Editorial Director

Job Description

Position Summary : 

The Editorial Director owns how Unbound sounds. This role leads the development, creation and management of editorial content across the organization, and sets the language standard that every team draws from: the words we use for the families we walk with, for the people who support them, for our faith, and for the work itself.

Forty-five years of walking with families have taught us a great deal, and our language keeps evolving as we learn. We are clarifying what family sponsorship means and reaching audiences we have not historically reached: Catholics outside the pews, broader Christian traditions, and social-justice-oriented millennials and Gen Z. That work is a language problem before it is a marketing problem. The Editorial Director is the person who solves it, holding the fluency and reverence our Catholic roots require while writing in a register that welcomes people who do not share that vocabulary. Both audiences have to hear something true, and it has to be the same true thing.

This is a leadership role centered on a working writer. You will edit, you will write, and you will hold a high bar for accuracy, media law and ethics, and the dignity of every person who appears in our content. You will also lead a team that reports and gathers stories from Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and serve as a trusted partner to colleagues across the organization who need language they can stand behind.

Who We Are

Unbound is an international nonprofit based in Kansas City, Kansas, and founded by lay Catholics grounded in the Gospel call to put the needs of the marginalized and vulnerable first. We build relationships of mutual respect that bridge cultural, religious, and economic divides. Working side by side with individuals and families in Africa, Asia and Latin America, we bring people together to challenge poverty in innovative ways.

Our mission is to support families and communities worldwide on their self-directed paths out of poverty.

Our vision is to build a world free from poverty where all people have access to resources, community support and the ability to make decisions that improve their lives and uphold human dignity.

Unbound offers a practical way for sponsors, donors and volunteers to make a personal and direct impact as partners in our global community. Through walking with a child and family, youth, elder or community on their path out of poverty, our supporters have an opportunity to expand their worldviews and be part of creative solutions to poverty.

Key Accountabilities

1. Voice and language. Define and steward Unbound's voice, dignity-forward, victory-led and partner-oriented, and maintain the language standards that allow the organization to speak to Catholic, broader Christian, and secular social-justice audiences authentically and without contradiction.
2. Editorial leadership. Lead writing, editing, storytelling, and brand alignment for editorial purposes, and support the content curation function of the organization, ensuring that people and the organization are portrayed with dignity, respect, and honesty in accordance with Unbound's mission, vision, core values, motivation statement, and promise.
3. Standards and ethics. Ensure media law and ethics standards related to defamation, privacy, copyright, trademark, truth and accuracy, organizational photo and consent policies, and charity evaluator standards for marketing and communications are followed and met.
4. Media relations. Supervise the media relations function at Unbound and support the Media Relations Manager in developing and executing media relations strategies, messaging, and activities, as well as issue preparedness and crisis communications plans.
5. Global content gathering. Supervise the Field Communications Director in managing the content gathering strategy, activities, and work of reporters in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, in accordance with organizational and department strategies and goals and in collaboration with department leaders.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities : include the following. Other duties may be assigned.

Serve as lead editor for editorial content

• Develop concepts, plan, coordinate, write, and edit content for editorial purposes, ensuring that content is accurate, compelling, and consistent with Unbound's mission, vision, core values, branding, messaging, and medium.
• Serve as primary copyeditor for editorial content and support marketing and communications content through writing, editing and content development.
• Supervise and support the team responsible for reporting, writing, editing, content curation and media relations, telling the story of Unbound to target audiences and the general public and supporting the sponsor and donor acquisition and retention efforts of Unbound.
• Facilitate regular editorial team meetings to plan News and Stories, eNews and Faith Reflection calendars, vet story ideas and collaborate on assignments.
• Partner with social, digital, and paid media colleagues so that the editorial calendar feeds the organization's content territories and creative pipeline rather than running in parallel with them.
• Monitor news events that affect the Unbound community, lead the team in reporting issues and disasters, and notify key staff about breaking news stories.
• Make adjustments to the editorial content mix to keep communications responsive to audiences and events.

Own the language

• Develop and maintain the Unbound style guide, consistent with AP style and including the organization's consent and photography policies, and maintain the physical and digital archives.
• Maintain fluency in Catholic terminology, liturgical calendar, teaching and sensibility, and ensure that faith content is accurate, reverent and credible to practicing audiences.
• Develop and maintain guidance that enables the same core message to be expressed authentically to Catholic, broader Christian, and secular or social-justice audiences, without softening our identity or excluding people who do not share our vocabulary.
• Serve as a steward of the Dignity Standard, ensuring that families are portrayed as protagonists with agency and complexity, never as objects of pity, and that we do not publish numbers without stories.
• Hold the line on Unbound's standard for authorship: AI may assist thinking, research, and editing, but the voice that speaks for the families we walk with and for this organization is a human one.
• Advise program, philanthropy, outreach and international colleagues on language for new and evolving initiatives, and help translate internal terminology into words that land with external audiences.

Department leadership

• Serve as a brand standard leader for maintaining and developing the Unbound brand throughout Unbound's digital and print content.
• Serve as a consultant to leadership on issues affecting Unbound's reputation.
• Serve as subject matter expert on media law, ethics, and charity evaluator standards related to marketing and communications.
• Guide the Media Relations Manager on issues pertaining to Unbound's reputation, including development of issues preparedness and crisis communications plans and messaging.
• Contribute to department planning and quarterly priorities, and work on special projects as assigned.

