Director of Public Affairs & Communications

We believe we can solve the most urgent societal issues collectively

We are building a model to make this happen so that we can invite all change agents to approach our world differently.

Our world, our societies, and our lives as we know them face critical and escalating challenges. Many of these are complex, deeply entrenched, and urgent, and they can’t be solved in isolation. A bigger approach will be required to tackle these with the impact and durability needed. It will require coherent bridging between strong efforts of the past and next-generation strategies, bridging between a broad range of sectors and stakeholders, and bridging towards a movement of synergies between people, minds, and strategies.

We built a social venture that addresses a growing need to collectively face societal issues by addressing broken or inefficient systems and accelerating societal (co-)impact.

The Synergist: An independent, neutral backbone

We have built The Synergist as an independent, neutral backbone and incubator for these types of societal issues. With a global perspective, we bring together the right people, organizations, and institutions to focus on solving societal issues. We foster an organized, safe and collaborative environment that enables collective impact by co-defining a shared vision, goals, and strategies with members; establishing and maintaining a transparent and balanced governance structure; coordinating and driving activities, and bringing to life concrete projects and solutions that have been shaped with and complemented by a broad stakeholder group. We call that leading from behind.

Head of Strategic and Integrated Communications

We seek a dynamic and experienced Head of Strategic and Integrated Communications to lead our organization’s comprehensive communications efforts. This role is pivotal in advancing thought leadership and shaping a world-class reputation and footprint. The ideal candidate will be a strategic thinker with a proven track record in managing diverse communication platforms and a team of professionals to deliver communications that resonate with both our immediate multi-stakeholder community and the broader public, thereby strengthening our image as an organization dedicated to meaningful and transformative action.

In The Synergist’s fast-paced and ever-evolving communication landscape, dealing with several organizational identities, we require someone exceptionally agile, with the ability to adeptly juggle various types of 360-degree communications, from public affairs to growth hacking. The ideal candidate should demonstrate the capacity to maintain coherence and continuity across diverse messaging platforms, ensuring that all audiences receive a consistent and clear message. This role demands expertise in handling a wide array of communication channels and the skill to manage the team and its activities in a healthy, timely, and productive manner. The ability to quickly adapt to changing scenarios, while keeping the team focused and motivated, is crucial for success in this position.

To deliver on the above, the ideal candidate will have an enterprising mindset to help shape and build the capability and capacity, internally and externally, as the organization grows.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Communication Planning:
Develop and implement an integrated communications strategy that shapes the environment and contributes to The Synergist’s vision and mission. This includes overseeing the creation of communication plans, messaging frameworks, and key narratives, and designing the most optimized communication channel strategy to reach, engage, attract, and convert the audience into ambassadors.

Leadership and Team Management:
Lead, develop, and mentor a communications team (4-5 people internally and a network of communication professionals), fostering an environment of collaboration and excellence. Leverage, optimize and oversee the selection and management of external communication partners and vendors.

Championing Identity and Values:
Uphold and communicate our organizational identity and values across all platforms. This role is critical in embedding The Synergist and its programs’ core principles and ethos in communications that also reflect commitments to societal impact.

Media and Public Relations:
Serve as the primary spokesperson for the organization, managing media relations and ensuring a positive public image. Develop strong relationships with key media outlets and influencers.

Digital and Social Media Oversight:
Oversee digital communication strategies, including social media management, content creation, and online reputation management. Ensure a cohesive and innovative presence across digital platforms.

Crisis Communications:
Lead crisis communication efforts, developing rapid response strategies to maintain the organization’s reputation in challenging situations.

Stakeholder Engagement:
Partner with the Program Team to strategically map and engage with various stakeholders, including government entities, community groups, private sector partners, and the non-profit sector, to advance the organization’s interests and enhance its standing.

Fostering Community Development and Nurturing:
Actively engage in and nurture community development initiatives. Build and maintain strong relationships with various communities, facilitating open dialogues and collaborative efforts. This includes developing communication strategies that support community projects and foster a sense of belonging and shared responsibility within the broader multi-stakeholder community of The Synergist.

Impact Measurement and Analytics:
Build on output and target to measure outcomes. Monitor, analyze, and permanently optimize communication campaign performance, using data to inform future strategies and report on effectiveness. Leverage and optimize strategic tools (Hubspot, Google Analytics, etc.) to increase intelligence about stakeholders in our ecosystems.

Budget Management:
Manage the communications budget, ensuring efficient allocation of resources and return on investment.

Qualifications

• Relevant experiences in senior public affairs and communication roles, with demonstrated success in integrated communications strategy development.
• Strategically minded and visionary, while also able to smoothly navigate between macro- and micro-levels, as needed.
• Exceptional leadership and team management skills with prior successful people management experience.
• Fundraising and business development relevant experience.
• Patient and Public Involvement experience.
• Prior working experience in a quickly changing business environment.
• Solutions-oriented, proactive, and innovative approach with a hands-on attitude.
• Curious and open-minded, open to new ideas, concepts, and people.
• Strong understanding of digital and social media strategies.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English.
• Proven ability to manage relationships with media, government, and other external partners.
• Crisis management experience and the ability to work under pressure.
• Proficiency in communication analytics and performance measurement tools.

Preferred

• EU work permit
• Social enterprising background
• Experience working in the healthcare or environmental sector
• Fluency in one or more foreign languages

What’s In It for You

• The opportunity to work with global for- and non-profit players to address societal needs (like patient engagement, precision medicine, women’s health, rare diseases, etc.)
• The opportunity to join a dedicated, dynamic, diverse, and fun team that works to develop innovative and efficient programs to solve challenges that others ignore or have been unable to resolve sustainably to date
• A high degree of flexibility to work from home and/or remotely
• The opportunity to grow personally within the organization as well as to be a part of the organization’s own growth trajectory

Interested candidates should submit a resume and a cover letter detailing their qualifications and experience. Applications can be sent to [email protected].