Job title: Head of Influencing
Salary: £63,389 per annum
Location: London, E1 / hybrid
Contract/Hours: Full time (35 hours per week)
Fairtrade Foundation are recruiting for a Head of Influencing to join our Communications and Advocacy Directorate and play a key role in advancing our mission to make trade fairer.
The Head of Influencing will be responsible for leading the development and implementation of the Fairtrade Foundation (FTF)’s overall influencing strategy, working with colleagues across the organisation to set out clear policy goals, identify effective levers for change and ensuring our influencing strategy is built on the realities and views of farmers and workers, robust policy insights and evidence.
You’ll need to be an expert in influencing Government policy, political stakeholders and businesses, with experience in policy and public affairs roles focused on business supply chains or regulation, trade policy, food and agriculture or sustainable development.
This role offers an exciting opportunity to lead a crucial area of the Fairtrade Foundation’s work, and to lead the Influencing Team at the Foundation.
This individual will work closely with key stakeholders across the Communications and Advocacy Directorate, Campaigns, Marketing, Partnerships and Strategy and Planning teams, and the wider organisation to achieve influence and impact for producers and workers around the world.
We are looking for individuals who are strategic, fast thinkers, passionate about social justice, sustainability and the Fairtrade mission.
Fairtrade changes the way trade works through better prices, decent working conditions and a fairer deal for farmers and workers around the world. Globally, across all Fairtrade members, we share a vision of a world in which all farmers and workers can enjoy secure and sustainable livelihoods, fulfil their potential and decide on their future. To achieve this we connect disadvantaged farmers and workers with consumers, promote fairer trading conditions, and empower farmers and workers to combat poverty, strengthen their position and take more control of their lives.
Fairtrade is a global movement with a strong and active presence in the UK, represented by the Fairtrade Foundation. Farmers and workers have a strong voice at every level of Fairtrade, from how they invest in and run their local organisations to having an equal say in Fairtrade’s global decision-making.
We are seeking passionate and enthusiastic candidates who share our vision for a better world, if that sounds like you, then come and join our movement for change.
The Fairtrade Foundation is an equal opportunities employer, offers flexible working and welcomes applications from all sections of the community.
We particularly welcome applications from candidates with ethnically diverse backgrounds, LGBTQ+ candidates and from candidates with disabilities, because we would like to increase the representation of these groups at this level. We want to do this because we know greater diversity will lead to greater results for producers and farmers around the world.
Closing date: Tuesday 11th February at 5pm
First round interviews will take place week of 17th February, with second round interviews taking place week of 24th February.
Contract: Permanent
Role Purpose
The postholder will lead on the development and delivery of the Foundation’s influencing strategy, including policy, advocacy, public affairs and media relations, with the aim of delivering policy change and influence with businesses, government, civil society, journalists and other decision-makers in order to achieve trade justice.
Key responsibilities and accountabilities
- Lead the development and implementation of the Fairtrade Foundation (FTF)’s overall influencing strategy, working with colleagues across the organisation to set out clear policy goals, identify effective levers for change (potentially including government legislation) and ensuring this strategy is built on the realities and views of farmers and workers, robust policy insights and evidence. The majority of FTF’s influencing work will be UK focused, but occasionally there may be instances where we look to influence global forums, such as COP summits (UNFCCC Conference of the Parties).
- Drawing on policy positions developed by Fairtrade International, develop and agree policy priorities and policy positions for FTF. Ensure these policy priorities and positions are well understood internally and by key external stakeholders.
- Grow FTF’s influence with key Government stakeholders, Political Parties and Parliamentarians, including to oversee management of the Fairtrade APPG, and businesses. Leverage the influence of our commercial partners with policy stakeholders. Oversee stakeholder and power mapping as part of the development of FTF’s influencing strategies.
- Lead the Influencing Team, including line management of the Senior Policy Manager and Senior Media Lead. Ensure the team functions as one, with clear roles and responsibilities, communication within the team, KPIs, budget and reporting.
- Working closely with the Senior Media Lead, oversee the development and implementation of the Foundation’s communications and media strategy and plans, developing, delivering and owning key messages, message framing and target audiences, in line with the vision, mission and organisational strategy.
- Work closely with the Director of Communications and Advocacy, Head of Marketing and Head of Campaigns, individually, and as part of the Communications and Advocacy Directorate Management Team, to drive an overall, coherent approach to Fairtrade’s communication and advocacy work to achieve trade justice.
- Work collaboratively (where strategically important) with NGOs and other stakeholders, on an individual basis and through coalitions (where required).
- Ensure the Influencing Team keeps a ‘watching brief’ on policy, political and media developments, and where relevant, reports these back to colleagues across the Fairtrade Foundation. Work with the Senior Media Lead to ensure the team responds effectively to changing media and news agendas, breaking news stories of relevance to Fairtrade, and opportunities to offer thought leadership and commentary on key relevant issues of trade for development, sustainable supply chains, agriculture and workers’ rights, business responsibilities etc.
