Director of Marketing and Communications

Job Summary

A Wider Circle, a social service nonprofit serving the DMV region, is seeking a Director of Marketing and Communications to lead and implement strategic communications, branding, and engagement efforts that advance the organization's mission, visibility, and voice. Working in close partnership with the President (interim supervisor) and the broader leadership team, this position plays a key role in shaping how A Wider Circle is seen, understood, and supported across audiences. Starting in the fall of 2025, this role will transition to reporting to the newly established Chief Engagement Officer.

This highly motivated and experienced leader is responsible for guiding messaging, digital presence, media relations, storytelling, and public affairs efforts, while also supporting advocacy goals through aligned and ethical communications strategies. This is a hands-on position with both strategic and operational responsibilities. This is also a mission-driven role within a fast-paced and nimble organization, the ideal candidate will bring the same agility, energy, and sense of purpose to their work. A deep commitment to social justice and equity-driven storytelling is essential. The role provides leadership, strategy, planning, and guidance with the Development Department, coordinates with Board members, and leads key areas of external communications for the organization.

Essential Responsibilities

The Director of Marketing and Communications will be expected to undertake the following responsibilities and duties:

• Provide strategic thought partnership to the President and Chief Engagement Officer.
• Build trust and collaborative relationships throughout the organization.
• Develop and implement internal and external communication strategies, including goal setting, tracking and refining methods to ensure effectiveness
• Serve as an external ambassador of A Wider Circle - explaining its mission, programs, and case for support
• Supervise select team members and interns

Strategic Leadership

• Develop and lead a comprehensive communications strategy aligned with A Wider Circle's mission and long-term goals.
• Serve as a strategic partner to senior leadership and programs staff to ensure consistent and compelling messaging across departments.
• Foster a culture of timely and responsive communication across the organization.
• Develop capacity across all stakeholders, including staff, volunteers, and external partners, to serve as ambassadors for the organization

Marketing, Direct Mail & Digital Strategy

• Oversee digital communications channels including website, direct mail, email marketing, and social media.
• Align messaging across people and channels by creating and maintaining clear messaging guidelines.
• Manage and analyze data to refine outreach strategies and increase engagement.
• Coordinate visual and narrative branding to maintain a consistent, mission-aligned identity.
• Expand audience reach with a focus on engaging younger and underrepresented groups.

Media Relations & Public Engagement

• Serve as the primary point of contact for media, developing relationships with reporters and producers, and responding promptly and effectively to media inquiries.
• Create and distribute press releases, talking points, and public statements.
• Train internal spokespeople for interviews and speaking engagements, and develop a suite of core talking points to ensure mission alignment and consistency across all platforms

Storytelling & Ethical Communications

• Curate and craft powerful stories that center dignity, elevate lived experience, and reflect AWC's equity values.
• Lead ethical storytelling initiatives that center the voices and experiences of those served by the organization, including children, families, and community partners.

Public Affairs & Engagement Communications

• Support organizational policy and advocacy goals through clear, accessible, and compelling public-facing messaging.
• Contribute to public affairs efforts by developing communications that activate and inform all key stakeholders.

Internal Collaboration & Project Management

• Work across teams to ensure materials and messaging are coordinated and impactful.
• Support development, programs, and operations teams with communication tools and content.
• Create and refine materials used for fundraising, events, and special campaigns.

Platform & Tool Management

• Utilize and oversee tools including: Canva, Google Suite, Mailchimp, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Lightbox, CRM systems, online giving platforms and social media analytics.
• Manage content calendars and maintain consistency across digital platforms.

Required Skills / Abilities

• Excellent written, verbal, and visual communication skills.
• Exceptional organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Strong interpersonal and relationship-building abilities, including with press, partners, and community stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, collaborate, and work across departments and disciplines.
• Proven experience managing communications campaigns from strategy through execution.
• High levels of emotional intelligence and a commitment to ethical communications practices.
• Proficiency with content creation and digital design tools (Canva, Mailchimp, CRMs, Google Suite)
• Budgeting experience and ability to assess ROI on communication initiatives.
• Familiarity with marketing analytics and metrics-driven decision making.
• Sincere commitment to collaborative, inclusive work and continuous learning, especially related to equity and anti-poverty narratives.
• Ability to work occasional evening and weekend hours in collaboration with constituents for meetings and special/press events
• Genuine dedication to working collaboratively with all constituent groups, including staff, board members, volunteers, donors, program participants, and other supporters
• Self-starter, able to work independently, and entrepreneurial; enjoys creating and implementing new initiatives
• Ability to identify and coordinate organization-wide resources to achieve the appropriate outcomes
• Capacity to manage competing priorities, meet deadlines, and stay proactive in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong team management skills
• Effective planning and delegation skills

Required Education and Experience

• BA/BS and 7-10 years relevant experience, or MA/MS/MPS/MBA and 5+ years relevant experience and/or sufficient work experience in marketing, communications, or public affairs.
• Subject matter expert in communications, branding, and public engagement.
• Minimum of two years' experience managing people or cross-functional teams and goal setting
• Working knowledge of tools such as Canva, Lightbox, Google Workspace, Mailchimp, CRMs, online giving platforms, social media management, and complex data analytics related to engagement and performance tracking.
• Demonstrated ability to grow visibility and engagement through communications strategy.
• Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in all aspects of communications work.
• Experience in ethical storytelling practices and both understanding and managing the complexities and nuances of voice and narrative in direct-service environments.
• Expertise in using data and application of feedback loops to inform communication strategy.
• Demonstrated commitment to continuous self-learning and growth, especially related to the development of strong equity competencies and managing diverse teams and modeling this approach with others.

Preferred Education and Experience

• Familiarity with philanthropic and advocacy communities in the Greater DC region.
• Experience working in or supporting nonprofit, equity, or social justice-focused organizations is highly preferred but not required.

Additional Eligibility Requirements

• Must be authorized to work in the United States.
• This role must be based in the Greater Washington, DC region. It cannot be fully remote.
• Ability to work occasional evenings or weekends to support events or urgent media requests.
• Ability to travel throughout the DMV region for meetings or events.

Work Environment & Physical Demands

• Office environment with flexible hybrid schedule (up to 40% remote).
• Prolonged periods of sitting, working on a computer, and phone/email communications.
• Occasional lifting or setup for in-person events and meetings.

Additional Requirements: As part of your application, please submit a writing sample that demonstrates your ability to create engaging content and ability to tell a story. The writing sample should be between 500-1,000 words and can be an article, blog post, or social media content that you have previously written. If you prefer, you may create a new piece on a topic relevant to our industry.

Please attach the writing sample as a PDF or Word document when submitting your application. Ensure that any proprietary or sensitive information is removed. Your writing sample will be used solely to assess your fit for this role and will be kept confidential.

Other Duties

This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties may shift based on organizational priorities and emerging needs.

Travel Required

Yes-DMV Area

Affirmative Action/EEO Statement

A Wider Circle is committed to having a diverse team and ensuring that all qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, gender (including gender identity or expression), religion, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, age, veteran status, or other non-merit factors. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer.