Job Description
Post Title: Chief Officer HR & Communications
Location: Highland Council Headquarters, Inverness
Hours: 35 hours per week
Duration: Permanent
Salary: £109,285 per annum (updated following 2024 Pay Award)
Contact Person: For a confidential discussion please email Kirsty.Smailes@highland.gov.uk to arrange.
Job Purpose: The Chief Officer position brings a fantastic opportunity to lead a new management structure, driving improvement and service excellence across the organisation. We have ambitious People and Communication teams and are excited to bring them together to maximise impact. We want to create integrated and strategic outcomes by developing our organisation, enabling and empowering our leaders, further embedding strategic workforce planning and improving employee experience and engagement.
We are seeking a dynamic and visionary leader with a proven track record of inspiring teams and driving cultural change at a senior level. You will play a key role in Highland Council’s senior leadership team, crafting and implementing people and communication strategies that resonate with staff, partners, and the wider community. With direct responsibility for 90 staff and budget management, you will provide board-level insights to shape key decisions, respecting the unique challenges of Highland's diverse geography. You should possess extensive HR and engagement experience, excel in multi-site environments, and thrive in fast-paced, collaborative settings.
Our people and our places are truly extraordinary, that is why the Highlands of Scotland is one of the top ten destinations in the world! It really is a very special place to work, to live and to grow. This is an exciting opportunity for a compassionate leader to drive transformational change and help us achieve excellence. If you relish challenge and working in a dynamic environment, while connecting with a diverse range of people and communities across a vast and beautiful landscape in the north of Scotland, then this is the perfect role for you. If you share our vision and want to help us make Highland Council the employer of choice, we would very much welcome your application for this key post.
Closing date for applications: Monday 2nd December 2024
Previous applicants need not apply
Political Restriction: The post is defined as being politically restricted and will therefore be restricted in terms of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989, as amended by the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, and by the Local Government Officers (Political Restrictions) Regulations 1990.
Please find the Job Pack below.
Please APPLY ONLINE.
The Highland Council understands that diversity fosters creativity and innovation. We are committed to equality of opportunity and being fair and inclusive. We welcome applications from people from all backgrounds, representative of the communities we serve and particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be under-represented in our workforce.
As a disability confident employer, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum essential criteria requirements for the post.
Short listed applicants will normally be contacted by email, unless otherwise stated. Please check your emails regularly, including your junk/spam folder.
Requirements
Educated to degree level with evidence of continuous professional development and preferably a further relevant professional qualification.
