TITLE: Director of Marketing and Communications
STATUS: Full-Time, Year-Round
LOCATION: In-Person or Hybrid; must live within 1 to 2-hour driving distance of Jacob’s Pillow. Regular on-site presence is required year-round to support programming across all seasons - Including Fall and Spring programming - and intensifies to daily in-person work during the Festival season (June-August).
REPORTS TO: Chief Marketing Officer
DEPARTMENT: Marketing
SUPERVISES: Digital Marketing Manager, Digital Marketing Coordinator, Audience Development Manager, Social Media Manager, Public Relations and Communications Coordinator
COMPENSATION: $85,000 - $95,000 (Less applicable tax withholdings) Grade 6
BENEFITS: Health, vision and dental insurance, FSA, Dependent Care FSA, 403b, Annual retirement employer contribution, paid time off, life insurance, short- and long-term disability, Employee Assistance Program.
HOURS: The schedule fluctuates year-round and may require night and weekend hours and travel, including in support of Fall and Spring programming. The Festival season (June–August) operates on a six-day schedule; if a sixth day of work is required, it is compensated with equivalent comp time before the end of the Festival season.
SUMMER ONLY: Three meals a day, free access to classes, performances, talks, and studio space (pending availability).
Jacob’s Pillow is in a transformational moment as an organization. While our world-renowned festival, school, archives, and community programs continue to thrive, in the summer of 2025 we opened a new theater dedicated to the future of dance and we are making a strategic investment in expanding our year-round model and digitally reaching audiences beyond our campus. As we do so, there is a critical need to widen and diversify our in-person and online audiences — across race, ethnicity, culture, language, age, and geography —, as well as strengthen our revenue strategies. We understand these as one strategy, not two: the Pillow’s future audiences — and its earned-revenue future — depend on becoming an institution that more communities recognize as theirs.
The Director of Marketing and Communications will play a critical leadership role in advancing Jacob’s Pillow’s audience, revenue, and institutional goals. Working closely with and reporting to the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), this position is responsible for translating organizational priorities into effective strategies, plans, budgets, systems, and campaigns. The Director leads the day-to-day operations of the Marketing Department, supervises year-round and seasonal staff, develops recommendations and solutions, and ensures the successful execution of marketing, communications, public-relations, audience-development, and revenue-generating initiatives.
Success in this role requires a high degree of initiative, ownership, and collaboration, with the ability to identify opportunities, develop recommendations, solve problems, and lead execution in alignment with organizational priorities.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Priorities:
In partnership with the CMO, lead the development of a comprehensive, multi-channel marketing and communication strategy, overseeing implementation and ensuring alignment with organizational goals.
Translate organizational priorities into actionable plans, budgets, staffing recommendations, systems, workflows, and measurable outcomes.
Develop strategies for in-person and online audience growth and diversification using CRM analytics, social media insights, and market trends, including disaggregated audience data that tracks who the Pillow is reaching, welcoming, and retaining.
Design and lead multicultural marketing as a core audience-development and revenue strategy — including culturally specific campaigns, multilingual and in-language content, community-trusted media channels, and authentic, sustained engagement with Global Majority communities, artists, and audiences.
Create and refine audience goals and revenue strategies, leading cross-functional teams in ongoing implementation and improvement efforts.
Lead, coach, and develop year-round and seasonal marketing staff while creating the systems, processes, and accountability structures necessary to achieve departmental goals.
Lead:
Supervise institutional voice and style, ensuring consistency across all public-facing marketing and communication materials.
Establish departmental priorities and manage the allocation of marketing and communications resources across Jacob’s Pillow’s key departments, including Programming, The School, Community Engagement, Philanthropy, and the Archives.
Manage the marketing and communications budget and realize sales goals.
Lead marketing and communications reporting efforts, providing analysis, recommendations, and insights that support organizational decision-making.
Manage key vendor relationships and needs — with intentional diversification of the vendor and agency roster to include multicultural, community-based, and BIPOC-owned media and creative partners
Lead the development and execution of integrated communications and public-relations strategies that strengthen institutional visibility, support audience-development and revenue goals, and ensure alignment across earned media, digital marketing, content, and promotional efforts.
Manage hiring process and review for FTE, seasonal staff, and interns within the Marketing Department.
In partnership with the CMO, develop and manage collaborative partnerships to increase reach and community impact – including local cultural organizations, culturally specific community organizations, multicultural and community media, and global strategic partnerships.
Champion cultural fluency across all public-facing content, ensuring that materials referencing identity, culture, or community complete the Pillow’s Cultural Fluency Review process before publication, and building the team’s capacity for culturally responsive imagery, language, and storytelling.
Oversight:
Oversee digital marketing and communication efforts, including email newsletters, organic social media, and digital advertising campaigns.
