Communications Manager, Media - Director London, England
Job description
BNP Paribas is a leading bank in Europe with an international reach. It has a presence in 73 countries, with more than 196,000 employees, including around 149,000 in Europe. The Group has key positions in its three main activities: Domestic Markets, International Financial Services (whose retail-banking networks and financial services are covered by Retail Banking & Services) and Corporate & Institutional Banking, which serves two client franchises: corporate clients and institutional investors.
BNP Paribas Corporate and Institutional Banking is a globally recognised leader offering capital markets, securities services, financing, treasury and advisory solutions.
BNP Paribas Corporate & Institutional Banking is jointly headquartered from Paris and London. In the UK, over 4,000 Corporate & Institutional Banking employees work with clients to offer a range of services from daily banking to sophisticated investment banking solutions.
UK Territory overseas all BNP Paribas Group activity in the UK: 9,000 staff across 10 business lines.
BNP Paribas has had a long standing presence in the UK serving corporate and institutional clients for over 150 years.
BNP Paribas’ Corporate & Institutional Banking includes Corporate Client Financing and Advisory, Global Markets, Corporate Trade & Treasury Solutions, Financial Institutions Coverage and BNP Paribas Securities Services.
The UK Brand & Communications team handles media relations, internal communications and branding activity (e.g. sponsorships and corporate memberships) for UK CIB and UK Territory.
Job Purpose
The Communications Manager, Media – Director has responsibility for supporting UK Territory and UK CIB media relations. The role is charged with creating and executing media relations strategies that enhance the reputation and profile of business lines within CIB UK (principally, but not exclusively, for Global Markets) and of BNP Paribas as a whole in the UK.
The role is further charged with maintaining deep and mutually beneficial relationships with key media, handling day-to-day enquiries and being an expert trusted and effective guide and advisor for very senior executives in their dealings with UK and global media.
The role serves as the primary deputy for the Deputy Head of UK brand & Communications and is also expected to play a part in the effective management of UK Brand & Communications, serve as a senior support for colleagues in other areas (notably Internal Communications).
Finally, the role will play a key part in ensuring cooperative and collaborative relationships with Group communications functions around the world and will be expected to play a leading role in organising and executing UK participation in global media relations campaigns.
The Responsibilities
Managing media relations:
- Develop media relations strategies for key business lines within UK CIB.
- Contribute to the development and execution of media relations strategies for UK territory.
- Creation and constant maintenance of relationships within the most influential UK outlets.
- Maintenance of strongly positive, cooperative, relationships with Group and other Territory media relations functions.
- Ensure optimisation of resources through :
- Proper allocation of resources to business priorities
- Industrialisation of processes
- Ensure high business & ethical standards in implementation of media campaigns
- Enhance competitive intelligence & monitoring
- Share strategic initiatives with peers from the platforms and capitalise on best practises
- Follow BNP Paribas policies & procedures
Executive Guidance
- Build trusted relationships with key business leaders and senior UK CIB and Territory executives.
- Create and execute media relations strategies for these executives.
- Provide senior executives with critical intelligence and insight into the primary factors influencing the profile and reputation of their businesses.
Communications Management :
- Serve as the deputy for the Deputy Head of UK Brand & Communications.
- Develop a media relations strategy for designated areas of responsibility including content and thought leadership, executed in close collaboration with strategic marketing team
- Contribute to supporting other communications colleagues in the execution of their work, notably in guiding on reputation impact, drafting and content creation and resource allocation.
- Coordinate media relations preparatory work: planning of presentation preparations, organisation of rehearsals and training, etc.Supervise debriefing
Awards entries:
- Build strong internal networks with key stakeholders and closely collaborate on awards entries, particularly in relation to organising pitches and interviews and dealing with any follow-up calls.
Business Planning, Management & Strategy:
- Contributing to defining and developing the UKB&C strategy, look to continually strengthen our offering, increasing our client impact and enhancing our reputation. Clear identification of key objectives, strategy, tactics, potential risks, industry opportunities, gap analysis and measurable KPIs.
- Align communications strategy to business priorities whilst taking into consideration at all times the Bank’s 4 key pillars and mutualise where possible, aligning with a “One Bank” approach.
