Corporate Communications Manager

Position Summary When you work at Daktronics, you’ll be part of something amazing. We design, engineer, manufacture and support bold, eye-catching digital LED display technology and audio systems. Our products bring excitement to professional, college and high school games. They attract customers for businesses around the world, and even provide direction for people as they travel, work and play. As part of the Daktronics team, you’ll have interesting, impactful work with flexible opportunities. You can learn and grow at a company that provides competitive compensation and meaningful benefits – and the people are second to none. Role Summary: Daktronics is seeking a Corporate Communications manager to help build and own a proactive communications function that includes media relations, crisis readiness, internal alignment, customer advocacy, and agency management -- all with a consistent company narrative. Owns: Proactive Public Relations, media relations, crisis communication, internal communication, customer testimonials, and communications agency relationships. Coordinates with: Creative & Content, Digital & Social, Marketing Strategists, Investor Relations, Finance,  Executive Leadership, Human Resources. What will the work look like for me? Key Responsibilities:    Team Management Lead the corporate communications function and coordinate with Creative & Content, Digital & Social, and Marketing Strategists. Build staffing and capability plans for communications, and agency management as the function matures. Partner with multiple members of the company on stakeholder-facing communications. Proactive Media Relations Build a proactive media relations function that shapes the Daktronics story and the key messaging for its primary business segments. Develop and maintain relationships with relevant industry, business and media. Develop a calendar of moments during the year to keep Daktronics relevant with the appropriate media outlets. Partner with Investor Relations/Finance during quarterly earnings and other moments (e.g., Investor Day) that are public facing to drive messaging with relevant media. Partner with manager of the “paid” media function for Daktronics to extract editorial consideration. Executive Visibility Work with Director of Marketing to develop an executive communications strategy that includes conference appearances and other opportunities for Daktronics’ leaders. Support CEO with media training/coaching. Identify media opportunities for key Daktronics executives and Subject Matter Experts. Crisis Communications/Issues Management Partner with legal, Human Resources and other functions to maintain and update a formal crisis communication/issues management protocol and response readiness plan. Proactively monitor for emerging issues and reputational risk. Potentially serve as the company spokesperson during a crisis, internally and externally. Internal Communications Work with HR and other functions on an internal communications strategy that keeps team members globally informed and engaged. Partner with HR on how best to communicate the company’s Employee Value Proposition to internal and external audiences. Help stage employee events (Town Halls, celebrations, etc.) – working with HR and the events teams. Customer Testimonials & Advocacy Elevate customer testimonials into high-visibility proof points of the Daktronics’ story and the stories of its key business segments. Sponsorship integration Work with Live Events to identify opportunities for storytelling in conjunction with overall sponsorship assets. Agency Management Own relationships with communications agencies. Set clear scopes, budget, deliverables, and performance expectations for every agency engagement. Ensure agency output is consistent with brand voice and integrated with the broader marketing strategy. Partner with investor relations agency as needed, especially around earnings. Team Growth & Culture Foster a culture of collaboration and open coordination between Corporate Communications, Creative & Content, Digital & Social, and Sales teams. Build professional growth paths and development opportunities for communications team members. Ensure seamless coordination and handoffs across central functions, embedded roles, and business segments. Where is this opportunity located?  Position located in Brookings, SD. Qualifications To be considered for the Corporate Communications Manager position, we require the following: Team Management Seven (7)+ years leading corporate communications, public relations, or media relations teams. Demonstrated ability to lead through influence across regional and functional teams. Experience partnering with Investor Relations and executive leadership. Proactive Media Relations Proven track record building proactive media strategy and media relationships at a brand or enterprise level. Strong understanding of how to shape narrative ahead of news cycles, not just respond to them. Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Crisis Communications Direct experience developing and executing crisis communication plans. Demonstrated composure and clarity communicating under pressure. Experience monitoring media and sentiment to identify risk before it escalates. Internal Communications Experience aligning internal communications with brand voice across a distributed organization. Comfortable communicating with analysts, investors, and Board-level audiences. Strong cross-functional collaboration skills. Customer Testimonials & Advocacy Experience building customer advocacy and testimonial programs. Ability to translate customer success into compelling, distributable brand proof points. Agency Management Proven experience managing external public relations/communications agencies. Strong vendor management and budget ov