County of San Mateo
$77.63 – $97.07/ Hourly
$13,456 – $16,825/ Monthly
$161,470 – $201,906/ Annually
The County Executive’s Office is seeking highly qualified candidates for the position of Chief Communications Officer.
The Chief Communications Officer is responsible for developing, directing, and implementing strategies and activities that promote successful, ongoing, and far-reaching communications with county residents, the news media, employees, community groups, nonprofit organizations, and other government agencies.
Working closely with and taking direction from the Director of Strategic Communications and Community Partnerships, the Chief Communications Officer will lead efforts to identify and promote opportunities across the organization to improve communications in print, on social media and the internet, on television, and at public meetings. The incumbent will train County employees regarding media relations, civic engagement activities, crisis communications, effective writing, and other related skills.
The Chief Communications Officer will have the opportunity to manage and direct the work of the CEO’s communications teams including a Communications Officer, two Communication Specialists, and a Visual Media Production Specialist, as well as vendors and contractors
Performance of this work requires the use of considerable independence, initiative, and discretion. The successful individual will have knowledge of public policy, County functions and activities, and the ability to develop, oversee, and implement internal and external community relations and communication strategies, initiatives, guidelines, and programs. The Chief Communications Officer will also have the ability and political astuteness to skillfully coordinate communication activities with the Board of Supervisors and departments county-wide.
In summary, the Chief Communications Officer will:
- Plan, direct, and implement comprehensive County-wide communications.
- Develop and manage a highly effective, strongly cohesive team of communication professionals.
- Maintain, strengthen, and build community and government relations.
- Create and coordinate media relations programs and activities.
- Foster cooperative working relationships among County departments and with intergovernmental and regulatory agencies and various public and private groups.
- Coordinate assigned activities with other County departments, officials, outside agencies, and the public.
- Provide highly responsible and complex professional assistance to the Director of Strategic Communications and Community Partnerships in a variety of administrative, coordinative, analytical, and liaison capacities.
The ideal candidate will have
- Extensive experience with public communication and community engagement.
- Strong knowledge of and experience with government operations in a capacity of representing local governmental agencies before the public.
- Strong knowledge of and experience with diverse electronic, social, and print media.
- Demonstrated success managing a team of diverse and highly effective communication professionals.
- Familiarity with county government issues and county government’s relationship to residents.
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills that can be applied to both objective and persuasive messages.
- Ability to build strong working relationships with County departments.
- Ability to research, analyze, and summarize a variety of complex issues and to condense such information into clear and concise communications for the public.
- Experience developing public communication campaigns.
- Effective organizational and management abilities that can ensure timely completion of key deliverables while responding to quick-changing priorities and issues.
- Ability to prioritize, handle multiple responsibilities, and synthesize complex issues effectively.
- Experience training a diverse population on effective agency communication.
- A Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism, or a similar field, and seven years of experience with increasing responsibility in the areas outlined above.
In addition to the duties listed above, duties for this position may also include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Develop County policies and procedures for cohesive and coordinated communications practices within the County organization.
- Oversee the operations, staffing, and products developed through the County Media Studio.
- Plan, develop, and monitor the budget for the CEO Communications Team.
- Develop and implement policies and procedures for CEO and countywide communications programs.
- Develop and implement a strategic public relations and marketing plan to build trust with and to ensure flow of information with key stakeholders.
- Implement the County’s media relations program and coordinate with executive management and departmental public information staff to ensure the County speaks with one voice.
- Develop and manage the County’s brand identity to broaden awareness and visibility of programs, projects, and services.
- Identify challenges and emerging issues facing the County.
- Assist with developing communication response plans for emergencies, crises, and disasters.
- Oversee development of print and web communications.
- Promote internal and external information-sharing.
- Collect and analyze data, evaluate related issues, determine consequences of proposed actions, as well as alternatives, and make recommendations to the Director of Strategic Communications and Community Partnerships.
- Assist in the development of a strategic plan for intergovernmental and legislative relations to ensure benefit to the County.
- Develop consultant requests for proposals for professional services, evaluate proposals, recommend project awards, and ensure contractors provide services on time and within budget.
- Represent the County to elected officials, government agencies, non-profit and community-based organizations, and residents and interpret County programs, policies, and activities,
- Negotiate and resolve significant and controversial issues.
- Conduct organizational, operational, and special project studies and recommend modifications to programs, policies, and procedures as appropriate.
- Participate in and make presentations to the Board of Supervisors and a wide variety of committees, boards, and commissions.
- Attend and participate in professional group meetings and stay abreast of new trends and innovations in the field of public information, media relations, and other services.
- Monitor changes in laws, regulations, and technology that may affect County or departmental operations and implement policy and procedural changes as required.
- Participate as a member of the management team and work cooperatively to address District issues, ensure overall health of the organization, foster good communications between program staff, and provide consistent and professional management.
- Perform special assignments and projects and other related duties as required.
Anyone may apply. Current San Mateo County and San Mateo County Superior Court employees with at least six months (1040 hours) of continuous service in a classified regular, probationary, SEIU or AFSCME represented extra-help, or temporary position prior to the final filing date will receive five points added to their final passing score on this examination.
The examination process will consist of an application screening (weight: pass/fail) based on candidates’ application and responses to the supplemental questionnaire. Candidates who pass the application screening will be invited to a panel interview (weight: 100%).
Depending on the number of applicants, an application appraisal of education and experience may be used in place of other examinations, or further evaluation of work experience may be conducted to group applicants by level of qualification. All applicants who meet the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed advancement through any subsequent phase of the examination. All examinations will be given in San Mateo County, California, and applicants must participate at their own expense.
IMPORTANT: Applications for this position will only be accepted online. If you are currently on the County’s website, you may click the “Apply” button above. If you are not on the County’s website, please go to http://jobs.smcgov.org to apply.
Tentative Recruitment Timeline
Open Recruitment: April 15, 2026
LinkedIn Live Information Session: April 27, 2026, from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM
Final Filing Date: May 5, 2026, at 11:59 PM
Application Screening: May 6-11, 2026
Panel Interview: May 20 and 21, 2026
About the County
San Mateo County is centrally located between San Francisco, San Jose, and the East Bay. With over 750,000 residents, San Mateo is one of the largest and most diverse counties in California and serves a multitude of culturally, ethnically, and linguistically diverse communities.
The County of San Mateo, as an employer, is committed to advancing equity to ensure that all employees are welcomed in a safe and inclusive environment. The County seeks to hire, support, and retain employees who reflect our diverse community. We encourage applicants with diverse backgrounds and lived experiences to apply. Eighty percent of employees surveyed stated that they would recommend the County as a great place to work.
The County of San Mateo is an equal opportunity employer. We seek to hire, support, and retain employees who reflect our diverse community.