Vice President for External Affairs and Strategic Communications

About Tides

Tides is a nonprofit and philanthropic organization committed to advancing social justice. We work across the social sector to shift power to communities of color and other groups historically denied power.

Centering equity and justice in everything we do, we collaborate in deep partnership with movement leaders, nonprofits, donors, foundations, and corporations to amplify the impact of their work by providing services like fiscal sponsorship, donor advised funds, grant making, and a variety of innovative solutions. Learn more at tides.org.

About this Role

Reporting to the Chief Executive Officer and serving as a member of the executive team, the Vice President for External Affairs and Strategic Communications is responsible for shaping and advancing Tides’ external voice, public positioning, and narrative. The Vice President owns external organizations voice; brand, market, and sector positioning strategy; narrative strategy; external affairs; executive communications; crisis response; and external stakeholder engagement, which includes, but is not limited to, relationships with national and regional media, philanthropic partners, fiscal sponsorship peers, policy allies, and movement-aligned organizations, cultivated and maintained in service of the organization’s communications and narrative goals.

The Vice President is responsible for protecting and advancing the Tides reputation and brand, building audience and constituent engagement, aligning marketing and communications with fundraising and programmatic strategy, and ensuring the organization speaks with clarity, courage, and discipline in a contested environment. The Vice President will work across Tides to ensure alignment between institutional priorities and external messaging, partnering with colleagues to translate programmatic work, partnerships, and impact into compelling, coherent narratives.

The Vice President will oversee a marketing and communications team currently comprising four full-time staff and will lead both the strategic direction of the function and the evolution of its structure, resourcing, and operating model in support of Tides’ work.

What you will Do

Shape and Lead Tides' Narrative in a Complex Environment

• Develop and execute an integrated communications and external affairs strategy aligned with organizational goals, theory of change, and financial sustainability plan.

• Serve as principal counsel to the CEO and Executive Team on public positioning, message discipline, crisis response, and sequencing of public statements.

• Advise the Executive Team and Board of Directors on reputational risk and narrative exposure.

• Own Tides’ brand architecture, persona, voice, and narrative frame across all external channels and audiences.

• Drive Tides’ narrative proactively in the broader social sector landscape.

• Monitor and track how mission-related issues are being framed, weaponized, or reshaped across media, political, and cultural spaces.

• Exercise disciplined judgment on when to lead public conversation, when to amplify coalition partners, and when strategic restraint better serves the mission.

Elevate Brand Positioning and Public Presence

• Oversee content strategy spanning earned media, owned channels, executive thought leadership, annual reports, and Tides publications.

• Lead integrated marketing strategy across brand, digital, email, social, advertising, and campaign channels to build awareness, engagement, and action among target audiences.

• Set and manage marketing/engagement growth goals and KPIs, including digital reach, audience growth, and supporter acquisition, that build Tides’ brand visibility and public presence, translating results into conversion metrics in partnership with Business Development.

• Oversee Tides’ website, digital properties, and marketing technology stack; ensure data-informed decision-making and appropriate investment in analytics, CRM, and automation tools.

• Direct brand and creative development, including visual identity, design systems, and campaign creative, working with in-house staff and agency partners.

Partner Across the Organization to Align Strategy and Messaging

• Partner with Tides Foundation, Tides Center, and Business Development leadership to lead public-facing campaigns, mobilization moments, and integrated marketing calendars.

• Partner with the Chief Programs Officer to align communications with fundraising strategy, donor stewardship, and major-gift engagement.

• Partner with Tides Foundation, Tides Center, and Business Development to co-develop donor-facing content that demonstrates impact, addresses current-moment concerns, and reinforces the case for sustained and expanded investment.

• Support Board communications, including board meeting preparation, board-facing updates, and ambassadorship materials.

• Partner with the Executive Team, the People Team, and Internal Communications staff to ensure external positioning and internal messaging are coordinated, particularly ahead of significant announcements, crises, and politically sensitive external statements.

• Lead and maintain a shared messaging architecture so talking points, positioning documents, and narrative frames are consistent across staff-facing and public-facing channels.

Enhance and Modernize the Communications Function

• Lead, develop, and retain a high-performing marketing and external communications team; coach direct reports and cultivate strength within the function.

• Manage the marketing and external communications budget, including agency, consultant, platform, production, and paid media spend.

• In partnership with the Chief People Officer, co-lead Tides’ internal communications team, integrating internal and external communications strategies and messaging as applicable.

• Select, manage, and hold accountable external agency and vendor partners; build a trusted "extended team" model that scales capacity without permanent headcount.

• Establish KPIs and reporting cadence across marketing performance, external communications, reputation health, earned media impact, and audience growth.

