Community Outreach Specialist

This Opportunity

WSP has an opening for a Community Outreach Specialist to work at the Ocoee office of Florida's Turnpike Enterprise . The position will support, assist and offer guidance to the program in public involvement, public information, outreach and communications. The selected candidate will also join a talented group of other WSP communications professionals supporting the Turnpike program.

This is an exciting opportunity to join our national team of talented communications and public involvement professionals. As part of WSP’s Communications Advisory Services Practice, you may work on a wide range of infrastructure projects. The successful applicant will have the opportunity to expand their skillset and experience in public outreach, project coordination, public involvement, business development and communications techniques.

Your Impact

• Attend weekly construction progress meetings as necessary to understand current project issues
• Develop and produce information deliverables - fact sheets, PowerPoint presentations, graphics, etc.
• Work with construction project managers to identify and help manage information related to construction issues
• Respond to general customer toll inquiries – via phone and writing from various internal and external customers
• Serve as liaison between Turnpike projects and the community primarily in active construction zones
• Develop and plan public outreach campaigns prior to start of construction projects
• Coordinate and schedule mass mailers related to construction projects
• Research and help resolve issues pertaining to Construction, Maintenance, Traffic operations and other departments
• Research, draft responses, check for accuracy, and seek approval to a variety of media requests and elected official inquiries
• Promote Turnpike programs and initiatives by establishing, developing, and maintaining contact with media, professional and civic organizations, and other special interest groups
• Coordinate and participate in public meetings with various neighborhood groups or other Turnpike stakeholders as assigned
• Develop special educational and promotional materials for presentation at meetings and conferences
• Organize and support various special events, groundbreakings, grand opening ceremonies and public meetings
• Research, develop responses and generate posts for social media platforms (Twitter, Facebook, etc.)
• Research and develop content for project webpages and newsletters
• Reply to inquiries from the public and resolve concerns on behalf of the client

Who You Are

Required Qualifications

• 3-5 years of experience
• Bachelor's Degree in communications, marketing, or a related field
• Public involvement or community engagement experience on transportation projects
• Ability to work well with the public and interact effectively with all organizational levels, including agency/client staff, senior management, executive leadership, board members, community leaders, and city/county/state representatives,
• Excellent verbal, writing, and presentation skills
• Ability to work independently, interdependently with teams and demonstrate initiative
• Ability to work beyond standard business hours periodically
• Strong time management skills and high attention to detail
• Ability to meet deadlines and multi-task in a fast-paced environment
• Strong computer skills, including experience with Microsoft Office, Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint
• Exercise responsible and ethical decision-making regarding company funds, resources and conduct and adhere to WSP’s Code of Conduct and related policies and procedures
• Proven track record of upholding workplace safety and ability to abide by WSP’s health, safety and drug/alcohol and harassment policies

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working on Florida Department of Transportation projects
• Knowledge and experience using AP style in the creation of documents
• Public involvement training from Florida Department of Transportation
• Bilingual (Spanish and English) communications/translations
• Local candidates preferred
• Graphic design experience (Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Snagit, Canva, etc.)
• Ability to work with stock images and deliver creative content (text, photo and video)