Head of Marketing and Communications – Festival of Dangerous Ideas

Key Role Dimensions

• Position Title: Head of Marketing and Communications – Festival of Dangerous Ideas
• Reports To: Director of Engagement
• Direct Reports: 3-4 roles (both permanent and contract)
• Location: Sydney, New South Wales (Hybrid)
• Employment Type: 2-year fixed term contract, full time
• Salary: $115,000-$120,000 + super (12%)

About The Ethics Centre

The Ethics Centre is a unique, Australian-based not-for-profit which works to place ethics at the centre of everyday life. It supports individuals and organisations to address complex ethical issues and stimulates public engagement through flagship programs like Festival of Dangerous Ideas. It remains the only organisation in the world providing practical guidance on complex ethical issues across the full spectrum of society.

The Ethics Centre delivers services including consulting, public events, education and counselling to help individuals and organisations make better decisions aligned to their own considered values and principles.

The Festival of Dangerous Ideas, presented by The Ethics Centre, is a Sydney festival built around provocative public conversation – talks, performance, film and live events that challenge audiences and put contested questions on the table. The Festival draws leading thinkers, writers and public figures from Australia and abroad, and reaches audiences on-site, in the media and online.

Primary Purpose of the Role

The Head of Marketing and Communications – Festival of Dangerous Ideas is the creative and strategic lead for how the Festival presents itself to the world. The role owns the Festival's marketing, communications, brand and audience strategy, and is accountable for ticket sales, audience growth, public profile and ensuring the integration of partnership deliverables on collateral and owned channels.

Each year the Festival develops a fresh campaign identity and integrated messaging that respond to that year's program while protecting and extending the Festival brand – setting the creative direction, managing the budget, leading a small internal team and directing external agencies to deliver.

Key Responsibilities: Creative & brand

• Lead the creative direction and core brand narrative of the Festival's marketing – generating campaign concepts and hands-on execution ideas.
• Develop a distinctive new campaign identity and integrated messaging each year that respond to that year's program while keeping the Festival brand consistent and recognisable.
• Protect and extend the Festival brand across all channels and touchpoints, keeping it bold, fresh and relevant.
• Develop and deliver the annual marketing, communications and audience-development strategy.
• Set and manage the marketing budget, and report on campaign performance and ROI.
• Implement effective briefing processes and ensure robust sign off procedures.

Campaigns & audience

• Develop, plan and lead implementation of integrated, innovative campaigns across paid and owned channels (digital, social, media, print, partnerships, promotions, content) to drive ticket sales and audience growth.
• Working with the Head of Partnerships, establish a network of media partnerships to maximise value and reach.
• Working with content and social media specialists, ensure content creation and capture grows audience engagement, fulfills partnership requirements and supports ticket sales.
• Set targets for reach, conversion, ticket sales and revenue, and track results against them, adjusting campaign tactics responsively.
• Grow and manage the Festival's audience data, CRM and email programs.

Communications & media

• Lead media and public relations, including media releases, spokesperson coordination and issues management, escalating issues to Director of Engagement as needed.
• Manage the Festival's public voice across owned channels and in response to a provocative program.
• Brief and manage external PR agency to maximise an effective media strategy.

Team & suppliers

• Lead and develop the Festival marketing team, including recruitment of short-term contractors to support delivery of the campaign.
• Brief, manage and hold accountable external suppliers, including PR/communications, digital media-buying agencies, photographers and videographers.

Reporting & advice

• Lead in-campaign and post-campaign reporting, to service stakeholders, partners and sponsors, and inform insights for ongoing campaign decisions.

Key Working Relationships

• Internal: Festival Director, Engagement and program teams
• External: Contract agencies and suppliers including PR, design, content-creators and digital media buying; partners, sponsors and donors; venues and talent as required

Key Selection Criteria: Essential

• Senior marketing and communications experience, ideally in arts, festivals, culture or events.
• Strong creative instincts – able to shape campaign concepts, brand identity and messaging, while also managing delivery.
• Proven experience leading innovative, integrated campaigns that hit, and exceed, ticket-sales or audience targets.
• Proven ability to deliver strong results with limited resources.
• Experience managing budgets, small teams and external agencies.
• Strong media, PR and stakeholder skills, with sound judgement on sensitive or provocative content.
• Digital and data fluency: paid media, social, CRM/email and analytics.

Desirable

• Established media and industry networks in Sydney or the national arts sector.
• Experience marketing a festival or a time-bound, campaign-driven program.
• Familiarity with ticketing platforms and audience-data tools.