Senior Manager, Destination Marketing

The mission of the Colorado Tourism Office (CTO) is to drive traveler spending through promotion and development of compelling, sustainable travel experiences throughout our four-corner state. The CTO promotes Colorado to travelers through domestic and international marketing, public relations, social media, the Official State Vacation Guide and Colorado.com, and provides traveler services at Colorado Welcome Centers. The CTO collaborates with destination marketing organizations, local communities, industry associations, land managers, government agencies and private businesses both to market Colorado to travelers, support the development of new travel opportunities and protect Colorado resources. The CTO is focused on a vision to position Colorado as the premier U.S. destination for active, outdoor and unique experiences that make you feel truly alive. The FY25 budget is $16.45 million.

The CTO Senior Manager, Destination Marketing serves the state and works collaboratively to lead the CTO's multi-million-dollar brand, promoting Colorado as a premier travel destination. Reporting to the Deputy Director of Marketing, the Senior Manager, Destination Marketing oversees the execution of all programs and assets created in conjunction with CTO industry partners. This position works closely with DMOs, promotional partners, industry associations, agency partners and other CTO departments in executing co-branded marketing and promotional campaigns, events and assets. This role also helps lead creative strategy and manage execution of all Destination Stewardship initiatives, including the Do Colorado Right Campaign and DMO takedowns, the annual Governor's Conference (Gov Con), marketing matching grants, America 250 - Colorado 150 and more.

Destination Stewardship Responsibilities:

• Under direction of the Deputy Director of Marketing, manages the strategic and creative asset development for all CTO marketing programs executed in conjunction with the Destination Stewardship department and the Colorado Destination Stewardship Strategic Plan, including the Do Colorado Right campaign. Assets include deliverables such as campaign guidelines, banner ads, videos, articles on Colorado.com, digital tools, social media assets, industry toolkits, events and other marketing collateral.

• Collaborates with state agencies (CDOT, Colorado Dept. of Agriculture, Colorado Search and Rescue, etc.) and other partners and in conjunction with Destination Stewardship marketing responsibilities.

• Helps manage other Destination Stewardship or DMO centric campaigns created for visitors, residents and/or industry partners, including the Value of Tourism, Workforce, Colorado Concierge, the Colorado Tourism Leadership Journey and more.

• Collaborates with the Director of Grants and Funding to approve all co-branded creative collateral funded through the CTO's annual Marketing Matching Grant programs. Serves on Marketing Matching Grant review committees.

• Collaborates with the Destination Development department on all DMO-related marketing work, including all DMO co-branded creative or strategic work.

DMO & Partner Marketing Responsibilities

• Leads the CTO's seasonal paid media and social cooperative (co-op) marketing programs executed in conjunction with industry partners. Process includes working with lead agencies to oversee program offerings; guiding creative positioning/concept for advertising, reviewing copy and visual selection of imagery, tracking program successes, identifying opportunities and making adjustments/refinements as needed. Co-op programs include niche marketing opportunities, including diversity and responsible/sustainable travel messaging.

• Manages relationships with Destination Colorado and Tour Colorado. This includes reviewing and approving co-branded assets developed to support and promote Colorado as a superior destination for group business, including meetings and conferences as well as domestic tours.

• Maintains partner portal, driving partner engagement and updating and evolving contents as needed.

• Manages creative development required for CTO sponsorships and collaborations with other state agencies, including the Colorado State Fair, and special events such as America 250 - Colorado 150.

• Oversees creative development of annual Colorado Governor's Tourism Conference thematic and event assets, including website, presentation template and videos. Serves on GovCon content committee and oversees marketing submissions from agency partners. Reviews and helps select annual award recipients.

• Contributes to the editing of all CTO publications including the Official State Vacation Guide and Love, Colorado seasonal magazine, providing input into the cover, contents, articles and photography through the lens of stewardship.

• Assists in the development of an annual marketing plan. This includes working with CTO's Deputy Director, marketing team, destination stewardship team and contracted agencies to develop holistic co-branded programs and promotions that ladder back to CTO marketing goals, strategies and objectives as well as overall CTO and OEDIT goals.

• Is a steward of the CTO Brand Guidelines, ensuring executional excellence of the brand any time it is utilized by partners. Updates the CTO Brand Guidelines as needed, specifically as it pertains to co-branded assets.

• In conjunction with the Senior Brand Manager, develops strategy and oversees creative execution of all co-branded logos, email templates, co-branded presentations and other creative assets as needed.

• Attends weekly agency status meetings for creative agency, strategy/media agency, and web/content agency. Builds positive working relationships with agency vendors.

Program Management and Other Responsibilities

• Attends/represents the CTO at relevant industry events, conferences and stakeholder meetings, including bi-monthly Board of Directors meetings and bi-montly industry Marketing Committee meetings. Presents as needed.

• Attends meetings with industry partners, including regional tourism conferences, as needed.

• Provides updates to the CTO's weekly cabinet report for the Governor, which is presented by the OEDIT Executive Director, relating to program and partner marketing.

