Associate Director of Communications

Position Title:

Associate Director of Communications

Salary:$110,000 / year

For 50 years, Samaritan House has been a leading nonprofit organization addressing poverty in San Mateo County. We offer a wide range of essential services and personalized support to help working families gain stability, focusing on food, clothing, healthcare, and housing. By collaborating with individuals, businesses, schools, and faith-based organizations, we provide free resources to empower community members. Our mission is to fight poverty and uplift lives, making our community stronger and more resilient.

Under the supervision of the VP of Advancement, the Associate Director of Communications will lead the development and execution of strategic communications initiatives to elevate Samaritan House’s brand, mission, and community impact. They will oversee all external communications, ensuring consistency across channels and alignment with organizational goals

Please note our preferred and in some cases required qualifications for this position:

EDUCATION:

• Bachelor’s degree in Communications, Marketing, Journalism or Public Relations, or equivalent experience in lieu of education.

EXPERIENCE:

• Minimum 7 years of experience in non-profit communication and/or marketing.
• Minimum 3 years of experience in a strategic role.
• Minimum 3 years of experience in supervision.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES:

• Strategic communications expertise, including brand management, messaging, and integrated communications planning.
• Strong writing and editing skills, with the ability to adapt content for donors, clients, partners, media, and the public.
• Experience in nonprofit or mission-driven communications, preferably in human services, housing and shelter services, or food security.
• Experience managing or supporting the management of a marketing/communications budget.
• Ability to translate complex programs and data into compelling, ethical, and human-centered stories.
• Knowledge of digital communications channels, including websites, email, and social media platforms.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, supervise, and mentor communications staff, consultants, or vendors.
• Understanding of trauma-informed and community-centric communications practices.
• Strong project management, cross-functional collaboration, and organizational leadership skills.
• Experience working within RACI or other project management framework and utilizing project management software (Asana).
• Strong ability to conduct all business and interactions with all constituents in a highly ethical manner, demonstrating high level of integrity as well as the ability to maintain appropriate professional boundaries – knows how to successfully redirect.
• Proven ability to conduct all interactions with all constituents in a highly ethical manner demonstrating high level of integrity, transparency and compassion in all work.
• Must be able to exercise appropriate and sound judgment, professionalism, appropriate composure with tact and diplomacy both under normal and stressful situations.
• Must possess a solutions-based approach to problem solving. Ability to be creative and show initiative and act as an independent employee while having a team player approach and attitude.
• Excellent interpersonal skills. Ability to establish and maintain successful and effective relationships with Samaritan House constituents (internal and external) and partnering agencies.
• Must have flexibility with work schedule, which may include occasional evenings, holidays and/or weekends as needed.
• Demonstrated commitment to Samaritan House’s mission, values, and community impact
• Ability to follow Agency Policies and organize required activities according to Samaritan House policies, procedures and best practices which include any related federal, state, or local agency requirement.
• Clean driving record- ability to get to and from job sites within the Agency as assigned.

Candidates must have the physical, visual, and auditory ability to perform the essential functions of the job and to respond to emergencies with or without reasonable accommodation.…