Engagement, Events and Communication Lead FCAS

MBDA; Bristol; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 52,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading defense organization is looking for an FCAS Engagement, Events and Communications Lead in Bristol. This role involves developing strategies for employee engagement and managing multi-site events. You will engage with diverse audiences to communicate the mission and goals of the FCAS program, ensuring that all employees feel informed and inspired. Ideally, you should have strong project management skills, proven experience in internal communications, and the ability to translate complex concepts into accessible messages. A hybrid working environment is available.

Benefits

Company bonus up to £2,500

Pension scheme up to 14%

Opportunity for paid overtime

Flexi Leave up to 15 days

Enhanced parental leave

Subsidised meals and free car parking

Healthcare Cash Plan

Qualifications

• Proven experience in internal communications, events management, or employee engagement.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to balance multiple workstreams.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills adaptable to diverse audiences.

Responsibilities

• Develop and deliver the annual FCAS Engagement and Events strategy.
• Lead planning and delivery of multi-site hybrid and in-person events.
• Shape narratives around communicating leadership priorities and achievements.

Skills

Internal communications

Events management

Employee engagement

Project management

Communication skills

Attention to detail

Job description

Salary: Circa £40,000 – £52,000 depending on experience

Dynamic (hybrid) working: Where possible, we will seek to accommodate a blended approach to on-site and remote working – such as two days working on site and three days working from home. Please note that this is a Fixed Term Contract for 2 years

Security Clearance British Citizen. As a minimum and after offer stage, all successful candidates will need to undergo HMG Basic Personnel Security Standard checks (BPSS), which are managed by the MBDA Personnel Security Team. SC required.

What we can offer you:

• Company bonus: Up to £2,500 (based on company performance and will vary year to year)
• Pension: maximum total (employer and employee) contribution of up to 14%
• Overtime: opportunity for paid overtime
• Flexi Leave: Up to 15 additional days
• Flexible working: We welcome applicants who are looking for flexible working arrangements
• Enhanced parental leave: offers up to 26 weeks for maternity, adoption and shared parental leave -enhancements are available for paternity leave, neonatal leave and fertility testing and treatments
• Facilities: Fantastic site facilities including subsidised meals, free car parking and much more…
• Healthcare Cash Plan: The Healthcare Cash Plan benefit provides the option to claim cash back on everyday healthcare expenses such as optical, dental, health and wellbeing and more.

The opportunity:

FCAS (Future Combat Air System) is one of the largest, most exciting and challenging programmes within Defence – to design and deliver a Future Combat Air Programme for the RAF in record time. The key cornerstone of FCAS is the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), which sees the UK working with our international partners Italy and Japan. FCAS and GCAP combined present a unique opportunity to influence the design of the platform and wider system to reflect a new approach to weapon integration and employment of effects rather than just traditional integration of effectors to an existing platform.

The FCAS portfolio consists of a number of different projects and contracts looking at different areas within Combat Air. MBDA UK is involved in a number of these projects including the TEMPEST project, where some novel technologies are being explored, the main UK FCAS Acquisition Programme, as well as the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP).

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join this programme as our FCAS Engagement, Events and Communications Lead. You will have previous experience of working in internal communications, events management or employee engagement in a complex organisation.

It will be your role to develop and deploy an engaging narrative across the FCAS programme within MBDA so our people feel informed, connected and inspired by a shared mission. You will lead the delivery of multi-site events from large-scale hybrid town halls and leadership briefings to in person offsite events. Through a mix of digital, in-person, and hybrid engagement activities you will shape the narrative to communicate the FCAS leadership team’s priorities and the team’s achievements.

You'll be tasked with turning sophisticated information into something understandable for all of our people. You will have outstanding written skills and experience of delivering engaging content across a wide range of media and formats.

We are looking for someone who can start fast and quickly establish relationships both internally and externally. This is a great opportunity to join a fantastic team and make this role your own.

Some of the Key Accountabilities for this role include but are not limited to;

• Develop and deliver the annual FCAS Engagement and Events strategy and plan, aligned with FCAS Leadership objectives and our FCAS Behaviours
• Lead the planning and delivery of multi-site events — from large-scale hybrid town halls and leadership briefings to in person offsite events
• Shape the narrative around communicating FCAS leadership team priorities and achievements through a mix of digital, in-person, and hybrid engagement activities.
• Partner with MBDA external and internal communication Leads as required to utilise existing channels to cascade messaging
• Provide coaching and support to embed the FCAS narrative consistently within employee communications
• Capture and showcase success stories from across FCAS teams — highlighting innovation, skills, delivery excellence and demonstration of our FCAS Behaviours.
• Lead development of the FCAS recognition activities to support the FCAS aim and behaviours of delivering a culture of continuous improvement and employee appreciation
• Evaluate engagement impact through results from the FCAS Culture Survey, attendance data, and feedback through pulse surveys and direct engagement with colleagues.

What we're looking for from you:

• Proven experience in internal communications, events management or employee engagement
• Strong project management skills with the ability to balance multiple workstreams across sites and stakeholders.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; able to craft clear, compelling messages for diverse audiences.
• High attention to detail and strong organisational discipline.
• Comfortable working with senior stakeholders, understanding their requirements and presenting ideas confidently.
• Proactive, adaptable, and energised by high-impact environments
• Able to translate complex technical concepts into accessible, motivating narratives.
• Demonstrate partnering behaviours and the ability to work effectively as part of a team as well as operate with autonomy to deliver results and provide solutions
• Ability to develop positive and effective relationships
• Collaborative and approachable, with strong interpersonal skills.
• Passionate about defence.
• Experience in defence, aerospace or government-facing environments would be advantageous

Our company: Peace is not a given, Freedom is not a given, Sovereignty is not a given

MBDA is a leading defence organisation. We are proud of the role we play in supporting the Armed Forces who protect our nations. We partner with governments to work together towards a common goal, defending our freedom.

We are proud of our employee-led networks, examples include: Gender Equality, Pride, Menopause Matters, Parents and Carers, Armed Forces, Ethnic Diversity, Neurodiversity, Disability and more…

We recognise that everyone is unique, and we encourage you to speak to us should you require any advice, support or adjustments throughout our recruitment process.

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