Germany Director (Strategic Communications) At Future Advocacy

Location: Berlin preferred; other German locations possible.

Contract Type: Fixed Term to 31st December 2027 (with potential to be made permanent), 35 hours per week.

Start Date: To start as soon as possible.

Reports to: CEO

Salary and Benefits: €80-110K, depending on experience, plus a discretionary annual bonus, business development bonus, and 35 days leave per annum (inclusive of bank holidays)

Learning and Development: We want our people to flourish and grow whilst working for us, helping to contribute towards Future Advocacy’s continued success and impact. This is why we place a big emphasis on learning and development.

Why join us?

Future Advocacy is a global agency, currently based in London and Brussels, that puts cutting-edge advocacy, campaigning and communications tools into the hands of individuals and organisations working to create a better future.

We are highly skilled at:

• Designing winning advocacy strategies and delivering impactful global government relations work
• Mobilising targeted and powerful campaigns for change
• Strategic communications strategies and social media management
• Research, analysis, policy development and writing
• Training in all aspects of strategy, lobbying, campaigning, and media work

We are proud to work for some fantastic clients seeking to make the world a better place. Current and previous clients include the Jamie Oliver Group; Movember; the Elton John AIDS Foundation; WaterAid; the Brave Movement; Bite Back 2030; World Food Programme; Islamic Relief; and Sarah Brown’s TheirWorld charity.

Future Advocacy also produces high quality research on a range of policy issues. Our work has received significant media coverage and political traction. Our research clients include the NHS, Wellcome Trust, World Wide Web Foundation, Open Data Institute, and the Pathways for Prosperity Commission which was co-chaired by Melinda Gates.

Our Founder/CEO previously was Director of the ONE campaign across Europe for seven years, responsible for all ONE’s policy, campaigns, digital, media, and advocacy work. He was a key architect of the Make Poverty History Campaign; Movement Director for the anti-slavery organisation Walk Free; and an Executive Director of the UK Labour Party.

The Role

Future Advocacy is seeking to set up an office in Germany, and we are therefore seeking to appoint a Germany Director.

We are looking for a brilliant strategic communications expert to play a big role in our team, with entrepreneurial drive, who can develop our work in this new location. This is a great opportunity to lead, and contribute to, some very exciting and impactful projects working with some of our brilliant clients. It is also an exciting time to join the organisation – you will be overseeing the continued expansion of our advocacy work into Germany and will lead on an important project to shift the narrative around development and international aid in Germany. You will work closely with the Founder/CEO; the Director of Advocacy and Communications in London; and the Director of our EU Office in Brussels as part of our small, happy, and dynamic team.

The Germany Director will play a lead role in a major new project supported by the Gates Foundation to create a Strategic Communications and Advocacy Lab (SCAL) in Germany. The goal of SCAL is to shift dominant narratives around Official Development Assistance (international “aid”) and create political space for more government action in this area.

Responsibilities will include:

• Designing and delivering strategic communications and advocacy strategies in Germany and globally
• Leading and contributing to client projects
• Leading on business development in Germany
• Expanding our network in Germany
• Other tasks as required

Skills and Experience:

You will have all, or very nearly all, of the following:

• A strong track record in designing and delivering impactful strategic communications and advocacy strategies in Germany and elsewhere
• Experience of designing and delivering digital strategies
• Excellent media relations skills and a strong network of journalists
• A strong understanding of German politics and a strong political network
• A strong understanding of the third sector (NGOs, Think Tanks, Foundations etc) and a strong third sector network in Germany and globally
• Excellent written and verbal communications skills, in German and English
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team
• Enthusiasm, flexibility, and ability to manage competing priorities
• Ability to represent the organisation to high level individuals and clients
• The entrepreneurial drive to establish our presence in Germany
• Experience in managing agencies
• Experience in international development would be an asset
• Understanding of EU processes would be an asset

Our Culture

Our culture and values are very important to us, allowing us to thrive in a fast-changing world. The key values that drive us at Future Advocacy are:

• Always Learning: We constantly strive to improve the work we do, as a team and as individuals.
• Impactful: We define success in terms of the impact our work has on making the world more equal, sustainable and more prosperous.
• Supportive: We are open, responsive, positive and supportive to each other and to others.