Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Chief of Community Engagement

🎯 Role Definition

The Chief of Community Engagement is a senior executive responsible for setting the vision and operational framework for all community-facing activities across channels (online forums, social platforms, in-person events, volunteer programs and partnerships). This role owns community strategy, program design, measurement and reporting, member lifecycle management, advocacy and volunteer mobilization, and the cross-functional coordination required to translate community insights into product, policy, marketing and fundraising outcomes. The Chief of Community Engagement serves as the organization's primary public representative for community-related initiatives and a strategic leader who drives retention, growth, inclusion, and measurable social impact.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Senior Community Manager or Head of Community
Director of Engagement or Director of Partnerships
Senior Volunteer or Program Director

Advancement To:

Chief Community & Customer Officer
VP of Community, Advocacy & Partnerships
Chief Impact Officer / Chief Growth Officer

Lateral Moves:

Director of Communications or Public Affairs
Head of Marketing or Product Marketing
Director of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Lead the development and execution of a comprehensive, multi-year community engagement strategy that aligns with organizational goals for growth, retention, advocacy, fundraising, and brand reputation.
Design and run scalable community programs (online forums, ambassador programs, volunteer initiatives, local chapters) that increase active participation, deepen member relationships, and convert engagement into measurable business and mission outcomes.
Build and lead a high-performing cross-functional community team (community managers, events, volunteer coordinators, content creators, analytics) including hiring, professional development, performance management, and resource allocation.
Own community governance and moderation policies, establishing standards and escalation processes to ensure safe, inclusive, and constructive interactions across digital and in-person channels.
Develop and manage the annual community budget, forecast investments in platforms and events, and track return on investment (ROI) for community initiatives and partnerships.
Partner with product, customer success, marketing, and policy teams to translate community insights into product improvements, go-to-market messaging, and evidence-based advocacy campaigns.
Oversee the selection, implementation and optimization of community technology and CRM systems (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot, Discourse, Vanilla, Slack, Discord), ensuring data integrity and operational efficiency.
Establish and monitor community KPIs (activation, retention, net promoter score, LTV uplift, advocacy conversions), create dashboards and weekly/monthly reports for executive leadership and board-level stakeholders.
Lead major in-person and virtual events (annual summits, regional meetups, hackathons, volunteer days) from concept through logistics, partner sourcing, speaker selection, and post-event impact evaluation.
Cultivate strategic partnerships with NGOs, industry groups, sponsors, and local leaders to expand reach, secure resources, and co-create community programs that deliver mutual benefit.
Develop and execute member acquisition, onboarding, and lifecycle programs that reduce churn and accelerate member activation, including welcome journeys, mentoring, and certification tracks.
Drive inclusive programming and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives within the community by designing targeted outreach, inclusive content, and governance that reflects member diversity and accessibility needs.
Direct crisis communications and community escalation responses, partnering with legal and communications teams to protect members and the organization while resolving conflicts transparently and promptly.
Establish and run a community advisory council or member feedback loops to surface product and policy insights and co-create priorities with core members and stakeholders.
Build a compelling content and storytelling program (case studies, member spotlights, newsletters, podcasts) that amplifies member voices, drives trust, and supports fundraising and advocacy goals.
Lead volunteer and ambassador programs, including recruitment, training, incentive structures, performance tracking, and recognition systems that sustain long-term volunteer engagement.
Negotiate and steward sponsorships and commercial partnerships tied to events, programs, and member benefits, ensuring alignment with community values and revenue goals.
Create a compliance and privacy framework for community data handling, ensuring GDPR, CCPA and other applicable regulation adherence across community platforms.
Coach senior leaders and frontline teams on community best practices, stakeholder engagement, and community-first decision making that integrates into organizational culture.
Drive A/B testing and iterative experimentation across community programming, content, and engagement tactics to optimize outcomes using qualitative and quantitative research.
Represent the organization externally as a senior spokesperson at conferences, media interviews, panels and partner briefings to advance thought leadership and visibility for community priorities.
Lead fundraising and grant partnership strategy where applicable, translating community impact metrics into compelling proposals and stewardship plans for donors and funders.

