| Description |
Job Description: Standards Systems Communications Specialist
Term: This is intended as a full time permanent position with an initial contract of one year
Time: 100%
Location: Ideally this position will be based in ISEAL’s London head office.
Salary: £27,000 - £40,000 (subject to experience)
About the ISEAL Alliance:
ISEAL is an international non-profit organisation based in London. It is the global association for sustainability standards, whose membership includes organisations such as Fairtrade International, Forest Stewardship Council and Rainforest Alliance. ISEAL’s mission is to strengthen sustainability standards systems for the benefit of people and the environment by defining what credible practice looks like in the field of social and environmental standards and labelling. It also drives the uptake of standards in major sectors and markets, working with its members to increase their effectiveness and with governments and companies to understand the positive impact that standards can have.
ISEAL’s guidance is understood globally as a key referent for how sustainability standards and certification in any sector should operate. All of its work is brought together by a set of ten Credibility Principles that define the actions standards systems should take to deliver positive social and environmental impact. As certification and labelling initiatives continue to grow, ISEAL is an important advocate of credible and transparent systems and supports stakeholders to identify good practices and use standards more effectively to achieve their sustainability goals. ISEAL also brings standards systems together to collaborate, innovate, and engage with a broad community of researchers, consultants, companies and NGOs committed to improving impacts.
What We Offer:
The opportunity for the right candidate to play an important, specialised role within a growing and unique sector concerned with delivering and demonstrating positive social and environmental impacts of sustainability standards on a global scale
What We Seek:
A motivated and experienced individual who shares our vision for improving the impacts of consumption on the planet and its people and who has the specific skills and global knowledge relevant to producing and facilitating effective communications strategies and messages for key stakeholders within the international sustainability standards sector including specific technical and credibility-related messages for governments, business platforms, standard-setting organisations and other multi-stakeholder initiatives.
How to Apply:
Interested candidates should submit a current CV and a statement explaining how they meet the selection criteria for the position to recruitment@isealalliance.org.
Deadline for applications will be 6th January, 2014, 5pm (GMT).
If you have any questions regarding this role, please contact Philip Wilson, Director of Finance & Operations, (philip@isealalliance.org)
Other Relevant Information:
Working Hours: Based on a full time equivalent of 37.5 hours per week. The ISEAL Alliance operates a Flexible Working Policy and is happy to consider applications for flexible working once the four months probationary period has been successfully completed.
Status: If the preferred candidate requires a visa to work in the UK, ISEAL will provide support in obtaining the required paperwork.
International Travel: The post holder may be required to undertake significant amounts of international travel including overnight stays.
Annual Leave: 25 days per annum (including office closure between Christmas and New Year)
Equal Opportunities: The ISEAL Alliance strives to be an equal opportunities employer and commitment to this process is expected.
Ideal Start Date: 13th January 2014
Duty Statement and Selection Criteria (see attached)
Standards Systems Communications Specialist Job description and Selections Criteria
Duty Statement
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#
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Duties
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Time %
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1
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Planning
Co-design and co-develop the ISEAL Communications strategy and implement appropriate technical elements, feeding into ISEAL’s overarching Strategic Plan and aligning activities with broad aims related to uptake, impacts, effectiveness and credibility of Sustainability Standards.
Deliver relevant work plans as part of Communications team
Contribute to development of strategy to use range of media as means to reach standards-related audiences and build ISEAL Standards and Assurance community
Contribute to and help implement strategy for using a range of vehicles (articles, multimedia, webinars, campaigns) to deliver ISEAL messaging and promote ISEAL activities within the sustainability standards landscape
Co-design and implement strategy for audience development and expansion through effective use of existing channels. Oversee, curate and moderate a specialized webinar series, including soliciting international speakers and developing content on the credibility and impacts of sustainability standards systems.
Participate as a core member of the content and curation team that delivers the Global Sustainability Standards Conference, including outreach strategy, technical content design, technical material creation, campaigns and oversight of external service providers.
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10
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2
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Production, Content & Website
> Manage content for ISEAL’s international online community, including blog posts, news stories, and resources related to ISEAL’s projects and core objectives such as increasing uptake, defining credibility and demonstrating impact within the context of sustainability standards systems
Write press releases, thought pieces and responses for uptake in external media channels
Curate the content of a monthly Community Newsletter for ISEAL members and subscribers
Produce a quarterly Bulletin for the general public on arising issues and trends in the standards sector
> Manage the full writing and editing of the ISEAL annual report, as well as additional technical brochures, project fact sheets, and external or public summaries of ISEAL technical documents
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50
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3
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ManagementManage external service providers and consultants including printers, graphic designers, illustrators, copywriters, and video production companies to produce ISEAL communications materials in line with ISEAL’s brand and messaging.
