Communications Specialist

About Homeward Trust Edmonton

Homeward Trust Edmonton (HTE) is a not-for-profit organization charged with ending homelessness in Edmonton. Our efforts are guided by community need and priorities as outlined in Edmonton’s Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness.

We have a dynamic work environment, filled with high-energy, dedicated, and passionate people.

Homeward Trust coordinates and provides resources for local efforts to address homelessness and its devastating impacts on individuals, families, and communities.

We work with agencies, neighborhoods, mainstream systems, community members, and all orders of government in pursuit of this singular objective, grounded in the belief that we can, and will, end homelessness in Edmonton.

Homeward Trust is proud our community is recognized both nationally and internationally as a leader in this work.

Our programs involve both housing (capital project funding, property management and sourcing access to new or existing units for client use) and supportive services for individuals in or seeking access to housing programs.

We believe in finding housing accommodations first and then establishing the individualized supports required by the client to remain in a home.

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Position Summary

Reporting to the Director, Communications and Engagement, the Communications Specialist is a vital generalist position supporting the work of the communications department in several key areas :

Communications planning and reporting : you have written communications plans, and reports and understand the importance of annual planning with goals, timelines, deliverables, measurement, evaluation.

Bonus points if you have used Microsoft Project as a project management tool.

Event Support : you have experience with basic event planning and event support to assist with logistics planning (F& B, AV, venues etc.

Eventbrite registration, RSVPs and onsite event delivery.

• Content planning and generation :
• While there is a dedicated content specialist, every person on the communications team plans, researches and creates content across our platforms and channels to support the volume of content and communications materials needed.

To this end, you have experience developing succinct, factual content with exemplary writing, grammar and editing skills and experience developing presentations, blogs, newsletters, social media and long and short-form content and collateral materials for internal and external audiences.

Bonus points if you have participated in developing annual reports and / or community updates.

This includes developing basic visual content and graphics for our materials in Adobe or Canva.

About You

You are proactive, flexible, take initiative, and are highly organized to adapt and thrive in a fast-paced, often changing environment.

You take pride in accuracy, mind the details and go the extra mile to fact-check ensuring all communication is accurate, succinct and valuable for internal and external audiences while communicating the desired message.

You are adept at navigating through barriers and challenges with honed project management skills to deliver quality work by deadline both with last-minute work and longer-term projects such as annual communications planning and organizational reporting.

Education and Experience

• Graduate of a recognized post-secondary institution in public relations or communications.
• A minimum of two years’ communication and public relations experience including event support and content development
• Past work experience includes responsibility for communications plans, reports, presentations, collateral and content development across mediums, platforms and channels.
• Basic graphic design skills and training using platforms such as Adobe and Canva.
• Software experience in Microsoft , Teams, Project and Office suite.
• Crisis communications, media and PR acumen and experience is an asset considering the highly public and often political nature of our work
• Basic WordPress experience and previous not-for-profit work experience would be considered an asset.
• Equivalencies in experience and / or formal education (marketing, journalism, social media etc.) will be considered.

Measures of Success

Success in the first year will be determined by the ability to :

• Work collaboratively with the Communications team, leadership, and staff and stakeholders
• Consistently display factual accuracy with exemplary writing and grammar skills
• Develop content and materials aligned with organizational messaging and interests
• Display attention to detail to adapt to changing details and timelines to ensure accuracy and successful outcomes when supporting events and content development
• Set and meet deadlines, prioritize tasks, seek approvals / take action promptly while effectively communicating with others.
• Exercise media and public relations acumen, combined with discretion and good judgement regarding political issues, sensitive information, and public perception.
• Be a self-motivated learner who is passionate about staying abreast of communications, engagement and content best practices and trends
• Thrive in ambiguity, and the unknown while striking a balance of knowing when to act and when to ask permission

Working Conditions

• Must pass criminal record check including vulnerable sector clearance
• Hybrid position from our downtown office
• Occasional requirement to work early mornings, weekends and on-call
• Typical hours for this position are -pm

Application Requirements

Please apply with a cover letter and resume noting applications without salary expectations or a cover letter will not be accepted.

Please use your cover letter to showcase your grammar and writing skills and to detail how your experience and qualifications make you a unique fit for this role.

This competition will close Monday, July , although we encourage candidates to apply early as we will be screening and interviewing qualified candidates as applications are received.

We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

While we evaluate all applications based on merit, we especially appreciate and recognize the unique insights that come from personal lived experiences, such as homelessness or houselessness.

We are deeply committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace. Applicants from marginalized groups, including but not limited to Indigenous peoples, LGBTQS+, women, and newcomers, are encouraged to apply.