Lifecycle Communication Manager

About this role

Who is American College of Education

Founded in 2005, American College of Education continues to be a leader in professional development through our online programs. The mission of ACE is to deliver high-quality, affordable, and accessible online programs grounded in evidence-based content, real-world experience and relevant application that places our students’ needs first.

ACE is a mission-driven institution continually recognized for its commitment to social responsibility and positive impact. As an Impact Institution, we believe we have a responsibility to our students, alumni, employees, communities, and society as a whole. Guided by our core values, we strive to create meaningful impact that extends well beyond our bottom line.

We prioritize candidate safety. Please note that all official communication will only come from our verified company email domain @Rippling.com

Who You Are

You are passionate about helping students achieve their educational goals. You thrive in a competitive and collaborative team environment. You are comfortable working remotely and have experience collaborating with others in a virtual environment. You possess a strong attention to detail.

As the Lifecycle Communication Manager at ACE, you will be responsible for spearheading the development and implementation of strategic multi-channel communication campaigns designed to optimize the student journey and maximize the conversion of prospective students, as well as the retention and engagement of existing students or alumni. In this role you will have a strong understanding of customer behavior, as be able to leverage automation tools to create personalized experiences at scale.

Compensation

ACE is committed to paying a competitive wage while staying true to our mission of maintaining high quality, affordable programs for our students. The starting salary for this position is $80,000 plus all full-time employees are eligible for an annual bonus. Offers vary depending on education, prior experience, and expertise being applied to the role.

What We Look for in the Ideal Candidate

• Demonstrates self-reliance by meeting/exceeding workflow needs.

• Demonstrates positive attitude and motivation, concern for students, teamwork, and excellent time management skills.

• Follows established processes as outlined by organization and leadership.

• Completes assigned duties based on daily business needs and individual skill set.

• Consistently produces a high volume of quality work.

• Capable, adapts as needed, to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines.

• Proven ability to work independently with limited supervision and with other department personnel.

• Must support and embrace the College’s Impact mission to improve the people and communities we serve through our civic engagement initiatives.

• Must have exceptional communication, organization, and time management skills.

• Must be "self-motivated" as well as creative and efficient in proposing solutions to complex, time-critical problems.

• Must be collaborative in driving decisions and a team-player.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with a high attention to detail.

• Builds and maintains student satisfaction.

• Recognizes and anticipates student needs.

Day to Day Responsibilities

In this role you will wear different hats, but your skills will be especially essential in the following areas:

• Develops, executes, and optimizes multi-channel lifecycle marketing campaigns (including email and SMS) to nurture prospective students, drive action, and ensure conversion rates are stable.

• Owns the student journey communications, ensuring a seamless and engaging experience from prospective inquiries through alumni engagement.

• Evaluates and reports on key metrics for campaign effectiveness.

• Monitors lifecycle KPIs for applications, enrollments, and starts.

• Leads optimizations to improve lifecycle communications using data-informed decisions.

• Ensures consistency in lifecycle communications across all communication platforms and partner with the Marketing department to ensure brand standards are adhered to.

• Develops testing strategies for personalized communication, including targeted offers and messages, to enhance student retention and program participation.

• Supports academic and administrative leadership with data-driven insights and forecasts to aid strategic planning and decision-making.

• Works both independently and collaboratively with cross-functional teams within the educational framework to manage stakeholders and drive key initiatives.

• Leads the development and ongoing ownership of prospective student personae, ensuring they are data-informed, regularly refined, and effectively integrated into segmentation, messaging, personalization, and lifecycle communication strategies.

Qualifications and Education Requirements

• Bachelor's degree preferred.

• 5+ years of experience in lifecycle marketing and/or communications, preferably within the higher education sector, with a proven track record in strategic campaign development, execution, and analysis.

• Deep understanding on B2B and/or D2C lifecycle communications with a deep customer understanding.

• Expertise in CRM and marketing automation platforms, with Click Dimensions expertise required, and Microsoft Dynamics experience preferred.

• Strong analytical skills to interpret educational data and translate it into effective marketing/communication strategies.

• Excellent communication skills, capable of leading initiatives and influencing teams towards achieving institutional goals.

Our Commitment to Employees

Just as we strive to empower our students for success, we also aim to enrich the lives of our employees. For 6 consecutive years, ACE was recognized as one of Indiana’s Best Places to Work, winning the #1 spot for medium-sized companies in 2020. In addition, ACE has earned national recognition, being named a USA Top Workplace in 2022,…