Senior Associate Vice President for Strategic Marketing and Communications

Senior Associate Vice President for Strategic Marketing and Communications

Job no: 558936

Work type: Management (MPP)

Location: Pomona

Categories: MPP, At-Will, Full Time, Marketing/Communications

Position Summary

The SAVP serves as Cal Poly Pomona’s chief communications leader and brand strategist, overseeing overall communications, marketing, and branding across all media platforms. The role ensures a clear, consistent brand narrative that advances the university’s mission of student success and polytechnic excellence. The SAVP leads the development and implementation of a brand vision, marketing strategy, and public relations campaigns to attract students, engage alumni and donors, recruit faculty and staff, and demonstrate impact regionally, statewide, and nationally. The SAVP is the university spokesperson and coordinates marketing and communications produced by academic and administrative units, as well as three auxiliary organizations: Cal Poly Pomona Enterprises, Associated Students, & the Cal Poly Pomona Philanthropic Foundation.

As a senior staff leader, the SAVP collaborates with counterparts across the CSU system and aligns CPP’s brand strategy with the California State University Next Steps Plan. The position is integral to communicating how PPPomona advances the mission of the Cal State system and contributes to regional and national goals.

Opportunities and Priorities

• Strategic Brand Leadership : Define and evolve the university’s brand identity and messaging architecture, and develop comprehensive marketing campaigns aligned with mission and strategic goals.
• Stakeholder Collaboration : Partner with communications across Colleges, Enrollment Management, Outreach, Recruitment, Advancement, and Student Affairs to align brand strategy with recruitment and fundraising initiatives.
• Drive Reputation, Market Position, and Awareness : Lead institutional reputation strategy through integrated marketing communications campaigns that position CPP as a regional, state, and national leader in polytechnic excellence.
• Crisis Communications and Issues Management : Serve as official university spokesperson, advising senior leadership on reputational risk, and oversee proactive and reactive media relations and crisis communications protocols.
• Internal and Executive Communications and Change Management : Lead internal and executive communications strategies to unify and elevate marketing and communications practices across a decentralized academic environment.
• Content & Digital Strategy : Manage production of high-impact, brand-aligned multimedia content, including university magazines, social media accounts, and the website.
• Team & Budget Leadership : Supervise a diverse team of communication marketing professionals while managing departmental budgets and external vendor relationships.
• Integrated Marketing Operations : Lead content strategy and production through cross-functional teams in digital strategy, creative services, and editorial production.
• Performance Analytics : Implement a data-informed culture by tracking performance outcomes, brand awareness metrics, and marketing ROI to inform planning.

Competencies and Qualifications

• Minimum Qualifications
  • Bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications, public relations, or related field (or equivalent education and experience).
  • Seven (7) years of progressively responsible experience in complex marketing and communications environments.
  • Demonstrated crisis management and institutional spokesperson experience.
  • Strong record of leading diverse, creative, and professional teams.
  • Commitment to and understanding of diverse academic and socioeconomic backgrounds.
  • Advanced proficiency in strategic storytelling across print, digital, and social platforms.
  • Ability to lead through influence as well as positional authority in a complex, multi‑constituent environment.
• Preferred Qualifications
  • Master’s Degree or MBA with a concentration in marketing or related discipline.
  • Management level experience in higher education.
  • Familiarity with higher education CRM systems, web content management systems, and data analytics tools for measuring campaign effectiveness.
  • Contextual understanding of legislative affairs and public policy and the significance of communicating the university’s value to state and government officials.
  • Commitment to student success, equity, and inclusive excellence.
  • Proven success in partnering with university advancement or development teams to support major capital campaigns.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Consistent with California law and federal civil rights laws, Cal Poly Pomona provides equal opportunity in employment without unlawful discrimination or preferential treatment based on race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin. The university commits to ensuring that every employee has the resources and support needed to thrive in a university environment and in their communities.