Strengthen Media and External Relationships

• Lead proactive national media strategy, cultivating relationships with reporters, editors, and opinion leaders across mainstream, movement, and ideologically diverse outlets.

• Direct executive visibility strategy, including speaking engagements, op-ed placement, broadcast appearances, and conference presence.

• Prepare the CEO and designated spokespeople for high-stakes interviews and public-facing events.

• Build and maintain relationships with peer national organizations, state and regional affiliates, philanthropic intermediaries, and sector communications networks.

• Represent Tides in sector-wide narrative coordination, shared-research efforts, and joint response on issues where collective voice amplifies impact.

• Serve as a public representative of Tides at select conferences, convenings, and sector events.

Build Crisis Response and Reputation Management Capacity

• Partner with the Chief Legal and Compliance Officer to manage the intersection of communications with regulatory, legal, financial, and investigative risk.

• Own organizational crisis communications planning, playbook maintenance, and live response.

• Coordinate with Executive Team and Senior Leaders during incidents, whether internal or external.

• Maintain a pre-approved response architecture for attack vectors so the organization can move with speed when required.

As an executive leader, the Vice President must execute duties and responsibilities while embracing and exhibiting Tides’ core competencies:

• Leading Self:

  • Self-awareness

  • JEDI practice

  • Continuous learning

  • Project management

• Leading People

  • Building trusting relationships

  • Team leadership

  • Decision making

  • Developing teammates

• Leading Results

  • Strategic planning

  • Change leadership

  • Driving outcomes

What you will Bring

The successful candidate will demonstrate, through ideas, words, and actions, a deep and sustained commitment to Tides’ mission and JEDI values. This calls for grounding their work in an equity-centered approach that advances justice, builds transformative partnerships, centers community power and agency, and fosters trust through accountability and service.

The successful candidate will bring many of the following qualities and experiences:

• 15 years of relevant experience. 10 years of experience must be in a senior-level leadership capacity;

• Demonstrated experience as principal marketing and communications counsel to a CEO, Executive Director, or equivalent senior principal;

• Proven track record in crisis communications at national scale, including politically or ideologically charged incidents;

• Deep national media relationships with demonstrated placement across mainstream, political, and movement press;

• Demonstrated marketing and brand leadership, including brand strategy, digital marketing, audience growth, and measurable campaign results;

• Experience with mission-driven, advocacy, or politically active organizations (nonprofit, 501(c)(3)/(c)(4), political, or public-interest);

• Demonstrated ability to build and execute narrative strategy, not just message discipline;

• Experience managing lean teams and extended vendor networks under resource constraints;

• Excellent judgment when handling sensitive legal, personnel, and political matters;

• Excellent written and verbal communication, including executive speechwriting and op-ed drafting; and

• Ability to ground all work in a deep commitment to the Tides mission and JEDI values, applying an equity center lens to strategy, practice, and engagement.

Ideal Experience

Preferred qualifications include:

• Experience at or with organizations that have faced regulatory scrutiny, congressional investigation, or politically-motivated attacks;

• Demonstrated experience communicating for organizations advancing social justice, equity, or systems change, with an understanding of how brand and narrative serve mission driven work;

• Working knowledge of the nonprofit regulatory environment, including 501(c)(3)/(c)(4), lobbying limits, and state charitable registration;

• Experience with coalition or movement communications where multiple organizations coordinate shared narratives;

• Prior experience in newsroom/journalism, political campaign communications, federal or state government affairs, or philanthropic communications; and

• Advanced degree in communications, public policy, or law (not required – experience is preferred over credentials).

Application Instructions

Screening of complete applications will begin immediately and continue until the completion of the search process. Inquiries, nominations, referrals, and applications (résumé with cover letter) should be sent via the Isaacson, Miller website: https://www.imsearch.com/open-searches/tides/vice-president-external-affairs-and-strategic-communications. For best consideration, please apply by August 10, 2026. Electronic submission of materials is required.

Equal Employment Opportunity

We look forward to reviewing applications from all qualified job seekers. We strongly encourage applications from women, people of color, and bilingual and bicultural individuals, as well as members of the LGBTQIA+ communities. No applicant will be discriminated against because of their race, religion, sex, national origin, ethnicity, age, disability, political affiliation, sexual orientation, gender identity, color, marital status, or medical condition including acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and AIDS-related conditions. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we encourage and will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records. Where required by state law, we utilize E-Verify as a part of our employment authorization process.

Applicants with Disabilities

Reasonable accommodation will be made so that all who are interested may participate in our interview process. If you are in need of an accommodation, please advise in writing at the time you apply.