SVP, Marketing, Brand & Communications

SVP, Marketing, Brand & Communications

First Farmers Bank & Trust is looking for a bold, strategic leader to join our team as Senior Vice President, Marketing & Communications.

This is an opportunity to lead the Bank's brand, customer experience, marketing strategy, communications, public relations, and reputation management efforts while helping shape the future of a high performing financial services organization.

We're seeking a leader who can blend strategy, creativity, analytics, and leadership to create meaningful results for our customers, communities, and employees.

You'll Lead:

• Enterprise marketing and brand strategy
• Customer experience and engagement initiatives
• Public relations and executive communications
• Growth-focused campaigns and digital marketing efforts
• A talented team of marketing and communication professionals
• Strategic partnerships with agencies and vendors

You'll Bring:

• Proven executive or senior leadership experience
• Strong marketing, branding, and communications expertise
• Experience building and leading high-performing teams
• A passion for innovation, customer experience, and growth
• Financial services experience preferred

Why Join FFBT?

This is more than a marketing leadership role. It is an opportunity to help shape the future of a successful $3.5 billion, 37-branch community bank as we build on our legacy, expand in metropolitan markets, influence enterprise strategy, and create lasting impact for customers, employees, and communities. We are seeking a dynamic leader to champion a multi-faceted financial institution built on strong relationships, local decision making, and a commitment to helping our communities prosper through comprehensive financial solutions spanning retail, mortgage, agricultural, and commercial banking.

Position Summary

The SVP, Marketing, Brand & Communications is responsible for the strategic leadership, direction, and execution oversight of the Bank's brand, marketing, public relations, communications, customer experience, and reputation management initiatives.

This Director serves as the enterprise leader responsible for ensuring that all customer-facing messaging, branding, marketing campaigns, public relations efforts, digital marketing initiatives, community engagement strategies, and customer experience programs are aligned with the Bank's strategic growth goals.

The position provides leadership and accountability for the Marketing and Communications teams, develops integrated growth strategies, oversees external agency relationships, and ensures a consistent and compelling brand experience across all delivery channels.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

• Develop and execute a comprehensive enterprise brand, marketing, communications, and customer experience strategy
• Align marketing and communications initiatives with the Bank's strategic plan and growth objectives
• Serve as a strategic advisor to executive leadership on brand positioning, reputation management, customer engagement, and market opportunities
• Lead annual planning processes for marketing, communications, and brand initiatives
• Lead and oversee the planning, coordination, and on-site execution of corporate events, including employee engagement initiatives, customer-facing events, seminars, and other strategic organizational programs.

Brand Management

• Maintain and strengthen the Bank's brand identity and market positioning
• Ensure consistency of messaging and visual standards across all channels
• Guide long-term brand strategy and competitive differentiation
• Oversee management of subsidiary, product, and community-based brand initiatives

Marketing Leadership

• Provide oversight of all advertising, campaign development, lead generation, and customer acquisition activities
• Direct integrated marketing efforts supporting retail banking, mortgage, treasury management, wealth management, agricultural and commercial banking initiatives
• Establish measurable marketing performance indicators and reporting standards
• Ensure effective allocation of marketing resources and budgets

Communications & Public Relations

• Oversee media relations, public relations strategy, crisis communications, executive communications, and corporate messaging
• Guide the development of communication plans that strengthen public awareness and community engagement
• Ensure consistency between marketing initiatives and public communications
• Support executive leadership during significant events, crises, and high-profile public engagements

Customer Experience Leadership

• Lead efforts to improve customer satisfaction, customer loyalty, and overall customer experience
• Advocate for customer-centric decision making throughout the organization
• Partner with Retail, Operations, Digital Banking, and Lending teams to identify opportunities to enhance customer journeys
• Utilize customer feedback and market intelligence to improve service delivery and customer retention

Growth & Analytics

• Establish measurable goals related to household growth, deposit acquisition, loan production support, brand awareness, and customer engagement
• Monitor and report key performance indicators to executive leadership
• Leverage analytics, market research, and customer insights to drive strategic decisions
• Evaluate marketing effectiveness, ROI, and campaign performance

Leadership & Team Development

• Directly supervise the Director of Marketing and Director of PR & Strategic Communications
• Build a high-performing culture focused on accountability, collaboration, innovation, and results
• Establish priorities and ensure alignment across marketing and communications functions
• Mentor and develop future leaders within the department

Vendor & Agency Management

• Serve as sponsor for marketing, advertising, media, research, digital, and creative agency relationships
• Negotiate and oversee strategic vendor partnerships
• Ensure agency performance aligns with business objectives and budget expectations

* The company reserves the right to modify duties and responsibilities over time as needed.

Requirements

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Communications, Business Administration, Public Relations, or a related field required
• Demonstrated success leading and developing high-performing teams
• Minimum of three years of executive or senior leadership experience
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to assess market trends and opportunities
• Proven track record of developing and executing successful marketing strategies that drive business growth

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree (MBA preferred) in Marketing, Communications, Business, or related field
• 10+ years of progressive marketing and communications leadership experience, including executive-level responsibilities
• Financial services or banking industry experience
• Proven success driving growth through integrated marketing, branding, and communications strategies
• Experience leading high-performing teams and managing agency/vendor partnerships
• Strong expertise in digital marketing, analytics, and customer acquisition strategies
• Experience in reputation management, public relations, and executive communications

Skills

• Strong organizational and time management skills
• Expertise in marketing analytics, digital marketing, and campaign performance measurement
• Proficiency with CRM, marketing automation, and customer engagement platforms
• Strong knowledge of SEO, SEM, paid media, social media, and digital acquisition strategies
• Ability to analyze complex data sets and translate insights into actionable growth strategies
• Experience with market research, customer segmentation, and competitive analysis tools
• Proficiency in budget management, forecasting, and marketing ROI evaluation
• Advanced skills in Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Excel and PowerPoint, for executive-level reporting and presentations
• Familiarity with AI-driven marketing technologies, reputation management platforms, and emerging marketing trends

Work Environment

• Primarily office or branch-based environment with standard business hours. Travel to other branch locations and community events will be required (events may take place in the evenings or on the weekends)
• Daily extended use of banking software, secure digital platforms, and standard office equipment
• Repetitive hand and arm movements
• Ability to sit or stand