Skip to main content

This job has expired

Director of Communications

Employer
GiveDirectly
Location
New York, United States
Salary
Competitive Salary
Date posted
Feb 19, 2021

View more

Locations: NYC, London, Lilongwe, Nairobi, Kigali, Monrovia, or Kampala

About GiveDirectly 

GiveDirectly (GD) aims to reshape international giving -  and millions of lives - by allowing donors to provide capital grants directly to the world’s poorest. The Brookings Institution estimates that $70B of cash transfers would be required to eliminate the poverty gap; the aid sector currently spends $135B each year, much of which is allocated to evidence-free interventions. GiveDirectly wants to change that, establishing a benchmark, and in the process accelerate the end of extreme poverty. GiveDirectly has raised over $400M in revenue (>$150M in 2020 alone), while being recognized as one of the most innovative non-profit companies by Fast Company. The growing movement toward cash transfers and GD’s role in that movement have also been featured in This American Life, Foreign Affairs, The Economist, and  Business Insider.

Cash transfers are at a potential inflection point:  COVID-19 has amplified the challenges of bulkier in-kind aid models, and governments are deploying cash as their most common tool of assistance to vulnerable populations. GiveDirectly has an opportunity to leverage its strong  track record (i.e. operations across 9 countries, >$250M transferred to over a million individuals, 14 randomized control trials), to both deliver immense impact and position itself as the premiere dedicated cash implementation vehicle globally. 

About the role

We are seeking a creative and entrepreneurial leader to own GiveDirectly’s content and communications pillar: driving awareness for direct giving through pitching media, generating content that embodies GD’s values, and elevating recipient voices. 

 

As someone passionate about shifting the status quo in the aid space, you will be the ultimate owner of cross-channel content and communications. In this capacity, you’ll act as an “internal journalist” to identify recipient stories, data highlights, and ops challenges to surface; build relationships with media representatives; and create unique, innovative content (e.g. photogrammetry, video, live web dashboards). In this capacity, you will manage and train a Communications Manager to enable scaled content generation and distribution. 

 

You are a clear, succinct communicator with a track record of end-to-end ownership of media operations and content roadmaps. You are passionate about international development, with experience communicating complex policy and research into clear talking points and takeaways. 

 

Responsibilities: 

    Lead external channels & content generation: Lead donor-facing content at GiveDirectly across all channels (blog, press, social, email, web, decks, and print), including strategy around personalization and segmentation. Act as GiveDirectly’s “internal journalist”:  We hold our content to a high bar -- any post should teach you something, or make you think. This role will act as GD’s internal journalist, surfacing recipient challenges and perspectives, identifying interesting ops challenges, or highlighting data from the sector.  Own GiveDirectly’s media pipeline and journalist/partner relationships: Drive awareness for direct giving through landing top-tier media placement. In this capacity, you would lead communications campaigns (e.g., new research launches) and build relationships with journalists Create innovation content: Test innovative mediums to showcase recipient stories or GD field operations (e.g., photogrammetry, video, etc). Own public risk frameworks: Own brand risk mitigation plan & tactics. 

 

Qualifications: 

    5+ years of experience in similar role or function (communications, media, content marketing, consulting, journalism)  Exceptional relationship management: you’re excited to build a press network around direct giving, both via establishing new relationships for GD and strengthening existing ones Experience in lifecycle-based marketing and segmentation  Passion for building press relationships  Strong communications skills: Skilled in speaking, writing, presenting, and negotiating across multiple stakeholders Track record of owning and refining brand voices Strong detail-orientedness Passion for international development, economics 

GD Values

  • Recipients first.

We prioritize recipient preferences over those of donors or ourselves.

We do not impose our preferences, or judgments, on the beneficiaries; instead we respect and empower them to make their own choices, elevating their voices in the global aid debate. This value is core to GiveDirectly’s identity as the first organization exclusively devoted to putting the poor in control of how aid money is spent. It comes at a potential cost, as it means that neither we nor donors get to set priorities (and we may even lose some “efficiency” in providing this option).

  • Team next.

We do what’s best for organizational - not individual - success.

This is a team sport, where we will succeed (or fail) together. The best players are not those with the best individual statistics, but those with biggest impact on our overall performance. We avoid territoriality, self-promotion, and I’m above this attitudes.

  • Be proactively candid.

Wsay what we believe, and are honest in sharing information.

Having confidence that other people are telling us what they truly believe, without gloss or omission, is critical to effective communication and to our ability to learn and grow from feedback. We owe it to each other - and our donors - to instill this confidence even though giving and receiving information candidly are unusual in both professional and social life, and can be very uncomfortable.

  • Create positive energy  

We strive to be a source - not drain - of energy for our colleagues.

Our work is hard, practically and emotionally, and we cannot overemphasize the importance of maintaining a positive attitude, enjoying the company of our colleagues, and not taking ourselves too seriously. In doing so, we aspire to generate energy and excitement amongst our colleagues in pursuing our mission. This should not preclude candor, and we aspire to achieve both.

  • Think rigorously; act quickly.

We are intellectually rigorous with a drive towards action - not debate.

We reason from first principles, grounding our decisions in objective claims about the world, rather than hard-to-disprove assertions or hierarchy. We aim to brainstorm inclusively and respectfully, but critically self-vet ideas we put forward, so as to ensure productive and prudent decision making.

Demanding this level of rigor forces us to think harder about decisions and our assumptions than we otherwise might. This is a real cost. It can be taken too far: it is possible to overthink decisions, and we avoid debate for the sake of debate. We are not here to philosophize or ensure consensus. We decide and act quickly, avoiding getting bogged down in debates.

  • Accept reality. Propose solutions.

We do not dwell on problems. We work actively to create solutions.

There will always be an endless list of things to improve. We focus on the things that can be changed; find the most important of those things, and propose actionable answers. We do not allow “problems” to weigh us down and be a source of negativity. We are forward looking, which we believe not only leads to better team outcomes, but also creates a more enjoyable, energizing environment for all.

  • Be productively ambitious.

We take the risks to pursue industry-changing success, not incremental progress.

We seek step-change improvements at all levels, and are willing to make big-bets; we do not accept complacency nor do we simply optimize existing processes. In doing so, we allow ourselves to dream big with a belief that perceived constraints are merely opportunities for creativity.

Such ambition not only requires hard work (i.e., this is not a 9-5 job), but also a willingness to accept and learn from temporary setbacks and failures. In accepting these failures, we’re conscious to not point fingers, nor obsess over “mistakes” made.

  • Know yourself and grow.

We recognize and accept our imperfections with a focus on growth.

We are an organization of exceptional people and trust in each other’s abilities, yet we recognize that none of us is perfect. We strive to maintain an accurate understanding of our individual and institutional strengths and weaknesses, in order to position ourselves to maximize our chances of success.

At the same time, we seek personal growth for ourselves and our teammates. Feedback is given with a spirit of helpfulness, and sought out with a desire to learn.

Get job alerts

Create a job alert and receive personalized job recommendations straight to your inbox.

Create alert