Corporate Communications Director

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Job description

The Director, Executive Communications serves as a business partner and executive communications advisor for the President of Cox Automotive, Steve Rowley. This position is responsible for developing and executing strategic communications plans for all audiences (internal and external) and for supporting all of the communications needs of the President, ultimately ensuring that his messages reach the company's leaders, employees, customers, community partners and other stakeholders.

The ideal candidate is a strong and collaborative leader with proven success operating on a high-performance team and working with C-suite executives. Some of the characteristics that are keys to success in this role include:

• Strategic communications advisor. A strategic thinker who creates strong, ongoing relationships with C-level executives, becoming their trusted partner and influential advisor on communication issues.
• Business Acumen and Enterprise mindset. Must understand the complexity of the automotive industry (or proven ability to learn) and the entirety of Cox Automotive's business strategy and financial performance metrics. Proven ability to "connect the dots" of the bigger story and business objectives of the entire company.
• Strong writer and visual storyteller who excels at executive speechwriting and presentation development. Whether it's a keynote speech or board presentation, talking points or briefing documents, the ideal candidate knows how to break down complex topics into easy-to-understand narratives in a clear, concise and engaging way and translate that into easy-to-deliver copy and slides/presentations.
• Proactive, detailed strategic planner and project manager. A communications professional who can manage multiple projects, timelines, and deliverables simultaneously and with precision. Has a proven ability to not only set the strategy, but keep key stakeholders aligned to the roadmap and deliver on the activities and actions that drive the strategy forward.
• Ability to produce large-scale communications events and campaigns . Will play a lead role in the communications strategy and execution of several large events hosted by the President.
• Highly networked influencer. Proven track record of developing a high-level network of leaders who can provide input and content for the President fostering collaboration within and across communications teams as well as other enterprise groups. Should have a people-first mindset, consistently considering the employee experience.

Specific Responsibilities:

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Provides strategic counsel to President on communications strategies and plans to share leadership message with all audiences.
• Creates tools and resources that enable President to communicate with his teams about company vision and strategy, business priorities, progress against goals and objectives and how their work contributes to our success.
• Counsels President on importance of frequent, open communication and inserts employee and external communications considerations into planning of major initiatives, events, and announcements.
• Develops and implements communications strategies that enable the open exchange of information and two-way dialogue between leaders and our employees.
• Produces, writes and edits communications materials for the President, including employee all hands meetings, town halls, leader calls, leader meetings, email updates, newsletters, and various internal and external speaking opportunities.
• Partners and collaborates with the communications teams for Cox Automotive, Cox Enterprises and Cox Communications to ensure President shows up well and consistently across the company.
• Develops and manages communications for a variety of media, including executive scripts, PowerPoint presentations, senior leader announcements, intranet articles, leadership meetings, social media, etc.
• Assists with the development, planning and execution of key senior leadership meetings and webcasts.
• Benchmarks leadership communications strategies and initiatives and identifies best practices to facilitate effective communications between leaders and their employees.
• Consistently advocates positions that support strategic business objectives identified by the company.
• Promotes a positive, effective flow of information between corporate, business and function communications teams.
• Supports corporate communications team with content creation as needs arise.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in communications, journalism, public relations or a related discipline and 10 years' experience in a related field. The right candidate could also have a different combination, such as a master's degree and 8 years' experience; a Ph.D. and 5 years' experience in a related field; or 14 years' experience in a related field
• Extensive experience (10+ years) in Executive Communications, Employee Communications or Public Relations, preferably in a mid- to large-size corporation. Experience should include direct support for C-suite executives.
• Exceptional customer relationship, consulting, and strategic communication expertise. Seen as a credible businessperson who uses their communications expertise to help solve business problems. Routinely sought for advice about potential issues and complex scenarios at an early stage.
• Superior writing skills. Detailed, accurate, concise, and tailored to the author, platform, and audience. Writes in a variety of styles for a variety of formats in a way that is engaging, grammatically correct, and appropriate. Can support executives in writing copy that captures their personality and leadership style. Supervises specialists in different media (e.g. Web layout, print design or photography). Can quickly and sensitively edit other people's writing for a variety of formats.
• Strong business acumen. Proven ability to understand business strategy, targets and performance objectives and shape communication strategies, plans and materials to deliver high-quality communications with positive measured results.
• Strategic thinker with the ability to drive programs from inception to completion, including identifying or creating the most appropriate channels for employee messaging.
• Experience communicating to a geographically dispersed organization and frontline employees. Proven ability to design employee-centric communications campaigns and communicate to a variety of audiences.
• Excellent project management and problem-solving skills. Proven ability to multi-task and keep numerous projects on track and on budget.
• Ability to network and lead through influence. Maintain relationships across the company that contribute to and support effective leadership communication from the President.

USD 129 100.00 per year

Compensation:

Compensation includes a base salary of $129,100.00 - $215,100.00. The base salary may vary within the anticipated base pay range based on factors such as the ultimate location of the position and the selected candidate's knowledge, skills, and abilities. Position may be eligible for additional compensation that may include an incentive program.

Benefits:

The Company offers eligible employees the flexibility to take as much vacation with pay as they deem consistent with their duties, the company's needs, and its obligations; seven paid holidays throughout the calendar year; and up to 160 hours of paid wellness annually for their own wellness or that of family members. Employees are also eligible for additional paid time off in the form of bereavement leave, time off to vote, jury duty leave, volunteer time off, military leave, parental leave, and COVID-19 vaccination leave.

About Cox Automotive

At Cox Automotive, people of every background are driven by their passion for mobility, innovation and community. We transform the way the world buys, sells, owns and uses cars, accelerating the industry with global powerhouse brands like Autotrader, Kelley Blue Book, Manheim and more. What's more, we do it all with an emphasis on employee growth and happiness. Drive your future forward and join Cox Automotive today!

About Cox

Cox empowers employees to build a better future and has been doing so for over 120 years. With exciting investments and innovations across transportation, communications, cleantech and healthcare, our family of businesses - which includes Cox Automotive and Cox Communications - is forging a better future for us all. Ready to make your mark? Join us today!

Benefits of working at Cox may include health care insurance (medical, dental, vision), retirement planning (401(k , and paid days off (sick leave, parental leave, flexible vacation/wellness days, and/or PTO). For more details on what benefits you may be offered, visit our benefits page .

Cox is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer - All qualified applicants/employees will receive consideration for employment without regard to that individual's age, race, color, religion or creed, national origin or ancestry, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, physical or mental disability, veteran status, genetic information, ethnicity, citizenship, or any other characteristic protected by law. Cox provides reasonable accommodations when requested by a qualified applicant or employee with disability, unless such accommodations would cause an undue hardship.
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