Communications Associate (Corporate Communications)

Scope of the role

The scope requires an understanding of media and employee relations from strategy to execution, including stakeholder/employee relations and brand reputation management. The work will cut across management comms, industry and trade engagement, employee engagement and stakeholder relations. Depending on the portfolio assigned, responsibilities may also include corporate campaigns and protocol support. The hire will lead selected areas and support colleagues across the wider team.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop management comms, including company announcements, speeches and talking points. Research relevant examples and coordinate inputs to support leaders' speaking engagements and thought leadership.
• Plan and deliver industry and trade comms. Develop story angles and media releases, handle media enquiries, and build relationships with local and regional trade media and industry partners.
• Coordinate corporate awards and sponsorships, including assessing opportunities, gathering inputs and managing submissions, approvals and timelines.
• Work across business units to deliver employee engagement comms and activities, including Townhall content and Intranet staff updates. This may also include coordinating comms for major corporate campaigns and company milestone anniversaries.
• Support protocol for company visits and events involving political office holders and dignitaries, including the drafting of administrative briefs. Coordinate corporate gifts, where required.
• Support crisis and reputation work through media monitoring and social listening, early issue flagging, and the drafting of holding lines, FAQs and other response materials.
• Use approved AI tools for research, drafting and summaries, checking accuracy and protecting confidential information.

Functional Competencies

• Organised, proactive and collaborative, with the flexibility to move between writing, stakeholder coordination and event support.
• Strong writing and editing skills, with the ability to turn complex inputs into clear messages and adapt the tone for leaders, media, staff and external stakeholders.
• Experience planning and delivering corporate comms, media relations or public relations work, with sound news judgement and the ability to develop clear story angles.
• Able to research and draft leadership materials or employee comms, including sensitive announcements, with sound judgement and attention to accuracy.
• Strong stakeholder management skills and confidence working with senior leaders, business units, media, government, industry and community partners.
• Good project and event management skills, with the ability to coordinate inputs, manage several timelines and follow through on details.
• Comfortable using digital content platforms and approved AI tools, with care for accuracy and confidentiality.
• Able to interpret media coverage and feedback to suggest practical comms actions. Familiarity with social listening tools is an advantage.

• Bachelor's Degree in related discipline
• 3 to 5 years of relevant experience in corporate comms or a comms agency, preferably in a large or complex organisation.
• Relevant experience should include thought leadership/management comms, media relations, employee engagement and stakeholder relations
• Experience with protocol and issues management is an advantage