Corporate Communications Manager & Digital Lead (Maternity Cover)

PepsiCo; Reading; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Bonus

Car allowance

Flexible working

Critical illness cover

Discounted gym memberships

Enhanced parental leave

Electric car schemes

Job summary

A leading food and beverage company in Reading seeks a Corporate Communications Manager and Digital Lead. This pivotal role involves developing and executing communications strategies, producing digital content, and maintaining corporate social media presence. The ideal candidate has 5-7 years of experience in corporate communications or marketing, excellent writing skills, and a strategic mindset. Competitive salary and benefits offered, including flexible working conditions.

Qualifications

• 5-7 years in corporate communications or related field in a fast-paced environment.
• Proven ability to devise and deliver communications plans.
• Experienced in producing communication materials and digital content.
• Self-motivated and autonomous with strong time management.
• Experience managing agency relationships.
• Meticulous organization and ability to handle multiple priorities.
• Outstanding writing and editing skills with attention to detail.
• Collaborative and able to influence cross-functional teams.
• Digitally savvy and up-to-date with social best practices.
• Interest in food and drink industry news and trends.

Responsibilities

• Develop 360 communications plans focused on health and sustainability.
• Integrate and elevate brands within corporate PR opportunities.
• Manage owned media strategy and content across corporate social channels.
• Support team with reactive issues and communications under pressure.
• Oversee marketing campaign review and governance.
• Coordinate corporate and trade awards entry and amplification.
• Produce and publish corporate reporting, including drafting copy.
• Maintain PepsiCo UK website with latest news and imagery.
• Project manage content development for company events.
• Deliver evaluation reports to enhance communication effectiveness.

Skills

Strategic communication planning

Media handling

Digital content production

Project management

Writing and editing

Team collaboration

Creative thinking

Agency relationship management

Education

Degree in a relevant discipline

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite

Job description

Overview

At PepsiCo UK, we’re proud to make some of the nation’s favourite snacks and drinks—like Walkers, Quaker, Doritos, Pipers, and Monster Munch. With sites across the UK, including our Quaker mill in Cupar and Doritos factory in Coventry, we’re also home to one of the world’s largest crisp factories in Leicester. At the end of 2025 we will move our UK office to a vibrant new Reading town centre location, just minutes from Reading train station.

The Corporate Communications Manager and Digital Lead is a key role within the UK & Ireland Corporate Affairs team, with responsibilities across internal and external communications. As digital lead, the individual will also be responsible for devising and delivering engaging digital content to a broad range of stakeholders through corporate social media channels and internal forums.

The UK and Ireland business is a key market for PepsiCo, with an exciting portfolio of brands including Walkers, Doritos, Quaker and Pepsi MAX. The role is based at our brand-new modern office opposite Reading station.

This is a great opportunity to join an integrated Corporate Affairs team at a pivotal moment in the company’s history, as we look to the future with renewed purpose and bold aspirations.

Responsibilities

The Corporate Communications Manager is responsible for the development and delivery of communications plans and digital content which help drive corporate reputation. Reporting into the Senior External Communications Manager, with a dotted line to the Senior Internal Communications Manager, you will be required to:

• Develop, present and activate 360 comms plans to proactively tell our corporate stories, with a specific focus on health and sustainability. You should be skilled in identifying interesting news hooks and possess the ability to write for a variety of stakeholder audiences.
• Seek ways to integrate and elevate our brands within corporate PR opportunities, working in close partnership with Marketing to amplify global and local brand campaigns and stories.
• Work in partnership with an agency to manage the owned media strategy and content across PepsiCo UK’s corporate social channels – including managing video and photo shoots to deliver relevant and creative plans that support corporate storytelling. You will be accountable for sharing relevant news and stories across internal channels, supported by the Communications Executive.
• Support the team with reactive issues and change management projects, demonstrating the ability to manage communications sensitively while under pressure.
• Oversee the review and governance of marketing campaigns, providing advice and counsel to the marketing team on a daily basis to help safeguard brand and corporate reputation.
• Coordinate the process for entering relevant corporate and trade awards and amplifying successes across all internal and external channels.
• Support in the production and publication of corporate reporting (e.g. Gender Pay Gap report), including drafting copy, briefing design and managing approvals.
• Keep our website www.pepsico.co.uk up to date with latest news and imagery, working with subject matter experts around the business to refresh content, supported by the Communications Executive.
• Project manage and help develop content for company events, e.g. conferences and town halls.
• Use data and insights to deliver evaluation reports and recommendations to enhance communication effectiveness.

Qualifications

Essential:

• Minimum 5-7 years in a corporate communications role or related field (e.g. marketing) gained in a large fast-paced environment, either in-house or agency.
• Proven ability to devise and deliver strategically driven communications plans with clear ability to measure results against objectives.
• Experienced in producing corporate communications materials and digital content, including basic graphic design expertise.
• Self-motivated with an ability to work autonomously when required.
• Experienced in agency relationship management.
• Meticulously organized; ability to manage a complex agenda and hit deadlines across multiple concurrent priorities.
• Outstanding writing and editing skills, with special attention to detail.
• Strong team player and collaborator; comfortable advising and influencing other teams and functions.
• Digitally savvy; someone who keeps up to date on the latest corporate social best practice and can advise the team.
• A keen follower of the news agenda and issues relating to the food and drink industry and ability to apply this to proactive and reactive work every day.
• Proficient media handler.
• Creative thinker – ability to apply creative thought to solve communications challenges.

Desirable:

• Video editing abilities.
• Community management experience.
• Budget management.
• Educated to degree level in a relevant discipline.

Why Join Us?

We offer a competitive salary, bonus, car allowance, flexible working, and a wide range of benefits—from critical illness cover and discounted gym memberships to enhanced parental leave and electric car schemes. Our commitment to wellbeing and career growth makes us a Top Employer for 14 years running.

Equal Opportunities

We’re an equal opportunity employer, committed to the Equality Act 2010. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and will provide any necessary adjustments to support you through the recruitment process.

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated nearly $92 billion in net revenue in 2024, driven by a complementary beverage and convenient foods portfolio that includes Lay’s, Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Quaker, and SodaStream. PepsiCo’s product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including many iconic brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to Be the Global Leader in Beverages and Convenient Foods by Winning with pep+ (PepsiCo Positive). pep+ is our strategic end-to-end transformation that puts sustainability and human capital at the centre of how we will create value and growth by operating within planetary boundaries and inspiring positive change for planet and people. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com, and follow on X (Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn @PepsiCo.