Marketing Director

CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS & ASSESSMENT; Cambridge; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading academic publisher in Cambridge is seeking a Marketing Director for IELTS to define and execute impactful marketing strategies. The role requires expertise in stakeholder management, innovative campaign development, and team leadership. Candidates should have significant marketing experience in complex environments. This position offers a competitive salary and a flexible hybrid working environment.

Benefits

28 days annual leave plus bank holidays

Private medical and permanent health insurance

Discretionary annual bonus

Group personal pension scheme

Life assurance up to 4x annual salary

Green travel schemes

Qualifications

• Experience in shaping and delivering innovative marketing strategies.
• Ability to thrive in complex regulatory environments.
• Proven track record of leading multi-channel campaigns.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute a customer-centric marketing strategy.
• Champion data-driven approaches to brand messaging.
• Oversee substantial marketing budgets and drive ROI.
• Lead and develop a talented marketing team.

Skills

Stakeholder management and influence

Thought leadership and strategic marketing

Commercial acumen

Team leadership and development

Multi-channel & AI-enabled marketing

Education

Senior marketing leadership experience

Job description

Job Title: Marketing Director, IELTS

Salary: Competitive

Location: Cambridge, UK - Hybrid

Contract: Permanent

Hours: Full time 35 hours per week

Step into a pivotal leadership role at the heart of global English language assessment.

Jointly owned by Cambridge University Press & Assessment, the British Council, and IDP Education, IELTS is the world's most trusted English test for study, work and migration – accepted by over 12,500 organisations worldwide. IELTS helps millions of people every year to unlock life‑changing opportunities by proving their skills to employers, governments and educational institutions around the world.

We're searching for an inspiring and visionary Marketing Director to shape the future of English language assessment. This is your opportunity to join a purpose‑driven organisation with true global reach—where your work will have a real, lasting impact on people's lives.

As part of Cambridge University Press & Assessment—a world‑leading academic publisher and assessment organisation, and an integral part of the University of Cambridge—you'll join a collaborative team of over 7,000 colleagues spanning more than 170 countries. Every day, we support more than 100 million learners worldwide, helping them build skills, broaden horizons, and achieve their ambitions. Our commitment to reinvesting all profits into research and innovation ensures we continuously advance our mission to create exciting, relevant, and inspiring educational solutions for the world.

For further information and to apply for role, please contact Clive Sugars, our Recruitment Partner at [e-mail]

About the Role

As our next Marketing Director for IELTS, you'll take the lead in defining and executing a bold, customer‑centric marketing strategy for the world's most trusted English test. This is your opportunity to make a profound impact on a renowned brand that transforms the lives of millions every year.

What Will You Do?

• Lead with Purpose: Champion a data‑driven, customer‑first approach, harnessing insights to create authentic, powerful brand positioning and messaging that inspires learners, educators, and professionals worldwide.
• Shape the Global Vision: Represent Cambridge IELTS at senior leadership forums and major international events, influencing the landscape of global education and making our voice heard where it matters most.
• Build Strategic Partnerships: Collaborate closely with marketing teams across Cambridge English, IDP, and the British Council. You'll develop and manage high‑value relationships to align marketing initiatives and maximise our brand's impact in every region.
• Safeguard our Reputation: Be the guardian of the IELTS and Cambridge brands—proactively managing risk, elevating our standing, and ensuring IELTS remains the preferred English test for governments, universities, and employers around the globe.
• Deliver Commercial Results: Oversee substantial marketing budgets, drive measurable ROI, and directly support IELTS revenue growth through innovative, multi‑channel strategies.
• Inspire High Performance: Lead, develop, and energise a talented marketing team—fostering a culture of collaboration, creativity, and continuous growth.

This is your chance to shape a global legacy, empower millions, and join a mission‑led organisation at the forefront of educational excellence. If you're driven by purpose, innovation, and real‑world impact, we want to hear from you.

About You: Who We're Looking For

Minimum Criteria (Essential Requirements)

We are seeking a dynamic, strategic marketing leader ready to help shape our global impact—someone who combines vision with world‑class expertise and thrives in complex, highly regulated environments.

• Stakeholder management and influence: You excel at building relationships and trust at every level, both internally and externally. From cross‑functional teams to C‑suite executives, government, and regulatory bodies, you communicate with authority and represent the brand confidently at international forums.
• Thought leadership and strategic marketing: You have a proven record of shaping and delivering innovative, multi‑channel marketing strategies. Your insight‑driven approach positions our brand as a sector leader, and you play a key role in influencing industry direction at a strategic level.
• Expertise in highly regulated environments: You understand the nuances of working within strict regulatory frameworks and can expertly balance compliance with commercial opportunities and innovation.
• Senior marketing leadership within a global brand: Ideally, you have experience in the education, assessment, or international sectors, but we welcome exceptional professionals from a range of industries.
• Multi‑channel & AI‑enabled marketing: You are experienced in leading integrated, multi‑channel campaigns, utilising digital platforms, and harnessing AI‑enabled tools and data‑led approaches to achieve measurable commercial outcomes and enhance reputation.
• Commercial acumen: You are comfortable overseeing significant budgets, monitoring ROI, and ensuring marketing initiatives deliver considerable value and impact.
• Team leadership and development: You have the skills to nurture and develop a small high‑performing team within an innovative, collaborative environment.

Desirable

• Knowledge of English language assessment products and services (such as IELTS and competitors).
• Understanding of global higher education, international student mobility, and migration policy trends.

Rewards and Benefits

We will support you to be at your best in work and to live well outside of it. In addition to competitive salaries, we offer a world‑class, flexible rewards package, featuring family‑friendly and planet‑friendly benefits including:

• 28 days annual leave plus bank holidays
• Private medical and permanent health insurance
• Discretionary annual bonus
• Group personal pension scheme
• Life assurance up to 4x annual salary
• Green travel schemes

Ready to pursue your potential? Apply now.

For further information and to apply for role, please contact Clive Sugars, our Recruitment Partner at [e-mail]

The closing date for applications is Sunday 16th November. Interviews will be held from w/c 1st December

Interview Process

• Screening interview with Signium, our recruitment partner
• First stage interview via MS Teams
• Hogan Psychometric Assessment
• Final stage interview: face‑to‑face at our Cambridge office, including presentation

We strive to create an environment where everyone feels valued and supported. If you require any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process due to a disability or a long‑term health condition, there will be an opportunity for you to inform us via the online application form. We will do our best to accommodate your needs.

Please note that successful applicants will be subject to satisfactory background checks including DBS due to working in a regulated industry.

Cambridge University Press & Assessment is an approved UK employer for the sponsorship of eligible roles and applicants under the Skilled Worker visa route. Please refer to the gov.uk website for guidance to understand your own eligibility based on the role you are applying for.

Why join us?

Joining us is your opportunity to pursue potential. You'll belong to a collaborative team that's exploring new and better ways to serve students, teachers and researchers across the globe – for the benefit of individuals, society and the world. Sharing our mission will inspire your own growth, development and progress, in an environment which embraces difference, change and aspiration.

Cambridge University Press & Assessment is committed to being a place where anyone can enjoy a successful career, where it's safe to speak up, and where we learn continuously to improve together. We welcome applications from all candidates, regardless of demographic characteristics (age, disability, educational attainment, ethnicity, gender, marital status, neurodiversity, religion, sex, gender identity and sexual identity), cultural, or social class/background.

We believe better outcomes come through diversity of thought, background and approach. We welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and communities, actively seeking to employ people from a wide range of different communities.