Airbnb was born in 2007 when two Hosts welcomed three guests to their San Francisco home, and has since grown to over 4 million Hosts who have welcomed more than 1 billion guest arrivals in almost every country across the globe. Every day, Hosts offer unique stays and experiences that make it possible for guests to connect with communities in a more authentic way.
The Community You Will Join:
The communications team is responsible for telling the Airbnb story around the world. Whether we are briefing press on inspiring travel trends, highlighting unique experiences led by local hosts, or explaining how travel on our platform benefits local families and communities, we are the voice of Airbnb on a broad range of topics. We're a fast growing and high energy team with a passion for people, places and great stories.
The Difference You will Make:
We are seeking a Senior Communications Lead, EMEA Corporate and Policy, who will be responsible for helping to protect and defend Airbnb's reputation in the region and providing expert comms consultancy to country comms teams and the Regional Policy Director. The role reports to the Regional Director of Communications and has a dotted line to the Director of Global Policy Communications.
In this role, you must be confident working under pressure to tight deadlines, explaining complex issues in simple ways and acting as a vital conduit between global and regional teams.
Your remit includes developing and maintaining a clear and consistent brand voice across the region, while allowing for messaging adaptations depending on market nuances. You will also be responsible for cascading global messaging and strategy updates to the team and supporting prioritisation and planning.
A Typical Day:
Policy Communications
- A crucial stakeholder to the regional Director of Policy and wider leadership team, to advise on policy comms ideas and strategies to support policy planning and goals
- Ensure the timely cascade of important global and regional policy updates, giving the team guidance and direction on implementation and weaving global messaging into local stories
- Consult and support on policy comms strategies for local regulatory and litigation updates
- Supports teams on proactive campaigns and helps create content and messaging around key issues such as over tourism and housing, linking to global frameworks and playbooks.
- Reviews external-facing policy-related press materials
Corporate and Exec Communications
- Works with the regional team to identify interview opportunities for global executives (VPs and e-staff) and works with country leads to develop proposals for exec participation
- Responsible for ensuring the seamless execution of all exec comms briefs, strategies, materials and meetings working in tandem with the country comms leads
- Supports the country comms leads with reactive corporate comms issues, ensuring message discipline and escalating to HQ when appropriate
- Advises country teams on incorporating global narratives and corporate messaging into local programs
- Proactively builds regionally relevant initiatives working with the editorial task force, to include data reports or partnerships with industry bodies, such as EY, Oxford Economics, UNESCO, WWF.
- Drafts briefing documents, op-eds and presentations for globally relevant, regional-level issues or opportunities e.g. sustainability, disaster response etc
- Connects regularly with the editorial task force to suggest story angles, themes and opportunities for corporate relevant stories
Trust and Safety (TnS) and Crisis Management (with direct reports in EMEA)
- Leads the TnS comms function for the region, managing and advising local teams on how to handle reactive TnS issues, providing statements and media relations strategies. (Not responsible for liaising directly with the media, unless local teams need support (local language dependent))
- Partnering with Customer Service to develop TnS crisis comms playbooks that include clear processes for behind the scenes case management and decision making working with counterparts in legal and the community policy team.
- Leads the region’s proactive TnS comms strategies and programs and provides regular reporting updates to the regional leadership team and global comms
- Advises regional and global stakeholders on regional comms response to global issues
- Develops a TnS playbook including standard messaging and statements for common issues, updating and sharing with the team on a regular basis
- Advises teams on comms response to new product features
- Oversees trust product rollouts from a comms perspective
- Drives cross functional collaboration with all related teams, including Legal, Marketing, Bizops and Policy
- Reviews and acts as final approver for all written materials relating to Corporate and Policy Comms
Your Expertise:
- 12+ years communications / public affairs experience, either working in a PR agency or in-house
- Proven-track record leading Corporate and Policy communications initiatives involving trust, crisis, policy and regulatory matters
- Team management skills, ensuring we are always finding the full potential of our talented team
- Ability to work collaboratively with multi-functional leads in a matrix organisation
- Excellent writing skills
- Passion for Airbnb and the mission of the company
- Experience working on projects in a fast-paced environment
- Passion for simplicity and getting things done
- Strong organisational skills and attention to detail
- Strong problem solving skills
- Excellent verbal communications and interpersonal skills
- Maintaining enthusiasm and a calm demeanour in stressful situations
Our Commitment To Inclusion & Belonging:
Airbnb is committed to working with the broadest talent pool possible. We believe diverse ideas foster innovation and engagement, and allow us to attract creatively-led people, and to develop the best products, services and solutions. All qualified individuals are encouraged to apply.
