Senior Associate Director, Development Communications

Department

BSD DEV - Individual Giving - NOCO

About the Department

Medicine and Biological Sciences Development’s mission is to inspire and facilitate philanthropy at the University of Chicago Medicine by building relationships with those who share its goals of advancing excellence in research, education, community, and patient care. We accomplish this mission through expertise, integrity, creativity, and collaboration.

Job Summary

This role independently writes a variety of communications for the University. Works with minimal guidance to research, compose, and edit high-level communications, publications and/or reports with complex and specialized subject matter.

Responsibilities

• Plays a central role in shaping and elevating the communications strategy for the Individual Giving (IG) team within MBSD.
• Oversees the development, editorial quality, and strategic alignment of high-impact major gift donor materials, including proposals, briefings, stewardship reports, case/vision documents and presentations.
• Ensures consistency and excellence across all written communications from the IG teams. They also provide editorial quality control for Foundation Relations proposals and may serve other teams across MBSD as needs and opportunities arise.
• In addition to subject specific multi-channel content development for the NOCO+ team, this role is responsible for mentoring and coaching Individual Giving writers across MBSD, providing professional development opportunities and editorial guidance that elevate the team’s overall messaging quality. This includes hosting writing workshops and fostering cross-functional knowledge sharing. .
• Curates and translates complex scientific information and institutional outcomes into compelling narratives and stewardship touch points suitable for donor engagement across all Individual Giving teams, ensuring gift officers are equipped with timely and impactful messaging.
• Working closely with the Senior Communications Strategist, aligns Individual Giving materials with broader campaign priorities.
• May supervise or oversee the work of a small team of 1–3 content professionals, offering strategic leadership and comprehensive support.
• Uses broad knowledge of writing to write in-depth pieces relating to specialized field (e.g. scientific writing).
• Designs and plans communications strategies.
• Performs other related work as needed.

Minimum Qualifications

Education:

Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.

Work Experience:

Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 5-7 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Certifications:

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Preferred Qualifications

Education:

• A bachelor’s degree or higher.
• A degree in the field of science or medicine.

Experience:

• A minimum of 5 years of relevant work experience in communications or a related field, such as public relations, sales, marketing, or a not-for-profit organization.
• Previous demonstrated successes as a writer and/or editor.
• Background in a university setting, academic medical center, or a similarly complex institution .
• Writing in a scientific field or a complex subject material.

Preferred Competencies

• Knowledge of grammar, punctuation, spelling and style.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Editing skills.
• Creativity.
• Analytical skills.
• Problem-solving skills.
• Decision-making skills.
• Work independently with a high degree of initiative.
• Attention to detail.
• Organizational skills.
• Maintain confidentiality.
• Work on multiple projects simultaneously, set priorities, and meet deadlines.

Application Documents

• Resume/CV (required)

When applying, the document(s) MUST be uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.

Job Family

Communications

Role Impact

Individual Contributor

Scheduled Weekly Hours

37.5

Drug Test Required

No

Health Screen Required

No

Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required

No

Pay Rate Type

Salary

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FLSA Status

Exempt

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Pay Range

$70,000.00 - $100,000.00

The included pay rate or range represents the University’s good faith estimate of the possible