Lead - Communications

Who are we? - The organisation

ShikshaLokam is an NGO founded under the aegis of Shibulal Family Philanthropic Initiatives. As an education leadership catalyst, the organisation co-creates continuous learning and improvement programs and solutions for education leaders, along with government functionaries and civil society organisations. 

ShikshaLokam programs and solutions restore the agency of education leaders (teachers, school leaders, community members, administrators, education officers, etc. ensuring an enriching learning environment for children) in the K-12 public education ecosystem. By doing so, leaders’ ability to continuously improve is enhanced, they are able to solve the school improvement challenges on their own, and all our children get access to quality education as a fundamental right. 

ShikshaLokam orchestrates the coming together of diverse actors - government, civil society, market players, academia - towards public school improvement programs led by education leaders themselves. This accelerates collective action for education system transformation at scale, with speed and sustainably. 

What would you do? - Roles and responsibilities 

The Lead/ Senior Lead - Communications will be part of the Strategic Communications team at ShikshaLokam. They will own the creation of stories and messages to amplify the idea of education leadership, micro-improvements and collective action - and how they are critical to sustainable improvements in the education system. They will amplify ShikshaLokam’s efforts by creating compelling narratives, identifying publishing & speaking opportunities, recognition platforms and managing these relationships effectively. The responsibilities would involve but are not limited to: 

• Impact Communication: Collect and compile information from the team to write stories, articles, reports, op-eds, press releases, and blogs for digital and print channels.

• Awards: Identify award opportunities for the organisation and the leadership; draft applications and manage relationships with the respective institutions.  

• Events: Execution of ShikshaLokam evangelising events and workshops such as InvokED, Unbundle, Collab-a-thon, Cerebration etc.

• Speaking Opportunities: Secure and manage speaking opportunities for organisation leadership at external events; develop talking points and communication messages for the spokespeople.

• Public Relations: Design and implement PR campaigns; develop press relationships and manage contacts with key commentators, industry spokespeople and sector influencers; serve as a spokesperson and point of contact on media interactions. Alternatively, drive these efforts through liasioning with the empanelled PR agency.

• Knowledge Management: Continuously build communications assets, including a photo, story, and video bank for use by all teams 

• Support to the team:  Support the team on-ground at events, podcasts, etc. 

What do we offer?  - Opportunities and work environment

• Range of evangelising channels to experiment with, and build your storytelling skills

• Entrepreneurial work environment, with a wide canvas to innovate

• Empathetic, inclusive culture to grow and thrive in

• Hybrid work model (3/5 days a week from office)

Who are we looking for? - Requirements and qualifications

• A bachelor's degree in English, marketing, communication, or journalism

• 3+ years of work experience in PR/ communication/ journalism/ advertising/ content creation 

• Capability and comfort to work with ambiguity and in fast paced, rigorous environment

• Willingness to learn, research (for narrative building) and innovate

• Excellent verbal & written communication and interpersonal skills

• Capability to manage self and time

• Comfort and facility with technology

• Domain knowledge of education and/or education leadership, non profits is desirable, but not mandatory

Location: Bengaluru (this opportunity is not remote)

Remuneration: INR 7-9 Lakhs per annum, depending upon experience and qualification

Share your (A) updated CV and (B) cover letter outlining (1) your skills and achievements, (2) interests and (3) alignment between the role and future aspirations, through the form here.