Public Relations Director

About the role

The Public Relations Director at Signal Theory is a trusted strategic counselor and key leader responsible for elevating the firm’s and clients’ reputation, media presence, and communications impact. This role leads consumer PR accounts and collaborates as a peer partner with Account Directors, Creative Directors, and strategy leads. The Public Relations Director reports to the Vice President of Public Relations.

Responsibilities

• Counsel clients as a trusted strategic advisor on reputation management, media strategy, and communications planning, owning senior-level client relationships within the PR discipline.
• Lead courageous, sensitive conversations around reputation risk, media strategy pivots, and recommendations that challenge conventional thinking.
• Handle crisis communications for assigned clients: develop crisis plans, coach the team on issues management, and act as primary counselor during urgent or high-stakes situations.
• Maintain deep knowledge of clients' brands, organizations, industries, and competitive landscapes to ground counsel in insight and ensure consistently strong work.
• Guide the conceptualization and execution of earned media campaigns, providing creative direction, strategic counsel, and quality assurance.
• Establish brand narrative and media strategy frameworks, including media lists, editorial calendars, pitching, spokesperson preparation, and audience targeting.
• Partner with the content strategy team to set influencer strategies and processes; identify cultural moments and influencers that align with branded content needs.
• Conceptualize brand activations with a multi-channel approach across earned, owned, and emerging channels.
• Conduct account work with an always-on mindset, offering integrated solutions to solve clients’ business problems by collaborating with account, creative, content, media, and strategy disciplines.
• Ensure authentic storytelling and strong brand narratives are refined and relevant to audiences.
• Lead thought leadership initiatives end-to-end: story mining with cross-discipline teams, influencer and subject matter expert recruitment, executive articles, and high-impact speaking engagements.
• Establish measurement and reporting standards for coverage, sentiment, and campaign performance tied to client and firm priorities.
• Help set strategic direction, standards, and best practices for the PR discipline, including AI visibility practices, measurement, media relations protocols, crisis communication procedures, and AP style.
• Collaborate with the VP of PR and PR director peers to build and develop the PR team through coaching, mentorship, and growth plans for direct reports.
• Stay ahead of industry trends, share insights that inform strategy, and foster a culture of continuous learning and proactive problem-solving.
• Grow PR scopes of work and deliverables with clients; inform firm leadership on plans that focus on effectiveness and profitability.
• Support agency leadership with company visibility through thought leadership, community relations, and business development.

Requirements

• 15+ years of professional public relations experience; significant agency experience preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree in communications, journalism, public relations, English, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
• Excellent written and verbal communication across formats, from social copy to long-form content, with superb attention to detail; AP style knowledge preferred.
• Proven leadership experience managing people and building high-performing teams.
• Strategic thinking that balances short- and long-term goals, paired with creativity, resourcefulness, and strong analytical and presentation skills.
• Excellent organization and time management; ability to prioritize multiple assignments and deliver under pressure.
• Proficiency with media databases, monitoring platforms, and measurement tools; ability to leverage emerging technology and AI to enhance capability and efficiency.
• Discretion with confidential and sensitive information; willingness to travel as firm and client needs require.

Benefits

• Access to online learning platforms to continue honing your craft.
• Up to $500 a year to put toward qualified wellness expenses, like gym memberships.
• After one year, reimbursement of up to 50% of tuition costs for pre-approved continuing education.
• After eight years, a 4-week paid sabbatical plus a $750 reimbursement for international travel.
• Health, dental, and vision insurance.
• Traditional and Roth 401k plans with employer matching.