Description

The Strategic Communications Project Manager is responsible for the overall direction, coordination, implementation, execution, control and completion of specific communications projects while ensuring customer requirements are met and expectations exceeded. The Strategic Communications Project Manager provides leadership, assures quality deliverables, and makes technically sound recommendations based on industry-accepted best practices and management fundamentals. The Strategic Communications Project Manager recognizes the need to evolve the project and processes to meet the strategic communications requirements of each task. The project manager also works with the client to identify requirements and solutions for communications products, graphic design, media development and web site content maintenance and follows through with employees to ensure quality and timely delivery.

Requirements

The candidate should be knowledgeable of marketing communications best practices, protocols and processes and the outreach channels and marketing vehicles on which those communications are delivered. The candidate must have a conceptual understanding of creative development, media production, web communications, event planning and execution, marketing campaign management, and marketing analytics. This candidate must have excellent communication skills, positive motivation, team building, and leadership development. We are seeking someone who can influence both transformational and event driven changes by focusing on organization design, leadership, culture, change management, communications and training.

The candidate should have experience with government contract requirements and interfacing with contract officers. The candidate should understand project budgeting for time and funds to allow for appropriate forecasting based on workload and client needs.

Strategic Communications Project Management Skills

The candidate must:

• Experience managing medium to large Federal Programs that involve graphics design, video production, web content creation, social media programs or projects.
• Have strong verbal communications skills to clearly articulate ideas to a technical and non-technical audience.
• Establish and enforce quality standards for the team.
• Be able to resolve conflicts within the team and with the customer.
• Be agile and adaptable in a changing client environment.
• Be able to prioritize and balance work requests from various sources.

Project Management Skills

The candidate must be extremely proficient at project management and display exception problem-solving skills. The candidate must be knowledgeable of the Project Management Institute's (PMI) principles and proficient in using best practices for Project Management. PMP Certification is required.

These include:

• Develop the project charter, project management plan and sub-plans.
• Work with Requirements/Business Analyst to ensure adequate definition of the business requirements, project scope, goals and deliverables.
• Assemble and coordinate project staff, in some cases in unison with other PMs.
• Develop and maintain project schedule baseline and subsequent changes.
• Define and prioritize project tasks and resource requirements.
• Host and run team meetings. Provide direction and support to the project team.
• Track project deliverables using appropriate tools.
• Plan, monitor, and schedule project timelines.
• Monitor and report on progress of the project regularly.
• Develop metrics and present dashboard reports defining project progress, issues and resolutions.
• Implement and manage project changes to achieve project outputs.
• Develop and present formal monthly financial and progress reports using standard NDi formats.
• Ensure all project artifacts are reviewed and accepted by customer.
• Evaluate project results and prepare a detailed project summary and lessons learned account for future reference.

Technical Skills

• Proficiency using Microsoft Project, the Microsoft Office Suite, and other management software to create dashboards and staffing analysis.
• Strong writing skills to write create statements of work, client presentations, white papers, position papers, assist in preparation of proposals and other writing tasks as needed.

Desired Skills but not required

• Experience in the Agile methodology and related management tools for Agile development operations.
• Proficiency using Agile Methodology oriented tools such as JIRA
• Use of accounting software, such as Unanet is desirable.

Certification/Education:

• Professional Management Professional (PMP) required
• Must be able to obtain a Public Trust clearance
• Bachelor's Degree in Interactive Digital media, Digital Strategy, Media Design, Communication Management, Campaign Strategy or a related Strategic Communications and Media field