United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Social Media Officer

Over the past 80 years, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) has developed unparalleled expertise in responding to emergencies and helping uprooted communities to rebuild. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster.

The International Rescue Committee UK is part of the IRC global network, which has its headquarters in New York and London. The IRC is on the ground in more than 40 countries, providing emergency relief, relocating refugees and rebuilding lives in the wake of disaster. Through 22 regional offices in cities across the United States, the IRC also helps refugees resettle in the US and become self-sufficient.

The IRC is committed to a culture of bold leadership, innovation in all aspects of our work, creative partnerships and, most crucially, accountability to those we serve. The IRC is a tireless advocate for the most vulnerable.

IRC-UK

Our European headquarters, IRC-UK, were established in London in 1997 to support the organisation’s global activities and particularly to diversify its donor base and be able to better advocate with European policy-makers on behalf of the people we serve. Since its establishment IRC-UK has grown rapidly and is now acknowledged for its high quality project management, technical expertise in governance and rights and economic recovery, and innovative thinking on early recovery and gender based violence. The IRC also has offices in Berlin, Brussels and Geneva.

IRC-UK comprises approximately 90 staff across five departments.

The Policy & Practice UK Department

Policy & Practice is a dynamic team combining our communications, policy and advocacy, and technical unit expertise in Europe. Its core purpose is to raise and develop the IRC as a thought leader in Europe and drive transformational change in the humanitarian sector, and specifically to dramatically increase the productivity of humanitarian aid and its ability to achieve outcomes for people living in and displaced by conflict and crisis.

The Purpose of the Role

The communications team’s objective is to raise the profile of the IRC in Europe, and to ensure that key messages about our work and thought leadership priorities reach the widest audience possible.

The Social Media Officer role supports this objective through maximising the IRC’s profile and influence on our social media channels in Europe.

Scope and Authority

Authority:

This post has the authority to:

· Prepare content and distribute regular communications updates on the IRC’s key communications channels in Europe, including the website and social media channels;

· Regularly liaise with external suppliers (venues, printers, designers etc.) on logistical matters, ensuring that all expenditure is signed off by the Digital Manager.

Responsibility for Resources:

This post is responsible for regularly updating and reporting on social media channels, including managing spend on promotion where required, in consultation with the Digital Manager.

Key Working Relationships

· Reports to the Digital Manager

· Key contacts:

· Communications team and broader Policy & Practice group

· Brussels and Germany offices

· Fundraising team

· Regional Grants Officers

· Field offices as appropriate

· Communications team based in IRC global headquarters in New York

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

Strategy and management of social media channels (60%)

· Support the Digital Manager with the development of a Europe social media strategy

· Proactively identify potential content for publication online, with approval from Digital Manager

· Work closely with the Digital Manager in project management of communications campaigns

· Proactively run social media channels on a day to day basis, providing regular, compelling updates for IRC’s channels, in support of a strategy that increases IRC’s profile, including Twitter, Facebook and Medium

· Create engaging graphics and select compelling images to boost engagement on social media channels

· Use own initiative to respond to reputational issues on social media, identifying any queries to escalate to Digital Manager when required

· Compile and circulate quarterly analytics reports on key social media and website reach indicators, including recommendations for improvement

· Compile weekly content performance reports for the digital team with the support of the Digital Content & Partnerships Officer

· Work closely with the Digital Manager to devise strategies to drive traffic to IRC’s social media channels

· Ensure that IRC Europe content is given prominence on the IRC global intranet, through making proactive suggestions for content to include and uploading content to the website where appropriate

Donor Visibility (30%)

· Lead on proposal development for any bids for European visibility and public awareness funding, with approval from Digital Manager

· Work closely with the Digital Manager, the Awards Management Unit and appropriate field offices to ensure compliance with institutional donor visibility requirements across IRC’s European grant portfolio

· Lead on the implementation of grant-funded communications campaigns, as required

· Build and maintain productive working relationships with key internal and external stakeholders and suppliers, acting as the main point of contact at all times. Stakeholders include ECHO grants officer, photographers and videographers, designers, printers, video editors, IRC field offices etc

· Carry out post production work on materials gathered from the field trips, including: drafting written case studies, storyboarding of short films, collation, editing and printing of photography

· Monitor communications project activities and compile donor reports

· Update and monitor grant funded communications campaign budgets

· Provide general administrative support

· Carry out research to identify further funding opportunities for public awareness work around humanitarian issues

Website support (10%)

· Draft and update content on IRC’s website, Rescue-uk.org, in liaison with the Digital Content & Partnerships Officer

· Provide support in uploading content to IRC’s website

· Work closely with the Digital Content & Partnerships Officer in monitoring and reporting on website analytics

· Carry out day to day management of IRC’s google grant ad-words account

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Essential

Skills, Knowledge and Qualifications:

· University degree, preferably in a subject related to this post, or equivalent experience

· Understanding of using social media to build profile and influence in communications campaigns

· Excellent written and verbal communication skills

· Strong attention to detail and skills in proofreading

· Strong digital analytical skills

· Ability to prioritise and organise own workload and meet deadlines

· Ability to work effectively as part of a team, providing support as required, and build and maintain excellent relationships across the organisation

· Willingness to work flexibly in approach to work and/or work time requirements

· Committed to IRC values and mandate

· Ability to synthesise and adapt complex information for a variety of audiences

Experience:

· Experience of developing social media strategies

· Experience of using web cms to update content, such as Drupal

· Experience of writing and editing compelling content for print and digital channels (web, social media) to a high quality within tight deadlines

· Experience of storyboarding short films

· Experience of organising public-facing events

· Experience of dealing with external suppliers, such as designers, printers, logistics

· Experience of maintaining project budgets

· Experience of implementing multi-channel communications campaigns

· Experience of working with a creative agency and/or charitable organisation in a similar role

Desirable:

· Knowledge of European markets including Germany and Sweden

· Design and film editing skills: Adobe design suite, Final Cut Pro, InDesign

· Strong creative skills

· Strong network of comms contacts from across the charity sector and private sector

· First class storyteller with the ability to produce compelling content

· Understanding of European donor visibility compliance

To Apply

Please send a CV (two pages maximum), cover letter (two pages maximum), short writing sample (two pages maximum) and social media graphic to: applications@rescue-uk.org

Please state clearly in your cover letter:

· Your reasons for applying

· How you meet the skills, knowledge and experience specified in the person specification part of the job description

· Where you saw the job advertised

· Current salary

The closing date is: 10am on Tuesday 30^th May 2017.

Please note that applications will be reviewed as they are received and candidates may be invited to interview before the closing date. Therefore, candidates are encouraged to submit an application promptly.

Candidates must have the right to work in the UK.

IRC-UK strives to be an equal opportunities employer. IRC-UK is committed to equality of opportunity and to non-discrimination for all job applicants and employees, and we seek to ensure we achieve diversity in our workforce regardless of gender, race, religious beliefs, nationality, ethnic/national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status or disability.