Working Title: Communications Project Specialist 

Job Class: Planner Principal State

Agency: MN Department of Natural Resources

• Job ID: 93480
• Location: St. Paul
• Telework Eligible: Yes; hybrid
• Full/Part Time: Full-time
• Regular/Temporary: Temporary Unclassified
• Who May Apply: Open to all qualified job seekers
• Date Posted: 04/15/2026
• Closing Date: 05/05/2026
• Hiring Agency/Seniority Unit: Department of Natural Resources
• Division/Unit: Fish & Wildlife / F&W Outreach
• Work Shift/Work Hours: Day
• Days of Work: Monday - Friday
• Travel Required: Yes; details in the job summary
• Salary Range: $32.40 - $47.76 / hourly; $67,651 - $99,723 annually
• Classified Status: Unclassified
• Bargaining Unit/Union: 214 - MN Association of Professional Employees / MAPE
• End Date: Three (3) year duration
• FLSA Status: non-exempt
• Designated in Connect 700 Program for Applicants with Disabilities: Yes

The work you'll do is more than just a job.

At the State of Minnesota, employees play a critical role in developing policies, providing essential services, and working to improve the well-being and quality of life for all Minnesotans. The State of Minnesota is committed to equity and inclusion, and invests in employees by providing benefits, support resources, and training and development opportunities.

Job Summary

The DNR is seeking to fill one (1) Communications Project Specialist position, at the central office in Saint Paul, MN. 

This position serves as a Communications Project Manager for the Fish and Wildlife Division, embedded within the Division’s Integrated Public Relations Unit. The role is responsible for organizing, prioritizing, and coordinating a high volume of communications initiatives, issues, and events that flow to the public relations team from division leadership, subject matter experts, the Commissioner’s Office, and the Governor’s Office.

The incumbent provides project management leadership to ensure that communications work is clearly scoped, appropriately prioritized, and delivered on time and with consistency across multiple workstreams. This includes managing timelines, deliverables, dependencies, approvals, and cross-functional coordination for both routine communications activities and large-scale, high-visibility initiatives such as the Governor’s Fishing Opener, Governor’s Pheasant Hunting Opener, Governor’s Deer Hunting Opener, DNR Roundtable, and similar statewide or regional events.

In addition to day-to-day coordination, this position is responsible for streamlining and improving the efficiency of communications initiatives and events. The incumbent evaluates existing tactics, workflows, timelines, approval structures, and coordination processes; identifies opportunities to standardize deliverables and reduce duplication; and implements practical improvements that enhance consistency, predictability, and effective use of staff time.

Additionally, the incumbent will work in coordination with all members of the Unit to create recap and results reports to enhance understanding of the impact the team makes.

The position functions as a central organizing role for the public relations unit—bringing structure, visibility, and operational discipline to complex communications workflows—so that communications staff can focus on strategy, messaging, media relations, marketing, social media, web and other content development.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to: 

• Manage assigned major communications projects and initiatives from planning through implementation to ensure optimal efficiency and fiscal responsibility of communication and outreach programs and efforts.
• Manage continuous improvement efforts for the communication and outreach functions of the Division of Fish and Wildlife.
• Work with communication and outreach teams in response to crisis or highly sensitive situations.
• Work in concert the multi-disciplinary, multi-agency event teams to coordinate and project manage media and outreach components of major events such as the Governor’s Fishing Opener, Governor’s hunting opener events, DNR Roundtable, and other events as assigned.

This position may be eligible to telework up to 50% of the time, which is subject to change. If approved, the employee would be required to complete a telework agreement. The incumbent in this position will be required to travel in-state to DNR events, trainings, or meetings approximately 15 days per year. The duration of this position will be three (3) years.

Minimum Qualifications

• Three (3) years of professional-level experience in long-range and strategic planning, communications, and project management regarding large-scale events and initiatives.
• Knowledge of project management best practices; project planning and operations sufficient to organize projects and negotiate for resources to ensure the successful completion of projects. 
• Knowledge of qualitative and quantitative data analysis sufficient to evaluate communications and marketing project/program results and to develop a system of measures and key performance indicators in order to assess performance and make recommendations for ongoing improvements. 
• Knowledge of communications, public relations, and marketing operations and best practices sufficient to bring structure, visibility, and operational discipline to complex communications workflows.
• Interpersonal, communication, and human relations skills sufficient to convey complex information to technical and non-technical audiences via verbal and written methods; navigate and resolve conflict; achieve cooperation with the public, peers, and staff; and to make progress on agency objectives.
• Organizational skills and ability to direct and manage complex collaborative projects and ensure that process deadlines and procedural requirements are met and projects are successfully completed.
• Skills and experience with organizational and project management tools (i.e., Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Planner, Asana, or similar); ability to use these tools to produce and manage organizational workflows such as Kanban boards, Gantt charts, and dashboards. 
• Ability to lead and motivate cross-functional groups without direct authority and often while navigating competing priorities or agendas.
• Ability to form relationships and influence decision-making, sufficient to work with diverse groups and help identify a common goal. 

Preferred Qualifications

• A bachelor’s degree in business, project management, communications, journalism, or related field.
• Administrative management experience at a regional or statewide level.
• Experience coordinating projects with regulatory agencies or multidisciplinary teams.
• Formal project management training or certifications (PMP, CAPM, etc.)

Additional Requirements

No driving duties are required.

Applicants must have the ability to meet the physical requirements and work in the environmental conditions of the position, with or without reasonable accommodations. 

In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire. Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship for employment visa status (e.g. H1B status).

It is policy of the Department of Natural Resources that all candidates submit to a background check prior to employment. The background check may consist of the following components:

 • Conflict of Interest Review 

• Criminal History Check

 • Education Verification

 • Employment Reference / Records Check

 • License / Certification Verification

Application DetailsHow to Apply 

Select “Apply for Job” at the top of this page. If you have questions about applying for jobs, contact the Careers Help Desk at 651-259-3637 or email careers@state.mn.us. For additional information about the application process, go to http://www.mn.gov/careers.

Contact

If you have questions about this position, contact David Tauchen at David.Tauchen@state.mn.us or 651-259-5135.

If you are an individual with a disability and need reasonable accommodation to assist with the application process, please contact the ADA Coordinator at ADA.DNR@state.mn.us.To receive consideration as a Connect 700 Program applicant, apply online, email the Job ID#, the Working Title and your valid Proof of Eligibility Certificate by the closing date to Tava Cayo at tava.cayo@state.mn.us.