Head of Communications & Engagement

Salary Range: 165000 to 170000 (Currency: USD) (Pay period: per-year-salary)

Convergent Research is a non-profit science studio best known for pioneering the Focused Research Organization (FRO). We architect pivotal infrastructure that removes bottlenecks to breakthrough scientific research.

FROs are a new operating model for science that ensures rapid iteration cycles and high-throughput learning. Convergent secures funding and provides an operational backbone for counterfactual R&D, creating space for scientists to do what they do best. FRO teams are agile, creative, and risk-tolerant as a result. They make fast progress because they start and stay focused.

About the Role

Convergent Research now supports 13 active FROs — independent research organizations spanning neuroscience, climate, biology, and beyond — and growing. Our communications function has matured significantly: our narrative is strong, our brand is established, and our external presence has taken shape. What we need now is a communications expert who can own the function, scale it intelligently, and help the scientists building some of the world's most ambitious research organizations learn to tell their stories.

The Head of Communications & FRO Engagement leads Convergent's communications function across two interconnected responsibilities: building the communications capabilities of our FRO portfolio and  running Convergent's own internal and digital communications. The primary focus of this role is building and scaling communications capabilities across our FRO portfolio. You will teach FRO teams how to develop a media strategy.  You'll help scientific founders understand their audiences, build their public voice, and prepare for press. You'll run workshops, coach CEOs, and connect FROs to the right resources to execute

On the Convergent side, you'll manage the internal and owned channels and coordinate with external agencies and consultants for brand storytelling and media.  You’ll ensure that things are getting shipped and keep the machine running.

We anticipate the split to be approximately  85% FRO portfolio communications; 15% Convergent communications. 

We know this is a wide role. We'd rather find someone who can genuinely do both the coaching and the execution. If the balance isn't perfect, we want someone with the self-awareness to know which leg they stand on — and the resourcefulness to fill the other through consultants, vendors, or AI tools.

This role reports to the General Manager and works closely with Convergent's executive team, FRO CEOs, and a curated network of external communications vendors and consultants.

You Are

• A senior communications generalist with functional ownership instincts – You've led or owned a communications function before — not just contributed to one. You understand the full picture: narrative, media relations, digital channels, brand, internal comms, and the operational infrastructure that holds it together. You know what good looks like and you hold yourself and your work to that standard.
• A communications teacher and coach – You can walk into a room with a scientific founder who has never thought about audiences or media strategy, earn their trust, and shift how they think — not by lecturing, but by asking the right questions. You know how to move someone from "what pictures and words should I make?" to a real strategy: who do I need to reach, what do I need them to do, and what's in it for them? You come away from those conversations with a deliverable the FRO actually owns. You are comfortable doing this across wildly different scientific and technological domains
• PR-savvy and media-strategic – You know how to turn complex scientific and technical work into stories  that earn attention from the right audiences. You can identify what is genuinely newsworthy, build targeted media strategies, consult on developing strong pitches and briefing materials, prepare founders for press, and manage reporter relationships with judgment and credibility. You help FROs move from “we should get press” to a clear PR strategy: who needs to hear this, why now, what do we want them to understand or do, and which media channels are actually worth pursuing.
• Operationally disciplined– You run a tight ship. Editorial calendars, FRO comms pipelines, vendor timelines, Notion documentation — you own these things without being asked and you keep them current. You also know how to teach others to do the same, and develop templates and systems to make execution easy. 
• Comfortable with complexity and multiplicity – You are supporting 13 independent organizations, each with their own stage, leadership style, and communications posture. Some want a lot of help; some think they don't need any. You navigate those dynamics with good judgment and without taking it personally.

• A resourceful self-starter – You're past the stage of needing hand-holding. You figure things out, build workflows, and know when to escalate versus when to just handle it. You've used AI tools enough to know they change what one person can accomplish — and you're genuinely excited about that, not threatened by it.

• Resilient and adaptable – You can push back on a founder who wants to go a different direction, absorb feedback from three different FRO CEOs with conflicting opinions, and still produce something coherent and on time. You don't need everyone to agree to move forward.

