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Office of the President Office of the President

Senior Associate Vice President, Marketing and Communications

About the opportunity

Title: Senior Associate Vice President, Marketing and Communications

Institution: Wayne State University, Detroit, MI

Reports to: Chief of Staff and University Relations Officer

The Senior Associate Vice President, Marketing and Communications (SAVP) will lead the effort to share Wayne State University’s (WSU) story of mobility, health, and innovation with the world. WSU is moving and changing rapidly with a new president and a renewed focus on our distinct strengths as an urban research institution. We are poised to tell a new story and are looking for the right leader of that team.

This SAVP role is part of the recently established University Relations Division, led by a Chief of Staff and University Relations Officer (COS/URO) who started in March 2024. The division is made up of university marketing and communications, governmental and community affairs, and the Board of Governors staff office. For the first time, these three offices are coordinating their external-facing activities and jointly raising Wayne State’s profile locally and nationally. The SAVP reports directly to the COS/URO and can expect to collaborate with all academic and operational leadership.

A great SAVP will be a nimble leader during times of change, an experienced communicator with varied audiences and settings, and a strategic planner who can reimagine and modernize systems and processes. University leadership has started a process of reorganizing and realigning the marketing and communications team, guided by some of the findings of an independent assessment conducted in early 2024. The SAVP will shape and complete that process to maximize the success of our storytelling.

Overview

The SAVP is Wayne State’s senior leader and officer, responsible for strategizing and leading all actions related to telling the university’s story to internal and external audiences. Reporting to the Chief of Staff and University Relations Officer, the SAVP will continue an ongoing transformation of the University’s Marketing and Communications function into a team that is strategically positioned to support, and generate support for, the future of Wayne State. The SAVP will lead a team of approximately 40FTEs and the programmatic, financial, and operational activities of the Marketing and Communication team. This leader will build systems to ensure the coordination and alignment of dispersed marketing and communications activities, programs and personnel across the university’s divisions, colleges, and schools. The SAVP will serve as a key leader in the University Relations Division and will ensure that internal and external messaging aligns with the university’s strategic vision articulate by the President and engages all our audiences through a variety of channels.

Tasks

  • Lead university marketing and communication functions – Continue the transformation of this team of into strategic brand ambassadors who are well positioned to tell Wayne State’s story quickly and effectively to a variety of audiences, including coordination of activities, programs and personnel that are distributed across the university’s divisions, colleges and schools.
  • Deliver effective internal communications – Develop strategies and tactics to communicate strategic institutional priorities more effectively to and with the campus community aligned with the university messaging to improve impact and influence with key stakeholders.
  • Respond to emerging issues – Provide advice, action, and support to the executive team charged with responding to challenging and emergent issues.
  • Build longer-term strategies – Coordinate with executive staff and communicators, especially those in recruitment, research, and academic affairs to build communications and marketing strategies that support and grow key academic functions, as well as with those in development and alumni affairs, and economic development to enhance external advocacy and engagement.
  • Utilize metrics for measuring success – Implement, analyze, report, and implement adjustments based on measurements of marketing and communication impact. Proactively inform executive team of pertinent information on emerging trends and media issues.
  • Oversee product creation – Lead the development of varied and integrated organization communications products and services which may include reports, newsletters, and marketing collateral materials.
  • Perform other related duties as assigned.

Experience and Qualifications

  • Commitment to and enthusiasm for the strategic vision, mission and purpose of an urban university.
  • 7+ years of communications and marketing experience, including in or with a large university.
  • Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field. Master’s degree preferred.
  • Demonstrated experience leading a team in a mission-driven marketing and communications operation with varied internal and external audiences.
  • Ability to influence, lead and guide staff and leaders in transformative change; the ability to assess performance, coach and mentor staff
  • Demonstrated facility and experience with modern marketing (e.g. CRM) and communications digital tools (e.g., SEO, content management systems, geofencing, etc) and social channels that enhance impact.
  • Outstanding management, operational, and planning skills with the ability to ensure simultaneous movement of multiple projects.
  • Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, including diplomacy and poise during tense situations.
  • Proficiency in marketing automation and analytics tools, deep knowledge of marketing operations and platforms with a data-driven approach to marketing decision-making.
  • Experience building a long-term strategy with a cross-functional executive team.
  • Ability to collaborate with other leaders of diversity professional backgrounds, through formal and informal channels, to plan initiatives and resolve concerns that bridge divisional lines.

Working Conditions

  • Primarily in-person on our Detroit campus
  • Extended work hours and travel when needed

Compensation

$185,000 - $200,000

Application Process

Interested and qualified candidates should submit a cover letter and resume here or go to www.hr.wayne.edu/jobs.

About Wayne State University

Wayne State University is an urban public research university situated on a 200-acre campus in the heart of Detroit. We proudly hold an R1 Carnegie classification as a doctoral-granting university with very high research activity and a Carnegie classification for our robust Community Engagement. We’re a talent pipeline for the state, with 80% of our alumni living in Michigan, and we’re growing our $250M/year research expenditures.

Founded in 1868 as a medical college, Wayne State is now the third largest university in Michigan. We offer over 350 academic programs with 2,269 faculty members (1,448 full time), nearly 5,000 regular staff and more than 2,000 student employees across 13 schools and colleges (College of Education; College of Engineering; College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts; Graduate School; Law School; College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; the Mike Ilitch School of Business; School of Information Sciences; Irvin D. Reid Honors College; School of Social Work; School of Medicine; College of Nursing; and the Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences).

As Michigan’s most diverse public university, Wayne State stands out as an institution of access and opportunity or students from all backgrounds. Our 24,000 students are representative of Detroit, the region, and the state, with 16% identifying as Black/African American, 7% as Hispanic or Latino, 10% as Middle Eastern/N. African and 15% Asian. About 40% our undergraduates are first-generation college students and nearly half are Pell-eligible. We currently have students from 80 different countries and partnerships with institutions in the Middle East, Latin America, Korea, India, and China.

About President Espy

Kimberly Andrews Espy, Ph.D. joined Wayne State in August of 2023 as our 13th president. She previously served as provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at the University of Texas at San Antonio, where she championed social and economic opportunity by promoting affordable access to a top-quality research university education. She advanced social mobility through improved student learning and a strong focus on the recruitment and retention of outstanding diverse faculty leaders. She previously served as senior vice president for research at the University of Arizona, where research and development awards increased to record levels.

President Espy is an elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Her work has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health since 2002, and she has earned more than $22 million in funding to study how young children control their attention to promote later learning, mental health, and health outcomes, and how it is affected by medical, social, and environmental factors.

In her first year, President Espy embraced Wayne’s urban serving, public research university mission, and has actively engaged students, faculty, staff, community, alumni, and governmental stakeholders. In November 2023, she launched the College to Career initiative, which aims to improve student success by building intentional connections with industry, small business, community, service and governmental employers to advance marketable skill development. This type of career preparation fuels Detroit’s talent pipeline and advances social and economic mobility for all students, families, and the region.