Director of Lifecycle Marketing

Accountabilities:

• • Own the end-to-end prospective-student lifecycle strategy across inquiry, application, admission, enrollment, re-inquiry, alumni, and long-term nurture stages.
  • Design, configure, and continuously optimize always-on, triggered, and term-based automated journeys that guide prospects toward the next best action.
  • Drive measurable improvements in inquiry-to-application, application-to-enrollment, and overall inquiry-to-enrollment conversion across different programs, audiences, sources, geographies, and consideration cycles.
  • Develop differentiated nurture and re-engagement strategies for high-intent prospects, stalled applicants, future-term prospects, no-contact leads, and other audience segments.
  • Build and manage a structured experimentation roadmap covering messaging, cadence, channels, offers, creative, calls to action, and enrollment handoffs.
  • Lead segmentation and personalization using behavioral, demographic, program-interest, funnel-stage, engagement, and acquisition-source data.
  • Partner with paid media and analytics teams to activate first-party audiences, suppress converted or ineligible prospects, and create a connected acquisition-to-nurture experience.
  • Establish lifecycle performance standards, dashboards, and operating reviews that connect engagement metrics to applications, enrollments, cost per enrollment, and incremental business value.
  • Own the hands-on marketing automation architecture, including workflows, triggers, decision logic, integrations, data dependencies, governance, documentation, QA, deliverability, and data hygiene.
  • Maintain strong stakeholder relationships across Enrollment, Marketing, Technology, Analytics, and external partners, establishing shared priorities, decision rights, service expectations, and feedback loops.
  • Create and maintain journey maps, lifecycle roadmaps, technical requirements, playbooks, campaign briefs, measurement plans, and operating processes.
  • Partner with Enrollment leadership to align contact strategies, lead prioritization, messaging, service levels, and feedback between marketing and enrollment teams.
  • Ensure lifecycle communications comply with applicable privacy, consent, accessibility, and institutional requirements, including email and SMS standards.
  • Continuously identify opportunities to improve automation, personalization, operational efficiency, and the overall prospective-student experience.

  Requirements:

  • Bachelor’s degree in marketing, business, analytics, or a related discipline preferred; equivalent professional experience may be considered.
  • 7+ years of progressive experience in lifecycle, CRM, conversion, or related marketing, including at least 3 years of hands-on ownership of complex email and SMS automation programs.
  • Deep expertise in lifecycle automation, including journey configuration, segmentation, triggers, decision logic, branching, personalization, experimentation, QA, troubleshooting, and channel orchestration.
  • Demonstrated success improving conversion across multi-step customer journeys with long or variable consideration cycles; higher education or another lead-to-sales environment is strongly preferred.
  • Advanced knowledge of enterprise CRM and marketing automation platforms, with experience translating strategy into configured workflows and independently diagnosing execution issues. Experience with Microsoft Dynamics 365, Marketo, Click Dimensions, or comparable platforms is preferred.
  • Strong analytical judgment and the ability to evaluate cohorts, funnel progression, incrementality, cost efficiency, conversion, and broader business outcomes rather than relying solely on channel-level metrics.
  • Proven ability to establish lifecycle strategy, visualize end-to-end customer journeys, prioritize roadmaps, and translate strategy into technical requirements, campaign briefs, measurement plans, and operational processes.
  • Strong understanding of email deliverability, consent management, data governance, CAN-SPAM, TCPA, FERPA, and accessibility considerations relevant to prospective-student communications.
  • Excellent stakeholder leadership and communication skills, with the ability to influence Marketing, Enrollment, Technology, Analytics, and executive stakeholders without relying on direct authority.
  • Highly organized, self-motivated, detail-oriented, and capable of managing multiple priorities and tight deadlines with limited supervision.
  • Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to move comfortably between strategic planning and hands-on execution.
  • Collaborative mindset with a demonstrated ability to create alignment, establish standards, and drive decisions across cross-functional teams.
  • Passion for improving student experiences and an ability to anticipate customer needs while balancing organizational and commercial objectives.
  • Comfortable working effectively in a remote-first environment and collaborating through digital tools and real-time communication.
  • Able to work from a location with reliable internet connectivity; the role requires a minimum of 50 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload speeds.
  • Must be eligible to work in the United States without visa sponsorship. Candidates residing in Alaska, Washington, D.C., Massachusetts, South Dakota, or Alabama are not eligible for consideration.

  Benefits:

  • Starting salary of $130,000, with eligibility for an annual bonus.
  • Medical, dental, and vision insurance.
  • HSA and FSA options.
  • 401(k) plan with employer match.
  • Paid parental leave and paid volunteer time.
  • Generous paid time off.
  • Tuition reimbursement and tuition reduction programs.
  • Full-service wellness and Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
  • Employer-paid life and AD&D insurance.
  • Employer-paid long-term disability coverage and short-term disability benefits.
  • Employee recognition and awards programs.
  • Remote-first work environment with a strong focus on virtual collaboration.
  • Inclusive, supportive workplace culture centered on belonging, diversity, professional development, and employee well-being.
  • Opportunities to contribute to a mission-driven organization focused on accessible, affordable, and high-quality online education.