Director of Marketing, Colorado Tourism Office

The mission of the Colorado Tourism Office (CTO) is to drive traveler spending through promotion and development of compelling, sustainable travel experiences throughout our four-corner state. The CTO promotes Colorado to travelers through domestic and international marketing, public relations, social media, the Official State Vacation Guide and colorado.com and provides traveler services at Colorado Welcome Centers. The CTO collaborates with destination marketing organizations, local communities, industry associations, land managers, government agencies and private businesses both to market Colorado to travelers, support the development of new travel opportunities and protect Colorado resources. The CTO is focused on a vision to position Colorado as the premier U.S. destination for active, outdoor and unique experiences that make you feel truly alive. The FY26 budget is $16.45 million.

NOTE: This posting is open only to individuals on a promotional list of the listed department. The posting is for transparency purposes only to comply with the Equal Pay for Equal Work Act. Applications from individuals not on the department promotional list will not be accepted.

The CTO Marketing Director works collaboratively to lead the CTO's multi-million-dollar brand, promoting Colorado as a premier travel destination. Reporting to the Deputy Director of Marketing, the Director of Marketing oversees the execution of all domestic and international brand assets with the goal of attracting high-potential travelers to Colorado and ultimately driving revenue for the state. This role also oversees the execution of destination stewardship marketing initiatives, including the Do Colorado Right campaign and marketing matching grants. The Marketing Director helps manage agency partners aw well as the marketing team.

Management Responsibilities:

• Independently supervises Brand Marketing Manager and Destination Marketing Manager, ensuring they have a deep understanding of the CTO brand and that this expertise is reflected in all of their work. Role also includes managing daily workload, mentoring their professional growth/development and ensuring success within the CTO and with its partners.

Marketing Responsibilities:

• Manages the CTO Brand Guidelines and Do Colorado Right Campaign guidelines, making any necessary updates based on research, strategic shifts, brand/campaign evolutions or other changes.

• Leads creation of seasonal national campaigns, including approval of creative strategy/brief and key program assets such as campaign videos, radio spots, out-of-home and more.

• Supports creation of new brand campaigns as needed, including DEIA marketing campaigns.

• Provides input on the development of Do Colorado Right Campaign assets, including campaign videos, banner ads and more.

• Manages new photo shoots, including location selection, shot list, post-production and more. This includes $1M in Cares Act funded photoshoots (approx. 60) held throughout the state.

• Manages experiential branding concepts at events including trade shows, festivals, sporting events and more.

• Assists in the development of an annual marketing plan. This includes working with CTO's contracted agencies to develop holistic programs that ladder back to CTO marketing objectives and strategies as well as overall CTO and OEDIT goals.

• Provides first round feedback on all CTO publications, ensuring utilization of content strategy across all touchpoints. Helps oversee distribution strategy and list management as needed.

• Oversees Colorado.com user experience,, refining the site and identifying performance/content opportunities.

• Manages development of new marketing materials for CTO Visitors Services and International Sales, ensuring brand consistency at all consumer touch points.

• Oversees social media programs, providing input on production calendar and content as needed. Audits performance of content and identifies best practices for CTO.

• Leads the development and execution of CTO influencer program, including the selection and audit of influencers and their content as well as the creation and approval of itineraries.

• Attends weekly agency status for creative agency, strategy/media agency and design agency. Builds positive working relationships with agency vendors.

Program Management and Other Responsibilities:

• Assists in the management of scope of work development and financial tracking.

• Attends/represents the CTO at relevant industry marketing events, conferences and stakeholder meetings.

• Attends meetings with industry partners, including regional tourism conferences, as needed.

• Provide updates as needed to the CTO's weekly cabinet report for the OEDIT Executive Director on behalf of brand marketing.

• Stays current on marketing best practices and industry trends, which may require attending educational conferences or training.

• Oversees annual competitive marketing audit, identifying implications and opportunities for the CTO brand.

• Attends OEDIT status meetings and weekly CTO team meetings

• Reviews and approves expenses related to brand marketing

• Assists with other CTO responsibilities, as needed.

