Manager – Communications - Integration and Operations

We are so glad you are interested in joining Sutter Health!

Organization:

SHSO-Sutter Health System Office-Bay

Position Overview:

As Sutter Health expands access to care and grows as a health system, the Manager, Communications – Integration and Operations will play a central role in how we communicate through periods of significant organizational change.

Reporting to the Director of Enterprise Communications and working closely with the Vice President of Strategic and Integrated Communications, this role leads day-to-day communications planning and execution for mergers, acquisitions, strategic partnerships and other major growth initiatives. The manager will help bring organizations together through clear, coordinated and thoughtful communications, developing repeatable approaches for each stage of an integration, from initial transition and employee welcome through longer-term organizational and cultural integration.

Working across communications, Human Resources and other business functions, this role turns complex organizational change into clear communications strategies, compelling stories and practical plans. The manager will develop messaging and content, advise leaders, coordinate communications across organizations and help employees understand what is changing, what it means for them and how their work connects to Sutter Health’s mission, vision, values and strategy.

This role must be comfortable operating with incomplete information, shifting priorities and tight timeline, often before changes are announced publicly.

The ideal candidate is both a strategist and a doer: an exceptional writer and planner who can bring structure to ambiguity, build trusted relationships across organizations and help leaders communicate with clarity and confidence. This is an opportunity to help shape how a leading health system welcomes new colleagues, brings organizations together and builds a shared culture through periods of growth and change.

This is a manager-level role with one direct report and significant ownership and visibility. It blends strategic thinking and hands-on execution, requiring both big-picture thinking and close attention to detail.

Job Description:

What You’ll Do

Integration Playbook and Process Development

• Develop and execute communications strategies for mergers, acquisitions, strategic partnerships and other major organizational transitions.
• Create a repeatable communications framework and playbooks that guides integrations from initial transition through longer-term organizational and cultural integration.
• Build comprehensive communications plans that define audiences, key messages, channels, timing, responsibilities and measures of success.
• Anticipate communications needs, risks and dependencies and bring the right teams together to address them.
• Apply lessons from each integration to continuously improve communications strategies, tools and approaches for future growth initiatives.

Communications Operations and Ways of Working

• Partner with the Communications Leadership Team to identify where we can work more efficiently and productively and turn those opportunities into practical improvements that free up time for higher-value work.
• Design and evolve the Communications operating model, including common ways of working for intake and prioritization, editorial planning, review and approval paths and status reporting, so there is consistency as Sutter grows.
• Build and champion the playbooks, tools, templates and resources teams actually use, including onboarding and learning materials that help new team members and partners get up to speed quickly, and keep them current as needs change.
• Give the Leadership Team a clear view of priorities, workload and capacity to inform planning, sequencing and resourcing decisions, and to keep the team focused on the highest-impact work with space for deeper, more strategic thinking.
• Identify where AI and automation can improve how work gets done and create capacity for higher-value work, and help the team learn, experiment and adopt new tools responsibly while upholding voice, accuracy, confidentiality and enterprise standards.
• Gather team feedback and track adoption and efficiency gains, then refine the approach so improvements stick.

Strategy, Planning and Alignment

• Weave Sutter’s vision, mission, values and strategy into a core narrative that carries consistently across audiences, leaders and channels.
• Manage integrated communications plans for each merger, acquisition or strategic partnership, with clear owners, timelines, dependencies and success measures. 
• Build and manage integrated communications plans with clear owners, timelines, dependencies and success measures for each merger, acquisition or strategic partnership.
• Decide the right audiences, channels, timing and sequence for communications across multiple organizations, so messages land in the right order and stay consistent.
• Anticipate communications needs, risks, gaps and dependencies early, bringing the right teams together to address them and keeping every open item owned and tracked. 

Content Development and Channel Management

• Write and edit clear, engaging content for varied audiences, including leader messages, talking points, FAQs, employee updates and recognition moments.
• Advise and equip senior leaders with briefings, messaging and guidance that help them communicate with confidence.
• Help new colleagues feel heard, welcomed and connected to Sutter's mission, values and strategic pillars by listening first, being transparent about what's changing and following through on commitments, supporting culture-building and change efforts.
• Use data, feedback and performance metrics to measure impact and adjust course. 

