Colleague Communication and Engagement Manager - Great Grid Partnership in Warwick

About us

At National Grid, we keep people connected and society moving. But it’s so much more than that. National Grid supplies us with the environment to make it happen. As we generate momentum in the energy transition for all, we don’t plan on leaving any of our customers in the dark. So, join us as a Colleague, Communication and Engagement Manager and find your superpower.

This role is located in our Warwick, UK office, with travel to Birmingham once or twice a week and ad hoc travel to project team meetings across the UK.

Job purpose

The Strategic Infrastructure (SI) business unit was created to deliver major new infrastructure projects in the UK - projects that are essential to achieving our net zero goals and supporting the UK government’s ambition of 50GW of renewable energy by 2030. To deliver the large onshore projects now underway, SI has formed long term partnerships with several organisations through the Great Grid Partnership (GGP). This is a new enterprise model that will bring us together as one team for the next decade and beyond. Working as an integrated partnership, we will jointly deliver The Great Grid Upgrade.

Acting as a communication business partner to both the National Grid Onshore Director and the GGP Director/Executive team, you will be responsible for developing and delivering colleague communication and engagement strategies that bring The Great Grid Upgrade to life for colleagues in both the SI Onshore department and the GGP.

What you’ll do

• Development, delivery and measurement of the GGP colleague communications and engagement strategy - uniting the partner organisations to deliver The Great Grid Upgrade.
• Work with the GGP senior Leadership team to build visibility and trust in the changes and new partnerships.
• Lead on crafting and managing clear, consistent, and compelling content that tells the GGP and Onshore stories through a range of internal channels.
• Partner with the People function to deliver clear, engaging communications that enhance the colleague experience, including supporting induction, the recognition scheme, and driving awareness and participation in engagement surveys.
• Develop and manage the use of innovative channels, events and technology to reach colleagues at all levels, including those based in the field, providing the opportunity for two-way conversations with colleagues and senior leaders.
• Bring The Great Grid Upgrade to life for all colleagues, at all levels, in all roles, with the creation of engaging, insightful, informative, and relevant multi-channel content.
• Track and measure performance across content and channels.
• Provide communication and engagement counsel, to the GGP and Onshore leadership and their teams.
• Work collaboratively with the SI Colleague Communication and Engagement Manager ensuring consistency of message, planning and delivery to support the development and delivery of strategic campaigns, projects, and announcements.
• Act as the conduit between the GGP, SI and National Grid to ensure there is a regular flow of communications in all directions.
• Work collaboratively with the SI Corporate Affairs team to ensure alignment with the media and external communications plan.
• Respond to operational incidents and issues, providing employee communications advice and counsel.
• Attend CART and SI's silver commands when required, providing strategic and tactical employee communications advice.
• Take part in the crisis communications out of hours on call procedures when required providing strategic and tactical colleague communication advice.
• Provide timely, meaningful insight and data on colleague engagement to help the Onshore Director and the Enterprise Director understand colleague sentiment and inform communication planning.
• Work with the communication leads in the GGP partners to understand challenges and opportunities and to plan and prioritise activity, develop colleague communications and engagement plans, clarify appropriate messages and evaluate against agreed metrics, applying learnings to future activity.
• Plan and manage events from local get-togethers to large scale conferences.
• Share best practice across GGP communication leads to drive engagement and communications across the GGP.

About you

Experience and knowledge requirements:

• Proven ability to develop and implement colleague communications and engagement strategies, content, plans and campaigns.
• In-depth, demonstrable knowledge and experience of all aspects of the internal communication mix, including objective/outcome setting, planning, channel usage, research and measurement.
• Expert writer, experienced in developing creative multi-channel narrative that engages a wide range of audiences.
• Experience of script writing, presentations, and financial reporting.
• Evidence of flexible writing skills (concise writing, concerned with getting the key messages across quickly and efficiently).
• Experience of managing company-wide and market sensitive announcements.
• Expertise, knowledge and experience in copywriting, editing, print, video, social media, and web production for business communication.
• Strong understanding of using, managing, and developing innovative colleague communication and engagement channels.
• Experience running large leadership events, from logistics to content creation.
• Proven experience of providing colleague communications advice and support in large operational areas.
• Knowledge and experience of managing emergency/crisis communications procedures.
• Ability to translate complex safety, financial and performance messages for internal, field-based audience.
• Experience of supporting and advising senior leaders.
• Ability to work in a matrix environment and with partner organisations.

Capability Requirements:

• Excellent writing and editing skills.
• Ability to produce high quality content within tight timescales and under pressure.
• Excellent attention to detail, ability to be consistent and used to a process of checking and double-checking.
• Creative and innovative and demonstrates the ability to adapt the content and style of communication messages to appeal to specific audiences.
• Excellent interpersonal skills (including negotiation and influencing skills) and demonstrable high standards of literacy.
• Self-starter, comfortable working in a fast-paced environment.
• Proactivity is key in this role, and requires someone who will actively search for gaps in the communications and propose innovative solutions.
• Ability to manage and prioritise competing communications challenges and issues maintaining high standards with minimum guidance.
• Highly articulate and persuasive communicator.
• Results-oriented, consistently managing timely delivery in a challenging environment while dealing with rapid change and ambiguity.
• Able to listen and understand the business themes, trends, or consequences of a situation, develop and implement appropriate employee communications content through effective channels.
• Actively build and maintain a network of relationships within a variety of business areas.
• Proven levels of working and influencing at senior levels within a large, global organisation with a multi-stakeholder environment.

More Information

What you’ll get:

• A competitive salary up to £74k per annum- dependent on capability.
• An annual performance incentive of up to 30% of your eligible earnings in a performance year.
• A generous pension scheme, double-matched up to 6% of your salary each month.
• Life insurance at 10 times basic salary.
• Employer funding towards a portion of your Private Medical Insurance.

We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive workplace for all. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified candidates - we make appointments purely on merit, assessed against objective selection criteria. We support flexible working and will make reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process should you have any physical or mental impairment which may affect your ability to participate in the process.

Please note that in most cases, National Grid is unable to offer sponsorship for employment under the UK points-based immigration system. As such, applicants must have the legal right to work in the UK without requiring sponsorship now or in the future under the UK points-based immigration system. However, in exceptional circumstances where there is a clear and demonstrable need for specialist skills that cannot be sourced from the local labour market, National Grid may consider offering sponsorship. All applications are welcome from candidates who meet these requirements, regardless of race, nationality, or ethnic origin.