Manager, Strategic Communications & Business Planning

This is a senior strategic communications role with direct accountability for helping lead the business of the function. The Manager, Strategic Communications & Business Planning will serve as a trusted partner to the Vice President, Brand & Product Communications, operating across strategic planning, executive support, narrative development, organizational alignment and decision support. 

At its core, this is not an administrative chief of staff role. It is a high-judgment communications and strategy position for someone who can move seamlessly between shaping the work, sharpening the thinking, and driving the operating rhythm behind it. The right person will help ensure that the organization is focused on the right priorities, that major pieces of work are grounded in strategic insight, and that the output of the function reflects a consistently high standard of clarity, rigor and business relevance. 

This role requires a strong communications operator with real strategic depth. They must be able to work across brands, products, corporate priorities, issues, events, leadership moments and internal touchpoints, while partnering closely with senior leaders and cross-functional teams to turn complex inputs into clear recommendations, persuasive narratives and well-structured decisions. Recent GM Level 8 expectations emphasize expert-level judgment, strong business acumen, cross-functional problem-solving, broad visibility, and the ability to adapt communication style to persuade across the organization.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Communications Planning 

• Lead the development of high-impact strategic communications plans in support of the Vice President and the broader Brand & Product Communications function. Translate business priorities, organizational shifts, product plans, brand moments and leadership objectives into clear narratives, communications strategies and decision-ready materials. 

• Drive the development of executive-level presentations, talking points, briefing documents, strategic memos, organizational updates and internal narratives. Ensure each piece of work is clear on the objective, grounded in insight, relevant to the audience and aligned with the broader business context. 

• Partner with communications leaders across the function to sharpen the strategic quality of their work. Push for stronger thinking, stronger structure and stronger recommendations. Help teams move from activity-driven updates to insight-led communications that clarify what matters, why it matters and what should happen next. 

• Ensure major documents and presentations developed across the organization reflect a high, consistent standard of strategic rigor, writing quality and executive readiness. 

Business Planning and Chief of Staff Support 

• Act as a strategic partner to the Vice President on planning, prioritization and execution across the function. Help manage the business by identifying what requires attention, where decisions are needed, what is off track and where tighter alignment is required. 

• Support the operating rhythm of the organization, including leadership meetings, planning cycles, priority setting, follow-up and accountability. Turn broad direction into clear actions, owners, and timelines. Surface issues early, pressure-test assumptions, and help keep work moving. 

• Develop and maintain an integrated view of the work across the organization so the Vice President has clear visibility into priorities, interdependencies, risks, key decisions and resourcing needs. 

• Help shape and manage leadership communications, internal engagement moments and organizational messaging in close partnership with functional leads and relevant cross-functional partners. Internal examples elsewhere at GM already describe VP-level support as a blend of strategic messaging, engagement planning, internal editorial coordination and integration of internal and external communications. 

Cross-Functional Leadership and Influence 

• Work fluidly across communications, marketing, product, brand, experiences, operations, HR, finance and executive stakeholders. Build credibility quickly, synthesize diverse inputs and create alignment across groups with different priorities. 

• Serve as a connective tissue role across the business, helping ensure communications plans and leadership materials are informed by the right inputs and reflect the full context of the work. 

• Influence without formal authority. Bring judgment, discretion and confidence in high-stakes, high-visibility situations. Know when to drive, when to challenge, when to escalate and when to simplify. 

Insight, Judgment and Quality Control 

• Bring strong strategic instincts to ambiguous and fast-moving work. Distill complexity into clear choices and practical recommendations. Recognize weak logic, vague positioning and underdeveloped narratives, and improve them quickly. 

• Ensure communications and business planning work is supported by sound analysis, relevant context and clear implications. The role should not simply collect information. It should interpret it, improve it and turn it into direction. 

• Help leaders across the function raise the standard on writing, structure, preparation and executive readiness. Recent organizational direction in Brand & Product Communications has also emphasized building broader communications roles and creating more expansive contributions across brand, product and business priorities. 

Required Experience:

• 12 or more years of experience across strategic communications, executive communications, business planning, chief of staff work, corporate strategy, brand strategy or related fields. 

• Meaningful experience supporting a senior leader in a role that required judgment, discretion, prioritization and strong cross-functional influence. 

• A strong track record developing high-quality strategic materials for senior executives, including presentations, narratives, briefing documents, talking points, recommendations and organizational communications. 

• Demonstrated success working across a complex matrixed organization and influencing senior stakeholders across multiple functions. 

• Proven ability to move between strategy and execution. This person must be equally comfortable shaping the narrative, pressure-testing the substance and helping drive the follow-through. 

Functional Capabilities 

• Exceptional writer and editor with the ability to make complex material clear, concise and persuasive. 

• Strong strategic thinker with the ability to identify the signal in the noise, clarify the central issue and frame actionable recommendations. 

• Excellent business judgment and organizational instincts. Ability to understand the broader context around a decision, not just the communications dimension. 

• High level of executive presence, maturity and discretion. Comfortable operating in sensitive situations and handling confidential information. 

• Strong operating discipline. Able to manage multiple workstreams, maintain momentum across priorities and bring structure to ambiguity. 

• Ability to challenge constructively, give direct feedback and improve the quality of work across a team. 

Preferred Background 

• Experience in automotive, mobility, consumer brand, corporate affairs, public affairs, marketing communications or another fast-paced, high-visibility environment. 

• Experience in a role that combined strategic communications with business planning, chief of staff responsibilities or senior executive support. 

• Experience working in a highly matrixed global organization with multiple brands, senior stakeholders and competing priorities. 

What Success Looks Like 

• Within the first year, this person has become a trusted extension of the Vice President and a force multiplier for the function. 

• The quality of strategic documents, presentations and executive materials is visibly stronger. The work is sharper, more insight-led and more decision-useful. 

• Leadership meetings and planning rhythms are more disciplined. Priorities are clearer. Follow-up is tighter. Risks and issues surface earlier. 

• Cross-functional teams experience this person as a credible strategic partner who improves the thinking, not just the output. 

• The function is operating with greater cohesion, better visibility into priorities and a stronger connection between communications work and business objectives.