Public Affairs Specialist

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We're committed to bringing passion and customer focus to the business.

- This position is posted at multiple levels. Please see the job description below for more details.

Behind the Message: Drive Meaningful Employee Communication

Are you passionate about crafting clear, engaging messages that connect employees to purpose, strategy, and one another? Do you thrive on turning complex information into compelling stories that inform, inspire, and align? If so, we invite you to bring your creativity and communication expertise to our team.

As our Public Affairs Specialist for internal communication, you’ll play a central role in shaping how employees experience our culture, values, and priorities. From managing internal news content to supporting leadership messaging and employee engagement initiatives, you’ll help ensure our people feel informed, connected, and empowered.

Key Responsibilities:

- Content Creation & Editing: Write, edit, and peer-review internal news stories, announcements, and features for EN News and other internal channels.

- Content Management: Build and maintain internal news pages and intranet content, ensuring accuracy, clarity, and alignment with brand voice.

- Meeting Support: Lead the creation of quarterly department meeting slide decks and support all-employee meeting materials and logistics.

- Video & Script Support: Collaborate on video scripts and storytelling for internal campaigns and leadership messages.

- Communication Planning: Support the development and execution of communication plans for department-level initiatives, including content for EN News, digital monitors, and more.

This role is ideal for someone who is detail-oriented, collaborative, and energized by the opportunity to elevate internal storytelling and employee engagement. You’ll work closely with leaders and teams across the organization to ensure our internal voice is strong, strategic, and aligned with our mission.

Apply today and help us bring our internal story to life—one message at a time.

GENERAL SUMMARY

Perform all aspects of public affairs with exposure to internal and external communications, creative design, public outreach, board and member relations, media relations, crisis communications, and legislative affairs under the guidance and mentoring of senior public affairs professionals. Provide expertise to identify, design, write and produce communication products in support of strategic public affairs plans. Within a dynamic team environment, independently perform assigned programmatic responsibilities with potential focus in specialty areas, including internal and external event planning.

PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES

Create and produce error-free internal and external written and visual communications products, and develop and execute tactics and strategies, in support of agency business goals and objectives, and in concert with public affairs plans and program initiatives.

Perform the following with lead responsibility in assigned areas in collaboration with PA team members and responsive to customer needs:

Serve as a member of the Public Affairs board relations team supporting the executive board, board of directors, participants review board and CEO, ensuring alignment with board excellence policies and rules, EN procedures, and regulatory compliance. Under direction of the board relations lead, plan and execute board strategic planning, all regular and special board meetings, and post-meeting actions. Create and maintain board records in accordance with policy and retention requirements. Support board budget management, board development programs and board communication efforts.

Utilizing artistic and advanced graphic design skills, conceptualize, design, illustrate and create various internal and external graphics products such as publications, presentations, web pages, multimedia displays, advertising/informational displays, drawings, technical illustrations, maps, logos and other communication materials. Print final work using in-house commercial grade printers. Source and coordinate with selected external print vendors for large jobs, monitor print status, and review proofs to ensure timely and accurate completion.

Research, design and develop effective collateral including articles, presentations, resource materials, speeches, briefing papers, white papers, and talking points for use by the public affairs team, Senior Leadership, the Speakers Bureau, and others in various internal and public forums, to include all-employee meetings, board

meetings, tours, legislative visits, public PUD meetings, industry events, Chambers of Commerce, TRIDEC, NRC public meetings and briefings, INPO meetings/conferences, news media interviews, and more.

Content and graphic webmaster, or support, of Energy Northwest external website. Write narrative, create graphics and perform regular scanning of content, in collaboration with contributing departments, to ensure accuracy and currency. Work with Information Services as part of the web team. Support maintenance of PA customer intranet site.

Develop and execute PA social media strategies and creative content. Serve as social media lead or in support of the agency’s social media program.

Serve as videography lead or in support of the agency’s video program. Create and produce in-house videos in collaboration with senior leaders and/or other departments. Coordinate with external videographers as warranted to support public relations strategies.

Serve as photography lead or in support of agency photography needs using journalistic photo style. Shoot and edit in-field photos, events and portraits for internal and external communications. Source and coordinate with professional photographers for on-site and studio photography. Organize and maintain photo library.

Serve as program lead, or support, for the agency-wide video monitors. Develop and execute video monitor strategies. Create and maintain a planning calendar, in collaboration with internal stakeholders. Update monitor content weekly incorporating visual graphics and animation. Troubleshoot technical issues in collaboration with Information Services.

Responsibilities include some required travel in support of board meetings, PA outreach efforts, member visits and industry meetings.

Other duties:

Support the Columbia tour program.

May serve as backup Energy Northwest spokesperson and news media responder, communicating information on major initiatives, programs, corporate activities, new generation development and other emerging issues (i.e., plant and project operations, new generation activities, bond sales, budget changes).

May have lead responsibility for key event planning such as the Public Power Forum, Energy Experience, Safe Day, etc.

Must participate on the Emergency Response team (ERO) when designated.

Must support the biennial refueling outage.

Other duties as assigned.

REQUIRED EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE

Public Affairs Specialist II

Position requires a Bachelor’s degree in a Public Affairs/Public Relations/Journalism or related field (e.g., communication; mass media; governmental/stakeholder affairs; public policy; marketing) or graphic design from an accredited college or university and a minimum of five years of public affairs/relations/corporate communication experience;

OR an Associate’s Degree in Public Affairs/Public Relations or graphics design or related field from an accredited college or university and a minimum of seven years of public affairs/corporate communications experience;

OR nine years of extensive public affairs/corporate communications and/or graphic design experience.

Experience with Microsoft Office and Adobe Suite software. Creative design responsibility, as applicable, requires advanced experience with Adobe creative suite.

Public Affairs Specialist I

Position requires a bachelor’s degree in a Public Affairs/Public Relations/Journalism or related field (e.g., communication; mass media; governmental/stakeholder affairs; public policy; marketing) or graphic design from an accredited college or university and a minimum of two years of public affairs/relations/corporate communication experience.

OR an associate degree in Public Affairs/Public Relations or graphics design or related field from an accredited college or university and a minimum of four years of public affairs/corporate communications experience;

OR six years of extensive public affairs/corporate communications and/or graphic design experience.

Must secure Energy Northwest unescorted access.

Pay Range:

Public Affairs Specialist II Salary: $92,750 - $139,124

Midpoint: $115,937

Public Affairs Specialist I Salary: $80,704 - $121,056

Midpoint: $100,880

Typically, selected candidates are hired between the minimum and midpoint of the range, based on applicable experience and qualifications, market rate, internal equity, and budgetary allowances.

Offers will be negotiated based on each candidate's qualifications.

Incentive Compensation

This role is eligible to participate in our annual incentive plan. Incentives are earned based on employee performance against defined metrics and company goals.

Benefits

Energy Northwest (EN) offers a highly competitive and substantial benefits package which allows qualifying employees (and their families) to enroll in medical, dental, vision, and basic life insurance. Other voluntary benefits may include flexible spending accounts, tuition reimbursement, supplemental life insurances, credit monitoring, and identity theft insurance. EN offers three retirement programs to qualifying employees including a matching 401(k) deferred compensation plan, the Washington State Pension Plan (PERS), and a 457(b) savings plan. Qualifying employees will also accrue 160 hours of personal time per year and nine paid holidays throughout the calendar year.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and do not discriminate due to race, color, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion, national origin, veteran status or on the basis of disability.

EEO is the law, click here to learn more

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