Austin Biz Journal seeks economic development reporter

The Austin Business Journal newsroom is expanding.

We’re looking for a staff writer to cover economic development in one of the hottest economies in the country. This beat focuses on the suburbs, where the majority of growth is occurring in the region. Examples of storylines on this beat: Tesla building a $1B factory east of Austin, and developers building a huge crystal lagoon in the suburb of Leander that will anchor a new mixed-use project.
This suburban reporter may break news about a new hospital or tech company relocation one day, then write about housing affordability in the suburbs the next day. Relationships with elected officials, government staffers, economic development leaders, real estate pros and economists are critical.
Our economic development reporters are expected to provide forward-looking business intelligence to savvy readers who will use it to grow their businesses and/or advance their careers. Our content gives them a leg up on their competitors, connects them with decision-makers and delineates growth strategies that work from those that don’t. This usually entails finding news at city halls, county courthouses or other public entities and then speaking to private-sector sources about the business ramifications of what’s in the pipeline.
The ideal candidate will blend traditional journalism skills — source building, sharp news judgment, interviewing prowess and scoop-driven reporting – with online and social media know-how. Reporters in our newsroom don’t just turn in copy. They include videos, slideshows and other multimedia components that advance the story and further engage our audience. They break hard news that sometimes sources don’t want brought to light, but they don’t burn bridges.

Duties
• Report and write short-form and long-form stories for the website and weekly print edition.
• Own the beat, dictating day-to-day coverage and thriving on digging out source-driven exclusives.
• Relentlessly develop sources and manage relationships with high-level executives and other community leaders.
• Scoop competitors on every story of any significance, not only telling them what happened, but why and how.
Experience Desired
Track record in the news business of building, maintaining and engaging an audience in print and online. Social media mavens held in high regard.

Skills
• Desire and ability to break news and to identify newsworthy events and sources
• Strong analytical and investigative-interviewing skills
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively
• Ability to relate comfortably to a wide range of people, in person, on the phone and online
• A clear drive to develop sources and build audience
• Solid understanding of news writing, journalistic ethics and story structure.
• Ability to leverage relationships with sources to deliver content that differentiates the organization from competitors.
• Multimedia skills, including video, photos, broadcast, on-camera, helpful.

Experience
• 1-3 years reporting in a newsroom
• Track record in the news business of building, maintaining and engaging an audience in print and online.
• Social media mavens held in high regard.

Education
Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience.

To apply, email a cover letter, resume and clips that best show enterprising and scoops reporting to Beth Hunt, Director of Editorial Recruiting and Development at American City Business Journals: bzhunt@bizjournals.com