Department of Public Works (DPW) is seeking a strategic and creative Communications Officer to help connect residents with the projects, services, and infrastructure that support everyday life throughout the County.
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This position is responsible for both building new strategies from the ground up and refining the use existing communication channels. Externally with the public, the position will elevate public trust through proactive outreach, creative public relations, and transparent messaging regarding our vital infrastructure, facilities, and transportation networks. Internally, the position will design and implement communication frameworks that unite and inform a large, multifaceted department.
Strategic communications efforts will include public information and community engagement efforts for the Department of Public Works, including public outreach related to road closures, emergency events, engineering projects, and various capital projects. A key priority for this role will be building and launching the department’s independent social media presence, establishing new digital channels to directly publicize our work and engage with the community.
Reporting directly to the Assistant Director of Public Works, the Communications Officer serves as a key member of the department and plays a central role in creating and enhancing the department’s communications efforts.
Role and Responsibilities
The Communications Officer will:
- Develop and implement strategic communication and outreach plans aligned with departmental priorities and community needs
- Design and execute targeted outreach, engagement, and marketing strategies using data, feedback, and performance metrics to inform decision-making
- Pivot communication strategies and messaging in response to road closures, emergency events, engineering projects, and capital projects
- Build, launch and maintain the department’s social media presence
- Serve as a primary point of contact for media inquiries, public information requests, and sensitive public-facing communications
- Draft and coordinate press releases, media statements, talking points, executive messaging, newsletters, and public communications
- Support emergency and crisis communications related to road closures, emergency events, engineering projects, and capital projects
- Build inclusive communications and outreach plans that effectively reach multilingual, multicultural, and historically underrepresented communities
- Promote DPW’s engagement through innovative campaigns, storytelling, events, challenges, newsletters, interpretive programming, and community partnerships
- Collaborate with departmental leadership, partner agencies, community organizations, and stakeholders to align messaging and engagement goals
- Provide strategic direction and creative vision for digital, visual, and graphic design and communications, including supervision and coordination of communications support staff and consultants
- Analyze communication and engagement data to evaluate effectiveness and continuously improve outreach strategies
- Strengthen internal communications and employee engagement across the department in coordination with the department’s human resources team
- Ensure digital communications, public-facing materials, and online platforms align with ADA accessibility standards and inclusive communication best practices
- Oversee the development and coordination of brochures, informational materials, signage content, presentations, and outreach collateral that support departmental goals and community engagement
- Provide strategic direction for visual communications to ensure messaging, branding, accessibility, and audience needs are effectively integrated across platforms and materials
- Develop and evaluate communication strategies that increase community participation, public awareness, transparency, trust, and meaningful public engagement
- Provide strategic direction and creative vision for digital, visual, and graphic design and communications, including supervision and coordination of communications support staff (i.e. Graphic Specialist) and consultants
Ideal Candidate
The ideal candidate understands how to support departmental priorities with effective communication strategies tailored to diverse audiences and communities. They can shape messaging, guide visual storytelling efforts, and provide creative direction that supports public engagement and outreach goals. Creativity and the ability to generate new ideas and strategies is key. Experience supporting communications related to public safety, road closures, emergency response, infrastructure projects, or operational impacts is highly desirable. The position requires sound judgment, political awareness, adaptability, and the ability to communicate effectively in fast-moving and highly visible public environments.
The ideal candidate will possess:
- A Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with major coursework in public relations, communications, journalism, business or public administration, or a related field
- Minimum of five (5) years of professional experience in public relations, public information, media relations, digital engagement, government administration or strategic communications
- A track record of developing content for broad audiences through press releases, newsletters, websites, or multi-media campaigns
- Strong storytelling skills with the ability to connect with diverse audiences
- Experience developing content across multiple platforms (beyond just social media)
- Experience supporting communications related to public safety, environmental issues, emergency response, infrastructure projects, or operational impacts is highly desirable
- Knowledge of branding, marketing, and digital communications strategies
- Ability to create inclusive, culturally responsive messaging
- Strong writing skills, including articles and public-facing communications