Public relations, to most, have been thought of as the underrated element in the success of an organization. For those of us who believe in the power of branding and identity, we beg to differ. In 1957, a young public relations Al-Golin gave Ray Kroc a cold call to discuss a potential in marketing for his/her fast-food chain, McDonald's. With a $500 monthly retainer, he/she ran the initiative in encouraging positive newspaper write-ups, contributing to trust banks, and pioneering the hamburger university for employee training. The regal yet humble image McDonald's restaurants carry today is a result of the unwavering vision Al-Golin saw 63 years ago.
The primary role of a communications manager is centered around managing a company's public relations. This involves tasks such as developing marketing materials, executing communications strategies, and producing media reports. Besides that, they oversee publication projects and lead the marketing team.
Employers require a communications manager to have a bachelor's degree that relates to business or communications. At least two years of work experience need to be demonstrated. This role earns, on average, $29 per hour and suits individuals who are passionate about public liaison activities.
How to Become a Communications Manager
What is a Communications Manager
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a Communications Manager. For example, did you know that they make an average of $38.07 an hour? That's $79,176 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 8% and produce 6,300 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does a Communications Manager Do
There are certain skills that many Communications Managers have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed Leadership skills, Speaking skills and Writing skills.
How To Become a Communications Manager
If you're interested in becoming a Communications Manager, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 70.0% of Communications Managers have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 11.8% of Communications Managers have master's degrees. Even though most Communications Managers have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a Communications Manager. When we researched the most common majors for a Communications Manager, we found that they most commonly earn Bachelor's Degree degrees or Master's Degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on Communications Manager resumes include Associate Degree degrees or High School Diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a Communications Manager. In fact, many Communications Manager jobs require experience in a role such as Property Manager. Meanwhile, many Communications Managers also have previous career experience in roles such as Assistant Manager or Internship.
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Communications Manager Career Paths
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of Owner you might progress to a role such as Facilities Manager eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title Senior Facilities Manager.
Communications Manager Jobs You Might Like
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Average Salary for a Communications Manager
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12 Communications Manager Resume Examples
Build a professional communications manager resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 12+ resume templates to create your communications manager resume.
Melissa Burns Communications Manager |
Kevin Ferguson Communications Manager Experience Communications Manager2019 - Present HCA Healthcare•San Diego, CA
Property Manager2016 - 2019 HCA Healthcare•San Diego, CA
Supervisor2015 - 2016 Vons•San Diego, CA
Leasing Consultant2014 - 2015 Fairfield Properties•San Diego, CA
Skills Daily OperationsWeb ContentCommunications StrategyEmergencyMarketing CollateralInterview ProcessPatient CareMental HealthCorporate OfficeOccupancy Rate Education Bachelor's Degree Business2011 - 2014 Ashford University•San Diego, CA |
Learn How To Write a Communications Manager Resume
At Zippia, we went through countless Communications Manager resumes and compiled some information about how to optimize them. Here are some suggestions based on what we found, divided by the individual sections of the resume itself.
View Communications Manager Resume Examples And TemplatesAnd if you’re looking for a job, here are the five top employers hiring now:
Choose From 10+ Customizable Communications Manager Resume templates
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Communications Manager templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Communications Manager resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
Communications Manager Demographics
Communications Manager Gender Distribution
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
- Among Communications Managers, 65.1% of them are women, while 34.9% are men.
- The most common race/ethnicity among Communications Managers is White, which makes up 78.7% of all Communications Managers.
- The most common foreign language among Communications Managers is Spanish at 50.0%.
Find the best Communications Manager job for you
Communications Manager Jobs You Might Like
- High Paying Communications Manager Jobs - $123K and Up
- Work From Home Communications Manager Jobs
- Entry Level Communications Manager Jobs
- Part Time Communications Manager Jobs
- Actively Hiring
- No Degree Communications Manager Jobs
Top Colleges for Communications Managers
1. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
2. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
3. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
4. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
5. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
6. Villanova University
Villanova, PA • Private
7. San Diego State University
San Diego, CA • Private
8. Bentley University
Waltham, MA • Private
9. New York University
New York, NY • Private
10. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI • Private
Find the best Communications Manager job for you
Communications Manager Jobs You Might Like
- High Paying Communications Manager Jobs - $123K and Up
- Work From Home Communications Manager Jobs
- Entry Level Communications Manager Jobs
- Part Time Communications Manager Jobs
- Actively Hiring
- No Degree Communications Manager Jobs
Online Courses For Communications Manager That You May Like
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Top Skills For a Communications Manager
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 12.7% of Communications Managers listed Customer Service on their resume, but soft skills such as Leadership skills and Speaking skills are important as well.
Best States For a Communications Manager
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a Communications Manager. The best states for people in this position are Washington, California, Montana, and Iowa. Communications Managers make the most in Washington with an average salary of $121,962. Whereas in California and Montana, they would average $106,190 and $101,829, respectively. While Communications Managers would only make an average of $99,095 in Iowa, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Washington
$121,962
Avg. Salary
2. California
$106,190
Avg. Salary
3. Delaware
$94,298
Avg. Salary
How Do Communications Manager Rate Their Jobs?
Top Communications Manager Employers
We've made finding a great employer to work for easy by doing the hard work for you. We looked into employers that employ Communications Managers and discovered their number of Communications Manager opportunities and average salary. Through our research, we concluded that American Cancer Society was the best, especially with an average salary of $73,439. Holiday Retirement follows up with an average salary of $69,585, and then comes Greystar Real Estate Partners with an average of $47,715. In addition, we know most people would rather work from home. So instead of having to change careers, we identified the best employers for remote work as a Communications Manager. The employers include Deloitte, Cisco Systems, and Motorola Solutions
Communications Manager Videos
Becoming a Communications Manager FAQs
How long does it take to become a communications manager?
It takes about five to ten years of work experience to become a communications manager. This is typically in addition to a bachelor's degree, usually in journalism or communications.
Communications managers typically need at least a bachelor's degree, but many have master's degrees. Usually, these degrees are in journalism, marketing, or communications. However, other common degree programs are psychology or business management.
How much do marketing communications managers make?
Marketing communications managers make an average salary of around $80,000 in a year. This varies somewhat between the top earners and the bottom 25 percent. Top earning marketing communications managers earn around $125,000 in a year.
What degree do I need to be a communications manager?
You need a bachelor's degree in communications or public relations to be a communications manager. Other common areas to major in are marketing, journalism, psychology, or advertising degrees.
What qualifications do you need to work in communications?
The minimum qualifications to work in communications is a bachelor's degree in communications or a related field. They must also have a lot of experience in conveying messages using different mediums while also being able to deal with urgent and crisis situations.
What skills does a communication manager need?
The most important skills for a communications manager are excellent verbal and written communications skills. Unsurprisingly, a communications manager must be an expert communicator, not just for their work but also to run their team well.