Posting Date

Manager, External Communications (Earned Media & Brand)

About DaVita

DaVita is committed to an unwavering pursuit of a healthier tomorrow for our patients, teammates, and physician partners. As a leader in kidney care, we have a unique opportunity to redefine how care is delivered and improve overall quality of life for individuals with kidney disease.

Position Summary:

The Manager, External Communications (Earned Media & Brand) plays a critical role in shaping and elevating DaVita’s reputation through proactive storytelling and strategic media engagement. This role leads the development and execution of earned media strategies that position DaVita as a clinical leader and trusted voice in kidney care, value-based care, and broader healthcare transformation.

The manager partners closely with Corporate Affairs, Mercury Marketing & Communications, and business leaders to identify narrative opportunities, translate complex topics into compelling stories, and drive consistent visibility across top-tier, trade, and regional media. This role is equal parts strategist and executor, responsible for moving quickly on opportunities while building sustained momentum for DaVita’s brand.

Key responsibilities include:

Earned media strategy

·        Develop and execute proactive earned media strategies that strengthen DaVita’s brand and share of voice across national, trade, and local outlets

·        Identify and shape compelling storylines tied to clinical innovation, value-based care, policy, and patient impact

·        Lead media outreach from pitch development through placement, ensuring high-quality coverage and message pull-through

·        Build and maintain relationships with key healthcare, policy, and business reporters

Brand building & narrative development

·        Advance clear, differentiated narratives that position DaVita as a comprehensive kidney care leader—not just a dialysis provider

·        Partner with internal stakeholders to elevate enterprise priorities through integrated storytelling

·        Ensure consistency and quality of messaging across earned channels, aligning with broader brand strategy

Executive visibility & thought leadership

·        Support executive communications tied to media engagement, including briefing materials, messaging, and interview prep

·        Identify and secure strategic opportunities for spokespeople to engage in media, speaking, and content platforms

·        Help shape a proactive thought leadership pipeline tied to key moments and industry trends

Cross-functional partnership

·        Collaborate across the broader marketing and communications function, clinical leaders, legal, and operations to ensure accurate, timely, and aligned communications

·        Partner closely with content and digital teams to amplify earned coverage across owned channels

·        Contribute to integrated campaigns that blend earned, owned, and paid strategies

Media monitoring & insights

·        Monitor media landscape for emerging trends, risks, and opportunities, translating insights into action

·        Track and report on coverage, sentiment, and performance to inform strategy and demonstrate impact

·        Support rapid response to media inquiries and reputational issues as needed

Qualifications and Skills

·        Bachelor’s degree in communications, public relations, journalism, or related field

·        5–7 years of experience in external communications, public relations, or media relations (agency or in-house healthcare experience strongly preferred)

·        Proven ability to develop and land earned media coverage in national and trade outlets

·        Strong understanding of healthcare landscape, including policy, providers, and patient audiences

·        Excellent writing and storytelling skills, with the ability to translate complex topics into clear, compelling narratives

·        Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment

·        Experience working across cross-functional teams and influencing without authority

·        Strategic mindset paired with a bias for action and execution

·        Comfort with ambiguity and evolving priorities

What We’ll Provide: 

More than just pay, our DaVita Rewards package connects teammates to what matters most. Teammates are eligible to begin receiving benefits on the first day of the month following or coinciding with one month of continuous employment. Below are some of our benefit offerings.  

• Comprehensive benefits: Medical, dental, vision, 401(k) match, paid time off, PTO cash out  
• Support for you and your family: Family resources, EAP counseling sessions, access Headspace®, backup child and elder care, maternity/paternity leave and more 
• Professional development programs: DaVita offers a variety of programs to help strong performers grow within their career and also offers on-demand virtual leadership and development courses through DaVita’s online training platform StarLearning.  

At DaVita, we strive to be a community first and a company second.  We want all teammates to experience DaVita as "a place where I belong."  Our goal is to embed belonging into everything we do in our Village, so that it becomes part of who we are. We are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and comply with state and federal affirmative action requirements. Individuals are recruited, hired, assigned and promoted without regard to race, national origin, religion, age, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, protected veteran status, or any other protected characteristic.

This position will be open for a minimum of three days.

Compensation for the role will depend on a number of factors, including a candidate’s qualifications, skills, competencies and experience. DaVita offers a competitive total rewards package, which includes a 401k match, healthcare coverage and a broad range of other benefits. Learn more at https://careers.davita.com/benefits  

Colorado Residents: Please do not respond to any questions in this initial application that may seek age-identifying information such as age, date of birth, or dates of school attendance or graduation. You may also redact this information from any materials you submit during the application process.  You will not be penalized for redacting or removing this information.