Head of Communications

He kōrero mō mātou | About Watercare

Ki te ora te wai, ka ora te whenua, ka ora te tangata

When the water is healthy, the land and the people are healthy

Now is an exciting time to join Watercare, we're planning to spend $14 billion over the next 10 years to ensure we can continue to support our growing city in a climate-resilient way. When you average that out, that's an investment of $3.8 million every day!

He whakamārama mō te tūranga mahi | About the role

As our Head of Communications & Marketing, you will lead the delivery of an integrated, multi-channel communications and marketing strategy that supports Watercare’s corporate direction and positively influences how internal and external stakeholders understand and engage with us.

You will provide leadership and strategic direction across four key areas: external communications, internal communications, marketing, and digital communications. You’ll also lead corporate communications activity including issues and crisis management, reputation management, media engagement, brand strategy, stakeholder communications and thought leadership.

A key part of the role will be staying closely connected to programmes, risks and issues across the business, ensuring Watercare’s narrative is proactive, consistent and aligned. You’ll work directly with the CEO and executive team to provide strategic reputational advice and communications guidance on key matters

In This Role, You Will

• Develop and implement an integrated brand, communications and marketing strategy aligned to Watercare’s corporate strategy.
• Lead reputation, issues and crisis communications, including helping guide Watercare’s response to incidents, risks and emerging issues.
• Provide strategic leadership across media relations, proactive external content, digital communications, internal communications and marketing campaigns.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with the Mayor’s Office, Auckland Council, CCOs, media, agencies and other key external stakeholders.
• Support the Chief Executive and executive team with thought leadership, strategic messaging and reputational advice.
• Lead communications and marketing activity that supports stakeholder engagement, public relations, sponsorship, community outreach and education programmes.
• Strengthen internal communications that support culture, change, health, safety and wellbeing, and help our people understand Watercare’s direction and progress.

Ngā pūkenga e rapu nei mātou | About you

You’ll bring strong strategic thinking, excellent relationship management skills, and the ability to communicate complex information in a clear, compelling and accessible way. You’ll be comfortable working with senior leaders, board-level stakeholders, shareholder representatives, media and external partners, while also building strong relationships across all business units.

You’ll Also Bring

• Proven experience leading high-performing communications, marketing or corporate affairs teams.
• Strong experience in reputation management, issues management and/or crisis communications.
• Excellent communication, presentation, influencing and storytelling skills.
• The ability to remain calm, constructive and level-headed under pressure.
• Strong emotional intelligence and the ability to lead with empathy, integrity and resilience.
• A collaborative style, with the ability to work cross-functionally and bring people together around common goals.
• Strong judgement, active listening skills and the ability to apply sound logic when solving problems.
• The ability to prioritise and manage diverse workloads in a dynamic and changing environment.
• A customer-focused approach and a passion for building trusted, enduring relationships inside and outside the business.

Ngā hua mōu | What's in it for you

We offer a competitive salary and staff benefits package including:

• Training and development opportunities
• Life and income protection insurance plans
• Generous parental leave
• Employee discounts at a range of large retailers

Me pēhea te tono mai | How to Apply

Come and join our team! If you are looking for an exciting career opportunity with a fantastic team then please apply online today - careers.watercare.co.nz.