Communications lead

About Watershed

Watershed is a software platform for running a world-class climate program. We measure our success in the carbon reduction achievements of our customers. We are looking for team members who love product-building, want to work hard at a mission-oriented startup, and will collaborate with us in shaping the culture of a growing team.

We have offices in San Francisco and London and remote team members across the US and Europe. We hope that you'll be interested in joining us!

The role

As Watershed’s communications lead, you’ll be responsible for designing, building and running a world-class communications function at a company with an ambitious mission to accelerate the fight against climate change. Partnering closely with the marketing and executive teams, you’ll shape Watershed’s narrative, public persona, and thought leadership strategy, and you’ll play a pivotal role in helping companies achieve their business goals while changing the story on climate.

We’re looking for an inimitable storyteller, fearless comms leader, and scrappy executor who’s passionate about our mission and the opportunity ahead. Our ideal candidate will be strategic and discerning: in the climate world, nearly everything is a story, so being intentional about how and where we show up is critical. You’re a clear, concise communicator and a top-notch collaborator, and you’re equally at ease with reporters, analysts, customers, partners, and competitors. If this sounds like the job of a lifetime, let’s talk.

Responsibilities include: 

• Define the communications strategy for Watershed, from thought leadership to event response—and everything in between
• Define Watershed’s corporate narrative, positioning, and brand voice
• Source and analyze market trends, competitor activity, current events, and climate news to inform and continually optimize our communications strategy
• Develop and implement a multi-channel thought leadership program, leveraging Watershed’s deep bench of climate experts, analysts, and executives
• Engage frequently with industry, national, and international press, both within and beyond the climate space
• Build and maintain strong relationships with influencers across the climate landscape, including (but not limited to) press, analysts, nonprofits and NGOs, climate experts, and thought leaders
• Be a subject-matter expert on our corporate strategy, narrative, and positioning, and an expert at helping the rest of the world understand it
• Draft and disseminate press releases, blog posts, social media posts, and other collateral as needed
• Grow a high-performing team built on a culture of diversity, inclusion, and excellence

We’re looking for: 

• A seasoned communications leader who’s comfortable navigating ambiguous, fast-moving, high-pressure situations
• An adept strategist, with extensive experience developing end-to-end communications plans and leading teams in rapidly evolving, technically complex, politically charged markets
• A skilled relationship-builder, with a deep network of press, analyst, partner, and influencer connections
• An exceptional communicator (speaking, writing, collaborating, and more)
• A storyteller, with the ability to craft narratives that cut through the noise of crowded markets
• An executor who’s at home in a fast-paced, scrappy environment, with a bias for action and a willingness to roll up your sleeves and get stuff done
• A global thinker with experience navigating regional differences and tailoring messaging to a broad range of customers

FAQ

What’s your approach to remote work?

Watershed is hiring team members on all US and EU time zones, and we’re committed to growing a long-term distributed team. We have hub offices in San Francisco and London, and remote team members from Oregon to New Jersey to Ireland. There may be certain jobs that need to be in San Francisco / London or certain locations, and will be specifically noted in the job description or in conversations.

What are Watershed’s return-to-office plans?

We reopened our San Francisco office in June 2021, and treasure the energy and collaboration that comes from working together in person. We’re particularly lucky to have a great rooftop outdoor space, where we can gather for lunch, one-on-one’s, and the occasional outdoor whiteboarding session. We’re also investing deeply to support remote as a first-class hub, with regular Zoom social times, an emphasis on transparency and written artifacts, and periodic offsites to gather everybody in person.

We’re a COVID-cautious company. The office is open to vaccinated team members with regular testing, and we’ll continue to pay close attention to case rates to ensure it’s safe for everybody.

Do I need X years of experience, climate experience, etc.?

No, Watershed is hiring team members with a broad range of prior experience, and we’d love to talk with you regardless of yours. We prioritize mentorship on the job. There maybe certain jobs that will need X years of experience, and will be specifically noted in the job description.

What’s the interview process like?

It starts the same for every candidate: getting to know the team members through 1 to 2 conversations about Watershed, your experience, and your interests. Next steps can vary by role, but usual next steps are a skill or experience screen (e.g. a coding interview for an engineer, a portfolio review for a designer, deeper experience call for other roles) which leads to a (usually virtual) onsite interview after that if the screens go well. We prioritize transparency and lack of surprise throughout the process.