Campaigns Manager

Internal job title: National Campaigns (& Influencers) Manager 

Advertised Salary: £48,000 + benefits

Location: Remote, with regular travel across our network required. 

Looking for a new opportunity in a national campaigns role that is making a difference to millions of people, is helping nature recover and ensuring a 250-year-old historic network continues to be relevant for future generations?

We’re the UK’s largest canal charity – help us drive our campaigns to the next level, increasing our awareness and growing our support. The 250-year-old waterways in our care – the canals, embankments, culverts, and reservoirs as well as the bridges, locks and towpaths – and their vital ecosystems are threatened by the growing impact of climate change and more extreme weather. They need constant upkeep and investment. Without it, they face decline and closure, and we risk losing the incredible benefits they bring. Together, we believe we can keep canals alive. We’re asking people to join us and protect waterways for nature to thrive and everyone to enjoy. Today and in the future. 

Job purpose

This position will be instrumental in helping our charity achieve our ambitious targets for increasing brand awareness, building brand comprehension, and growing our supporter base - individual givers, advocates and volunteers. We are looking for a highly motivated, impactful, resourceful, and collaborative manager who wants to work for a charity with purpose, within a friendly, ambitious, and supportive team.

The ideal candidate will: 

• Have extensive experience of working successfully in a similar role within a high-profile charity producing impactful results.

• Have significant experience of leading a team to develop and deliver a broad calendar of integrated campaigns that have resulted in meeting brand awareness, advocacy, lead generation, fundraising and volunteering growth targets.

• Be proficient in using the entire marketing and communications mix, demonstrating substantial experience in campaign management, public relations, influencer engagement, content production, social media, channel management, and advertising.

• Be an experienced manager, leading a multidisciplinary team of direct reports and wider matrix management, with excellent project management skills.

• Thrive working in a fast-paced and target-driven charitable environment, being able to hit the ground running, bringing a resilient personality, gravitas and a highly curious and creative mind!

Location

This role will be offered on a remote working basis, with a requirement to attend our main hub spaces for team working and collaborative meetings.  Hubs we can assign to you include: Milton Keynes, London, Hatton, and Birmingham. 

Applicants will need to be located to easily access our office locations Milton Keynes to attend face-to-face team meetings (once or twice a week). The regularity & flexibility of travel will be discussed further at interview stage.

About the role

This position sits within the Strategy, Engagement and Impact directorate and reports directly to the Head of Marketing & Brand. See a detailed specification attached. 

Key responsibilities:  

• Responsible for developing and delivering integrated campaigns working closely with Fundraising, Comms & External Relations and Regional teams. This will include, but is not limited to: growing charity awareness, fundraising priorities, public campaigns to grow and maintain our advocacy base, other campaigns to support strategic priorities. 
• Taking a lead role in co-creation, development and project management, you will ensure our national campaigns resonate seamlessly in both the digital world and on our towpaths. Utilising matrix management, you'll bring internal and external teams and agencies together to oversee all aspects of our campaigns. Engaging the entire marketing mix, you'll develop, implement, integrate, and evaluate campaigns across various channels, including PR, digital, advertising, and influencer amplification.
• Lead the Trust’s influencer and celebrity programme. You will develop our influencer and celebrity programme which will ensure the Trust has fantastic relationships with a high-calibre and high-profile cohort of brand ambassadors (both macro and micro) supporting our campaigns and amplifying our messages.
• Lead third-party filming location management against income targets whilst optimising brand awareness. .
• Lead on partnership campaign alliances, both proactive and reactive,ensuring that we maximise reach and amplification for our campaign. 
• Team and agency leadership - You will lead, manage and inspire a team of four experienced campaigns, filming and celebrity professionals. Alongside this you will matrix manage internal colleagues and external agencies to deliver on campaigns. 4 direct reports.
• You will support the wider Trust in providing resilience across our touchpoints. This will include providing backup support for the Comms team, Social Media and associated analysis of channels. You will have a good working knowledge of the methods and tools.
• Working in a fast-paced and reactive environment, you will be expected to be flexible, take on additional tasks, roles, responsibilities and team members if and when required, in line with any changes in organisational needs. 

About you

We're seeking someone with a proven track record of collaborative success within the charitable world, delivering fully integrated campaigns with proven results supporting fundraising. The preferred candidate should excel in matrix management, showcasing exceptional organisational skills and a structured approach to tasks such as briefing, project management, and reporting. 

Qualifications:

• Degree in marketing (or related degree) would be advantageous, but not essential. 

Technical: 

• Experience of developing and leading high profile multi-channel campaigns in a public facing charity. Experience delivery integrated fundraising campaigns, advantageous. 
• Experience in project management, writing reports and analysing project and programme successes. Demonstrable experience of managing budgets and the ability to delivery results on low budgets, ensuring value for money.
• Extensive experience of digital communications, including managing online PR, digital outreach and social media channels. 
• Experience in managing filming and broadcast requests and dealing with location managers.
• Experience of leading and coaching a team of campaign and influencer professionals.
• Experience of overseeing an influencer and celebrity programme.
• Experience of media relations and working with journalists to gain high-profile national and regional media coverage.
• Experience of managing agencies, ensuring the Trust receives excellent value for money and SLAs and KPIs are met.
• Experience of presenting and writing reports for senior managers.

General:

• An insight-led campaign approach, including using market research, data science and behavioural science theories.
• Advanced project and programme management skills.
• Good communication skills, with the ability to build and sustain excellent and positive relationships with a wide-range of senior stakeholders, internally and externally.
• Attention to detail, combined with first-class organisation and time management skills.
• Collaborative worker and team member.
• Advanced use of social media and other digital channel campaigning tools and methods.
• Excellent written skills, a stickler for good grammar and knowledge creative writing.
• Competence in Microsoft Office, especially Word, O365 and Excel.

To apply:  click on the "Apply for this job" button and follow the process - complete the application form & upload current CV.

What we offer

In addition to your annual base salary of £48,000, we also offer a competitive contributory DC Pension scheme arrangement, and numerous other employee benefits, including several salary sacrifice benefits we are also open to flexible working arrangements.

• Competitive contributory DC Pension scheme arrangement, where we will double your contribution to a maximum of 10%.
• 25 days paid holiday (plus paid Bank Holidays), increasing to 30 days after 5 years.
• Home working status with ‘hub’ facilities available should you need the flexibility to work outside of home.
• Annual £200 personal learning & growth award to spend on any learning related activity.
• Free access to specialist counselling on a range of issues, e.g. health, financial, well-being and domestic matters.
• Access to a range of employee benefits including store discounts, boating holiday discounts and holiday purchase scheme.
• 2 days paid volunteering leave per annum, allowing you to volunteer for a local community project etc.
• Free fishing facilities across our canal network.

At the Trust we care passionately for our waterways, and as importantly, for those who look after and use them. We strongly believe that a diverse workforce brings with it a diversity of ideas, thinking and ways of working which enhances what we do as a Trust. We are striving to represent the diverse communities that we are a part of and welcome applicants from across all sectors of the community.

All candidates will be treated on the basis of their merits, skills and abilities and solely by being assessed against the requirements for the job.

When you join the Canal & River Trust you become a member of an engaged team working to preserve our heritage for future generations. Come and share your passion and knowledge with a team that makes a difference to millions of people every day.

Find out more about us on our website.