Senior Associate Vice President for Marketing and Communications

Job Description

Reporting directly to the Senior Vice President for Advancement the SAVP enjoys direct and unfettered access to university leadership. This individual will lead the development and execution of an integrated marketing and communications strategy that advances institutional priorities strengthens stakeholder engagement supports fundraising objectives and elevates Virginia Techs visibility and influence among key audiences. Central to this work is the ability to position and promote Virginia Tech as a destination of choice for exceptional faculty staff and students leveraging strategic communications and brand stewardship to strengthen recruitment and enrollment outcomes. The successful candidate will bring a strong marketing orientation ensuring the University not only communicates effectively but also differentiates itself in an increasingly competitive higher education landscape through intentional brand stewardship audience engagement and reputation management.

This is a rare opportunity to shape the voice brand and reputation of a globally recognized public research university at a pivotal moment in its history. Virginia Techs next SAVP will lead a talented and evolving organization through a period of institutional transformation presidential transition and growing national visibility. This leader will be a brand visionary who embraces innovation and is prepared to explore how emerging technologies including artificial intelligence can strengthen storytelling. Working closely with university leadership and partners across the institution the SAVP will define a bold strategic vision for marketing and communications coordinate a complex and distributed communications ecosystem and develop innovative approaches that strengthen audience engagement institutional reputation and measurable results. The successful candidate will serve as a key strategic advisor helping to position Virginia Tech locally nationally and globally for continued growth distinction and impact while building a high-performing collaborative culture that advances the Universitys most important priorities.

To succeed the next SAVP must possess the professional acumen leadership experience and instincts necessary to operate in a large complex and highly visible organization. This individual will be an accomplished marketing and communications executive with experience leading enterprise-wide initiatives advising senior leaders through challenging and high-profile situations and driving meaningful organizational change. They will bring a demonstrated ability to foster coordination across diverse stakeholders establish accountability in distributed environments and leverage data analytics and emerging technologies to inform strategy and measure impact. The next SAVP should bring an entrepreneurial orientation someone who can spot opportunities build new approaches and move quickly in a competitive environment.

A detailed leadership profile can be found here.

Required Qualifications

A masters degree in marketing communications journalism business administration higher education public administration or a related field; or a bachelors degree combined with significant professional experience that equates to advanced education.

Extensive and progressively responsible leadership experience in marketing communications public affairs brand strategy or related disciplines.

Demonstrated success in developing and implementing integrated marketing and communications strategies that advance institutional priorities and measurable outcomes.

Significant experience in brand development audience engagement reputation management and strategic storytelling.

Expertise in digital communications social media content strategy artificial intelligence applications and emerging communications technologies.

Demonstrated understanding of global marketing and communications trends issues and strategies within complex organizations operating across diverse audiences and markets.

Proven ability to utilize data research analytics audience segmentation strategies and marketing technologies to inform decision-making personalize engagement and evaluate effectiveness.

Demonstrated success leading mentoring and developing high-performing teams.

Experience advising senior executives elevating leader visibility and thought leadership and navigating complex high-profile communications challenges.

Strong understanding of media relations journalism standards and the contemporary communications environment.

Exceptional written verbal presentation and interpersonal communication skills.

Experience managing significant budgets resources and organizational priorities.

Preferred Qualifications

Understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing major public research universities.

Experience supporting fundraising advancement alumni engagement or constituent relations initiatives.

Experience within higher education or other complex mission-driven organizations.

Experience overseeing or partnering with media organizations public broadcasting journalism or related enterprises.

Demonstrated success leading large-scale reputation branding or institutional visibility initiatives ideally with a global reach.

Experience leveraging marketing technologies CRM platforms and advanced analytics capabilities.

Overtime Status

Exempt: Not eligible for overtime

Appointment Type

Regular

Hours per week

40

Review Date

October 19 2026

Additional Information

WittKieffer is assisting Virginia Tech in this search. All applications nominations and inquiries can be submitted through the WittKieffer Candidate Portal. Applicants should submit as two separate documents a CV or résumé and a letter of interest that addresses the themes outlined in the leadership profile. For full consideration candidate materials should be received by October 19th 2026.

Nominations and inquiries can also be directed to Suzanne Teer Ashlee Musser and Jenna Brumleve at .

About Virginia Tech

Dedicated to its mottoUt Prosim(That I May Serve) Virginia Tech pushes the boundaries of knowledge by taking a hands-on transdisciplinary approach to preparing scholars to be leaders and problem-solvers. A comprehensive land-grant institution that enhances the quality of life in Virginia and throughout the world Virginia Tech is aninclusive communitydedicated to knowledge discovery and creativity. The university offers more than 280 majors to a diverse enrollment of more than 36000 undergraduate graduate and professional students in eightundergraduate colleges aschool of medicine aveterinary medicinecollegeGraduate School andHonors university has a significant presence across Virginia including Blacksburg the greater Washington D.C. area the Health Sciences and Technology Campus in Roanoke sites in Newport News and Richmond and numerousExtension officesandresearch institutes.A leading global research institution Virginia Tech conducts more than $650 million in research annually.

Virginia Tech endorses and encourages participation in professional development opportunities and university shared governance. These valuable contributions to university shared governance provide important representation and perspective along with opportunities for unique and impactful professional development.