Communications Manager- External Relations

Angel Court, London EC2R 7HJ – hybrid, office 2 – 3 days per week

Permanent Full time 37.5 hours per week

Salary £46400 - £58000 depending on experience

We consider all types of flexibility wherever possible, including locations, hours and working patterns.

The role

You’ll be a member of a busy media relations and wider Corporate Affairs team, playing an active part to promote and protect Bupa’s reputation through proactive and reactive communications. You’ll understand the external landscape and the impacts of wider industry and world events on Bupa, identifying opportunities and threats. You’ll have proven PR skills including media relations, stakeholder relations, thought leadership, event management and social media, as well as measurement and evaluation. You’ll call on strong media contacts (preferably in the national, consumer and / or health space) and be able to demonstrate experience planning and executing both proactive campaigns and handling issues and crises. You’ll work in collaboration with wider Bupa teams to deliver joined-up integrated channel engagement across paid, earned and owned channels. You will also work with senior stakeholders to help design and deliver strategic campaigns that align to market leadership and drive business impact. You’ll be comfortable working with research and data and be able to pick up new concepts quickly, as well as demonstrating strong organisational skills, enthusiasm and creativity. All members of the media relations team have regular exposure to the Bupa executive and leadership teams in the UK, so being able to work with leaders at a senior level and representing external relations and corporate affairs confidently is a must.

How you’ll help us make health happen

• Advise senior leaders and deliver effective proactive corporate and consumer PR campaigns which reflect business priorities and enhance Bupa’s reputation and brand in the UK as a market leader and employer of choice.
• Deliver all aspects of campaigns to a high quality and standard, on time and within budgets, aligned to our strategic objectives.
• Utilise media relations contacts and skills to generate strong proactive coverage across national, consumer, regional and trade media, as well as handling issues and mitigating negative coverage with both media and internal stakeholders, advising the business of the risks and potential outcomes associated with specific enquiries and recommending courses of mitigating action.
• Plan and deliver strategic and tactical responsibilities both independently, and where necessary, managing agency support.
• Plan and prioritise workload to meet commitments, delivered with clear plans and time frames.
• Align work with relevant stakeholders and work to reduce bottlenecks and ensure delivery in line with agreed timescales.
• Build and maintain excellent stakeholder relationships with all levels of management within Bupa and the wider Corporate Affairs function, as well as building media and external stakeholder contacts across the health landscape.
• Actively participate in ensuring the smooth running of the press office function:
• Confidently handle media enquiries from national, regional and specialist media.
• Produce and align high quality written materials, including written statements, Q&A, briefings, press releases under time pressure.
• Liaise with senior Bupa leaders to provide counsel, aligning on approach and approvals.
• Participate in the rota for the Duty Press Officer to cover out of hours media calls and prepare a daily media briefing.

You

• In-house or agency PR experience - planning and delivering effective corporate and consumer PR campaigns
• Ability to produce excellent quality work to tight deadlines in a pressurised environment
• Experience in participating in a reactive press office for major corporate brands, including handling national, regional and specialist media enquiries
• Ability to assume full responsibility for key projects and excellent organisational skills
• Ability to create high quality written material, translation of content for use across multiple channels, including traditional PR materials, blogs, communities, intranets etc
• A range of media contacts across national outlets
• Analytical skills to identify a range of solutions for any given issue
• Demonstrate expertise in the execution of digital and social media communications and campaign activity
• A collaborative team player, highly creative and energetic with a flexible approach
• Keen eye for detail with strong project and time management skills
• A mix of agency and in-house experience would be preferable

Benefits

• 25 days holiday pro rata, increasing through length of service, with option to buy or sell.
• Private Medical Health Insurance as a benefit in kind.
• An enhanced pension plan and life insurance.
• Various other benefits and online discounts.

Why Bupa?

We’re a health insurer and provider. With no shareholders, our customers are our focus. Our people are all driven by the same purpose – helping people live longer, healthier, happier lives and making a better world. We make health happen by being brave, caring and responsible in everything we do. We encourage all of our people to “Be you at Bupa”, we champion diversity, and we understand the importance of our people representing the communities and customers we serve. That’s why we especially encourage applications from people with diverse backgrounds and experiences. Bupa is a Level 2 Disability Confident Employer. This means we aim to offer an interview/assessment to every disabled applicant who meets the minimum criteria for the role. We’ll make sure you are treated fairly and offer reasonable adjustments as part of our recruitment process to anyone that needs them.

Time Type: Full time

Job Area: PR, Marketing & Brand

Locations: Angel Court, London