Brock University is located on the traditional territory of the Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabe peoples, many of whom continue to live and work here today. This territory is covered by the Upper Canada Treaties and is within the land protected by the Dish with One Spoon Wampum Agreement.
We are one of Canada’s outstanding comprehensive universities, where excellence and innovation thrive! Brock has been recognized as a Top Employer in Hamilton-Niagara for seven consecutive years. We have been ranked #3 as Canada’s Best Employers and top 10 as one of Canada’s Best Employers for Diversity. For 2025, Brock has been proudly recognized as one of Canada’s Top Employers for Company Culture, ranked seventh by Forbes in partnership with Statista. At Brock, you will find a welcoming, inclusive community and an exciting range of meaningful career opportunities.
Ignite new possibilities for your career. Break through at Brock.
About the Role:
Reporting to the Vice President, External, the Executive Director, Marketing & Communications provides strategic and operational leadership for Brock University’s integrated Marketing and Communications function, ensuring coordinated, university-wide capability that advances institutional growth, reputation, and brand. The incumbent sets direction, establishes priorities, and ensures disciplined delivery across marketing and communications initiatives in support of Brock’s goals and broader institutional objectives. The Executive Director, Marketing & Communications integrates recruitment performance, institutional narrative, and brand governance within a cohesive operating model that connects strategy to execution and drives measurable impact. Working in close partnership with senior leadership, Deans, and key administrative units, the incumbent strengthens institutional alignment, operational effectiveness, and long-term brand equity while ensuring Brock’s voice, visibility, and market presence remain clear, consistent, and competitive.
The Executive Director, Marketing & Communications will:
- Provide strategic leadership for Brock’s integrated Marketing & Communications strategy, aligning growth, reputation, and brand priorities across the institution;
- Translate institutional strategy into a clear, sequenced Marketing & Communications roadmap with defined outcomes and measures of success;
- Serve as a strategic advisor to the Vice President, External and senior leadership on matters related to marketing performance, institutional positioning, brand health, and reputation risk;
- Establish annual and multi-year priorities that balance recruitment performance, storytelling excellence, and long-term brand equity;
- Ensure alignment between centralized functions and faculty/unit-based communications resources to promote institutional coherence and effectiveness;
- Provide strategic and operational leadership for the University’s Centre of Expertise within University Marketing and Communications;
- Lead, mentor, and develop a high performing leadership team, fostering a culture of clarity, accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement;
- Ensure performance-driven recruitment marketing strategies that generate qualified demand and measurable funnel growth;
- Steward Brock’s institutional brand, ensuring governance, standards, and positioning are consistently applied across all institutional touchpoints;
- Oversee resource planning, budget management, and vendor relationships to ensure effective and responsible stewardship;
- Provide leadership and oversight of Brock’s integrated Marketing & Communications operating model, ensuring effective coordination, efficiency, and accountability across the function;
- Ensure systems, analytics, and reporting frameworks enable data-informed decision-making and continuous improvement;
- Provide executive oversight of institutional issues management and crisis communications planning;
- Advise senior leadership on reputational implications of institutional decisions, public positioning, and emerging issues.
Key Skills and Experience:
- Degree in Marketing, Communications, Business, Public Relations, or a related field, or the equivalent combination of education and experience would be considered;
- Progressive leadership experience in marketing and communications, including significant experience in a similar organization (post-secondary, public sector, or similarly complex environments preferred);
- Demonstrated experience leading integrated marketing and communications functions, including performance marketing, brand governance, media relations, and institutional communications;
- Experience leading reputation strategy and issues management at a senior level;
- Proven ability to translate institutional priorities into measurable outcomes;
- Strong understanding of enrolment marketing, CRM and lifecycle strategy, and data-informed decision-making;
- Promotes and embodies inclusivity and respect within the workplace and the broader community;
- Demonstrated success building and leading multidisciplinary teams and managing budgets and external partnerships;
- Exceptional communication skills, executive presence, and political acuity;
- Ability to operate effectively in complex organizations requiring clarity, alignment, and disciplined prioritization.
Preferred or Asset Skills:
- A graduate degree in Marketing, Communications, Business, Public Relations, or a related field.
Salary and Total Rewards:
- Job Grade R, Salary Scale ($118,322-$189,314);
- Target Hiring Range: $118,322-$170,000*
- This is a permanent position that includes:
- Health & Dental Benefits: Comprehensive extended health, dental, and vision coverage.
- Pension Plan: Enrollment eligibility in the Brock University Pension Plan.
- Vacation: Up to 3 weeks per year, in addition to university holidays.
- Professional Development: Eligibility for the Brock Tuition Waiver Program.
*The final salary is based on experience, internal equity, and budget considerations within the target hiring range.
We are committed to offering flexible work arrangements where possible as outlined in our Flexible Work Arrangement Policy. As a student-centered organization, all employees are required to work on campus as needed.
Brock University is committed to creating a respectful and equitable workplace. We strive to foster a culture of diversity and inclusion in our work and learning environments. We welcome applications from all qualified individuals and actively encourage applications from women, people with disabilities, members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, Indigenous Peoples, people who identify as Black, African and/or Caribbean, as racialized and/or as from ethnic and cultural minority groups, and other underrepresented demographic groups at Brock and in the Niagara region. Brock also recognizes intersectionality and the interconnected identities, histories, and experiences of these aforementioned groups.
We are committed to inclusive and barrier-free recruitment, and we accommodate the needs of applicants throughout all stages of the recruitment process, as outlined in our Employment Accommodation Policy and consistent with the requirements of the Ontario Human Rights Code. Please contact [email protected] if you require a disability related accommodation so we can ensure your participation needs are met.
Brock University does not use AI Technology at any stage of the recruitment process.
We appreciate all applications received. Candidates that are selected for an interview will be contacted.
Learn more about Brock University by visiting www.brocku.ca.
