Director/Manager of Communications
What this job does:
Leads communications strategy and creates high-stakes narratives for internal and external stakeholders, translating complex science into credible, brand-safe messaging across channels.
This job is similar to these lab/research tasks:
Translating complex findings into clear messages for diverse audiences, managing multi-stakeholder review cycles, editing for clarity and accuracy, delivering under deadlines
Typical starting salary range
$160,000 to $317,500
Salary estimate represented as 25th to 75th percentile. Gathered from recent job postings, Glassdoor.com, and Salary.com
Daily task breakdown
- Comms strategy, messaging, and planning: 25%
- Content creation and editorial oversight: 25%
- Media relations and stakeholder engagement: 20%
- Leadership and cross-functional alignment: 15%
- Measurement, issues, crisis, and other: 15%
Skills you'll use in this job:
Strategic messaging; editorial leadership; stakeholder management; media relations; issues and crisis comms; project management; measurement and iteration; scientific accuracy discipline
Talk about these PhD skills in your resume and interview:
Translate complex findings into clear messages; manage multi-stakeholder review cycles; edit for clarity and accuracy; build content plans and deliver under deadlines; measure outcomes and iterate.
Alternative job titles to search:
Scientific Communications Director; Corporate Communications Manager; PR Director; Media Relations Lead; Communications Lead
*Note:
-Job titles are inconsistent between companies. Try various keywords.
-PhDs tend to undershoot seniority level. Target higher than you think.
