Editorial Lead | Public Relation | Ogilvy Africa

Role Summary

The Editorial Lead will be at the forefront of content creation and media engagement, ensuring that client stories are not only compelling but also strategically aligned with their goals. This individual will bridge the gap between traditional journalism and modern brand storytelling, leveraging strong editorial skills, ethical rigor, and a deep understanding of the media landscape to drive measurable outcomes.

Key Responsibilities

1. Content Creation & Development

• Storytelling Expertise: Craft high-quality press releases, articles, features, and reports that captivate target audiences.
• Research & Interviews: Conduct thorough research and interviews with a wide range of sources, including clients, public figures, and community members, to gather insights and build credible narratives.
• Multimedia Collaboration: Work closely with photographers, videographers, and graphic designers to produce engaging multimedia content that enhances storytelling.
• Idea Generation: Continuously pitch fresh, innovative story ideas that align with client objectives and audience interests.

2. Media Relations & Placement

• Strategic Media Engagement: Build and maintain relationships with key editorial and media contacts to ensure effective story placement.
• Proactive Pitching: Actively pitch stories to media houses, navigating challenges to secure maximum reach and impact.
• Client Alignment: Collaborate with client teams to evaluate the potential success of stories in terms of audience engagement and media penetration.

3. Accuracy & Ethics

• Fact-Checking: Rigorously verify all information to uphold accuracy and credibility in all published content.
• Ethical Standards: Adhere to the ethical guidelines of Ogilvy Africa, WPP Group, and client organizations, ensuring fairness, transparency, and integrity in all activities.

4. Monitoring & Measurement

• Performance Analysis: Use industry-standard tools and platforms to measure the success of editorial activities, compiling detailed reports for stakeholders.
• Trend Monitoring: Stay updated on breaking news, emerging trends, and social media developments to inform newsroom strategies and client opportunities.

5. Digital Content Management

• Platform Oversight: Manage and update digital platforms, including websites and social media channels, to ensure consistent and timely content delivery.
• Audience Engagement: Optimize digital content for maximum visibility and interaction across online platforms.

6. Team Collaboration & Strategy

• Editorial Leadership: Actively contribute to newsroom strategy through participation in editorial meetings and planning sessions.
• Mentorship: Provide guidance and coaching to team members, fostering a culture of continuous learning and collaboration.

Ideal Candidate Profile

Skills & Experience

• Proven experience in journalism, editorial leadership, or content creation, ideally within a fast-paced newsroom or agency environment.
• Exceptional writing, editing, and storytelling skills, with a portfolio showcasing diverse formats (e.g., print, digital, multimedia).
• Strong media relations expertise, with an established network of editorial contacts.
• Proficiency in digital content management and familiarity with analytics tools for measuring performance.
• A solid understanding of the African media landscape and cultural nuances.

Attributes

• Passionate about storytelling and its power to influence and inspire.
• Highly organized, detail-oriented, and able to manage multiple projects under tight deadlines.
• Collaborative mindset with the ability to work effectively across teams and disciplines.
• Ethical, transparent, and committed to maintaining the highest standards of professionalism.

OGILVY AFRICA – COMPANY OVERVIEW

Ogilvy Africa is the largest network agency on the continent catering to 40 countries with a team of ~900 people across Central, East and West Africa. Headquartered in Nairobi - Kenya, Ogilvy Africa manages a portfolio of over 100 brands for clients such as AB InBev, Airtel, Africa CDC, Coca-Cola, Diageo, Distell, Equity Bank, Exxon Mobil, Kenya Airways, Mondelez, NCBA, Nestle, Philips, PWC, SAB Miller, Sanlam, Total, UNICEF, Unilever and WWF amongst others.
We offer services across the full spectrum of marketing domains including advertising (on and offline), Customer Engagement & Commerce, Digital Transformation, Shopper Marketing, Media, PR & Influence; all under one unified setup. We’ve also created proprietary marketing products in areas such as real-time marketing, social intelligence, virtual experiences, influencer management, e-commerce enablement and content hubs. Our unique operating model, One Ogilvy, allows clients and brands to cut the complexity of agency structures and create seamless omni-channel experiences for their consumers, across touchpoints. Fueled by the holy trinity of content, data and technology; Ogilvy Africa strives to be the best-practice agency model, for Developing & Emerging markets.
In our 20+ years in Africa, we have won the highest number of regional and global awards for the region including Cannes Lions, Clio awards, Dubai Lynx Festival, SABRE Awards (Global and Africa); to name a few.
Ogilvy is a leading global creative network of WPP. Launched by David Ogilvy over 70 years ago, it’s referred-to as the Agency of Giants, by several industry experts.

BELIEFS AT OGILVY 

• People need regular OS upgrades: Even the best OS will be obsolete tomorrow unless its constantly upgrades. same is true for people.
• We need more cows than milk men: We are a culture of practitioners, not manager. We contribute before we comment.
• Creative about creativity: Creativity is, and will always be, our differentiator. Creativity now includes holy trinity of Data -Content -Tech
• Diversity is a competitive advantage: New profiles, new skills, new styles of leadership make us a stronger company.
• Collaborative advantage > Competitive advantage: Find partners who are on top of their game at the skillset we need. It’s the only way to scale at the speed without pretending to have all the answers.
• Team Individual: You get a lot more done when everyone stops worrying about who gets credit at the end. Teams Succeed; individuals fail.
• Fail often, fail fast: We see intrapreneur in all our people and encourage a culture of pilots. Test, succeed and scale; or fail-fast learn, learn from the failure and start something new.