United States onlyAre you ready to power the World's connections?
If you don’t think you meet all of the criteria below but are still interested in the job, please apply. Nobody checks every box - we’re looking for candidates that are particularly strong in a few areas, and have some interest and capabilities in others.
About the role:
Kong Inc. is a leading developer of cloud API technologies and we’re on a mission to enable enterprises around the world to become “API-first”. We work with organizations around the world—from startups to Fortune 500 enterprises in over 35 different countries—to unleash developer productivity, help them build securely, and accelerate their time to market. We’ve raised over $171 Million, and our business recently topped $100 million in ARR.
So, if rock-solid growth appeals to you, then you've found the right company.
The Role
The PR Manager position at Kong will support day-to-day external communications, with a heavy focus on media relations. We're looking for someone with great editorial relationships right out of the gate, who can crush enterprise product launches, corporate news, and big-picture research reports that you’ll help us build in-house. Your press placements will help the team drive an expansion of Kong’s brand visibility, thought leadership from our top executives, and recognition of our world-class products in-market.
This position will provide the right candidate the opportunity to build cross-functional relationships inside our marketing team, and across our product development and sales teams. You'll also work closely with key executives to ensure that we're at our best whenever we're in front of the press. Come prepared with top-notch writing chops, as a big part of the job will be developing press releases, blogs, contributed bylines, as well as speaking and award submissions. You’ll also work with PR agency partners in the US to support and drive the program forward.
This is a phenomenal opportunity to work at a hyper-growth startup that has already achieved tremendous success and is fast-tracking to the next level of growth. You can help tell that story!
Why should you want to work at Kong?
Market Opportunity - We are on a quest to build a $10b+ software company over the next few years and need YOUR help!
Why APIs Matter? APIs have been enabling innovation for decades!
Strong VC team, Series D, strong year over year revenue growth!
Technical Leadership - We are recognized as the leader in innovation in the connectivity space.
Marco, our CTO/co-founder - “We are the Cisco of L4 and L7” - CUBE Conversation, March 2021
We are the leading innovator in the connectivity space!
Amazing Team Culture - Come be a "Konger" and find out what we mean.
Great Place to Work Certified in 2020 2021
Kong employees exemplify our culture at our 2022 Sales Kickoff
Building Great Products - Learn why the world's largest companies love our tech!
Kong Named a Leader in the 2021 Gartner Magic Quadrant
Over 250m+ downloads of our open source API gateway! Over 40k+ stars on Github between Kong API and Kong Insomnia!
What You'll Do:
- Work across Marketing, Product, and Sales to identify newsworthy storylines that can be the basis for trade or business press opportunities.
- Execute on our existing PR plans to support the company's business objectives and goals.
- Work closely with our public relations firms in the US and U.K to manage high-priority PR campaigns, as well as the day-to-day work of pitching and managing press interviews, writing, awards submissions, and maintenance of our editorial lists.
- Cultivate meaningful relationships with key journalists and analysts to position Kong as a “go-to” source for timely commentary and industry thought leadership.
- Drive development, with agency support, of all media relations materials including briefing documents, press releases, media alerts, pitches, communications plans, award submissions, speaking proposals, and media lists.
- Monitor and analyze media coverage, including competitor activity, and provide recommendations to senior leadership.
- Support content creation for thought leadership, executive blogs, speaker/event attendance, and broadcast opportunities.
- And any additional tasks required by manager
What You'll Bring:
- 5+ years relevant work experience at either a PR agency or on an in-house communications team, preferably with a focus on Enterprise SaaS. However, recent PR agency experience is a must-have.
- Experience working with top-tier and trade media, especially in enterprise technology, Cloud-native technologies.
- Exceptional storytelling, written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present ideas and information clearly to different audiences.
- Proven ability to build and maintain relationships with key stakeholders, including engaging with media, analysts, and industry influencers.
- Strong project management skills and the ability to manage several projects simultaneously and prioritize urgent and important initiatives effectively, especially in stressful and ambiguous situations.
- Able to analyze and measure PR program performance, synthesizing coverage and conversations to inform and make recommendations to executives and partners.
Kong has different base pay ranges for different work locations within the United States, which allows us to pay employees competitively and consistently in different geographic markets. Compensation varies depending on a wide array of factors, including but not limited to specific candidate location, role, skill set and level of experience. Certain roles are eligible for additional rewards including sales incentives depending on the terms of the applicable plan and role. Benefits may vary depending on location. US based employees are typically offered access to healthcare benefits, a 401(k) plan, short and long term disability benefits, basic life and ADD insurance, among others. The typical base pay range for this role in the US is $140,000 - 162,500.
What is a Konger?
We are a group of makers, thinkers, and doers focused on helping today’s developers build tomorrow’s technology. Our teams work on the bleeding edge of API innovation to provide our users with a central nervous system for data and services.
We put design at the heart of everything we do, and we’re relentlessly focused on creating beautiful experiences for our customers. That’s why technology companies, major banks, e-commerce innovators, and government agencies put Kong in front of their most important web applications.
We believe in the power of Open Source and everything it stands for. That’s why developers around the world enthusiastically contribute on top of our open-source platform.
We are passionate about solving challenges that will fundamentally shape the future of technology, and we’re looking for the right people to join us on our mission. If you believe in taking ownership of your work, making an impact, and having fun along the way, we would love to talk to you.
Kong Core Values:
Be Inclusive. We work together from anywhere to achieve our common goals. Our differences make us stronger.
Be Authentic. We are genuine, principled and confident without arrogance. Show respect and kindness, especially in tough moments.
Be Relentlessly Resourceful. We work with purpose, obsession and grit. It takes muscle to do hard things and doing hard things build muscle.
Be Customer Obsessed. We care. Customers are everything, we put them at the center of everything you do. We are all empowered to make an impact.
Be Curious. We value ideas over hierarchy. Never accept the status quo. We make bold bets, fail, and learn everyday. There is always a way.
Be an Owner. We are drivers not passengers and own the quality and outcomes of our work.
About Kong:
Kong is THE cloud native API platform with the fastest, most adopted API gateway in the world (over 300m downloads!). Loved by developers and trusted with enterprises’ most critical traffic volumes, Kong helps startups and Fortune 500 companies build with confidence – allowing them to bring solutions to market faster with API and service connectivity that scales easily and securely.
83% of web traffic today is API calls! APIs are the connective tissue of the cloud and the underlying technology that allows software to talk and interact with one another. Therefore, we believe that APIs act as the nervous system of the cloud. Our audacious mission is to build the nervous system that will safely and reliably connect all of humankind!
For more information about Kong, please visit konghq.com or follow @thekonginc on Twitter.
We are an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or veteran status.
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