Head of Communications & Engagement (9-12 Month FTC)

As a member of the Corporate Affairs & Engagement (CA&E) team, the Head of Communications & Engagement will contribute to building and protecting the reputation of the organization and its brands. They will lead the team’s work on integrated paid media campaigns and support day-to-day involvement across issues and risk management. They will support all brand issues management, including providing advice and guidance to divisions. They will also support corporate advocacy and influence efforts and be responsible for leading and delivering the For Women in Science (FWIS) communications strategy and activation.

The role reports to the Director of Communications & Engagement.

Main responsibilities

• Drive forward and deliver the CA&E team’s paid media strategy for the corporate brand, with responsibility for end-to-end delivery of paid campaigns. Ensure an integrated approach with earned and own channel plans.
• Manage paid sponsorship opportunities that build corporate reputation.
• Coordinate global corporate paid media campaigns, liaising with Europe zone and global teams, managing local relationships with the Digital Marketing Centre of Expertise and media and creative agencies, handling agency briefing, budget management, local asset adaptation and sign-off, and post-campaign measurement and reporting.
• Develop and deliver UKI corporate paid media campaigns in collaboration with the Director of Communications & Engagement, including content creation as required.
• Define the team's advocacy and influence approach to support corporate brand building, delivering targeted opportunities to leverage advocacy and influence in support of the team's reputation building plans.
• Lead the For Women in Science project and annual activation, planning, recruiting, and managing one contractor, ensuring impeccable end-to-end project delivery. Responsible for paid and earned media plans to support the promotion of the project's objectives.
• Support the CA&E team’s work across brand issues management, providing advice and best practices to divisional colleagues and senior leaders. Establish relationships and work collaboratively with divisional advocacy and influence colleagues in the UKI, as well as colleagues in the CA&E Europe zone and global teams.
• Ensure robust monitoring, tracking, and timely and accurate reporting of all brand issues management.
• Review brand marketing collateral, assessing potential reputational risk.
• Act as Deputy Chair of the UKI Editorial Board, ensuring CA&E leverages appropriate brand news for corporate news and channels.
• Establish and forge strong relationships across corporate and sector-relevant media, proactively supporting the CA&E team’s media relationship management plans, identifying new/relevant journalists for the team, and ensuring ongoing media engagement opportunities are in place throughout the year.
• Help ensure accurate tracking of the external budget.
• Deputise for the Director of Communications & Engagement.

WHO YOU ARE

The ideal candidate is enthusiastic, reliable, and responsible. They:

• Are a multi-faceted professional, a brilliant organiser and communicator, a natural problem solver and relationship builder. They are proactive and hands-on, with a drive and determination to succeed.
• Act with integrity and discretion, appreciating how integral reputation is to growth and how powerful the combination of traditional and paid media can be to build reputation.
• Have a track record in project management and the resilience to deliver within a matrixed organisation.
• Have superb interpersonal and influencing skills and the confidence to build relationships at all levels.
• Are a great lateral thinker who enjoys making connections across the full range of the team’s work, ensuring a collaborative, holistic, 360 approach to everything they do.
• Love working in a cross-disciplinary approach covering traditional and paid media. Are passionate about corporate communications and digital marketing.
• Have experience working on corporate social channels to build reach and engagement.
• Are calm under pressure, thrive in a fast-paced, high-pressure environment, and prioritise effectively.
• Know how to deliver complex ideas in concise, powerful prose.
• Have excellent organisational skills with strong attention to detail and follow-through.
• Thrive in a collaborative work environment and are a ‘doer’ who loves to get stuck in and lend a hand.
• Enjoy learning and have a proactive problem-solving attitude.