Thanks to a grant from the Arcadia Fund, IUCN aims to expand the digitization of our collection to increase the free, worldwide access to the conservation knowledge produced by IUCN.

Knowledge is at the centre of IUCN activities, the organisation holds a great wealth of theoretical and practical knowledge, which it uses to advise on how society should sustainably use natural resources and biodiversity. The Knowledge Management, Learning and Library Services Unit supports a strategic approach to knowledge management inside IUCN, with the aim to leverage that knowledge to influence current and future leaders to achieve the objective of a society which values and protects nature.

Part of its responsibilities is to ensure communication about IUCN Global Programme to give visibility to their achievements and to the knowledge developed through their activities.

OBJECTIVES OF THE POSITIION

The Senior Programme Communications Officer will lead the development and implementation of IUCN Programme Communications Strategies. He/she will coordinate communication actions for specific thematic Units or initiative(s), operate IUCN thematic unit’s digital media channels and other communication media, and produce strong content to enhance IUCN’s position as the global authority on the status of the natural world and of the measures needed to safeguard it. The role therefore requires expertise in communication strategy development, and excellent digital communication and storytelling skills to produce and feature high quality content for impact.

The Global Programmes Communication Officer will be assigned a thematic Unit or one or more Programmes for which he/she will perform the following duties:

Strategic Communications and Coordination

Accompany assigned thematic Unit or project to streamline a strategic approach in their communication.

Develop strategic communication plans, and propose solutions for efficient implementation of those plans, building on knowledge of the conservation world, IUCN and other networks and stakeholder groups relevant to the thematic Unit or project.

Coordinate communication actions around the assigned thematic unit/project, ensuring communication is rolled out in timely fashion and meeting the needs of specific, prioritised target audiences.

Serve as focal point for the Global Communication Unit (corporate communications), IUCN Regional Offices, other thematic units and projects, IUCN Members, partners and press and media, for communication matters related to the assigned thematic or project.

Collaborate with the Global Communication Unit to support the strategic objectives of IUCN corporate communications.

Coordinate the outsourcing and development of communication products, manage consultants, temporary staff, and communications related service providers and specific communication budgets under the supervision of the Head of KMLLS.

Coordinate the thematic Unit or projects communication at major events, including the preparation and coordination for exhibitions.

Implementation of Strategic Communication Plans

Work across the IUCN Programmes to source content and identify the most relevant or effective products, initiatives, or other content to profile.

Use the content collected from IUCN Programmes to draft compelling stories to be shared on Programmes’ and IUCN’s corporate communication channels.

Develop associated communication products in support of the implementation of the communication plans, such as web stories, policy briefs, blog stories, videos, social media packages, invitations, infographics, graphic design briefs.

Create email campaigns or individual emails for internal and external audiences.

Maintain relevant websites/pages and web knowledge platforms to ensure consistent, strategic and timely messaging on key themes

Social Media Engagement

Coordinate, maintain and ensure quality of social media activity on assigned social media networks.

Develop, implement, and help refine the targeted social media strategy for dedicated accounts and explore new ways for IUCN to reach its target audiences effectively through social media.

Track press and social media coverage on assigned Programme issues and develop mechanisms to assess the Programme impact.

Monitor and evaluate the use and influence of knowledge products on target audience groups through digital software including Altmetrics, hootsuite, and others.

Knowledge management

Implement knowledge management strategies for uptake.

Proactively support the Publications Committee with analytical knowledge development, quality control, and publishing pathway related to the assigned thematic Unit or Programme(s)

Coordination of Programme Communications work

Support the Head of KMLLS with the coordination of Programme Communications work and advise on best allocation of resources.

Support junior colleagues in their work when necessary.

The above job description contains the main duties and responsibilities for this position. However, in a small organisation such as IUCN, staff members are expected to show flexibility in their approach to work and be willing to undertake other tasks that are reasonably allocated to them, but which are not part of their regular job description. Where any task becomes a regular part of an employee’s responsibilities, the job description will be changed in consultation with the employee and the Human Resources Management Group.

an employee’s responsibilities, the job description will be changed in consultation with the employee and the Human Resources Management Group.