Communications Specialist, Community Program Development

• Increased member engagement in Foresters fun family and community volunteer events;
• Improved member perceptions regarding the value of Foresters benefits of membership;
• Larger community impact through greater member participation, specifically around Foresters purpose of enhancing the well-being of families and communities.

Areas of Accountability

• Creating event-specific franchised program guides for use by Foresters in-market field staff.  These guides will clearly identify and outline ‘best practices’ to ensure a consistent and rewarding member experience at all events. 
• Developing web-based ‘on demand’ programming to provide Foresters members with the information and advice necessary to plan and execute their own local volunteer activities (with Foresters financial support).
• Leading internal thinking, research and testing around Foresters Engagement Continuum (our working theory of member progression), with a particular focus on the stages related to Foresters fun family and community volunteer events.
• Acting as an in-house expert on volunteerism, including research on best practices, industry trends and position papers.
• Establishing the key messages and vocabulary used to describe Foresters community partners and programs, considering diverse audiences that include members, sales producers and the general public.
• Providing counsel to the L & D Specialist to ensure the creation of required staff and member event training materials.
• Consulting with Foresters in-market field staff to seek feedback on existing programs and advice regarding new ideas / approaches. 
• Project management duties including: timelines and scheduling, stakeholder management, legal and compliance review, etc. 
• General administrative work and other duties as required.

Key Qualifications

• The successful candidate will possess excellent written communications skills, with on-the job experience writing business plans, program guides, and marketing copy.  Communication samples will be requested.
• Candidates should have experience with corporate community investment / involvement or volunteer engagement.
• Candidates should have a post-secondary education in journalism, marketing / business or another related field, with 3-5 years of related experience
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with experience working with a variety of stakeholders including senior executives, corporate partners and out-of-office staff would be ideal.
• Good understanding of program development theories and best practices, including objective setting, audience identification, message development and measurement.
• Customer focused, with experience utilizing the “what’s in it for me?” approach to marketing communications.
• Ability to manage multiple projects concurrently; ability to set timelines and project progression; flexibility to adapt to emerging issues in a changing environment.
• Excellent computer skills including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint to produce plans, reports and presentations.  Creation of ‘on demand’ programming will require comfort and familiarity with best practices around web portal development.
• Confident and enthusiastic team player with a self-directed approach and a willingness to take on new creative challenges.