SVP (Director) - Public Affairs

Overview Weber Shandwick Manchester is seeking a highly experienced Senior Associate to join our Consumer PR team in London on a 6 month FTC. You'll collaborate with a brilliant team to oversee the running client work - both locally and globally - provide counsel and strategic direction, and motivate the team to craft work that truly is their best.

We are known for developing data driven insights and strategies to drive measurable impact, creating impactful creative campaigns that tap into culture, and delivering integrated campaigns that are earned-first but deliver for paid and owned.

What's happening? Weber Shandwick is hiring for a talented Senior Vice President (Director equivalent) to join our Public Affairs team in London. You'll be part of a well-established team, with opportunities to collaborate across our CorporateEnterprise team, and with Weber Shandwick's UK and international network, while being guided by some of the PR industry's leading corporate communications professionals.

The Corporate Enterprise practice includes B2B, Corporate, Public Affairs, Crisis/Issues, Social Impact/ESG and Technology.

Your profile The ideal candidate will draw on experiences across sectors with excellent client servicing and public affairs skills. You'll need a strong understanding of politics and parliament, how digital fits into integrated programmes, and brilliant technical writing, time management, and a keen eye for detail in managing project progress.

The successful candidate will demonstrate the following key attributes:

CLIENT AND WORK

• Own responsibilities for leadership of multiple client public affairs programmes and budgets
• Serve as primary or day-to-day client contact on public affairs accounts
• Serve as trusted advisor, counsellor and business partner to key client contacts across sectors including tech, insurance and retail
• Grow existing client budgets and pursue opportunities to engage other offices/geos, specialty expertise, and IPG agencies for integrated marketing programs

LEADERSHIP AND TALENT DEVELOPMENT

• Effective deputy head of the public affairs team, part of the public affairs and corporate enterprise senior leadership teams
• Mentor and empower the public affairs team to deliver best work, impress clients and grow remits
• Develop learning and leadership capabilities to coach others and build cultural competency
• Lead consultancy projects focused on team culture, staff education and skill building
• Sponsor/mentor diverse leaders and staff across levels
• Manage team/direct reports and coach diverse employees to develop future leaders
• Support inclusive hiring practices with Talent Acquisition
• Responsible for billability of self and teams

GROWTH AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

• Identify opportunities for agency growth and lead new business pitches and client growth efforts
• Identify opportunities to contribute to the pipeline
• Execute at least one idea per year turned into an agency case study
• Demonstrate ability to facilitate client needs across agency offerings
• Advance industry thought leadership and agency reputation

BUSINESS ACUMEN

• Manage capacity, utilization, financial planning and avoid revenue deficits, coordinating with PM and Finance on scope and changes
• Communicate with Finance on client budgets and staffing issues; implement solutions to meet commitments
• Communicate and support staffing, expenses and budgets; identify hiring needs with Finance/HR
• Develop knowledge of office P&L statements

MinimumCriteria:

To be considered for this role, you must have at least six years of public affairs agency experience.

Ideal Experience Required:

• Public affairs focused account leadership experience at a consultancy
• Passion for politics and public policy with a track record of winning campaigns
• Comfort challenging clients and colleagues when necessary
• Highly organised with exceptional attention to detail
• Experience in politics and communications with stakeholder engagement and policy insight
• Strong political network and understanding of government/parliament
• Ability to digest complex information and relate to political agendas
• Prolific consumer of political and business news to anticipate issues
• Proven track record in managing people and projects
• Fluency in digital/social media platforms and willingness to learn more

Core Benefits:

• Private medical insurance
• Group life assurance
• Group income protection
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Buy or sell holiday
• Additional life assurance cover
• Critical illness insurance
• Travel insurance
• Health screening
• Cycle to work scheme
• Health cash plan
• Flexible working with our 3:2 hybrid work model
• Equival ent of $250 USD for new joiners on 6 month+ contracts to support home working setup
• 25 days' annual leave plus 2 volunteering days, birthday day off and discretionary festive closure
• Flexible public holidays
• Exclusive shopping discounts and perks
• Season ticket loan
• Long service bonus
• Enhanced family leave
• Inclusive and invisible health policies
• Monthly social events organised by the Manchester office Culture Club

The office:

We encourage employees to spend 2-3 days in the office each week, with anchor days Tuesday and Thursday. The team will move to a brand new office space in Spinningfields, designed to foster collaboration and creativity. Facilities include: on-site gym, coffee shop, bar, bike storage, coworking community and events, and access to nearby food and shopping options. Opportunities to visit other UK offices exist.

Note from the Talent Team:

We will review all applications within five working days and contact shortlisted candidates. Due to volume, we cannot respond to everyone individually. If you have not heard back, you were not successful on this occasion.

At IPG DXTRA we are proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. We are committed to equality of opportunity for all staff and invite applications regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage/civil partnerships.

For accessibility assistance during the application process, contact . This email is strictly for applicants requiring accommodation and not general inquiries.

We create cultural value and help brands navigate the ever-changing age of earned. Our team builds brands by connecting with real-world points, using the right platforms and technology to make a meaningful impact for leading brands.

We earn affection, attention, affinity and purchase by delivering value with deep specialisms across multiple sectors. We are known for:

• Developing data driven insights and strategies
• Creating impactful creative campaigns that tap into culture
• Channel and platform agnostic campaigns that grow organically
• Integrated campaigns earned-first but delivering for paid and owned

A snapshot of the role:

Join our dynamic team where innovation meets expertise. Weber Shandwick Manchester is seeking an engaged Senior Associate to join our consumer PR team and play a key role in delivering exceptional work for clients across global and local markets.

The ideal candidate will have one to two years of experience and be curious, ambitious, proactive and collaborative. You'll oversee day-to-day account management, contribute to strategic planning, and ensure seamless execution from content creation to reporting.

What you'll be doing:

• Assist with the execution of media and campaigns, ensuring tasks are completed on time and to a high standard
• Prepare materials such as media lists, status updates, media monitoring and reports
• Support client engagement and deliver an exceptional client experience
• Monitor news, trends and influencers and share relevant insights
• Support new business pitches with research and materials

Ideal experience required:

• Minimum two years' experience in Consumer PR or marketing
• Interest in brand and consumer communications and news
• Proficiency in media relations and coverage landing
• Mastery in developing media materials (press releases, pitches, etc.)
• Strong presentation and new business pitching experience
• Excellent writing and communication skills
• Proactive in identifying opportunities for clients and team
• Attention to detail
• Fluency in Microsoft and digital/social platforms

Core Benefits:

• Private medical insurance
• Group life assurance
• Group income protection
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Buy or sell holiday
• Additional life assurance cover
• Critical Illness Insurance
• Travel insurance
• Health screening
• Cycle to work scheme
• Health cash plan
• Flexible working with our 3:2 hybrid work model
• Equivalent of $250 USD for new joiners on 6 month+ contracts to support home working setup
• 25 days' annual leave plus 2 volunteering days, birthday day off and discretionary festive closure
• Flexible public holidays
• Exclusive shopping discounts and perks
• Season ticket loan
• Long service bonus
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