Communications Assistant at Education Sub Saharan Africa (ESSA)

ABOUT THE ROLE

• The Communications Assistant will help us reach our audiences with engaging content that has an impact.
• Working with colleagues across the organisation, you will be helping to turn evidence about education into compelling messages and tools for our audiences, produce content for our platforms, and take our digital media engagement to the next level.
• You will also be highly organised; attentive to details, helping produce and distribute marketing materials, plan events, and provide administrative support.
• This is an exciting opportunity to become part of an enthusiastic team and play a key role in expanding our work.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES:

Digital Media

• Monitor ESSA's digital platforms, including the website, African Education Research Database, and African Scholarship Hub, to ensure they are all functioning.
• Upload content to ESSA's website pages (via Drupal). This includes maintaining staff bios and pictures, blogs, and event web pages as well as monitoring how external audiences interact with the website.
• Write content and layout ESSA monthly newsletter on Mailchimp.
• Regularly update social media channels (Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube) to ensure increased brand awareness, reach and engagement.
• Ensure all staff email signatures are updated.
• Assist in the creation of a consistent visual identity and messaging across all digital platforms.
• Work with the communications and monitoring teams to use monthly analytics data to develop new ways of engaging audiences online.

Content Creation

• Create and manage the content calendar for the website, newsletters, digital platforms, and social media channels.
• Contribute to the development of project communications plans.
• Create visual elements such as animations and videos.
• Design fundraising materials, short research reports, graphics, posters, flyers, and other materials.
• Manage digital archives, keep an organised image, and video clip file-management system.

Team Support

• Assist the ESSA team with offline and virtual event planning (such as webinars), including event list management and event marketing materials.
• Schedule meetings, take minutes, and prepare communications team purchase orders and payment requests.
• Assist with communications support for programmes and research as needed.

PERSON SPECIFICATION:

Essential

• Experience with digital media including web content management, email, and social media.
• Copy writing skills.
• Advanced design skills.
• Advanced video editing skills.
• Able to craft engaging content.
• Care and attention to detail.
• Able to organise and communicate about online and offline events.
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage and prioritise tasks under pressure.
• Strong IT skills, with experience of Microsoft Office and Teams.
• Good familiarity with online tools and an ability to pick up unfamiliar tools quickly e.g., Zoom and Microsoft Project.
• Excellent written and oral English communications skills.
• Ability to work independently, displaying strong initiative in solving problems with limited direction.
• Ability to read data and make meaningful conclusions that help improve and optimise digital media strategy, and leverage time and effort invested in the different platforms.
• Able to build relationships across the ESSA team and with external partners and stakeholders.
• Comfortable working as part of a remote and distributed team.
• Holder of a Higher National Diploma or bachelor's degree, or relevant experience in communications.

Desirable

• Knowledge of Drupal.
• Knowledge of French.
• Experience with Google Analytics.
• Experience of using Office 365 for collaborative working.
• Basic Microsoft Excel skills.
• Open to learning advanced communication skills.