Senior Director of Digital Content

The Columbus Dispatch / Dispatch.com , located in the fastest-growing city in the Midwest and part of the
USA TODAY NETWORK, is seeking an innovative, dynamic and digitally-savvy editor to direct our digital content on all platforms.

The successful candidate for Senior Director of Digital Content will be a key newsroom leader overseeing digital news gathering, content production and planning while keeping audience at the center of our coverage.

This position, which reports to the executive editor, will help guide decisions about what gets covered and how, as well as how to think about opportunities for audience growth across digital, video and social. This editor will lead our breaking news and trending teams, digital producers and an editor to reach new audiences with engaging and compelling stories and capitalizing on social and search, newsletters and alerts and video and audio.

We're searching for a high-impact leader, mentor and coach with a demonstrated ability to provide guidance from idea generation to publication. This editor will create a culture of teamwork and belonging and help their staff expand their skills and grow professionally.

This person should be able to juggle breaking event-driven news, features and in-depth enterprise stories for The Dispatch and Gannett's larger USA TODAY network. Knowledge about optimization, recirculation strategy and headline writing is a must, while the ability to conduct podcasts is a plus.

Our ideal candidate should have 5+ years of managerial experience with the ability to establish strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders. Dynamic personality, a process-driven mindset, execution of digital content and proven leadership skills are necessary.

Responsibilities:

• Impactful and timely editing. Ensure all content adheres to news standards.
• Primary assigning, story vetting and line editing and managing workflow to meet deadlines.
• Coaching and directly supervising front-line journalists, including regular one-on-one meetings.
• Ensuring steady productivity around high-value topics and adjusting as needed.
• Prioritizing DEI values in story selection, sourcing and hiring.
• Being the local face of the news organization for the community where based and ensuring local engagement by frontline journalists in others.
• Helping the staff hone skills in a wide range of storytelling: from real-time digital updates to narrative storytelling, employing alternative story forms and multimedia.
• Using analytics to help determine how to best reach and grow the audience. Increasing digital audience and engagement and growing digital subscriptions
• Assuring daily work is completed on time and efficiently, setting priorities and coordinating with colleagues.
• Receiving assignments in the form of objectives to meet goals.
• Administering company policies that directly affect team members.
• Assigning and editing articles for context, completeness, fairness, accuracy, balance and adherence to news values.
• Demonstrating strong news judgment in the selection, prioritization and editing of content.
• Writing effective digital headlines, social media posts, briefs and breaking news alerts that help attract audiences through search.
• Leading or coordinating coverage when local news attracts a national audience (with group editor, producer/planners and other partners).
• Cultivating a recruitment pipeline and screening and conducting first interviews for frontline journalists (with group editor, news and talent team, recruiters).
• Reviewing and optimizing beat and topic assignments within local newsrooms (with group editor).
• Managing correspondents.

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree in communications, journalism, or related field preferred or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Ten years of relevant work experience. Five years of management/supervisory experience desired.
• Experience in digital tools, search optimization and social media skills.
• Effective core journalism skills, particularly reporting and writing.
• Effective communicator; able to get along with diverse personalities.
• Self-motivation and self-direction.
• Able to multitask and excel under intense deadline pressure in a rapidly changing environment.
• Knows how to use time effectively in an always-on workday.
• Works collaboratively within a cross-functional environment.
• Must embrace peer-to-peer feedback and training.
• Applies innovative, creative thinking to support the company's goals.

This role requires a valid driver's license, reliable transportation and the minimum liability insurance required by state law. Employment is contingent on passing a post-offer pre-employment background check, motor vehicle record check & drug screen.

We are eager to learn more about you and how you fit this role. When you apply, don't limit your upload to a resume; show us what you've done. To do so, put together a single document file that includes the following, in this order:

1. Your resume - one to two pages.

2. A cover letter that outlines how you would approach the job.

3. Links to 3-6 online samples of your work. Show us what you've produced or had a hand in that best reflects what you can do in your desired role.

It is important that these items be assembled into a single document and uploaded in PDF format. Completing these steps will ensure that your application receives the highest consideration.

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