Title: Communications Officer
Department: Stewardship, Donor Relations & Communications
Reports to: Manager, Donor Communications
Existing Vacancy: Yes
Location: 2075 Bayview Ave, North York, ON M4N 3M5
Sunnybrook Foundation inspires lasting support for Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, one of Canada’s largest and most dynamic health science centres impacting the lives of the more than 1.3 million patients it sees each year. Sunnybrook has ranked #2 in Canada, and #30 worldwide, in Newsweek’s annual World’s Best Hospitals 2024 list.
Together with our donor community, Sunnybrook Foundation raises critical funds for Sunnybrook’s world-class academic health sciences centre to achieve our shared vision to invent the future of health care. With ambitious goals ahead, the Foundation is committed to continuing to grow our results and impact as we help Sunnybrook to raise sights, uncover new possibilities, develop talent, and deliver exceptional care.
We are one team in pursuit of a common purpose – to inspire lasting support for Sunnybrook – and we are guided by our values: Build Connectedness, Act with Integrity, Meaningful Collaboration and Strive for Excellence.
Position Overview
The Communications Officer plays a key role in Sunnybrook Foundation's fundraising effort. The candidate will join a team of skilled and experienced writers who craft language to spark connections and build relationships between Sunnybrook and those with a desire to give.
Adept at writing a range of communications materials, the successful candidate is a passionate storyteller who is comfortable writing stewardship impact reports, Cases for Support, proposals, overviews, and patient and donor profiles for publications and other donor communications materials.
Working as part of the Donor Communications team, the candidate will work closely with the Philanthropy and Stewardship teams and build relationships with Hospital strategic communications and medical staff, staying informed on priorities and keeping the Foundation's key messaging and overview documents current. The officer simplifies complex medical concepts into easily understood descriptions that bring Sunnybrook's story to life for our donor audience.
Key Duties and Responsibilities
- Understand the Sunnybrook brand, the strategic direction of Hospital and fundraising priorities
- Acquire and maintain sound knowledge and understanding of the organization and all priority projects and programs
- Demonstrated initiative, proactivity and capacity to adapt while working across multiple tasks, competing deadlines and stakeholders to agreed timelines
- Interview specialists, research, compile and write stewardship impact reports and other donor communications materials, which may include Cases for Support, proposals, and overviews.
- Write and/or create timely engaging content that is optimized for a variety of platforms, including multi-media
- Write and/or edit donor and patient stories, including interviewing patients and donors
- Contribute and collaborate to CORE (Create Once Reuse Everywhere) content, sharing with colleagues across the Foundation and Hospital Strategic Communications
- Liaising with colleagues to encourage use of best practices and consistent brand messaging
- Use Adobe InDesign for layout of donor communications materials within existing templates, including proposals and stewardship impact reports
- Perform other duties as assigned or requested by the Manager, Donor Communications
Qualifications and Competencies
- Post-secondary education with a specialization in English, Communications, Journalism or related specialty or equivalent experience
- Minimum of 3 years of advancement writing experience, preferably in a hospital or other complex organization; Non-profit experience is considered an asset
- Experience writing a range of donor communications with emphasis on fundraising proposals, overviews, impact reports and impact stories
- Strong interviewing and research skills with ability to summarize comprehensive medical information into clear, concise and compelling communications
- Demonstrated writing skills and a strong command of grammar, spelling, punctuation and syntax
- Competency in creative and multimedia storytelling enhancements, including document layout, video storyboarding and graphics
- Commitment, understanding and appreciation of EDI principles and application to donor communications
- Excellent organizational skills with a proven ability to meet deadlines, manage multiple projects over varying timelines, demonstrating excellence in prioritization, resourcefulness and problem-solving
- Strong interpersonal and relationship-building skills, with demonstrated ability to maintain a positive, flexible and responsive attitude while managing competing interests and multiple stakeholders
- Work comfortably in a highly collaborative environment with a commitment to incorporating stakeholder feedback
- Proficient in MS Office including Word, PowerPoint, layout capability in InDesign and project management software (e.g. Wrike)
Please submit your resume, cover letter and two writing samples
Total Rewards Package
The hiring range for this position is $70,000-80,000 per year. The salary will be determined based on the successful candidate’s years of experience, qualifications and competencies that are relevant to this position.
In addition to a competitive salary, our total rewards package includes comprehensive health and dental benefits, participation in HOOPP (Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan), flexible work arrangements with a minimum of two (2) days in office, and learning and growth opportunities.
In addition to salary, our competitive compensation package also includes, comprehensive health and dental benefits, HOOPP (Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan), hybrid work environment with a minimum of two (2) days in office, 2 float days each fiscal year and additional Sunny Days (long weekend closures in advance of summer long weekends and Christmas Eve).
We thank all applicants in advance. Only those selected for an interview will be contacted.
We know that everyone’s career journey looks a bit different and experience comes in many forms. If you’re unsure whether your experience matches all of the requirements but still think this would be a great fit, we encourage you to apply.
Sunnybrook Foundation values equity, diversity and inclusion within the workplace and is committed to fostering a work environment where employees can bring their whole selves to work, are valued for their diversity, and feel a sense of belonging.
Sunnybrook Foundation is committed to providing accessible employment practices. If you require accommodations during any stage of the recruitment process, please advise us when submitting your application and email FoundationHR@sunnybrook.ca.
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