Communications Manager, Product & Engineering

Company Description

At WD, our vision is to power global innovation and push the boundaries of technology. Our technology has powered historic achievements like putting a man on the moon and capturing the first-ever picture of a black hole. We offer an expansive portfolio of technologies, HDDs, and platforms under our Western Digital®, WD®, and WD_BLACK™ brands. WD is a key partner to some of the world's largest and highest-growth organizations, fueling a brighter, smarter future by enabling smart cities, powering data centers, and meeting the massive data storage needs of the AI era.

Job Description

WD is seeking a Communications Manager to serve as an embedded communications partner for its Product and Engineering (P&E) organization. You will design and deliver employee-facing communications that align engineers, product teams, and technical leaders with strategy, connect them to culture, and prepare them for change, operating with speed and rigor in a complex, innovation-led environment.

You will report to the Director, Strategic Communications — Product & Engineering, who owns end-to-end strategic communications for the product organization. You will operationalize and activate this strategy at the org level, owning channels, cadences, campaigns, and leader support for the P&E organization.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

Communication Strategy & Planning

• Build and execute the P&E internal communications strategy and calendar, aligned with WD’s product roadmap, operating model, and growth priorities.
• Translate corporate and product strategy into clear, employee-ready narratives for technical audiences.
• Own communications intake, prioritization, and sequencing for P&E, balancing urgency, impact, and employee capacity.

Leader Advisory & Executive-Ready Content

• Draft and ghostwrite org-wide communications (emails, updates, narratives, Q&As, presentations) for P&E leaders.
• Coach leaders on tone, clarity, and cadence to strengthen credibility and trust.

Content Creation & Writing

• Write, edit, and publish high-quality employee-facing content across multiple formats (emails, articles, newsletters, messaging, campaign materials).
• Serve as a hands-on writer for the P&E organization, owning first drafts and final copy.
• Translate complex product, engineering, and operating model topics into clear, engaging stories for technical and non-technical audiences.

Channel & Event Management

• Act as editor-in-chief for P&E channels (e.g., SharePoint, Teams, newsletters), ensuring message discipline.
• Maintain a consistent cadence of written communications to keep P&E employees informed, aligned, and engaged.
• Produce, project manage, and run P&E All Hands/Ask Me Anything sessions.

Change & Transformation Communications

• Lead communications for P&E changes (reorgs, mechanism rollouts, operating model shifts), connecting the "what/why/so what" to business outcomes.
• Partner tightly with HR and program leads to plan sequencing and ensure successful campaign execution.
• Proactively identify emerging issues, employee confusion, or change risks within P&E and provide recommendations to leaders.

Storytelling, Culture & Engagement

• Source and elevate stories about product milestones, engineering innovation, and culture moments that demonstrate WD's values.
• Share product stories across WD to showcase innovation and strengthen company-wide understanding of our roadmap.

Measurement & Insights

• Set targets and analyze channel/event metrics, pulse feedback, and sentiment; recommend improvements to increase reach, comprehension, and action.

Partnership & Governance

• Serve as a connector between Strategic Comms, P&E leadership, HR, Internal Comms, Corporate Comms, and program teams to maintain alignment with WD’s broader narrative, mission, and brand standards.

Qualifications

Required

• 8+ years in employee/internal communications (or adjacent roles) with proven success in complex, technical organizations.
• Exceptional writing and editing skills; ability to translate engineering/product topics into clear, human-centered messages.
• Demonstrated experience planning and executing change communications across large, distributed teams.
• Strong stakeholder management and consultative skills; confident advising senior leaders.
• Channel operations experience (SharePoint, Teams/Slack, newsletters, town halls); strong slide/story design skills.
• Program/project management rigor and high attention to detail.

Preferred

• Fluency in the software/hardware product lifecycle and data-center/cloud ecosystems.
• Familiarity with the role of data storage in AI.
• Experience building measurement frameworks for internal communications.

Additional Information

The anticipated application deadline is 2026-09-02. WD is committed to providing equal opportunities and reasonable accommodations. Please contact [email protected] for accommodation requests. WD will never request payment for application or employment. Report suspicious requests to WD Ethics Helpline or [email protected].

Compensation & Benefits Details

Pay position within the salary range depends on factors like education, experience, skills, performance, location, and business needs. The salary range is applicable for jobs performed in California, Colorado, New York, or remote jobs in those states. Benefits include paid vacation, sick leave, medical/dental/vision insurance, life/accident/disability insurance, flexible spending accounts, employee assistance program, tuition reimbursement, and the WD Savings 401(k) Plan. Eligibility for bonuses (STI Plan or SIP) and potential participation in the Long-Term Incentive (LTI) program (RSUs) apply.