Supervisory Responsibilities

May have up to four reports. Responsibilities include interviewing, hiring, and training employees; developing staff, planning, assigning work, appraising performance; rewarding and dealing with staff relation/corrective action; addressing complaints and resolving problems. Carries out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with Unbound's policies and applicable laws.

Personal Characteristics & Competencies – To perform the job successfully, an individual should demonstrate the following competencies and skills. (Examples)

• In answering the world's call to bring confidence, opportunity, encouragement, and restored dignity to families living in poverty, the incumbent will be responsible for the resources entrusted to Unbound, in a manner consistent with sound business practices.
• Maintains respectful, collaborative relationships with partnering groups which foster freedom of movement, creativity and vision.
• Demonstrates diversity by recognizing the dignity of each person, as reflected in the structure and activities of Unbound, including relationships of mutual respect, teamwork, and a commitment to Unbound's core values.
• Ability to synthesize information into clear, concise messages in a compelling manner for internal and external stakeholders.
• Ability to build trusting, collaborative relationships with all Unbound departments and external vendors and partners.
• Adapts readily to changing work demands and works cooperatively with a wide variety of people; shifts focus smoothly and quickly among competing activities; maintains composure under pressure.
• Requires decisiveness and good judgment in critical situations. The job will repeatedly face important deadlines that must be met.
• Ability to contribute to and advocate for the growth and development of others; willingness to devote appropriate time to training, coaching and developing others; understanding of the implications of varied learning styles; and ability to regularly follow up and hold others accountable for high standards of performance.
• Identifies and resolves problems in a timely manner; gathers and analyzes information skillfully; develops alternative solutions; works well in group problem-solving situations.
• Ability to prioritize and complete tasks to deliver desired outcomes within allotted time frames, to pursue organizational objectives in an organized and efficient manner, to maintain the required level of activity toward achieving goals without direct supervision, and to minimize workflow disruptions in order to complete high-quality work within a specified time frame.
• Demonstrates the ability to work constructively and cooperatively with people of all backgrounds and orientations; communicates information and ideas in speaking and writing effectively so others will understand. Understands and respects differences and ensures that all can contribute; examines own behavior and attitudes to avoid stereotypical responses; considers issues from others’ perspectives; draws on the diversity of skills, backgrounds, and knowledge of people to achieve more effective results.

Qualifications and Experience : To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. 

• Bachelor's degree from a four-year college or university; journalism, communications, public relations, marketing or English degree preferred. Minimum of six to 10 years of related experience and training, or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Nonprofit experience preferred but not required. Global experience is a plus.
• Demonstrated excellence in writing and editing, with a portfolio that shows range across audiences and formats.
• Working fluency in Catholic language, teaching and practice, sufficient to write and edit faith content that practicing Catholics find credible, and the judgment to know when a broader register serves the message better.
• Experience leading and developing a team of writers, editors, reporters or communications professionals.
• Working knowledge of media law and ethics, including defamation, privacy, copyright, trademark, consent and accuracy standards. Familiarity with charity evaluator standards for marketing and communications is preferred.
• Command of AP style and experience owning or building an organizational style guide.
• Media relations experience, including crisis and issues communications, is strongly preferred.
• In-depth understanding of, and buy-in to, Unbound's mission, values, principles, and the concepts of sustainable structures in Unbound's programs.
• Strong organizational and interpersonal skills, strong attention to detail, and sound problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Project management skills with a demonstrated ability to manage and prioritize multiple efforts at once.
• Strong computer skills in a Windows environment, including the Microsoft Office suite. Familiarity with content management systems, digital publishing workflows and the major social platforms is required.
• Comfort using AI tools responsibly for research, analysis and editing, along with a clear point of view on where their use should stop.
• A positive attitude and openness to new ideas, with the ability to listen carefully, try new things, suggest alternatives and solve challenges.
• Self-starter and action-oriented. Influential and collaborative communication style. Forward thinker and business savvy.
• Able to quickly establish credibility and build rapport to be recognized as a leader and expert.
• Ability to write, read, and interpret reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals.
• Ability to speak effectively before groups of supporters or employees of the organization.
• Willingness to undertake business travel, including occasional international travel.

Bonus Points – Preferred but not required.

• Newsroom experience, or a background reporting from outside the United States.
• Experience leading brand voice work through a repositioning or audience expansion.
• Working knowledge of Spanish, or another language spoken in the countries where we work.
• Experience with faith-based publishing, diocesan or denominational media, or religion reporting.
• Experience managing distributed or international teams across time zones.

Physical Abilities

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential job functions.

• Frequently required to sit, stand, and walk.
• Use hands to finger, handle, or feel, reach with hands and arms.
• Required to talk and hear consistently. 
• May occasionally undertake business travel, including occasional international travel.
• Ability to occasionally lift, carry and/or drag up to fifty (50) pounds if necessary.

Work Environment

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job; reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential job functions.

• Noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

Job Type: Full Time

Salary Range: $100,000 and over