Audience Strategy Manager

The Dstl Strategy and Stakeholder Relations Team lead the development of Dstl’s Corporate Strategy and strategic stakeholder relationships.

The Audience Strategy Manager will play a key role as part of a small dynamic team in supporting the development and oversight of strategic direction across the organisation. They will fulfil an objective and supportive role at the heart of the organisation working closely with the Executive and Dstl’s senior leadership teams, delivering a wide range of activities critical to understanding and shaping Dstl’s future success.

Reporting to the Strategy Adviser, the Strategy Audience Manager will be responsible for leading the design and development of coherent messages/messaging on Dstl strategic priorities that align to, and bring to life, Dstl’s purpose and ambition and support the implementation of the strategic engagement strategy and associated campaign plans, working closely with our communications team.

This will include the tailoring of Dstl strategic messages for key target stakeholders and wider strategic stakeholder audiences. Working closely with Delivery, the post will also develop a suite of nested Science and Technology (S&T) impact stories spanning the breadth of S&T capability delivered by Dstl and our suppliers set within an agreed broader organisational context.

The Strategy Audience Manager will support a variety of strategy, delivery implementation activities, and contribute to the delivery of visits designed to meet Dstl’s strategic objectives.

Dstl recognises the importance of diversity and inclusion as people from diverse backgrounds bring fresh ideas. We are committed to building an inclusive working environment in which each employee fulfils their potential and maximises their contribution.

We particularly welcome female and ethnic minority applicants and those from the LGBTQI community, as they are under-represented within Dstl at these levels.

In this role you will:

• Lead the development of Dstl’s strategic narrative and messaging for our key stakeholders across Ministry of Defence (MOD) and Whitehall.  
• Ensure the above supports implementation of the strategic engagement strategy and the delivery of associated campaign plans.
• Support the design and development of strategic influence campaigns including tailoring Dstl strategic messages for key target audiences.
• Develop a suite of nested and quantified S&T impact stories (including at higher levels of classification), tailoring the stories for different stakeholders.
• Develop material to support the implementation of the campaigns and in support of VIP visits.
• Ensure that all presenters for strategic stakeholder visits have been prepared, rehearsed for key messages and are subsequently debriefed.
• Support a variety of wider strategy implementation activities, and contribute to delivery of strategic stakeholder visits.
• Drive the implementation of safe and secure ways of working and ensuring colleagues know that their safety is paramount and comes ahead of everything.
• Drive a positive safety culture whereby everyone is empowered to report their concerns, no matter how small, and to stop work where they feel it is unsafe.

We are looking for someone who has:

• In depth understanding of Dstl’s purpose, ambition, business model (including our role in the wider S&T ecosystem) and our strategic customer base e.g. MOD Head office and ministers.
• A good understanding of internal and external business drivers underpinning corporate strategy, including MOD priorities and drivers.
• Proven experience of successful engagement with senior military and civilian staff (1* and above).
• Leadership experience, including leadership outside your direct area of authority.
• Excellent influencing skills, including the careful use of language to take others on a journey, changing perspectives and mind-set.
• Ability to write and communicate at a high level e.g. strategic documents and drafting material take that can be readily interpreted by a range of stakeholders.
• The ability to work as a self-starter, and play a key role in the development of a dynamic team.
• Experience of managing productive relationships between organisations and ability to identify and address areas of potential conflict.

Leadership:

As a leader in Defence you will help shape, role model and bring to life the ‘One Defence’ mindset that will enable us to deliver our vision and strategic objectives. Your leadership style must be inspiring, confident and empowering. Working at every level of our organisation to break down silos, unite teams and create a culture that is trusting, collaborative, innovative, diverse and inclusive. Enabling us to deliver with pace and agility through the skills, commitment and empowerment of our employees and military colleagues.

Important Information:

Our work in defence, security and intelligence requires our employees to be UK Nationals who are able to gain a high level of security clearance to undertake the projects we are involved in to protect us from security threats. For this reason, only UK Nationals will be able to apply for this role. If you are an international or dual-national candidate, and you think you have the skills we need, please consider applying to any of our government, security or defence partners.

This role will require full UK security clearance and you should have resided in the UK for the past 5 years. For some roles Developed Vetting will also be required, in this case you should have resided in the UK for the past 10 years.

We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Communicating and Influencing
• Seeing the Big Picture
• Working Together
• Delivering at Pace

We’ll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Communication skills (oral and written).

Benefits 

Dstl’s full range of great benefits can be found in the information pack which includes:

• Financial: An excellent pension scheme starting from 26% employer contribution (find out more here). In Year Rewarding Achievement bonuses and thank you vouchers. Rental deposit scheme and cycle to work scheme.

• Flexible working: Options include alternative working patterns such as; compressed hours (e.g. working a 4 day week/ 9 day fortnight), job shares and annualised hours (agreed number of hours per annum paid monthly i.e. working term-time only).

• Working hours: Flexibility around your working day (e.g. start time, finish time). Ability to bank hours in a 12 month reference period including the ability to accrue and use 3 days per calendar month.

• Where you work: Depending on your role, blended working may be available including remote working to suit you and your team. This can be discussed at interview.

• Annual leave: 25 days pro rata (rising to 30 after 5 years) plus 8 public holidays with the ability to buy/sell 5 additional days per annum.

• Family: Maternity, adoption or shared parental leave of up to 26 weeks with full pay, an additional 13 weeks statutory pay and a further 13 weeks unpaid

• Learning and Development: Dstl encourages and supports charterships, accreditations and provides employees access to fully funded apprenticeships up to level 7 (Masters Degree). Dstl will pay for 2 memberships with relevant bodies/institutions. Employees also have access to Civil Service Learning.

• Facilities: Onsite parking, EV Charging points, restaurants, cafés and gyms.

This job is not open to candidates who hold a dual nationality.

Job contact :

• Name : Dstl HR Recruitment
• Email : dstlrecruitment@dstl.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : dstlrecruitment@dstl.gov.uk