In a webinar of ours for heads of schools this spring, one leader asked: How should we approach hiring for the marketing and communications office?

Such a great question! And such a complicated answer!

We responded off-the-cuff, but we’ll elaborate this month on ways to address a marcom vacancy. Essentially, our recommendation is: Bring more focus to the process; become more specific about what your school needs.

Schools have long relied on hiring marcom generalists. Today, though, with our offices performing a broader range of duties, that approach is less promising. A team of generalists is likely to be underqualified for more complex responsibilities.

Two different jobs in one title

The first big question to address: Do you really need a marketer or a communicator?

Each contributes value, but these are fundamentally different jobs and involve distinct skills. Blurring the two functions will save on FTEs, but it will muddle your department’s output.

Communications is about making your current constituents better aware of all that your school achieves. Marketing involves identifying and connecting with future constituents and inviting them to learn more about your school through a brand promise.

The first job tells stories about what is, the latter about what may be.

To oversimplify things, if you expect marcom to contribute significantly to admissions and/or development, you should hire a marketer. If you need the department to convey your identity as an institution, distilling the school’s culture and accomplishments, through words, photos and videos, you likely need a communicator.

Bringing someone into a role they’re unprepared to fulfill will likely end in tears.

Look for the true opportunity

The next question is, What specific function does your school most need?

Do current parents grump about knowing too little of their child’s school day? A visual storyteller can help you get those stories out through video and photos.

Are you hearing consistent reports of trouble knowing where to find information online? Dedicating an FTE toward the website and other digital channels can improve that situation.

Think through what the job truly involves: its day-to-day responsibilities; the most important facets, the most demanding ones.

These should drive your posting, making it as particular as possible about one role.

Unfortunately, school postings commonly list every duty any marcom employee might possibly perform, if only once. The result is a set of qualifications that no one person can satisfy, as well as applications from people unready for the job you really need done.

If your school must hire a generalist — many schools still have one-person marcom offices, after all — the skills to prioritize are flexibility, stamina and aptitude with juggling projects, rather than any particular marcom skill.

Choose your fighter

Narrowing the focus involves a related question: What marcom deliverables do you need? These days, schools typically ask this department to fulfill the following responsibilities:

Which of these are critical to the school’s success? Which ones depend on being physically on campus? What can you outsource or, even, do without?

Don’t expect any one person’s talents to cover more than three or four of these areas. Beyond that, quality and performance will begin to falter.

A department with two FTEs can not reach as far as one with four or more, so choices must be made.

If you’re replacing a former employee with this hire, could you use this as an opportunity to trade some responsibilities for others?

For a marcom office with multiple FTEs, we recommend hiring an applicant who will extend the entire team’s capacity — adding not only bandwidth but also skills that incumbents lack.

Going beyond the résumé

Finally, a few thoughts about the hiring process: As applications come in, resist the temptation to focus on job titles and former employers.

Credentials are somewhat telling, but more important is recognizing ambition that results consistently in successes. This signals clear vision of a goal, commitment to seeing the job through, and determination toward constant improvement, both individually and collectively.

Don’t ignore the cover letter, which provides a peek into the candidate’s ability to become part of the school community. Does the person communicate with personality and creativity? Does the writer offer specifics or generalities about their experience? How much confidence or curiosity is on display?

And be sure to ask for work samples. These will suggest how a candidate has accomplished important outcomes, such as writing copy or crafting strategy. How do the samples match the qualities you advertised for? Would they fill a skill gap in your current faculty/staff? And, most of all, do you like what you see?

Past work is no guarantee of future performance, but it is the clearest view of a candidate’s self-perceived strengths.

What’s new at Fine Point Communications

• Registration is now open for the 2027 Fine Point Off-Site. The conference for communications directors will take place March 3 in Baltimore, with a day of programming that is sure to benefit any director. Sign-ups are limited, and early birds will receive a break on the registration fee. Check it out, and don’t wait to save your place!
• Fine Point was proud to sponsor the AeXIS Annual Conference for the first time. The gathering brought more than 200 California advancement folks to Sonoma County this month for two great days of professional development.

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