Job Title: Public Engagement Manager
Salary range: £60,143 – £61,967
Grade: Assembly Grade 4
Directorate: Parliamentary Services
Business Area/Office: Public Engagement
Accountable to: Clerk Assistant
Accountable for: Education, Events, Outreach and Youth Assembly teams
Public engagement is at the heart of the Assembly Commission’s Corporate Strategy 2018-23. The newly created post of Public Engagement Manager will have a key role in enhancing public confidence in the Assembly, embedding an understanding of our agreed system of democracy and promoting effective two-way dialogue with stakeholders.
Parliament Buildings is recognised locally, nationally, and to an extent internationally as an iconic building. The post holder will manage the delivery of key public events including high profile visits, and ‘set piece’ events. Consequently, awareness and understanding of political sensitivity and the management of relationships both internally and externally will be key requirements of the post.
The Public Engagement Manager will manage the delivery of a number of the public engagement focussed objectives of the Assembly Commission’s Corporate Strategy, including:
The post holder will be responsible for engagement plans and stakeholder activities for the Northern Ireland Assembly and for Parliament Buildings, including:
In delivering these plans and activities, the post holder will be responsible for ensuring that the Assembly engages all communities and stakeholders inclusively, via the most effective means, and across varying platforms. The post holder will also ensure that the Assembly’s engagement activities fit with the Assembly Commission’s Corporate Strategy.
The main duties and responsibilities of the post are:
Applicants for the post of Public Engagement Manager must, by the closing date for applications have:
AND
OR
The experience specified above at 2. and 3. must be in the following areas:
(a) Prioritising, planning and organising a very demanding and diverse workload of complex tasks and managing the resources available to ensure compliance with tight deadlines.
(b) Leading, managing and motivating a team of staff to ensure effective service delivery; taking personal responsibility for the delivery of high quality results and for the improvement and development of both processes and people.
(c) Experience of quickly developing strong working relationships with key stakeholders internally and externally, with proven ability to take the initiative, fostering innovation to bring forward new ideas and come up with innovative solutions to problems, taking into account business context and constraints.
(d) Significant experience of delivering innovative engagement activities across a diverse organisation with different audiences, priorities and pressures and activity across multiple platforms.
(e) Application of marketing and engagement best practice, having added measurable value to organisations through application of these principles and in response to customer requirements, along with knowledge of the latest evaluation techniques to measure the effectiveness of communications and external relations activities delivered, including digital engagement activities.
Should shortlisting be required, the following shortlisting criteria will be applied:
Experience of leading and managing a public engagement team in researching and reviewing the visitor experience and facilities and implementing the findings.
The following Assembly Skills and Behaviours will be assessed during the selection process:
…is displaying an appropriate understanding of the wider political environment; what the Assembly does and how our role fits in; and the level of public scrutiny to which the actions and decisions of Assembly staff are exposed. It requires impartiality, integrity and political sensitivity.
… is setting high standards for ourselves. It is about guiding, motivating and developing others to achieve high performance. It is about engaging others in delivering a corporate vision of excellence, expertise and innovation in support of the Assembly as a legislature.
…is creating and maintaining positive, professional and respectful internal and external working relationships through effective and appropriate communications.
…is about providing a high-quality and efficient service to our customers. It is thinking ahead, managing resources effectively and delivering work on time and to a high standard. It is also using professional or technical expertise to enhance service delivery.
…is looking for and being open to new and innovative ideas and improvements to the service provided. It is being flexible and adapting positively and professionally to sustain performance when the situation changes, workloads increase or priorities change. It is about forming sound, evidence-based decisions and being accountable for results.