Senior Director of Marketing & Communications

TITLE: Senior Director of Marketing & Communications

DEPARTMENT: Community Relations and Development

STATUS: Full-Time, Exempt

The Salvation Army, an international movement, is an evangelical part of the universal Christian Church. Its message is based on the Bible. Its ministry is motivated by the love of God. Its mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in His name without discrimination.

POSITION SUMMARY

The Senior Director of Marketing and Communications will oversee a team of subject matter experts responsible for external communications and brand management, and direct response fundraising including digital and direct mail which comprise a significant portion of the organization's annual funding. This position will provide strategic support to nine divisional/regional offices across the Western US and will manage the Territory's relationship with The Salvation Army's national advertising agency to ensure alignment and efficiency in all marketing and communications strategies.

The ideal candidate is a seasoned leader with deep experience in communications, public relations, direct marketing, and digital fundraising within a nonprofit setting. This role demands strategic vision, creativity, communications experience, and the ability to lead cross-functional initiatives. In addition to providing guidance to a seasoned and high-performing team, this position will also be directly responsible for developing and executing internal communications plans, serving as a liaison to leadership, and driving results through data-informed decision-making. A strong commitment to donor-centric storytelling and clear, consistent communication is essential to success in this role.

EDUCATION AND WORK EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Communications, Business, or a related field (Master's preferred)
• 10+ years of experience in marketing and communications, with a deep understanding of digital and direct mail fundraising
• At least 5 years of recent leadership experience in setting marketing and communications strategy and overseeing staff
• Proven experience in public relations, crisis communications, branding, and social media strategy
• Experience managing vendor and agency relationships, ensuring optimal performance and return on investment
• Experience driving donor or customer centered marketing and communications strategies
• Nonprofit or faith-based organization experience preferred but not required

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES REQUIRED:

• Strong background in integrated communications and marketing
• Ability to lead and mentor high-performing teams, fostering collaboration and leveraging subject matter expertise
• Proven ability to develop and execute internal and external communications strategies aligned with organizational goals
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to craft donor-centric, compelling messaging
• Demonstrated experience in digital and direct mail fundraising, including campaign strategy, content development, and performance tracking
• Deep understanding of advertising, media campaigns, and vendor management to ensure successful fundraising initiatives
• Strong data-driven decision-making skills to track marketing performance and refine strategies for optimal ROI
• Ability to navigate complex organizations, balancing strategic vision with operational execution
• Proficient in leading cross-functional initiatives with teams from diverse disciplines to achieve shared goals
• Project management skills to oversee multiple priorities in a fast-paced, dynamic environment
• Familiarity with digital marketing tools and platforms for web strategy, social media, email campaigns, and paid media

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Marketing, Communications & Brand Strategy

• Develop and implement a territory-wide marketing, communications, and brand strategy, ensuring consistency across direct mail, digital fundraising, advertising, public relations, and corporate partnerships.
• Serve as the primary brand steward, maintaining brand integrity and ensuring alignment across national, territorial, and divisional offices.
• Communicate and implement national branding campaigns across all territorial, divisional, local, ARC, and Kroc Center offices.
• Keep up with and train teams on best practices in brand management, marketing trends, and integrated communications strategies.
• Collaborate with Marketing and Communications Directors to ensure all fundraising communications are donor-centric, leveraging clear, compelling, and well-crafted messaging to maximize engagement.
• Create and refine communication pathways to ensure seamless collaboration between teams, reducing redundancy and improving efficiency in messaging.

Collaboration & Storytelling Integration

• Work closely with content teams, including fundraising, storytelling, and digital content teams, to align messaging and maximize the impact of The Salvation Army's storytelling resources.
• Develop a cohesive approach to donor communications, ensuring messaging is consistent, engaging, and emotionally compelling across all touchpoints.
• Identify and integrate compelling stories into marketing materials, ensuring storytelling is leveraged effectively in donor outreach efforts.
• Build strong relationships with divisional marketing and content teams, streamlining efforts and ensuring alignment between national and local storytelling initiatives.

