Head of Marketing and Communications

The Head of Marketing and Communications provides strategic leadership for DIANA's communications, marketing, brand, and stakeholder engagement activities, enhancing awareness of DIANA's mission, programmes, and innovators across the Alliance and wider innovation ecosystem. The role involves leading a distributed team and advising senior leadership on communications, reputation management, and strategic engagement.

Responsibilities

• Lead, and continually refine NATO DIANA's marketing, communications, branding strategies in support of organisational priorities and objectives.
• Lead communications aspects of issues management and reputational risk, advising senior leadership on emerging communications challenges and appropriate response strategies.
• Lead proactive and reactive media relations strengthening DIANAs visibility and public profile.
• Oversee DIANA's digital communications strategy, including its website, social media channels, and digital engagement activities.
• Advise senior leadership and DIANA staff on public engagements, stakeholder communications, branding, and strategic messaging.
• Oversee the development of strategic narratives, storytelling, content, and multimedia products that communicate DIANA's mission, impact, and achievements.
• Oversee communications, marketing, and media engagement activities supporting organisational events, military exercises and innovator demonstrations.
• Proactively identify and advise on engagement strategies with key audiences in support of DIANA’s adoption efforts.
• Establish and maintain communications, branding, and editorial standards that ensure a consistent and professional representation of DIANA across all internal and external communications.
• Collaborate with HR and the COO on internal communications, ensuring staff understand DIANA’s mission, direction, major organisational developments and external messaging priorities.
• Lead and develop a distributed team of communications professionals across multiple locations.
• Oversee external suppliers, agencies and creative support where required, ensuring value for money, quality control and careful stewardship of public funds.
• Establish and monitor communications metrics, audience insights and campaign performance to assess impact and inform future planning.
• Perform any other related duties as may be required.

Requirements

• A Master’s degree at a nationally recognised University in Communications, Marketing, Public Relations, Journalism, International Relations or a related discipline and 5 years post-related experience OR a Bachelor’s degree with 8 years post related experience.
• A minimum of 5 years of work experience in senior roles with a combination of marketing and communications.
• Demonstrated knowledge of defence and military innovation.
• Demonstrated experience leading a communications, marketing, public affairs, or stakeholder engagement function, including the leadership and development of multidisciplinary teams and the management of external suppliers or agencies, within a complex, fast-paced, high-profile, or multinational environment.
• Proven experience developing and executing integrated marketing and communications strategies for diverse audiences.
• Strong media relations and issues management experience, including the ability to advise senior leaders on reputational risk and public messaging.
• Experience overseeing digital channels, social media, websites, campaign content, multimedia products and/or brand assets.
• Experience using measurement, analytics or audience insights to assess communications impact and inform future activity.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including experience preparing and reviewing strategic communications, speeches, presentations, and materials for senior leadership and external stakeholders.
• Possess the following minimum levels of NATO’s official languages (English/French): V (“Advanced”) in one; and I (“Beginner”) in the other.
• Experience communicating innovation, emerging and disruptive technologies, dual-use technology, start-up ecosystems or defence technology (desirable).
• Experience working within an international organisation, multinational environment, national government, defence department, military organisation, or similarly complex stakeholder environment (desirable).
• Knowledge of NATO institutional framework, policies and procedures (desirable).

Skills

• Marketing Strategies
• Communications Strategies
• Public Relations
• Media Relations
• Issue Management
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Team Leadership
• Supplier Management
• Digital Communications
• Social Media Management
• Website Management
• Campaign Content Development
• Multimedia Production
• Brand Management
• Communication Analytics
• Audience Insights Analysis
• Strategic Communications
• Speech Writing
• Presentation Preparation
• Defence and Military Innovation
• Reputational Risk Management

Languages

English, French