Job Description
We are looking for an experienced, creative PR professional to lead external communications for Sage’s home market (UK & Ireland), ensuring the Sage brand is powerfully positioned in a competitive market and noisy media landscape.
You will shape and deliver compelling stories that elevate Sage’s profile, differentiate us from competitors, and protect our reputation. From proactive media engagement to crisis communications, you will drive impactful campaigns, manage high-stakes narratives, and ensure our messaging resonates with target audiences.
This is a role for a confident communicator with proven media relations expertise, exceptional copywriting skills, and the ability to engage stakeholders at the highest level.
This role is hybrid and can be based in either our Newcastle or London office (with monthly travel to Newcastle required).
An overview of what you'll do:
- Media relations: Develop and maintain strong journalist and influencer relationships across national, trade, and regional media.
- Storytelling & content: Write compelling, accurate, and on-brand copy, including press releases, media statements, op-eds, speeches and by-lined articles.
- Agency Management: Manage the effective running of our key trade agency and engage with our corporate agency effectively to deliver on activity objectives.
- Campaign leadership: Plan and execute integrated PR campaigns, aligning with social, content, and digital teams for maximum impact.
- Case study development: Source, develop, and place customer stories that demonstrate Sage’s market leadership and value to businesses.
- Crisis communications: Lead or support in-region response to issues, providing counsel to senior leadership and delivering timely, accurate external statements.
- Measurement & insight: Monitor media coverage, track campaign effectiveness, and provide actionable insights to refine activity.
What technical skills should you have?
You will bring 5–7+ years’ experience in PR or external communications, ideally gained within-market and in fast-paced, matrix organisations or with high-profile brands.
With excellent spoken and written English, you are skilled at crafting compelling content, developing integrated PR campaigns, and managing media relationships to secure high-quality coverage. You understand how to balance proactive brand-building with responsive issues management, and you are confident using brand, digital and social channels as part of an integrated communications approach.
A strong stakeholder manager and collaborator, you thrive on building trusted relationships while delivering results at pace. Importantly, you’re not afraid to challenge the status quo and try new approaches, bringing fresh ideas and creative solutions to the team.
What will you bring to the team?
You will bring proven experience in leading and delivering high-impact PR within a competitive or complex market environment. You’ll have worked closely with brand teams on campaigns and led the development of integrated communications strategies, with a strong understanding of how social and digital channels enhance PR.
You’ll also have a track record of building strong media relationships, securing top-tier coverage, and spotting story angles that cut through the noise.
It’s essential that you can confidently advise and influence senior leaders on reputation management and media engagement. You’ll thrive in a diverse and hands-on role within the Corporate Affairs team, bringing a can-do attitude, excellent project management skills, and the ability to deliver high-quality outputs at pace. No two days are the same here.
If this sounds like you, we’d love to hear from you. Apply today – we look forward to meeting you!
