USAID Development Outreach and Communications Specialist

Position Description

EnCompass LLC is seeking a Development, Outreach and Communications (DOC) Specialist to work supporting the Unites Sates Agency for International Development (USAID) serving as the lead Communications Officer for Counselor’s team and report to the Senior Advisor.

The DOC plays a key and unique role to the team in the achievement of its objectives by leading the production and dissemination of public information, through outreach and communication, of USAID's Counselor Team. In this capacity, the incumbent is responsible for strategically planning, developing, implementing, and administering the outreach and communication program to promote better awareness and understanding of USAID and the role we play both internationally and domestically. The consultant will coordinate, and oversee the team's communication practices and outreach efforts, helping to ensure that they reflect U.S. government priorities and promote USAID's accomplishments to key audiences. Some travel domestically and limited international travel will be required.

This is a remote, part-time position for 6 months with capacity to extend for 12-18 months, with limited national and international travel. The consultant will need to attend assigned events in the DMV area.

DUTIES:

The Contractor, in close collaboration with the Agency Counselor, the Counselor’s Office and Legislative Public Affairs (LPA) will provide on-demand communications services support to advance USAID’s strategic communications and public outreach agenda. The Contractor must be able to provide outreach and communication support across a range of mediums, including print, digital, photography, radio, television, video, and social media. The Contractor will ensure that all communication and outreach materials and support adhere to USAID and interagency and Presidential initiative branding and co-branding requirements. For photographs and personal and video stories collected from beneficiaries, the Contractor must collect permission forms from subjects. These must follow Agency photography guidance and be stored on behalf of USAID and to be turned over at the end of the contract. The Contractor must ensure the protection of individuals’ Personally Identifiable Information (PII) in all materials and products.

DOC Unit Deliverables

• Develop and support implementation of the Outreach Communications Strategy. The contractor will develop the strategy and once approved by USAID, the contractor will support USAID to put systems in place to meet recurring DOC demands (e.g., public events, briefing books, etc.)
• The strategy must include activities/events to raise awareness of USAID and U.S. foreign assistance both domestically and internationally during visits by the counselor team. The strategy must include guidance of how to coordinate with LPA, to plan and implementing outreach and communications.
• The strategy must include social media campaigns and information on how to manage the Councelor’s social media platforms.
• Develop the standard operating procedures and guidelines for the counselor team. The procedure handbook will include clarification of responsibilities and processes for efficiency and effectiveness related to management operations.
  • The handbook must include should templates and processes for various communications tools, standards for creating and finalizing DOC materials, and guidelines for planning and managing events.
• Develop content for publication; and support the creation and management of content for the Counselor intranet/website and the twitter social media platform and others.
  • Material to be developed will be assigned as needed and may include: fact sheets, newsletters, brochures, presentations, responses for requests for information, and all other public information
• Copy-edit assigned materials, making sure these are expertly written and/or edited, visually appealing, compliant with U.S. and USAID requirements, purposeful, and contain a human-interest element, where applicable.
• Working with LPAS and Missions to arrange interviews, briefings, and tours of USAID activities, as appropriate when on TDYs.
• Maintaining the Counselor team story database and other repositories of DOC materials.
• Producing graphic designs, written text, photographs, videos, and other products.

Public Events and Activities

The contractor will support the team's publicity events. This will include both domestic and international events. The contractor is responsible for:

• Supporting coordination and logistics for assigned/events which with Bureaus, Missions, and external stakeholders on program/project/activity signing ceremonies or other milestone events.
• Prepare briefing and PR materials for assigned visits/events including: scene setters, talking points/speeches, press releases and other products and processes to support such activities.
• Capture cases/success stories, photos, and videos for Agency Counselor archive.
• Preparing outreach on social media content/campaigns and disseminate in USAID social media platforms including USAID telling our story
• Facilitate and develop interactive outreach content such as radio programs, podcasts, Facebook/Instagram Live programs, X, etc.

Minimum Qualifications

To be considered for the position, a candidate must meet the Minimum Qualifications.

Education: High school diploma with 16 years of relevant experience, Associate’s degree in Communications, Journalism, Media, Public Relations, International Relations, Marketing, Business Administration or other relevant areas of study with 14 years of relevant experience, BA/BS with 12 years of relevant experience, Masters’s degree with 10 years of relevant experience, or a PhD with 8 years of relevant experience

Work Experience: A minimum of ten (10) years of demonstrated experience leading communications, public relations, and/or media relations for USAID funded activities. Demonstrated experience engaging with and supporting communications efforts for high level USG stakeholders

The incumbent must have successfully demonstrated experience in writing and editing. It is preferred that the incumbent also has demonstrated experience using social media; organizing and conducting events; and producing web content in a professional setting.

The position requires excellent writing skills to communicate about USAID to a range of internal and external audiences through a variety of media. Given the wide variety of writing required, the position requires sound judgment and flexible thinking to tailor products to the specific audience at hand. Candidates selected for interview will be asked to submit professional writing samples such as: prior communications strategies, success stories, press releases, and/or social media posts/campaigns prior to the first interview being scheduled.

Security level required: Facility Access clearance will be required

For US-based positions: Must be legally authorized to work in the US for any employer without sponsorship for a work visa or permit.