Position:                      Senior Communication Officer  

Location:                     Istanbul, Turkey

Reports to:                   Grants Manager

Duration:                     12 months       

About RI: Relief International (RI) specializes in relief and development programs that benefit people in acute distress. A registered non-profit in the US, UK, France, and Belgium, our work targets those fragile countries or communities that suffer from recurrent man-made or natural crises that impede human development. The people that we serve live in seventeen countries across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia where the debilitating effects of political instability, forced displacement, and natural disasters are pervasive. Often, RI is the only organization providing healthcare, education, logistics, energy, capacity building, economic development, sanitation, and many other forms of assistance to these highly vulnerable communities.

Position Summary:     

Under the supervision of the Grants Manager, and in strong collaboration with the Deputy Country Director, the Senior Communication Officer will support the development of all projects’ related communication and knowledge management materials in close collaboration with all relevant departments (Programs, Technical, M&E, Grants, and Operations).

Position Responsibilities and Duties:

• Develop a comprehensive communications strategy including a social media plan to ensure all audiences and stakeholders are aware of activity progress, results, and achievements;
• In coordination with Communication and Reporting officer, develop, implement, and monitor RI branding and marketing/visibility plan for each grant as well as for RI Turkey as a whole;
• In coordination with Communication and Reporting Officer, as well as Program team, support partners in the development and implementation of their communication strategies as well as branding and marking/visibility plans in line with RI and donors’ rules and regulations;
• Assist in developing Turkey communications guidance, such as a media policy or writing style guide with support the Grants Manager, Communication and Reporting Officer and relevant departments,
• Develop high-quality communication and knowledge management material to provide program information to support donors’ communications and outreach objectives, such as factsheets, reports, sit reps, etc. in coordination with the Communication and Reporting Officer and all relevant departments.
• Organize, produce, package, and disseminate project information (print, video, and electronic) in a timely manner to key audiences internally and externally;
• Liaise with the communications focal points from donor agencies to coordinate visibility activities and obtain necessary donor approvals as needed;
• Work with program and technical staff to compile, write, and disseminate human interest stories, technical briefs, policy briefs, reports, blogs, and other program documentation products as needed;
• Work with RI program and technical staff as well as partners’ staff to collect and develop testimonies from RI’s supported projects for internal and external dissemination;
• Actively contribute to the organization and development of communication material in support of program activities (radio programs, IEC material, press articles, etc.) as well as in the organization of programs’ related events, i.e. awareness-raising activities, conferences, meetings, etc.; 
• Ensure the programs take advantage of key communication opportunities and advise the leadership as needed;
• Support RI Turkey in addressing communication-related requests and requirements from RI HQ and/or donors;
• Manage consultants, when necessary, in areas of media outreach, graphic design, photography, and videography;
• Maintain an e-filing system/database that stores and tracks project documents and publications and monitor to ensure timelines and schedules are well-managed;
• Assess RI and partners teams’ communication capacities, identifying strengths and weakness, and identify opportunities for improving the impact and effectiveness of RI and partners communication activities; and,
• Perform other duties as assigned by the supervisor.

Qualifications & requirements:

• Bachelor and/or Master’s degree in a relevant field, i.e. communication, journalism, social science, etc.;
• Three to five years’ experience working in communication, knowledge management, communications role in national/international development, nonprofit, or corporate setting;
• Excellent communication skills (written and verbal) in English and Turkish (Arabic is a plus);
• Experience in successfully developing and implementing a communications strategy and ability to conceptualize, write, and edit
• Demonstrated ability to work with new technologies and social media platforms;
• Demonstrated managerial and organizational skills in a fast-paced environment with flexibility to adapt to changing priorities and deadlines;
• Excellent analytical and organizational skills, and ability to think critically and creatively;
• Ability to establish and maintain excellent relationships with project team members, donors, and other cooperating agencies;
• Design experience highly preferred;
• Previous experience developing visual (i.e. videos) material preferred
• Ability to travel to various locations in Turkey; and,
• Must be capable of working both individually and as part of a team with minimum supervision

RI Values:

• We uphold the Humanitarian Principles: humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and operational independence.
• We affirmatively engage the most vulnerable communities.
• We value
  • Inclusiveness
  • Transparency and accountability
  • Agility and innovation
  • Collaboration
  • Sustainability

All RI staff, volunteers and interns must adhere and respect these values

Professional Standards:

• All Relief International members (staff, volunteers and interns) are committed to the RI policies such as RI Code of Conduct, Child Protection Policy, Reporting Conflict of Interest, Reporting Misconduct, Reporting Sexual Exploitation and Abuse. All newcomers are expected to adhere to all these policies.

Disclaimer Clause: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skills, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

How to Apply:

In case you meet the requirements and that you are interested in the position, please send your CV in English in addition to three professional references to provided in the apply/başvur button before January 31, 2020, stating in the subject “Senior Communication Officer“ All candidates must be eligible to work in Turkey"

Please note that the position may be filled before the deadline of submission of the applications