Leadership & Team Oversight

• Lead and mentor a high-performing team, including:

• Strategic Communications Director (public relations, media relations, crisis communications).
• Director of Marketing (direct mail strategy, caging company oversight, direct mail vendor management).
• Director of Digital Strategy (digital fundraising, social media, email campaigns, paid media, and website strategy).
• Foster a collaborative team culture, empowering staff to leverage their expertise while working toward shared goals.
• Demonstrate leadership, with extensive knowledge of and experience in public relations, marketing, social media, branding, crisis communications, and digital and direct mail fundraising.
• Establish a regular cadence of meetings with the fundraising team to ensure seamless communication and coordination.

Brand & Vendor Oversight

• Oversee The Salvation Army's brand presence across all paid, owned, and earned media channels.
• Maintain brand guidelines and ensure compliance across national, territorial, and divisional marketing efforts.
• Provide oversight of vendor relationships at Territorial Headquarters, ensuring direct mail and digital revenue vendors meet performance goals and optimize fundraising outcomes.
• Ensure vendors provide detailed reporting on a regular basis, tracking performance and impact.
• Serve as the primary liaison with The Salvation Army's national advertising agency, ensuring effective campaign execution and alignment with brand objectives.

Internal & Field Communications

• Develop and implement internal communication strategies to streamline messaging across territorial, divisional, ARC, and Kroc teams.
• Ensure key messages, updates, and initiatives from The Salvation Army National Headquarters and the Territorial Chief's Office are disseminated effectively and in a timely manner.
• Serve as the primary liaison to divisional marketing and communications leaders, offering strategic guidance and resources.
• Assist in planning, coordinating, and promoting internal conferences and training events.
• Develop training tools such as orientation materials, and instructional collateral for use in the field.

Advertising & Media Campaigns

• Coordinate territory-wide advertising campaigns and manage divisional and market-level media buys (broadcast, not digital).
• Align marketing efforts with strategic objectives, ensuring all messaging supports fundraising and brand awareness.

Reporting & Performance Analysis

• Develop and deliver regular reports on marketing, communications, and brand performance, evaluating effectiveness across direct mail, digital fundraising, PR, advertising, and internal communications.
• Provide monthly reports to the Territorial Executive Director of Development on all efforts, tracking key performance metrics.
• Use data-driven insights to refine strategies, optimize marketing investments, and ensure measurable ROI.
• Ensure marketing performance aligns with The Salvation Army's fundraising objectives and donor engagement goals.

Team Engagement & Collaboration

• Participate in bi-monthly Community Relations and Development (CRD) Director meetings, all-team CRD meetings, and other committees/task forces as assigned.
• Foster a collaborative environment for the Marketing and Communications team through regular online and offline communication methods.

Work Environment & Travel

• This position is based at The Salvation Army USA Western Territory Headquarters.
• After an initial in-office period, staff are eligible to apply for partial remote work (up to 2 days per week remote).
• Some travel required to support divisional teams, vendor partnerships, and national initiatives.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

Qualified individuals must be able to perform the essential duties of the position with or without accommodation. A qualified person with a disability may request a modification or adjustment to the job or work environment in order to meet the physical requirements of the position. The Salvation Army will attempt to satisfy requests as long as the accommodation needed is reasonable and no undue hardship would result.

• Ability to travel to anywhere in the territory.
• Ability to sit, walk, stand, bend, squat, climb, kneel, and twist on an intermittent or continuous
• Ability to grasp, push, pull objects such as files, file cabinet drawers, and reach overhead.
• Ability to operate telephone.
• Ability to operate a desktop or laptop computer.
• Ability to lift up to 25 lbs. (usually file boxes).
• Ability to access and produce information from a computer.
• Ability to understand written information.

REPORTS TO: TERRITORIAL EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT