Associate Director, Social Media, Marketing and Communication, Wharton School

Job Description Summary

Wharton School Overview

Founded in 1881 as the world’s first collegiate business school, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania is shaping the future of business by incubating ideas, driving insights, and creating leaders who change the world. With campuses in both Philadelphia and San Francisco, Wharton has over 850 staff, a faculty population of more than 235 renowned professors, and 5,000 undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA, and doctoral students.

Each year 13,000 professionals from around the world advance their careers through Wharton Executive Education’s individual, company‑customized, and online programs. More than 104,000 Wharton alumni form a powerful global network of leaders who transform business every day. Wharton is home to a dynamic community of staff, bringing a wide range of skills, experiences, and perspectives.

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Reporting to Wharton’s Senior Director of Social Media, the Associate Director, Social Media leads the development and distribution of social media content related to Wharton scholarship, faculty thought leadership, and knowledge dissemination, translating complex academic content into high‑impact digital storytelling. This primarily involves management of the social media channels (Linked In, You Tube, Instagram, etc.) for Knowledge at Wharton, the School’s online business journal, promoting business insights and educational programming to an audience of nearly 300,000 followers.

The Associate Director serves as a key partner to faculty and cross‑functional Marketing & Communications staff, both within the central Marketing & Communications office and within research initiatives. The Associate Director proactively identifies opportunities to elevate research and shape integrated distribution plans across owned channels aimed at key target audiences (industry professionals, prospective students/learners, alumni, etc.) as well as the general public.

The role works to understand and advance Dean’s Office priorities related to faculty research and insights, influencing how Wharton makes its intellectual capital accessible globally. It also provides performance measurement and optimization, leveraging analytics, social listening, and industry trends to inform strategy and continuously improve outcomes.

• Lead planning and execution of social media initiatives for Knowledge at Wharton and related channels. Translate and promote Wharton faculty research/thought leadership through digestible social media content, working hand‑in‑hand with web, content, and creative teams. Handle day‑to‑day management of Knowledge at Wharton’s social media channels, including content ideation, development, and publishing. Lead community management efforts to engage with audiences in real‑time.
  
  Contribute to how Wharton highlights faculty research at a school level, manage special content projects (e.g. the Wharton Linked In newsletter) and collaborate with teammates to plan content for the school’s flagship channels.
• Develop and maintain relationships with internal and external staff to identify research storytelling opportunities on owned and earned channels. Collaborate with Mar Comm colleagues to assess existing faculty research and help determine content development and distribution plans. Work with Content team to plan Knowledge at Wharton editorial calendar and Media Relations team to promote faculty insights tied to current events. Oversee social media support Wharton research pillars as part of Mar Comm’s faculty working group, working to highlight their research, insights, and events while optimizing their own channels.
  
  Develop working relationship with Director of Paid Media to ensure organic and paid efforts are aligned and boost priority posts. Network with staff across Penn to collaborate on promotion cross‑disciplinary research initiatives.
• Support faculty with establishing and/or developing their personal social media presences. Facilitate cross‑promotion of content on their platforms, advising them or drafting posts on their behalf as needed. Consult on how to optimize their…