Job Description

Job Description and Duties

In July 2025, the State of California implemented the Personal Leave Program (PLP) 2025. This program temporarily reduces employees’ monthly base pay in exchange for paid leave credits. This position is subject to PLP 2025 and will have a monthly base pay reduction of 3% in exchange for 5 hours of leave credits through June 2027. The salary ranges shown on this job posting do not reflect the salary reduction.

This position supports the California Department of Public Health’s (CDPH) mission and the implementation of the Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA) by leading and overseeing all communication-related activities within CDPH and in coordination with the California Health and Human Services Agency (CHHS), other state departments, and the Governor’s Office. The Communications Project Lead is responsible for day-to-day oversight, long-term strategic planning, interagency alignment, budget tracking and project management for BHSA communications. This position also provides direction and supervision to the BHSA communications team and ensures messaging is timely, effective, and aligned with statewide priorities and equity-focused.

You will find additional information about the job in the .

Working Conditions

Telework Information :

This position may be eligible for telework. The amount of telework permitted is at the discretion of the Department and is subject to change, consistent with CDPH’s Telework Program. All employees who telework are required to be California residents in accordance with Government Code 14200. Candidates who reside outside of the state of California may be interviewed; however, the selected candidate must have a primary residency in the state of California prior to appointment (and continue to maintain California residency) as a condition of employment. Failure to meet this requirement may result in the job offer being rescinded.

Travel may be required for this position. Reimbursement for travel takes into consideration an employee’s designated headquarters, as reflected in the duty statement, and is subject to regulations and bargaining unit contract provisions. All commute expenses to the designated headquarters office will be the responsibility of the selected candidate.

The headquarters office location for this position is identified in the attached duty statement.

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Special Requirements

For experience/education to qualify during the application screening process, and to ensure that minimum qualifications can be determined, applicants should include all employment history on the Employment Application (STD 678) and/or Resume, including detailed job descriptions, hours worked per week , and start/end dates (MM/DD/YYYY) .  Application packages without this information will experience delayed processing times and your eligibility for this position may be impacted.

A completed State application (STD. 678) and any other relevant documents (e.g., unofficial transcript, copy of degree, resume, etc.) should be submitted electronically via your CalCareers Account. Please reference Job Control #489031  and indicate the basis of your eligibility in the Examination(s) or Job Title(s) section. SROA and surplus candidates should submit a copy of their letter with their application. Please remove any confidential information (i.e., social security number, date of birth) from your documents prior to submission.

Complete Application Packages (including your Examination/Employment Application (STD 678) and applicable or required documents) must be submitted to apply for this Job Posting. Application Packages may be submitted electronically through your CalCareers Account at Submitting an electronic application through your CalCareers account is strongly recommended since electronic applications will be received/processed faster than other methods of filing. Please submit only one application.

If you are unable to submit your application electronically through your CalCareers account, please email apply@cdph.ca.gov for assistance and a CDPH Human Resources Division staff member will contact you to assist with the online application process or, a hard copy application package may be submitted through an alternative method as explained in the How to Apply section below. When submitting your application in hard copy, a completed copy of the Application Package listing must be included.

Desirable Qualifications

In addition to evaluating each candidate's relative ability, as demonstrated by quality and breadth of experience, the following factors will provide the basis for competitively evaluating each candidate:

• Strategic communications leader with experience overseeing complex public health campaigns.
• Strong in managing teams, guiding content strategy, and coordinating across departments and agencies.
• Strong skills in media relations, digital communications, and campaign analytics are essential.
• Demonstration of excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate complex information into clear, culturally appropriate messaging.
• Experience managing vendors and developing equity-centered campaigns is highly desirable.
• Familiarity with CDPH’s mission and commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion are critical.

Benefits

Benefit information can be found on the CalHR website and the CalPERS website.

Statement of Qualifications (SOQ) Instructions:

Provide a Statement of Qualifications (SOQ) for the hiring manager’s review. Applications received without an SOQ or those that don’t respond to the specific questions below will not be considered.

List all relevant experience, education, and training. The SOQ must not be longer than 2 pages in length in 12-pt Arial font.  

1. Please describe your experience leading strategic communications for a large organization, including how you developed, executed and evaluated outreach programs. Highlight your leadership style and your role supervising teams.
2. Explain how you’ve handled high-pressure or crisis communications situations. Include an example of how you coordinated messaging across teams or agencies and ensured timely, accurate and inclusive communications.

Required Application Package Documents

The following items are required to be submitted with your application. Applicants who do not submit the required items timely may not be considered for this job:

• Current version of the State Examination/Employment Application STD Form 678 (when not applying electronically), or the Electronic State Employment Application through your Applicant Account at All Experience and Education relating to the Minimum Qualifications listed on the Classification Specification should be included to demonstrate how you meet the Minimum Qualifications for the position.
• Resume is required and must be included.
• Statement of Qualifications - Please see Statement of Qualifications instructions below at end of posting .  Any applications received that  do not provide a written response to the SOQ may be rejected .

Job Tags

Permanent employment, Full time, Contract work, Work at office, Remote work,

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