Abt Associates

About the Program

Investing in Women: Women in Inclusive Sustainable Economic Recovery (IW) is a multi-country Australian Government initiative in Southeast Asia that seeks to accelerate women’s economic empowerment through increased and equitable opportunities in the private sector, contributing to inclusive, sustainable economic recovery and growth in targeted countries. Our objective is to support women to thrive in the workplace and succeed in business.

Building on the results, partnerships and lessons established under the first seven years of the program, IW’s new phase will extend and deepen Australia’s contribution to advancing gender equality in Southeast Asia through influencing and growing an ecosystem of policymakers, business leaders, capital providers and women’s economic empowerment actors.

Positioning women at the centre of economic resilience and accelerating their economic empowerment is critical to achieving a wide range of sustainable development objectives in Southeast Asia. As the region recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, gender-sensitive economic recovery strategies will be critical to prevent further deterioration in women’s economic empowerment indicators as seen during COVID-19. Focus on an inclusive recovery seeks to harness the productivity, skills, capacity, talent, innovation, and leadership that women offer, and realise the benefits of women’s economic empowerment for themselves, their families, and their communities.

IW continues the ambitious agenda of advancing women’s economic empowerment through:

• Workplace Gender Equality (WGE) – We support Business Coalitions that work with influential businesses on shifting workplace cultures, practices, and policy barriers to achieve workplace gender equality, with member companies together employing more than one million people;
• Enabling Policy Reforms – We support locally identified reform agendas that promote women’s workforce participation, generate support for the business case for WGE, and build the case for the value and importance of the care economy to business, the economy and women’s economic empowerment;
• Campaigns and Communities of Practice – We support locally driven campaigns in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam that highlight positive examples of gender equality to strengthen public support for women’s economic participation. Through fostering a community of gender equality advocates, IW will continuously build evidence that supports the broader adoption of progressive attitudes and behaviours; and
• Gender Lens Investing – We work to increase investment in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) that disproportionately benefit women in Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam. We do so by increasing capital providers’ demand for Gender Lens Investing strategies and products, catalysing the supply of financial instruments available to small businesses owned or led by women, and investing in the growth of SMEs that support women through a ‘fund of funds’ strategy.

In collaboration with corporations and business leaders, policymakers and implementers, capital providers, entrepreneurs, and advocates, we are working with those who are driving change for women's economic equality in our region.

Investing in Women supports the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 Agenda and the leveraging of private sector investments to achieve the Goals. The SDGs recognise that gender equality is not only an essential human right, but a necessary foundation for peaceful, prosperous and sustainable societies.

Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has contracted Abt Associates Australia to implement Investing in Women. Abt Associates Australia is a mission-driven, global leader in research, evaluation and implementing programs in health, social and environmental policy and international development.

Investing in Women’s new phase is anticipated to be up to AUD 80 million in value, initially for four years (from January 2023 to June 2027), with an option to extend for a further six years. Initial countries of focus will be at least Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, with some activities engaging at a regional level. Further information about Investing in Women can be found on the website: www.investinginwomen.asia.

About the Opportunity

The Senior Manager Communications and Engagement is a key leadership role responsible for setting and executing IW’s communication strategy and fostering effective stakeholder engagement. The role delivers on the Australian Government’s communications and public diplomacy expectations for IW, and supports achievement of the program’s end of program outcomes.

The Senior Manager is a reliable advisor to the CEO and senior leadership team, providing strategic communications and stakeholder engagement advice.

Reporting directly to CEO, this position provides strategic leadership to the communications team. The Senior Manager will be responsible for building a cohesive and high-performing communications team and fostering collaboration to deliver strategic, consistent and impactful communications and engagement at the country and whole of program levels.

The geographically dispersed team is comprised of two Communications and Engagement Managers (in Vietnam and the Philippines) and a part-time Website Coordinator. There is also dotted-line supervision of a Policy Partnerships, and Communications and Engagement Manager (Indonesia).

