Job Opportunity: Head of Brand & Communications

FULL TIME | GLOBAL CAREER COMPANY | NIGERIA

Job Description for Job Opportunity: Head of Brand & Communications

Job Purpose

To ensure that the over-arching brand plays a strong role in helping the ecosystem to win by creating a relevant, consistent, distinctive, and competitively advantageous brand that connects with target audiences through the setting of the Brand, PR and Communication strategies.

To build and protect the organisation and its companies’ reputation by providing integrated communications advice and execution in support of the organisational strategy, purpose, and values. By understanding the objectives and challenges of the business, the Brand and Communication Head will lead the development and placement (to both external and internal audiences) of a coherent story for the group and its brands within Nigeria and more broadly as required.

To ensure the organisation can deliver exceptional event experiences for their clients through clear event strategies, policies, and guidelines. 

Job Accountabilities/Key Responsibilities

Responsibilities

Developing, defining, and executing the brand strategy for the organisation and its group of companies

• Setting brand policy, including brand architecture and positioning, for the organisation and its Business Units (BU’s)
• Providing brand naming, product naming, trademarks and domain name standards. 
• Governing brand trademarks and brand intellectual property aligned to agreements and regulatory requirements with support from legal advisors
• Setting the brand strategy aligned to the organisational strategy and purpose
• Developing and implementing the brand personality for the organisation and its BU’
• Defining the visual language for the organisation and its BU’s, (including what we look like and sound like)
• Defining the Corporate identity for the organisation and its BU’s, including the logo, symbol, name and other brand assets
• Setting the brand, events and sponsorship policy, standards, toolkit and guidelines for the organisation
• Conceptualising and executing brand campaigns including activations where required
• Executing the above the line over-arching brand campaigns
• Setting the Marketing & Communication minimum standards for client event experience based on the client segment and its associated value proposition.
• Setting the minimum standards to drive a consistent brand experience across touch points across the organisation.
• Monitoring brand health and client engagement performance for the Group as well as providing suggestions and remedial action where brand health is sub-optimal
• Contributing to the branding and naming decisions of new innovations
• Creating and implementing a long-term communication strategy

• Producing a yearly communication calendar plan
• Developing media relations strategies and act as the spokesperson for the brand with media
• Formulating and implementing public relations strategies
• Managing communication drives in conjunction with external specialist agencies for campaign and non-campaign activities
• Developing and preparing to manage a crisis management approach
• Building, protecting, and promoting our reputation

Building effective partnerships with priority media owners/representatives

• Utilising strong media relationships to deliver coverage for relevant campaigns and positioning for the business that reinforces the organization’s leadership on priority themes.
• Ensuring consistent messaging reflecting the organization’s personality and purpose across print, broadcast, online and social media.
• Managing media briefings, launches, activation events as well as the writing of press releases and other content
• Managing and mitigate arising issues, by building strong relationships with business stakeholders to ensure early warning and sharing of information.
• Using media measurement to inform and guide media activity
• Utilising research and develop insights to provide communications counsel and help inform decision-making and strategy
• Ensuring that there is a clear media policy guiding who can and cannot deal with the media and ensure that all spokespeople undergo media training prior to liaising with journalists/analysts

Employee marketing

• Supporting the desired culture of the organisation by ensuring that the brand is internalised and that employees understand the brand, what it stands for and how to live it
• Developing messaging and advise on employee communications that address strategic objectives
• Delivering employee campaigns locally, ensuring appropriate use of channels and language for the audience.
• Supporting culture and business change that encourages behaviours that reflect our values and supports the organisation’s strategy.

• Developing a Brand Champion network drawn from business to ensure a customer perspective and to drive the living of brand values throughout the organisation
• Creating a compelling content for employee channels.
• Sourcing and publishing diverse and compelling employee stories aligned to business strategy and priority themes.

Leadership & Teamwork

• Leading, managing and developing brand and communication standards throughout the organisation
• Actively supporting, coaching, and developing brand and communications talent across the function.

