Senior Manager Public Relations

Purpose

This horizontal role supports the North American public relations strategy and execution across multiple brand and category verticals, ensuring adidas shows up meaningfully in earned media through culturally relevant storytelling, strategic media relations, and brand campaign planning. The position plays a key role in building visibility and equity across adidas' lifestyle and performance categories—supporting product launches, cultural campaigns, and brand storytelling.

The Senior Manager, PR must be a culturally fluent generalist: someone who understands how to move across fashion, music, sport, gaming, and streaming to shape narratives that resonate with modern consumers. They’ll help position adidas at the center of culture, defining how the brand and its icons show up in the moments and spaces that matter. A strong grasp of sneaker culture, consumer trends, and the brand stories that fuel both is essential—ensuring that campaign moments land with both credibility and cultural impact.

This person must lead with a social PR mindset—where creators, emerging platforms, and real-time storytelling shape how media coverage is earned, influence is built, and brand relevance is sustained.

This is a highly visible role that engages directly with executives, athletes, and talent. The ideal candidate is comfortable leading presentations, running meetings, and delivering briefings to senior leaders, creators, and external partners.

 

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the development and execution of horizontal PR strategies across key brand and category verticals including Originals, Basketball, Training, Women’s, US Sports, and Global Football / American Soccer.
• Shape storytelling around cultural and lifestyle icons—including athletes, creators, and brand partners—who help define what adidas stands for today.
• Craft culturally attuned media plans that break through across Gen Z, multicultural, and creator-led audiences.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with top-tier editors, journalists, digital creators, and cultural voices across both traditional and emerging platforms.
• Develop long-lead storytelling with internal partners across Brand Comms, Sports Marketing, Purpose, and Digital Publishing.
• Drive earned media around tentpole moments—product drops, seasonal campaigns, major culture and lifestyle events.
• Shape integrated campaign strategies alongside cross-functional teams, ensuring PR is embedded from concept through execution.
• Manage PR agency partners and budgets to deliver both creative excellence and measurable impact.
• Navigate fast-moving cultural moments with real-time storytelling and reactive press strategies.
• Represent the voice of PR internally, building consensus, aligning stakeholders, and advocating for earned storytelling across all consumer touchpoints.
• Partner with Global PR to ensure strong NA representation in global narratives and calendars.

 

Key Relationships

• Global PR, Brand Comms, Brand Experience (Events), Sports Marketing, Culture Marketing, Digital / SEO, Purpose, and Retail teams
• Creative and PR Agency Partners
• Media, Journalists, Influencers, Stylists, Photographers, Cultural Insiders
• Athlete Managers, Creator Reps, and Talent Networks

 

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Deep understanding of consumer culture, with experience across lifestyle, fashion, and sport.
• Culturally connected and trend-aware, with a pulse on what's next in media, design, entertainment, and content.
• Strong POV on what makes a brand or personality culturally relevant—and how PR should amplify that.
• Digitally fluent, with experience across the social PR spectrum including creator/influencer amplification, digital storytelling, and emerging channels.
• Proven experience building relationships with national media, tastemakers, and editorial gatekeepers.
• Strong cross-functional collaborator who can manage multiple stakeholders, balance priorities, and build consensus across teams.
• Excellent communication and writing skills, with an ability to translate complex ideas into compelling, media-ready narratives.
• Experience leading agency partners and managing campaign budgets.
• Confident in real-time reactive PR and issue response.

 

Qualifications

• Degree (or equivalent experience) in Communications, PR, Marketing, Journalism, or related field.
• 7+ years of experience in PR, communications, or brand storytelling—preferably within a culturally driven, consumer-facing brand or agency.
• Demonstrated track record