Executive Director, Marketing and Communications

Job Summary

The Executive Director of Marketing & Communications is a pivotal inaugural role responsible for setting the strategic vision and leading the implementation of a comprehensive, integrated marketing and communications strategy for Drexel's College of Engineering and Computing (CoEC). Comprising three schools, this newly integrated academic unit reflects a strategic opportunity to more clearly articulate and amplify Drexel's long-standing strengths across engineering, computing, biomedical and information sciences, bringing them together under a unified identity with national and global relevance.

This role calls for a visionary marketing and communications leader who can unify brand, recruitment and reputation-building efforts to elevate the College's visibility, distinctiveness and impact across regional, national and international markets. The Executive Director-in close partnership with University Marketing & Communications (UMAC), Enrollment Management and the Provost's Office-will design and lead marketing strategies that support enrollment growth across undergraduate, graduate, and online programs by strengthening demand generation, prospective and admitted student engagement, and overall funnel performance.

Reporting directly to the Dean of the College of Engineering & Computing (CoEC), the Executive Director will serve as a strategic advisor translating institutional priorities into actionable marketing and communication plans that drive measurable outcomes in enrollment, fundraising and academic reputation, including research visibility and thought leadership. The role will build and lead a high-performing, integrated CoEC marketing and communications team, manage the College's marcom budget, and oversee the adoption of emerging marketing technologies (e.g. CRM automation, digital advertising, analytics, and AI-enabled tools) to improve effectiveness and accountability and return on investment.

In close coordination with UMAC, the Executive Director will ensure brand consistency and policy compliance across all channels, while carving out a distinctive, prestigious identify for CoEC that reflects the scale, ambition and interdisciplinary strength of the new College.
The successful candidate will be an experienced leader and team builder with a strong record of launching new initiatives in complex organizations. Intellectual curiosity, sound decision making, creative problem-solving, and the ability to thrive in an entrepreneurial academic environment are essential, as is a demonstrated ability to use data and performance to guide strategy, experimentation and continuous improvement.

Essential Functions

• Strategic Leadership & Vision:
  
  
  
  • Collaborate to create a marketing strategic plan for the new college of engineering and computing (CoEC) and three schools within the college.
  • Lead the integration and strategic direction of a unified CoEC Marketing and Communications team that aligns brand, recruitment, and revenue objectives across Biomed, CCI, and CoE.
  • Develop and execute a comprehensive strategy that communicates CoEC's vision, accomplishments, and impact-enhancing visibility, reputation, and rankings nationally and internationally, both internally and externally.
  • Partner with the CoEC leadership, specifically the Executive Dean, Offices of Graduate and Undergraduate Students Services, Enrollment Management, and Finance to set and achieve annual enrollment and revenue targets through coordinated marketing strategies.
  • Use data and market research to inform decision-making, experiment quickly, and scale programs that produce measurable results. Ensure all tactics align with a clear strategic framework.
  
  
  
  
• Team Building & Operational Management:
  
  
  
  • Build and lead a high-performing, collaborative team, fostering a culture of innovation, collegiality, and alignment with institutional priorities.
  • Nuture relationships with UMAC and Enrollment Management & Student Success (EMSS) to align priorities, strategies and tactics. Advise CoEC leadership, faculty and staff with respect to University brand platforms, insights, policies and central strategies.
  • Act as the college-level resource for all marketing and communications needs at the college, monitor and advocate for adherence to related policies, guidelines and initiatives.
  • Contribute to the Drexel marketing and communications community by participating in planned events, sharing best practices, surfacing opportunities, and other activities to elevate the university strategically and operationally.
  • Manage the communications and marketing budget, ensuring efficient use of resources to support strategic initiatives.
  • Create, document, and update workflows to ensure consistent execution of communications and marketing efforts.
  • Effectively onboard new team members as well as providing professional development of team members.
  
  
  
  
• Branding & Integrated Communications:
  
  
  
  • Coordinate all aspects of College-wide branding, communications and marketing, ensuring alignment with University guidelines and strategic priorities.
  • Develop and implement an integrated communications strategy across web, social media, print, and other platforms.
  • Within the University brand framework, advance a differentiated CoEC brand narrative highlighting innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration, and student outcomes, ensuring consistent storytelling across all channels.
  • Develop a bank of CoEC content that that can be shared across units to amplifying storytelling.
  • Lead CoEC crisis, strategic and executive communications in collaboration with College leadership and the Office of University Marketing & Communications.
  • Ensuring coordination with UMAC on all communication topics that rise to university-level.
  • Lead and support CoEC leadership and internal communications, including leadership messaging, speeches, presentations, and video scripts.
  
