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Posted Job Title
Communications and Partnerships Manager - Community for Rigor - Penn Engineering
Job Profile Title
Communications Specialist Senior
Job Description Summary
The Community for Rigor (C4R) is an innovative team at the University of Pennsylvania dedicated to changing research culture by providing comprehensive educational materials, promoting best practices, and fostering a community committed to improving research reliability. Community for Rigor is a 6-year funded project from NIH NINDS, and operates as a hub that coordinates the efforts of multiple partner institutions.
We are seeking a Communications and Partnerships Manager, based out of the Kording Lab, to own the strategy and day-to-day execution of C4R's communications, community engagement, and outreach. You will build and sustain an engaged community around research rigor, reaching a broad audience that includes students, research and support staff, faculty, and funders. This is a role for someone who thrives on a small, fast-moving team - operating independently, developing deep knowledge of C4R's educational product, hosting events, representing C4R directly to external audiences, and actively contributing to the project's fundraising and long-term sustainability. In addition to empowering scientists, we also aim to empower every member of our team, through a supportive, inclusive, and open working environment.
Job Description
Responsibilities
- Own C4R's communications strategy and execution across all channels - audience targeting, platform-specific approaches, and brand and style-guide consistency - working with the Communications Team to plan, write, and distribute content (newsletters, op-eds, blog posts, social media) on a regular published cadence, tracking engagement and iterating based on performance.
- Supervise a team of two, including assigning work, reviewing output, and supporting their development.
- As a member of C4R Leadership, design and deploy a strategy for community engagement, including contribution and engagement pathways for our partners, stakeholders, learner audience, and broader scientific community.
- Serve as one of the key representatives of C4R's product to external audiences, designing and delivering tailored applications that support adoption - such as outreach presentations, 15-minute demonstrations of longer content, and short-form interactives for live events.
- Develop and maintain working knowledge of C4R's curriculum, including what each unit teaches and the research-rigor problem it addresses.
- Develop and maintain an understanding of C4R's audiences - including how researcher needs and motivations vary across disciplines and career stages - to shape messaging, audience targeting, and engagement pathways.
- Establish channels to gather feedback from audiences and stakeholders on C4R's products, such as surveys or other structured methods, and communicate findings and recommendations to organizational leaders.
- Initiate and sustain relationships with contacts, potential partners, academic institutions and their educational entities, and rigor, reproducibility, open-science, and educational organizations (e.g., The Carpentries, CZI Open Science, ReproducibiliTea, reproducibility networks).
- Identify and cultivate funding and partnership opportunities that support C4R's mission and long-term sustainability.
- Plan and coordinate events and C4R's annual conference across virtual, in-person, and hybrid formats, owning logistics through execution and follow-up.
- Support grant-related communications and donor or funder engagement as needed.
- Receive and act on feedback and direction constructively, collaborating professionally with colleagues, partners, and supervisors, and proactively reporting on projects, progress, and outcomes to maintain internal visibility.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree (neuroscience background preferred, STEM background minimum) and a minimum of five years of professional experience in communications, community management, outreach, program administration, or a similar field or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
- Demonstrated ability to work independently, translating a broad vision into actionable goals and executing without close supervision.
- Evidence of presentation skills for live audiences, in person and virtually.
- Strong writing, editing, and documentation skills, including style and operations guides, op-eds, blogs, social media posts, etc.
- Strong interpersonal, communication, stakeholder management and conflict management skills.
- Experience with digital, print, and/or video content production.
- Some experience with or exposure to fundraising, development, or donor/funder engagement.
- Experience with event planning for events of 50-100 guests minimum, both in-person and virtually.
- Experience identifying and cultivating funding or partnership opportunities, such as grants, sponsorships, or institutional collaborations.
- Familiarity with research rigor, reproducibility, and/or open-science topics.
- Familiarity with research, academic, or higher-education environments.
- Interest in developing new skills and taking on new responsibilities as the project evolves.
Preferred / Nice-to-Have
- Experience with inclusive and accessible design (e.g., user personas)
- Community Manager certification (e.g., CSCCE)
- Availability to work in the office minimum once a week. Application for remote work will be considered but hybrid strongly preferred.
- Experience with AI and its thoughtful application within workflows.
- Familiarity with accessibility practices (WCAG, alt text, inclusive language).
Job Location - City, State
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Resume and Cover Letter Description
Please provide a resume and cover letter in your application. We use these documents to understand your experience and who you are as an individual. Your resume should include recent positions, descriptions of what you did in each role, and any relevant skills. Your cover letter should describe why you are interested in joining C4R, your connection to its mission, how your prior experience has prepared you for the various aspects of this role (technical background, leadership experience, etc), and (research background, pedagogical experience, etc), and your approach for creating engaging and effective educational materials.
Please keep cover letters to two pages or less. Applications without a cover letter will not be considered.
Timeline
We intend to have the position start in late August or early September. Please indicate when you are able to start in your application materials.
Department / School
School of Engineering and Applied Science
Pay Range
$77,330.00 - $90,000.00 Annual Rate
Salary offers are made based on the candidate's qualifications, experience, skills, and education as they directly relate to the requirements of the position, and in alignment with salary ranges based on external market data for the job's level. Internal organization and peer data at Penn are also considered.
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