Head of Communications and Marketing

Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland (CHSS) is Scotland’s largest health charity working to help people with chest, heart and stroke conditions live life to the full. Nobody in Scotland should have to face their health journey on their own. Experiencing a life-changing event like a heart attack or stroke or being diagnosed with a chest or heart condition or Long Covid, can mean that people are scared and alone. Many people do not know where to turn. CHSS deliver a community where people with these conditions can support each other, secure the expert help they need, and advocate for the care that matters to them.

As Head of Communications and Marketing, you will be a dynamic strategic leader responsible for driving innovative and impactful communication and marketing initiatives. Your role will be pivotal in strengthening the CHSS brand, enhancing reputation, and fostering meaningful engagement with diverse audiences including service users, volunteers, supporters to healthcare professionals and the wider public.

Whether through impactful storytelling, creative campaigns, or evidence-based marketing you will enable key stakeholders to connect and utilise the services when they need it most.

To have a positive impact in the role, you will:

• Provide strategic leadership and operational management to the Communication & Marketing Team fostering a supportive and high-performing culture that encourages creativity, innovation and cross-functional collaboration within the team
• Ensure the communications and marketing strategy is fit for purpose and aligns with CHSS’s organisational objectives, focusing on increasing awareness, engagement, and income generation
• Collaborate with teams across Income Generation, External Engagement, Volunteering, and Services to elevate marketing and communication strategies, bringing expertise in digital marketing, internal communications, and media to develop compelling, audience-focused messaging and campaigns that resonate with target audiences
• Develop and implement audience segmentation techniques and analytics to enhance brand marketing efforts, ensuring that content and campaigns are strategically adapted to resonate with diverse demographics and maximise reach
• Drive the development of compelling content, including case studies, press releases, blog posts, and multimedia, to tell impactful stories of people affected by chest, heart, and stroke conditions
• Develop and implement an internal communications strategy that fosters colleague engagement aligned with our current No Life Half Lived strategy and objectives, creating a strong emotional and practical connection
• As a brand guardian, uphold brand guidelines to ensure consistent representation across all platforms, proactively manage reputational risks and develop strategies to protect and strengthen CHSS’s reputation

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Provide line management and support across the Communication & Marketing team (including Content, Policy and Campaigns, Web and Digital, Design, Press, and Social Media – 7 FTE), ensuring collaborative planning and maximising impact
• Foster a culture of creativity, accountability and ownership by setting clear expectations, empowering team members, and motivating colleagues to achieve both personal objectives and team KPIs
• Continuously evaluate and optimise communications and marketing activities promoting industry best practice and identifying opportunities for continuous improvement and personal development across the team
• Oversee the full lifecycle of communication and marketing campaigns, from initial concept through to in-depth evaluation, ensuring each aligns with key performance indicators and key strategic priorities
• Lead impactful marketing, brand, and communication initiatives, leveraging diverse channels to engage target audiences and measure success against KPIs
• Build and maintain strong relationships with media outlets and influencers, manage media interactions as a trusted source, and monitor and report on media coverage and communication outcomes
• Engage effectively with external stakeholders to showcase the value and impact of CHSS, using the External Engagement Toolkit and CHSS standards to enhance reach, align with strategic goals, and ensure positive, mission-driven interactions
• Ensure Volunteers, who have a vital role in the delivery of the ‘No Life Half Lived’ strategy, have positive, meaningful experiences, whilst also promoting volunteer opportunities to stakeholders, and directly supporting volunteer recruitment campaigns and feedback initiatives
• Lead cross-functional and oversee project and campaign budgets, ensuring external suppliers adhere to procurement guidelines, are well-briefed, and deliver on time and within budget
• As a member of the Organisational Delivery Group, ensure the Marketing & Communications function directly supports the achievement of key strategic priorities and operational plans
• Work collaboratively with the Senior Leadership team to shape strategic communications and marketing plans grounded in data, market insights, and long-term organisational goals whilst also effectively guiding reputation management, media strategy, and crisis communication to uphold and enhance CHSS’s positive profile

Skills & Experience:

• Experience in managing a multi-disciplinary communications team to deliver results
• Extensive experience in supporting the development and delivery of multi-channel communications strategies
• Relevant experience in brand building, including developing brand strategies, managing brand reputation, and ensuring consistent messaging across all channels
• Excellent attention to detail and an eye for creative quality
• Direct involvement in the development of audience-led propositions and campaigns, using qualitative and quantitative audience research and insights
• The ability to use data and insights to inform strategies, set KPIs, and measure performance
• A track record in managing media relations with experience acting as a spokesperson beneficial
• The ability to balance competing priorities and successfully manage challenging situations through working collaboratively
• Strong project management and priority-setting skills
• The ability to develop and maintain effective relationships with a diverse range of internal and external stakeholders
• Excellent communicator, with high-level persuasion skills to influence staff, stakeholders and / or important external bodies or opinion formers
• A commitment to constant learning and improvement, and to embedding diversity, equity and inclusion

If you share our passion to help others live life to the full and are looking for a rewarding, exciting opportunity which allows you to make a difference every day, please apply at your earliest convenience.