Awana

Compensation

Full Description

At Awana, we believe true change happens in the communities when children and youth are transformed by the gospel  and engaged in Biblical discipleship in the presence of a caring adult. We believe that kids can come to know, love and serve Jesus, following Him for a lifetime. This is why, for 75+ years, Awana has been working with leaders in local churches in the US and around the world, providing solutions that equip these women and men to make disciples in children and youth.  Today, God is using Awana to reach over 9 million kids in 140 countries around the world. With over 500,000 equipped leaders in 91,000 clubs/churches, Awana is able to play a vital role in global evangelism and discipleship of children and youth. If you are passionate about being integral to reaching kids with the gospel, join us, and become a part of our global cause.  Summary At our ministry, we are passionate about forming lasting faith in every child, everywhere! As the Director of Communications, you will play an important role in furthering our mission by leading and guiding communications strategies and driving initiatives to grow our constituency.   In this role, you will also collaborate with team members across the ministry to ensure cohesive messaging and impactful storytelling that aligns with our mission of child, youth, and family discipleship, designed to grow and engage priority audiences (church leaders, parents, Awana alumni) through clear storytelling, invitational engagement, smart distribution and data-driven iteration. You will also work closely with the team focused on constituency acquisition, growth & engagement to enhance outreach efforts and foster stronger connections with our supporters. You’ll thrive in this role if you can successfully combine strategic communication expertise, leadership, and innovative constituency-building strategies while having a heart for mission work that directly impacts the lives of children, youth and families. We’re seeking someone who views communications work not just as a series of tasks and responsibilities, but as vital ministry work with eternal value. This position is primarily remote with occasional travel required based on strategic organizational meetings. Primary travel locations would be our offices in Nashville, TN or St. Charles, IL. Other travel may include domestic US and/or international on occasion as ministry needs would indicate. Hiring Range for this position is $75,000 - $85,000 annually. Who We Are Looking For:  * An exemplary leader who builds, mentors, and engages assigned team(s) while ensuring the team’s processes and work exceed the standards of operational and cultural excellence.  * A good steward of the assigned budget(s), allocating appropriate expenses for effective ministry in line with our vision and mission. * Team player who supports, upholds and demonstrates the Awana values in internal and external communications and relationships. * Collaborative partner who has a natural ability to create genuine relationships with our internal team and external partners. * Logical problem solver who proactively communicates workflow and/or deadline status to the team. * Self-motivated, goal-oriented professional with a passion for helping fuel exponential ministry growth. * Flexible team member who is open to taking on new responsibilities and easily adapts to shifting priorities and needs. * Champion of children to belong, believe and become resilient disciples. Key Responsibilities: Digital & Social Media Direction * Own strategy, content calendar, publishing, and community management across relevant platforms (e.g., Meta, TikTok, X, YouTube/Shorts, LinkedIn). * Serve as primary point person for Awana Web properties – collaborating with internal departments for necessary content, ownership, calendars, updates, etc.  * Co-plan and coordinate a collaborative calendar with existing Communications team, Content team, US Marketing, US Curriculum, and Donor; align launches, campaigns, and storytelling. * Stay current on platform tools, trends, formats, and metrics; proactively recommend innovations (new formats, workflows, creators, tools) to deepen engagement and widen growth. * Build and manage creator/influencer bench; develop briefs, content guidelines, and approval workflows. * Train staff/volunteers on voice, accessibility, comments escalation, and reputation care. Audience Growth & KPIs * Define KPI ladders from reach → engagement → conversion/retention across web, email, social. * Design and run integrated growth campaigns (brief → creative → launch → optimize) including influencer partnerships and integrated media buys. * Activate owned, organic, paid, and earned channels (newsletters, SEO, reels/shorts, UGC, paid social/search, PR) with clear hypotheses and post-mortems. * Partner with Donor Development on funnels (interest → nurture → action) and with US Ministries (Sales/Marketing) on resource/event launches. Analytics & Reporting * Implement full-funnel measurement of platforms. * Run structured tests (creative/offer/audience/bid) and recommend budget shifts based on ROI. * Deliver monthly scorecards and a quarterly learning review; tie insights to audience and donor outcomes. * Maintain data hygiene, compliance, and accessibility standards alongside IT. Cross-team Coordination * Lead the Communications team; run weekly content/campaign syncs. * Serve as comms partner to Marketing, US Curriculum, and Donor; manage shared calendars and cross-functional workflows. * Report to the Chief Innovation & Communications Officer with clear OKRs, budget stewardship, and risk escalation. * Bring a collaborative mission-first spirit in coordinating with other internal teams as needed; including, but not limited to US Ministries (Curriculum, Sales/Marketing, US Field), Technology, and Donor Development. . What You Need: * Minimum 5+  years related experience in communications/marketing with 2–4 years leading people and cross-functional campaigns (ministry/Christian nonprofit or faith-aligned org experience strongly preferred). * Education/certification designed to support experience. * Proven success growing audiences and shipping measurable, multi-channel campaigns across owned, organic, paid, and earned media. * Must-have platform fluency: Meta, TikTok, X; strong short-form video instincts. * Tech stack: email/CRM (Salesforce/Pardot a plus); CMS (WordPress); social scheduling (e.g., Sprout/Hootsuite); basic creative literacy (Adobe/Canva). * Excellent writing/editing; comfort with on-camera or directing creators; strong project management. * General understanding of the Bible and the Christian Church in its various expressions required. * Experience with Awana Club, curriculum, resources, & solutions preferred.  * Volunteer leadership and ministry culture awareness, a plus. * Experience refining personas/archetypes (church leaders, parents, alumni) and mapping content journeys. * Familiarity with PR/earned media, podcast distribution, and live event amplification. * Valid State driver’s license required.   * Occasional local and out-of-town, overnight travel may be required (est 10-20%). * Eligibility to work in the United States is required; this position is not eligible for employment visa sponsorship. Work sample request to be submitted with application: * One multi-channel campaign case study (1–2 pages, include KPIs). Physical Demands/Working Conditions  While performing the duties of this job, the team member is regularly required to communicate. The team member is also required to regularly utilize computer equipment (e.g., screens and keyboards) to perform work. Awana recommends maintaining ergonomic posture, utilizing properly positioned computer equipment to minimize strain, and taking regular breaks to stretch and move around. Specific vision abilities required by this job included close vision. Local and out-of-town, overnight travel may be required.  What We Offer:  As a ministry that equips leaders to reach kids with the gospel and engage them in lifelong discipleship, we value our team that makes this happen and are excited to offer:  * Mission-driven work that changes the lives of children and youth around the world.  * Intentional connection, flexibility, family, and community engagement are part of our culture. * Remote-first work environment, allowing you to do the majority of your work from where it is you call "home”. We also have two office locations designed for collaborative work and connection with colleagues in St. Charles, Illinois, and Nashville, Tennessee, that can be used at your convenience.  * Benefits package, including a variety of programs you can choose from to meet you and your family’s needs. Some of these include medical, dental & vision health insurance, paid family leave, 401(k) & Roth 401(k) retirement savings plans with employer match, generous paid vacation & holidays, adoption assistance, an employee wellness program, and more!  This Job Description reflects the current assignment of essential functions and is not meant to be all-inclusive. Responsibilities may be assigned or reassigned to this job at any time based on the needs of the organization and may be modified to reasonably accommodate an individual with a disability or for other reasons. Please note, this opportunity is contingent upon favorable completion of a reference check, background check, and I-9 completion.