Content Specialist

**About Homeward Trust Edmonton**

Homeward Trust Edmonton (HTE) is a not-for-profit organization charged with ending homelessness in Edmonton. Our efforts are guided by community needs and priorities as outlined in A Place to Call Home: Edmonton’s Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness. Homeward Trust has a dynamic work environment, filled with high-energy, dedicated, and passionate people.

Homeward Trust embraces the Housing First philosophy. This philosophy follows the principles of finding housing accommodations first and then establishing the supports required by the client to remain in a home. Homeward Trust Edmonton’s programs involve both housing (capital project funding, property management, and sourcing access to new or existing units for client use) and supportive services to individuals in or seeking access to housing programs.

**Position Summary**

Reporting to the Director, Communications and Engagement, the Content Specialist is responsible for:

- Website (WordPress) development, management and optimization both back and front-end
- Content planning and generation:
- developing succinct, factual content with exemplary writing/grammar skills to share sector news and increase awareness of the plans and priorities to end and prevent Edmonton homelessness. This includes copywriting, blogs, newsletters, social media crisis communications, and long and short-form content for internal and external audiences
- developing basic visual content and graphics for our channels and platforms (social, web, newsletters)
- Project planning and reporting including managing editorial calendars and content management plans

This is an essential role in providing Edmonton-based information and stories of the challenges, efforts and successes of ending and preventing homelessness.

**_Education and Experience_**
- Graduate of a recognized post-secondary institution with a focus on public relations, communications, social media or journalism is required.
- A minimum of two years’ experience managing social, content generation (graphics, design and copy) and website management and development is required.
- Basic graphic design skills and training with bonus points for social media video production
- Equivalencies in formal education and/or experience will be considered.
- Prior work in the not-for-profit industry is considered an asset.

**Key Duties & Responsibilities**
- Research, write, and edit content for various platforms, channels and external and internal audiences.
- Support emergent and/or crisis communications including real-time monitoring and reporting.
- Stay up-to-date on social media trends as well as best practices in content planning, management and generation.
- Front-end and back-end development of our WordPress site, including the implementation of themes and plugins as well aswell as site integration, performance management and security updates. This includes:

- Generating weekly fresh content, reviewing and editing/improving existing content.
- Creating the website architecture and conducting performance tests.
- Experience building user interfaces for websites, responsive design with experience using PHP, HTML, CSS etc.
- Ability to understand CSS changes and their ramifications to ensure consistency.
- Understanding of how to design for and optimize for SEO and UX.
- Data management and backup.
- Integrating graphics, audio, and video into the website.
- Collaborating with team members to determine the website’s layout, content, and design.
- Monitoring website traffic, performance, security, compatibility and making adjustments.
- Other duties as assigned and as required.

**Measures of Success**

Success in the first year will be determined by the ability to:

- Work collaboratively with the Communications team, leadership, and staff and stakeholders.
- Consistently display factual accuracy with exemplary writing and grammar skills.
- Employ a sense of urgency in proactively monitoring social media to alert leadership to emerging issues, topics of interest and to provide timely briefs.
- Proactively plan and schedule content aligned with organizational messaging and interests.
- Ensure homewardtrust.ca is secure, optimized and refreshed with timely content of value to our audiences which includes ensuring the backend is maintained and expertly managed.
- Set and meet deadlines, prioritize tasks, seek approvals/make decisions promptly and effectively communicate with others.
- Exercise media and public relations acumen, combined with discretion and good judgement regarding political issues, sensitive information, and public perception.
- Be a self-motivated learner who is passionate about staying abreast of content, social and web best practices and trends.
- Thrive in ambiguity, and the unknown while striking a balance of knowing when to seek approval and when to take initiative.

**Working Conditions**
- Must pass criminal record check including vulnerable sector clearance
- Hyb