Washington Biz Journal seeks a commercial real estate reporter

The Washington Business Journal is looking for a top-notch reporter to cover commercial real estate.

The real estate beat is the essence of top-level reporting. It requires building — and working — strong source networks to dig out deals before the competition and reporting both the dollar value and the broad impact of new projects, new employers and new players. We need someone who is driven to do the hard work of digging up news and intrigued by the challenge of putting together the pieces of news that make up the larger picture of the forces shaping our community. From expansions, relocations and other deals, to coverage of important real estate events, trends and executives, a good Business Journal reporter is editor of his or her own beat coverage, and is easily able to assess what merits a story, an in-depth investigation or just a brief.

The ideal candidate can marry strong traditional journalism skills – source building, sharp news judgment, interviewing prowess, strong analytical and investigative reporting, clear writing, document use – with online and social media know-how. Whatever the platform, he or she produces content that is accompanied by perspective and context for a vibrant audience of business owners, executives and professionals in the region.

Duties
A Business Journal reporter is competitive, collaborative and curious. He or she is expected to contribute both short- and long-form stories to our news products online, in email, on mobile and in print. Specifically, our reporters are expected to own every important story on their beats; use networking events, social media platforms and other community-building outlets to expand and fortify their source base and audience; work collaboratively with other newsroom staffers to maximize impact and accessibility of stories reported; and meet or exceed goals related to audience engagement. Also, scoops matter. A lot.

Skills
• Proven excellence in reporting and writing
• 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
• Minimum of 3-5 years of journalism experience.
• Proven experience building and maintaining a strong source base.
• Proven experience building, maintaining and engaging an active audience.
• Knowledge of business principles essential.
• Experience covering Greater Washington a plus.

Education
Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience

To apply, email a resume, cover letter and links to clips that best show enterprise and scoops reporting to Beth Hunt, director of editorial recruiting and development, American City Business Journals, bzhunt@bizjournals.com