Senior Communication Specialist - National Remote

At UnitedHealthcare, we're simplifying the health care experience, creating healthier communities and removing barriers to quality care. The work you do here impacts the lives of millions of people for the better. Come build the health care system of tomorrow, making it more responsive, affordable and equitable. Ready to make a difference? Join us to start Caring. Connecting. Growing together.

The Senior Communication Specialist will support the UnitedHealthcare Community & State Communications Team, part of UnitedHealthcare's Corporate Communications Department. This is a rare opportunity to work on a team delivering best in class communications to advance the reputation, credibility and awareness of UnitedHealthcare Community & State, which provides diversified solutions to 32 states plus Washington, D.C. to care for nearly 7.68 million members-the economically disadvantaged, the medically underserved and those without the benefit of employer-funded health care coverage.

In this fast-paced role, you will have opportunity for growth among a supportive, collaborative team laser-focused on delivering high-quality communications to internal and external stakeholders. Each day will bring something different - you may be monitoring a news media inquiry, editing a press release or communications plan, partnering with an executive on a speaking engagement, or developing media reports - so a successful candidate will thrive in a dynamic, collaborative environment and enjoy juggling many priorities at once.

The successful candidate must have very solid organizational, client management and project management skills and be comfortable interacting with employees at all levels, including senior executives. The candidate must possess superior writing/editing skills, be adept in strategic communications and public relations planning/implementation, have working knowledge of the news media environment, and have experience handling time-sensitive and confidential communications.

You'll enjoy the flexibility to work remotely * from anywhere within the U.S. as you take on some tough challenges.

Primary Responsibilities:

Reputation Management & Media Relations

• Evaluate and coordinate external speaking and event engagement requests for C&S senior executives and health plans
• Provide communications support for initiatives like Community & State's social drivers of health (SDoH) partnerships, including attending conference calls, research/development of communication materials and creation of key messages
• Evaluate, research, monitor and track media inquiries
• Create media coverage reports and status reports
• Support research of industry trends, competitor intelligence and stakeholder/audience analysis

Communications & Public Relations Planning & Execution

• Support writing, editing and approvals of content including communications plans, press releases, pitches, media alerts, talking points, key messages and media briefing documents to ensure deliverables are error-free and brand-compliant
• Provide tactical and strategic communications support to national and local communications and Open Enrollment integrated media campaigns
• Develop themes that weave campaign materials together to tell a cohesive narrative
• Build trusted relationships with internal stakeholders including internal communications, social media, marketing, policy, external affairs and legal teams
• Monitor and measure communication strategies, plans and deliverables by designing reports, surveys and research to improve outcomes

Team Support

• Serve as primary point of contact to process and track invoices in a timely and accurate manner
• Learn, maintain and develop team's processes including media monitoring, reporting and client engagement processes
• Participate in and/or lead project meetings, compile meeting agenda/meeting materials, draft meeting notes and coordinate meeting follow-up actions
• Coordinate logistics and tasks for news media tours and spokesperson preparation
• Serve as subject matter expert on Community & State business including growth goals, products, target customers, and competitors
• Exhibit behaviors consistent with Enterprise Communications Common Language of Leadership competencies for communicators: critical thinking; vision & strategy formulation; uncertainty & ambiguity; and conflict management & agility

You'll be rewarded and recognized for your performance in an environment that will challenge you and give you clear direction on what it takes to succeed in your role as well as provide development for other roles you may be interested in.

Years of post-high school education can be substituted/is equivalent to years of experience.

Required Qualifications:

• 5+ years of experience in a corporate communications, public relations or communications role (i.e. either in-house in a corporate communications environment or in an agency environment)
• 3+ years of experience in Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, Teams)
• 1+ years of experience in project management
• Experience in a fast-paced client delivery environment
• Proven experience in writing and editing, including working knowledge of AP style

Preferred Qualifications:

• 3+ years prior experience within the healthcare industry
• 1+ years of experience in client management including serving as a strategic communications counselor to senior executives
• Bilingual in (English/Spanish)
• Proven experience managing or contributing to communications/public relations strategies to favorably influence stakeholders' sentiment on complex healthcare policies
• Proven experience or working knowledge of news media landscape and/or government relations approaches and tactics

Soft Skills:

• Solid written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to work under tight time frames and think outside the box with strong emphasis on overall quality
• Ability to handle confidential and sensitive information with discretion
• Interest to learn about complex topics influenced by public policy
• Ability to work both independently and as a member of a team
• Demonstrated ability to grow and maintain strong working relationships with key internal and external stakeholders at all levels of an organization
• Must be able to promote and ensure client management best practices and client satisfaction via timely and accurate responses, clear communication, and ongoing education of communications policies, processes, and procedures
• Supreme organizational skills
• Self-starter with ability to think critically to formulate creative ideas, recommendations and solutions to continuously improve policies, processes and deliverables

*All employees working remotely will be required to adhere to UnitedHealth Group's Telecommuter Policy

California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Washington, Washington, D.C. Residents Only: The salary range for this role is $70,200 to $137,800 annually. Pay is based on several factors including but not limited to local labor markets, education, work experience, certifications, etc. UnitedHealth Group complies with all minimum wage laws as applicable. In addition to your salary, UnitedHealth Group offers benefits such as, a comprehensive benefits package, incentive and recognition programs, equity stock purchase and 401k contribution (all benefits are subject to eligibility requirements). No matter where or when you begin a career with UnitedHealth Group, you'll find a far-reaching choice of benefits and incentives.

Application Deadline: This will be posted for a minimum of 2 business days or until a sufficient candidate pool has been collected. Job posting may come down early due to volume of applicants.

At UnitedHealth Group, our mission is to help people live healthier lives and make the health system work better for everyone. We believe everyone-of every race, gender, sexuality, age, location and income-deserves the opportunity to live their healthiest life. Today, however, there are still far too many barriers to good health which are disproportionately experienced by people of color, historically marginalized groups and those with lower incomes. We are committed to mitigating our impact on the environment and enabling and delivering equitable care that addresses health disparities and improves health outcomes - an enterprise priority reflected in our mission.

Diversity creates a healthier atmosphere: UnitedHealth Group is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.

UnitedHealth Group is a drug - free workplace. Candidates are required to pass a drug test before beginning employment.

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