Communications Director

Director of Communications

About Maui Humane Society

Maui Humane Society is Maui's open admission animal shelter and a service to our whole community. We help families keep their pets, reunite lost pets with their people, and move animals in our care to new homes and partner organizations. Our work includes shelter care and shelter medicine, low-cost spay/neuter and wellness services for community pets, pet resources, humane education and humane law enforcement. Our team is steady, compassionate and supported by clear processes, so the work is shared and sustainable.

The role

We're looking for a Director of Communications to own how Maui Humane Society shows up in public. Reporting to the CEO, you'll set the communications strategy, lead the team that delivers it and serve as our media spokesperson, so that Maui families trust what they hear from us and know where to turn for help with their pets.

You'll build and develop the communications team, decide how content and materials get produced, and put systems in place so the work runs well without you in every step. This role sets the direction, makes the calls and owns the results.

A day in this role

Most days are planning and judgment: shaping the content calendar with your team, reviewing sensitive posts before they publish, briefing a spokesperson, and working with Development on donor and campaign messaging. Some days a media call or a fast-moving social post changes the plan, and this role slows things down long enough to verify the facts before anything goes out. Open admission sheltering includes euthanasia and capacity for care decisions, and you'll explain them to the public plainly and calmly, including when the commentary is hostile.

What you'll be doing (with a team and support)

• Set the multi-year communications strategy and annual plan across brand, storytelling, paid media, digital channels, outreach, direct campaigns, education and fundraising, and report results to the CEO
• Closely work with, align, and support communication efforts with the Development Department
• Serve as the media point of contact: develop media strategy, build relationships with local and statewide media, pitch stories, prepare spokespersons and keep the media log
• Own and advance brand standards/ policies and key messages, including our employer brand and internal communications in partnership with Human Resources
• Build, hire and develop the communications plan and team, set priorities and workload, and own the budget, vendors and contractors
• Oversee production of creative print, digital, video and event materials, from brief through final approval
• Use data and new platforms to decide where and how we reach each audience, and measure what turns into adoptions, donations and volunteers
• Own the crisis communications plan and lead public communication during declared emergencies
• Lead website strategy, including development and platform changeover, and the communications side of annual and capital campaigns with the Director of Development
• Assist with and help coordinate advocacy efforts, advance leadership positioning, and build relationships with key community and government stakeholders with the CEO, Development, and select board members as needed..

What you'll need

• Senior experience leading communications at a nonprofit, working closely with philanthropy and fundraising
• Experience across employer branding, marketing, community outreach, education and storytelling
• Media relations experience, including serving as a spokesperson and preparing others to speak
• Crisis communications experience, including verifying facts before anything publishes
• Experience hiring, supervising and developing a communications or marketing team, including editorial feedback that is direct and usable
• A record of using new technology and data to shape messaging and decisions
• Strong writing and editing, with a portfolio
• Ability to identify key performance indicators for goal-setting developed with the CEO and work to provide professional development plans for communications team members to support a culture of learning
• A valid driver's license and the ability to be insured to drive MHS vehicles

What we'd love you to have

• Experience in animal welfare, ideally in an open admission shelter
• Experience with shelter software (PetPoint preferred)
• Communications experience in capital campaigns
• Early adoption of new communication platforms, matched to the audience each one reaches best
• Experience leading a website redesign or platform changeover
• Familiarity with the Maui community and care in how local families and issues are portrayed

Schedule

Full time, exempt, generally Monday through Friday, with some evening and weekend work for events and media. Crisis response can require immediate availability; monitoring coverage is shared across the team so this role is not on call around the clock. This position is designated essential personnel during declared emergencies.

About the work

Euthanasia is part of open admission sheltering. We make those decisions thoughtfully and carefully, through a clear process, and we support the people who carry them. This role explains that process to the public.

What you can expect from us

• Regular, supportive feedback
• Medical and dental benefits at no cost to you; FSA
• 401(k) with 50% match
• Student loan forgiveness eligibility
• Performance pay raises
• Training in animal welfare
• Compassion resources and support for the emotional demands of the work
• Relocation assistance

Maui Humane Society is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome applicants of every background and provide reasonable accommodation in the hiring process. Contact Human Resources to request one.