What does a communications manager do?
A communications manager is responsible for overseeing a company or organization's public relations by devising various strategies and finding new opportunities. They must craft and produce marketing materials such as campaigns, advertisements, newsletters, social media engagements, and press releases to shape and improve a brand or company. Furthermore, a communications manager must accomplish administrative tasks such as preparing reports and necessary documentation, reaching out to advertisers, leading communication letters, and coordinating with marketing personnel from other departments.
Communications manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real communications manager resumes:
- Co-administered sales campaigns in Salesforce, CRM to efficiently manage sales productivity of communication and leads.
- Lead and manage marketing department's copywriting and editing team and develop many aspects of corporate communication.
- Manage creative agency relationships and lead execution of commercial excellence awards program, Americas mid-year growth summit and kick-off meetings.
- Manage all Medicaid paperwork, manage staff payroll, client attendance.
- Manage all facets of community programs and recruitment for HIV prevention clinical trials.
- Train in YARDI to complete daily transitions, manage resident ledgers and prepare weekly/monthly reports.
- Design and maintain professional actors union web site using Photoshop, HTML.
- Launch new lead capture/nurture, twitter and email marketing program across tradeshow and conference portfolio.
- Produce and deploy game previews and technical support videos to YouTube, Facebook, and other social media channels.
- Implement key strategies to build product placement and celebrity branding opportunities; handle social media platforms including Instagram and Facebook.
- Monitor and post content for Facebook, LinkedIn and other social media to promote TRI research and science-base products and services.
- Generate successful new external lead generation program utilizing CRM software and assist in public relations program.
- Oversee the AP and AR in MRI.
- Utilize MRI, an electronic accounting system.
- Leverage earned media and social media to market business.
Communications manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 16% of Communications Managers are proficient in Customer Service, Property Management, and Yardi. They’re also known for soft skills such as Leadership skills, Speaking skills, and Writing skills.
We break down the percentage of Communications Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 16%
Demonstrated proficiency in marketing units, collecting rents/fees, provided customer service, processed applications, certification paperwork and detailed reports.
- Property Management, 9%
Manage team of 10 engaged in property management operations for residential and commercial communities and in ensuring long-term profitability.
- Yardi, 5%
Maintained a high closing and raised occupancy by 40%, Data entry of accounts payable and receivable using YARDI.
- Project Management, 5%
Provide leadership and project management for the development and implementation of marketing/advertising initiatives to help accelerate sales growth and other objectives.
- Press Releases, 4%
Manage internal and external communications including corporate announcements, hotel initiatives, press releases and social media channels.
- Web Content, 4%
Produced customized Web content that enhanced brand awareness and generated increased web traffic for industry-leading information solutions.
"customer service," "property management," and "yardi" are among the most common skills that communications managers use at work. You can find even more communications manager responsibilities below, including:
Leadership skills. One of the key soft skills for a communications manager to have is leadership skills. You can see how this relates to what communications managers do because "public relations and fundraising managers often lead large teams of specialists or fundraisers and must be able to guide their activities." Additionally, a communications manager resume shows how communications managers use leadership skills: "proposed annual savings of over $6 million to senior hr leadership in white paper on alternatives to downsizing. "
Speaking skills. Another essential skill to perform communications manager duties is speaking skills. Communications managers responsibilities require that "public relations and fundraising managers regularly speak on behalf of their organization." Communications managers also use speaking skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "presented monthly financial reports to customers and weekly/monthly reports to company owners. "
Writing skills. This is an important skill for communications managers to perform their duties. For an example of how communications manager responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "managers must be able to write well-organized and clear press releases and speeches." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a communications manager: "provide communication and outreach services to novaco, including grant writing, public relations, press releases, and external communications. ".
