Associate Director, Audience (Politics)

Quick take: Axios is hiring an experienced newsroom audience specialist to grow and engage readership for our political and world news coverage.

Why it matters: This person will be responsible for broadening and deepening the audience experience across platforms, including newsletters, the web and social. 

•  You will understand the differences in how users engage with our web vs. newsletter content and will take on a leading role in shaping our coverage to meet those specific needs.
• You will have instincts on what will travel on distributed platforms, you recognize how Axios political coverage distinguishes itself from competitors and have a clear sense of what makes it a must-read with our audience.

Responsibilities:

• Take ownership for the web performance of political and world news stories, building processes to ensure that coverage with potential to win site audience is thoughtfully planned.
• Play a leadership role within the audience team and advance team goals across the newsroom.
• Point person for identifying politics stories that are well-suited to be adapted and shared through other Axios distribution points — including Local and social video.
• Develop coverage plans for upcoming, anticipatable news moments — including elections, legislation and major court decisions — to meet expected audience demand. Win the buy-in of the Politics editor and newsdesk to execute an optimal plan.
• Interpret, contextualize and communicate actionable performance data to politics editors.
• Advise on how best to translate coverage in newsletters to the web — which stories should be prioritized, which should be published outside of the newsletter schedule and which can be left to a newsletter-only audience.
• Generate ideas for reader-service stories. These pieces will be targeted to a broader audience and often will be more explanatory than what readers find in Axios newsletters. Be open and able to write these stories.
• Develop and execute tactics to grow the public profiles of our most conversation-driving politics reporters.
• Develop and execute experiments to cultivate niche audiences in targeted online communities that align with Axios subject matter experts.

Skills: 

• Enthusiastic about building expertise in political media and curious about learning the competitive landscape, identifying the top reporters in the ecosystem and understanding the rhythms that dictate political news cycles.
• Proactive in staying on top of all incoming politics coverage in order to plan and optimize distribution opportunities
• Has a sophisticated understanding of performance metrics in order to surface meaningful, actionable insights from the data 
• Adaptable and diplomatic in pursuing goals while managing relationships with internal stakeholders on the Politics, Essentials, Newsdesk, Visuals and Communications teams.
• Just as effective working collaboratively in a group as you are handling the duties of the job independently and self-sufficiently. 
• Possesses strong writing and editing skills in order to occasionally byline stories that meet audience and vertical goals.

Starting salary for this role is in the range of $105,000 - $130,000 and is dependent on numerous factors, including but not limited to location, work experience, and skills. This range does not include other compensation and benefits

What Axios brings to the table besides salary: 

• 401(k) with employer match
• Robust PPO and High Deductible health insurance options on the Blue Cross Blue Shield network
• Employer Health Savings Account (HSA) contribution for the high deductible health plan option
• Dental and vision coverage
• Primary caregiver 12-week paid leave
• Generous vacation policy, plus holidays
• One mental health day per quarter
• Annual learning and development stipend
• $100 monthly work-from-home stipend
• Tele-mental health services through Headspace
• OneMedical membership, including tele-health services
• Personal health advocacy resources through HealthAdvocate
• Inclusive fertility, hormonal health and family forming benefits through Carrot Fertility
• Access to the Axios “Family Fund”, which was created to allow employees to request financial support when facing financial hardship or emergencies
• Increased work flexibility for parents and caretakers
• Virtual company-sponsored social events
• A strong and positive work environment
• A commitment to an open, inclusive, and diverse work culture

Equal Opportunity Employer Statement

Axios is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, age, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws.

This policy applies to all employment practices within our organization, including hiring, recruiting, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, leave of absence, compensation, benefits, training, and apprenticeship. Axios makes hiring decisions based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs at the time.