- Measure efficiency, ROI and make regular adjustments
- Strategically monitor key trends in media relations to stay at the highest quality levels in terms of ideas and delivery
- Develop, maintain, upgrade and ensure use by the team of critical communications tools
- Regularly share tools and ideas with other CIB and UK teams and regions to ensure continuity and consistency when possible
Coordination with other teams / business areas
- Ensure a strongly positive network of relationships with key stakeholders internally, including UK territory Management and UK management teams in Global Markets and Global Banking.
- Closely collaborate with other communications professionals, CIB Communication and Engagement teams, BPSS and local Corporate Communications teams: relaying strategy and planning, exchanging best practices and ideas, etc.
- Look to systematically gain market intelligence from outside BNP Paribas.
Other Contributions:
- People care: support in motivating and interaction with other teams
- Close collaboration with Strategic Marketing team members for the organisation and definition of content at events
- Contribution to internal communication, sponsorship and branding initiatives
- Build strong working relationships with internal clients and key supplier contacts and other members of the communications teams both within Global Markets, Global Banking and FIC and also in BPSS, Coverage, CIB and other metiers.
- Raise the profile of the team within the business line and across BNP Paribas as a whole.
- Ability to find creative solutions to problem-solving.
Skills & Experience Required
EXPERIENCE:
- Educated to degree level with significant experience (8-10 years) in a senior communications role, in-house or agency
- Expert: Extensive experience in strategic communications planning and running campaigns
- Expert: Extensive and comprehensive experience in communications management in the banking sector, preferably in a leading financial institution
- Expert: Demonstrated ability to deal with strong personalities and at C-suite level
- Essential: Excellent understanding of corporate branding and audience engagement
- Essential: Extensive knowledge of media relations best practice and tools
BUSINESS SKILLS:
- Outstanding media relationships and understanding of how media works across platforms
- Extensive, proven, experience across internal communications, stakeholder management and events
- Outstanding project direction, management and leadership skills and ability to manage multiple timelines, deadlines, actions in a collaborative way in an extremely fast-paced environment
- Exceptional management skills
- Self-starter with ability to multi-task and manage multiple deadlines
- Proven track record of promoting team synergy and motivation
- Extensive knowledge of the businesses
- Excellent problem-solving skills, able to come up with solutions and overcome obstacles
- Attention to detail - methodical approach to work
- Excellent communication skills (both written and spoken)
- High level of numeracy
- A robust understanding of brand development and promotion
- Expert knowledge of events management best practice, tools and opportunities
- Solid understanding of the best and latest event technologies
- Languages preferred but not essential
TRANSVERSAL BEHAVIORAL SKILLS:
- Team leader and organizer
- Ability to delegate workload, work under pressure and to tight deadlines
- Diplomatic, assertive, able to manage senior stakeholders
- A self-starter, proactive with a can-do attitude
- Creativity - ability to think from different perspectives in different situations
- Ability to remain calm in a highly pressurised environment. Flexible, versatile and copes well under pressure.
- Open-minded, and proactive in the promotion of new ideas
- Excellent interpersonal skills - ability to liaise in a professional manner with all levels of staff / management and external contacts (180 degrees)
- Ability to work effectively in a team or as an individual contributor
- Flexible, willing, enthusiastic and "hands-on" approach - ability to work flexible hours
- Tactful and diplomatic - confidentiality / discretion required at all times
- Open, honest and direct – is comfortable giving and receiving constructive feedback.
Equal Opportunities
BNP Paribas promotes equality of opportunity and is committed to ensuring that no individual is discriminated against on the grounds of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership status, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.
As an employee with BNP Paribas London Branch, we want to make sure that you are rewarded for your commitment. As such, you will be entitled to our award winning benefits package which includes a generous holiday allowance of at least 34 days (including bank holidays), a non-contributory pension of 12%, private healthcare, GP service and dental cover all as standard, along with a number of personal insurances such as income protection, life assurance and personal accident insurance. We believe in ensuring all our employees have a positive work life balance so in addition you will also have access to a variety of flexible lifestyle benefits such as cycle to work and green car leasing schemes, season ticket loans and reduced cinema and gym membership to name a few.
