Communications Coordinator

Communications Coordinator

RAND's Office of Communications and External Affairs has an exciting opportunity for a dynamic communications professional who is looking to use their expertise and skills to support employee communications and communicating RAND's story with important policy audiences.This position reports jointly to the Manager, Internal Communications and the Director, Corporate Communications and Branding.

Working under joint guidance, the Communications Coordinator will play a vital role in advancing team priorities, including internal communications; brand management; and external stakeholder engagement through meetings, events, and speaker programs. These initiatives aim to deepen connections within RAND and with key audiences in the policy community and enhance internal engagement, outreach efforts, and brand identity.

Consolidated Responsibilities include:

Event Management and Hosting

• Plan and execute meetings, events, and speaker programs with external partner organizations, primarily in RAND's Washington office.

• Develop and manage event timelines, ensure the accuracy of contact lists, coordinate logistics, and host visitors to create a professional and welcoming experience.

• Organize and promote employee events and meetings in the Washington office to foster connection, knowledge-sharing, and awareness among staff.

• Support event production and promotion efforts for company-wide All Hands, employee recognition events, anniversary celebrations, and more.

Internal Communications Support

• Coordinate weekly content development and display for signage across offices to share employee news, information, and event details.

• Create written and visual content for employee newsletters, the intranet, workplace social networks, and digital signage across four offices.

• Maintain content management systems such as editorial calendars, planners, dashboards, and event listings to ensure smooth operation of internal communications.

• Support other internal communications needs as assigned, contributing to a cohesive and informed organizational culture.

• Develop PowerPoint presentations, promotional graphics, and newsletters to support the communications needs of the Washington office director.

Brand Representation and Strategic Communication

• Serve as a RAND ambassador, acting as the first point of contact for visitors and ensuring a warm, professional welcome that positively represents RAND's mission and values.

• Support the Brand Management program by ensuring outreach materials and event assets align with RAND's voice and values, maintaining a cohesive brand identity.

• Provide guidance on the use of RAND logos and brand assets for internal and external inquiries.

• Contribute to strategic communications initiatives, including integrated campaigns for major research releases and placing researchers at premier policy convenings.

Joining RAND offers the opportunity to contribute to a dynamic, intellectually stimulating environment that drives meaningful impact. Your role will be pivotal in fostering engagement, enhancing communication, and representing RAND's values to both internal and external audiences.

Qualifications
The successful candidate will

• Possess superior writing and editing skills with a strong command of language and ability to adapt tone based on audience or contextand present complex ideas and plans concisely and persuasively for time-constrained audiences.

• Experience with corporate communications, marketing, and stakeholder engagement, including organizing business-oriented events and convenings and with supporting speaker placements.

• Have a demonstrated understanding of how to communicate information in a clear, concise, and compelling manner, prioritizing the audience's needs.

• Be digitally oriented and tech-savvy, having a working understanding of HTML and web writing, and ability to generate content for communication and collaboration tools such as corporate intranets, Viva Engage, or Microsoft Teams; Be proficient in cloud-based applications (e.g., Planner, Asana, Trello) and eager to learn new collaboration and organization platforms.

• Have ability to create clean, visually appealing graphics using Canva and PowerPoint

• Possess strong organizational and time-management skills; be capable of creating project plans, taking initiative, and working collaboratively, while meeting deadlines

• Demonstrate flexibility and creativity by embracingnew ideas and feedback

• Have experience with building and maintaining professional relationships with key stakeholders.

Education Requirements

Bachelor's degree in journalism, communications, marketing, public relations, or related discipline; advanced degree advantageous.

Experience

Three to five years of relevant experience in a communications role. Experience with employee events is preferred. Experience working within a mid-size to large corporate or non-profit setting is preferred.

Location

This position will be located at RAND's Arlington, Virginia office. This position is eligible for RAND's hybrid work environment, which enables a blend of on-site and remote work. On-site presence is required three days per week; specific on-site days will vary based on employee events schedule.

Writing Sample Required

Candidates are required to submit samples of their work that demonstrate their writing skills and ability to create internal communication products.Writing samples may include intranet or web copy, corporate social media content, posters or flyers, or PowerPoint presentations.

Salary Range:$75,700 - $112,400

RAND considers a variety of factors when formulating an offer, including but not limited to, the specific role and associated responsibilities; a candidate's work experience, education/training, skills, expertise; and internal equity.Successful candidates will be offered employment in a specific title, as determined by the candidate's education and experience. The salary range includes base pay plus RAND's sabbatic pay (which provides additional compensation above base pay when vacation is taken). In addition, RAND provides strong benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, paid time-off and more.

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