Deputy Press Secretary for the Division of Communications

About The Agency

The New York City Department of Housing Preservation (HPD) promotes quality and affordability in the city's housing, and diversity and strength in the city’s neighborhoods because every New Yorker deserves a safe, affordable place to live in a neighborhood they love.

• We maintain building and resident safety and health
• We create opportunities for New Yorkers through housing affordability
• We engage New Yorkers to build and sustain neighborhood strength and diversity.
  
  

HPD is entrusted with fulfilling these objectives through the goals and strategies of Housing Our Neighbors: A Blueprint for Housing and Homelessness, Mayor Adams’ comprehensive housing framework. To support this important work, the administration has committed $5 billion in new capital funding, bringing the 10-year planned investment in housing to $22 billion the largest in the city’s history. This investment, coupled with a commitment to reduce administrative and regulatory barriers, is a multi-pronged strategy to tackle New York City’s complex housing crisis, by addressing homelessness and housing instability, promoting economic stability and mobility, increasing homeownership opportunities, improving health and safety, and increasing opportunities for equitable growth.

Your Team

The Office of Communications oversees all public relations for the agency and is responsible for crafting a proactive strategy to promote agency initiatives, programs, and accomplishments to the media, our partners, our staff and the public. The division manages all interactions with the press, social media channels, the agency’s website, internal communications, as well as digital and print materials.

Your Impact

The Deputy Press Secretary is a highly motivated candidate who must be a creative planner, a critical thinker and passionate about how we use communications to make real change in our communities. The position works with all levels of the agency to promote and defend HPD’s programs, policies, and initiatives in the media while building strong relationships with members of the press, the HPD community, City Hall and other agencies, and external partners. The best candidate is passionate about all forms of communications and views their role as an integral part of tackling New York City’s housing crisis.

Your Role

The primary role of the Deputy Press Secretary is to craft and advance a proactive press strategy, including identifying, creating and managing press opportunities; drafting press materials such as releases, op-eds, letters to the editor and occasionally social media content; handling media inquiries; building deep relationships within the agency as well as with external partners and the media. They will report to the Assistant Commissioner of Communications and collaborate closely with the Press Secretary and all members of the communications team. Potential for the title of Deputy Press Secretary depending on experience level.

Your Responsibilities

• Proactively pitch stories and interviews to individual reporters.
• Respond to media Inquiries, working with staff around the Agency to understand the issues, distill the pertinent information, and shape the Agency’s message. Incoming inquires often require a few hours turnaround and occasionally need to be handled outside of normal work hours.
• Plan and attend Agency press events and other public-facing events; arrange logistics in coordination with City Hall, other agencies, and external partners.
• Draft press releases, briefing materials, public remarks, and op-eds for the Commissioner and senior staff.
• Build relationships with new and existing press contacts, continuously grow and update the press list, and identify new media outlets and reporters to cover Agency news.
• Prepare HPD’s spokespeople for interviews and public speaking engagements; oversee interviews with local, regional and major national media outlets
• Review the news daily to identify stories relating to the Agency and relevant policy areas, as well as stories that generate new ideas, and share relevant coverage with appropriate agency teams.
• Ensure consistency in message, tone, data, and facts in various agency publications and public presentations.
• Write and edit content for communicating with agency partners and implement new ways of communicating effectively with partners.
• Amplify positive news, in partnership with the Digital team, internally as well as externally.
  
  

Minimum Qualifications

• A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college and two years of experience in community work or community centered activities in an area related to the duties described above; or
• High school graduation or equivalent and six years of experience in community work or community centered activities in an area related to the duties as described above; or
• Education and/or experience which is equivalent to "1" or "2" above. However, all candidates must have at least one year of experience as described in "1" above.
  
  

Preferred Skills

• At least 2 years of full-time experience in communications, public relations, journalism, or related fields preferred. Open to candidates with constituent services, community affairs or similar experience who have a deep passion for communications. - Handle multiple deadlines in a fast-paced and quickly changing environment. - Strong analytical and organization skills, attention to detail, and ability to fact-check and synthesize complex issues on a range of housing and urban policy topics. - Discretion in handling sensitive and confidential matters and excellent judgment. - Ability to work well independently and as a team player, switching often between the two. - Passion for press, social media and communications in general a plus - A Baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or an equivalent combination of education and experience. - Spanish fluency and/or other language skills preferred
  
  

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/

Residency Requirement

New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview.

Additional Information

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.