Reporting to the Director of Community, the Community Specialist will oversee community engagement strategy and day-to-day operations across the MS NOW platform. This role requires substantial independent judgment and discretion in managing member interactions, interpreting and applying community standards, and shaping the overall member experience. The Community Specialist will play a key role in establishing the tone, culture, and engagement approach for the MS NOW membership community.

This position serves as a strategic partner across editorial, audience, and product functions by identifying engagement trends, informing community best practices, and helping guide platform and programming decisions. The Community Specialist will independently manage community initiatives, oversee moderation workflows, support live programming, and recommend operational improvements that strengthen member engagement and community health.

The ideal candidate is thoughtful, highly organized, and exercises strong judgment when engaging with members during live news cycles and politically sensitive conversations. This role requires the ability to assess nuanced situations, make sound decisions independently, and determine when escalation or cross-functional coordination is appropriate.

Responsibilities

• Oversee daily community engagement strategy across comments, discussions, and member groups to foster a constructive and inclusive environment
• Independently manage member interactions, facilitate thoughtful discussion, and maintain a consistent community voice aligned with brand standards
• Develop and execute community programming initiatives, including prompts, discussions, AMAs, watch events, and live engagement experiences
• Lead real-time community engagement efforts during major news events and high-visibility moments, exercising discretion in sensitive situations
• Interpret and apply community guidelines to complex or ambiguous moderation issues, making independent decisions and escalating matters when appropriate
• Manage moderation workflows and partner with third-party vendors to optimize tools, processes, and enforcement standards
• Identify emerging community trends, sentiment patterns, and engagement opportunities, and provide recommendations to editorial, product, and audience teams
• Develop strategies to identify, cultivate, and retain highly engaged members and community advocates
• Analyze engagement metrics and prepare summaries, insights, and recommendations for the Director of Community and broader DTC leadership
• Recommend and implement improvements to community operations, workflows, onboarding materials, and governance practices
• Collaborate cross-functionally with editorial, product, audience, and customer support teams to support broader membership and engagement goals