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Vice President, Public Affairs

Washington, District of Columbia, United States

VP, CORPORATE & PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Weber Shandwick is currently seeking a Vice President to join its Public Affairs teams to play a central role with new and longstanding clients across the corporate and public sectors.  This role will be based in Washington, D.C., helping to lead key Weber Shandwick client engagements, and will also contribute to the work of Powell Tate, the specialty public affairs unit of Weber Shandwick.  

 

We’re passionate about expanding the boundaries of what we offer our clients by bringing diverse perspectives to the table. We’re always looking for new colleagues who reflect the best of our values: curiosity, inclusion, courage and impact.  

Candidates should demonstrate a proven track record of leading external communications, including working directly with senior-level clients/stakeholders to shape strategies and messaging. The ideal candidate will have experience leading communications functions; strong skills and experience supporting executive and leadership communications – including speechwriting and crisis planning and response. The chosen candidate must have a strong public affairs and media relations background in the Washington, D.C. market or a major state capital. Public affairs experience should include thorough understanding of the U.S. political landscape at the federal, state, and local levels, as well as the intersection of earned, paid, and owned media, including through experience working for elected officials, candidates, or campaigns.  They should be able to draft and execute media strategies as part of corporate, public affairs and issues/crisis communications, leveraging reporter relationships.

Candidates must be driven, poised and team-oriented, with a demonstrated ability to learn issues quickly and communicate effectively with internal and external audiences. They must possess exceptional judgment when working with team members, client contacts and vendors, including legal and government relations partners, and experience managing teams and supervising individuals. As a Vice President, the candidate should be committed to serving as an energetic and constructive team lead and a supported, trusted supervisor and mentor for junior colleagues.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

  • Serve as a primary client contact responsible for strategic counsel, management of account deliverables and deadlines.
  • Design and implement public affairs and issue advocacy campaigns on behalf of corporate, coalition and trade association clients, including in highly-regulated industries.
  • Manage cross-functional teams, providing direction and guidance to ensure we deliver our best work and exceed client expectations.
  • Create opportunities for team members to learn and grow – promoting and retaining a collaborative, inclusive work environment conducive to success.
  • Provide oversight of budget, multi-agency and vendor contracting, timelines and reporting.

 DESIRED SKILLS & EXPERIENCE

Basic Qualifications

  • Bachelor’s Degree
  • 10+ years related professional experience

Additional Qualifications – Success Factors

  • Integrated communications and political/legislative experience
  • Significant media relations experience and contacts
  • Work History in a Public Affairs/Public Relations Agency
  • Experience managing significant client programs, cross-functional teams and integrated campaigns
  • Experience working on Capitol Hill
  • Fluent in national, business, and political media, as well as digital strategy and social media
  • Can turn ideas into workable plans, while anticipating client and team needs
  • Ability to work in, motivate, and mobilize fast-paced, highly collaborative, multi-disciplinary teams
  • Proactive self-starter and problem solver with meticulous attention to detail
  • Effective oral and written communication skills
  • Resilient mindset, deep curiosity, and a healthy sense of humor

ABOUT US

Weber Shandwick is a leading global communications network that delivers next-generation solutions to brands, businesses and organizations in major markets around the world. Led by world-class strategic and creative thinkers and activators, we have won some of the most prestigious awards in the industry. Weber Shandwick was named to Ad Age’s Agency A-List in 2020 and Best Places to Work in 2019. Weber Shandwick was also honored as PRWeek’s Global Agency of the Year in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018, and PRovoke’s Global Agency of the Year in 2015, 2017 and 2019. The firm earned 25 Lions at the 2019 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Data-led, with earned ideas at the core, the agency deploys leading and emerging technologies to inform strategy, develop critical insights and heighten impact across sectors and specialty areas, including brand and B2B marketing, healthcare marketing, change management, employee engagement, corporate reputation, crisis management, data and analytics, technology, public affairs, social impact and financial communications. Weber Shandwick is part of the Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG). For more information, visit http://www.webershandwick.com

Powell Tate is the globally-recognized, premiere, DC-based public affairs unit of the Weber Shandwick network. Built for change, we are nimble, data-driven and led by people who understand fast-changing politics, complex policy debates, emerging cultural trends, the role of third party stakeholders and digital transformation. We know the motivations that spark movements. The issues that matter most – privacy, environment, sustainability, automation, food safety and healthcare. In short: What to embrace. What to avoid. What you didn’t see coming. We solve complex business, policy and social issues. We mitigate risk and build reputation. We shape opinions and build support for issues that matter.

 

Washington D.C. Salary range: $119,000 - $155,000

Where an employee or prospective employee is paid within this range will depend on, among other factors, actual ranges for current/former employees in the subject position; market considerations; budgetary considerations; tenure and standing with the company (applicable to current employees); as well as the employee’s/applicant’s background, pertinent experience, and qualifications.

 

The Weber Shandwick Collective recognizes that your health and wellbeing are a priority. This is why we offer a full suite of benefits including:

  • Medical
  • Dental
  • Vision
  • 401k (with employer match)
  • Tuition Reimbursement
  • Juice Money - $60 monthly reimbursement to be used towards purchases that nourish your health, mind, body, and soul
  • MyDays – Flexible holiday schedules
  • Short-Term Disability
  • Paid Employee Family Leave
  • Family Building Benefit
  •  

Weber Shandwick is proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. Weber Shandwick recruits qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, gender, age, ethnic or national origin, protected veteran status, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status or citizenship status.

We make our careers website accessible to any and all users. If you need an accommodation to participate in the application process, please contact us at JobAppAccommodation@cmgrp.com. This email address is not for general employment inquiries or vendors; rather it is strictly for applicants who require special assistance accessing our employment website. Due to volume, messages sent to this email address that are not related to an accommodation cannot be answered.

We make our careers website accessible to any and all users. If you need an accommodation to participate in the application process, please contact us at JobAppAccommodation@ipgdxtra.com. This email address is not for general employment inquiries or vendors; rather it is strictly for applicants who require special assistance accessing our employment website. Due to volume, messages sent to this email address that are not related to an accommodation cannot be answered.

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