Secondary Functions

Oversee day-to-day community operations including moderation workflows, content calendars, and community platform health monitoring to ensure consistent member experience.
Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory analysis to answer business questions about member behavior, campaign performance, and program ROI.
Maintain and continually improve the organization's community data model and taxonomy in collaboration with analytics and engineering teams.
Collaborate with business units to translate community needs into product and policy requirements, and participate in product roadmaps and prioritization conversations.
Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies with cross-functional squads to ensure community features and integrations are delivered on time and with high quality.
Conduct regular risk assessments for community programs and develop mitigation strategies for reputational or operational risks.
Produce executive-level reports, annual impact assessments, and board presentations that synthesize community outcomes, risks and strategic recommendations.
Manage vendor and agency relationships (event producers, platform providers, creative agencies) and negotiate contracts to maximize value and service quality.
Coordinate internal training and enablement sessions for staff on community tools, moderation best practices, and inclusive facilitation techniques.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Community strategy development and execution — proven ability to design multi-channel community roadmaps that scale and deliver measurable KPIs.
Community platform and CRM expertise — hands-on experience with tools such as Salesforce, HubSpot, Discourse, Vanilla, Higher Logic, Mobilize, NationBuilder, Slack, Discord or equivalent.
Data analytics and dashboarding — ability to define metrics, analyze engagement cohorts, and build dashboards in tools like Looker, Tableau, Power BI or Google Data Studio.
Event design and production — experience leading large-scale virtual and in-person events, including budgeting, logistics, programming and sponsor activation.
Volunteer and ambassador program management — skills in recruitment, training, retention, incentives and recognition systems for volunteer leaders.
Content strategy and editorial processes — ability to lead content pipelines for member communications, newsletters, case studies, and social storytelling.
Partnership development and stakeholder negotiation — track record of structuring and managing strategic partnerships, commercial sponsorships and NGO collaborations.
Policy, compliance and risk management — familiarity with GDPR, CCPA and data privacy requirements, community moderation legal considerations, and escalation protocols.
Budgeting and P&L management — experience owning community budgets, forecasting, cost controls and demonstrating ROI.
User research and qualitative feedback synthesis — skills in conducting interviews, focus groups, surveys and turning insights into actionable program changes.

Soft Skills

Strategic leadership — ability to set vision, align cross-functional stakeholders, and translate strategy into executable plans.
Exceptional written and verbal communication — storytelling skills to represent the organization publicly and to craft persuasive internal narratives.
Empathy and member-centric mindset — strong emotional intelligence to understand diverse member needs and design inclusive experiences.
Relationship-building and stakeholder management — diplomacy and negotiation skills for partners, sponsors, volunteers and community members.
Coaching and team development — ability to mentor managers, build high-performing teams, and foster a learning culture.
Conflict resolution and moderation judgment — skilled at de-escalation, impartial facilitation and establishing trust in community settings.
Change management — experience driving culture change and integrating community-first thinking into organizational processes.
Analytical curiosity and problem solving — comfort with both qualitative insights and quantitative metrics to make evidence-based decisions.
Creativity and program innovation — aptitude for designing novel engagement experiences and piloting new community initiatives.
Resilience and adaptability — ability to operate in fast-paced, ambiguous environments and respond to emergent community needs.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor's degree in Communications, Public Relations, Marketing, Social Sciences, Nonprofit Management, Business Administration or related field.

Preferred Education:

Master's degree (MBA, MPP, MS in Communication, or similar) or equivalent executive education in leadership, community management, or social impact.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Communications and Public Relations
Community Development, Social Work or Sociology
Marketing, Business Administration or Organizational Leadership
Nonprofit Management and Public Policy
Data Analytics or Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

8–15+ years of progressive experience in community, engagement, programs, or partnerships, with at least 5 years in a senior leadership role running multi-channel community operations.

Preferred:

10+ years building and scaling communities in complex organizations (tech, nonprofit, membership association, higher education, or government).
Demonstrated success managing cross-functional teams, multi-million dollar budgets, and measurable impact programs.
Track record of public speaking, media engagement, and representing organizations at conferences and industry events.
Experience working with CRM systems, community platforms, analytics tools, and running large events or recurring nationwide/regional programming.