You Will

Teach FRO teams how to develop a media and communications strategy –Help FRO teams build a real communications strategy — audience mapping, outcome prioritization, content and channel planning. You facilitate; they build. They leave with something they own and can act on.

Coach FRO CEOs and scientific leaders on media readiness – Prepare FRO leaders to talk to journalists, find their public voice, and think through their Q&A before they're in the room. Some will ask for this; some will need a nudge. You make the coaching genuinely useful, you know when to push, and you know when to stand down.

Serve as the primary communications resource for FRO teams – Be the first call when an FRO has a communications question, need, or problem. Help them think clearly about what they're trying to accomplish. Connect them to curated vendor and consultant resources. Review anything that carries Convergent's or a funder's name before it goes out.

Curate and manage the external vendor and consultant network – Build and maintain Convergent's roster of vetted communications vendors — PR firms, video producers, designers, science writers — and help FRO and Convergent leadership navigate it when they need execution support. This isn't about agencies on retainer; it's about a lean, responsive network that can be accessed on demand.

Own Convergent's internal and FRO-facing communications – Run the newsletter, the FRO update digest, and the internal knowledge base. Keep these consistent, current, and increasingly automated — and build the systems that make them sustainable as the portfolio grows.

Manage Convergent's owned digital channels – Keep the website current, coordinate social media, and manage the editorial calendar for the Convergent blog and announcements. Serve as the day-to-day internal contact for external web development and multimedia vendors.

Coordinate press and media for FRO and Convergent announcements – Manage the logistics of press releases, media briefings, and launch announcements. Support executive and FRO CEO media preparation. Maintain relationships with external PR vendors for outbound media work, with clear judgment about where agency value is real and where it isn't.

Protect the Convergent brand across the portfolio – Ensure external communications carrying Convergent's name or a funder's name meet quality and messaging standards. Part quality control, part relationship-building — you're the person who knows what's going out and flags what needs a second look.

Leverage AI to scale your reach – Use AI tools for newsletter generation, content summarization, and workflow automation. Help build systems that let Convergent's communications function scale with the portfolio without scaling headcount proportionally.

In Your First 6 Months, You Will Have

Audited Convergent's current communications workflows, Notion documentation, and editorial calendar — and rebuilt or improved what isn't working.

Gotten to know each active FRO team's communications context, posture, and immediate needs, and established yourself as a trusted and responsive resource.

Taken full ownership of the internal newsletter, FRO update digest, website maintenance, and social media calendar.

Facilitated at least one FRO communications workshop and developed a repeatable format and materials for future use.

Coached at least two FRO leaders through media preparation for a press interaction, publication announcement, or public launch.

Reviewed and rationalized Convergent's external vendor and consultant relationships, and begun building a curated, accessible vendor directory for FROs.

Established clear quality and brand standards for FRO-external communications that carry Convergent's name.

We Offer (Great Benefits)

A rare chance to work at the frontier of science and help shape how some of the most ambitious research organizations in the world communicate their work

Competitive salary with up to a 6% 401k match (base salary range: $165,000-170,000, based on location) While we believe this range reflects the right level for this role, we are open to adjusting the salary level and grade upward for an exceptionally strong candidate.

Excellent medical insurance options: 10–20 plans to choose from across major national and local carriers. Employee and family premiums for most plans are fully covered by the Company contribution.

Excellent dental and vision insurance. Employee and family premiums for most plans are fully covered by the Company contribution.

Company-paid life insurance, AD&D, long- and short-term disability insurance, as well as voluntary supplemental insurance options

19 holidays (including a full week off at the end of the year—yes, we enforce it)

3 weeks PTO with tenure increases, with separate allotments for sick and parental leave

Generous fertility benefits and childcare reimbursement

Education and professional development benefits

Wellness allowance for fitness and wellness activities

3x/year offsite team retreats and additional opportunities to meet your teammates in person

Support for fully remote work