Position Description

Position Title / Communications Coordinator
Project / Basic Education Quality and Access in Lao PDR
Reports to / Communications Specialist
Duration of Assignment / Full time, 12 month contract with option to extend
Location / Vientiane, Lao PDR

Working relationships include:

  • Works collaboratively with BEQUAL, MoES and DFAT personnel.

Program Overview
BEQUAL directly supports education priorities of the Laos Government described in the Education Sector Development Plan prepared by the Ministry of Education and Sports and is consistent with the strategic directions set out in Australia’s Education Delivery Strategy 2013-2018. BEQUAL is designed to be rolled out over 10 years, in three phases. The first phase, from 2014-2018 will work in up to 66 of the most educationally disadvantaged districts, to increase participation of disadvantaged children, improve learning environments and teacher quality. To achieve these outcomes, BEQUAL has been divided into five inter-related Key Results Areas: 1) Education Policy, Planning and Coordination; 2) Increased Participation; 3) Teacher Education and Support; 4) Teaching and Learning Resources; 5) School Infrastructure.
Position Summary
The Communications Coordinator will assist in the development and implementation of media, communications and promotional activities in support of BEQUAL goals and objectives and report directly to the Communication Specialist.
The Communications Coordinator supports development and implementation of all public diplomacy, promotional and communications materials and maintains close working relationships with DFAT Vientiane, Ministry of Education officers, BEQUAL partners and media stakeholders.
This role plays an important part in the implementation of BEQUAL’s Communication Strategy.
The expected outputs of this placement are effective communications and public relations products for BEQUAL in accordance with Coffey, DFAT, EU public relations and communications policies.
Placement Outputs
The expected outputs of this placement are effective communications and public relations products for BEQUAL in accordance with Coffey, DFAT, EU public relations and communications policies.
Key Responsibilities
The Communication Coordinator’stasks and responsibilities will include the following:
  • Drafting, designing and editingpromotional and communication materials that inform key stakeholders and the general public about BEQUAL in accordance with allrelevantBEQUAL, DFAT, EU and Coffey policies and guidelines
  • Assist in the coordination and distribution of program deliverables including periodic good news stories and regular news bulletins
  • Support the Communications Manager in providing guidance to BEQUAL team members on approaches to best communicate and promote program achievements
  • Ensure that all materials intended for public consumption comply with DFAT, EU, Coffey and Australia Awards branding guidelines where applicable
  • Assist technical advisers and senior management across BEQUAL to ensure technical documents are well presented (including photos and overall presentation), and translated to a high standard
  • Coordinate content with the IT/ MIS Officer and Communications Specialist for BEQUAL, DFAT and MoES websites and social media
  • Work with monitoring and evaluation program personnel to incorporate monitoring evaluation and learning into all promotional and communications activities and to assist with preparing reports for internal and external stakeholders
  • Liaise with relevant GoL agencies and other key program stakeholders, when developing content for news articles, bulletins or public relation pieces
  • Assist with planning, organisation and coordination of conferences, information sessions, functions and other communication or promotional events and directly coordinate official visits from the Government of Australia, Government of Laos and other program stakeholders to program locations
  • Develop and maintain a close working relationship with DFAT’s public affairs team in Vientiane, keeping them informed of all public affairs opportunities in a timely manner and seeking clearance from both DFAT and Coffey for all relevant materials

Selection Criteria
Qualifications
  • Bachelor Degree in Communication, Public Relations, Media or related field.
Experience / knowledge
  • Demonstrated experience in networking and communication activities
  • Demonstrated experience in working with the media and government agencies with an understanding of relevant protocols
  • Planning skills including the ability to effectively manage themselves and others in a range of competing tasks in a timely manner
  • Experience in writing, editing and proof reading communication documents for publication
  • Computer skills with Indesign, Publisher, website applications, in addition to data input, collection and analysis with a high degree of accuracy
  • Experience in drafting articles and managing a website
  • High level knowledge of Microsoft Word and other relevant computer software
  • Very high standard of written Lao
  • Advanced knowledge and ability in both spoken and written English.
Personal skills and abilities
  • Strong interpersonal and networking skills, good track record in working effectively in a team with different cultures and professions to achieve expected objectives
  • A flexible and creative response to tight deadlines with competing demands
  • Excellent organisational skills, able to prioritise workload, proactive approach to meeting deadlines with limited supervision
  • Ability to maintain a high standard and attention to detail
  • Demonstrated high-level written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to effectively communicate with staff at all levels and to produce effective business correspondence and reports
  • A collaborative and constructive approach to problem solving
  • Creative and innovative approach
  • A positive and team player attitude
  • Ability to maintain high ethical standards when representing BEQUAL in any capacity.

Child Protection
Coffey is committed to protecting the rights of children. We reserve the right to conduct police checks and other screening procedures to ensure a child-safe environment.
About Coffey
Coffey has a 40 year history in successfully delivering international development projects on behalf of donors right around the world, including Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, USAID and the UK’s Department for International Development. Our people work side by side with local partners to support stability, economic growth and good governance, positively changing people’s lives.

C:\Users\CAROLYN.EVANS\Desktop\Position Description - Communications Coordinator.docx2017