Manager - Brand and Communications Team

Job Title: Manager – Brand and Communications

Reports To: Deputy Director - Brand and Communications

Location: Ashoka Campus, Sonipat

Experience (in years): 5-9 years of relevant experience

About Ashoka University: https://www.ashoka.edu.in/

About the Brand and Communications Team:

The Brand and Communications Team strategically amplifies the university's mission and values by crafting compelling narratives that foster a sense of belonging and purpose within the Ashoka community. By simplifying complex information through engaging internal communications, executing impactful external campaigns, and showcasing inspiring stories of progress, the team not only enhances Ashoka's reputation but also drives purposeful engagement with students, faculty, and partners.

Role Overview:

The Manager – Brand & Marketing will play a key role in building, strengthening, and implementing Ashoka University's brand across digital platforms, visual communication systems, and institutional touchpoints. The role requires strong ownership of the University's website as a core brand asset, combined with hands-on creative leadership and brand governance.

This position requires a strong balance of hands-on creative design expertise, digital brand systems thinking, and operational rigour to ensure clarity, consistency, and quality across all brand touchpoints. The incumbent will work closely with internal stakeholders, developers, designers, and external partners, to translate brand strategy into thoughtful, cohesive, and high-quality digital and visual execution, with the University website serving as a key brand platform.

Key Responsibilities:

Website Management

• Own and manage the University's website as a primary brand platform, ensuring accuracy, usability, and brand consistency.
• Work closely with backend developers and IT teams on content updates, structural enhancements, and ongoing maintenance.
• Track and analyse website performance metrics, providing insights to enhance engagement and user experience.

Design and Creative Production

• Lead the design and development of brand-aligned creative assets, including brochures, posters, newsletters, academic handbooks, and institutional collaterals.
• Build and maintain scalable brand design systems, templates, and visual assets for consistent use across departments.
• Oversee print production and vendor coordination to ensure quality, timelines, and brand integrity.
• Maintain a centralized repository of creative assets and ensure brand-compliant usage.

Events and Campaign Support

• Provide creative and branding support for institutional events, conferences, and exhibitions.
• Design and produce event-specific collaterals such as stage backdrops, standees, event branding kits, and promotional materials.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure cohesive on-ground brand presence and visual storytelling.

Brand Communication and Governance

• Act as a brand custodian, ensuring all visual and communication outputs reflect Ashoka's brand identity, values, and standards.
• Support the creation, maintenance, and dissemination of brand guidelines, templates, and toolkits.
• Review and approve internal and external materials for consistency in tone, design, and visual accuracy.

Analytics and Reporting

• Generate periodic reports on website performance and brand initiatives.
• Provide insights and recommendations to improve brand effectiveness, clarity, and reach.

Key Skills and Competencies

• Proven experience in website management and CMS platforms (WordPress, Drupal, or similar), including content updates, structure management, and coordination with technical teams.
• Working knowledge of website analytics and content performance tracking tools, with the ability to interpret data and recommend improvements.
• Strong design sensibility with hands-on expertise in Adobe Creative Suite (Canva, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) or equivalent design tools.
• Solid understanding of brand identity systems and ensuring visual consistency across digital and offline platforms.
• Experience in designing brand collaterals, with exposure to print and on-ground branding initiatives as required.
• Strong project management and vendor coordination skills, with the ability to manage multiple initiatives simultaneously.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to collaborate effectively in a dynamic, multi-stakeholder academic environment.

Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Marketing, Communication, Design, Media, or a related field.
• 4–6 years of relevant experience in brand management, design, or creative communication.
• Prior experience in higher education, creative agencies, or mission-driven organisations will be preferred.
• A professional portfolio demonstrating design systems, website work, and brand-led projects is highly desirable.

Desired Profile

The ideal candidate is a creative, detail-oriented, and digitally proficient brand professional with prior experience managing websites and digital brand assets alongside hands-on design execution. They should be comfortable balancing creative craft with brand governance, managing multiple initiatives simultaneously, and collaborating across teams.

This role is well-suited for someone motivated to shape and steward the visual and digital identity of one of India's leading liberal arts universities.