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Senior Media and Communications Officer (higher education and research)
Salary: From £32,000 per annum negotiable depending on experience
Contract: Permanent
Location: Hybrid - flexibility to work from home or at any of our main hubs (London, Bristol, Manchester and Harwell)

Jisc is the UK higher, further education and skills sectors’ not-for-profit organisation for digital services and solutions. We believe education and research improve lives, and technology improves education and research.

Our vision is for the UK to be a world leader in technology for education and research and our mission is to power and empower our members with the technology and data they need to succeed. We know that digital technology has the ability to transform the student experience. We have the experience, expertise and know-how to drive that transformation.

About the role:
At Jisc, we’ve been growing and transforming how we work. Strong communications is more important than ever as we champion the importance of technology to education and research. This role sits in the media team, who work to raise Jisc's profile with our target audiences through print, broadcast and online media, as well as through Jisc’s website and our partners’ in the sector.

We are looking for someone who has significant experience of working with, or in, the media and is an excellent wordsmith themselves. You will help to achieve Jisc’s objectives of shaping the news agenda on issues that are important to our members and customers by placing key messages and content in mainstream and education sector media.

Experience of working with the media is essential, as is the ability to manage crisis communications calmly and confidently.

The role requires excellent writing skills: you will need the ability to turn complex, technical or sensitive information into engaging and accessible blogs, features and media releases that will appeal to both specialists and a wider audience.

The team works with all Jisc’s experts and business areas; this role will specialise in higher education, research, open access and digital resources, so any experience of working in academia would be ideal.

Responsibilities will include:

• Write and place op-eds and press releases, prepare media pitches that position Jisc colleagues as experts
• Research, write and edit high-quality news announcements, blogs and features for Jisc’s website to maintain and enhance Jisc’s positive profile, brand and reputation, and to support Jisc’s strategic aims
• Deal with journalist enquiries and work with Jisc spokespeople to drafting media statements
• Develop strong relationships with journalists working in Jisc’s target media outlets; develop and pitch content for these outlets
• Collaborate with colleagues across Marketing and Communications to develop engaging audience-focussed communications and media plans for priority projects events and campaigns, to produce a joined-up and efficient service

Key Skills and Experience:

• Excellent writing skills, with the ability to tailor content to relevant audiences
• Extensive experience of working with journalists across a variety of publications and outlets.
• Ability to be able to manage crisis comms situations to protect the reputation of Jisc, its products and services, and partners and customers.
• Ability to translate complex, technical and sensitive information into accessible language
• Proven ability to develop successful PR plans and secure media coverage
• Previous experience of working in higher education and/or research preferred
• Confidence working with and influencing senior leaders and stakeholders
• Experience of working in a complex organisation

Please refer to the job description for full details

Don’t meet every single requirement?
We know that sometimes people can be put off applying for a job if they think they can’t tick every box but we realise the ‘perfect candidate’ doesn’t exist. So, if you can do most of what we’re looking for, go ahead and apply. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles!

Why work at Jisc:
At Jisc, everyone plays a key role and gets the chance to feel part of it, that to us is the definition of a meaningful career. We want to create a culture of lifelong learning. You can look forward to a rewarding job with opportunities to develop and make a real difference to the education and research sectors.

We celebrate diversity, embrace our differences and know that this is critical for our success. We work hard to make sure we’re inclusive and we are committed to furthering our culture of inclusion. So, if you are great at what you do and share our values, we want to hear from you.

At Jisc we believe a balance between your personal and professional life is essential to your happiness and fulfilment. We work flexibly at Jisc and focus on outputs rather than presenteeism and are open to a whole range of ways of working. It isn’t about how many hours you spend at home or at work; it’s about the flow you establish that brings energy to both parts of your life.

We offer hybrid working and although the majority of our staff work from home, getting face to face is something we value and find time for when we can. If you prefer an office environment all our hubs are open and offer a great space to work.

Our benefits are great too. We offer:

• Flexible work pattern, which can adapt to suit your schedules and personal commitments
• 28 days annual leave (plus bank holidays) and an additional three closure days over Christmas
• A generous pension scheme with above average employer contributions
• A range of leave options, including parental leave, volunteer leave and even career breaks.
• A generous budget to attend conferences and in-person training
• Allocated allowance of up to £250 to equip your home office
• A company culture which supports and promotes personal learning and development, including access to thousands of courses on LinkedIn Learning
• Mental health first aid trained staff and supportive environment, plus your own Wellbeing allowance to spend on wellbeing for you
• Financial well-being support
• Discounts on big-name high-street stores
• Cycle to work scheme
• Employee recognition awards and travel loans

Equality, diversity and inclusion
At Jisc, we strive to be best in practice and are working hard to achieve progressive change. ‘Always inclusive’ is one of our six guiding principles - a principle which actively encourages acceptance of differences within individuals.

We are committed to equal employment opportunities regardless of race, colour, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, neurodivergence, trans status, veteran status or gender identity.

Application process:

Please do let us know what reasonable adjustments you need made to the application or selection process so you can do your best. We will be happy to help you.

Just so you know, we review CVs as soon as we can and aim to provide an update on your application within 4 weeks of receiving it. However, you may hear from us a lot sooner, so please keep an eye out for our emails or calls!
We advertised this role on 07/07/2023