Chief Communications Officer

Chief Communications & Marketing Officer

Location: Sydney

Reporting to: CEO, Thrive & Acuity AU/NZ

Role Overview

This is a newly created opportunity for a commercially-minded communications and marketing professional to step into a hands-on Chief Communications & Marketing Officer role with genuine influence within one of ANZ's most successful agency groups.

Working alongside the CEO of Thrive PR & Communications and its new sister agency, Acuity, you'll lead the communications, marketing, brand and reputation strategy across Australia and New Zealand, strengthening the agency's market position, industry profile and impact long-term growth. You'll become a trusted advisor to the CEO, driving executive communications internally and externally, thought leadership and agency marketing while ensuring every touchpoint reflects the group’s values, ambition and market leadership.

This role is ideal for an exceptional communications storyteller, digital native and culture curious marketer who is obsessed with global and local industry news and sees the potential in the current disrupted market.

About Us

The agency group is at a pivotal time in its trajectory and with new strategic advisory and a solid leadership framework that’s set to deliver an ambitious three year plan. Positioning and marketing are key to the success of the plan. Celebrating our people and work internally, showcasing our talented team and work on a world stage and managing the reputation of two very distinct brands, is the opportunity.

Both Thrive and Acuity provide creative and strategic communications for some of the world's most recognised brands, including The LEGO Group, Diageo, BYD, FedEx, ANZ Group and more. This means there are unique brands to elevate with super smart executives as part of our narrative, and an unrivalled asset bank for this role.

As a founder-led large scale indy with the capability and ambition of a leading global network agency, we're entering an exciting phase of growth and have created this new role to strengthen our brand, elevate our market presence and support the next stage of agency.

What You'll Do

Strategic & Creative Communications

• Hands on development and delivery of the marketing plan to accelerate the success of the three year plan
• Partner closely with the Founder & CEO as a trusted communications and strategic advisor.
• Lead Thrive & Acuity’s communications, marketing and brand strategies across Australia and New Zealand.
• Translate business priorities into compelling communications that strengthen reputation, market influence and agency growth.
• Drive innovation across communications, content, digital marketing and executive engagement.
• Oversee, write and direct all content requirements for the plan.
• Devise and deliver the internal communications function in close collaboration with the CEO, MD Australia and Head of HR.

Brand, Marketing & Reputation

• Lead the agency's brand strategy, marketing and reputation management across Thrive and Acuity.
• Manage all assets including websites, socials and materials for AU & NZ
• Oversee social channel content and the social team
• Deliver frequent EDMs
• Deliver the GEO strategy
• Ensure consistency across every communication touchpoint and upholding brand messages while protecting and enhancing the agency's reputation.

Executive Communications & Industry Leadership

• Lead executive communications and thought leadership for the CEO and MD Australia.
• Develop keynote presentations, articles, award submissions, executive messaging and industry content.
• Drive Thrive's awards strategy and strengthen relationships with trade media, industry bodies and conference partners.
• Position Thrive as an industry leader across communications, creativity, innovation and AI.

Internal Communications & Advocacy

• Partner with Business Leads across Australia and New Zealand to deliver week-to-week internal communications requirements.
• Develop an inspiring advocacy programme to support talent engagement programs and support with retention and recognition of our teams.
• Design our Cannes Lions attendance including content from the festival, thought leadership and visibility.

What You'll Bring

• 10+ years senior communications experience across communications in an agency environment.
• Trade and business media relationships and insights.
• PR agency experience within an integrated communications environment (mandatory).
• Demonstrated experience partnering directly with CEOs, Founders and executive leadership teams.
• Exceptional writing, storytelling and story mining capability.
• Experience delivering integrated marketing across earned, owned, social and digital channels.
• Experience building executive thought leadership, managing awards programs and elevating agency reputation. A clear understanding of the Awards program and experience writing (and winning!) awards.
• A collaborative senior consultant style with the confidence to influence stakeholders, inspire teams and drive change.
• A nimble and flexible approach to getting great work done!

Why Thrive?

You'll get to shape the positioning and influence the future of a stable and growing independent agency who are already leaders in industry - an agency that believes our people are “Limited by Nothing”.

Benefits include:

Visa Support: Support for eligible visa holders, including long-term sponsorship pathways for valued team members.

Culture Connections: Weekly Thrive O'Clocks with guest speakers, quarterly agency-funded social events and regular client and team celebrations.

Flexibility & Travel: Hybrid working (three in-office collaboration days per week), WFH Mondays and Fridays, plus up to four weeks of approved Work From Anywhere across our Trans-Tasman offices.

Extra Time Off: An annual "Thriving Birthday Me Day" and early 4:00pm finishes during Summer Fridays (December to February).

Supercharged Parental Support: Additional paid parental leave (plus superannuation) on top of the government scheme, with a nurtured return-to-work program.

Growth & Learning: Opportunity to join our AI Digital Council, external learning budget, memberships and seminars, plus internal development programs including Thrive Bites, Lunch 'n Learns and Thrive Academies.