Colleague Communications Lead - Chief Operating Office

Business Unit:  HR, Internal Comms.
Salary range: circa £65,000 per annum DOE + red-hot benefits
Location:  UK Hybrid – remote working with occasional travel to one of our hubs.
Contract type: Fixed term 12-months

Be the voice we need. Live a life more Virgin.

Our Team

The award-winning Colleague Communications team within Virgin Money exists to connect our colleagues to our Purpose and strategy through people-focused storytelling, delivered in a bold and vibrant way.

With Virgin Money embarking on the next exciting chapter in our story as part of the Nationwide Group, we are looking for a whip-smart Colleague Communications Lead to join the team to deliver our communications strategy for our Chief Operating Office (COO) and support our integration agenda.

What you’ll be doing

• Acting as a strategic advisor to the Chief Operating Officer and their Leadership Team, alongside senior leaders across the business and their teams. Playing a lead role in comms planning and delivery, the key will be to ensure a timely, co-ordinated sequence of activity that is mindful of any communications risks and potential impact to colleague sentiment. This includes providing oversight of the annual people plan to align activity with the strategic colleague communications agenda.
• Taking the lead in planning and delivering complex communications projects and announcements – working with senior stakeholders to lead on the delivery of individual initiatives where appropriate, and deputising for the Head of Colleague Comms when required. You’ll put our Purpose and values first to ensure we deliver the best possible outcome for our colleagues.
• Working with your fellow Colleague Communications Leads on the coordination and oversight of COO business unit communications, playing a central role in managing a virtual team of business unit communications reps working with them to drive more consistent practice to content and channels across the Group by implementing an enhanced self-service model.
• Working with counterparts in Nationwide to support the development of the integration communications plan, leading on the delivery of key activity within Virgin Money, providing trusted counsel to shape the approach, and designing a measurement and insight strategy to determine its impact.
• You’ll have your ear to the ground to identify compelling stories and demonstrate creative storytelling to bring them to life across a range of digital channels for a Bank-wide audience.
• Create high quality, engaging content in a variety of formats (written, digital etc), that can be used for both internal and external purposes, aligned to brand guidelines and meeting appropriate approval/disclosure requirements.
• Supporting the communication of our people and change activity to external stakeholders such as the media, trade union, political stakeholders and others as appropriate.
• Engaging with stakeholders across the Bank, at all levels of seniority, to ensure business needs are understood and met.

We need you to have

• Demonstratable substantial experience in internal communications or a related discipline
• Experience in supporting people-related communications and providing proactive, strategic advice at a senior level with an ability to influence as appropriate
• A track record of successful senior stakeholder management, and the delivery of complex business change communications
• Skilled in adapting a strategic narrative into concise, compelling storytelling, with a particular flair and expertise for written communications
• A proven background in designing and producing accurate, strategic communications within tight timescales and to the highest quality
• Proficiency in leading incident management communications and supporting high-profile activity with potential reputational impacts
• Experience of managing internal events working with third parties and senior executives to deliver high-quality, impactful outputs. 

It’s a bonus if you have but not essential

• Previous experience working in financial services
• Understanding or direct experience in creating rich media content in Adobe Creative Suite
• A strong pun game.

Red Hot Rewards

• Generous holidays - 38.5 days annual leave (including bank holidays and prorated if part-time)​ plus the option to buy more.
• Up to five extra paid well-being days per year​. 
• 20 weeks paid, gender-neutral family leave (52 weeks in total) for expectant parents and those looking to adopt. 
• Market-leading pension.
• Free private medical cover, income protection and life assurance.
• Flexible benefits include Cycle to Work, wellness and health assessments, and critical illness. 

And there's no waiting around, you'll enjoy these benefits from day one.

Feeling insatiably curious about this role? If we’re lucky to receive a lot of interest, we may close the advert early and would hate you to miss out.

We're all about helping you Live a Life More Virgin, so happy to talk flexible working with you.

Say hello to Virgin Money
We’re making great strides towards achieving our ambition of becoming the UK’s best digital bank.  As a full-service digital bank with a heritage stretching back over 180 years, we’re a workforce to be reckoned with, and we're putting the full power of our experience behind disruptive ideas that reinvent the role a bank plays in people's lives. We're customer-obsessed and work tirelessly to deliver on our purpose, ‘Making You Happier About Money.’ This means we're able to do banking differently, and by innovating and working together we can make a real difference by creating memorable moments and red-hot experiences for our millions of customers. Join us and Live a Life More Virgin that empowers you with choice and flexibility in how you work. 

Be yourself at Virgin Money
Our purpose is to make people happier about money, this means seeing and feeling the world as our customers do by creating a workforce that reflects the rich diversity of our customers and communities.  We’re committed to creating an inclusive culture where colleagues feel safe and inspired to contribute, speak up and be heard.  

As a Disability Confident Leader, we're committed to removing any obstacles to inclusion.  If you need any reasonable adjustments or support making your application, contact our Talent Acquisition team careers@virginmoney.com

It’s important to note that there may be occasions where it’s not possible to interview all candidates declaring a disability who meet the essential criteria for the job. In certain recruitment situations such as receiving a high-volume of applications, we may need to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled and non-disabled applicants. 

Now the legal bit
Living A Life More Virgin allows our colleagues to be based anywhere in the UK (if the role allows it), but we'll need you to confirm you have the right to work in the UK.

If you're successful in securing a role with us, there are some checks you need to complete before starting. These include credit and criminal record checks and three years' worth of satisfactory references. If the role is part of the Senior Manager Regime and Certification Regime, it requires enhanced pre-employment checks – we'll ask for six years of regulatory references, and once in the role, you'll be subject to periodic employment checks.