Application Pack: Senior Communications Advisor – Conflict & Fragile States
Thank you for your interest in the above post. This application pack contains:
· Information about Global Witness
· Job description and person specification
· Abbreviated Terms and Conditions
To apply, please send a covering letter together with a two page CV. Your covering letter should demonstrate your suitability for this position.
The covering letter and CV should be emailed to to reach Global Witness no later than Midnight on Sunday 9 August 2015 (GMT). Please write “Senior Advisor, Conflict & Fragile States” in the subject heading. Late applications cannot be considered.
Applicants applying for this position must prove they have the ongoing right to work in the U.K.
Please note that we will only contact short-listed candidates, and feedback can only be offered to those candidates who attend an interview.
Global Witness
Global Witness is a dynamic international organisation that investigates and campaigns to stop human rights and environmental abuses caused by the exploitation of natural resources. We collect irrefutable evidence through our investigations and combine it with powerful advocacy to force change.
Global Witness’ work makes a difference. Our campaigning helped put a stop to illegal logging which was funding wars waged by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia and by Charles Taylor in Liberia. We bought the issue of blood diamonds to the world’s attention and the landmark Kimberley Process Certification Scheme was established as a result. Similarly, our investigations into corruption in oil, gas and mining were instrumental in making a case for the establishment of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), the leading global mechanism aimed at increasing transparency in transactions between governments and companies.
More recently, our research on conflict minerals in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has exposed how warring parties make millions of dollars each year through illegal control of the mineral sector. Our campaigning has led to landmark due diligence legislation being passed in the US and in DRC. Global Witness’ work on oil governance in South Sudan was instrumental in securing strong transparency and accountability provisions in the new Petroleum Act, and our banks team have exposed how major financial jurisdictions like the UK are being used to launder vast amounts of corrupt money, keeping millions in poverty and reliant on aid.
In 2003 we were co-nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for our work on diamonds. Most recently, we won the 2014 TED Wish Prize to support our campaign against anonymous companies and the organisation’s founders were presented with the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship.
Job Description
Role: Senior Communications Advisor – Conflict and Fragile States
Reports to: Director of Communications
Direct Reports: None
Job purpose: To provide communications expertise to all aspects of Global Witness’s conflict and fragile states campaign, becoming an integral part of the campaigning team. The advisor will input into campaign strategy, lead on the development and implementation of the campaign’s communications strategy, and contribute to the wider communications needs and objectives of the organisation.
The conflict and fragile states campaign covers our work on conflict minerals, DRC, Sudan, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan.
Key Responsibilities
Strategy and leadership
· Contribute to strand and team campaign strategies, including:
o ensuring campaigns-comms integration from the start (from research planning through to delivery)
o supporting Global Witness’s fundraising and profile building in key markets
· Lead on devising and implementing campaign communications strategies, including:
o advising teams on best tools to communicate for greatest influencing impact
o identifying innovative approaches to deliver on campaign objectives
o identifying campaigns and angles that will engage the public
· Build a comprehensive understanding of Global Witness key audiences and promote evidence-based approaches to engaging them effectively.
· Help develop and maintain influential communications partnerships that deliver on campaign objectives.
· Champion excellent communications across the organisation, providing training and ensuring high quality output in line with Global Witness’s style and brand.
Planning
· Keep Global Witness calendar up to date and help to ensure comms products are delivered on time, keeping oversight of delivery timelines and flagging issues to senior management in timely fashion.
· Advise on budget requirements and operate within the budget available.
Delivery
· Drive a proactive and strategic news approach, including spotting opportunities, delivering influential media coverage, selling journalists unique story ideas, creating and pitching compelling content and stimulating debate in media and social media.
· Work with team to develop high quality, engaging and well-targeted campaign materials, across print, film, photography, audio, infographics, data visualisation etc.
· Ensure delivery of well-written and channel appropriate content for Global Witness digital channels.
· Develop expert knowledge of and contact with key international and national media, across print, broadcast, multi-media and digital platforms, including being an up to date source of information on all aspects of the teams’ work.
· Monitor and evaluate communications campaigning activity and contribute to organisational and team evaluation of campaigning.
· Protect the reputation of Global Witness, monitoring for and highlighting both risks and opportunities, implementing crisis management media strategies as required.
Other
· Play active role in communications team, including providing back-up support where necessary.
· Manage a communications intern, if the need arises.
· Admin jobs and share of ‘out of hours’ on-call media work as necessary. Travel overseas where required.
Person Specification
Essential:
· Solid operational experience at working in a busy press office, communications department or as a senior journalist, preferably in an international and / or campaigning environment.
· Excellent understanding of how strategic communications can influence change.
· Strong editorial judgment and understanding of different audiences, content, media formats.
· Sharp news sense and demonstrable ability to create, pitch and deliver news.
· Excellent writing and/or broadcast skills, including the ability to summarise complex data and make it accessible to mainstream and social media.
· Basic web editing and CMS skills.
· Strong planning, evaluation and project management skills, including ability to set priorities, manageable work-plans and work within budgets.
· Sound experience of news management, including identifying issues which involve operational and reputational risk.
· Demonstrable ability to meet deadlines and prioritise when working under pressure on a number of projects.
· Strong leadership and inter-personal qualities, including experience of inspiring, negotiating and working with campaigning / policy colleagues to deliver excellent strategies and communications.
· Ability to do ‘on call’ rota work at weekends and out of hours.
· Commitment to Global Witness’s mission, values and approach
· Confident, ambitious and willing to learn.
· Fluent in English.
Desirable:
· Knowledge of development, human rights, environment, natural resources, corruption, or transparency.
· Experience producing multi-media materials e.g. photo and video editing, photography.
· Fluency in other languages – particularly French.
· Relevant media contacts.
· Ability to travel
Global Witness Abbreviated Terms & Conditions
Salary:Benefits: / £44,365 per annum
Pension, Private health insurance, eligibility to childcare
vouchers and cycle to work schemes
Contract Period: / Permanent
Location: / London
Working Hours: / 35 hours a week between Monday to Friday within core
working hours of 9.00 am to 6.00 pm to be agreed on commencement
Leave: / 25 working days per leave year, excluding public holidays.
This will be pro-rated for each uncompleted leave year.