Senior Communications Specialist

YVR is a place of connection, bringing together people, places, and cargo while ensuring a safe and efficient experience for everyone. Communications is an integral part to making that happen. We are looking for a proven communications professional who is keen to take initiative and contribute to the high performing, award-winning YVR Communications Team, which is responsible for promoting, protecting, and enhancing YVR's reputation and advancing our strategic plan in service of the community and economy that supports it.

Position overview

We have a full-time, term (to October 2026) opportunity for a Senior Communications Specialist. Reporting to the Manager, Communications, the successful candidate will serve as an embedded strategic partner within the Communications team and be responsible for planning and executing corporate communications programs and activities that support Vancouver Airport Authority's business and operations objectives. The successful candidate will take responsibility for leadership, strategic direction, and service delivery with relation to developing, and executing communications plans, creating and/or leading the development of key messages and content (both written and visual), and fostering relationships both internally across key YVR departments, and with stakeholders and key audiences in our community.

Key responsibilities include:  

• Develop and implement comprehensive communications plans to support key one-time, annual and multi-year initiatives, projects, programs, and events. Ensure adherence to the YVR brand and best practices in communications.
• Provide counsel as an embedded strategic partner to internal departments as well as external stakeholders on large-scale initiatives to support communications activities that drive their priorities and the Airport Authority's strategic plan. 
• Provide project management for key communications plans, including overseeing timelines, deliverables, and metrics, ensuring that work is implemented to plan and providing suggestions, advice, and recommendations to mitigate risks and resolve issues while updating leadership on progress.
• Contribute to the development, production and release of the Airport Authority's annual report and associated regular corporate communications programming. 
• Contribute to crisis and issues management, including participation in the Emergency Operations Centre and Communications Operations Centre to lead response activities such as evaluating and responding to operational and reputational matters and providing senior communications support during business hours and while on call.
• Develop communications materials, ensuring CP style and adherence to YVR's style guide, across all content, including key messages, news releases, editorial for YVR's Newsroom, corporate positions on various matters, speeches, and presentations.

Key qualifications include:

• Five to seven years of experience in communications with an agency or corporation, supplemented by a degree in Communications or a related field (or a combination of a diploma in Journalism or Public Relations and experience in public relations); or an equivalent combination of training and experience.
• Skill in analyzing, processing and interpreting complex and technical information in order to develop and implement communications strategies and plans to advance/achieve organizational goals.
• Demonstrated experience in a high-pressure, issues management environment with the ability to make sound real-time decisions with limited supervision.
• Excellent English writing skills (vocabulary, spelling, mechanics) with a comprehensive working knowledge of Canadian Press (CP) style and proven ability to write in plain language to make complex and technical information interesting and easy to understand.
• Strong judgement and leadership skills as well as conflict resolution, analyzing trends and solid decision making plus the ability to diplomatically lead meetings and provide counsel to colleagues.
• Expertise in project management, client services delivery and event execution.
• Significant and proven experience managing media and crisis communications and issues management while working closely with senior executives as well as experience handling sensitive and confidential issues.

To support the Communications team's 24/7 issues management and media relations efforts, this position will be required to participate in a rotating on-call schedule, ensuring they remain in town and accessible to respond as needed. Employees scheduled for on-call duty will be eligible for standby compensation during this period.

This position is open to both Vancouver Airport Authority employees and external applicants. Previous job performance will be taken into consideration for all internal candidates that apply for this position.

As part of our recruitment process, short-listed candidates may be required to participate in an assessment process.