and often rely on data to persuade. Our job is to translate their language and data into simple, intuitive statements and visual aids that facilitate fluent processing of the information and ideas.

Elegant visual presentation of ideas aids fluency, while poor design inhibits it. In psychological studies, people were less trusting of information presented in hard-to-read typefaces.

Cluttered design or overly complex infographics hinder trust and understanding, rather than enhance it. Studies show that “maximizing legibility,” such as using bold fonts, actually makes the information more believable.

Fluency suggests that it’s “smart to dumb things down.” But making things easy to understand doesn’t mean avoiding substance—it takes hard work to communicate complex ideas in simple, elegant ways.

The next post in this series will examine tools you can use to do just that.

To learn more about these and other psychological theories that can power up your communications, check out the book Thinking, Fast and Slow by Nobel Prize-winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman. For a quick read on several key theories, with insights and ideas for strategic communications, click here for our Psychological Primer.

Doug Hattaway is president of Hattaway Communications, a strategic communications firm that adapts tools from business, politics, psychology, linguistics and other fields to help visionary leaders and organizations achieve ambitious goals.