Organizational skills. A big part of what communications managers do relies on "organizational skills." You can see how essential it is to communications manager responsibilities because "public relations and fundraising managers are often in charge of running several events at the same time, requiring superior organizational skills." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical communications manager tasks: "partner to global hr team and other business groups, engaging and driving employees toward departmental and organizational goals. "
Problem-solving skills. A commonly-found skill in communications manager job descriptions, "problem-solving skills" is essential to what communications managers do. Communications manager responsibilities rely on this skill because "managers sometimes must explain how the company or client is handling sensitive issues." You can also see how communications manager duties rely on problem-solving skills in this resume example: "partnered with hr to investigate employee concerns by troubleshooting situations and providing resolutions. "
Communication skills. Another skill commonly found on communications manager job descriptions is "communication skills." It can come up quite often in communications manager duties, since "managers deal with the public regularly; therefore, they must be friendly enough to build a rapport with, and receive cooperation from, their media contacts and donors." Here's an example from a resume of how this skill fits into day-to-day communications manager responsibilities: "collaborate with manufacturing plants and other site personnel on communication initiatives and support and partner with hr on all communications. "
The three companies that hire the most communications managers are:
- Meta584 communications managers jobs
- Deloitte193 communications managers jobs
- Public Consulting Group51 communications managers jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable communications manager resume templates
Build a professional communications manager resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your communications manager resume.
Compare different communications managers
Communications manager vs. Manager
Managers are responsible for a specific department, function, or employee group. They oversee their assigned departments and all the employees under the department. Managers are responsible that the department they are handling is functioning well. They set the department goals and the steps they must take to achieve the goals. They are also in charge of assessing the performance of their departments and their employees. Additionally, managers are responsible for interviewing prospective candidates for department vacancies and assessing their fit to the needs of the department. Managers also set the general working environment in the department, and they are expected to ensure that their employees remain motivated.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, communications manager responsibilities require skills like "property management," "yardi," "project management," and "press releases." Meanwhile a typical manager has skills in areas such as "payroll," "food safety," "financial statements," and "management." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
On average, managers reach similar levels of education than communications managers. Managers are 4.7% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Communications manager vs. Leasing manager
A leasing manager is responsible for processing the lease requirements of multiple properties for potential renters and ensuring that all documents are filed accurately, following the standards of property management and clients' qualifications. Leasing managers develop marketing campaigns to advertise leasing properties through media relations and posting on social media platforms. They respond to the potential renters' inquiries and concerns, negotiate contract agreements, inspect the property's location for safety and security, and conduct regular reviews of monetary requirements.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that communications manager responsibilities requires skills like "project management," "press releases," "web content," and "powerpoint." But a leasing manager might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "real estate," "property tours," "excellent interpersonal," and "onesite."
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Leasing managers tend to reach lower levels of education than communications managers. In fact, they're 7.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for communications managers in the next 3-5 years?
Matt Burgess
Assistant Professor of English, Macalester College
Communications manager vs. Manager of corporate communications
A manager of corporate communications is primarily responsible for overseeing the external and internal communications in a company, ensuring everything is running smoothly. They are also responsible for managing marketing communications and public relations, and even developing various marketing content. There are also instances where they must handle a company's social media platforms, review communication materials, and provide progress reports of different projects and programs. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage team members, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a communications manager is likely to be skilled in "customer service," "property management," "yardi," and "web content," while a typical manager of corporate communications is skilled in "corporate communications," "strategic communications," "employee engagement," and "crisis communications."
Managers of corporate communications typically earn similar educational levels compared to communications managers. Specifically, they're 2.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Communications manager vs. Assistant director, communications
An assistant communications director is responsible for managing the communicative operations across the company, handling the dissemination of information among employees, and releasing management announcements to media platforms. Assistant communications directors draft project techniques and strategies, as well as monitoring social media contents and press releases. They also identify business opportunities by analyzing recent trends that would generate more revenue resources and increase the company's profits. An assistant communications director must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially in assessing business information to prevent miscommunications and negative publications.
Types of communications manager
Updated January 8, 2025
