Senior Communications Manager

We're currently looking for a Senior Communications Manager to craft meaningful stories and drive campaigns that land Gusto in the right conversations. You'll work with stakeholders across the company to shape narratives that resonate with journalists, thought leaders, influencers, creators, customers, and employees. This person takes charge of earned, owned, and paid campaigns—planning, launching, and seeing them through to impact.

The job mixes hands-on writing and editing with pitching, negotiating, and building real partnerships. You relish the opportunity to advocate on behalf of others and share our passion for raising awareness of small and medium businesses in America. This role brings sharp awareness to reputation risks, seizes timely opportunities in the news cycle, and raises the craft bar for the team.

You're excited about building programs from scratch with end-to-end ownership. Work here is fast, high-trust, and collaborative, with plenty of autonomy for someone who can see possibilities and run with them.

What it is like to Work with Gusto

Here’s what you’ll do day-to-day:

• Lead end-to-end external campaigns that drive impact—from strategy and narrative development to execution, measurement, and follow-up.
• Identify and develop storytelling opportunities within product launches, customer successes, research and data, policy moments, and cultural conversations.
• Recognize when internal developments have external story potential and move quickly to shape and land them.
• Build and nurture trusted, long-term relationships with journalists, creators, Substack writers, podcasters, and industry voices who matter to our audience.
• Pitch stories across traditional and emerging media, negotiate paid partnerships, and create programs that position Gusto in the right conversations.
• Spot opportunities and risks in the news cycle and move fast to keep Gusto's voice relevant and our reputation protected.
• Uncover compelling stories, insights, and data within Gusto that resonate externally, then craft and pitch them across multiple channels.
• Brief and support executives for media interviews, keynotes, panels, and public moments. Adapt to their styles and help them show up authentically.
• Mentor teammates, share what's working, and help raise the craft and impact of the broader team.
• Use AI, analytics, and performance data to sharpen storytelling and measure what's breaking through.
• Partner closely with product, policy, marketing, and leadership teams to keep communications proactive, aligned, and ahead of the curve.

Here’s what we're looking for:

• 9+ years of a combination in-house and agency experience in corporate, exec, product communications or public relations.
• You always have your finger on the pulse of trends today, and you’re constantly searching and thinking about shaping the trends of tomorrow.
• You’re a trusted counselor and advisor to stakeholders across the company.
• A proven ability to secure coverage in top-tier, niche, and emerging outlets and platforms.
• A strong, active network. Influential contacts regularly pick up your outreach.
• Resourceful, highly curious, and relentless in pursuit of bringing compelling stories to life.
• Have a special knack for concepting and telling stories in a clear, intriguing, and effective way across multiple mediums. And you’re able to see what’s not necessarily obvious to everyone else.
• Experience creating thought-leadership platforms across a wide range of key issues, including development of points of view, targeted media outreach, and campaign development. 
• Ability to build and own complex programs that involve multiple business partners in a high-growth organization.
• Track record of success with paid influencer or creator partnerships, including budgeting and negotiation.
• You prioritize building scalable programs and measuring both program and business impact
• Comfortable using data and AI tools to sharpen messaging and guide strategy.

Our cash compensation amount for this role is targeted at $147,755 - $170,000. Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors including candidate experience and expertise and may vary from the amounts listed above.