Summary

Job Description: This is a highly strategic role responsible for leading communications for our three commercial segments. This leader is responsible for shaping and driving the company's communication strategies for our three business units alongside a team of two other strategic communicators. This person is responsible for developing and executing communication strategies, managing relationships with key stakeholders, including C-suite executives, overseeing internal and supporting external communications, creating impactful messaging, and ensuring alignment with the company's brand, values and objectives. This role collaborates with cross-functional teams, supports crisis communication efforts, drives awareness for products and services, and monitors industry trends to proactively address issues and identify opportunities. The role involves managing a team of two other strategic communicators, measuring communication effectiveness, and protecting the company’s reputation through strategic communication initiatives. This person has the leadership presence and influence to advise C-suite executives with ownership of the communications strategy for our Retailer Services business unit.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop and implement comprehensive communication strategies to support our Retailer Services business unit.

• Lead, coach and support a group of two communicators leading communications for our Experiential and Branded Services business units.

• Create engaging content, including for town halls, written materials, presentations, and multimedia assets, to communicate initiatives, programs, change management efforts pertaining to Retailer Services.

• Manage internal and support external communications related to Retailer Services, including announcements, newsletters, and social media campaigns.

• Monitor and analyze communication metrics to measure the effectiveness of communications and make data-driven recommendations for improvement.

• Provide strategic counsel to senior leadership on messaging and communication approaches aligning with enterprise business priorities and BU strategic objectives

• Support organizational change initiatives by developing communication plans that address concerns, provide clarity and drive adoption of change.

• Work closely with leadership to cascade important updates and changes throughout the organization in a timely and transparent manner.

• Stay up-to date on macro trends of the retail industry.

• Strong communication, influence and relationship building skills in a cross-functional team environment.

• About Us: When you think about the brands in your fridge and medicine cabinet, or the samples that bring joy to your shopping experience – we’re the force that connects the brands you love with the places you shop, in store and online. At Advantage Solutions, we connect people with the products and experiences that enrich their lives. Our purpose is enabled by a culture where we put people first, serve with heart, lead with insights, execute relentlessly and win together . We live these values every day in service to others, with the capabilities and collective intelligence to help give brands and retailers momentum in the retail marketplace. To make it all possible, we aspire to foster an employee experience that empowers every teammate to achieve their professional and personal dreams. About the Role: Our Corporate Communications & Marketing Team is looking for a director of business unit communications who can lead beyond the tactics and develop results-driven strategies that engage, enable and inspire our commercial teams and everyone they touch. In this leadership role, you will own integrated communications content and interactions that demonstrate our mission to generate demand for consumer brands and retailers, converting shoppers into buyers in every way they shop. This strategic communications role is responsible for building trusted relationships and delivering proactive communications roadmaps with messaging that is meaningful, memorable and actionable. In this role, you will be largely responsible for employee communications – providing guidance and counsel to the business unit’s Chief Operating Officer and sitting alongside their executive team to amplify, translate and localize our corporate narrative and progress. Standout candidates connect the dots and lead by proactively identifying short- and long-term opportunities for impact, versus waiting and/or reacting to tactical requests. Candidate values the briefing process and knows how to build strategies that demonstrate how communications solve business problems and enable goals. Candidate should be proficient at translating the complex, with experience developing presentations, speeches and talking points, as well as producing live and virtual events, team rallies and engagement experiences.You can expect a strong team culture and actively collaborating across the business. We rather be unified than uniform – so we encourage our teammates to “come from curious,” and create plenty of space for new perspectives and innovation. Communications initiatives will focus on bringing our value proposition to life for our teammates, clients and customers, as we endeavor to be an employer of choice, a strategic provider of choice and drive long-term profitable growth. We continue to make progress on our growth acceleration plan, so candidates with business transformation, M&A and/or change management experience are preferred. We believe that by focusing on People and Purpose, the outcome is stronger Performance. This candidate should have a track record for human-centered storytelling and building the relationships and results that influence corporate culture, belonging and community impact. Experience in the retail and/or consumer packaged goods industry is a plus, as well as a background in internal communications, journalism, PR and/or marketing.

Job Will Remain Open Until Filled

Responsibilities

The Company is one of North America’s leading sales and marketing agencies specializing in outsourced sales, merchandising, category management and marketing services to manufacturers, suppliers and producers of food products and consumer packaged goods. The Company services a variety of trade channels including grocery, mass merchandise, specialty, convenience, drug, dollar, club, hardware, consumer electronics and home centers. We bridge the gap between manufacturers and retailers, providing consumers access to the best products available in the marketplace today.

Position Summary

The Director of Communications leads the creation and implementation of marketing communications programs to key external stakeholders and business development targets including clients, retailers, vendors, acquisition targets, investors, press, etc. This individual will need to build strong relationships internally and externally, and must have exemplary writing skills and strong understanding of the CPG industry. This individual is accountable to deliver complex corporate marketing programs that drive customer engagement, help uncover revenue and profit generating opportunities, and raise the Company's brand visibility and recognition.

Essential Job Duties and Responsibilities

Marketing Communication / Content Generation

• Manager/execute the enterprise marketing communication strategy across marketing touch points (corporate website, publications, social media, print/digital advertising, tradeshow/industry event presence and speaking engagements, and other marketing materials). Track and monitor all divisionally-coordinated activity.

