Summary

The mission of the Colorado Energy Office (CEO) is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and consumer energy costs by advancing clean energy, energy efficiency, and zero emission vehicles to benefit all Coloradans. We do this by developing and implementing highly impactful policies and programs, establishing Colorado as a leading state for climate action.

Description

Department Information

As CEO grows and scales, the need for meaningful and coordinated communications, marketing, outreach, and engagement is crucial to meeting our mission and goals. This includes communications through traditional media, social media, email campaigns, newsletters, and our website, as well as community engagement with a broad array of stakeholders including local governments across the state. Targeted engagement and fostering transformational relationships with disproportionately impacted communities and community members is critical to our work.

CEO currently has an opening for a Communications & Engagement Specialist to join the Communications and Engagement (C&E) team. This position will support the Local Government Climate Solutions and Building Decarbonization teams, with a focus on programming funded through a grant from EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) program. This role will include developing subject matter expertise on the work of these teams to identify, plan, and implement strategic communications, marketing, outreach, and engagement. The position will also be responsible for developing and implementing a regional coordinators initiative to support local governments. In collaboration with the C&E team, this position will use a variety of traditional media and digital media tools, including owned, paid, and earned media. Outreach and engagement efforts may include in-person and virtual meetings, presentations and events, collateral development, and more. The ideal candidate will be solution-oriented, collaborative, have deep expertise and passion for communications and engagement, and be excited to engage in the work of CEO’s program teams.

We are committed to increasing the diversity of our staff and providing culturally responsive programs and services. Therefore, we encourage responses from people of diverse backgrounds and abilities.
About Local Government Climate Solutions: This is a new team at CEO that supports local action toward meeting Colorado’s greenhouse gas reduction targets. The team’s portfolio includes several existing programs, as well as the upcoming Local Government Climate Action Accelerator program which is funded through CPRG. The Accelerator will be a two-part program that provides grants to support local government policy adoption in the areas of transportation, buildings, land use, and waste, and equity-focused incentive grants to support local project implementation.

About Building Decarbonization: This team is focused on developing stronger statewide minimum energy codes, building performance standards and building code adoption, coordination with other state agencies, and launching comprehensive market transformation strategies and initiatives. This includes rebates and other measures needed to stimulate and bring down the costs of building electrification and other building improvements to reduce emissions. The built environment is a top source of greenhouse gas emissions, and with the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, CEO is significantly expanding this effort to meet Colorado’s clean energy goals.

Description of Job

Starting Range: $68,000.14 – $84,000.02 Annually
Percentage Travel Expectations: Up to 20%

This position is eligible for a hybrid working arrangement with the contingency of appearing in-person at our Denver downtown office a minimum of once a week.

Team Support and Resources

Work with Local Government and BD teams to identify, develop, and implement proactive communications, marketing, outreach, and engagement plans.
Develop subject matter expertise on programs, and coordinate with program managers, other teams at CEO, and partner agencies to find common themes and opportunities for cross-promotion.
Coordinate responses to inquiries from the public, stakeholders, and the media related to Local Government and BD subject matter.
Collaborate internally with program managers, and externally with state agencies, to align strategies, activities, and key messaging.
Support procurement of communications and engagement services including standalone such as the regional coordinators initiative and as part of program contracts by helping prepare scopes of work, evaluating proposals, and managing vendors.

Direct Outreach and Engagement

Identify and track key audiences, stakeholders, and activities related to Local Government and BD.
Create collateral materials and other content such as newsletters related to Local Government, BD, and other programs or topics.
Lead development of new engagement activities and initiatives and support existing activities to advance programs statewide.
Represent CEO through public-facing events and identify opportunities to partner with local governments and new community members, groups, and the private sector, and explore ways to strengthen these partnerships over time.
Facilitate and track community and stakeholder input, work with teams to evaluate and respond, as needed, and use to inform program development and refinement.
Develop relationships with existing stakeholders and lead efforts to engage new stakeholders.
Maintain expertise in and facilitate best practices for community engagement in serving Disproportionately Impacted Communities and ensure best practices are in use.

