Deputy Director Employee Engagement and Change Communications

As Ofgem evolves, our people continue to play a critical role in how we operate, innovate and respond to the challenges of a changing energy industry. We’re now looking for a Deputy Director of Employee Engagement and Change Communications to take on a senior communications role and shape how more than 2,000 colleagues understand and engage with our future.

Ofgem is Great Britain’s independent energy regulator. We’re at the forefront of change across the energy sector, driving toward Net Zero whilst protecting energy consumers, especially vulnerable people.

This is a full-time, two year fixed-term opportunity to create and shape a brand-new role at a significant moment for Ofgem. With our organisation evolving alongside a rapidly changing energy system, you’ll influence our future culture and leave a lasting mark on how we communicate, collaborate and deliver change.

Few internal communications roles offer this level of organisational reach, and you’ll work directly with Executive Committee and Board-level leaders, advising on communications and strategy whilst influencing staff engagement.

You’ll also have the chance to build something new, defining our approach to employee engagement and change communications while bringing together colleagues from across Ofgem. Leading your own team alongside a wider network of change and people champions, you’ll turn ambitious ideas into meaningful change across the organisation.

We’re looking for someone with proven experience leading large-scale change, transformation and internal communications within a complex or matrixed organisation. You’ll be an accomplished people leader and trusted adviser, with exceptional influencing, strategic and analytical skills. Experience delivering impactful communications programmes and navigating challenge, conflict and difficult conversations will also be essential.

In return, you’ll step into a senior position with the scope to influence at the very highest levels of Ofgem and tackle some of the most interesting communications challenges that come with major organisational change. You’ll have the platform to bring your experience, ideas and judgement to a role you can genuinely make your own.

We have a critical purpose to build an Ofgem that’s ready for the future. Join us and shape the communications, engagement and culture that will bring our people with us.

Read on and find out more.

As a senior experienced and strategic communications leader, you will oversee and deliver the design, strategy, and implementation of employee communications and engagement for Ofgem, helping to shape the culture and evolve how we engage across Ofgem to empower teams, on an initial 24-month fixed term.

This is an opportunity to shape and deliver strategic engagement and communications for Ofgem’s workforce, coming at a significant time when the energy system is transforming and the Ofgem Review means evolving the regulators duties, remit, and powers.

You will bring deep expertise in Change Communications and Employee Engagement, with experience of business-partnering senior leaders to achieve their strategic outcomes. You will lead an internal communications team and mentor colleagues​, as well as managing multi-channel change communication programmes. You will plan, oversee and deliver a significant programme of work on time, within budget and to a high standard through using effective matrix management and collaboration across multiple teams. You will demonstrate exceptional inclusive people and enterprise leadership, a commitment to ongoing professional development, and alignment with Ofgem values.

As our Deputy Director of Employee Engagement and Change Communications, you’ll be the strategic voice that helps 2000+ colleagues understand, navigate, and feel confident about this evolution. You’ll craft powerful executive storytelling, cocreate digital campaigns that bridge silos, and create the conditions for clarity, trust, and accountability to thrive.

This is a role for someone who can deliver influence at scale, welcomes difficult conversations and can manage contested environments constructively, with direct access to senior leaders, demonstrate strong analytical rigour and strategic thinking and can build a culture that has ideas as well as the discipline to execute through to delivery. If you want to shape how an essential public sector regulator communicates, collaborates, and leads through change this is the role for you.

This role reports to the Executive Director of Communications and Engagement, with a dotted line reporting relationship to the Director for Business Change. This role will require ongoing and sustained working from Ofgem’s London Office.

Key Responsibilities:

• Leading and delivering a proactive employee engagement and change communications strategy that drives understanding, engagement and adoption of change.
• Strategic employee and Internal communication planning
• Build relationships and influence across leadership teams, win support and drive large-scale organisational change
• Applying business acumen and cross-functional awareness.​
• Driving innovation and creativity in the use of tech and AI for channels the function and translate this to execution and delivery​.
• Upholding governance, transparency, and ethical communication​ standards.

Key Outputs and Deliverables

• Development and delivery of Executive messaging and organisational storytelling to help cultural change and build a high performance, high morale workforce.
• Responsive and strategic issues management ​through internal communications
• Analysis and measurement of communication effectiveness.
• Project management and campaign planning​.
• Be an active part of Ofgem’s leadership community, supporting organisational success and representing Ofgem’s values and delivering consistently.

Key Corporate Responsibilities

• Contributing to the development of Directorate and Ofgem wide strategic programmes, partnering with senior leadership to prioritise work and resources effectively.
• Setting the strategic direction of the organisational response to the Ofgem review and providing intellectual leadership.
• Providing mentoring, development, effective performance management, leadership and guidance across the profession.

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Ability and Experience.

A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years.

A Statement of Suitability (up to 1000 words) explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience evidence your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the criteria in the person specification.

Failure to submit both documents (CV and Statement of Suitability) will mean the panel has only limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification.

Should you encounter any issues with submitting your application, please get in touch with Ellwood & Atfield (olivia.g@ellwoodatfield.com)

Timeline for the process is:

Shortlist meeting w/c 28th September 2026

Assessments w/c 5th October 2026 – w/c 12th October 2026

Interviews w/c 19th October 2026 onwards, where two candidates are closely matched there may be a requirement for a further interview with the Hiring Manager and CEO

Please refer to Civil Service candidate advice on the acceptable use of Artificial intelligence within the recruitment and selection process - Artificial intelligence and recruitment , Civil Service Careers

The personal information we have collected from you will be shared with Cifas who will use it to prevent fraud, other unlawful or dishonest conduct, malpractice, and other seriously improper conduct. If any of these are detected, you could be refused certain services or employment. Your personal information will also be used to verify your identity. Further details of how your information will be used by us and Cifas, and your data protection rights, can be found by [https://www.cifas.org.uk/fpn].

Please see candidate pack for full details of selection requirements and process

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.