Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Los Angeles, California
Buena Vista, Colorado
Davis, California
Posted: 31-Jul-23
Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Salary: Commensurate with experience
Employment Type:
Organization Type:
Required Education:
Internal Number: 10842
POSITION SUMMARY:
Associate Athletics Director, Strategic Communications will lead the athletics communications team, serve as the department's primary spokesperson, and manage all aspects of media relations, communications, and statistical operations. In addition to establishing the vision and direction for traditional athletics communications efforts, a strong emphasis will be placed on collaborating with external relations to develop content for distribution on various platforms including social media.
This position will be responsible for:
Serving as the primary communications contact for men’s basketball and assigned Olympic sports
Overseeing all areas of the athletics website (GoDuquesne.com) including daily updates
Engaging with local, regional, and national media to increase exposure for Duquesne Athletics
Assisting in the scheduling, planning, and generating of content for social media platforms
Managing press operations for home men’s basketball games and sets the standard for other home events.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
Communications
Establishes the vision and direction of the athletics communications team
Supervises a team of two, full-time assistant directors
Serves as the athletics department’s primary spokesperson:
Department liaison with media organizations
Actively engages with local, regional, and national media to increase exposure for Duquesne athletics
Coordinates media requests for assigned teams and Vice President, Athletics
Oversees all areas of the athletics website (GoDuquesne.com) and daily site maintenance, including rosters, bios, stats, articles and releases, staff bios/pages, Google analytics, etc.
Primary communications contact for men’s basketball and assigned Olympic sports:
Produces team news releases and feature stories for GoDuquesne.com
Compiles and create game notes
Archives historical information (team milestones, stats, photos, rosters, etc.)
Oversees gameday communications operations for assigned teams
Maintains and updates team statistics and records
Archives of photos and distributes to INFLCR
Submits team awards nominations
Maintains Duquesne Athletics departmental historical information (photos, stats, departmental firsts, milestones, stories, etc.)
Travels on behalf of the division of athletics to events and conferences as needed
Budget maintenance and oversight
Critically evaluates all communications efforts for effectiveness, improvements and new elements
Gameday Communications Operations
Manages press operations for home men’s basketball games and sets the standard for other home events, including:
Hiring game staff and photographers
Overseeing and staffing statistical operations
Issuing credentials
Managing press box/press seats
Facilitating postgame press conferences for men’s basketball
Communicates with internal staff and external media key game details via game notes
Primary media relations contact for all NCAA and A-10 Events
Integrated Marketing and Communications
Oversees all partnerships with photographers
Collaborates with external relations to develop content for distribution on social media platforms, specifically for men’s basketball, @GoDuquesne accounts and assigned Olympic Sports
Assists in the capturing of content (photos, videos, interviews, etc.), particularly while traveling with teams
Oversees the development of talking points and questions for the Coach’s Show (approximately 6-8 episodes per season)
Identifies and develops human interest stories/segments for website and social media distribution
Complements revenue generation by infusing the promotion of ticket sales efforts as appropriate
Assists with assigned team’s annual media days
Special Conditions of Employment
Travel with the men’s basketball team to all away games and postseason contests as well as select games for assigned Olympic Sports
Evening and weekend work essential to the role
Successful completion of required background checks
Completes other duties as assigned.
REQUIREMENTS:
Minimum qualifications:
Bachelor’s degree in associate field (Journalism, Communications, Media Relations, Public Relations, Sports Information, etc.)
8-10 years of full-time, relevant experience (preferably in athletics)
Experience in supervising staff members (full-time or part-time) within a communications department
Working knowledge of Adobe Creative Cloud (InDesign and Photoshop)
Proficiency with the SIDEARM content management system and Statcrew/NCAA Live Stats
Willingness to work extended hours beyond the typical business day, including nights and weekends throughout the academic year
Ability to communicate and adhere to all University, Atlantic 10 Conference, NEC and NCAA policies, procedures, rules and regulations
Preferred qualifications:
Alternately, the successful candidate may possess any equivalent combination of experience and training, which provides the knowledge, skills and abilities required to perform the essential job functions. This includes, but is not limited to, the following:
Excellent written skills, including knowledge of AP Style
Knowledge and experience in public relations
Exceptional interpersonal, presentation, and communication skills as well as a strong attention to detail
Strong organizational skills with the ability to handle multiple tasks and prioritize accordingly
Understanding of social media platforms, content management platforms, desktop publishing software and statistical programs
Commitment to the University’s values of diversity, equity and inclusion, and recognition of the importance of treating each individual with dignity and respect consistent with the University’s Mission. Demonstrated experience with, and understanding of, the broad diversity of the University community (students, faculty, staff and others).
Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with the University Community.
Ability and willingness to contribute actively to the mission of the University and to respect the Spiritan Catholic identity of Duquesne University. The mission is implemented through a commitment to academic excellence, a spirit of service, moral and spiritual values, sensitivity to world concerns, and an ecumenical campus community.
