Marketing Director

Marketing Director

The Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship is seeking a Marketing Director to lead its marketing and communications across the Ion District, Powered by Rice University, and the Venture Advantage Platform.

This role comes at a pivotal moment for both the organization and Houston's innovation ecosystem. The Rice Alliance is building and launching Houston's Venture Advantage Platform in the Ion District, creating a unique opportunity for an entrepreneurial marketer to help shape the narrative, grow and engage the audience, and bring to life one of the most ambitious innovation initiatives in the region.

Through the Venture Advantage Platform, we will bring together people, expertise, capital, and corporate and community partners into a single coordinated system activated through helping founders gain advantages and compound impact. By doing so, we will strengthen Houston's ability to sustainably launch and grow thriving ventures that deliver local, national, and global impact. Over 25 years, the Rice Alliance has supported more than 3,714 startups that have raised more than $31 billion in capital. That impact is rooted in our belief that when people are activated around meaningful work, it creates an economic engine that generates an abundance of opportunities for our community to prosper. The Rice Alliance exists to help people pursue their life's work.

The Marketing Director will:

• Lead the strategic narrative, positioning and communication direction
• Develop and deliver our demand generation and audience growth strategies
• Evolve and build the marketing tech stack to deliver against a cohesive user journey
• Maximize experiential engagements to amplify the Ion District narrative, increase audience engagement, and advance sponsorship and partnership opportunities
• Collaborate with Ion District stakeholders to support District development, leasing activity and ecosystem visibility

Success will look like our stories reaching and resonating with key audiences and turning that into participation, partnerships, and organizational growth. It means clear, repeatable marketing systems that allow a lean team to work efficiently, with AI and automation embedded throughout our marketing operations.

The Marketing Director will be responsible for collaborating and aligning marketing strategies and outcomes with stakeholders across Rice University and the broader Houston innovation ecosystem.

The Ion is the namesake building of the 16-acre innovation district in Midtown, powered by Rice University. The District will soon expand with The Arc, a nearly 200,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility designed to accelerate collaboration, research, and commercialization across key industries. These resources make the Ion District a central destination for Houston's rapidly evolving innovation ecosystem.

Special Instructions to Applicants:

In addition to a resume and cover letter, all applicants must submit an executive summary (no more than two pages) describing how they've used AI to solve a problem and create meaningful advantage. This should demonstrate both clear communication and thoughtful use of AI. Submit these materials in the Supporting Documents section of the application, preferably in a PDF format to avoid any formatting issues.

Ideal Candidate Statement:

You have likely spent most of your career in an agency, startup, or other fast-paced environment where you were responsible for building demand, creating systems, and leveraging earned and owned media to drive results. You are skilled at turning complex initiatives into clear priorities and actionable plans.

You understand that some of the most powerful marketing comes from the experiences organizations create, the relationships they build, and the advocates they empower. Naturally curious about people and what motivates action, you know how to uncover the insights that lead to compelling stories, memorable experiences, and effective campaigns.

The ideal candidate will bring structure, clarity, and momentum to enable the marketing team to perform consistently and effectively. You are energized by the win of delivering meaningful impact with limited resources. You can build capacity beyond traditional headcount through partners, freelancers, vendors, volunteers, technology, and AI-enabled tools.

If you are drawn to the startup ecosystem and curious about solving for the needs of founders, investors, and entrepreneurial organizations—with an enthusiasm for Houston—this will be an opportunity to help elevate one of the nation's most dynamic innovation ecosystems. Familiarity with real estate, events, higher education, or mission-driven organizations is a plus.

Workplace Requirements:

This position is exclusively on-site, necessitating all duties to be performed in-person at the Ion. Some nights and weekends are expected. Per Rice policy 440, work arrangements may be subject to change.

Hiring Range: Hiring salary commensurate with experience and qualifications.

*Exempt (salaried) positions under FLSA are not eligible for overtime.

Minimum Requirements:

• Bachelor's Degree
• 5+ years of progressively responsible experience in marketing, communications or similar role
• Experience leading teams and managing agencies, freelancers, contractors, or other external partners

Preferences:

• 7+ years of progressively responsible experience in marketing, communications or similar role
• Experience leading marketing functions in a startup, agency or mission-driven organization
• Proven success in demand generation, audience growth, customer journey optimization, and campaign performance analysis
• Channel strategy and execution experience with measurable success across organic social media, earned media, SEO/GEO/AEO
• Demonstrated history with marketing tech including CRMs, automation, email marketing platforms, CMS, and other AI-enabled tools
• Proven success shaping organizational positioning and building alignment
• Ownership over budget allocation across channels and initiatives
• Experience working directly with executive leadership and with startups and entrepreneurs
• Interest in entrepreneurship, innovation, economic development, and Houston's growing innovation ecosystem
• Familiarity with marketing efforts for large-scale events, conferences, programs, or community initiatives
• Excellent written, verbal, and presentation communication skills

Essential Functions:

• Develop and execute integrated marketing and communications strategies that support organizational priorities, audience growth, and demand generation
• Lead the strategic narrative for the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship and support the Ion District communication strategy
• Develop the brand platform for the Venture Advantage Platform
• Build and optimize customer journeys that convert awareness into engagement, participation, sponsorship, and other organizational outcomes
• Oversee content, digital marketing, events, media relations, partnerships, and community engagement
• Lead marketing strategy for the organization's event portfolio to increase attendance and engagement
• Manage the marketing technology stack, reporting systems, and AI-enabled workflows
• Analyze marketing performance, audience insights, and market trends
• Establish departmental Rocks, budgets, and success metrics supporting the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS).
• Extend capacity and capabilities through freelancers, contractors, volunteers, and other external partners
• Collaborate with Rice University stakeholders, Ion District partners, and external organizations to align marketing efforts and amplify organizational visibility.
• Support sponsorship, partnership, and revenue-generating initiatives through marketing strategy and activation.
• Lead and develop the marketing team through its next stage of development, aligned with our values of Relentless Curiosity, Purposeful Stewardship, Take Ownership, Excellence is a Habit, and Enjoy the Journey Together
• Perform all other duties as assigned.

Additional Functions:

• Represent the organization at events and within Houston's innovation ecosystem as needed.
• Serve as a thought leader and trend manager in marketing for ventures in our network
• Support public relations and media initiatives, working with Rice Public Affairs and partner agencies