Overview

We are partnering with a rapidly growing industrial and natural resources organization to hire a Vice President of Corporate Communications & Brand Strategy to build and lead its enterprise communications function.

The organization is entering a transformational stage of growth, supported by multi-billion-dollar investments in major industrial projects and significant planned expansion across the United States. As the business evolves from a primarily regional presence into a nationally recognized organization, leadership is elevating communications into a strategic executive function.

This is not an established communications organization looking for someone to maintain an existing playbook.

The VP will have the opportunity to define the strategy, build the team, shape the company's national brand and reputation, and advise senior leadership during one of the most important growth periods in the organization's history.

Reporting to executive leadership and working closely with the CEO, Board, and other senior stakeholders, this individual will serve as a trusted communications advisor, senior company spokesperson, and leader of corporate communications, public relations, brand strategy, crisis communications, and reputation management.

The Opportunity

The organization has reached a point where its external presence needs to evolve alongside the scale and ambition of the business.

Historically, communications efforts have been more concentrated around local awareness, community relationships, and project-level communication. The next phase requires a broader enterprise strategy capable of supporting national visibility, major capital investment, complex stakeholder relationships, and continued organizational growth.

The VP will establish that strategy from the ground up.

You'll determine how the organization tells its story, positions itself nationally, engages the media and key stakeholders, protects its reputation, responds during high-stakes situations, and builds a communications team capable of supporting the business as it scales.

What You'll Be Doing

Enterprise Communications & Brand Strategy

  • Develop and execute the organization's enterprise-wide communications and public relations strategy
  • Establish a clear and differentiated corporate narrative as the organization expands nationally
  • Define messaging frameworks and communications standards across the enterprise
  • Develop strategies that increase awareness and strengthen the company's reputation among key audiences
  • Ensure consistent positioning across executive communications, media relations, corporate messaging, digital channels, and external materials
  • Translate complex industrial projects and business initiatives into clear, compelling narratives

Executive & Board Communications

  • Serve as a trusted communications advisor to the CEO and senior executive leadership
  • Provide strategic counsel on high-profile announcements, sensitive issues, stakeholder communications, and reputation matters
  • Prepare executives for media interviews, presentations, major announcements, and other public-facing engagements
  • Develop executive messaging and talking points
  • Communicate effectively with Board-level stakeholders
  • Help leadership anticipate the communications implications of major business decisions

Media Relations & Corporate Reputation

  • Build and manage relationships with local, regional, national, and industry media
  • Serve as a senior spokesperson for the organization
  • Develop proactive earned-media strategies that increase national visibility
  • Identify opportunities to position executives and the organization as credible voices within the industry
  • Manage sensitive media inquiries and complex external issues
  • Monitor public perception and emerging reputational risks

Crisis Communications

  • Own enterprise crisis and reputation-management strategy
  • Develop crisis communication frameworks, escalation procedures, messaging protocols, and response plans
  • Advise executive leadership during high-stakes or rapidly evolving situations
  • Coordinate communications across internal stakeholders, external partners, media, and other relevant audiences
  • Ensure the organization communicates with clarity, consistency, and appropriate urgency during sensitive events

Stakeholder & Community Communications

  • Develop communications strategies supporting relationships with communities and other key external stakeholders
  • Partner with leadership and operational teams to communicate major projects and organizational initiatives
  • Ensure national brand-building efforts remain connected to the communities and regions where the organization operates
  • Navigate communications within complex industrial environments involving numerous stakeholder groups

Build & Lead the Communications Function

  • Build the organizational structure and capabilities necessary to support a rapidly scaling enterprise
  • Recruit, develop, and lead communications professionals as the function grows
  • Provide direct leadership to corporate communications resources
  • Establish roles, responsibilities, processes, standards, and measurement frameworks
  • Manage external PR agencies and communications partners as appropriate
  • Create a high-performing function capable of supporting both strategic enterprise priorities and day-to-day communications needs

What We're Looking For

This position requires more than an accomplished communications practitioner.

We're looking for an executive communications leader who has sat across the table from CEOs and senior leadership teams, managed reputational issues where the stakes were significant, represented an organization publicly, and understands how communications strategy connects to broader business objectives.

The strongest candidates will also understand the stakeholder complexity surrounding industrial operations, natural resources, energy, infrastructure, manufacturing, or other highly visible capital-intensive industries.

Equally important is a builder mentality. Rather than inheriting a mature communications organization, you'll have the opportunity—and responsibility—to determine what the function should become.

Qualifications

Required

  • Approximately 10–15+ years of progressive corporate communications, public relations, or brand strategy experience
  • Significant senior-level communications leadership experience
  • Demonstrated experience advising CEOs, executive leadership teams, and/or Boards
  • Deep experience in crisis communications and reputation management
  • Experience serving as a corporate spokesperson in high-stakes situations
  • Strong media-relations experience, including interaction with senior journalists and external stakeholders
  • Demonstrated ability to develop enterprise-level communications and messaging strategies
  • Experience leading and developing communications professionals
  • Exceptional executive presence, judgment, writing, presentation, and verbal communication skills
  • Ability to translate complex technical or business topics into clear external narratives
  • Comfortable operating in an evolving environment with significant executive visibility
  • Ability to work onsite in Minneapolis and travel periodically to operations in Northern Minnesota

Highly Preferred

  • Communications leadership experience within mining, metals, natural resources, energy, infrastructure, heavy manufacturing, utilities, or another capital-intensive industrial environment
  • Experience supporting large-scale capital projects or rapidly growing organizations
  • Familiarity with complex community and stakeholder environments
  • Experience building or significantly transforming a corporate communications function
  • Experience leading communications through periods of major organizational growth or change
  • Established national and industry media relationships
  • Experience helping a regional or emerging organization build broader national brand recognition

Compensation & Benefits

Base Salary: $180,000–$220,000, depending on experience

The organization offers a comprehensive executive compensation and benefits package, including:

  • Comprehensive medical and health benefits
  • Retirement benefits
  • Paid time off
  • Professional development opportunities
  • Executive-level exposure and influence
  • Opportunity to build and lead a growing corporate function
  • Significant long-term career opportunity as the organization expands nationally

Why This Opportunity

  • Build the function: Define the communications strategy, structure, team, and operating model rather than inheriting an established playbook
  • Direct executive influence: Work closely with the CEO, Board, and senior leadership on consequential business and reputation matters
  • Own the national story: Help transform an organization from a primarily regional presence into a nationally recognized industrial brand
  • Major growth underway: Join during a period supported by billions of dollars in existing and planned investment
  • Compelling story to tell: Represent significant new industrial development, domestic manufacturing, and large-scale infrastructure investment
  • True crisis and reputation ownership: Serve as the senior communications authority during complex, high-visibility situations
  • Build your own team: Recruit and develop the communications organization needed for the company's next phase
  • High visibility from day one: Communications is being intentionally elevated to an executive-level strategic function
  • Rare greenfield leadership opportunity: Shape how an emerging national organization presents itself to employees, communities, media, industry stakeholders, and the broader market

Location & Work Environment

This position is based onsite in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Because of the executive visibility, collaborative nature, and current stage of organizational growth, this is a full-time in-office position rather than a hybrid or remote role.

Periodic travel to the organization's Northern Minnesota operations will be required to maintain close relationships with operational leadership, understand projects firsthand, and remain connected to employees and stakeholders on the ground.

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