Lead Communications and Public Involvement Specialist

Lead Communications and Public Involvement Specialist

(Ocoee, Florida)

This position reports to the Florida Turnpike Enterprise office in Ocoee, Florida. You will lead our communications and public involvement team, supporting the Turnpike program with outreach, public information, and strategic communications for infrastructure projects across the Southeast.

Responsibilities

Serve as lead for communications and public involvement on large transportation and infrastructure programs.

Manage and support community outreach specialists to ensure effective collaboration, performance, and delivery of work.

Take initiative and ownership of public involvement tasks, guiding the engagement team and subconsultants to develop effective communication and engagement strategies.

Develop and implement effective public outreach strategies and plans for high‑profile projects.

Attend weekly construction progress meetings as necessary to understand current project issues.

Develop and produce information deliverables—fact sheets, PowerPoint presentations, graphics, etc.

Work with construction project managers to identify and help manage information related to construction issues.

Respond to general customer toll inquiries via phone and writing from internal and external customers.

Serve as liaison between Turnpike projects and the community, primarily in active construction zones.

Develop and plan public outreach campaigns prior to the start of construction projects.

Coordinate and schedule mass mailers related to construction projects.

Research and help resolve issues pertaining to construction, maintenance, traffic operations, and other departments.

Draft responses, check for accuracy, and seek approval for a variety of media requests and elected official inquiries.

Promote Turnpike programs and initiatives by establishing and maintaining contact with media, professional and civic organizations, and other special interest groups.

Coordinate and participate in public meetings with neighborhood groups or other stakeholders as assigned.

Develop special educational and promotional materials for presentation at meetings and conferences.

Organize and support special events, groundbreaking ceremonies, grand opening ceremonies, and public meetings.

Research, develop responses, and generate posts for social media platforms (Twitter, Facebook, etc.).

Research and develop content for project webpages and newsletters.

Reply to inquiries from the public and resolve concerns on behalf of the client.

Produce and maintain stakeholder databases and lead stakeholder issue identification.

Interact in a clear and concise manner with a variety of diverse audiences.

Analyze the effectiveness of outreach campaigns, including website and social media content.

Support business development with copywriting and proposal development, as needed.

Perform other duties as assigned or required by WSP USA Inc. and its clients.

Required Qualifications

Bachelor's Degree in Communications, Public Relations, Public Engagement, Journalism, Marketing, or a related field.

7–10 years of communications/engagement experience.

Public involvement or community engagement experience on transportation projects.

A record of delivering work products on time and within scope and budget; prior experience with quality assurance/quality control.

Ability to work well with all organizational levels, including agency staff, senior management, executive leadership, board members, community leaders, and city/county/state representatives.

Ability to understand and translate complex, technical information into easy‑to‑understand content for public consumption.

Experience working with public agencies, consultants, and cross‑discipline technical teams on publicly funded programs.

Excellent verbal, writing, and presentation communication skills.

Ability to work effectively with teams and demonstrate initiative to lead tasks.

Ability to work beyond standard business hours on occasional nights and weekends.

Superior organizational and time‑management skills with a high level of attention to detail.

Strong computer skills, including experience with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, PowerPoint).

Candidate must be able to immediately work in the United States on a full‑time permanent basis.

Proven track record of upholding workplace safety and ability to abide by WSP’s health, safety, and drug/alcohol and harassment policies.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience working on Florida Department of Transportation projects.

Communications/public involvement experience with infrastructure projects (transportation, energy, water, construction, etc.).

Knowledge and experience using AP style in the creation of documents.

Bilingual in Spanish with ability to communicate effectively in conversational Spanish and provide written translations.

Local candidates preferred.

Graphic design experience (Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Snagit, Canvas, etc.).

Ability to work with stock images and deliver creative content (text, photo, and video).

Equal Opportunity Employer
WSP USA (and all of its U.S. companies) is an Equal Opportunity Employer: Race, Age, Color, Religion, Sex, Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, National Origin, Disability, or Protected Veteran Status.

The selected candidate must be authorized to work in the United States.

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