Communication & Marketing Specialist

Support to RACE 2 (S2R2)

Program Background:

The Government of Lebanon, with support from the international community, is implementing the Reaching All Children with Education (RACE) initiative. First launched in 2013, RACE seeks to improve access to formal education for 460,000 Syrian refugee children and underprivileged Lebanese children in the country. Efforts under this new phase of RACE 2 are expected to minimize the short and medium-term costs of displacement for refugee families, while strengthening the long-term capacity of the Lebanese education system to prepare children for life and work once regional stability returns. The Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE), with the support of the Center for Education Research and Development (CERD), is responsible for implementing the S2R2 program.

Program Objectives

The Program Development Objective is to promote equitable access, enhance quality of learning, and strengthen the systems in Lebanon’s education sector in response to the protracted refugee crisis. The key results are as follows:

1. Increase in the proportion of school-aged Lebanese and non-Lebanese children (3–18) enrolled in formal education;
2. Increase in the proportion of students passing their grades, and transitioning to the next; and
3. Improvement in MEHE’s capacity to review, evaluate, and update Program implementation.   

 Tasks and Responsibilities

Under the S2R2 Program, the Center for Educational Research and Development (CERD) is looking for a communication specialist (marketing senior level) to establish and manage CERD’s communications plans. Below are the main tasks and responsibilities:

1. Develop and manage communications plans to analyze and document CERD objectives, target audiences, strategies and positioning, branding, web content and key messages.
2. Develop and manage communications plans to analyze and document CERD objectives, target audiences, strategies and positioning, branding, web content and key messages.
3. Develop and implement strategic, comprehensive, and integrated communication and public relations activities that increase awareness of CERD.
4. Strengthen marketing tactics, analyze trend data, create engagement goals, performance optimization, and identify strengths and weaknesses of CERD and all training centers.
5. Develop and launch social media strategies for CERD and all training centers.
6. Build and manage the CERD’s social media profiles and presence, including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube and potentially additional channels.
7. Develop and supervise yearly social media channels calendar of CERD & all training centers.
8. Supervise and control crafting, writing, and editing blog posts, website, newsletters, press releases, speeches and talking points of CERD and all training centers.
9. Supervise online marketing content (social media graphics, posts, ads, event videos, website editing) and create monthly social media reports.
10. Lead all digital marketing initiatives including search engine optimization, search engine marketing, social media marketing, content marketing, email marketing, campaign landing page development, retargeting and marketing automation.
11. Track and analyze social and web data and optimize targeted social campaigns, as well as assign ROI-driven metrics to each campaign.
12. Lead social media engagement while managing weekly agendas monthly reports;
13. Provide capacity building for CERD’s staff.
14. Represent CERD – when requested.

Perform other tasks related to the program objectives as assigned by CERD President or S2R2 Steering Committee.

Educational Background

• Master’s degree in communication, marketing, or related fields.

Experience requirements

• Minimum of 5-7 years of experience working in marketing and communication or relevant fields;
• Professional chartered marketer (CIM) is a plus;
• Strong knowledge of communication practices and techniques is a must;
• Strong Experience creating targeted content;
• Strong experience in developing and managing social media channels effectively to deliver marketing content and increase awareness;
• Solid knowledge of SEO, keyword research and Google Analytics is a plus.

Languages

• Fluency in written and spoken Arabic English and French.

Behavioral and Organizational Skills

• Strong inter-personal skills and ability to resolve conflict.
• Strong analytical and presentation skills.
• Ability to prioritize workloads, cope with pressure and mitigate challenges.
• Ability to convey complex information in a structured manner.
• Ability to get along with co-workers and deal with the general public tactfully, courteously and professionally.
• Ability to think strategically and analytically.
• Ability to act consistently with personal standards of ethical judgment in terms of protecting the CERD’s assets.
• Ability to demonstrate commitment to achieving the end result.
• Ability to maintain a good and professional relationship with S2R2 Colleagues and Advisors.
• Customer-oriented approach with aptitude.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and properly handle sensitive information.

Technical and Computer Skills

• Strong knowledge of the Lebanese Education Sector.
• Office management skills
• Communication and marketing skills.
• Effective knowledge and use of technology.