• Manager the development and dissemination of through-leadership and other content through targets platforms to advance the Company's value proposition.

o Author/edit content of quarterly thought leadership publications

o Collaborate with cross-functional content steering committee comprised of subject matter experts to generate relevant and compelling content

o As needed, select and manager relationships and projects with external content development partners (e.g. freelance copywriters, video/multimedia production)

• Lead a cross-functional team to develop the strategy for a new corporate website that elevates Company's brand imagery, and helps to drive business for the entire enterprise.

• Project manager the corporate website's upgrade, including integration of social media, SEO, lead generation, and content strategy to ensure the website serves as a meaningfully differentiated gateway to the organization’s thought leadership and portfolio of services.

Social Media

• Maintain and refresh all assests on Company's official social media pages and accounts, working closely with internal stakeholders including TA (which leverages social accounts for job postings).

• Work with team to curate relevant content and craft compeling commentary and copy for multiple social channels and executions.

• Help be the voice of the brand - proactively engage users in online/social environments (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, etc).

• Convey a sense of community and build a following based on caluable content and mutual sharing.

Trade Media

• Develop and manage media-based promotional strategy for generating awareness and recognition among prospective and existing clients and investors. Maximize the advertising budget's impact.

• Assist in the selection and management partnerships with influential trade publications e.g. Ensemble IQ.

• Practively leverage trade media opportunities to maximize the PR strategy.

Industry Assocaite Memberships/Event Attendance/Awards Program

• Develop and manage trackers/calendars to monitor industry association memberships, event attendance and award submissions across the enterprise.

• Qualify targetd enterprise-relevant events and sponsoship/awards programs to use a stratgic platform for building awareness of Company's value proposition an elevating the Company's reputationas an industry thought leader. Provide recommensations to ELT and other business leaders and manage the relationship/attendance and award submissions. Examples include FMI Midwinter and annual Top Women in Grocery Awards.

Additional Executive Communications Support

• Support members of the ELT as needed in writing client communications, speeches, presentations, FAQs and talking points for industry events, conferences, board/analyst/shareholder meetings, quarterly conference calls, associate Town Hall meetings, etc.

• Management/coordination of external and internal press releases.

Supervisor Responsibilities

Director Reports

This position does not have supervisory responsibilities for direct reports

Indirect Reports

This position does not have direct reports but may delegate work, provide guidance or mentoring for indirect reports

Travel and/or Drivine Requirements

Travel and Driving are not essential duties or functions of this job

Minimum Qualifications:

The following are the minimum job related qualifications which an individual needs in order to successfully perform the esential duties and responsibilities of the job.

Education Level Bachelor's Degree

Field of Study/Area of Experience: Communications, Public Relations, Journalism or related field or equivalent experience

8+ years of Communications in a corporate setting

Skills, Knowledge and Abilities

• Strong track record of working in Communications with experience working with senior management

• Strategic thinker with the ability to culitvate relationships at all levels of the company, including Executive and C-Suite level

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

• Experience in managing a webiste/content and understanding of web development process

• Experience managing print communications

• Experience marketing/communicating in alternative mediums (social media)

• Strong prioritization skills

• Strong computer skills including proficiency with Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, SharePoint, able to handle a fast-paced environment

• Sensitivity to company politics and cross-functional interdependencies

Environment & Physical Requirements

Office/Sedentary

Incumbent must be able to perform the essential functions of the jon. Work is primarily performed in an office environment. Typically requires the ability to sit for extended periods of time, ability to hear the telephone, ability to enter data on a compueter and may also require the ability to lift up to 10 pounds.

Additional Information Regarding The Company Job Duties and Job Descriptions

Job duties include additional responsibilities as assigned by one’s supervisor or other manager related to the position/department. This job description is meant to describe the general nature and level of work being performed; it is not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required for the position. The Company reserves the right at any time with or without notice to alter or change job responsibilities, reassign or transfer job position or assign additional job responsibilities, subject to applicable law. The Company shall provide reasonable accommodations of known disabilities to enable a qualified applicant or employee to apply for employment, perform the essential functions of the job, or enjoy the benefits and privileges of employment as required by the law.

Any estimate, schedule, or guideline provided to associates in this job description or elsewhere in connection with their jobs is only intended to help describe job duties and for planning purposes. Regardless of any such estimate, schedule, or guideline, associates must always record all time worked for our company (which includes but is not limited to on-site work time in an assigned store, office, or other work location; required waiting time; administrative time; and work-related travel time).

Important Information

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required of associates so classified.

The Company is committed to providing equal opportunity in all employment practices without regard to age, race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, religion, physical or mental disability, or any other category protected by law. As part of this commitment, the Company shall provide reasonable accommodations of known disabilities to enable an applicant or employee to apply for employment, perform the essential functions of the job, or enjoy the benefits and privileges of employment as required by the law.

Job Locations US-IL-Chicago

Primary Posting Location : City Chicago

Primary Posting Location : State/Province IL

Primary Posting Location : Postal Code 60601

Primary Posting Location : Country US

Requisition ID 2024-432500

Position Type Full Time

Category Professional: (IT, Finance, Legal, HR, Talent Acquisition, Administrative, Customer Service)

Minimum USD $120,000.00/Yr.

Maximum USD $156,000.00/Yr.