DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

8 May 2025-23:59-GMT+01:00 Central European Time (Rome)
WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

Education: Advanced University degree in Journalism, International Relations, Public Relations, Communications or other relevant field, or First University degree with two additional years of related work experience.

Experience:

• Minimum eleven years of relevant professional work experience in communications roles of which at least seven years of journalistic experience.
• Extensive experience in specialized communications practices and expert knowledge of the external context in which these apply
• Multi-functional and cross-geography team leadership experience in the delivery of innovative communications projects
• Proven experience in advising senior leadership on strategies to improve the organization’s approach to communication support services
• Proven experience in creating media strategies, plans, and materials, and ensuring their successful implementation across a highly matrixed global organization.
• Experience supporting senior leadership in vertical collaboration, contributing to high-level strategic positioning of the organization’s voice and narrative.
• Demonstrated experience managing reputational risk and developing effective crisis communication plans and strategies.

Language: Fluency (level C) in English language. Intermediate knowledge (level B) of a second official UN language: Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, Spanish, and/or Portuguese (a WFP working language).

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive, within delegated authority):

• Develop communications strategies aimed at promoting the identity and profile of WFP and its commitment to food assistance.
• Plan, design, implement and monitor the communications plan for assigned area, implementing the corporate communications strategy, in order to ensure cost effective results, enhance the reputation of WFP, and support fundraising activities, ensuring alignment with WFP strategy.
• Provide advice and support to RBs on the design and implementation of regional strategies and plans, ensuring compliance with wider WFP and communications strategy and taking into account the specific regional context and audience to develop appropriate, effective communications.
• Develop, supervise and evaluate complex communications campaigns that favorably impact the views of the public, opinion leaders and donors in order to raise WFP’s profile and generate donor support.
• Ensure contact lists of journalists and media outlets are maintained, a regular flow of news/information about WFP’s work is distributed to the media, and reputational risks are identified and managed.
• Ensure that social media plans are defined and followed which leverage social media content, platforms, networks and partners to enhance coverage and support of WFP’s activities.
• Oversee the development of a range of donor specific visibility content including, text, photos, videos and audio for use across a range of integrated online platforms, in order to support global and country fund-raising activities, ensuring consistency with corporate messages.
• Oversee the design and delivery of internal communications plans so staff understand and engage with WFP’s strategy and how they contribute to meeting WFP’s mission.
• Continuously monitor and evaluate unit performance in order to ensure results meet objectives, and to identify, recommend and oversee changes to improve the effectiveness of communications strategies.
• Lead and manage a team of Communications Officers, develop work plans, set objectives, monitor performance, and ensure appropriate development to enable high performance.
• Define performance indicators, and monitor and oversee accurate and timely reporting, ensuring a WFP wide view of communications activities that enables informed decision making, evaluation of objectives and consistency of information presented to stakeholders.
• Lead capacity building of WFP staff on all aspects of communication, ensuring appropriate training is delivered to staff, and providing advice up the senior management level in order to ensure consistent, quality communications that deliver the desired impact.
• Identify and build effective collaborations and partnerships internally and externally to align activities, and ensure a coherent approach to communications.
• Take responsibility for an equitable and inclusive workplace which incorporates all dimensions of the WFP diversity and inclusion framework.
• Contribute to preparedness actions, providing technical recommendations and guidance and monitoring the management of communications specific risks.
• Other as required

The Senior Communications Officer reports to the Director of Communications and Media at WFP and leads the Global Media team to develop, plan and implement communications strategy, working closely with senior leadership to align communications plans with business objectives.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES (not all-inclusive, within delegated authority):

• Develop communications strategies aimed at promoting the identity and profile of WFP and its commitment to food assistance.
• Plan, design, implement and monitor the communications plan for assigned area, implementing the corporate communications strategy, in order to ensure cost effective results, enhance the reputation of WFP, and support fundraising activities, ensuring alignment with WFP strategy.
• Provide advice and support to RBs on the design and implementation of regional strategies and plans, ensuring compliance with wider WFP and communications strategy and taking into account the specific regional context and audience to develop appropriate, effective communications.
• Develop, supervise and evaluate complex communications campaigns that favorably impact the views of the public, opinion leaders and donors in order to raise WFP’s profile and generate donor support.
• Ensure contact lists of journalists and media outlets are maintained, a regular flow of news/information about WFP’s work is distributed to the media, and reputational risks are identified and managed.
• Ensure that social media plans are defined and followed which leverage social media content, platforms, networks and partners to enhance coverage and support of WFP’s activities.
• Oversee the development of a range of donor specific visibility content including, text, photos, videos and audio for use across a range of integrated online platforms, in order to support global and country fund-raising activities, ensuring consistency with corporate messages.
• Oversee the design and delivery of internal communications plans so staff understand and engage with WFP’s strategy and how they contribute to meeting WFP’s mission.
• Continuously monitor and evaluate unit performance in order to ensure results meet objectives, and to identify, recommend and oversee changes to improve the effectiveness of communications strategies.
• Lead and manage a team of Communications Officers, develop work plans, set objectives, monitor performance, and ensure appropriate development to enable high performance.
• Define performance indicators, and monitor and oversee accurate and timely reporting, ensuring a WFP wide view of communications activities that enables informed decision making, evaluation of objectives and consistency of information presented to stakeholders.
• Lead capacity building of WFP staff on all aspects of communication, ensuring appropriate training is delivered to staff, and providing advice up the senior management level in order to ensure consistent, quality communications that deliver the desired impact.
• Identify and build effective collaborations and partnerships internally and externally to align activities, and ensure a coherent approach to communications.
• Take responsibility for an equitable and inclusive workplace which incorporates all dimensions of the WFP diversity and inclusion framework.
• Contribute to preparedness actions, providing technical recommendations and guidance and monitoring the management of communications specific risks.
• Other as required.