Operational Effectiveness & Control 

• Ensuring adherence to all communications setting governance and policies.
• Complying with group policies and procedures and maintaining all required records.
• Owning, support, collaborate on, track, and analyse the delivery and impact of communications initiatives.
• Operating within employee communication and media relations governance frameworks.

*The Head of Brand and Communication may also take on other tasks and responsibilities as assigned by the CMO.

Reporting

Reports to:    The Chief Marketing Officer   

Supervises:    2-4 direct reports

Requirements

Person Specification

Core Competencies

The competencies below require the incumbent to be at an expert proficiency level providing leadership in the field within the organization and the broader industry

Technical

• Brand management: The ability to use marketing techniques to increase the perceived value of the organization over time and build customer loyalty through positive brand awareness
• Media and public relations: the ability to understand the role public and media relations play in managing communication and brand reputation across audiences
• Effective business communication: the ability to communicate information and ideas in a clear and concise manner appropriate for the audience to explain, persuade, convince, and influence others to achieve desired outcomes
• Excellent presentation development and presentation skills: the ability to communicate and deliver information in a clear, concise, and comprehensive manner to others, using appropriate props and tools
• Strategic planning and reporting: knowledge and understanding of the process and thinking required to formulate objectives and priorities and implement plans consistent with the long-term interests of the organization. Includes the ability to identify and capitalise on opportunities and manage risks
• Campaign management: Plan, track, create, distribute, and analyse results of communication, branding, or advertising campaigns
• Project management: Ability to drive timeous delivery, within budget and with required quality standards
• High involvement facilitation: the ability to facilitate a session by dealing with ambiguity. The ability to elicit specific behaviour, change and influence attitudes, viewpoints, and values by adapting style. Encourages debate and differences in opinion, integrates thoughts, objectives, and problems
• Filtering core issues and patterns: The ability to identify patterns and concepts from complex information or situations resulting in more successful and impactful ideas
• Stakeholder management: the co-ordination of relationships with and between key stakeholders during the design, management, and implementation of business change
• Managerial budgeting: the ability to plan and manage income and expenditure

Behavioural

• Leadership: Ability to lead people, take control, provide direction and co-ordinate people and resources
• Relationship management: ability to build and cultivate relationships with a wide variety of internal and external stakeholders
• Strong problem-solving skills: strong organizational skills, attention to detail, the ability to balance the big picture with detailed steps to reach the end goal and the ability to balance multiple projects under tight deadlines
• Providing insights regarding aspects that can impact the organization. Making clear the implications of internal and external factors and how they impact the competitive positioning of the organisation
• Ability to work independently and manage multiple responsibilities simultaneously
• Embracing change: ability to be adaptable, flexible, agile mindset, optimistic approach; committed to overcoming challenges; comfortable with change and ambiguity
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced and achievement-oriented environment, Managing towards outcomes and ambitious goals
• Professional growth: desire to grow professionally, develop expertise and seek out new opportunities to learn, learn quickly and take initiative
• Upholding standards: ensuring that within the organization high quality products and services are provided and that trust is created and maintained. This refers to honouring commitments, integrity and demonstrating discreet behaviour

Tools and Software

• Fluency in Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, Outlook, Power, Point, Power Business intelligence, Microsoft Team (for team collaboration), Visio (Process mapping tool), Projects (project management tool) and other basic Web browsers and searches
• Fluency in Brand and Communication management, market monitoring analytics and solutions that will support business processes and analytical capabilities e.g. media monitoring
• Fluency in data analytics and applicable tools

Experience & Qualifications

• Honours degree relevant to Marketing or Communication
• Public relations qualification advantageous
• 10-15 years’ experience in a senior brand marketing or corporate communication role
• An understanding of financial services
• A proven ability and track record of managing brands and brand reputation
• A proven track record in managing and implementing both internal and external communications initiatives and plans

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