Public Relations Manager

Job Title: Assistant Media Manager or Media Manager (depending on experience)

Department: Accounts

Reports to: Director or Vice President

Supervises: A combination of direct reports and/or non-supervisory reportees

Bottom line: This position is a combination of ‘pitching” the media and supervising a team of media pitchers. 1) Being confident in calling media outlets and following-up with emails is the primary skill set needed as well as staying highly organized with a lot of different people, places and things to juggle. We are looking for someone who isn’t afraid to phone pitch, who studies the media and who is excited about getting media interviews and ultimately securing media placements for our clients. This position is a fast-paced, phone and email focused role. We are also looking for those with experience in staying at their positions; we want those who, if they have experience, have shown commitment to those experiences. We want you to stay and grow with our company! Our ideal candidates have a long-term goal of being account managers, and this role is an excellent preparation for going into that position after a year of “pitching” (the media) and a year of pitching plus coaching other (media) pitchers. Although salaried and not a sales position, this job is very outcome focused, with employees being evaluated on the number and quality of interviews and secured placements they obtain for our clients. This role may also include writing articles, press releases or profiles. Job duties and obligations are as generally described and will be described in more detail upon commencement of employment. Job duties and obligations may change from time to time as determined by Mainland. 2) Training and leading a team of media pitchers. Leading remote calls, holding team members accountable for phone and email pitch requirements. Liaising with account team to put pitches in project management system, making sure pitches are correctly written by media relations or account managers, and ensuring that they are all assigned out. Manager also helps keep track of reporting results.

Education, experience, abilities: Management training or experience or demonstrated interest and ability to lead a team. Good knowledge of our project management system and high interpersonal skills in helping set team up for success. Degree or not, we welcome those with the highest level of English language skills, both written and especially verbal, at least basic math skills and high reasoning ability to solve practical problems and deal with a lot of variables in situations as well as the ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram or schedule form. No certifications, licenses or registrations are required but you must be able to successfully use applications in Google Workspace, be able to learn to use HubSpot for project management and any other work-related applications we put into place. Qualities of successful candidates include the following: outgoing, organized, competitive, cooperative, collaborative, committed, enthusiastic, determined, driven, confident.

Working environment: This position is remote but not that flexible. Organized around central time, the team generally works as a group with morning meetings, group calling hours, group emailing hours, and other follow up meetings. Many of these meetings take place with Google Meet or Zoom. The typical noise level is moderate. Because of the confidential nature of our client work, this is not a job that should be done from a public location. Remote employees are expected to have a dedicated work area that is free from distractions and an ability to commit to their job in its entirety the entire time working. On camera and time tracking are required. We have a dress code and behavior standards plus other requirements as detailed in our handbook. As far as location, we are registered as an employer in more than 20 states, but we are not in every state and so you must be located in a state we are registered in to work. If you move to a state we are not registered in, continued employment is not guaranteed.

Travel: There is a possibility that the job may entail 10% travel over time, such as potential twice yearly company retreats or certain client events.

Compensation: This position pays between $55-70K per year depending on experience and location plus opportunities for bonuses and advancement. We pay 50% of a high-quality national PPO insurance plan, short-term disability, long-term disability, offer a free life insurance plan plus offer voluntary dental, vision and pet insurance. We also have an employee assistance plan, charity race benefit, financial wellness plan that matches funds increasing with job longevity towards student loan paydown, insurance, retirement, 529 college savings or mortgage/rent subsidiary. We also pay 2% above and beyond salary into a SIMPLE IRA. Candidates are evaluated for advancement at least once a year. Professional paid time off is given after 90 days of full-time employment (the first 90 days’ time off is unpaid), plus we have a paid holiday schedule.

Equipment: This job requires you to have a computer that is fast enough to have uptime (both on the internet and quality of internet) that makes for reliable video and phone calls on secure devices. You also use a phone for a lot of the calling. We have a bring your own device policy and compensate up to $1,000 per year (based on anniversary) for computer, internet and phone use. We do not provide technical support.

Next steps: If you are interested in this role, our first step is “ability first.” Please send us times that you are willing to take a media test. This will determine if you have the skillset to pitch the media. It tests ability to tell the difference between paid and earned media, writing skills, speaking skills and throughput. If we like your background and feel like you would qualify for the position, we will send you a time for the media test with a scheduled send email. You will have up to 75 minutes to complete the test and send it back to the referenced email address. The test will include a written component as well as recorded component. Those with high marks will be interviewed by our media relations team for our role.

Mainland