Head: Corporate Communications at Santam Insurance

Job Description

The Head: Corporate Communications has overall accountability for the strategy and execution of a holistic internal and external communications capability to enhance the brand and positioning of the organisation amongst all stakeholders. These communications are targeted at internal stakeholders, business and financial media, investors, customers and other critical audiences with the objective of building awareness and understanding of the company's business strategy, long-term growth potential, various positions on key issues, and how the company delivers innovative products and services. The incumbent also has accountability for enhancing the reputation of the Santam Group of companies and positioning the company as a thought leader and a successful, growing, innovative provider of a broad range of insurance and risk management solutions.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and execute an internal and external communications strategy in order to pro-actively position Santam as an industry and thought - leader amongst all stakeholders, including:Drive the implementation of Santam’s internal and external communication strategies including media relations, crisis communication and reputation management
• employees
• brokers & customers
• shareholders/ investors, government and public organisations
• media
• Understand the communication needs of internal and external audiences and maximise opportunities to drive communication strategies and plans accordingly
• Align all communication with all Santam’s chosen stakeholders
• Work very closely with the Commercial, Personal and Specialist business teams; enabling them to meet their commercial objectives by providing them with appropriate communications solutions.
• Liaise with other support functions throughout the Group in order to implement business practices that support overall Group Corporate Communication activities
• Develop and manage a client communication capability to ensure consistency in the way Santam communicates with clients.
• Liaise with Marketing, HR, and other functional areas in the Group, towards supporting the Santam Values and core brand activities
• Implement an employee communications strategy that aims to make every employee a brand advocate and position Santam as a leading employer
• Oversee the event management function for the group
• Report and provide technical communication support to Exco and business e.g. Communicating annual and interim results to the media
• Communicate key business decisions to media e.g. Acquisitions
• Communicate the transformation and sustainability position effectively and impactfully
• Stay abreast of all relevant digital communication platforms to optimise the organisation’s communication channels
• Act as the media spokesperson, and take accountability for all media queries and requests
• Maintain and develop an effective network of key media contacts
• Drive and manage the external communications strategy with the selected PR firm
• Ensure that all aspects of communications are co-ordinated, integrated and leveraged to enhance Santam’s positioning amongst stakeholders
• Responsible for Finance (budget) and Risk management of the function
• Develop and implement a systemic approach to monitoring and tracking communication performance, ROI and also recommend and activate strategies to address gaps and respond to competitor strategies.
• Direct and manage the Communcations team’s performance (KPIs)and enable their development plans to ensure that both personal and business objectives are being met.
• Drive the Santam Way values and promote a positive team culture.

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor's degree with relevant major (Communications/Journalism/Marketing); Postgraduate degree (preferable)
• Extensive Communications background and experience, including 8-10 years’ experience in external communication role
• Experience in a large corporate environment
• Crisis management experience
• Experience working with digital/social media
• Writing and editing ability/ experience
• Good understanding of the South African media landscape
• Experience in developing and executing a successful communications strategy directed towards multiple stakeholders
• Solid experience in external/ media communications, including liaison with and content development for a 3 rd party PR firm
• Good experience in internal communications and providing support at executive level
• Senior management level, with experience in managing a small team
• Strong and meaningful relationships with both mainstream and consumer media - have excellent contacts with key journalists
• Abreast of current communications trends
• Strong interpersonal, verbal and written communications skills
• Excellent business understanding coupled with strong experience in public affairs and strategic communication
• Experience identifying and managing external communications resources

Competencies

• Driving strategy
• Leadership
• Decision-making
• Negotiation
• Enabling Innovation
• Problem solving
• Commercial orientation
• Adaptability
• Aligning Performance for Success.