Marketing & Communications Content Officer

We are seeking a Marketing and Communications Content Officer to join our Marketing and Communications team as part of our Philanthropic Services (PS) department. This position reports directly to our Director of Marketing and Communications and is based in Santa Barbara County.

Please review our Job Description below, before applying. This is a mid-level role, not a senior position or management role. All applicants must submit a professional resume, cover letter and completed copy of our employment application, in order to be considered.

Position Summary:

The Content Officer is integral to the Marketing and Communications team and organizational ability to communicate to our donors, the local nonprofit sector, and the community at large the “what, how, and why” of our work, and to tell compelling stories about our impact. The Content Officer leads the creation, coordination, and publication of the Santa Barbara Foundation’s core content across print and digital formats. This role is responsible for the development of stories and publications that drive engagement, build trust, and elevate the Foundation’s visibility. Primary responsibilities include managing the production of core content such as quarterly newsletters, the Foundation’s Annual Report and Grants & Gifts Report, program reports, and other storytelling initiatives. The Content Officer also oversees the development and maintenance of a centralized story library and collaborates with internal teams and external vendors to ensure content is timely, engaging, on brand, and aligned with organizational goals.

Specific Responsibilities:

Content Strategy and Execution

• Plan, develop, and publish quarterly newsletters in collaboration with the Senior Marketing & Communications Manager.
• Own editorial calendars and workflows for recurring content.
• Build and maintain a centralized content library featuring donor stories, grantee profiles, and community impact narratives.
• Write, adapt and publish content for multi-channel distribution (email, print, web, social).

Publications and Report Management

• Manage the end-to-end content production process for SBF’s Annual Report, Grants & Gifts Report, program reports, and other publications.
•  Serve as lead content coordinator across departments, gathering data, quotes, photos, and stories.
• Oversee timelines, copyediting, and final production in coordination with contract design partners, other vendors, and internal stakeholders.
• Contribute to additional publications and reports as assigned.

Editorial Coordination and Team Support

• Participate in weekly MarCom team meetings, monthly Philanthropic Services meetings, Programs team meetings and other collaborative meetings, and manage editorial timelines and deliverables.
• Provide writing and editing guidance to staff and interns contributing to content initiatives.
• Help maintain documentation, templates, and tone guidelines that support brand and content continuity across the organization.
• Other duties as assigned.

Essential Requirements:

• 3-5 years of experience in editorial project management, content development, journalism, or nonprofit communications.
• Excellent writing, editing, synthesis, and content planning skills with proven ability to manage multi-stakeholder workflows, and multiple concurrent deadlines.
• Strong project management and production coordination abilities.
• Familiarity with Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Suite, Canva, and WordPress or similar CMS platforms.
• Spanish language proficiency a plus.
• Experience working with freelance writers or designers a plus.
• Collaborative, proactive, and deadline-driven with a passion for storytelling.
• Strong interpersonal communication skills.
• Ability to attend events in various areas of Santa Barbara County.
• Bachelor’s Degree or demonstrated commensurate professional experience.

Work Environment:

• General office environment, open office space area, or office with door.
• Dog-friendly office (well-trained pets, only). See our Pet Policy for more information.
• Hybrid: In office (minimum 3 days/week), plus optional telecommuting – ability to work at home and provide own router, modem, and reliable internet connection.
• Significant telephone and computer work (repetitive movement – typing).
• Occasional travel to satellite office in Santa Maria and/or to events off-site.
• Frequent sitting, standing, walking, climbing stairs, bending and occasional lifting of light loads (10lbs.

At SBF, we value wellness and offer a very generous benefits package, including: up to 15 days of PTO in the first year of employment, 14 holidays, paid sick time, fully paid health insurance package for staff (including a top tier medical plan) and about 75% dependent coverage; 401K with up to a 10% employer contribution after one year of employment, 2.5%-6.5% housing allowance added to annualized salary based on tenure and after one-year of employment, in-office massages, wellness days and more! 

This exempt, full-time role is compensated at $75,000 – $80,000 annually, depending on skills and work experience. 

All applicants are required to submit an employment application, a resume, and a cover letter to hr@sbfoundation.org.