- Working with the Director of Comms and Advocacy and other colleagues across FTF, secure funding to support FTF’s influencing work.
- Act as a senior representative for FTF in the media as one of FTF’s leading spokespeople, at high-level conferences, events and meetings, building relationships with influential stakeholders, sharing evidence of impact and making the case for FTF’s policy asks.
- Provide oversight and support for the Senior Media Lead to deliver the organisation’s response to reputational risks, including in the media, working in line with FI’s Media Risk and Safeguarding procedures. Be responsible for compliance with lobbying rules and monitoring and updating quarterly Risk Register to accurately capture government policy and media risk and mitigations.
- Ensure effective and efficient systems are in place for monitoring the impact of FTF’s influencing work, including the quality and quantity of media coverage, to ensure FTF is having the maximum impact for farmers and workers.
- Occasionally travel (domestically or very occasionally internationally) to events, conferences or meetings.
Deliverables in this role
- Be responsible for the achievement of impact through delivery of FTF’s influencing strategies and work. Ensuring FTF’s influencing work is delivered to an excellent standard and FTF is seen as a highly credible organisation within the policy and business community, working to achieve trade justice.
- Effectively lead the Influencing Team to ensure the team functions as one, aligned to a clear strategy and delivering projects to time and budget.
- Develop and own FTF’s power maps for FTF’s key stakeholders. Ensure each stakeholder has a clear ‘internal owner’ and engagement plan.
- Oversee development of key messages and message framing in support of achievement of FTF’s influencing goals.
- Develop and maintain excellent working relationships with key internal and external stakeholders.
- Measure and report on the impact of FTF’s influencing work, ensuring lessons learned are built upon for future work.
- Secure funding for FTF’s influencing work to boost team capacity and resources.
Person specification
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Experience & Qualifications
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Essential:
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- A qualification (postgraduate or professional) in politics, economics, sustainable development or other relevant area or equivalent by experience
- A successful track record of delivering effective influencing strategies at a national level
- Proven in-depth knowledge of at least one or more of the following relevant policy areas: business supply chains or regulation, trade policy, food and agriculture, sustainable development - at national and international level
- Experience of building partnerships (both financial and other types of support) with institutions, NGOs, government or other types of funders, and of monitoring and reporting back on these
- Aptitude for delivering consistent, high-quality work, often to short deadlines and with a high degree of independence
- Experience of providing performance management and supervision of other staff
- Experience of taking complex policy issues and translating them into accessible communications tools
- Experience of acting as a spokesperson on policy or campaigning issues, including public speaking and/or media spokesperson
- Experience of budget development and management
- Experience of developing media campaigns in a sector relevant to Fairtrade’s vision and mission eg. NGO campaigning, business or retail, international development or sustainability
- Experience of media crisis and reputational management.
- Experience of commissioning and managing the work of freelance consultants, including on policy research and developing policy positions.
- Experience of collaborating on policy and advocacy in partnership with other organisations and individuals, especially those in low-income countries
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Desired:
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- An understanding and experience of the role of social media in stakeholder engagement, especially for news management, media relations, reputational risks and engagement with commercial partners and campaigners
- Experience of developing and maintaining relationships with high profile individuals and/or media partnerships with third parties (D)
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Knowledge & Skills
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Essential:
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- Detailed knowledge of UK political systems, especially Government departments and Westminster and proven experience of working to influence policy and practice.
- An ability to analyse and comment on diverse technical, political and complex issues, and to translate these into simpler messaging for stakeholders
- Excellent oral and written communication skills, including strong report and briefing writing, including policy reports, press releases, press briefings, blogs, and other materials for wider stakeholder or public consumption
- Demonstrable negotiation and advocacy skills, with tact and diplomacy
- Superb interpersonal skills, especially in dealing with journalists and the media, and for networking with press offices on joint campaigns and projects
- Excellent leadership and project management skills, with the ability to inspire, coordinate and manage others in the development and delivery of high profile stories, projects or media campaigns
- An understanding of the role of digital and social media for news management, media relations and PR campaign purposes
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Desired:
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- An ability to speak another language (French, Spanish)
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Fairtrade Values
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We want everyone to be ambassadors for the organisation and encourage staff & volunteers to speak at events which on occasion might be during evenings and weekends, to promote diversity, equality and inclusion in everything we do, and champion our values.
Fairtrade’s global values are: ‘Accountability’, ‘Integrity’, ‘Respect’ and ‘Partnership’. These values should be embedded in your work and behaviour, and any associated policies and processes adopted consistently.
At Fairtrade we are committed to the safeguarding and protection of children & vulnerable adults in our work. We will do everything possible to ensure that only those who are suitable to work within this environment are recruited to work for us.
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Review Arrangements
The details contained in the Job Description reflect the content of the job at the date the job description was prepared. It should be remembered, however, that it is inevitable that over time the nature of individual jobs will change; existing duties may be lost, and other duties may be gained without changing the general character of the duties or the level of responsibility entailed. Consequently, the Fairtrade Foundation will expect to revise this job description from time to time
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