Government Communications and Corporate Reputation, Senior Associate

Teneo advises private and public sector leaders, enabling them to achieve goals faster and at lower cost by earning trust, navigating disruption, and removing barriers. We are built to help drive success in a world no longer defined by boundaries and disciplines. Working exclusively with the C-suite of the world’s leading companies and organizations, Teneo provides strategic counsel across their full range of key objectives and issues, with a focus on five main services offerings, including Strategy and communications; Management Consulting; Financial Advisory; Risk Advisory; and People Advisory.

Teneo employs more than 1,600 people around the world, offering global reach from a light infrastructure, built out of regional hubs. Our culture is critical to our success. We have a flat management structure with an open and supportive office atmosphere. To support progression and learning, we foster a supportive environment with a focus on mental health and wellbeing as well as adopting an inclusive environment that allows all employees to flourish. We recognise that diversity is essential for our business and encourage applicants from all backgrounds.

The role

Teneo is looking for a talented and driven Senior Associate with a passion for strategic communications to join our Strategy and Communications team in the Middle East. Teneo’s Strategy and communications service offering provides all aspects of integrated communications counsel to business and government leaders and CEOs. This role is part of a thriving team advising high-profile clients on how to create effective narratives, manage reputation, engage with key audiences and tell proactive stories which support clients’ strategic objectives.

We’re interested in meeting candidates with wide-ranging perspectives, and we’re open to hearing from you whether you currently work agency side or in-house.

It’s key for us that you can cut across sectors and switch seamlessly between all our disciplines, from reactive issues management to proactive storytelling. And we’d love it if, like us, you’re intellectually curious, creative, collaborative, and eager to learn.

As a Senior Associate yo u’ll be responsible for providing the highest quality of service to our clients and play a pivotal role in driving forward activity across multiple account teams, delivering regular insight and analysis, and supporting clients’ reputational and strategic objectives. Senior Associates help mentor and coach Executives and Associates, and work closely with Vice Presidents. They report into our Senior Vice Presidents and Managing Directors.

Working at Teneo in the Middle East

Teneo works with some of the world’s biggest government and corporate entities across a wide range of sectors and issues, including energy, tech, FMCG, financial services and government. Our clients include a significant number of the FTSE 100 and Fortune 100, as well as other global public and private corporations and government entities. We’re an ambitious, global consultancy which allows candidates unmatched opportunities to develop and work with inspiring, motivated people.

Although this role is to primarily support our corporate and government communications clients, we actively encourage our people to grow and develop their advisory skills across all our disciplines, including financial and M&A, digital, creative campaigning and corporate communications, change and employee engagement, leadership coaching, sustainability, strategy and research, issues and crisis management, and restructuring and management consultancy, to solve complex business issues for our clients.

Key Responsibilities

As a Senior Associate with the Strategy and Communications team at Teneo, your role will include:

• Horizon scanning and advisory – proactively uses regional geopolitical and/or business intelligence to keep abreast of key trends and provide valuable insights and advisory to clients.
• Monitoring and reporting – around geopolitical issues, media and news cycle, social media, client comms activities and campaigns. Providing input into the creation of advisory notes for clients.
• Supporting communications planning and implementation activities – research, ideation, messaging, content creation and copywriting, and providing input into reputational risk assessments and advisory work to support communications activities. Supports the development of integrated communications plans.
• Supporting account management – supporting all client account activities, monitoring and reporting on progress and flagging issues, mentoring Executives and Associates on accounts, supporting PMO activities. Takes ownership for specific deliverables in their entirety.
• Supporting client management -building client relationships, proactively identifying opportunities or areas of concern.
• Supporting new business development – starting to build network of client relationships, supporting senior members of the team with new business proposals e.g. conducting research and developing insights to support the proposal building process.

Furthermore, You Will Be Expected To

• Build strong client and team relationships;
• Provide support and insight to your client teams, proactively highlighting opportunities, and potential areas of concern;
• Build a strong network of effective relationships internally and externally;
• Proactively seek formal and informal learning and development opportunities to support your professional growth and contribute to the sharing of learnings across the wider team; and
• Actively coach and mentor Executives and Associates on your account teams

Skills and Experience

• A bachelor’s degree or higher in communications, journalism, political science, public policy, business or a related field
• 3-5 years of experience in a strategy or communications role – within agency or in-house
• Strong understanding of the region – its media and geopolitical landscapes
• Experience offering client counsel at the appropriate level, based on in-depth insight of client’s business and sector
• Deep knowledge of wider corporate reputational or market issues arising
• Strong ability to grasp clients’ business objectives and relevant wider industry dynamics to enable drafting of messaging and communications materials
• Experience working with international media
• Exceptional written and verbal communications skills
• Good presentation skills
• Analysis and data visualisation skills
• Excellent command of Microsoft Office (PowerPoint and Word)
• Good project management skills
• Understanding of digital communications
• Excellent Arabic writing skills desired

Characteristics and Attributes

• Strategic and critical thinker
• Collaborative and a team player
• Problem solver with a positive attitude
• Flexible and always willing to try
• Detail oriented and committed to high quality deliverables
• Intellectual curiosity and entrepreneurial spirit
• Humble, honest and respectful
• Resilient and performs well under pressure
• Comfortable with uncertainty

What we can offer

New joiners are supported by an induction programme, and continuous development is a key focus of life at Teneo – learning and knowledge sharing are at the heart of this. We have an environment and culture that is focused on supporting your development and career progression. We support this with a dedicated Learning Team who provide a range of learning opportunities and personal development support.

Given our client base you’ll be working on career-defining work that is exciting, rewarding and one where you can make a real impact to high profile projects.

Teneo works with clients on complex issues and challenges that often require a multidisciplinary approach that leverage our main business segments – Strategy & Communications, Management Consulting, Financial Advisory, People Advisory and Risks Advisory. You will have opportunities to work alongside our experts in these disciplines to develop and deliver an integrated solution.

Benefits

• Private medical insurance for employees and dependents
• Participation in the Company’s Group Life Assurance Scheme
• 25 days’ paid holiday leave, plus national holidays observed in UAE
• 5.83% contribution of basic salary to End of Service benefit plan, increasing with length of service, 8.33% of your basic salary after 5 years
• Enhanced sick leave – 60 days per year/rolling 12-month period first ten days paid at full salary, next 20 days paid at half salary and remaining 30 days unpaid