Communications Manager

Salary: $65,000.00 - $80,000.00 Annually
Location : Lynchburg, VA
Job Type: Full-time
Job Number: 03674 - CMRK123
Department: Communications & Pub Engagement
Division: Communications & Pub Engagement
Opening Date: 09/04/2026
Closing Date: 9/30/2026 11:59 PM Eastern


Description

Accounts: Water Resources, Public Works

The Communications Manager oversees the development and implementation of effective communication strategies to inform, engage, and build trust with the public, stakeholders, and employees. Acting as an account manager for designated departments, this role serves as a strategic advisor and primary liaison, tailoring communication plans to specific needs. The Communications Manager is responsible for creating high-quality content, maintaining digital platforms, analyzing performance metrics, managing public relations efforts, and ensuring clear, consistent, and transparent messaging across all channels.

The City of Lynchburg is an Equal Opportunity Employer and encourages all qualified candidates to apply.

Learn more about Living in Lynchburg.

Essential Duties

• Serve as the primary communication lead for assigned departments, understanding their goals and priorities.
• Develop, implement, and manage comprehensive communication strategies tailored to each department's needs for both internal and external communications.
• Support department leadership in the development of presentations, talking points, speeches and other messages.
• Coordinate with internal teams to ensure alignment and consistency across all messaging platforms for projects, from ideation to implementation.
• Develop a social media strategy to align with department goals and brand guidelines, collaborating on implementation.
• Work with team members to manage social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube by developing creative content, campaigns, and audience engagement strategies, while actively monitoring and responding to comments and messages to foster meaningful community interactions.
• Drive content creation efforts, including blog posts, press releases, newsletters, and reports.
• Collaborate with graphic designers and other team members or contractors to develop engaging visual and written materials, including photography and videography for social media, publications, and promotional materials.
• Act as Public Information Officer (PIO) for assigned departments, pitching news stories, responding to media inquiries, writing press releases, and coordinating interviews, when necessary.
• Coordinate with Public Relations Manager to identify and support public engagement and outreach opportunities for departments and collaborate to conduct and support public meetings, as needed.
• Maintain and update website content for assigned departments to ensure accuracy and relevance.
• Lead development of publications such as annual reports, brochures, and special projects; provide light graphic design support for print and digital materials.
• Monitor and analyze communication performance metrics, including social media engagement, website traffic, and campaign effectiveness; use data to refine strategies and improve outreach efforts.
• Utilize collaborative project management tools such as Asana for task tracking and team coordination, Microsoft Teams for internal communications, Dropbox for secure document sharing, and other designated platforms.
• Cross-training for coverage of other department accounts, as needed.
• May be required to be on-call and to work non-standard hours, including weekends or emergencies.

ACCOUNT-SPECIFIC DUTIES

• Public Works: Develop information for residents about public works services; on-call for crisis communication and construction-related PIO duties, build internal communications, and maintain relationships with media reporters to pitch community-interest stories regularly.
• Water Resources: Serve as a 24/7 crisis communication contact, producing consumer confidence reports, the Annual Report, and handling construction-related PIO tasks. Develop and execute a comprehensive communication strategy for water, wastewater, and stormwater services to enhance customer service and brand awareness. Maintain a crisis communication plan for water emergencies, including waterline breaks, boil water notices, sewer overflows, and water contamination events. Build and maintain relationships with local reporters, pitching stories of community interest.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

• Willingness to work evenings and weekends as needed for events or emergencies.
• Familiarity with government operations and policies is preferred but not required.
• Other duties to provide direct or indirect service to the citizens may be assigned.
• When unusual situations occur and/or the City Manager declares a State of Emergency, all City employees may be required to accept special assignments and perform as needed to ensure appropriate service delivery.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES
This position has no supervisory responsibilities, however, may be asked to lead team projects or manage contract support.

