Group Director, Brand Marketing & Communications in London

Collinson is the global, privately‑owned company dedicated to helping the world to travel with ease and confidence. The group offers a unique blend of industry and sector specialists who together provide market‑leading airport experiences, loyalty and customer engagement, and insurance solutions for over 400 million consumers. Collinson is the operator of Priority Pass, the world’s original and leading airport experiences programme. Travellers can access a network of 1,500+ lounges and travel experiences, including dining, retail, sleep and spa, in over 650 airports in 148 countries, helping to elevate the journey into something special.

We work with the world’s leading payment networks, over 1,400 banks, 90 airlines and 20 hotel groups worldwide. We have been bringing innovation to the market since inception – from launching the first independent global VIP lounge access Programme, Priority Pass to being the first to sell direct travel insurance in the UK through Columbus Direct and creating the first loyalty agency of its kind in the travel sector with ICLP. Today we still invest heavily in innovation to ensure that we continue to deliver superior customer experiences.

Our mission is focused on doing good beyond profit, which for us means we seek out opportunities for our people to share in our success and that we give back to the communities and people within which we work. Never short of ambition, the success of our business is delivered through the diverse and talented team of over 2,200 global colleagues.

Purpose of the job

The Group Director, Brand, Marketing & Communications is accountable for defining, stewarding and elevating The Collinson Group’s brand, reputation and external voice. Sitting within the Group’s Executive Office, the role exists to ensure Collinson presents a coherent, compelling and purposeful identity across its five operating companies, geographies and stakeholder audiences. The role provides senior, credible leadership in brand, marketing and external communications at Group level, acting as the connective tissue across independent marketing teams. Success is defined not through hierarchy or scale of team, but through influence, collaboration and the ability to align talented leaders around a shared Group narrative that supports long‑term business ambition and the Group purpose of Good Beyond Profit.

Key Responsibilities

• Group Brand Strategy & Governance: Own and evolve the Group brand strategy, ensuring a clear, consistent and compelling identity aligned to purpose, values and long‑term ambition. Maintain and develop Group brand architecture, principles and guidelines, influencing adoption across operating companies through credibility, dialogue and best practice. Act as senior guardian of brand consistency across geographies, businesses and external touchpoints. Provide strategic brand input into major external moments, including acquisitions, partnerships, executive profiling and capital or corporate announcements.
• External Communications & Thought Leadership: Oversee the Group’s external communications strategy, including media relations, executive profiling, industry commentary and corporate narrative. Build and sustain strong relationships with key media, industry bodies, trade associations and external stakeholders. Develop and curate the Group’s thought leadership agenda, ensuring Collinson’s voice is distinctive, relevant and credible in relevant industry conversations. Oversee the Group’s digital presence, including the corporate website and Group‑level social channels.
• Group Marketing Leadership & Community Building: Convene and champion a strong, collaborative marketing community across the five operating companies. Create the conditions for shared thinking, storytelling and collaboration without formal authority, using influence, trust and quality of leadership. Identify and progress Group‑wide marketing initiatives where collective effort delivers greater impact than isolated activity. Challenge siloed or “not invented here” thinking and foster a culture of creative generosity and shared success.
• Events & Strategic Presence: Oversee and coordinate the Group’s presence at major industry events, conferences and thought leadership forums. Lead the strategy and delivery of selected Group‑level events, such as partner summits, executive roundtables and brand moments. Ensure all events align with the wider brand and communications strategy and reflect the quality, values and ambition of the Group.
• Internal Alignment & Executive Support: Partner with the Group Executive Office, People function and operating company leadership to embed brand and purpose into internal communications and culture. Support senior executives with external‑facing narratives, speaking engagements and key stakeholder communications. Act as a trusted adviser to the Group Managing Director and Group leadership on brand, reputation and market positioning. Work in partnership with the Chief of Staff to support alignment between brand values, customer experience and Group standards.

Person Specification

• Experience & Expertise: Extensive senior experience in brand strategy, marketing leadership and/or corporate communications, ideally within complex, multi‑brand or group structures. Proven ability to link brand and communications investment to business outcomes, with strong commercial credibility at executive level. Demonstrated success leading through influence rather than hierarchy, navigating matrix or federated organisations without direct authority. Experience building and sustaining collaborative marketing or cross‑functional communities. Background in relevant sectors such as travel, financial services, loyalty, payments, premium B2B2C or consumer technology is advantageous. Experience in external communications, media relations, executive profiling and events is desirable.
• Personal Attributes: High emotional intelligence with the ability to build trust quickly, read complex dynamics and navigate competing priorities with warmth and confidence. Influential leadership style founded on credibility, judgement and quality of thinking rather than formal power. Low ego and strongly outcome‑focused; motivated by impact over recognition. Purpose‑led and values‑driven, with a genuine commitment to operating in line with Good Beyond Profit. Clear, precise and compelling communicator in writing, conversation and formal settings. Energised by building community and enabling others to do their best work. Comfortable with a portfolio or part‑time executive role, motivated by meaningful contribution rather than progression or scale.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Collinson is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes differences in all their forms including colour, race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, neurodivergence, family status, age, individuals with disabilities and people from all backgrounds, cultures and experiences as we strongly believe this contributes to our on‑going success. We are focused on continually evolving our purpose driven, high performing culture, providing an environment where our people have the opportunity to achieve their full potential and do interesting and meaningful work. Our company values are: Take Action, Do the right thing, One team and Be insight led. These help guide everything we do internally in terms of how we think, act and interact, right through to how we deliver value to our customers and clients.