Communication Officer

Organizational Setting

The FAO Liaison Office for North America (LOW) is responsible for the communication, cooperation and collaboration with the government agencies of the United States and Canada, each country's legislators/parliamentarians, civil society, academia and the private sector in the region.

The position is located in LOW in Washington D.C., United States.

Reporting Lines

The Communication Officer reports to the Director of the Liaison Office and will work in coordination with the FAO Office of Communications (OCC), which is responsible for both the external and internal communications of the Organization as well as maintaining branding and content guidelines. In addition, the Communication Officer will work in close collaboration with the Office's Senior Liaison, Partnerships and Outreach Officers, as well as the Indigenous Peoples Unit representative and FAO technical units or regions, as required.

Technical Focus

External and internal communications, to include writing and editing engaging content for the website, newsletter and delivery of digital products for social media; media outreach, content design as well as the support, planning and coordination of communications for regional and local events.

Key Results

Contribute to the development and strengthening of internal and external communications, multimedia production, web content, media relations and publishing activities of the Organization.

Key Functions

• Researches and analyses technical, social, economic, environmental, institutional and technology-related information, data and statistics and/or related policy issues to support internal and/or external communication.
• Produces/drafts a variety of information and reports as well as inputs for communication-related documents, multimedia products and online content.
• Devises, implements and monitors communications strategies and provides day-to-day support for strategic outputs.
• Designs and develops new media outlets/assets to increase brand visibility and maximize impact on communication platforms.
• Establishes, develops and maintains working relationships with key media organizations, journalists and other relevant strategic partners as part of external communication activities in order to raise the visibility.
• Collaborates in the development of improved/updated tools, systems and processes.
• Participates in multidisciplinary teams and/or leads working groups/teams; collaborates and coordinates with other Divisions/Offices/Centres on work groups and committees and promotes best practices as they relate to communications.
• Promotes knowledge sharing and best practices at international meetings and conferences and influences partners in stakeholder consultations.

Specific Functions

• Supports a comprehensive communication strategy and engagement plan, coordinates with North American based partners; develops and maintains an updated calendar of forthcoming communication events in order to ensure timely anticipation and preparation of the events.
• Maximizes FAO regional visibility, using corporate branding and visual identities across all communications vehicles.
• Supports close engagement with the United States and Canadian and North American based press corps.
• Participates in relevant meetings with the United States and Canadian Government, as requested by the Director.
• Ensures timely dissemination of press releases and other information materials to FAO headquarters and press correspondents and partners, as appropriate.
• Makes communication arrangements, in close coordination with OCC branches, for outreach and advocacy events, including World Food Day, other international days of relevance to FAO's mandate and other important events; translates complex technical information into compelling messages, writing in a clear and concise manner and coordinate the preparation of a wide range of promotional material (videos, web apps, human interest stories, visual products, social media assets, websites, press releases, etc.).
• Prepares communication material and presentations in coordination with the Office of Communication (OCC) and in cooperation with concerned FAO units supporting FAOLOW's engagement with partners, including government bodies, universities and the general public.
• Maintains the social media account(s) and the website of the office, posting content, monitoring and building engagement, in line with corporate priorities and in alignment with OCC.
• Ensures coherence with FAO's corporate communications policies, branding and operational guidelines for all communication and information outputs.
• Supports the evaluation of key communications and advocacy activities as part of the implementation of LOW's communication strategy.

Minimum Requirements

• Advanced university degree in communication, social science, journalism, political science or related fields.
• Five years of relevant experience in communications, web publishing and/or social media networks.
• Working knowledge (proficiency - level C) of English and intermediate knowledge (intermediate proficiency - level B) of another FAO official language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish).

Competencies

• Results Focus
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Building Effective Relationships
• Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Improvement

Technical/Functional Skills

• Work experience in more than one location or area of work, particularly in field positions.
• Extent and relevance of experience in the field of communication services for prominent organizations, particularly at the international level, including experience in journalism.
• Extent and relevance of experience in drafting high-quality written materials for a wide variety of audiences.
• Understanding of FAO policies and programmes is considered a strong asset.
• Extent and relevant experience in drafting substantial communications in English, with the ability to adapt tone and style for different audiences and contexts.
• Ability to translate complex and technical communications to a wide and varied audience, in a simple and concise manner.
• Extent and relevance of experience in the preparation and dissemination of communication, promotional or technical materials.
• Working knowledge (proficiency - level C) of French is an asset.