Director, PR and Communications - Americas

Description

The IRONMAN Group operates a global portfolio of events that includes the IRONMAN® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN® 70.3® Triathlon Series, 5150™ Triathlon Series, the Rock ‘n’ Roll® Running Series, IRONKIDS®, World Triathlon Championship Series, Epic Series™ mountain bike races including the Absa Cape Epic®, road cycling events including UTMB®, and other multisport races.

The IRONMAN Group is the largest operator of mass participation sports in the world and provides more than a million participants annually with the benefits of endurance sports through the company’s vast offerings. Since the inception of the iconic IRONMAN® brand and its first event in 1978, athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE® by crossing finish lines around the world. Beginning as a single race, The IRONMAN Group has grown to become a global sensation with hundreds of events across 55+ countries. For more information about The IRONMAN Group visit: www.ironman.com. 

At The IRONMAN Group, our mission is to celebrate the power of the human spirit, fulfill dreams and uplift communities by organizing world-class events and extraordinary VIP athletic experiences, globally. We accomplish this through our amazing staff across the globe who are committed to our core values - Heart, Excellence, Ambition, Respect and Teamwork (HEART).

General Summary

This senior-level position oversees the development, management and implementation of the internal and external public relations and communications function for the Americas (currently USA, Canada, Mexico, LatAm), with a focus on raising the awareness and positive perception of The IRONMAN Group, its brands and event series through traditional and non-traditional media. The position will also have a key role assisting in the overall global and corporate public relations and communications functions. Travel to races and handling onsite public relations at the events is a function of this job. 

Key stakeholders: VP Global Communications, Director PR & Communication (All Regions), Senior Director Marketing North America, Managing Director North America, Managing Director LatAm, Chief Marketing Officer, Manager PR & Communications North America.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

Strategy and execution: Americas

• Create and manage The IRONMAN Group Americas Communication and PR strategy, delivering to KPIs and budget with the goal of positioning The IRONMAN Group as sports and community leader across business, lifestyle, and endemic outlets.
• Develop and manage holistic brand/sport-specific communication and PR strategies for North America across event verticals (currently triathlon, road running, trail running), inclusive of celebrity and ambassador campaigns.
• Build and maintain close relationship with North America Marketing leadership to ensure Communication alignment to regional marketing objectives.
• Drive North America event communications, including local market outreach, positive promotion of the events, onsite support/logistics, media credentialing practices, content distribution to media and Communication policies
• Partner with LatAm MD to ensure clear understanding of The IRONMAN Group PR and Media policies and best practice for licensed events, and serve is primary contact person for LatAm Communication escalations.
• Ensure the North America Communication team delivers on key performance targets including coverage, reach, media mentions, sentiment, engagement rates, website traffic generated and share of voice.
• Deliver regular pro-active coverage and PR performance updates and mitigation/optimization strategies related to North American region to VP Global Communications, Chief Marketing Officer, and Executive leadership group.
• Key responsible person for securing, developing, and maintaining business and endemic media relationships for The IRONMAN Group North America region.
• Manage deliverables of communication agency related to Americas region and support on management of agency as needed for Global projects.
• In collaboration with North America Marketing team, manage creation of photography and video briefs at events for PR and media purposes. 
• Ensure the seamless execution of day-to-day North America Communications team tasks including research and pitching of human interest and business stories, management of PR inbox, writing, editing and distribution of media releases and written PR material, media credentialing and media relations.  

Strategy and execution: Global Communications

• Lead executive and internal communications as required by VP Global Communications; largely focused on Americas leadership and Corporate Executive team.
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