Senior Communications and Engagement Consultant

Scotland Flexible Fairmilehead Office, Edinburgh Aberdeen City (Geog) DUNDEE AREA OFFICE Stepps, Glasgow

Together we are Trusted to Serve Scotland.

Do you want to work in Corporate Affairs in an organisation where it makes a real difference? Do you want to help engage, empower, and build active, two-way relationships with customers, communities, and stakeholders? Together we’ll support improved service delivery and contribute to a flourishing Scotland.

From Shetland to Stranraer, we’re looking to recruit four senior communications and engagement consultants from across the country. You’ll be hybrid working, and based at any of our Scottish Water office locations, with travel as required.

What you’ll do

You’ll provide senior and specialist communications and engagement support for all Scottish Water group activities - building confidence and trust in our customers and stakeholders, while protecting and enhancing our reputation.

You’ll ensure all communication and engagement opportunities are identified, risks are minimised, and Scottish Water’s strategic objectives are supported.

On a day-to-day basis you’ll be dealing with complex enquiries from stakeholders, including the media, requiring the timely preparation of clear and accurate information to represent Scottish Water’s position. You’ll also lead the development and delivery of outcomes-focussed communications and engagement plans by promoting Scottish Water activity and keeping all audiences fully informed.

You’ll use a range of channels, including digital, as part of our communications delivery to maximise audience reach and engagement. As part of this, you’ll plan and create audience-appropriate content, which is clear, accessible, and creative - meeting the needs of our customers, stakeholders, and staff.

Importantly, you’ll work collaboratively with senior colleagues across the business and a wide range of our partners. You’ll be able to negotiate and influence internally and externally to ensure all aspects of our work is communicated effectively, with responsibility for work which is high-impact and/or has high reputational risk.

As well as confidently deputising for senior colleagues, you’ll support the development of junior colleagues through mentoring. You’ll understand the impact the team’s performance has on our sCEM (Stakeholder and Community Experience Measure) and maintain a focus on this.

What you’ll bring

We’re looking for your knowledge and experience of how the media operates in a Scottish context, the full suite of channels available to communicators, and how you use insights to inform and engage different audiences in an impactful way.

You’ll bring your ability to gather intelligence from a range of sources and use the data to inform, develop and deliver communication plans. You’ll be able to assess this information and its potential impact and outcomes on our customers and stakeholders.

You’ll bring excellent written, verbal and listening communication skills, and an ability to work to deadlines in a fast-paced and evolving environment – with a meticulous eye for detail and pride in your work. You’ll have top organisational skills including planning and management of your workload, and the ability to prioritise and manage competing demands.

You’ll understand external and internal factors which may have an impact on our business; for example, increasing customer and stakeholder expectations, emerging communication trends and opportunities.

It would be helpful if you could bring your knowledge and understanding of the political structure and environment that Scottish Water operates within (ie governance such as Scottish Government, DWQR, WICS, SEPA, HSE; national local and community-level politics). However, this is nice to have, not essential.

Where you’ll work

The nature of this role will offer hybrid working and will also require travel. Therefore, a full driving licence is required. Travel will include going to different Scottish Water offices, visiting sites and meeting community representatives. We use Microsoft Teams, but there are times when travel to sites and meeting stakeholders in person is important.

Looking out for you at Scottish Water 

While the work we do is important, we know it’s not the only thing that matters. That’s why we make sure you have everything you need to find a good work-life balance.

You’ll get plenty of time to recharge with 38 days of holiday every year (including public holidays). And you can even buy five more if you need a little extra time. You can also take time off to volunteer in your community.

When it comes to major life events we have family-friendly policies around adoption, maternity, and parental leave. And for the everyday? We embrace flexible working.

For your future, there’s our pension (the ‘know-what-you’ll-get-when-you-retire’ kind), and life assurance.

As for some nice extras? You can expect an annual company bonus. Not to mention access to SW Splash – handy rewards that can save you money on holidays, bills, and shopping.

The not-so-small print 

This role will be a Grade 7. If you’re new to Scottish Water, you’ll join us on a starting salary of £41,000. Performance-driven pay progression would then allow you to move through the range to a maximum of £51,970.

This role will sometimes require you to work outside of normal working hours - you’ll participate in an on-call rota.

If you’re interested in this role – or know someone else who might be - we’ll be accepting applications until midnight on the 25th of April 2024. Please provide a cover letter alongside your CV.

Job offers at Scottish Water are conditional, and will be confirmed on completion of our pre-employment screening, e.g., referencing, criminal record checks, license checks, etc. These checks are conducted on our behalf by a third party. Don’t worry - we’ll ask your permission before starting these checks.

A few final things worth knowing…

Research shows that some people avoid applying for jobs unless they can meet every single criteria. If you’re interested in this job, but don’t tick all the boxes, apply anyway We hardly ever hire people who can do every part of a job from Day One. Everyone has a learning curve. So don’t rule yourself out

Let us know if there are any changes we can make to our recruitment process to help you perform at your best. Lots of our people have disabilities or neurodiverse conditions (including some of our recruiters). We're also aware that some people might be experiencing temporary challenges because of life events, like menopause. We’re very used to making adjustments, so please don’t be afraid to ask.

As part of our commitment to developing a flourishing Scotland, it’s important that all our employees are Scottish taxpayers. If you join us, your home address will need to be in Scotland. If you don’t already live here, you'll need to commit to moving here within your first three months.

Finally (finally), candidates who haven’t submitted an application in the last 12 months will have their records removed from our recruitment database. You won’t need to do anything. Your data will be automatically deleted. 

We’re here to help. Ask us anything at SWRecruitment@ScottishWater.co.uk