Marketing Manager and Brand Strategist

Driving strategic growth and brand equity within a prominent, well-established non-profit environment, this senior management position balances high-level strategy with operational execution. Reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer, the role is responsible for shaping a compelling, consistent organisational voice across multi-channel platforms and aligning marketing activities with widespread impact. The successful candidate will lead, mentor, and guide an established marketing team, ensuring responsible stewardship of funds while driving fundraising growth through strategic campaigns. This position requires a collaborative leader who can engage effectively with executive leadership, manage external agency relationships, and smoothly navigate cross-functional divisional needs. Permanent, 08:30-4:30 Monday to Thursday; 08:30-2:30 on Fridays. R60 000 - R70 000 per month experience dependent. Key Responsibilities Strategic Marketing & Communications: Develop and lead a multi-channel marketing strategy that promotes the organisation's work, values, and core impact. Brand Custodianship: Act as the brand custodian to ensure visual identity, tone of voice, and messaging remain entirely consistent across all internal departments, entities, and external touchpoints. Digital Presence & Growth: Oversee and expand the organisation's digital footprint, including the website, social media platforms, email marketing, and paid digital campaigns. Content & Storytelling: Lead comprehensive storytelling and content creation efforts, including the production of impact reports, regular newsletters, and media releases. Fundraising & Event Collaboration: Partner cross-functionally with the Fundraising and Events teams to deliver compelling donor-facing materials, pre- and post-event promotional campaigns, and digital coverage that supports donor acquisition and retention. Market Insights: Monitor emerging trends and community sentiment, swiftly adapting marketing strategies to maintain high levels of engagement and relevance. Executive Advisory: Advise the CEO and senior leadership on marketing best practices, communications risks, and emerging strategic opportunities. Team Leadership & Mentorship: Manage, mentor, and guide the marketing team to foster a collaborative, high-performance culture, while setting clear performance objectives and supporting professional development. Operational Execution: Manage operational portfolios and execute daily tasks alongside strategic leadership responsibilities to meet organisational requirements. Resource & Vendor Management: Allocate department resources effectively across campaigns, and build strong relationships with external agencies, freelancers, photographers, videographers, and print suppliers. Budget & ROI Management: Own and manage the marketing department budget, ensuring responsible stewardship of funds, and evaluate marketing technology tools to improve operational efficiency. Performance Reporting: Develop and present regular performance reports to the CEO and EXCO, outlining key performance indicators (KPIs), campaign results, and strategic insights. Requirements Education: Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Communications, Business, or a directly related field. Experience: Minimum of 8 years' experience in marketing, with at least 3 years explicitly spent in a senior or leadership role. Track Record: Proven history of developing and executing integrated marketing strategies across both digital and offline channels, with demonstrated experience in a similar role. Leadership Capability: Experience managing creative teams, internal staff, and external marketing agencies. Technical Proficiency: Sound proficiency across digital marketing platforms. Communication Skills: Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to craft compelling narratives for diverse audiences. Operational Discipline: Strategic thinking capabilities combined with a strong operational and project management discipline. Emotional Intelligence: High emotional intelligence and cultural sensitivity, with the ability to position oneself effectively and build trust with a well-established, tenured team. Financial Acumen: Strong financial acumen, with comfort managing departmental budgets and reporting accurately on ROI. Collaboration: Exceptional cross-functional collaboration skills to work effectively across different departments and entities. Resilience: A self-directed, resilient professional who is comfortable managing multiple competing priorities in a fluid environment. Operational Flexibility: Willingness to maintain an operational portfolio alongside strategic responsibilities, demonstrating strong operational discipline. Desirable Requirements Postgraduate qualification or a relevant professional marketing certification.