Communications Manager

Immigration Equality and Immigration Equality Action Fund seek a dynamic, passionate person to join our development team as Special Events Manager. We are proud to be the national leaders in the field we pioneered: lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and HIV immigration rights.

Founded in 1994, Immigration Equality has a dual focus of direct representation and impact work. We take calls every day from clients who need help right now and we work to change the systems that have lasting impact on how LGBTQ and HIV-positive immigrants are treated. We work with asylum seekers, detained individuals, and binational couples, answering more than 7,000 hotline calls and representing more than 650 individual litigants each year. We also engage in administrative advocacy and impact litigation to protect the interests of our community. Finally, through our Action Fund, we lobby federal policymakers to pass progressive legislation consistent with our mission goals.

We dedicate ourselves to empowering and protecting one of the most vibrant, resilient, and diverse communities in the world. In nearly 70 countries, it is still a crime to be LGBTQ. In many more, it is fundamentally unsafe. We are proud to do life-saving work.

We are looking for a Communications Manager to join our team. This is a great opportunity for someone who is an experienced, dynamic, creative, highly skilled individual. The position will work closely with our legal and development staff to help support the core components of our communications work including digital media, press relations, advocacy, client engagement, fundraising, and key administrative support. The Communications Manager will report to the Communications Director and will collaborate with individuals and teams across the organization, as well as outside consultants, and interns and volunteers.

Given that the role has a broad set of responsibilities, we are open to training the right candidate in the areas where they need additional development.

Responsibilities

Media Relations and Public Speaking

• Support or assist in media relations, maintaining media lists, coordinating responses to developing stories, building reporter relationships, pitching stories, and fielding requests for information and interviews
• Monitor media, including tracking Immigration Equality media mentions and relevant press coverage to regularly distribute to staff, and staying up to date on relevant immigration and/or LGBTQ news and policy developments
• Assist with drafting and editing press releases, media advisories, talking points, and other media materials
• Give background interviews as needed
• Represent Immigration Equality at events and participate in panels and public speaking engagements as needed

Digital Media

• Serve as the primary internal brand steward, maintaining and informing staff, consultants, and volunteers about templates, style guides, preferred language, and organizational best practices
• Ensure content reflects Immigration Equality's tone, style, message, and branding; ensure branding and tone are consistent across multiple media platforms
• Monitor and make recommendations based on performance analytics across digital platforms
• Create and/or coordinate creation of written and visual content across digital platforms (e.g. graphics, videos)
• Promptly respond to inquiries submitted through social media and email
• Community manage Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
• Maintain website and regularly update content
• Format and send emails using Mailchimp or other customer relationship management tool

Client Relations

• Serve as primary liaison between former clients and Immigration Equality, sharing updates on events and resources
• Support current client-advocates and spokespeople and cultivate new ones, supporting them with media training, preparation for interviews and public speaking, and accompanying them to interviews and events
• Respond to individual non-legal inquiries
• Support logistics for client-centered events

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience
• Two to five years of similar experience
•  Remarkably strong writing, editing, and oral communication skills – able to write in more than one voice and for more than one medium
• Excellent interpersonal communication skills, including curios active listening, our clients are our top priority and we always strive to create a safe and welcoming atmosphere for them
• Initiative and the ability and willingness to collaborate and cooperate with colleagues when needed; comfortable working independently when needed
• Excellent organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple tasks on deadline
• Fluency in MS Office Suite, Salesforce, Mailchimp, Hootsuite, and website management tools a plus
• Willingness to take primary responsibility for diverse number of projects and to complete them in a timely manner and with attention to detail
• Ability to think strategically. Effective long-term planning and contingency planning to ensure goals are met
• Calm under pressure and able to juggle multiple priorities and deadlines while maintaining attention to detail
• Willingness and ability to manage up
• Occasional evening and weekend work, and some travel may be required
• Proficiency in Spanish or Russian a plus

Environment

Immigration Equality is a mission-driven organization full of smart, dedicated people. If you want to work at the cutting edge of the two most potent issues of our time, and do it with terrific colleagues in a fast-paced, nimble organization that seeks results, this is the place for you.

Immigration Equality is an equal opportunity employer: immigrants, transgender and gender non-conforming individuals, and people of color are strongly encouraged to apply. Applicants are expected to collaborate within a diverse and inclusive environment.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this position will begin fully remote. A laptop and printer will be provided to support working remotely. Sometime after October 2021 the position may return full time to our office in New York City. The ideal candidate is a well-organized, extremely detail-oriented, media-savvy, resourceful individual who is able to work in an open office environment when return to an office is possible.