Key accountability (Main purpose of this job):
Reporting to the Head of School, the Director of Communications, Marketing & Admissions will lead the marketing team while collaborating closely with the admissions team and other school administrators to develop and implement a comprehensive growth strategy. This strategy will be focused on attracting, recruiting, retaining, and enrolling students while cultivating key partnerships to drive student recruitment and generate leads.
The ideal candidate will not only have a strong marketing background but also possess advanced skills in internal communications. Managing internal communications is critical to ensuring alignment between departments, maintaining a cohesive brand message, and fostering a sense of community within the school. You will be responsible for ensuring that the school’s marketing efforts and communications strategy are closely aligned with its strategic goals, and that clear, effective communication occurs both internally and externally.
Responsibilities (Key areas of Responsibilities):
Student Recruitment & Enrolment:
- Growth Target Achievement: Ensure the school meets its target growth and new student enrolment numbers in alignment with the annual budget.
- Data Reporting: Maintain accurate and up-to-date student enrolment data, with regular reporting to the Board and Stakeholders on growth and retention metrics.
- Corporate Partnerships: Identify, establish, and manage strategic corporate partnerships that align with the school’s mission and enhance student recruitment and retention efforts.
Admissions:
- Leadership: Lead, coach, and guide the Admissions Department to achieve annual enrolment targets through effective student acquisition strategies.
- Collaboration: Work closely with the Admissions Team to ensure that marketing and communications efforts effectively support their objectives.
- Lead Generation: Drive strategies to generate enquiries through both online and offline channels.
- Relationship Building: Provide guidance on establishing strong relationships with prospective parents, enhancing standards of service, customer experience, and engagement.
- Market Awareness: Stay informed about market trends and competitor activities to adapt strategies as needed.
- Data Management: Produce accurate data on current and projected student numbers, regularly updating key stakeholders.
Marketing:
- Strategic Oversight: Manage and oversee the school’s marketing plan, ensuring alignment with the overall school strategic plan.
- Performance Monitoring: Monitor and report on key metrics, using data to proactively devise interventions, and adjust strategies and tactical plans as necessary.
- Brand Management: Ensure consistent implementation of the school’s brand guidelines, providing editorial and design control across all communications and advertising.
- Communications Management: Oversee the production and distribution of all marketing communications, ensuring they effectively promote the school. Define the processes that manage CIS’s brand, enhance its reputation and support its strategic goals and vision.
- Promotional Activities: Advise on and supervise the production of promotional materials for specific events, ventures, or activities, utilising appropriate social media platforms to enhance the school’s visibility.
- Digital Strategy: Manage and deliver an effective digital and social media strategy, including the continual evolution, update, and accuracy of the school’s website.
Partnership Development:
- Collaboration: Work with corporate partners to create programs, sponsorships, and initiatives that offer value to the school and students.
- Relationship Management: Build and maintain strong, long-term relationships with corporate partners, ensuring mutual benefits and ongoing collaboration.
- Lead Generation: Leverage corporate partnerships to generate new student leads and enhance the school’s visibility within the corporate sector.
Requirements:
Qualifications and Experience:
- Educational Background: Bachelor’s Degree in Business Studies, Marketing, PR, Economics, or a related field. An advanced degree is a plus.
- Professional Experience: A minimum of 10 years of relevant experience in marketing & communications, public relationship, admissions and sales, with a proven track record of driving growth and increasing sales in competitive markets. Experience in the education sector is highly desirable.
- Service Sector Expertise: Significant experience working within a service delivery sector, with a deep understanding of customer needs and expectations. Education sector experience is a strong advantage.
- Analytical Skills: Strong analytical abilities, with a proven record of using data, research, and insights to inform and support marketing initiatives and drive decision-making.
- Team Leadership: Demonstrated ability to build, manage, and motivate cross-functional, high-performing teams. Experience in leading diverse teams to achieve strategic goals is essential.
- CRM & Sales Cycle Integration: Extensive experience with CRM systems and their integration into the sales life cycle, ensuring seamless and efficient processes that drive student recruitment and retention.
- Market Monitoring: Proven experience in monitoring and analysing competitor market activity, with the ability to adapt strategies to maintain a competitive edge.
- Digital & Social Media Proficiency: Strong understanding and hands-on experience with digital and social media trends and tools, leveraging them effectively throughout the sales cycle to influence student recruitment and engagement.
- Customer Advocacy & Loyalty: Expertise in building strong customer advocacy, fostering repeat client loyalty, and driving retention in collaboration with academic leadership and EXCOM through targeted strategies, personalised engagement and events.
- High-Level Networking: Experience in high-level networking, with a talent for building creative and mutually beneficial relationships that positively impact both strategic and tactical business development initiatives.
- Leadership & Communication: A charismatic leader with the ability to communicate passion for the school’s mission and values, while also working collaboratively with all stakeholders, both internally and externally. Able to inspire confidence and respect through clear, effective communication.
