Senior Director, Internal Corporate Communications

Position Title: Senior Director, Internal Corporate Communications 

Department: Communications

Reports To: Emily Faucette, chief communications officer

Location: South San Francisco, CA – On-site 4 days per week (Mon to Thurs)

Job Overview

The Senior Director, Internal Corporate Communications will lead the strategy and execution of internal, corporate, branding, and change communications for Kardigan. This role is responsible for shaping how employees, partners, and stakeholders understand who we are, what we’re building, and how we operate - especially during moments of growth, change, and transformation.

They will be a trusted advisor to senior leadership, a strong cross-functional partner, and a hands-on executor who thrives in a fast-moving, high-expectations environment.  The role is structured as a peer to the Executive Director, Product & External Communications, with distinct but complementary areas of responsibility within the communications leadership team. Together with the chief communications officer, they form the core communications leadership team, ensuring a unified, credible, and differentiated narrative across internal, corporate, product, and external audiences.

Key Responsibilities

Internal Communications & Engagement

• Establish and lead Kardigan’s internal communications function to connect employees to our mission, business objectives, culture and values in a meaningful way.  
• Develop and execute a cohesive strategic plan that drives alignment, clarity, and engagement across a growing, organization with multiple sites.
• Lead internal channels and content, including All Hands meetings, leadership updates, organizational announcements, change management and potential new platforms for innovative enterprise communications connectivity.
• Partner with HR, Legal and leadership to support culture-building initiatives, employee engagement, and organizational change.
• Collaborate with IT to identify the appropriate resources, platforms and tools to consistently reach and connect employees across company sites.   
• Translate complex scientific, operational, and strategic topics into clear, compelling messages for diverse internal audiences.

Corporate Communications

• Support corporate narrative development and ensure consistent messaging across internal and external audiences.
• Collaborate with Investor Relations to ensure consistent pull-through of Kardigan’s corporate narrative, strategy, and milestones across diverse internal audiences.
• Draft and manage executive communications, including leadership remarks, internal memos, presentations, and company-wide updates.
• Partner closely with Legal, HR, Business Development, and leadership to ensure communications are aligned, accurate, and well-sequenced.
• Ensure communications reflect Kardigan’s values, operating principles, and long-term vision.

Branding & Corporate Identity

• Partner with the Chief Communications Officer to evolve and steward Kardigan’s corporate brand - including the integration of new companies, assets and business areas resulting from M&A - to ensure consistency across internal materials, environments, and touchpoints.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams and external agencies on branding initiatives, corporate storytelling, and visual identity.
• Oversee development of high-quality corporate assets, including videos, presentations, signage, and internal brand materials.

Leadership and Collaboration

• Exercise excellent judgment, integrity, and transparency in making decisions that are in the best interest of the Company, our stakeholders and most importantly the patients we serve.  
• Educate, influence and successfully collaborate with cross functional teams, company management, department colleagues and external partners toward a shared vision and common goal; comfort with reaching compromise and managing conflict.
• Consistently model Kardigan leadership, culture and core values.

Qualifications and Preferred Skills

• 12+ years of communications experience, including senior leadership roles with increasing responsibility across internal, corporate, and brand communications; life sciences or high-growth environments strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience leading communications during periods of change, including M&A, integrations, or rapid organizational growth.
• Exceptional writing and storytelling skills, with the ability to simplify complex topics and tailor messages to different audiences.
• Strong executive presence and experience partnering with senior leaders.
• Highly organized, proactive, and comfortable operating with ambiguity and speed.
• Hands-on mindset, with the ability and desire to both set strategy and execute with excellence.
• A positive, resilient individual with a ‘can do’ attitude, who is willing to challenge the status quo and consistently offer solutions.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team, confidentially interact with all levels of the organization and effectively manage external vendors
• Openness to varied points of view; comfortable with receiving and providing critical feedback in a professional and timely manner.
• Ability to prioritize, work on multiple projects simultaneously, and remain calm, focused and productive when under stress and/or faced with competing deadlines
• Bachelor’s degree in public relations, Journalism, Communications or a related field or equivalent experience 
• Proficient in MS Word and PowerPoint, SharePoint Online experience desired