The University of Southern California (USC), founded in 1880, is located in the heart of downtown L.A. and is the largest private employer in the City of Los Angeles. As an employee ofUSC, you will be a part of a world-class research university and a member of the Trojan Family, which is comprised of the faculty, students and staff that make the university a great place to work.

As a community of Dornsife College we are committed to the creation, preservation, and communication of fundamental knowledge in all its formsas well as a lifelong passion for learning and a commitment to the betterment of society. The academic mission of Dornsife College can only be realized to its fullest potential when we build and protect a representative, equitable, inclusive culture of scholarship for students, faculty, and staff. This is not done through initiatives but by embedding these values into the everyday interactions, relationships, policies, and practices of the College. What is required is a seamless integration of the tenets of equity and inclusivity into every facet of academic life. If we want our scholars, staff, and students to be able to give their very best, we must create an academic environment that portends success.

Success is possible when every member of the Dornsife community owns their role as a steward of the culture in which we learn, research, and work; when we believe that it is because of who we are that we are able to do what we do: achieve excellence, together.

Achieving a robust and inclusive academic culture requires more than just the completion of a task, but includes that persons capacity to contribute positively to the relationships and culture of their office or department. Therefore, any applicant seeking to advance the mission of Dornsife College should also be assessed on their capacities beyond the technical elements of their work, and demonstrate an understanding of their impact on others, and to articulate how they contribute positively to those around them.

Public Exchange (PX) is a dynamic new organization within USC that partners with the public and private sectors to help design solutions to the problems that matter most. Founded in 2020 by former USC Dornsife Dean Amber Miller, the central features of the PX model are:

• Partnership: We partner with civic, business and non-profit leaders whose policymaking, products and programs tackle urgent social challenges.
• Academic Expertise: We assemble diverse research teams to deliver actionable insights partners can use to test and sharpen solutions.
• Project Management: We clear roadblocks so partners and researchers can focus on what they do best, and leverage every opportunity to scale impact.

Communications is core to PX. Its an essential part of our model to translate complex research into usable, actionable, and high-impact content. As such, PX is looking for a Communications Manager to join our team of mission-driven, entrepreneurial, collaborative, agile, curious, fun, and hard working team! The Communications Manager will craft strategic and compelling stories about PX, our projects, and our impact. The manager will promote and utilize effective ways to tell stories including writing content for websites, social media, email, newsletters, press releases, presentations, videos, and other materials. This position will work with PX team members, internal USC stakeholders, PX partners, and other universities to create messaging that tells the story of PX research findings and impact to a variety of audiences.

PX is a team of 15 professionals across two dedicated practices in Climate & Sustainability and Health & Wellbeing. The team has led projects with more than 25 partners across the public and private sectors to date. Our Climate & Sustainability Practice, led by Monica Dean, is building collaborative research projects tackling topics such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. The Health and Wellbeing Practice, led by Sujeet Rao is developing projects to address issues like health access and innovation; food and nutrition insecurity; and homelessness prevention. PX projects have a track record of creating tangible social impact, our north star, resulting in the planting of a more equitable tree canopy in Los Angeles, more effective distribution of food assistance programs, and robust support for healthcare workers.

Reporting to the Director of Strategy and Operations, the Communications Manager will maintain existing communications assets, including the PX website and newsletter, and build essential relationships with communications counterparts at Dornsife College, USC and the media. The Communications Manager is responsible for telling the PX story at organization, practice, and project levels. They will implement a process to maintain an understanding of developments across the PX portfolio, be able to identify opportunities to share about PXs work, then craft and deliver those stories effectively.

The ideal candidate is:

Committed to social impact

Candidates should have interest in social impact and should be excited by the role academic institutions can play in designing solutions that drive change in policy, programs, products, and peoples lives.

Collaborative with an entrepreneurial spirit

PXers operate with a bias for action. Our model seeks to deliver actionable findings and contribute to durable solutions to todays pressing issues.

PX is a relatively new and rapidly expanding organization. An entrepreneurial spirit and willingness to pitch in and work with a small, but mighty team to build from the ground up is essential.

Experienced in communications tools, processes, and storytelling

Candidates should excel in managing processes, synthesizing complex information, and coordinating with varied stakeholders to ensure outcomes. The Communications Manager will build and maintain tools to unify PXs voice including editorial calendar, templates, writing standards, and so on. They will ensure that communications assets tell the PX story effectively and accurately to the proper audiences for a given message.

