Communications Director

Application Deadline: Open until filled, priority given to applications received by August 10

Benefits: 4-day work week with paid wellness time, retirement match, HSA, employer-paid healthcare premium, dental and vision coverage, generous PTO policy, office gym, etc

About AKPIRG: Founded in 1974, the Alaska Public Interest Research Group (AKPIRG) is a statewide, nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit guided by a commitment to Alaska and the people who live here, and Alaska's only nonprofit consumer advocacy organization. AKPIRG works across four specializations (Energy, Economic Justice, Good Government, and Language Access) to bridge lived experience and decision-making, strengthen accountability, advance equity, and create a future where Alaskan communities thrive.

About the position: The Communications Director plays a key role in translating AKPIRG's programmatic work into compelling storytelling, accessible public education, cohesive fundraising narratives, and strategic communications that help move policy, connect complex policy issues to Alaskans' lived experiences, and build people power. The Communications Director will work closely with other AKPIRG staff and the Digital Communications Lead to grow AKPIRG's public presence, deepen meaningful engagement with Alaskans across the state, and strengthen the impact of our advocacy and organizing work.


Primary Responsibilities

• Design and implement communications strategies that translate complex issues into accessible, compelling messaging grounded in a cohesive AKPIRG voice.
• Ensure AKPIRG communications strategies, framing, content, and processes reflect and center AKPIRG values of decolonization, justice, accountability, community, and trust.
• Guide organizational narrative, messaging, and long-term communications planning.
• Lead on writing and editing communications across platforms and audiences.
• Coordinate communications projects across teams, managing timelines, workflows, and dissemination strategies to ensure alignment with organizational and campaign goals.
• Manage press and media relations
• Expand the organization's reach across digital, earned media, and public platforms.
• Collaborate with AKPIRG's Digital Communications Lead on digital strategy
• Support the Digital Communications Lead through collaborative supervision, non-hierarchical leadership, project coordination, and professional development.
• Contribute to organizational vision, strategic planning, and internal policy development.
• Manage AKPIRG Communications team budget.

What This Looks Like in Practice

The Communications Director's day-to-day work is collaborative, fast-paced, and highly variable. Specific duties may include, but are not limited to:

• Writing, editing, and distribution of AKPIRG's monthly newsletter, Annual Report, press releases, op-eds, and other external communications.
• Reviewing advocacy materials prepared by AKPIRG staff for government agencies and public-facing campaigns, such as: public comments, public testimony, one-pagers, and reports.
• Brainstorming social media content, drafting and editing copy, providing feedback and support on digital asset development, and giving final approval on posts.
• Fielding press inquiries, preparing press materials, offering media support to AKPIRG staff, and building relationships with reporters and media outlets.
• Maintaining the AKPIRG website, including developing and updating content, creating and retiring pages, and overseeing website strategy.
• Participating in campaign strategy discussions to help shape messaging, public engagement tactics, and rollout of communications plans.
• Monitoring communications analytics and audience engagement to help evaluate campaign effectiveness and inform future strategy.
• Supporting rapid-response communications needs during legislative sessions, public comment periods, and breaking news moments.

Required Qualifications

• Commitment to operationalizing AKPIRG's values of decolonization, justice, transparency, and community within communications and AKPIRG as a whole.
• Excellent writing and editing skills, with the ability to craft compelling public narratives and translate complex information for a variety of audiences and platforms.
• Experience managing digital communications, including social media and email.
• Experience developing cohesive, consistent, and strategic messaging across multiple issues, audiences, and platforms.
• Ability to manage and coordinate multiple projects at once across teams, with a collaborative, adaptive, and organized approachProfessional experience (2+ years) in communications, journalism, marketing, or related field; or a combination of lived experience, education, movement work, and/or demonstrated communications skills that prepares you to succeed in this role.

Preferred Qualifications (not required, but please let us know if you carry any of these):

• Strong understanding of earned media; experience with press and media relations.
• Prior meaningful experience, relationships, and/or interest in specific AKPIRG issue areas and the communities we work with.
• Skilled relationship-builder across a diversity of backgrounds and cultural contexts.
• Experience in public policy, lobbying, legislative advocacy, or regulatory spaces, particularly within Alaska's political and governmental landscape.
• Familiarity with communications and project management systems such as EveryAction, Airtable, Asana, Meta Business Suite, and Google Workspace.
• Experience supervising staff through non-hierarchical management practices.
• Familiarity with audience engagement strategies and analytics.

What else you should know:

AKPIRG is an equal opportunity employer and we value having staff who come from communities that are most impacted by the issues we work on. Black, Indigenous, People of Color, single parents, trans and gender-expansive people, and people with disabilities who identify as Alaskan are encouraged to apply.