Editorial Manager

Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW) is an independent humanitarian and development organisation, serving humanity for over 38 years. With an active presence in over 40 countries across the globe, we strive to make the world a better and fairer place for those affected by poverty, conflicts and natural disasters.

Our External Relations & Advocacy Division is recruiting for the position of Editorial Manager to join our dynamic Web, Editorial and Creative team. This role is service-driven but also advisory, providing professional editorial services and advice to IRW departments and supporting country and member offices where needed. The organisation is operating on a hybrid working basis.

The Editorial Manager is responsible for leading editorial colleagues in creating, shaping and developing compelling publications and multiplatform editorial content to serve the needs of the Islamic Relief family and continuously telling the story of the organisation’s great work around the globe in inspiring ways.

The role exercises primary responsibility for planning, developing and delivering compelling editorial for the IRW website; and providing leadership to ensure the highest possible quality and consistency of written material for the Islamic Relief brand, meeting rigorous international, sector-relevant and ethical standards.

The successful candidate must have or be:

• A degree or equivalent in English, media/journalism or a related/relevant subject is essential
• Significant experience of leading creative teams to achieve within a fast-paced, challenging environment
• Experience of envisioning, managing and producing editorial content in a large, complex organisation, including experience of developing editorial plans for multiple platforms
• Significant experience of managing multiple projects on tight and changeable schedules
• Strong track record in writing for a variety of audiences, creating compelling editorial messages, and writing for brand building and campaigns
• Experience of web-related oversight, day-to-day management and content creation
• Experience of advising senior leadership on editorial strategy and tactics
• Experience in collaborating and developing partnerships across departments
• Proven creative project management skills, with experience of multiple projects on tight and changeable schedules
• Experience of balancing editorial aspirations with limited financial resources is desirable
• Excellent people management, interpersonal, and decision-making skills
• Exceptional skills in writing, editing and proof-reading with an excellent command of English and a strong eye for detail
• Strong ability to produce, manage and coordinate high-quality editorial content
• Ability to convey complex and technical information persuasively and with clarity to a diverse audience, using a wide range of media including print and web
• Strong project management skills and ability to work calmly under pressure to tight deadlines and to balance competing priorities
• Ability to inspire teams, with a strong team-working ethic, able to work in a collaborative manner and connect with people genuinely from a wide range of backgrounds
• Awareness of the audiences that Islamic Relief communicates with, including the communications approaches and subtleties of a mainstream audience and a Muslim audience
• Awareness of ethical standards applicable non-governmental organisations, with an appreciation for political sensitivities and PR risk implications for editorial
• A strategic and innovative thinker, able to identify and capitalise on emerging trends and best practice
• Ability to critically analyse data to form recommendations to improve the impact of our editorial
• Results focused – ability to plan, co-ordinate and deliver objectives and targets with a positive drive to achieve results
• Sound resource management which enables strategic goals to be achieved
• Sound understanding of development and humanitarian work at an international level; knowledge of the global humanitarian and development arena and sensitive to the complexities in working with diverse international non-governmental organisations
• Ability to work in a way that is discreet and maintains confidentiality
• Willingness to work autonomously, and take initiative
• An understanding of marketing techniques and trends, including search engine optimisation, (SEO) techniques is desirable

For more information, please click on the Documents tab above to view the full Job Description.

If you are talented, reliable, service-minded, resilient and a highly motivated professional looking for a meaningful career, with a strong commitment to IRW’s mission and values of sincerity, excellence, compassion, social justice and custodianship, please apply by completing our online application form.

For more information on the excellent company benefits we offer our employees, please visit:

https://www.islamic-relief.org/work-with-us/what-we-offer/

PLEASE NOTE: Interviews are expected to take place on 02/03/2023. The office options are Birmingham or London.

Pre-employment Checks:

Any employment with Islamic Relief will be subject to the following checks:

• screening clearance
• proof of eligibility to live and work within the UK
• receipt of satisfactory references

Please note, for UK-based roles, we are only able to accept applications from candidates who are eligible to work in the UK. We are unable to progress applications which would require sponsorship.

Our values and commitment to safeguarding

IRW is committed to preventing any type of unwanted behaviour at work including sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse, lack of integrity and financial misconduct; and committed to promoting the welfare of children, young people, adults and beneficiaries with whom IRW engages. IRW expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment through our code of conduct. We place a high priority on ensuring that only those who share and demonstrate our values are recruited to work for us.

The post holder will undertake the appropriate level of training and is responsible for ensuring that they understand and work within the safeguarding policies of the organisation.

All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks, which can include criminal records checks. IRW also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme.

In line with this Scheme, we will request information from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment.

By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms his/her understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Islamic Relief is an equal opportunities employer