Director of Strategic Outreach
Director of Strategic Outreach
The George Mason University College of Education and Human Development (CEHD) Office of Strategic Enrollment is seeking a versatile experiential marketing and recruitment outreach professional to join the team as a member of the professional faculty. George Mason University has a strong institutional commitment to the achievement of excellence and diversity among its faculty and staff, and strongly encourages candidates to apply who will enrich Mason’s academic and culturally inclusive environment.
About the Department:
The Office of Strategic Enrollment leads and coordinates the efforts at different organizational levels to attract and retain students to the College’s distinguished and diverse array of academic programs. The office provides marketing and recruitment support services and systems to programs and divisions to ensure alignment with best practice and integration with broader recruitment and marketing efforts to optimize effectiveness.
Responsibilities:
Reporting to the Executive Director of Enrollment and Outreach, the Director of Strategic Outreach leads the College’s experiential marketing and recruitment strategy development and implementation efforts and is accountable for the achievement of goals and objectives for this function. Such efforts include:
- Ownership of all CEHD experiential marketing/communication channels, and development of robust annual audience-engagement strategies to optimize use of events as a tool for recruitment and retention. Reviews, analyzes, and evaluates effectiveness of mid-funnel marketing and recruitment efforts;
- Strategic development and orchestration of all communication and marketing tactics for events, including promotion and communication plans, advertising and media buying, lead-gathering and follow-up, signage, swag, and event materials such as booth backdrops and factsheets, and programming in our customer relationship management system (and other recruitment-related technology support systems) to ensure RSVP operationalization and optimization and triggered email communications. Ensures all messaging and design are on-brand and aligned with CEHD identity;
- Planning and oversight of annual recruitment programming for the college, consisting of large-scale open houses, application and financial aid workshops, and a variety of other face-to-face and virtual recruitment events to accommodate a diverse array of prospective student populations;
- Establishment of, and improvement upon processes to ensure consistency and quality of event-related programming. Such processes include, for example, determining modality, designing presentations, crafting engagement activities such as polls or contests, and advising presenters about content;
- Coordination with central admissions to ensure coverage and optimization of centralized undergraduate and graduate recruitment programming;
- Development and implementation of event management training resources, including systems for efficiently and effectively providing consultation to support CEHD programs in planning and executing their own successful events; and
- Contributes to overall integrated planning efforts of the office to support the achievement of strategic enrollment objectives set forth by College leadership.
Required Qualifications:
- Master’s degree and CMP or CSEP certification, or equivalent combination of education and related professional experience in large-scale event management and event-related marketing/communication systems;
- Demonstrated quantifiable success in developing and achieving strategic objectives related to event planning and implementation;
- Understanding of audience engagement strategies and tactics;
- Well-organized with outstanding multi-tasking skills, and ability to anticipate issues and adapt plans in a dynamic environment;
- Excellent customer service and vendor management skills;
- Strong verbal, interpersonal, and written communication skills; and
- Occasional evening and weekend work will be required, especially during peak recruitment season.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Experience using a customer relationship management platform, such as Salesforce/TargetX; and
- Experience working in graduate student recruitment for a private and/or entrepreneurial institution.
Special Instructions to Applicants
For full consideration, applicants must apply for position number FA377z at https://jobs.gmu.edu/; complete and submit the online application; and upload a cover letter, resume, and a list of three professional references with contact information.
George Mason University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, committed to promoting inclusion and equity in its community. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability or veteran status, or any characteristic protected by law.