• Stays current on marketing best practices and industry trends, which may require attending educational conferences or training.

• Oversees annual competitive promotional audit, identifying implications and opportunities for the CTO brand.

• Manages junior marketing staff members, including overseeing work load, mentoring professional development and writing bi-annual reviews.

• Attends OEDIT status meetings and weekly CTO team meetings.

• Reviews and approves expenses relating to program marketing.

• Assists with other CTO responsibilities, as needed.

Required:

The CTO Senior Manager, Destination Marketing must be a creative and strategic thinker; possess a strong understanding of marketing, brand management, promotions management, media channels and related technology; be able to strategically and creatively evaluate brand assets through multiple lenses (CTO, partner and consumer) and have a proven track record in managing campaigns, agencies and employees. This role also requires demonstrated problem-solving abilities and excellent time management skills, including the capacity to work autonomously, elevate appropriately, meet timelines and prioritize multiple projects. The ability to work effectively and collaborate with colleagues and partners is critical in this role as are skills in relationship building and networking with a diverse population of organizations, associations and interest groups. The candidate must be detail-oriented and have highly developed oral and written communications skills, including a demonstrated ability to edit and write various documents as well as present to various audiences.

Out-of-town and overnight travel may be required, and a valid driver's license and clean driving record is mandatory.

Qualifications:

A four-year college degree plus seven to eight years' experience OR ten years experience in marketing and/or related areas. Tourism experience strongly preferred but not required.

Conditions of Employment

• Applicants must pass a thorough background check prior to employment.

• Former State employees who were disciplinarily terminated or resigned in lieu of termination must disclose the information on the application and provide an explanation why the prior termination or resignation should not disqualify their application from the current position.

Salary Range: $72,000 - $82,000 Annually

This position is considered non-classified, which means the position is not part of the Colorado State Personnel System. Therefore, the individual appointed to this position is considered at-will, and is not covered by the State Personnel Rules or the State Classification System. However, this position does come with the same benefits (retirement, insurance, etc.) as every other State employee, and with the same opportunities, pride and passion that comes with working for the great State of Colorado. Even though employment is at-will, non-classified positions have protections against discrimination and retaliation in state and federal employment laws. "At-will" employment means that either the employee or the State may terminate the employment relationship at any time for any reason or no reason, with or without notice or cause, as long as no federal or state law is violated.

A wide salary range is posted for this position and any job offer is based upon a salary analysis to comply with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act. The salary analysis considers relevant experience, education, certifications, and state seniority as compared to others doing substantially similar work. While all offers are compliant with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, there is no guarantee an offer will be at the top of the posted range based on the salary analysis.

Benefits

The State of Colorado/Office of the Governor offers generous benefits to full-time employees including:

• Annual leave accrued at 13.33 hours per month

• Sick leave accrued at 6.66 hours a month

• 11 paid holidays per year

• Medical plans - choice of Cigna or Kaiser; several plan options (including High Deductible Health Plan with HSA); most plans offered with significant state contribution towards premium

• Dental and vision plans

• Flexible spending accounts

• State-paid life insurance policy of $50,000

• Choice of 2 retirement plans (defined contribution or defined benefit) with generous state contribution

• Optional 401(k) and 457 plans for additional retirement savings

• State-paid short-term disability coverage

• Additional optional life and disability plans

• Access to the Colorado State Employee Assistance Program

• Membership opportunity with the Credit Union of Colorado

• RTD (transit) EcoPass

• Training and professional development

To learn more about State of Colorado benefits, please visit: https://www.colorado.gov/dhr/benefits

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

The State of Colorado believes that equity, diversity, and inclusion drive our success, and we encourage candidates from all identities, backgrounds, and abilities to apply. The State of Colorado is an equal opportunity employer committed to building inclusive, innovative work environments with employees who reflect our communities and enthusiastically serve them. Therefore, in all aspects of the employment process, we provide employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, medical condition related to pregnancy, creed, ancestry, national origin, marital status, genetic information, or military status (with preference given to military veterans), or any other protected status in accordance with applicable law.

To learn more about the "State of Colorado For All", visit our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion website.

ADAAA Accommodations

The Office of the Governor is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, our agency will assist individuals who have a disability with any reasonable accommodation requests related to employment, including completing the application process, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, participating in the employee selection process, and/or to perform essential job functions where the requested accommodation does not impose an undue hardship. If you have a disability and require reasonable accommodation to ensure you have a positive experience applying or interviewing for this position, please direct your inquiries to our ADAAA Staffing Coordinator, the Director of Human Resources: jennifer.salvatore@state.co.us

Application

Your application must provide sufficient detail about your background and experience to allow the screening panel to properly assess your experience in the required elements, including your experience and achievements.

Due to the large volume of resumes we receive, we do not acknowledge receipt of each application and are unable to give status updates. If a strong match is found between your qualifications and the requirements of the position, a member of the recruiting staff will contact you to further discuss the career opportunity.