  
  
  
• Recruitment Marketing & Enrollment Support:
  
  
  
  • In partnership with EMSS, lead and collaborate on the development and execution of performance-based recruitment marketing strategies -spanning domestic, international, and online audiences.
  • Design campaigns that support prospective student engagement across all stages of the application funnel (admit-to-confirm for undergraduate market; prospects-to-confirm for graduate market), targeting both domestic and international audiences.
  • Integrate digital advertising, paid search, SEO, CRM automation, and social media retargeting into a unified demand-generation model that feeds directly into enrollment pipelines.
  • This work should be collaborative with UMAC and their vendors, if appropriate.
  • Develop clear roles and responsibilities for CoEC Marketing & Communications team and have a very clear understanding of the roles/responsibilities of the University Marketing & Communications team.
  
  
  
  
• Technology, Analytics & Innovation:
  
  
  
  • Champion the use of advanced marketing technologies (CRM systems, marketing automation, analytics dashboards, SEO, AI-assisted content generation) to increase reach, personalization, and efficiency.
  • Build a data-driven culture of continuous improvement by defining, monitoring, and reporting key marketing performance metrics.
  • Establish marketing KPIs tied to applications, deposits, and yield; track campaign ROI and continuously optimize resource allocation based on data analytics.
  • Partner with IT and institutional data teams to ensure marketing platforms are integrated with enrollment and advancement systems for full-funnel visibility.
  
  
  
  
• Stakeholder Engagement & Reputation Building:
  
  
  
  • Strengthen the College's visibility and reputation among key stakeholders including alumni, donors, rankings bodies, and academic peers.
  • Work with UMAC and their Media Relations team to surface stories, research and/or faculty experts for earned and social media placements.
  • Oversee community outreach and manage special projects, events, and programs that enhance the College's public profile.
  • Collaborate with Institutional Advancement to design campaigns that advance philanthropic goals and highlight impact stories tied to donor investment.
  
  
  
  
• Other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications

• Minimum of a Bachelor's Degree in Marketing, communications, public relations, digital media or relevant fields or the equivalent combination of education and work experience. (Please review the Equivalency Chart for additional information.)
• Minimum of 10 years of experience.
• Proven experience in planning and executing integrated communication strategies across channels, including web, social media, print and other media
• Demonstrated success in managing digital marketing campaigns, including CRM, and SEO strategies.
• Exceptional written and oral communication skills with the ability to translate technical content into clear, compelling messages.
• Experience managing creative processes for web and printed marketing materials.
• Strong project planning and management skills, with a track record of engaging diverse teams and stakeholders.
• Experience cultivating academic, industry and/or community partnerships to support strategic goals
• Demonstrated ability to connect marketing performance metrics to enrollment and revenue outcomes.
• Experience with CRM platforms (i.e., Slate, Salesforce), digital analytics tools and automation platforms.
• A collaborative leader and team builder with intellectual curiosity, sound judgment, and the ability to work independently and within a team.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in project management
• Documented accomplishments in leading or coordinating significant communications, marketing, and/or partnership initiatives are a major plus.
• Knowledge of higher education marketplace in the US and/or internationally is preferred.
• Experience in growth marketing, enrollment marketing, or performance-based marketing models.
• Passionate, creative and adaptive communicator with an outcome-driven, strategic mindset is highly desired.

Physical Demands

• Typically sitting at a desk/table

Location

• University City - Philadelphia, PA

Additional Information
This position is classified as Exempt, grade O. Compensation for this grade ranges from $108,330.00- $162,490.00 per year. Please note that the offered rate for this position typically aligns with the minimum to midrange of this grade, but it can vary based on the successful candidate's qualifications and experience, department budget, and an internal equity review.

Applicants are encouraged to explore the Professional Staff salary structure and Compensation Guidelines & Policies for more details on Drexel's compensation framework. For information about benefits, please review Drexel's Benefits Brochure.

Special Instructions to the Applicant
Please make sure you upload your CV/resume and cover letter when submitting your application.

A review of applicants will begin once a suitable candidate pool is identified.