Marketing and Communications Officer 290 views3 applications

The African Academy of Sciences (AAS) is a non-aligned, non-political, not-for-profit Pan-African organization headquartered in Nairobi, with a hosting agreement with the government of Kenya. The AAS’s vision is to see transformed lives on the African continent through science. It is the only continental Academy in Africa enjoying the support and recognition of the African Union, and with joint programmes with NEPAD Agency, now the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), as well as several governments and major international partners. It has a tripartite mandate: to recognize excellence through its highly prestigious fellowship and award schemes; to provide advisory and think tank functions for shaping the continent’s Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) strategies and policies; and to implement key STI programmes aimed at addressing Africa’s developmental challenges

Global Grant Community Overview

The Global Grant Community (GGC) is the AAS’ financial governance platform that aims to reduce the multitude of financial assessments and audits by standardizing, simplifying and strengthening grant funding worldwide. At the core of the GGC is a new international standard for Good Financial Grant Practice (GFGP) which provides an innovative and integrated approach to financial governance. The enabling platform allows research and academic institutions, NGOs, community-based organisations of any size to rate their capability to receive and manage grants. It provides an online self-assessment tool covering four grant management practice areas of —financial management, procurement, human resources and governance. GFGP has been adopted by the African Organisation for Standards (ARSO) to promote transparency in the use of funds by local organisations to mitigate the risk of fraud and corruption.

Institutions are bench marked on a cumulative four-tier assessment – Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum – that rates their capabilities to manage grants with the goal of:

• Assuring grant makers that their funds are going to recipient organisations with certified capabilities to manage grants
• Reducing the resource burden of grantees by streamlining the audit process
• Mitigating the risk of corruption and fraud

Job Description

Reporting to the Head of Communications and PR, the candidate will be responsible for implementing the GGC marketing and communications strategy, which entails running marketing campaigns, content development for various on and offline platforms, conducting market research of potential users of the GGC etc. The role will require someone with both a creative and analytical mindset.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Support the implementation of the GGC marketing and communications strategy
• Support the planning, management and delivery of engagement and communication events and meetings with a wide range of GGC stakeholders and evaluating their success
• Content development for on and offline platforms, including producing engaging high-profile communications materials for the web and social media, opinion editorials, magazines, corporate publications, leaflets, posters, policy briefs, and e-bulletins
• Contributing to the annual sales and marketing plan including support with monitoring of performance and adjusting as needed
• Producing analytics, including for customer engagement and advertorial KPIs through use of Google AdWords, SEO and analytics, social media and online footprint, among others to evaluate the effectiveness of marketing and communication activities
• Conducting market research to extend the GGC reach and to assess market trends, demographics, and other information that impacts the delivery of the GGC marketing and marketing strategy
• Works with Head of Communications and PR and GGC team to establish budgets and marketing objectives for planning for the year and for campaigns
• Create marketing campaigns and working closely with the GGC and communications teams to execute them

Qualifications

• Degree in Marketing, Communications or a business-related course, a master’s would be preferred
• At least 5 years of experience working in the communications and marketing field
• Strong understanding of modern marketing processes and technology capabilities around the following areas: Marketing Resource Management, Marketing Analytics, and Customer Data Management

Person Specifications

• Previous experience in a marketing and communications role
• Development of effective communication and marketing strategies
• Demonstrates strong writing and editing skills
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment
• Communicates clearly and effectively
• Proficient with social media best practice including use of Business Ads Manager
• Possesses strong organisational skills
• Is detail-oriented, exhibits excellent interpersonal skills and capable of creating and maintaining a network of vendors for promotional events
• Is familiar with publishing programmes like Adobe and In-Design
• Exhibits proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite including Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook
• Can think creatively and analytically and manages time efficiently
• Has worked in a Start-up/Tech Environment