Manager, Communications and Public Involvement

This Opportunity

WSP is currently initiating a search for a Communications and Public Involvement Manager for our Columbia, South Carolina office. Be involved in projects with our Communications and Public Involvement Practice and be a part of a growing organization that meets our client’s objectives and solves their challenges. 

The position will support communications and public engagement efforts for a variety of infrastructure projects in the Southeast region. The position may support other WSP communications and public involvement efforts nationally as needed. This is an exciting opportunity to join our national team of talented communications and public outreach/public information professionals.

Your Impact

• Serve as a lead for communications and public involvement on large transportation and energy programs,
• Develop and implement effective public outreach strategies and plans for high profile projects,
• Serve as liaison between projects and the community and provide guidance on public inquiries
• Take initiative and ownership of public involvement tasks and guide the public engagement team and subconsultants to develop effective strategies to solicit feedback and input from the public,
• Facilitate and organize virtual and in-person open houses, workshops, public hearings, neighborhood meetings, ground breakings, ribbon cuttings, workshops, and other public events,
• Prepare talking points, strategic messaging, multi-media presentations, newsletters, public exhibits, display boards, meeting summaries and documentation, and other collateral for public and stakeholders,
• Research and write content for a variety of communication channels, including website, social media, talking points, presentations, marketing materials and media notifications and requests,
• Work closely with client to ensure communications alignment with agency,
• Attend virtual and in-person external project, agency, and community meetings to provide public involvement updates and identify public involvement issues,
• Interact with the public utilizing a wide range of traditional and innovative communication methods,
• Produce and maintain stakeholder databases and lead stakeholder issues identification,
• Interact in a clear and concise manner with a variety of diverse audiences, 
• Analyze the effectiveness of outreach campaigns, including website and social media content
• Manage communications and public involvement staff,
• Develop and expand client relationships and business development efforts,
• Support business development with copywriting and proposal development, as needed, and,
• Performs other duties as assigned or required by WSP USA Inc. and our clients.
   

Who You Are

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Communications/Public Relations, Public Engagement, Journalism, or a related field
• 8+ years of communications/engagement experience 
• A record of delivering work products on time and within scope and budget and prior experience with quality assurance/quality control.
• Ability to work well with the public and interact effectively with all organizational levels, including agency staff, senior management, executive leadership, board members, community leaders, and city/county/state representatives 
• Ability to understand and translate complex, technical information into easy-to-understand content for public consumption
• Experience working with public agencies, consultants, and cross-discipline technical teams on one or more publicly funded programs. 
• Excellent verbal, writing, and presentation communication skills
• Ability to work effectively with teams and demonstrate initiative to lead tasks 
• Ability to work beyond standard business hours on some nights and weekends
• Superior organizational and time management skills with a high attention to detail
• Strong computer skills, including experience with Microsoft Office, Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, and PowerPoint 
• Candidate must be able to immediately work in the United States on a full time permanent basis. 
• Proven track record of upholding workplace safety and ability to abide by WSP’s health, safety and drug/alcohol and harassment policies.

Preferred Qualifications

• Communications/public involvement experience with infrastructure (transportation, energy, water, construction, etc.) projects
• Bilingual in Spanish with the ability to communicate effectively in conversational Spanish and provide written translations
• Local candidates preferred

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About WSP

WSP USA is the U.S. operating company of WSP, one of the wor