Internal Communications & Engagement Strategist

Our client a well established UK & European engineering company are actively looking to hore an Internal Communications & Engagement Strategist to be based from their offices in Essex.

Job Title: Internal Communications & Engagement Strategist
Location: Grays, Essex
Duration: 6 Months
Rates: 35 to 37phr (Inside IR35 / Umbrella)
Hybrid working 3 Days onsite

Role Overview:

To support the delivery of the Internal Communications and Engagement strategy that helps the programme achieve its Purpose, in line with its core Pillars and Principles, and inform and engage with a dispersed workforce, in multiple office and non-office sites.

Will help deliver a programme of activity, working collaboratively with colleagues in External Affairs, the People Team, and in the programme’s Delivery Partners.

Key Responsibilities:

• Support delivery of a programme of regular and periodic events (online, in-person and hybrid) to share information and facilitate two-way engagement between the programme leadership team and the workforce, regardless of their organisation, location or shift pattern.
• • Distribute communications through a range of channels to keep the workforce informed of programme news, milestones, and activities.
• • Help manage events and channels to inform and engage with a dispersed workforce, in multiple office and non-office sites. This may include, but is not limited to a weekly Teams broadcast; a monthly hybrid staff briefing; email sharing of news and information; updating a news feed on Teams and SharePoint; and information cascades to share sensitive and tailored information through a network of leaders and line managers.
• • Create, improve and commission internal communications content alongside the in-house creative and digital teams.
• • Bethe gatekeeper to the internal communications channels – checking content for appropriateness, quality, tone of voice and branding – and suggest amendments and new approaches if required.
• • Offer advice and support delivery of internal communications and engagement tactics and strategies.
• • Support the delivery of two annual away days – a summer briefing, and a winter recognition event. Role including issuing invites; pre and post event comms; facilitation on the day e.g. setting up the venue, managing breakout rooms and the agenda; distribution of feedback survey.
• • Chair the internal communications working group, to bring together stakeholders with an interest in sharing information or facilitating it and to coordinate activities.
• • Liaise with colleagues in the External Affairs team to ensure that external content and news is shared across all teams.
• • Manage the promotion of the annual internal communications survey and to seek feedback, and implement improvements to internal communications on the programme.
• • Contribute to the annual review of the internal communications strategy to ensure it is still reflective of the programme.
• • Support delivery of the Reward and Recognition Scheme by collecting nominations, seeking feedback from leadership on the nominations, and purchasing vouchers.
• • Ad hoc activities as required during the programme life-cycle.
• Ensure where appropriate, internal communications on the programme is promoting an inclusive working environment for all.

Experience Required:

• Experience of working in an internal communications & engagement role to deliver an ongoing programme of communications and engagement, whilst managing ad-hoc tasks - infrastructure experience is not essential
• Experience of creating (or was part of the creation process) for internal comms and engagement strategies, through to and including delivery of the strategy
• Experience of improving employee engagement levels through a delivery plan
• Experience of obtaining employee feedback and analysing results
• Shown ability to work at pace
• Hosting events and organising of events/conferences
• Worked with IT applications such as Intranet sites and other online collaborative tools
• Experience of working across diverse stakeholders
• Examples of exercising sound judgement, leading and facilitating decision making on issues among multiple parties
• Demonstrable experience of working in a matrix and dispersed team ideal

Skills:

• A commitment to quality and sense of ownership of internal comms outputs –putting customers at the forefront of plans and decision making
• Ability to work with internal and external stakeholders, and influence them to meet tight deadlines
• Ability to manage competing priorities and suggest solutions to meet needs of internal clients’
• Excellent writing skills with ability to turn complex or technical information into plain English
• Strong presentation skills including
• Emotional intelligence and common sense to gauge the quality and impact of proposed communications
• Data analysis capability and able to obtain and act upon honest and constructive feedback from different people
• Has a proactive and curious mindset and looks for opportunities to be innovative
• Willing to roll sleeves up and support the team in pressured times
• Exceptional interpersonal skills and personal resilience, working to strict timelines/different styles of leadership
• MS Office Suite - Teams, PowerPoint, Outlook, Word