External Communications Manager

Holmdel, NJ

Vonage Marketing Mission: We are a highly creative, energetic and results-oriented organization that produces and delivers the content Vonage needs to entice, educate, engage with and sell to customers around the world. We connect with the external marketplace through all media including print, digital and social. Our team leverages deep industry, market and customer data into actionable insights and marketing strategies. We are creative and collaborative, striving to translate how Vonage's products and services can meet the needs of our current and future customers.

Why this role matters

Vonage seeks to hire an experienced, self-motivated and detail-oriented Corporate Communications Manager with energy and passion for storytelling and relationship-building. This position will not only seek, cultivate and manage existing and new relationships with media, customers, industry analysts, research firms and other industry influencers, but will also be integral to helping Vonage position itself as a global leader in the business cloud communications space.

The Corporate Communications Manager will be a spokesperson for the Company with the media and analyst communities and will also be customer-facing, and so should have a strong background in both analyst/media relations, data analysis and competitive positioning, and be comfortable working with all levels of senior leadership as a part of this critical, cross-functional role. Requires a deep and intricate understanding of both Vonage and products, across UCaaS, CCaaS and CPaaS, the Vonage Communications Platform, and our competitors. While this individual’s success will depend on developing and maintaining trusted relationships with business line leaders, product management, marketing and other professionals throughout the organization, their primary focus will be externally facing, telling the Vonage story to key audiences - analysts, media and customers - by promoting thought leadership, elevating brand perception and managing overall reputation of the company.

IF THIS SOUNDS LIKE YOU, CONTINUE READING BELOW…….

What you will do

Customer / Public Relations

• Work closely with the Vice President of Corporate Communications and the External Communications team to develop and execute key external communications and thought leadership materials, including supporting events, speaking opportunities, and original customer content.
• Write and distribute/publish news releases, company and executive blogs, customer case studies, customer communications, speeches and talking points.
• Publish and update Corporate Communications pages on Vonage.com, including awards, media coverage, customer stories and blogs.
• Collaborate across the organization to help the Corporate Communications function achieve its organizational goals and objectives, always remaining aligned with Vonage’s overall business strategy.
• Establish trusted relationships with different areas at all levels of the company, including marketing, HR, investor relations, product, legal, IT, Business services and others.
• Devise strategic and tactical communications initiatives to drive business results and protect and enhance the brand and reputation of the company.
• Study and influence partner, customer, analyst and employee perceptions of the company.

Analyst Relations

• Working closely with the Director of Analyst Relations, execute on the Company’s Analyst Relations strategy to build and strengthen our analyst relations program (i.e. identifying opportunities to build upon an ongoing and evolving roadmap).
• Help to raise Vonage’s status as a thought leader/leader within the cloud communications market through the development of co-branded programs with key analysts/firms.
• Devise strategic and tactical initiatives, timelines and subscription purchases to foster analyst relations to drive business results and protect and enhance the brand and reputation of the company among these influencers.
• Own vendor relationships with key analysts and firms, coordinating with relevant internal teams and processes from contract through material delivery.
• Prepare analyst briefing tours, presentations and documents. Prep internal subject matter experts, as needed.
• Review analyst research and recommend trends/insights to help in overall Corporate Communications positioning as well as support marketing and sales.

What you will bring

• A solid background and understanding of B2B marketing, especially in the Enterprise SaaS space.
• Proven experience in a digital project management role, with the ability to organize projects and priorities.
• Public Relations expertise
• Analyst Relations expertise 
• A curious, creative mindset
• Exceptional communication skills, especially writing and speaking.
• Collaborative team player

What is required for application

• Must have 8 - 10 years of progressive responsibility in both public relations and analyst relations with sound foundation in corporate communications.
• Technology and/or Software as a Service industry experience preferred, especially UCaaS, CCaaS, CPaaS and related software.
• Strong understanding of the technology and communications industry, including a demonstrated ability to effectively communicate about products and services and deep knowledge of overall market offering.
• Strong knowledge of the competitive landscape in the UCaaS, CCaaS and CPaaS industries including deep knowledge of competitor product lines, services, and GTM activities.
• Exceptional writing and proofreading skills a MUST, including a demonstrated ability to research and write news releases, feature stories, blog content, presentations, speeches, customer communications and other materials.
• Track record of influence with all parts of an organization, including senior executives and critical stakeholders within the organization.
• Demonstrated ability to develop collaborative relationships at all levels of the organization.
• Poised spokesperson able to think on their feet and is comfortable speaking in public.
• Demonstrated ability to remain calm during crisis and/or tight deadlines.
• Success in developing and executing strategic initiatives and plans which have contributed to an organization’s overall success.
• Support the establishment of benchmarks and performance metrics to track communication effectiveness progress.
• Ability to understand the fundamental drivers of the business and the industry at a customer level, as well as at an operational level.
• Self-starter with minimal supervision needed and the ability to make decisions while exercising sound judgment.
• A sense of humor and a willingness to work hard every day will be crucial to this individual’s success in this role.
• Bachelors degree in Communications, Marketing or other related field.

What is in it for you

In addition to providing exciting work, career advancement opportunities, and a collaborative work environment, Vonage provides competitive pay and benefits including unlimited discretionary time off and tuition reimbursement.

Note: The purpose of this profile is to provide a general summary of essential responsibilities for the position and is not meant as an exhaustive list. Assignments may differ for individuals within the same role based on business conditions, departmental need or geographic location. An individual must demonstrate successful performance in their current position before being considered for promotion. In addition, in order to promote into a higher-level position, a business need for the promotion must exist and the candidate must be considered the most qualified person for the new position.