Associate Director of Digital Communications

Position Summary

Reporting to the Executive Director of Communications of The Fu Foundation School of Engineering & Applied Science and working closely with other members of the Communications Group, the Associate Director of Digital Communications is responsible for managing and publishing digital content that exemplifies best practices in digital storytelling to increase visibility of the School and serve the needs of internal constituents while effectively reaching external audiences. Selected candidate will be a highly creative and collaborative self-starter, with considerable skills in digital content development, a solid sense for design, and demonstrated experience producing high-quality, engaging, and effective digital communications efforts.

Responsibilities

• (35%) Manages all day to day aspects of the SEAS main website, including news stories, events, photo galleries, multimedia. Works closely with University web technical team to support and troubleshoot all School websites and faculty/student group websites as needed; creates visually engaging designs as needed

• (15%) In coordination with the Executive Director of Communications, help oversee a comprehensive and complex website redesign and relaunch over the next 12-18 months, serving as project manager and content lead. This project serves as a cornerstone of an emerging digital-first strategy for the School. Candidate will coordinate with external vendors, manage project plan, and assist in managing faculty task force

• (15%) Works with internal clients including nine academic departments and various administrative units, centers, and initiatives to understand their web goals to help define strategy, content and features for design of their websites and/or applications. Develops a content strategy and leverages in house web template to build best in class web experiences that showcases cross-disciplinary research.

• (15%) Migrate assets and images from Dropbox to the DAM, creating workflows and handling all photo requests. Provide appropriate news and video content about SEAS to departments, the Columbia University website, and outside media as directed.

• (10%) Enforce CUSEAS brand guidelines across all digital and print materials, develop and post high-quality content consistent with organizational branding and strategic goals. Manage design and production of branded digital communications materials including impact reports, infographics, slide presentations, logo lockups, graphics, and other visual identity elements and collateral.

• (5%) Analyze website and social media metrics from a user experience perspective; research, propose, and implement the newest digital trends to ensure the School is following best practices.

• (5%) Performs other duties as assigned

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelors Degree  in Communications, Marketing, Digital Strategy or equivalent in experience and/or education required.

• Must have 3-5 years of demonstrated experience in digital communications and marketing including deep experience managing content in the Drupal Content Management System with demonstrated ability to learn other CMS platforms as needed.

• Experience with information architecture, web UX and visual design, and front-end web development is required as is an understanding of digital accessibility, SEO, Google Analytics, and other best web practices.

• Must have strong writing skills with the ability to write brief web content as needed. Ability to build relationships and work cross functionally with IT and various departments and business units and digital agencies is required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience helping to manage complex web projects, site migrations, 3rd party integrations and technology stack changes is preferred as is an interest in Science/Engineering. Experience managing social media accounts with a focus on audience engagement also a plus.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.