Sr Advisor of Impact Communications & External Engagement

With 75 years of experience, our focus is on helping the most vulnerable children overcome poverty and experience fullness of life. We help children of all backgrounds, even in the most dangerous places, inspired by our Christian faith.

Come join our 33,000+ staff working in nearly 100 countries and share the joy of transforming vulnerable children’s life stories!

Employee Contract Type:

Job Description:

Employee Contract Type:

Local, fixed-term [2 years, subject to renewal], Full time

Preferred locations: Europe/Eastern Europe, Africa, Latin America, Asia Pacific countries where World Vision International is registered to operate.

Application Language: All CVs should be submitted in English.

Job Purpose

One of World Vision’s biggest untold stories is its decades of expertise, its research, and its sustainable, transformative impact. This role of Senior Advisor, Impact Communications External Engagement, is vital to helping our leaders and experts at the international office and colleagues around the world tell that story.

That’s not bragging. It’s letting the people who need to know that we’ve learned such a lot over 75 years of relief, development and advocacy in more than 100 countries, reaching millions and millions of people. It’s telling potential grant funding partners, UN agencies, corporations, academics, coalitions, global Christian organisations and more that we’d love to be one of their preferred partners, working together to make poverty a memory. It’s showing how our partnerships and our expertise combined lead to life in all its fullness for millions of the world’s most vulnerable children.

We need someone who can, by building relationships with World Vision’s technical experts, our senior leaders, our policy and advocacy gurus and more, unearth the very best examples of our work, our research, policy efforts, thinking, learning and our approaches. Then, make all that into compelling content, delivered via the best channels in gripping and innovative ways.

We need an experienced communicator, someone with passion, with faith, with strategic and practical communications skills, with good people skills, and with vision to amplify the work of their colleagues—especially those who want to share how they’re doing it and what a difference it is making to the world’s poorest children. We need someone who knows how to track and measure what communications are working and who can pivot when something isn’t working anymore. We need someone who loves a fresh challenge every day, who resets after a setback, who meets a challenge with determination, and who puts people first.

SCOPE / DISTRUBUTION OF RESPONSABILITES

50% - Boosting reputation, profile and positioning for influence

• Working with the relevant Global Centre teams, design and drive communications plans in support of key moments/projects of interest to Tier 1 stakeholders, coalitions, peers and partners—especially as part of World Vision’s “ENOUGH” campaign.
• Working with the global sector/ministry leads and the Advocacy & External Engagement team to leverage the creation of research, reports and policy documents to help shape policy and influence powerholders.
• Developing and leading implementation of targeted external engagement communications efforts for pre-positioning with priority global Tier 1 and 2 stakeholders, coalitions, peers and partners.
• Working with colleagues to maximise and leverage the attendance of senior World Vision leaders at the United Nations (UN) and other global-level events.

20% - Promoting and amplifying the voices of World Vision experts and our partners

• Delivering World Vision’s best practice and thinking to powerholders.
• Building the capacity of World Vision’s leaders and experts to act as thought leaders and spokespeople for planned events and to respond to breaking news.
• Collaborating with colleagues to ensure children and young people have the opportunity to have their voices heard at the highest levels.
• Commissioning and editing content to appear on an enhanced wvi.org/view and on other industry blog sites that raise the voices of our technical experts, senior leaders and youth, especially in areas where we want to see shifts in policy and practice. 

20% - Positioning WV leaders and experts go-to contacts for key media

• Leverage major national and international media, specialist media, UN media, etc., to raise World Vision’s reputation as technical experts, with sustainable impact.
• In concert with the global news team and comms colleagues in other Partnership offices, capitalising on breaking news and trending topics to position the organisation, its work/impact, its advocacy calls, and its thought leadership.
• Working with Global Centre (GC) Branding team, Global Marketing and Communications, Global Capitals and sectors/ministries to ensure consistent branding and quality of all World Vision material sent to UN staff and partners, plus consistent messaging.

10% - Partner with Tier 1 stakeholders on communications projects

• Building relationships with Tier 1 stakeholder communicators and encouraging collaboration on communications projects.
• On occasion, represent World Vision on coalitions and other INGO working groups to advance WV’s poverty-reduction goals.

REQUIRED PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE, KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS:

• Masters level qualifications in Strategic Communications, Organisational Development, Business Administration, Journalism, Marketing or equivalent; or 10+ years’ relevant job experience.
• Understanding of the humanitarian/development sector and its derivate standards, guidelines and tools, with a well-maintained network of external industry relationships.
• Ten [10] years’ experience in communications fields with a minimum of five [5] years at a senior management level; Three years [3] working in humanitarian or emergency response industry.
• In-depth understanding of civil society leverage points in the global humanitarian community, including strong familiarity with the UN system.
• Excellent writing skills and the ability to translate complex material and data into coherent narratives that resonate with policymakers and peers.

PREFERRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND/OR OTHER QUALIFICATIONS:

• Strategic approach to reputation, positioning, communications planning and knowledge of audience engagement.
• Demonstrated success in understanding audience and stakeholder needs and channel management.
• Excellent written and verbal communications skills to deal with the highest level of organisation/business representatives.
• Manage multi-disciplinary and multicultural teams, including virtual teams.
• Excellent negotiation and collaboration skills with a demonstrated ability to think strategically, synthesize complex information and develop innovative influencing approaches.
• Strong communication skills with a demonstrated ability to communicate successfully with players in all segments of the humanitarian field, including high-level decision-makers.
• Leads independently on fast-paced issues, tight deadlines and juggling competing demands.

Language Requirements:

• Excellent fluency speaking, writing and editing skills in English. Spanish. French and/or Portuguese are preferred.

Travel and/or Work Environment Requirement:

• Work will be principally homeworking/remote.
• Work hours are often in excess of 12 hours per day during difficult periods and require flexibility per time zone.
• The position requires ability and willingness to travel domestically and internationally up to 20% of the time
• Able to manage multiple tasks and functions effectively in high-pressure environments, while maintaining a healthy work-life balance
• Able to deploy to field in a communications or grants-related role up to four weeks per year.
• Flexible worldview and emotional maturity.
• Ability to live an exemplary lifestyle as interpreted in specific or local contexts.
• Must be resilient and able to persevere in the face of disappointment and be able to function effectively in contexts of ambiguity.

We appreciate your interest in putting your talents for the most vulnerable!

Applicant Types Accepted: