Science Writing Team Lead
POSITION DETAILS:
EMPLOYER: Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN
TITLE: Science Writing Team Lead
CATEGORY: Editorial / Writing, TYPE: Full-time
JOB POSTING ANNOUNCEMENT: https://jobs.ornl.gov/job/Oak-Ridge-Science-Writing-Team-Leader-TN-37830/1059796600/
DESCRIPTION: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is seeking a science writing team leader to support science writers on the Science Communications Team and produce a variety of communications pieces. The position resides in ORNL’s Communications Division, Creative Services Group.
In this split supervisor/writer role, the team leader supervises a portion of the science writer team, providing guidance on policies, procedures, lab directives, and training and development opportunities, as well as securing appropriate equipment and applications. In this leadership capacity, the team lead partners with the Science & Technology directorates’ communication coordinators, who assign and track projects and tasks, to ensure the science writers have what they need to complete tasks and projects in a high-quality, timely manner within budget and to each customer’s satisfaction.
In the writer role, the team lead serves as a central writer, supporting Science Communications, Internal Communications, and the broader Communications Division. Writing assignments may include feature articles, internal staff announcements, website content, script writing, talking points, and campaign development.
QUALIFICATIONS: Basic Qualifications:
• A bachelor’s degree in communications, journalism, English, a science, or a related field.
• A minimum of 8 years of experience producing communications products for general audiences.
Preferred Qualifications:
• Experience as a science communicator at a DOE national laboratory and experience managing communications professionals are strongly preferred.
• Candidate should have proven skills in leadership, including strong interpersonal skills, and the ability to handle staff concerns and issues effectively and tactfully.
• Candidate should be able to deal with all levels of researchers, scientists, industry partners, and lab managers concerning projects, budgets, and support needs in a professional manner.
• Candidate should have proven experience writing for general audiences about scientific/technical subjects; scientific/technical reading, writing, and editing skills; experience in social media, development of web content, and project management; excellent attention to detail; the ability to understand, follow, and implement complex instructions; strong organizational skills, including the ability to simultaneously handle multiple assignments; and excellent verbal communication skills.
• Candidate should be able to prioritize and meet deadlines; be comfortable working both independently and with all levels of researchers and staff in a team-based environment; have strong skills in solving problems and developing and implementing solutions; and good facilitation, interviewing, and presentation skills.
CLOSING DATE: October 7, 2023
CONTACT: C. Mimi McHale