Deputy Director, Content

Application Deadline: April 11

Hiring/Reports to Manager: Director, Global Content and Creative

At the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation we believe that by creating an environment for our employees to thrive personally and professionally, we will have maximum impact toward our missions to achieve our vision.

Leadership and Culture

Our culture shapes our choices about what we do and how we do it. We believe that energized people, working well together, fueled by great leadership in an inclusive environment can do extraordinary things. We expect foundation employees to intentionally and consistently embody our values of optimism, collaboration, rigor, innovation, and inclusion.

We expect foundation leadership to demonstrate our leadership principles and management expectations. As a people leader, you are responsible for:

• Creating a culture for impact by shaping an environment where your team thrives, and their unique perspectives and identities are valued
• Strategy development, refinement, and management to ensure your team goals align with overall foundation strategies
• Nurturing people and building great teams by prioritizing collective success, team development, setting expectations and assessing performance

Summary

In June 2020, the foundation established a new Communications Division, led by the Chief Communications Officer, to oversee the foundation’s global communications strategy. The division brings together internal and external communications to advance the foundation’s mission of a more equitable world.

The global Content and Campaigns team is responsible for targeting and engaging priority audiences with compelling content and campaigns to help advance our advocacy and programmatic goals and support the foundation’s brand. The teams is responsible for the development and implementation of integrated marketing campaigns and managing foundation brand channels in alignment with our priorities. The team includes Goalkeepers, gatesfoundation.org, The Optimist, the Discovery Center, and the channel strategy and social media management for the foundation and our leadership.

The Content and Creative team develops creative strategy and content in alignment with program strategies and brand guidelines to enhance audience engagement and drive advocacy and brand goals. The team defines the creative direction in alignment with the brand strategy and works with our program and regional communications functions to develop and implement premier content for a variety of digital channels and campaigns.

The Deputy Director of the Content team will be a key member of the Communications leadership team and the global Content and Campaigns team. The position is intended to be based in Seattle and will work collaboratively with colleagues across the foundation’s global offices to lead creative development, visioning, direction and editing of content for key campaigns, moments, and across all digital channels. Content often includes video, audio, motion design, photography, traditional design, data visualization, and copy.

The primary focus of this role is to lead a core creative, strategy, story mining and design team to collaborate on the development of audience-first, insights-based marketing strategies, encouraging creative concepts, and world-class content to engage priority audiences and achieve communications objectives.

The Deputy Director will serve as the lead strategists on creative ideation, story identification and aligning to the foundation’s brand storytelling approach, building an inclusive culture that engages, inspires and promotes diverse voices.

Responsibilities

• Effectively manage an agile, inclusive, diverse and strong creative team and play an active role as a contributing member of the Communications leadership team
• Partner with the brand, channels, and campaigns leads to develop a story-centric creative strategy to support brand management, campaigns, and creative content that informs, engages and inspires target audiences
• Implement the foundation’s brand strategy through innovative creative content and experiences that inform and improve core audience engagement, while also enticing and appealing to new audience segments
• Develops and socializes institutional approach to finding and telling engaging stories. Turns internal program and advocacy strategies into clear and concise creative briefs for external vendors that result in high quality, compelling content.
• In close collaboration with channels team, leads all aspects of development and execution of strong creative content to reach core audiences across social and digital channels by using an understanding of best-in-class creative expressions and data-driven engagement models
• Oversee Content team budget and empower staff to produce timely results of deliverables and effectively manage and collaborate with diverse agencies/contractors to develop brand campaign content, ensuring clear and timely feedback
• Lead inclusive process to ensure strategic alignment, compelling storytelling, seamless cross-channel integration and timely execution of campaign deliverables and brand assets across the organization and its regional offices.

Qualifications

You will be a sharp, strategic, creative, inspiring communications leader. The ideal candidate will have experience leading successful teams, developing innovative and inspiring content for communications and editorial channels, and working closely with campaigns, digital and print media, on behalf of large, complex, global organizations. The Deputy Director will understand the strategic work of the foundation and the global communications and media landscape. They will be digitally-minded with experience developing and implementing creative strategies for high-profile campaigns and events. They should have a strong sense of curiosity, excellent judgement and willingness to collaborate. Global experience and/or proficiency in additional languages is a plus. Additional qualifications include:

• Masters or Bachelor’s degree in relevant field; Communications, Creative/Digital Design, Marketing, English, Journalism, Literature, Public Relations, Political Science or other relevant area of study
• A minimum of 10+ years of dynamic professional experience in a similar leadership role in communications, design, marketing, journalism, public policy, or a related field, including management experience, collaborative experience with a wide range of internal and external partners, and excellent communications skills.
• Experience working in non-profit/public health, government, communications agency, or private sector organization is strongly preferred.
• A strong knowledge of story development and digital marketing
• Proven ability in developing strategically-focused creative content that captures and transforms key audiences through engaging, effective brand experiences
• Understanding of the global health and development policy environment
• Understanding of key external communications trends, channels and distribution methods
• Excellent people management skills, and ability to recruit and develop diverse and passionate staff
• Background in storytelling and digital marketing with demonstrated excellent written and oral communication skills, in positions requiring communication with a broad and diverse audience on a range of complex and technical issues
• Preference for international experience and shown cultural competency
• Experience in a dynamic, deadline-oriented environment with demonstrated ability to juggle multiple and competing demands and establish priorities, while providing continual attention to detail.
• Ability to offer creative solutions to complex problems and translate options into implementable solutions
• Demonstrated flexibility to new challenges and situations
• Strong and valued teammate with a sense of humor and modesty; a ‘roll up your sleeves’ standout colleague
• Passion for the foundation’s mission
• Must be able to legally work in the country where this position is located without visa sponsorship.

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Hiring Requirements

As part of our standard hiring process for new employees, employment will be contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

Depending upon your work location, we may require proof of full vaccination against COVID-19 and any recommended booster doses. All employees based in the United States are to provide proof of full vaccination upon hire and any recommended boosters, subject to applicable laws.

Accommodations

If you require assistance due to a disability in the application or recruitment process, please submit a request to hr@gatesfoundation.org.

Inclusion Statement

We are dedicated to the belief that all lives have equal value. We’re committed to creating a workplace where employees thrive both personally and professionally. We also believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve—in race, gender, age, cultures and beliefs—and we support this diversity through all of our employment practices.

All applicants and employees who are drawn to serve our mission will enjoy equality of opportunity and fair treatment without regard to race, color, age, religion, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and prior protected activity.