Supervise the Global Sustainability Standards Conference and Communications assistant, who supports the planning of ISEAL’s conference and ongoing communications activities.
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15
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4
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Resources & Reporting
Develop and maintain good working relationships with ISEAL staff and members based throughout the world. Help coordinate a formal discussion group of ISEAL member communications staff
Collate and deliver a bimonthly synopsis of ISEAL activities and working groups to main ISEAL contacts
Contribute to delivery of regular M&E reports on Communications activity to help measure effectivess by creating relevant indicators.
Monitor and evaluate relevant press and regulary feed approriate stories about the Standards Systems movement. Share relevant stories amongst ISEAL staff and and on the ISEAL website
Monitor, record and report on presence of ISEAL and its members in online and printed press
Strategically report on results of Impacts reports and studies to raise awareness of the value and Impact of sustainability standards
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15
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5
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Internal
Keep colleagues appraised of developments in the communications area and develop learning tools as appropriate
Co-manage and/or chair staff meetings, retreat and other internal communications-related meetings with appropriate contents, views and suggestions
Fulfil requirements of internal staff management processes including performance reviews, supervisory meetings, work planning etc
> Commit to continuously increase knowledge of ISEAL work and the wider context of vountary standards and sustainability issues
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10
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6
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Other
Any other tasks falling within the scope of your role as determined by line management
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Selection Criteria
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A
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Knowledge and Experience
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Essential or Desirable
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A.1
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Masters degree in any relevant subject such as in governance, sustainability, policy or related fields
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Essential
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A.2
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Substantial work experience in sustainability communications, particularly in the standards systems sector
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Essential
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A.3
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Demonstrated excellence in writing about complex sustainability issues, including multi-stakeholder governance and international social and environmental policy, and especially related to sustainability standards
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Essential
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A.4
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Experience working in communications with a membership-based or network organisation, ideally in a globally focused organization.
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Essential
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A.5
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Knowledge of standard-setting and/or certification systems, ideally one or more of ISEAL Alliance members.
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Essential
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A.6
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Experience working with additional multi-stakeholder initiatives
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Desirable
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A.7
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Experience of working for an organisation with staff based in multiple locations.
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Desirable
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B
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Skills
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Essential or Desirable
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B.1
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Effective oral and written English and confidence in communicating with government, business and civil society audiences
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Essential
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B.2
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Copywriting, editing and proofreading skills for a range of media (online and print), including the ability to convey complex sustainability ideas clearly and simply.
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Essential
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B.3
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Efficiency at condensing, crafting and wordsmithing technical content into coherent messages and language (in scripts, articles, slidecasts, presentations, email campaigns, event descriptions, web text, and other vehicles)
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Essential
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B.4
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Independence and ease in writing about complex sustainability issues relating to standards systems and similar tools/initiatives in sectors such as agriculture, forestry, food and retail.
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Essential
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B.5
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Strong skills in using a variety of online communications tools, in particular Mailchimp or equivalent newsletter platform, Twitter, Mailman or equivalent mailing list platform, Smartsheet, Salesforce and GoToMeeting
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Essential
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B.6
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Strong IT skills in desk top publishing, with demonstrated ability using Word, Outlook, Powerpoint, Adobe, and photo editing software such as Photo Shop
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Essential
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B.7
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Strong website skills, with emphasis on online content management and experience using Drupal.
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Desirable
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B.8
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Familiarity with social media.
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Desirable
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B.9
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Strong time/process management skills and ability to establish priorities and work to deadlines.
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Essential
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B.10
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Strong interpersonal skills.
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Essential
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B.11
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Demonstrable skill at managing projects conducted alone and with others.
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Essential
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B.12
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Effective oral and written communication skills in another language, particularly French or Spanish.
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Desirable
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C
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Personal Attributes
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Essential or Desirable
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C.1
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Creative and strategic, able to conceive of new projects and approaches to help further ISEAL’s mission - and to turn these into reality.
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Essential
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C.2
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Self-motivation and ability to work independently as well as with colleagues in remote locations.
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Essential
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C.3
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Strong attention to detail and highly organised.
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Essential
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C.4
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Ability to prioritise and adjust to a variety of sometimes competing requests and deadlines.
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Essential
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C.5
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Flexibility to the requirements of a small but rapidly growing organisation with evolving communication needs.
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Essential
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