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES

Required:

The CTO Marketing Director must be a creative and strategic thinker; possess a strong technical understanding of marketing, brand management, campaign development, media channels and related technology; be able to strategically and creatively evaluate brand assets and have a proven track record in managing multiple advertising and marketing agencies. This role also requires demonstrated problem-solving abilities and excellent time management skills, including the capacity to work autonomously, elevate appropriately, meet timelines and prioritize multiple projects. The ability to work effectively and collaborate with colleagues is also required as are skills in relationship building and networking with a diverse population of organizations, associations and interest groups. The CTO Marketing Director must be detail oriented and have highly developed oral and written communications skills in both business writing and creative writing, including a demonstrated ability to edit and write various documents.

Out-of-town and overnight travel may be required. A valid driver's license is mandatory.

QUALIFICATIONS:

A four-year college degree plus ten years' experience in marketing, PR and/or related subjects or fifteen years experience. Tourism and graduate degree/M.B.A. preferred but not required.

Conditions of Employment

• Applicants must pass a thorough background check prior to employment.

• Former State employees who were disciplinarily terminated or resigned in lieu of termination must disclose the information on the application and provide an explanation why the prior termination or resignation should not disqualify their application from the current position.

Salary Range: $90,000 - $100,000 Annually

This position is considered non-classified, which means the position is not part of the Colorado State Personnel System. Therefore, the individual appointed to this position is considered at-will, and is not covered by the State Personnel Rules or the State Classification System. However, this position does come with the same benefits (retirement, insurance, etc.) as every other State employee, and with the same opportunities, pride and passion that comes with working for the great State of Colorado. Even though employment is at-will, non-classified positions have protections against discrimination and retaliation in state and federal employment laws. "At-will" employment means that either the employee or the State may terminate the employment relationship at any time for any reason or no reason, with or without notice or cause, as long as no federal or state law is violated.

A wide salary range is posted for this position and any job offer is based upon a salary analysis to comply with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act. The salary analysis considers relevant experience, education, certifications, and state seniority as compared to others doing substantially similar work. While all offers are compliant with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, there is no guarantee an offer will be at the top of the posted range based on the salary analysis.

Benefits

The State of Colorado/Office of the Governor offers generous benefits to full-time employees including:

• Annual leave accrued at 13.33 hours per month

• Sick leave accrued at 6.66 hours a month

• 11 paid holidays per year

• Medical plans - choice of Cigna or Kaiser; several plan options (including High Deductible Health Plan with HSA); most plans offered with significant state contribution towards premium

• Dental and vision plans

• Flexible spending accounts

• State-paid life insurance policy of $50,000

• Choice of 2 retirement plans (defined contribution or defined benefit) with generous state contribution

• Optional 401(k) and 457 plans for additional retirement savings

• State-paid short-term disability coverage

• Additional optional life and disability plans

• Access to the Colorado State Employee Assistance Program

• Membership opportunity with the Credit Union of Colorado

• RTD (transit) EcoPass

• Training and professional development

To learn more about State of Colorado benefits, please visit: https://www.colorado.gov/dhr/benefits

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

The State of Colorado believes that equity, diversity, and inclusion drive our success, and we encourage candidates from all identities, backgrounds, and abilities to apply. The State of Colorado is an equal opportunity employer committed to building inclusive, innovative work environments with employees who reflect our communities and enthusiastically serve them. Therefore, in all aspects of the employment process, we provide employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, medical condition related to pregnancy, creed, ancestry, national origin, marital status, genetic information, or military status (with preference given to military veterans), or any other protected status in accordance with applicable law.

To learn more about the "State of Colorado For All", visit our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion website.

ADAAA Accommodations

The Office of the Governor is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, our agency will assist individuals who have a disability with any reasonable accommodation requests related to employment, including completing the application process, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, participating in the employee selection process, and/or to perform essential job functions where the requested accommodation does not impose an undue hardship. If you have a disability and require reasonable accommodation to ensure you have a positive experience applying or interviewing for this position, please direct your inquiries to our ADAAA Staffing Coordinator, the Director of Human Resources: jennifer.salvatore@state.co.us

Application

Your application must provide sufficient detail about your background and experience to allow the screening panel to properly assess your experience in the required elements, including your experience and achievements.

Due to the large volume of resumes we receive, we do not acknowledge receipt of each application and are unable to give status updates. If a strong match is found between your qualifications and the requirements of the position, a member of the recruiting staff will contact you to further discuss the career opportunity.