Job openings/Technical Communications Manager
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- Job Title
- Technical Communications Manager
- Reports To
- Chief Technology Officer
- Job Purpose
- Increase transparency, accountability, and dialogue between the Wikimedia Foundation engineering staff and the rest of the world by increasing the quantity and quality of technical communications between and among the technical staff, and the Wikimedia community and the general public.
Job Summary
- Support engineering staff in creating and sharing reports of their ongoing work through various channels such as blogs, wiki pages, discussion lists and social media.
- Work with managers and developers to create communication plans and document new features and other improvements in a timely fashion
- Communicate widely and frequently to a wide audience of staff, community members and volunteers via mailing list, IRC, and wikis about Wikimedia engineering activities
- Maintain existing ways, and create new and effective ways to publish time-sensitive information, such as the health status of Wikimedia sites.
- Work with the other members of the Communications team to maintain the WMF information broadcast schedule to enable more predictable and consistent sharing of Foundation news, activities and accomplishments.
- Identify and surface tensions between the engineering staff and the Wikimedia community, and, if possible, suggest ways to prevent or resolve them.
- Generally facilitate the communication between the engineering staff, and the Wikimedia community and the general public, while ensuring confidential information remains confidential
Required Qualifications
- Three or more years experience in the creation and execution of on-line, internal communications activities, OR a similar amount of experience collaborating in on-line wiki projects with large groups of volunteers with strategic outcomes.
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, or similar relevant experience
- Must be able to rapidly synthesize stories and ideas from an overwhelming amount of complex, and possibly highly technical, information.
- Exceptional English writing is critical for this role, including the ability to write time-sensitive, efficient, compelling, and clearly understandable technical communications products for a wide range of audiences.
- Historical knowledge of the global Wikimedia movement
- Demonstrated ability to work (speak, read, write at a professional level) effectively in a language other than English (ideally as a native speaker)
- Understanding of free culture, free software, open source and open-source communities.
- Must have a strong affinity for the Wikimedia mission.
Desired Qualifications
- Experience with the various aspects of engineering work (development, project management, product management) is a major plus.
- The ideal candidate will be creative, highly motivated, and able to operate effectively in multiple cultural contexts.
- Experience with use of wiki technology is a major plus.
- Experience living or working outside of your home country is a major plus.
About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the non-profit organization that operates Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. According to comScore Media Metrix, Wikipedia and the other projects operated by the Wikimedia Foundation receive more than 482 million unique visitors per month, making them the 5th most popular web property worldwide. Available in more than 270 languages, Wikipedia contains more than 21 million articles contributed by a global volunteer community of more than 100,000 people. Based in San Francisco, California, the Wikimedia Foundation is an audited, 501(c)(3) charity that is funded primarily through donations and grants. The Wikimedia Foundation was created in 2003 to manage the operation of Wikipedia and its sister projects. It currently employs 106 staff members. Wikimedia is supported by local chapter organizations in 38 countries or regions.
Apply
Please send a CV and cover letter to jobs
wikimedia.org. Please put the position title (Technical Communications Manager) in your subject line.
Applications that do not include a cover letter will not be considered.
Please copy and paste the text of your CV into the e-mail, in addition to attaching the file.
Due to the volume of applications we receive, we regret that only those selected for an interview will be contacted.
Local San Francisco, CA candidates are preferred though remote candidates may be considered.