Job Accountabilities:

Brand communications strategy & execution

• Work closely with PX leadership, the Dornsife communications team, and others as needed to coordinate the development of a brand communications strategy;
• Manage execution of the PX comms strategy;
  • Create and manage a content calendar;
  • Lead the production of brand-level content (PX newsletter, social, web site, one-pagers and other collateral, etc.);
  • Coordinate closely with the Dornsife communications team and others as needed on press releases and media outreach, USC News stories, videos, and other Dornsife-led products;
  • Establish and pursue channels including LinkedIn, and channels to be determined;
• Manage the PX brand identity, ensuring appropriate use of PX and USC brand, mark, and other brand guidelines.
• Serve as the primary point of contact on a planned redesign of the PX website, including evaluating and supporting selection among vendor proposals for new website build and supporting and driving project execution, including tracking timelines, milestones and deliverables.
• Serve as primary point-of-contact for external vendors on a planned re-design of the existing PX site.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for PXs graphic designer (shared with the USC Dornsife Advancement team), ensuring he gets the information he needs to execute high-quality design products;
• Define metrics and analytics to track impact, and when necessary, adjust course.

Project communications strategy & execution

• Work closely with PX project teams to advise on project-level strategy and messaging;
• Refine existing & create new communications tools, templates and processes that help project managers identify important project comms milestones, craft key project stories and otherwise streamline project-level comms management;
• Identify training opportunities to help project teams to build storytelling and communications skills.

Knowledge & budget management

• Organize and manage all brand and project-level communications products in team google drive.
• Manage program, product and event budgets relating to communications.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelors degree
• 5 years minimum experience in communications role
• Accomplished writer and speaker
• Essential experience includes managing website redesign and relaunch, and experience generating dynamic content for site and external communications channels
• Creative problem-solving and solution-driven track record
• Demonstrated capacity to understand and synthesize complex ideas and concepts
• Strong analytical and communications skills
• Aptitude for learning and using tools that keep our hybrid team working as one: Google Workspace, Asana, Slack, Canva, etc. required

Minimum Qualifications:

Minimum Education: Bachelor's degree. Combined experience/education as substitute for minimum education

Minimum Experience: 5 years of experience in communications, marketing, higher education or related fields

Location:

Hybrid, L.A.-based; approximately 80% remote. Applicants outside of Los Angeles, but open to relocation, encouraged to apply.

Required Documents and Additional Information:

• Resume and cover letter required (may be uploaded as one file). Please do not submit your application without these documents.
• Job openings are posted for a minimum of (5) five business days. This job may be removed from posting boards and filled any time after the minimum posting period has ended, so please apply on the same business day if interested.
• USC has excellent benefits, including health benefits for staff and their family with access to the renowned university medical network; eligibility for retirement plans with employer contributions after six months of employment; tuition benefits for staff and their family; free Professional Development classes; central Los Angeles location with easy access to commuter trains, buses and free tram pick up services; discounts to sporting and other campus events.

Salary range: The annual base salary range for this position is $91,000 - $105,000. When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidates work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, federal, state and local laws, contractual stipulations, grant funding, as well as external market and organizational considerations.

This is a hybrid position and will be funded on contracts, grants or gift funds.

Performs other related duties as assigned or requested. The university reserves the right to add or change duties at any time.

The University of Southern California is an Equal Opportunity Employer that Values Diversity.

Minimum Education: Bachelor's degreeCombined experience/education as substitute for minimum educationMinimum Experience: 5 years of experience in communications, marketing, higher education, or related fields.Minimum Field of Expertise:Minimum Field of Expertise:Five years experience in communications, marketing, higher education, or related fields. Excellent written and oral communication skills, and proven copy editing experience. Exemplary understanding of the nuanced messaging required for various audiences anddistribution channels. Demonstrated experience managing public relations and developing social media presence for an organization, and solid grasp of professionally utilizing social media platforms. Experience with large and complex distribution lists. Ability to interpret,analyze, and apply pertinent policies, procedures, regulations, and requirements. Ability to build, develop, and manage positive working relationships and rapport with diverse, high-performing teams. Proven ability to provide both detailed information as well as summariesto management-level individuals and groups, and experience presenting technical topics to non-technical audiences.Preferred Education: Preferred Field of Expertise:Bachelor's degree in communications, marketing or a related field. 5 years minimum experience in communications, marketing, higher education or related field.

Return to Search Results