Collaboration and Relationship Management

• Partner side by side with Internal Communications, External Communications and Human Resources counterparts to align messaging, timing and responsibilities.
• Manage agencies, consultants and contributors through periods of change, ensuring quality, timelines, budgets and deliverables meet expectations. 

People Leadership and Team Development 

• Directly manage and develop the Program Manager, Enterprise Communications, providing clear direction, regular feedback and coaching to support high-quality execution and professional growth. 
• Foster a collaborative, respectful and accountable working environment that encourages sound judgment, learning and continuous improvement. 
• Model behaviors aligned with Sutter Health’s values and leader behaviors, bringing steadiness and professionalism to everyday interactions across teams and partners. 

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For Skills and Knowledge:

Core Communications Skills

• Comprehensive knowledge of strategic communications planning, public relations, and internal and external communications channels.
• Thorough understanding of editorial planning and cross-functional communications workflows.
• Operational strategy and process design, with the ability to turn complex situations into clear workflows and defined roles, assess how work flows across a team and turn improvement opportunities into scalable standards, tools and playbooks.
• Business acumen and strong analytic skills, with proven ability to develop innovative communications solutions to complex problems. 
• Exceptional writing, editing and storytelling skills, with the ability to adapt tone and format to different audiences. 
• Strong storytelling and synthesis skills, with the ability to translate strategy into a core narrative and adapt it for each audience and channel. 
• Sound judgment and discretion when handling sensitive topics, confidential information and high-visibility communications. 
• Strategic thinking paired with strong execution skills and follow-through. 
• Ability to manage, prioritize and drive multiple projects with rapidly changing priorities while delivering quality communications on time and on budget. 
• Demonstrated understanding of regional, state and national health care issues and trends. 

Key Attributes

• Strong executive presence demonstrated through credibility and judgment, bringing a clear point of view to senior leaders. 
• Builds trust and alignment quickly across teams and organizations, motivating diverse groups toward shared goals through influence rather than authority. 
• Proven ability to lead complex, multi-organization communications plans, connecting strategy to action and seeing work through. 
• Strong instinct for what matters most, focusing on the highest-impact work and creating clarity for others when inputs compete. 
• Balances efficiency and innovation with the relationships, judgment and trust at the heart of great communications.
• Models Sutter Health's values — Excellence, Curiosity, Teamwork, Compassion, Inclusion and Integrity — bringing sound judgment, steadiness and professionalism to everyday interactions across teams and partners.
• Comfortable operating with ambiguity, maintaining focus and steadiness as plans and information evolve. 

Education and Experience

• Required: Bachelor’s degree in Communications, English, Journalism, Public Relations or a related field. Equivalent experience will be accepted in lieu of the required degree. 

• Preferred: Background supporting mergers, acquisitions, affiliations or integrations, including transaction communications, Day 1 readiness and the transition of workstreams. 
• Preferred: Experience building or improving communications operations, workflows, tools or playbooks that help teams work consistently and efficiently at scale. 

Job Shift:

Days

Schedule:

Full Time

Days of the Week:

Monday - Friday

Weekend Requirements:

None

Benefits:

Yes

Unions:

No

Position Status:

Exempt

Weekly Hours:

40

Employee Status:

Regular

Sutter Health is an equal opportunity employer EOE/M/F/Disability/Veterans.

Pay Range is $146,806.40 to $220,209.60 / annual salary

The posted pay range is based on the position's primary work location. Candidates who reside and work outside of that location may be subject to a different pay range based on their work location. Candidate starting salaries consider multiple factors, including, but not limited to a candidate’s experience, education, skills, licensure, certifications, departmental equity, training, and organizational needs. Base pay is only one component of Sutter Health’s comprehensive total rewards program. Eligible positions also include a comprehensive benefits package.