The Director of Medical School Communications - Michigan Medicine, provides senior leadership, operational oversight and strategic direction for the communications function supporting the University of Michigan Medical School and related academic and research priorities within Michigan Medicine. This role leads the central medical school communications team and partners with shared services team members to align school-level communications with enterprise strategy. As the School's primary communications leader, the Director bridges central, matrixed, and embedded communications functions to ensure strategic alignment, institutional consistency and high-quality execution across the academic enterprise.
This position reports directly to the Michigan Medicine Chief Communications and Marketing Officer (CCMO) and maintains a dotted-line relationship to the Chief of Staff for the Medical School. The Director also works in close partnership with the Medical School Communications Community of Practice Program Director to ensure coordination across central and embedded communications models.
Strategic Leadership and Academic Mission Communications
- Develop and lead integrated communications strategies and frameworks that advance the Medical School's academic missions and institutional priorities.
- Provide strategic counsel to Medical School leadership on positioning, messaging, issues management and reputation.
- Translate institutional priorities into actionable internal and external communications plans, campaigns and messaging.
- Ensure alignment between Medical School priorities and Michigan Medicine enterprise communications strategy.
Leadership of the Central Medical School Communications Function
- Provide day-to-day leadership and performance management for the central academic communications team.
- Establish and refine workflows, service models and planning processes that support high-quality strategic execution based on the Medical School strategic plan priorities and in alignment with Michigan Medicine strategic priorities.
- Oversee staffing, resource deployment and budget management for the Medical School's central communications function.
- Set priorities for central support of dean's office, Medical School administration, research and education initiatives, including key performance metrics that illustrate the impact of communication efforts.
Enterprise Integration and Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Serve as a lead representative for academic/medical school/research communications on the Department of Communications (DoC) leadership team.
- Partner with DoC shared services leaders across marketing, public relations/social media, digital/web, internal/executive communications and creative services to develop and advance integrated strategies.
- Lead cross-functional communications planning for academic initiatives and high-priority announcements that produce measurable outcomes.
- Track outcomes metrics and share best practices with colleagues to foster overall improvements in the impact of communications efforts.
Partnership with Community of Practice Communications
- Partner closely with the Medical School Communications Community of Practice Program Director on annual planning, message alignment, embedded communicator strategy and escalation of issues requiring coordinated central and unit-level execution.
- Support a cohesive relationship between the central shared-services team and the embedded communicator community of practice.
- Co-develop standards, tools and workflows and metrics that strengthen coordination across Medical School administrative units, departments, centers and institutes.
- 7 to 10 years of communications leadership experience in academic and/or health care setting.
- Bachelor's degree in Communications, Marketing, or relevant field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
- Proven experience advising leadership on communications strategies that drive understanding and alignment of enterprise vision, mission, and goals and development of metrics that illustrate communications impact and outcomes.
- Ability to navigate large and complex environments, meet multiple stakeholder needs and lead through change.
- Exceptional writing, editing, verbal and presentation skills.
- Proven record of effective team management and consistent delivery of high-quality work with measurable outcomes.
- Master's degree in Communications, Marketing, or related field.
- 15+ years of communications leadership experience in academic and/or health care setting.
Preferred Leadership Attributes
- Strategic thinking and judgment
- Operational leadership and accountability.
- Collaborative enterprise mindset and ability to manage through change.
- Strong executive presence and communication skills.
- Ability to lead through influence in a matrixed academic medical center environment.
Michigan Medicine conducts background screening and pre-employment drug testing on job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent job offer and may use a third party administrator to conduct background screenings. Background screenings are performed in compliance with the Fair Credit Report Act. Pre-employment drug testing applies to all selected candidates, including new or additional faculty and staff appointments, as well as transfers from other U-M campuses.
Michigan Medicine improves the health of patients, populations and communities through excellence in education, patient care, community service, research and technology development, and through leadership activities in Michigan, nationally and internationally. Our mission is guided by our Strategic Principles and has three critical components; patient care, education and research that together enhance our contribution to society.
Job openings are posted for a minimum of seven calendar days. The review and selection process may begin as early as the eighth day after posting. This opening may be removed from posting boards and filled any time after the minimum posting period has ended.
Please include cover letter with resume when applying.
The University of Michigan is an equal employment opportunity employer.
