Director of Stakeholder Relations

Director of Stakeholder Relations, English

Location: Flexible UK with weekly access to Cambridge and London

Salary: £81,900 - £112,650

Contract: Permanent, full time

Closing date: Friday 24th January 2025

Please apply by emailing your CV and covering letter to retained consultants Signium UK.

Shape the Future of English Learning and Assessment

Cambridge University Press & Assessment is a global leader in education, employing more than 6,000 people, around 60% in the UK and 40% internationally. We maximise our impact through careful listening and collaboration to develop innovative products and services that are relevant, exciting and inspiring.

Our offer is exceptional in its depth and breadth. We're focused on meeting the needs of our students and customers by bringing research, teaching, learning and assessment together. A philosophy of fairness and integrity runs through everything we do, and we are committed to the delivery of our goals through the way we work together, both in teams and as individuals. Our values are Collaboration, Empowerment, Innovation and Responsibility.

Cambridge English is a division of Cambridge University Press & Assessment. We help people learn English and prove their skills to the world. Our qualifications and tests for learners and teachers of English are recognised worldwide as a mark of excellence. We are the producer and proud co-owner of IELTS, the world's leading English test for migration and higher education.

Bring your skills and experience to help us grow

The Role

The Director of Stakeholder Relations (English) will play a pivotal role during a dynamic period of engagement and advocacy with stakeholders, policy makers, parliamentarians, senior education leaders, and immigration authorities in the UK and globally. This role is essential for proactively promoting English language learning and assessment through strategic stakeholder engagement, policy development, and communications.

The overarching purpose of this role is to leverage stakeholder engagement, communications, and policy expertise to position Cambridge University Press & Assessment - English as global leaders in delivering educational, learning, and research excellence at the highest international standards.

Key Accountabilities:

• Vision and Strategy: Set out the vision and ambition for stakeholder engagement. Develop and execute long-term communications strategies and activities, aligned with key business objectives.
• Stakeholder Mapping and Management: Identify, prioritize, and influence key stakeholders to support strategic goals and achieve mutually beneficial outcomes.
• Policy and Public Affairs: Lead policy and public affairs engagement with critical senior stakeholders in government, parliament, industry organisations and regulatory bodies. Act as a senior ambassador and advocate for Cambridge University Press & Assessment and the wider industry.
• Strategic communications: Able to set communications strategy while delivering first rate media relations, commentary, speech-writing, messaging and briefing materials.
• Advisory Role: Serve as a trusted adviser to senior leaders on influencing, policy and regulatory issues, offering strategic guidance on government and regulatory engagement.
• Public Representation: Act as the public face of the organisation with external stakeholders, including politicians, senior officials, and other senior industry figures. Represent CUP&A at conferences, media engagements, parliamentary committees, and other arenas.
• Strategic, Budgetary & Performance Management: Lead and deliver the English strategy for policy and public affairs, managing related budgets and people. Develop performance measures for the Public Affairs, Policy & Research (PAPR) strategy for English.
• Advocacy and Campaigns: Direct and oversee the development and implementation of strategic campaigns. Develop advocacy positions and strategies for executing advocacy campaigns.
• Public Affairs Spokesperson: Serve as English's public affairs spokesperson, engaging with political and regulatory audiences. Design and execute party conference and parliamentary events programmes.

About you

• Deep understanding of policy development, public affairs, and regulatory processes. Familiarity with legislative and regulatory environments. Substantial experience working in a public affairs role, ideally within education or a related industry, and having a well-developed network and relevant contacts
• Proficient in crafting and delivering strategic communications, including internal communications strategies that align with business objectives.
• In-depth knowledge of the political landscape, including key players, current issues, and trends. Ability to provide strategic advice on political and regulatory matters.
• Skilled in developing and executing strategic plans that align with organisational goals and drive engagement and advocacy.
• Strong project management skills, with the ability to oversee multiple initiatives, manage budgets, and deliver projects on time and within scope.
• Strong presentation and communication skills, adept at engaging with the media, members, and political audiences.
• Bachelor's degree, ideally in a relevant field. A Master's degree is preferred.
• Extensive experience in stakeholder management, public affairs, policy development, or a related role. Proven track record of successful stakeholder engagement and advocacy initiatives. UK experience is essential; international experience is highly desirable.
• Demonstrated leadership abilities, including experience leading teams and working collaboratively with senior executives. Ability to motivate and inspire others to achieve strategic goals.

Rewards and benefits

We will support you to be at your best at work and to live well outside of it. In addition to competitive salaries, we offer a world-class, flexible rewards package, featuring family-friendly and planet-friendly benefits including:

• 28 days annual leave plus bank holidays
• Private medical and Permanent Health Insurance
• Discretionary annual bonus
• Group personal pension scheme
• Life assurance up to 4 x annual salary
• Green travel schemes

We are a hybrid working organisation, and we offer a range of flexible working options from day one. We expect most hybrid-working colleagues to spend 40-60% of their time at their dedicated office or location. We will also consider other work arrangements if you wish to work more flexibly or require adjustments due to a disability.

Please apply by emailing your CV and covering letter to retained consultants Signium UK.

The closing date for applications is Friday January

Joining us is your opportunity to pursue potential. You'll belong to a collaborative team that's exploring new and better ways to serve students, teachers and researchers across the globe - for the benefit of individuals, society and the world. Sharing our mission will inspire your own growth, development and progress, in an environment which embraces difference, change and aspiration.

Cambridge University Press & Assessment is committed to being a place where anyone can enjoy a successful career, where it's safe to speak up, and where we learn continuously to improve together. We welcome applications from all candidates, regardless of demographic characteristics (age, disability, educational attainment, ethnicity, gender, marital status, neurodiversity, religion, sex, gender identity and sexual identity), cultural, or social class/background.

We believe better outcomes come through diversity of thought, background and approach. We welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and communities, actively seeking to employ people from a wide range of different communities .