Social Media Manager

About the California Academy of Sciences

The California Academy of Sciences is a globally renowned scientific and cultural institution located in the heart of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. Home to a world-class planetarium, aquarium, research center, and natural history museum—all under one living roof—our mission is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration.

Our extensive collections span plants, animals, fossils, and cultural artifacts from across the globe and throughout history. We are a diverse team of leading biodiversity scientists, educators, storytellers, designers, and communicators who work collaboratively to advance knowledge and inspire action through science and storytelling.

When you join the California Academy of Sciences, you become part of a mission-driven community that values curiosity, collaboration, and innovation. Whether you're working behind the scenes in research or engaging the public on the museum floor, your work will help connect people to the natural world and empower them to protect it.

Organizational Culture
Join a team dedicated to the Academy’s mission, vision and values! Currently, the Academy has a new strategic plan including three initiatives – Hope for Reefs, Thriving California, and Islands 2030 – that leverage biodiversity science, environmental learning, and collaborative engagement to regenerate fragile ecosystems around the world. Learn more at https://www.calacademy.org/about-us/major-initiatives.

We hope you are inspired by what we do and are excited to contribute to our mission. The mission of the California Academy of Sciences is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration. The Academy is looking for candidates who do great work, and we know they may come from a number of different backgrounds and experiences. We encourage you to apply even if you do not believe you meet every qualification for the position.

This position is based in San Francisco, California. The specific onsite/hybrid schedule for this position is listed below.

ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY

The Social Media Manager is a key contributor within the Marcomm Division, responsible for the strategy, creation, and day-to-day execution of content across all of the California Academy of Sciences' social media channels. This role owns the Academy's organic social presence  developing content that is culturally fluent, visitation focused, mission-aligned, and built for the audiences we most want to reach while serving as an active collaborator on paid social campaigns in partnership with agency partners and internal stakeholders.

Reporting to the Associate Director, Brand Marketing, this role brings a strong creative and analytical sensibility to a 3MM+ social community across Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, and emerging platforms. The Social Media Manager is a skilled content creator, community manager, and strategic thinker who stays ahead of platform trends and uses data to continuously improve performance.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

Organic Social Media Strategy & Content

• Develop and execute a cohesive, channel-specific organic social media strategy aligned with the Academy's brand positioning, campaign calendar, and institutional priorities.
• Create, write, and produce original content across all owned social channels including Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook, balancing brand storytelling, on-site visitation, science communication, and audience engagement.
• Develop and manage the Academy's social content calendar, ensuring consistent publishing cadence and strategic alignment across campaigns, exhibits, events, and mission-driven moments.
• Partner with internal teams/staff to source content, surface stories, and identify real-time opportunities for social engagement.
• Manage and moderate the Academy's social community: respond to comments, messages, and mentions in a timely, brand-appropriate way; escalate issues as needed.
• Oversee online reputation management, monitoring brand sentiment and coordinating responses to customer feedback across social channels on Sprout.
• Maintain and evolve the Academy's social media brand guidelines, ensuring visual and tonal consistency across all channels.

Paid Social Media Collaboration

• Partner with the Associate Director, Brand Marketing, agency partners, and internal stakeholders to support the execution of paid social campaigns.
• Provide organic content insights, audience data, and platform expertise to inform paid social strategy across campaigns.
• Coordinate asset delivery and creative input for paid social placements, ensuring consistency between organic and paid social presence.
• Monitor paid social performance in collaboration with agency partners; surface insights and optimization recommendations to support campaign goals.
• Source, manage, and develop relationships with influencers and content creators to amplify reach, drive authentic engagement, and connect with diverse Bay Area and national audiences.

Analytics & Performance

• Track, analyze, and report on key social media metrics  including engagement, reach, follower growth, and conversion  across all channels on a regular cadence.
• Use data and audience insights to optimize content strategy, inform channel priorities, and identify emerging opportunities.
• Stay current on social media platform updates, algorithm changes, and emerging trends; translate findings into actionable recommendations for the team.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Manage on-call photographer, prioritizing and assigning photo shoots and photo editing across social media and broader Academy needs

QUALIFICATIONS

Experience & Education

Required:

• 5+ years of experience in social media strategy and management.
• Experience producing short-form video content (Reels, TikTok) in-house.
• Demonstrated success growing and engaging social audiences across Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and other major platforms.
• Experience developing and executing organic social media strategies aligned with broader marketing and business objectives.
• Experience collaborating with paid media teams or agencies on integrated social campaigns.
• Prior experience managing direct reports, or demonstrated readiness to step into a people management role.

Preferred:

• Experience managing social media for an organization with a combined audience of 1MM+.
• Familiarity with influencer and creator partnership management.
• Degree in Marketing, Communications, Journalism, English, or a related field or equivalent experience.

Skills & Abilities

• Deep platform fluency across Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube including organic content best practices and paid formats.
• Strong writing and editorial voice; ability to adapt tone and style to fit the Academy brand, platform context, and target audience.
• Proficiency in social media management and listening tools (e.g., Sprout Social, Hootsuite, Brandwatch, or similar).
• Hands-on content creation skills, including short-form video production, basic graphic design, and photography editing.
• Fluency in analytics platforms (Meta Business Suite, TikTok Analytics, Google Analytics) with the ability to translate data into clear, actionable insights.
• Familiarity with creative tools (Adobe Suite, Canva) and project management software (Notion, Asana) preferred.
• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage a high-volume content calendar across multiple channels simultaneously.
• Collaborative and proactive communicator with the ability to build strong working relationships across departments and with external partners.
• Passion for science, the natural world, and the Academy's mission to regenerate the natural world.

Physical Environment:
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.

Compensation and Benefits:

The salary range for this position is $90,000 - 100,000. Actual compensation will be commensurate with the final candidate's qualifications and experience, including skills, knowledge, relevant education, certifications and aligned with the internal peer group. We believe in fair and equitable compensation practices and are committed to providing competitive salaries within the industry and market standards. The Academy offers a total compensation package that emphasizes both base salary and comprehensive benefits based on the hours per week worked. Further details regarding compensation and benefits will be discussed during the interview process.

Schedule: Full-Time, 40 hours per week, hybrid 

How to Apply:  Interested candidates should submit a resume and application materials through our Careers Page portal.

The California Academy of Sciences will give full consideration for employment to all qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance (SF Police Code, Article 49).