Communications and Marketing

Work with the Director of Communications & Engagement and the Local Government and BD teams to identify strategic, proactive messaging, and communication strategies to grow awareness of and participation in programs.
Serve as Local Government and BD lead on the C&E team to plan and implement communications and engagement activities. Collaborate regularly with C&E team on all communications, marketing, outreach, and engagement efforts, to include owned, earned, and paid media.
Develop and track messaging and storytelling opportunities related to Local Government and BD.
Coordinate with CEO Public Information Officer to ensure digital accessibility needs are met, including Local Government and BD program webpages, emails, presentations, and documents follow accessibility best practices; oversee review and updates of team website content.
Coordinate with Bilingual Communications Specialist and others to draft and post social media content and campaigns.
Collaborate with other State of Colorado communications, marketing, outreach, and engagement staff members to align activities and messaging.
Lead design, production, and delivery of materials and collateral.

General

Other duties and tasks, as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications, Substitutions, Conditions of Employment & Appeal Rights

Please note that only applicants who meet the minimum qualifications and experience outlined in the job description will be considered for this position. We kindly ask that you refrain from applying if you do not meet these requirements.

Required Qualifications:

Graduation from an accredited college or university with a Bachelor's degree in communications, public administration or related field
- Substitutions: additional, appropriate professional experience may be substituted for the degree requirement on a year-for-year basis
Minimum three years professional experience with a combination of communications, marketing, outreach and stakeholder engagement OR seven years professional experience without a degree
Possess strong computer skills, including Google Suite or Microsoft Office (email, spreadsheets, documents, presentations, etc.) and Video conferencing applications (i.e. Google Meet, Zoom, MS Teams)
Experience in energy, buildings, or climate is strongly preferred
Proven track record of building and managing positive relationships across diverse stakeholder groups
Comfortable working with a combination of reporting lines, teams, divisions, and content areas
Ability to independently start and finish projects with minimal supervision and passionate about working collaboratively as part of a team
Strong time management, attention to detail, and organization skills
Valid driver's license
Ability to travel up to 25% of the time
Flexibility to work periodic weekends, evenings, and overnight travel, as needed

Preferred Qualifications:

Bilingual in English and Spanish: writing, reading, and oral
Relevant professional experience in the state of Colorado
Experience working with local governments
Experience working on climate and energy issues
Experience with marketing, digital media campaigns, and graphic design
Experience with Salesforce

Supplemental Information

To Apply:

A cover letter and resume must be submitted with the application for consideration. Your cover letter and resume must provide sufficient detail about your background and experience to allow the screening panel to properly assess your experience in the required elements, including your experience and achievements.

The State of Colorado/Office of the Governor offers a generous benefits package including:

Annual leave accrued at 13.33 hours per month (4 weeks a year)
Sick leave accrued at 6.66 hours a month (10 days a year)
12 paid holidays per year
Medical and dental plans
State paid life insurance policy of $50,000
Choice of 2 retirement plans
401K and 457 plans
State paid Short Term Disability coverage
Additional optional life and disability plans
Credit Union Membership
RTD pass
Training and professional development

To learn more about State of Colorado benefits visit: https://www.colorado.gov/dhr/benefits.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

The State of Colorado believes that equity, diversity, and inclusion drive our success, and we encourage candidates from all identities, backgrounds, and abilities to apply. The State of Colorado is an equal opportunity employer committed to building inclusive, innovative work environments with employees who reflect our communities and enthusiastically serve them. Therefore, in all aspects of the employment process, we provide employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, medical condition related to pregnancy, creed, ancestry, national origin, marital status, genetic information, or military status (with preference given to military veterans), or any other protected status in accordance with applicable law.

ADAAA Accommodations

The Office of the Governor is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, our agency will assist individuals who have a disability with any reasonable accommodation requests related to employment, including completing the application process, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, participating in the employee selection process, and/or to perform essential job functions where the requested accommodation does not impose an undue hardship. If you have a disability and require reasonable accommodation to ensure you have a positive experience applying or interviewing for this position, please direct your inquiries to our ADAAA Staffing Coordinator (the Director of Human Resources) at gov_hr@state.co.us.