Senior Manager: Internal Communication (1 Year Fixed-Term Contract) at Auditor-General of South Africa

Strategic function

• Develop and implement an organisation-wide internal communication strategy that meets organisational objectives and aligns with AGSA communication and the overall strategy.
• Measure the effectiveness of internal communication messages and channels on an ongoing basis and make recommendations to review and amend the strategy as appropriate.
• Report back to leadership and other key internal stakeholders at regular intervals to ensure the strategy is fit for purpose.

Product management

• Design an internal communication and employee engagement model to enable the organisation to effectively communicate with all internal stakeholders.
• Manage and monitor the AGSA’s internal communication and employee engagement programme to ensure that all internal stakeholders across the country are informed of organisational news, issues and direction, and have mechanisms for providing feedback to management.
• Be the first point of contact for internal communication enquiries and requests for advice.
• Seek opportunities to advise and influence on communication issues.
• Manage internal communication channels.
• Responsible for ensuring the development of new internal communication channels.
• Manage content development and writers.
• Establish and maintain relationships with provincial offices to support the development of inclusive internal communications programmes, ensuring consistency with the central internal communications strategy through aspects such as communication champions.
• Advise BUs on sensitive and complex internal communication challenges, including crisis communication issues.
• Ensure the presence/representation of internal communication on projects as required to ensure that project managers take note of internal communication needs.
• Play a leading role in redeveloping and improving the intranet as a key internal communications tool, working alongside the ICT BU.
• Play a key role in managing internal comms for the senior management workshop.
• Work with ICT and Brand to set and maintain standards for effective email communication across the AGSA.
• Ensure messages from senior leadership are properly reflected in communication to internal stakeholders.
• Promote and disseminate key AGSA policies via internal communications channels.
• Develop and distribute the newsletter on audit insights and internal developments.
• Manage and approve all content for internal communication in consultation with DBUL (written, audio-visual, multi-media, etc.).
• Own the development of leadership communication (e.g. AG/DAG communication, etc.).
• Ensure that relevant events (e.g. Leadership Summit, Audit Planning Workshop, etc.) are supported with messaging and other necessary support from an internal communication perspective.
• Ensure the development of internal communication plans for a range of projects, initiatives and campaigns, and their implementation.

Stakeholder management

• Act as a strategic partner in managing relationships with key internal and external stakeholders.
• Communicate the strategy and objectives to both internal and external stakeholders to ensure understanding of these by all relevant stakeholders.
• Provide thought leadership and knowledge sharing capability within the unit and create awareness to stakeholders across the AGSA.
• Support stakeholders through the various stage gates to deliver on the benefits realisation mandate of strategic projects and programmes
• Scan the environment to ensure a clear understanding of internal stakeholder needs.
• Provide support and guidance to internal stakeholders on product designs and meet their requirements.
• Build and maintain positive and value-adding relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Engage with both internal and external stakeholders to identify and evaluate performance barriers and success to continuously improve on the service delivery.
• Ensure a well-considered value chain among colleagues within the BU and ensure complementarity of work and promote teamwork.
• Manage service level agreements (SLAs).

People management

• Drive a culture of accountability, collaboration and continuous improvement, fostering professional growth within the team.
• Work closely with the business unit leaders to implement and monitor people development plans, ensuring alignment with the broader organisational people strategy.
• Participate and/or take the lead in the business unit transformation/ culture plans.
• Provide support to the management team regarding centre management and other people-related tasks.

Financial management

• Assist in managing and reporting on the centre budget in accordance with the approved finance policies.
• Contribute to the compilation of the centre budget, implement and monitor the budget for the allocated projects.
• Ensure compliance with AGSA policies and procedures.
• Ensure compliance with internal processes and procedures.
• Manage supply chain processes within scope of work.

Other responsibilities (Applicable to all JDs)

• Perform and/or manage other projects, tasks and assignments not stipulated in the job description as and when required.

Formal Education

• This position requires as a minimum a bachelor’s degree in communication, journalism, public relations or similar. Post-graduate degree in public administration or relevant qualification will be an added advantage.

Experience

• Minimum of 10 years’ work experience with 4 to 5 years’ managerial experience in internal communication and a proven track record in implementing effective employee engagement communication initiatives.
• Proven and relevant experience in the public sector in stakeholder management, developing and implementing internal communication strategies would be an added advantage.