Oversee day-to-day management of the organization's website and its interface with other public-facing digital platforms
Oversee the execution of print and digital materials for communications, marketing, and advertising efforts, ensuring they adhere to strategic goals and timelines.
Oversee public-relations strategy and execution, including media relations, press planning, messaging, and communications efforts, ensuring alignment with institutional priorities, audience-development goals, and revenue objectives.
Oversee audience engagement efforts across programming to grow and diversify Jacob’s Pillow’s base in-person and online, measuring progress against audience-diversification and revenue goals.
Partner with the Director of Patron Services to develop ticketing strategies, promotional plans, audience reporting frameworks, and revenue-growth initiatives.
Support:
Support fundraising efforts of the Philanthropy department through member/donor communications, invitations to private events, and appeals.
Define target audiences and goals related to artistic programming.
Support outreach and recruiting efforts for The School at Jacob’s Pillow.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Bachelor’s Degree in marketing or equivalent combination of education, commensurate abilities, and professional experience.
Minimum 7 years of arts marketing and communications experience, with at least 3 years in a management position.
Demonstrated success developing integrated marketing and communications campaigns that align earned media, digital marketing, content strategy, audience development, and revenue objectives.
Demonstrated multicultural marketing experience — designing and executing campaigns that authentically reach, grow, and retain culturally diverse audiences, with measurable audience and revenue results.
Cultural competency in audience development: understands how marketing choices — imagery, language, channels, pricing, and partnerships — include or exclude communities, and how to build trust with audiences an institution has not historically served.
Prior experience leading and motivating successful teams.
Proven written and verbal communication skills.
Passion for and understanding of dance and its many forms.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
Prior experience working with leadership staff to advance institutional goals and branding standards preferred.
Prior experience creating ticket sales projections and managing revenue maximization and pricing strategies preferred.
Experience in monetizing digital platforms preferred.
Prior experience working with dance presenters or other arts organizations is preferred.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & REQUIREMENTS
Must be self-motivated with a passion for meeting and exceeding goals.
Strong strategic and operational thinker with the ability to translate goals into plans, systems, budgets, and measurable outcomes.
Highly organized with strong project-management, prioritization, and collaborative problem-solving skills.
Demonstrated ability to independently develop recommendations, plans, budgets, and solutions while working collaboratively with senior leadership to advance organizational goals.
Comfortable operating in a dynamic environment where priorities evolve and opportunities emerge quickly, exercising sound judgment while balancing strategic objectives with operational realities.
Resilient, adaptable, and resourceful, with the ability to navigate ambiguity, respond constructively to challenges, and maintain forward momentum in a fast-paced and evolving environment.
Proactive and solutions-oriented, with the ability to anticipate needs, remove obstacles, and keep colleagues and leadership informed of emerging opportunities, challenges, and risks.
Approaches audience diversification as a growth and revenue strategy rather than a compliance exercise, with the humility to learn from — and be accountable to — communities new to the Pillow.
Must be able to establish and maintain excellent rapport with donor constituents and colleagues.
Able to operate both independently and as an active participant in team-based strategies.
Ability to exercise sound judgment, diplomacy, and confidentiality, and to exhibit a mature, professional, and positive approach at all times.
Strong analytical skills and comfort working with spreadsheets, reporting tools, CRM systems, and marketing analytics platforms.
WORKING CONDITIONS & PHYSICAL DEMANDS
Pushing, pulling, or lifting objects 25-50 lbs alone or with assistance
Working outside in inclement weather and wooded areas
Extended periods of standing and sitting
Working nights and weekends
Working in shared office spaces at a stationary desk
- Not sure you meet 100% of the qualifications? Research shows that men apply for jobs when they fulfill an average of 60% of the criteria, but women tend to apply only if they meet 100% of them. Yet, people who are systematically marginalized tend only to apply if they meet every requirement. We encourage you to apply if you believe you could excel in this role. Please use your cover letter to tell us about what you hope to bring to this role. We are dedicated to considering a broad array of candidates, including those with diverse workplace experiences and backgrounds. So, whether you're returning to work after a gap in employment, simply looking to transition, or taking the next step in your career path, we will be glad to have you on our radar.
HIRING PROCESS
Apply: Interested individuals are encouraged to send a cover letter, resume, and references by submitting an application using the “Apply” buttons below. Video and/or audio applications are welcome (though not required) in addition to written expressions of interest.
Interview: Pre-screening on Zoom, Hiring Manager Interview on Zoom, In-Person Interview with Panel, Hiring Manager, and Tour of Grounds.
Supplemental Materials: A writing sample, spreadsheet example, or other relevant materials may be requested from candidates should they be top candidates.
If you need accommodations to make this application process happen, please connect with us at
[email protected]. We will work to support you through the application process via email, phone call, and/or video chat.
