Corporate Communications Director London, England
Howden Group Holdings
Full Time
London, England
40000 - 62000 GBP ANNUAL Today
Job description
From day one, our mission has been to create an independent business with a unique culture – one that is controlled by the people who work for it. Finding the most talented and entrepreneurial people has always been key to our success.
People come to Howden Group Holdings for lots of different reasons, but they stay for the same one: our culture. That’s what sets us apart, and why we nurture and retain the best talent in the market. Whatever your priorities – work/life balance, career progression, sustainability, volunteering - you’ll find like-minded people driving change at Howden Group.
Our Story
In November 1994, David Howden founded a business that was literally the smallest insurance broker in the world. It had no clients and no track record. But it did have five things:
- Equity ownership – the people doing the business, owned the business
- A minority external investor with a long-term outlook
- Expertise – to serve our clients
- Friendship and trust – to build culture
- A commitment to building a business with independence enshrined in its fabric
Almost 30 years later, we are now leading international insurance intermediary and the fifth largest employee-owned company in the UK. We have over 13,000 people across over 45 countries – 3,500 of them shareholders - delivering solutions for over 1.5 million clients worldwide.
Whilst these five principles remain the building blocks of our business, our ability to adapt to change has been amongst our greatest strengths.
For over a quarter of a century, we have grown by attracting talent and always putting our people first, identifying the emerging needs of our clients, and imaginatively matching expertise with capital and distribution to provide best-in-class solutions.
As we look to the future, we will focus our efforts on being the place where the brightest diverse talent wants to come to thrive, and by putting the expertise and ingenuity of our entire organisation behind using the power of insurance to help our clients and the wider world.
About the Role
This is an exciting opportunity to help shape and amplify the story of the Howden Group.
You will do this by leading Group Communications projects and supporting our businesses by connecting, developing and cascading Howden Group news and initiatives.
Working closely alongside leaders and marketing and communications teams from each business unit, you will develop and deliver engaging internal and external Group communications. Your focus will be on bringing to life the Howden Group difference and supporting the flow of information to help foster collaboration and alignment amongst key stakeholders.
Key Accountabilities
Develop:
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Engaging communications to effectively and efficiently disseminate news and information from Group teams throughout all regions and business units.
- Group-wide projects and campaigns to engage internal and external audiences in key strategic themes.
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Content plans for key internal and external events e.g. Strategy Conferences, Town Halls, AGM, roundtables for thought leadership.
- Talking points, speeches and presentations for Group Executive Committee members for key internal and external events.
Connect:
- With the broader communications teams to ensure that employee communications activity is tightly integrated with that of other communications disciplines and aligned with commercial goals and the overarching Howden narrative.
- With senior leadership by developing and maintaining relationships that inspire trust and respect, acting as a conduit where appropriate to ensure a connected approach.
- With divisional / functional heads to drive cross-business collaboration, maximise impact and achieve economies of scale.
- With colleagues across the business to build a network through which you are able to help bring people together to make things happen.
Advise:
- Senior stakeholders on how to land their messages effectively with the intended audience, as well as how to handle difficult press enquiries and situations. You will be the guardian of the key messages and ensure that they are delivered consistently and effectively throughout the Group.
Key Performance Measures
External:
- The Howden difference is consistently communicated and effectively amplified.
- Howden is recognised as the home for talent and broker / MGA of choice for clients.
Internal:
- Employees across the organisation can easily articulate the ‘Howden Difference’ and understand the key strategic themes and objectives, as well as the role they play in contributing to achieving them.
- The top-level proposition / ‘elevator pitch’ of each business is consistently understood amongst its employees.
- Management teams are armed with the messages, materials and support they need to cascade key messages throughout their businesses.
- Increased employee awareness of Group-wide initiatives.
- Increased adoption and engagement in internal communications platform, Workplace.
- Positive feedback on internal events.
Knowledge, Skills & Experience
- You will have a good working knowledge of the insurance industry.
- You will have excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate with impact at all levels.
- You will be highly organised with significant project management experience.
- You will naturally seek to drive connection and be a champion for inclusion.
- You will have experience working for a large, complex organisation within the fields of Communications / Marketing and experience of dealing with people at all levels of the business.
What do we offer in return?
A career that you define.
Yes, we offer all the usual rewards and benefits - including great healthcare provision, a wide variety of wellbeing offers, competitive salary, generous pensions and more - but we know you expect all that.
What you might not expect is a job where everyone has a voice, where volunteering in the community is part of the day job, and where everyone is encouraged to play a part towards our sustainability goals. We want people who want to make a difference - not just in the workplace, but in the industry and in the wider community.
Our Culture: People First
We are proud to be at the global table, but we are most proud of our culture. It has been built on a single and constant set of principles over more than 25 years, and it has helped us become:
- An international group with independence and people at its heart
- A home for talent with a unique culture: the biggest small company in the world
The focus on being a People First business has always been at the very heart of the Group. David’s vision was to create an independent business with a unique culture; one that would survive and thrive as a business controlled by the people working for it. Finding the most talented and entrepreneurial people to join the Group has been and will continue to be key.
Diversity & Inclusion
At Howden Group Holdings we consider our people our chief competitive advantage and as such we treat colleagues, candidates, clients, and business partners with equality, fairness and respect, regardless of their age, disability, race, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, marital status or family circumstances.
Additional Job Details
Worker Type:
Permanent
