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Strategic Communications Lead
Duration - 6 Months (Initially)
Location - Dorset (Hybrid)
IR35 - Outside
Job Purpose
The Strategic Programme Communications Leader is responsible for developing and executing the overarching change communications strategy and narrative across multiple work streams ensuring it is innovative, engaging and integrated.
This role ensures that staff, internal stakeholders and external partners are informed, engaged, and aligned during times of transformation. The postholder collaborates with senior leadership and project managers to create clear, consistent, and effective messaging that drives the success of the change management efforts.
Previous experience in the Higher Education Sector would be ideal but isn't essential.
Main Responsibilities
- Take overall accountability and leadership for shaping and managing the complex business-wide communication strategy and plan, to support the transformation programme, ensuring all stakeholders are engaged with and kept up to date with joined up, relevant and timely communications.
- As communications lead, ensure a culture of organisational engagement and transformation is embedded through compelling communication and engagement.
- Collaborate with university leaders to identify key stakeholders and communication messages, tone, format and channels for different groups.
- Act as a senior trusted advisor to the Vice-Chancellor & CEO, executive team and senior stakeholders, providing leadership and expert advice on communications opportunities and challenges.
- Support the overall success of the programme through leading the development and implementation of effective employee engagement and communication as part of consultation processes.
- Expertly influence decision making on change and transformation risks and be recognised as an strategic communications expert and lead in challenging situations within the programme.
- Promote and deliver open communication channels between the university and Trade Union representatives to foster engagement and transparency.
- Ensure the alignment of programme communications to the university communication strategies, plans and activities to tell a cohesive story across the entire organisation.
- Leverage a wide range of internal communications channels and tactics to inform, educate, and engage employees and partners including Trade Union colleagues.
- Draft and deliver communications that are always specific, relevant, clear and timely, to ensure clarity, understanding, and buy-in from all audiences.
- As part of the senior project management team support and drive forward planning, timely delivery, and providing regular status updates to stakeholders and leadership.
- Work closely with the Director of Marketing and Communications, and other key stakeholders to map planned communications across projects to ensure cohesive change stories to impacted stakeholder groups
- Create and manage content for presentations, videos, and other communication channels.
- Draft and deliver change communication materials, ensuring they are consistent with the university's brand and tone.
- Provide guidance to leaders and managers on how to communicate change to their teams effectively.
- Use feedback to continuously improve communication plan and adjust messaging and content as needed.
- Actively participate in change management and project meetings, leading on all communication elements, to ensure communications are integrated with the overall change management plan.
- Undertake such other duties commensurate with the level of post as may be required from time to time.
Thank you for applying, We have a number of applicant applying for each role, apologies if we do not come back on your profile, it is very difficult to respond to all applicants.
