Research Institute Communication Officer

In accordance with the Trust/Research Academic Staff Agreement this position has an approximate appointment of 12 months with the possibility of extension and offers a comprehensive benefits package found at Faculty & Staff Benefits and annual salary range of $58,938 - $66,309.

Location - North campus.

Department Summary

The Alberta Land Institute (ALI) is an independent research institute based at the University of Alberta. We are committed to research that supports and enhances land use policy in the province of Alberta and beyond. Our work focuses on the changing landscape and the ways that planning and policy design can ensure the long-term sustainability of Alberta’s agricultural sector, its water, and its natural areas. The Institute is housed within the University of Alberta and reports to Dean, Faculty of ALES, who chairs ALI’s Community Advisory Board.

Position Summary

The Research Institute Communication Officer will develop, oversee, and implement our strategic communications and public engagement–from media to events. They will provide communications and digital marketing support, including the development of integrated communications, marketing, content and media plans in order to enhance the impact of the work and reputation of the Institute and its members

The Research Institute Communication Officer will develop and produce a wide range of products, public-facing reports, and materials, according to the Institute’s standards, timelines and budget. They will oversee all aspects of our digital presence from our website to social media channels. They will coordinate external communications with media and key stakeholders in order to enhance the Institute’s profile and reputation.

The Research Institute Communication Officer will be responsible for coordinating and designing the promotion of ALI’s community, events and research on the Institute’s website, newsletter, and social media in addition to original video and design work. They will manage the creation, production and distribution of digital and print material, marketing and media activities. They will also coordinate and collaborate with the teams of the Institute’s programs and projects, advising and recommending communication and knowledge mobilization strategies to internal stakeholders. They will support the Institute and its members by contributing to the design, development and dissemination of communication materials, and will ensure compliance with the University and Institute’s branding guidelines.

Duties

Communications and Marketing

• Leads social media campaigns and public engagement projects to maximize research communications and impact; prepares the newsletter and other public engagement products.
• Develops promotional tools and initiatives, including communications plans and document templates to support the work and growth of the Institute and its members.
• Maintains a style guide and provides direction in the interpretation of the style guide in websites, publications, and other applications.
• Develops and recommends external communications, managing effective communication with the media and public.
• Maintains brand standards across all channels, and ensures compliance with the University, partners and Institute’s policies and standards.
• Designs, formats and publishes reports, posters, booklets, and other contents.
• Leads strategic communications; writes news and other announcements such as press releases; handles media calls, distributes media calls to relevant members; supports members for media relations and prepares them for media appearances.
• Assists with the development, execution, implementation and evaluation of communication strategies and materials.

Knowledge mobilization and events

• Prepares tables, graphs, fact sheets, and written reports summarizing research results.
• Develops online digital resources, including databases and corpuses.
• Conducts research to identify relevant stakeholders and individuals in the fields identified;
• Assists with the preparation, writing, translation of key documents including grant applications, ethics applications, project reports, manuscripts for publication, abstracts, scientific posters and presentations by providing technical content in support of such documents.
• Assists in the organization and implementation of research dissemination events (conferences, seminars, workshops, etc.) including contacting relevant and interested stakeholders; drafting strategic event communications; conducting research on the topic of the event; developing materials.
• Assists with authoring relevant sections of manuscripts, and facilitates the submission of study results, conference abstracts and preparation of posters, oral presentations, and journal articles for publications.

Coordination Duties

• Carries out general project administration and communication duties as required by the Institute’s activities and program.
• Assists with welcoming, training, guiding, and supervising students and research staff.
• Plans and arranges meetings, teleconferences and other research activities with stakeholders.
• Prepares detailed documentation files.
• Processes, organizes and summarizes data, and reports experiment results using a variety of scientific, word processing, spreadsheet or statistical software applications or program platforms.
• Develops, implements and maintains physical and electronic filing systems, especially for data management.
• Assists with any other duties required by the research projects or for the management of the Institute.

Qualifications

• One to two years’ experience (print and/or digital; events; media; professional or not).
• Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills as well as the ability to work in a team environment.
• Strong computer proficiency using Office 365 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneDrive), Google Apps, Slack, and electronic scheduling software.
• Knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, Premiere), Drupal and Wordpress. Proficiency in HTML and CSS are an asset.
• Advanced writing, editing and proofreading skills in English; advanced verbal skills in English. Fluency in French or other languages is an asset.
• Ability to pay attention to detail and display resourcefulness.
• Ability to prioritize multiple tasks, to work under pressure, to effectively manage overlapping duties and to meet deadlines.
• Strong organisational, time management, coordination and facilitation skills.
• Undergraduate degree in marketing, communications, journalism or a related discipline.