Executive Director of Marketing & External Relations

The University of Greenwich is seeking an exceptional leader to join our senior team as Executive Director of Marketing & External Relations. This pivotal role offers the opportunity to drive the university’s strategic marketing, communications, and student recruitment initiatives, making a lasting impact on our institution’s growth and global reputation. This is a truly institution wide role with significant external facing responsibility, taking the lead on strategic partnerships and alumni and fundraising activity. The roleholder sits on the university’s senior leadership team, reporting to the Chief Operating Officer.

About You

You are an experienced senior leader with a proven ability to manage large teams and deliver strategic outcomes in a complex organisation. You bring:

A strong track record in areas such as recruitment, sales, marketing, brand management, and international engagement.

Exceptional communication, negotiation, and leadership skills.

Demonstrable experience in managing budgets and delivering against financial targets.

Resilience, ambition, and a collaborative mindset to drive change and deliver results.

Strategic awareness of the higher education sector and market trends.

About the Role

As the Executive Director of Marketing & External Relations, you will provide strategic leadership to a directorate of over 130 staff. Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, you will play a critical role in delivering the university’s mission and vision by:

Driving innovative student recruitment strategies to meet ambitious targets and maximise fee income.

Strengthening the university’s global brand and ensuring consistent, impactful communication across diverse audiences.

Leading alumni engagement initiatives to foster philanthropic support and strengthen ties with the university community.

Overseeing the university’s strategic partnership activity including corporate relationships, domestic education partnerships and transnational education partnerships. 

Collaborating with senior leaders to ensure marketing and communications efforts align with institutional priorities and deliver measurable outcomes.

This role requires a motivated, forward-thinking leader with the ability to navigate a complex environment and build strong relationships across internal and external networks.

What We Offer

The university is a brilliant place to work. We aim to become the top modern university in the UK by 2030 and our people are truly at the heart of what we want to achieve. We offer a great set of benefits including an excellent pension scheme, generous holiday entitlement, flexible working options and a genuine commitment to development.

In addition to a competitive salary, we offer:

Opportunities to collaborate with world-leading researchers and international partners.

Access to cutting-edge resources and professional development opportunities.

A supportive and collaborative environment committed to inclusivity and sustainability.

For an informal discussion about the vacancy, please contact Peter Taylor, Chief Operating Officer via email p.taylor@greenwich.ac.uk

Should you have any queries please contact the People Directorate Team on sreca@greenwich.ac.uk    

We are looking for people who can help us achieve our Strategic Plan, through the values we expect for our whole university community, of being Inclusive, Collaborative and Impactful. 

Discover why the university of Greenwich is the perfect place to shape your future – watch our Vice-Chancellor & Chief Executive's inspiring message on why you should join us Your Future Starts Here.

Employment Visa: Under the UK Government Points Based System scheme this role does meet the criteria to be sponsored for a Skilled Worker Route application. 

The university welcomes people from diverse and underrepresented communities who can help the university to achieve its mission. 

We do this through taking positive action such as encouraging applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic, disabled and LGBT+ people. As part of our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Time to Change Employer Pledge/Mentally Healthy Universities, we are committed to promoting and supporting the physical and mental health of all our staff, and removing barriers to improve inclusion. 

We encourage applicants to disclose experience of mental health problems so we can support them fully during our recruitment process and make any necessary reasonable adjustments. Any information disclosed will be kept confidential and separate from the job application form. 

We are making significant strides to understand and continuously improve our employees’ experience, and we are committed to implementing progressive diversity talent management.

Take your career to the next level at the University of Greenwich.