Director, Enterprise External Communications

Nemours is seeking an Enterprise External Communications Director

The Director, External Communications, serves as a trusted strategic advisor to executive and senior leadership across the organization. Reporting to the Vice President, Reputation and Communications, this director drives the national reputational strategy for Nemours Children’s Health while partnering with regional and enterprise leaders to advance regional reputation and patient growth strategies through external communications. The role leads Nemours Children’s earned media, external communications, and integrated campaign strategies to strengthen national visibility, support regional market priorities, and ensure the organization shows up with a clear, credible, and differentiated voice across external channels.

Essential Functions

1. National Reputation and Market Positioning: Shape, drive, and own a national reputation strategy
   for Nemours Children’s Health in ways that build trust, strengthen credibility, and support regional
   reputation and patient growth. Collaboratively define the organization’s core external narrative and align
   communications efforts to position Nemours as the leading voice in children’s health and destination for
   pediatric care. Lead external positioning for executive, clinical service line, research innovation, and
   population health priorities across channels as identified. Help shape awards and recognition strategies
   that advance institutional visibility and influence. Identify emerging reputation opportunities and risks,
   and provide strategic counsel to the VP, Reputation and Communications, and other leaders on
   response strategies.
2. Earned Media/Media Relations: Lead a proactive, story-forward media relations strategy that
   positions Nemours as an authoritative and sought-after source for national, regional, and specialty
   media on topics that matter in children's health. Build Nemours Children’s presence with health,
   science, policy, and general assignment journalists at nationally influential outlets while ensuring our
   geographic footprint is also represented with excellence. Build and maintain an expanding network of
   journalist, editor, and producer relationships that give Nemours access and credibility when it matters
   most. Lead the team in developing pitches, press materials, media briefings, and expert source
   programs with the quality, specificity, and news judgment that helps to create news and earns high
   quality national and regional coverage. Collaboratively lead content strategy and execution of high visibility announcements.
3. External Content Strategy: Partner with others to develop integrated strategy, content architecture,
   and editorial direction of externally facing owned media, including the institutional newsroom, Well
   Beyond Medicine Podcast, and other digital content platforms through which Nemours speaks to public audiences without a media intermediary. Ensure that earned media is integrated deliberately with owned channels so both reinforce a coherent narrative for external audiences. Develop an editorial strategy for the newsroom that reflects institutional priorities, advances key narrative pillars, and creates a destination resource for media, partners, policy audiences, and healthcare communities. Build content that showcases the depth and breadth of Nemours clinical expertise, research innovation, and thought leadership through compelling storytelling. Contribute to creative idea generation and execution to help create news. Collaborate closely with internal communications, social media, and other Marketing & Communications leaders to ensure narrative coherence and amplification across channels.
4. Integrated Campaign-Led Communications: Design and lead integrated external communications
   campaigns that continue to move Nemours from a reactive media function to a proactive reputationbuilding institution. Develop campaigns that are grounded in a clear institutional priority, anchored in a differentiated narrative, and executed across earned and owned channels with a defined audience, goals, and disciplined cadence. Lead the team in developing campaign briefs, messaging frameworks, channel strategies, and measurement plans for major external initiatives such as clinical service line launches, research breakthroughs, and health equity advocacy and community impact programs. Partner with others to build and steward an integrated communications calendar that sequences campaigns with institutional priorities, national awareness events, and media opportunity windows. Champion the shift in how communications success is measured: not by how many stories were placed, but by what reputation we built toward.
5. Issues Management and Reputation Protection: With oversight responsibility for reputation risk, this
   director serves as a strategic advisor on issues management and crisis communications, providing
   counsel on how emerging situations may affect Nemours external standing and ensuring that the
   organization communicates with clarity, consistency, and credibility when it matters most. Stay
   appraised of news, conferences, industry developments, and significant occurrences that could create
   reputational opportunity or risk for Nemours Children's Health. Synthesize emerging topics and trends
   and lead strategies to manage issues and create positive positioning opportunities for the organization. Develop and maintain crisis communications frameworks in partnership with outside agency support, Legal, Risk External Affairs, and the VP, Reputation and Communications.
6. Thought Leadership: Collaborate with the VP, Reputation and Communications, and the Office of the
   President on an integrated enterprise thought leadership platform that positions Nemours most senior
   voices in national conversations on children's health, health equity, policy, and the future of pediatric
   medicine. This director provides external communications strategy, media access, and channel
   guidance in support of thought leadership efforts that are primarily designed and led through the Office of the President, ensuring that executive visibility is consistent, well-positioned, and amplified through the right earned and owned media vehicles. Identify national speaking opportunities, media platforms, and publication channels that advance a thought leadership narrative and reinforce institutional reputation at the highest levels.
7. Reputation Monitoring, Analytics, and Impact Measurement: Build and maintain a disciplined
   approach to reputation measurement. Develop and regularly report on a reputation scorecard and
   external communications dashboard for the VP, Reputation and Communications, Marketing &
   Communications, and enterprise leadership. Use data and insights to inform strategy, refine campaign
   approaches, and demonstrate the measurable impact of the external communications function on
   Nemours national standing. Stay appraised of media landscape trends, journalist and audience behavior shifts, and platform changes that should inform how Nemours shows up externally.
8. Team Leadership and Development: Lead, develop, motivate, and manage a high-performing
   communications team. Teach, coach, and mentor direct reports while serving as an active and
   contributing member of the Marketing and Communications leadership team. Set high standards for
   quality, strategic thinking, and storytelling craft. Foster a team culture of proactive initiative, editorial
   rigor, and accountability to outcomes, not just outputs. Support recruitment, onboarding, performance
   development, and succession planning for the team.
9. Budget and Resource Management: Coordinate and manage the external communications budget,
   including annual planning, quarterly forecasting, and agency and vendor resource management. Serve
   as the lead contact for national agencies and vendors, accountable for agency results, maximum use of
   resources, and strong return on investment.
    

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Public Relations, Communications, Journalism, or related field required. Master's degree preferred.
• 12 to 15 years + of progressive communications experience with substantial external communications, public relations, or media relations leadership in a complex organization. 
• Demonstrated experience managing media relationships across health, science, or policy beats, with a consistent record of earning high-quality coverage. 
• Prior experience in PR for a hospital, health system, or healthcare organization strongly preferred. 
• Track record of building and executing proactive, integrated external communications strategies, not just managing inbound media requests. 
• Experience with owned media strategy, including institutional newsroom management and digital content development. 
• Healthcare, nonprofit, or public sector experience preferred. 
• Prior experience with national agency management and vendor partnerships