The External Affairs Role: 

The External Affairs team sits within the Communications and Marketing Directorate and creates a positive climate of opinion to support DIT’s communications objectives by building understanding, enhancing reputation and deepening engagement and collaboration. The role will manage relationships with stakeholders to build advocacy for our vision, policies and campaigns. 

Key responsibilities include: 

• Continually build insight and map the stakeholder landscape deepening the Department’s understanding of the issues, campaigns and views of key stakeholders to inform our narratives and activities. 

• Manage stakeholder relationships and engagement to enhance the reputation of the Department and ensure effective collaboration and advocacy to support our ambitions. 

• Build a good network of professional contacts especially with stakeholders’ communications and external affairs counterparts. 

• Support high profile forums and stakeholder events from working with cross-cutting business organisations to managing some of the most influential and prestigious set piece events. 

• Provide external affairs advice and delivery for a range of priority cross-departmental campaigns, such as the Export Strategy, Free Trade Agreements and Trade for Development. 

• Generate creative content and messages for stakeholders to disseminate through their channels and networks. You will work with policy, press office, PR and marketing teams to deliver content through multiple DIT channels. 

• Establish systems and processes to coordinate and share stakeholder data and intelligence. 

• Monitor, evaluate and report on the effectiveness of external affairs activities. 

• Contribute to the Government Communications Service and spread best practice across the department, raising understanding of External Affairs. 

• You will have line management responsibility for one direct report. 


Skills Criteria: 

1. Stakeholder engagement and management 

2. Strategic Communications 

3. Relationship management 

4. Influencing skills 

5. Government/political knowledge