Fractional VP, Integrated Communications

Fractional VP, Integrated Communications

Role Overview

This is not an account-specific consulting role. You'll work across the agency as a senior communications leader who elevates the quality of thinking and earned media work, develops the team, and serves as a trusted senior counterpart to the Founder & CEO. You'll begin at approximately 30-40 hours per month, with the opportunity to expand as the agency and client portfolio grow.

Key Responsibilities

Senior Client Leadership

• Serve as senior strategic counsel across DripComm's client portfolio
• Build trusted relationships with founders, CEOs, CMOs, and senior marketing leaders
• Provide proactive counsel on communications strategy, brand positioning, cultural relevance, reputation, and business-driving visibility
• Participate selectively in high-priority client meetings, strategic planning sessions, campaign development, and quarterly planning
• Lead difficult client conversations and escalations with confidence, diplomacy, and sound judgment
• Serve as senior agency coverage when the Founder & CEO is unavailable

Earned Media + Editorial Strategy

• Elevate DripComm's earned media strategy across beauty, wellness, fashion, lifestyle, business, and consumer categories
• Identify feature-worthy narratives beyond traditional announcements and product launches
• Develop strategies for long-form features, profiles, trend stories, thought leadership, expert commentary, data-driven stories, and other high-value earned opportunities
• Review and elevate priority pitches, messaging, press releases, thought leadership, and other editorial materials
• Help teams determine when a client-proposed story isn't the strongest story and identify a more compelling angle
• Bring strong media instincts and relevant senior editorial relationships to the agency
• Jump into pitching selectively when a story, relationship, or high-value opportunity benefits from senior involvement

Creative + Integrated Strategy

• Lead and participate in creative brainstorms across PR, influencer, affiliate, partnerships, experiential, retail, and cultural activations
• Push the team beyond expected PR ideas toward campaigns that can genuinely earn attention
• Connect communications strategy to clients' broader brand and business objectives
• Help identify cultural moments and emerging conversations where clients have a credible right to participate
• Ensure earned media and influencer strategy work together rather than operating as separate disciplines

Team Leadership + Development

• Provide senior oversight and mentorship to the Account Manager and broader client services team
• Coach team members on strategic thinking, feature development, pitching, writing, client counsel, and prioritization
• Help the AM grow as an account leader without simply taking over their responsibilities
• Establish clear expectations around what should be solved independently at each level of the team
• Review work strategically without becoming an unnecessary approval bottleneck
• Help build a culture of accountability, creativity, ownership, and excellent client service

Agency Leadership + Growth

• Partner directly with the Founder & CEO on agency priorities, resourcing, client health, and growth
• Help identify operational or staffing issues before they affect client work
• Support new business strategy, proposals, pitches, and prospective client conversations selectively
• Help strengthen DripComm's positioning as an integrated communications agency
• Contribute to the systems and leadership infrastructure required for DripComm's next stage of growth

Required Qualifications

• 10+ years of PR, communications, integrated marketing, or earned media experience, with significant agency experience strongly preferred
• Director, VP, SVP, or equivalent senior leadership experience
• Demonstrated ability to oversee multiple client accounts simultaneously
• Deep experience developing earned media strategies and securing meaningful national and top-tier coverage
• A track record of developing features and narratives, not simply executing announcement-driven PR
• Strong media relationships across relevant consumer, beauty, wellness, fashion, lifestyle, business, and/or health categories
• Experience counseling founders, executives, and senior marketing leaders
• Exceptional writing, editing, messaging, and storytelling skills
• Strong creative and cultural instincts
• Experience mentoring AM-, AE-, and junior-level communications professionals
• Understanding of integrated communications spanning PR, creators/influencers, affiliate, events, partnerships, and cultural marketing
• Ability to quickly understand unfamiliar industries and identify the strongest story
• Excellent judgment, confidence, and executive presence
• Entrepreneurial mindset and comfort operating within a growing independent agency

We're particularly interested in candidates who can demonstrate specific long-form, feature, and top-tier media wins and clearly explain the role they personally played in securing them.

Work Arrangement & Compensation

• Fractional leadership position
• Approximately 30-40 hours per month initially
• Target rate: competitive commensurate with experience
• Hours may expand alongside agency revenue and client growth
• Potential to evolve into a larger leadership position as DripComm scales, based on agency needs, performance, and mutual fit