Key Responsibilities:

• Strategy setting and execution:
  • Implement the communications strategy and, in consultation with the CEO, refresh the strategy as needed to ensure it evolves to meet the program’s requirements.
  • Identify and deliver on strategic communications and engagement opportunities to demonstrate IW’s impact.
  • Understand DFAT’s communication preferences and priorities (in Canberra and program countries) and ensure IW content is valued and useful.
• Reputation and brand management:
  • Ensure IW’s communications and engagement activities contribute to strengthening and protecting the Australian Government’s brand and reputation.
  • Ensure consistent application of the IW brand across all communications to ensure a professional brand identity.
• Team leadership:
  • Manage and mentor the communications team, fostering a collaborative and high-performing team.
  • Provide clear expectations and a supportive environment, enabling the team to deliver high standard, strategic communications.
• Internal Collaboration:
  • Work closely with functional teams, including the IW Workstreams; Monitoring, Evaluation, Research and Learning; Knowledge Management; and Country Leads to identify strategic communications opportunities and to ensure alignment and consistency in messaging.
• Stakeholder engagement:
  • Ensure the communications team prioritises DFAT and is responsive to their requirements and requests.
  • Ensure the program is appropriately engaging with key stakeholder groups to increase understanding of IW’s impact.
• Digital communications:
  • Ensure digital channels are effectively and efficiently engaging key stakeholders.
  • Oversee development of strategic social media plans that identify purpose, audiences, content and tactics for each channel.
  • Ensure the website delivers an up to date and accessible Knowledge Hub.
• Monitoring and analysis:
  • Oversee reporting and analysis of the effectiveness of communication activities, providing reporting as required.
  • Use data to inform continuous improvement.
• Budget Management:
  • Manage the communications budget effectively, ensuring compliant procurement and value for money approaches.
• Crisis communications:
  • Develop an IW crisis communication plan to support DFAT’s crisis management.

Employment type and location: A citizen role, but open to others who have legal right to work in country under a local compensation package. Based in Manila, Philippines.

Duration: up to 30 June 2027; anticipated to commence as soon as possible.

About You

We are seeking an experienced and strategic communications professional who brings:

• Demonstrated experience in developing and executing strategic communications in a complex, multi-country or donor-funded program context.
• Strong leadership and team management skills, with a proven ability to build and guide a high-performing team.
• Excellent stakeholder engagement skills, including experience working with government agencies, donors (preferably DFAT), and regional partners.
• Experience in digital communications strategy, brand management, and using analytics to drive continuous improvement.
• Outstanding written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to advise senior leaders and represent the program effectively.

Key Selection Criteria

For your application to be considered by the Panel, interested applicants must submit a response to each of the following Key Selection Criteria (KSC):

KSC 1.

Bachelor’s degree in communication, Public Relations, Marketing, Journalism or a related field. Master’s degree in a relevant field is preferable, or more than eight years’ relevant work experience.

KSC 2.

Demonstrated experience delivering strategic communications and stakeholder engagement, including at a senior level. Responsibility for developing and executing communication strategies that have delivered measurable results.

KSC 3.

Experience in team leadership, including complex team structures (across functional units and/or geographies). Experience leading teams through change.

KSC 4.

A deep understanding of best practice strategic communications, including leveraging digital communications, and sophisticated approach to stakeholder engagement.

KSC 5.

Demonstrated experience working with high value clients, preferably government agencies, and successfully delivering to their expectations.

Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of colour are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single requirement for a position. At Abt Global we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace, so if you are excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every role requirement, we encourage you to apply in any case. You may be just the right candidate for this or for other roles.

How to Apply

We are an equal opportunity employer and encourage applications from experienced and capable women.

Please submit your application online. Upload your cover letter, CV and response to the KSCs. Submit your CV and KSC response as a single Word or PDF document, and address how you meet the requirements of this role. We are unable to proceed with an application without the KSC statements.

Closing Date: 6 July 2025, 11:59 PM, Sunday

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Please note that applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and interviews may be conducted before the closing date. IW reserves the right to close this advertisement early if we have identified suitable candidates.

Abt Global-Australia is a mission-driven, global leader with a proven track record in complex program implementation in the international development sector. We offer bold solutions and technical excellence in Health, Economic Growth, Governance, Research & Evaluation, Environment & Energy, Gender Equality & Social Inclusion. Working with our many partners, we have driven measurable social impact for more than 55 years, to achieve our mission of improving the quality of life and economic well-being of people worldwide. We operate in remote and challenging environments and employ more than 3000 staff in over 50 countries.

Equity

Abt Global values individuality and celebrates difference with a strong commitment to all forms of diversity and equality including racial equity, gender, sexual diversity and disability inclusion. We strongly encourage people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to apply for this position. We offer flexible work arrangements and a culturally safe environment for staff members from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds.

Safeguarding

We are deeply committed to safeguarding, to protect and prevent harm and abuse to individuals we work for and who work for us. Our recruitment and selection procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation. We will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, child abuse, sexual abuse or exploitation in any form, and expect everyone to be treated with respect and dignity.

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