Social Media Manager

Description

Glynwood Center for Regional Food and Farming seeks an experienced independent contractor or small agency to manage the personal social media presence of Glynwood President and CEO Kathleen Finlay on Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook. The engagement is approximately 20 hours per month.

The goal is to grow the reputation of Kathleen's leadership and Glynwood's work in three primary areas: regional and just food systems, the environmental sector, and gender equity. The right partner will write in Kathleen's voice, stay close to Glynwood's communications team, and treat her accounts as a platform for thought leadership.

The voice we're looking for

Kathleen's social media sounds like a leader who is clear about her values, generous with credit and curious about what she is still learning.

Kathleen's voice is:

• Grounded and specific. She speaks from real work: farms, farmers, programs, partnerships and policy. Posts should point to concrete examples, not abstractions.
• Values-driven and direct. She is willing to name hard truths about the food system, including racism, extraction and inequity.
• Collaborative, not self-promotional. She lifts up farmers, partners, staff and peers. 
• Hopeful and solutions-oriented. She acknowledges the scale of the challenges and that a more just and resilient food system is possible and already being built.
• Warm and human. Personal reflection, humor, and moments from the farm and life are welcome when they serve the message.
• Humble about learning. She is open about what she and Glynwood are still learning, rather than having all the answers.

Note: The contractor will work with Kathleen during onboarding to refine these themes, identify topics she does and does not want to weigh in on, and agree on guidelines for opinion content.

About Glynwood

Glynwood's mission is to cultivate just and resilient regional food systems so that farmers, land and communities thrive. Learn more at glynwood.org.

About Kathleen Finlay

Kathleen Finlay has led Glynwood as President for over a decade. Under her leadership, Glynwood has significantly expanded the scale of its work and deepened its focus on food justice, food sovereignty and food equity.

Kathleen is also the founder of Pleiades, a network that advances women's leadership in the environmental sector. She speaks regularly at conferences and in the media on regional food systems, climate and agriculture, nonprofit leadership and gender equity. Her social media presence should reflect that range: a mission-driven executive, a sector convener and an advocate for more equitable and inclusive leadership in food and environmental work.

Goals of the work

1. Raise Kathleen's profile as a thought leader in regional and just food systems, the environmental sector and gender equity.
2. Grow a relevant, engaged and diverse audience of funders, peers, partners, policymakers, press, farmers and sector leaders.
3. Use Kathleen's platform to amplify others, especially farmers, food justice leaders and organizations whose work is underrepresented in mainstream media.
4. Extend the reach of Glynwood's work by connecting Kathleen's personal channels to Glynwood's programs, publications and events.
5. Maintain a consistent, authentic voice that sounds like Kathleen, reflects Glynwood's equity commitments and holds up to scrutiny from the communities she works with.

Scope of work

The contractor will manage Kathleen's Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook accounts and is expected to deliver the following.

Content creation and publishing

• Post original content at least twice a week across accounts, adapted to each platform
• Write content in Kathleen's established voice and tone
• Review posts with Kathleen before publishing as needed, and always for anything expressing an opinion or position
• Re-post or share Glynwood and partner content at least four times per month
• Ensure the people, farms and organizations featured over time reflect the diversity of the Hudson Valley food system, and track this informally so gaps are visible

Community management

• Regularly monitor Kathleen's feeds: like and reply to comments, follow back relevant accounts and respond to messages as appropriate
• Flag sensitive comments, press inquiries, partnership requests or speaking invitations to Kathleen and the Glynwood communications team promptly
• Follow and engage with sector-relevant leaders, organizations and influencers to build Kathleen's network, with intentional outreach to BIPOC-led, women-led and community-based organizations and voices

Content sourcing and coordination

• Stay aware of Glynwood's calendar (events, campaigns, publications) and plan Kathleen's content around it
• Proactively reach out to the Glynwood communications team to source content, including speeches, quotes from reports, op-eds and event appearances

Brand alignment

• Follow Glynwood's brand and style guidelines when using Glynwood visuals or messaging
• Use only photos and materials Glynwood has the rights to share

Reporting and metrics

The contractor will submit a monthly report to Kathleen and the Director of Development and Communications by the 10th of the following month, broken out by platform.

Metric

1. Follower count and net follows
2. Number of posts (Output against the twice-weekly minimum)
3. Post views and interactions
4. Most interacted-with post (The month's top performer, with a link)
5. Engagement rate (Interactions relative to views or followers)
6. Qualitative note (A brief read on what content performed well and why, plus recommendations)
7. Voices amplified (A short list of the people, farms and organizations featured or tagged that month, so we can see whose stories are being told)

We also expect a short quarterly check-in to review trends, the balance of voices represented and any adjustments to strategy.

Time commitment and budget

• Hours: approximately 20 hours per month
• Budget: Proposals should state a flat monthly fee or an hourly rate.
• Status: independent contractor, working remotely, with occasional check-ins by video or at Glynwood's campus in Cold Spring, NY

Qualifications

Required

• Experience managing social media for leaders or mission-driven organizations
• Strong writing skills and a proven ability to write in someone else's voice
• Working knowledge of Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook, including analytics
• Demonstrated understanding of diversity, equity and inclusion in communications, including inclusive language, accessibility and ethical storytelling
• Sound judgment about tone, timing, and sensitive topics
• Reliability and clear communication with a busy executive and a small team

Preferred

• Familiarity with food systems, agriculture, environmental or climate work, food justice or gender equity
• Experience supporting thought leadership for a CEO or executive director
• Basic graphic design or short-form video skills (Canva or similar)

We value lived experience as well as professional experience. If you are excited about this role but don't meet every qualification, we encourage you to apply.

Proposal requirements

Through the application link (see Submission below), please provide:

1. Cover letter (1 page max) describing your interest in this work and relevant experience
2. Approach to building Kathleen's presence, including how you would learn and maintain her voice and how you would tailor content across Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook
3. Sample work: 2 to 3 examples of social media you have managed, ideally for an executive or nonprofit leader
4. Sample posts: 3 draft posts (one per platform) written for Kathleen, drawing on Glynwood's public materials, with at least one that amplifies a partner, farmer or community leader
5. Pricing: monthly fee or hourly rate, and any tools or costs included
6. References: 2 to 3 current or recent clients