Minimum Education and Experience Required
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 accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE
Bachelor's degree in communications, marketing, public relations, journalism, or a related field preferred; 5-7 years of experience in communications, public relations, or marketing, preferably in a government or public sector role; a combination of education and experience can be used to meet these requirements.
SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES
• Strong writing and editing skills for a variety of formats and audiences.
• Proficient in social media management tools, website content management systems, and analytics platforms.
• Experience in basic graphic design tools (e.g., Adobe Creative Suite or Canva).
• Photography and basic videography skills.
• Ability to analyze data and present actionable insights.
• Comfortable speaking on camera and in public settings.
KEY TRAITS
• Strategic thinker with excellent organizational and project management skills.
• Strong interpersonal skills for collaboration with diverse stakeholders.
• Adaptable and resourceful in a fast-paced environment.
• High attention to detail and commitment to quality.
Other Qualifications
LANGUAGE SKILLS
The successful candidate must have strong communication and presentation skills. Ability to read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations. Ability to write reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals. Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, clients, customers, and the public.
MATHEMATICAL SKILLS
Ability to apply concepts of basic mathematics
REASONING ABILITY
Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists. Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form. Possesses the ability to pivot quickly from one situation to another and manage multiple community engagement opportunities simultaneously. Must be relentless in his/her commitment to community engagement.
INTERPERSONAL SKILLS
Advanced interpersonal and management skills, including conflict resolution and negotiation skills, to manage diverse and/or complex activities.

Additional Requirements

• Must successfully complete IS 100 and IS 700 National Incident Management (NIMS) training within 30 days of employment. May also be required to complete higher levels of NIMS training as determined appropriate for the position.
• Possession of a valid driver's license issued by the Commonwealth of Virginia and acceptable driving record according to

The City offers an array of benefits combined with direct salary/wages in order to establish a total compensation package that supports the City's goals of attracting, rewarding, and retaining employees who are both representatives of the community and are also able to deliver exceptional services.

• Employees in full-time positions are eligible for the following benefits:
  • Medical, dental, and vision coverage
  • Retirement through the Virginia Retirement System (VRS);
    the City's contribution is based on a rate determined bi-annually by the VRS Board and employees pay 5% of base pay (pre-tax) towards their VRS benefit
  • Life insurance at no cost to the employee
  • Optional benefits such as 457 deferred compensation, Roth IRA, flexible spending accounts, etc.
  • Eligibility for parental leave and tuition assistance
  • Paid Time Off
• Employees in hourly and part-time positions may be eligible for benefits depending on the position

Employees of the City of Lynchburg may also be eligible for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program for federal student loans

Additional information about City benefits can be found on our and in the
01


DMV Release Notice: This position requires a valid driver's license and acceptable driving history. I hereby certify that I have read the DMV Record Release Notice, and give the City permission to obtain my driving record.

• Yes
• No
• I do not currently possess a Virginia Driver's License

02


Please provide your driver's license number so that your driving record can be obtained.
03


(Current Out-of-State applicants and applicants who have had an Out-of-State Drivers License at any time in the last 3 years): I agree to provide, WITHIN 2 WEEKS OF MY APPLICATION, a copy of my driving record from that state where I am currently licensed or have been licensed within the past 3 years. I will contact Human Resources within 2 weeks if I am unable to obtain my out of state driving record in that time. I understand that my application may not be considered for this position until I submit my out of state driving record.You can email this information to View email address on click.appcast.io, or fax to View phone number on click.appcast.io or mail this information to Human Resources, 900 Church Street, Lynchburg VA 24504. Include the name of the position for which you are applying. If you have a driving record less than 30 days old you can upload as an attachment to your application.

• Agree to provide record within 2 weeks of application date
• Do not agree (I understand I will no longer be considered for this position if I disagree.)
• Not applicable (I have not had an Out-of-State Driver's License during the past 3 years.

04


Describe your experience with developing, implementing, and managing communications strategies.
05


What does public service mean to you?
06


Describe a time when you effectively communicated a complex idea or policy to a diverse audience.
Required Question