What Does a Communications Director (DirCom) Do, and How Much Do They Earn?

The Communications Director, or DirCom, is no longer simply responsible for media relations or overseeing press releases. As corporate communications has evolved, the role has become a senior leadership position focused on managing reputation, anticipating risks, coordinating crisis responses and aligning communications with business objectives.

The growing importance of this role within organisations is highlighted in The State of Communication in Spain 2025, a report by the Spanish Association of Communication Directors (Dircom): 54.4% of senior communications leaders report directly to the CEO, while 32.3% sit on the Executive Committee. Furthermore, three out of four professionals surveyed believe their CEOs rate the performance of the communications function highly or very highly.

The difference between working in communications and leading the function lies in developing a broader strategic perspective. Managing budgets, measuring results, understanding how a business operates and translating reputation and communications into business terms are increasingly important skills for progressing into senior leadership roles.

What Is a Communications Director (DirCom), and Why Do They No Longer Write Press Releases?

The Communications Director, or DirCom, is the senior executive responsible for defining and overseeing an organisation's communications strategy. Their role is to ensure consistency between what the company does, what it communicates and how its actions are perceived by its various stakeholders.

This represents a shift from the traditional view of the communications department. Activities such as drafting press releases, organising meetings with journalists and managing public relations remain part of the communications function, but they are not necessarily the core responsibilities of its director.

The Communications Director determines what the company needs to communicate, to whom, when, through which channels and for what purpose. They must also assess how each decision may affect employees, customers, investors, public authorities, the media and other stakeholders.

This strategic responsibility explains why Communications Directors are increasingly working alongside senior leadership. According to the ECE 2025 report, communications departments whose leaders sit on the Executive Committee or report directly to the CEO are placing increasing emphasis on communications strategy and coordination. The transition, therefore, is not about moving away from the practical tools of the profession, but about applying them within a broader business perspective.

The Role and Responsibilities of a Communications Director in Today's Business Environment

The specific responsibilities of a Communications Director vary depending on a company's size, industry and organisational structure. In a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME), a Communications Director may take on tasks that would be distributed across several specialised teams in a multinational company. However, certain responsibilities define the role today.

The main responsibilities of a Communications Director include:

• Developing the communications strategy, setting priorities and defining target audiences, channels, resources and objectives.
• Managing corporate reputation and analysing how the organisation is perceived by its key stakeholders.
• Preparing for and coordinating crisis responses, establishing protocols, spokespersons and procedures.
• Leading internal communications in collaboration with other departments, helping to keep employees informed and aligned with the organisation's goals.
• Overseeing external communications and relationships with the media, institutions and other relevant stakeholders.
• Managing teams, agencies, suppliers and budgets, allocating resources according to established objectives.
• Measuring results and translating them into indicators that help assess the contribution of communications to business performance.

The communications plan therefore becomes a management tool rather than simply a content calendar. It should define what the company aims to achieve, which audiences it needs to engage with, what resources are required and how results will be measured.

Internal coordination is also essential. The communications department may collaborate with Human Resources on employer branding initiatives, work with Marketing on brand positioning or coordinate with legal and finance teams when dealing with particularly sensitive matters.

Crisis Communications and Reputation Management: The Most Critical Responsibilities

One of the responsibilities that best reflects the strategic nature of the Communications Director's role is managing situations that could affect a company's reputation.

A crisis can arise from a product issue, a data breach, a cyberattack, an accident, a controversial business decision or even the rapid spread of misinformation. At that point, the issue is no longer confined to the department where it originated: it can affect customers, employees, investors, public authorities and the wider public simultaneously.

Developing a crisis communications strategy for businesses involves anticipating potential scenarios and establishing in advance who makes decisions, who acts as spokesperson, what information each audience needs and which channels will be used to communicate it.

The Communications Director does not work in isolation during a crisis. They must coordinate with senior management and departments such as Legal, Operations, Human Resources and IT to ensure that the organisation's communications accurately reflect the actions it is taking.

The digital environment adds another layer of complexity. Managing online reputation helps organisations monitor conversations, identify early warning signs and understand how public perception is evolving. Speed matters, but so does accuracy: responding quickly does not always mean responding effectively, especially when the facts have yet to be verified.

How Much Does a Communications Director Earn Depending on Company Size?

According to the ISPROX 2026 Salary Guide, a Communications Director (DirCom) with more than ten years of experience earns between €54,600 and €62,200 gross per year.

Given the variation in salaries, it is more useful to understand the factors that influence earning potential:

Therefore, company size matters, but so does the scope of responsibility. Two professionals with the same job title may earn very different salaries if one is responsible solely for external communications, while the other also oversees reputation management, crisis communications, internal communications, budgets and international teams.

Managing Communications vs. Leading Communications: The Difference That Defines Career Progression

This is arguably the most important distinction for anyone aspiring to become a Communications Director. A skilled communications professional may have extensive experience in media relations, content creation, events, social media or internal communications, yet still need to develop additional skills to move into a senior leadership position.

Leadership means making decisions about resources and taking responsibility for the results.

The ECE 2025 report provides some valuable insights. Among communications departments rated as excellent, 60.6% decide how the communications budget is allocated, compared with 32.6% of other departments. Furthermore, 42.4% of these high-performing departments determine the overall budget, compared with just 15% of the others. This highlights the close relationship between strategic responsibility and financial decision-making authority.

Making this transition also requires speaking the language of business. A Communications Director must understand budgets, profitability, risks, commercial objectives and corporate priorities to justify strategic decisions to senior executives and financial leadership.

The relationship with roles such as the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) is a good example. Communications and Marketing may overlap in areas such as brand management and target audiences, but they serve different objectives and must coordinate investments, messaging and strategic priorities.

What to Study to Become a Communications Director

There is no single academic path to becoming a Communications Director. Many professionals come from backgrounds in Journalism, Advertising, Public Relations, Audiovisual Communication, Marketing or related fields. However, progressing into a leadership position typically requires a combination of communications expertise, professional experience and business management skills.

• For professionals who already understand how communications work but want to specialise in strategy, reputation management, branding and intangible asset management, the Master in Corporate Communication & Brand Management offers an opportunity to develop deeper expertise in these areas.
• For those looking to broaden their understanding of commercial strategy, consumer behaviour and market positioning, a Master in Marketing Management can help them better understand the connections between communications, brand strategy and business objectives.
• The Master in Management provides a broader perspective on business management, while an Executive MBA may be particularly valuable for experienced professionals seeking to strengthen their overall business acumen and progress into executive leadership roles.

The ultimate goal is not to move away from communications expertise, but to develop the leadership skills needed to manage the function effectively. Knowing how to craft a compelling message remains important. What brings a professional closer to the role of Communications Director is knowing when to use that message, how much to invest, which risks it addresses and how it contributes to the organisation's objectives.