Industry Engagement Manager - Northern Ireland; Maternity Cover

Industry Engagement Manager - Northern Ireland

We’re seeking someone with excellent engagement skills and industry experience to support the seafood sector across Northern Ireland.

• Job status:
  This is a full-time
  * role for 12 months as maternity leave cover.
• Location:
  
  The job will be home based and will involve travel across Northern Ireland and throughout the UK, principally to the Seafish offices in Edinburgh and Grimsby.
• Salary:
  The starting salary for this role is £41,000 per year.

* This role is being advertised on a full-time basis. If the postholder is based in Northern Ireland, this reflects the importance of spending time engaging locally with stakeholders, with in-person engagement often preferred. If the role is undertaken from outside Northern Ireland, the scope of duties may be adjusted accordingly. While we expect the role to be full time, we’re open to conversations about alternative working patterns for the right candidate.

The Industry Engagement team are proactive ambassadors for Seafish and the local seafood industry, leading and supporting activities that drive sustainable growth at a local, regional and national level. We act as a primary contact for seafood business across the supply chain, connecting people to the services of most benefit to them and seeking to understand evolving industry needs. We provide valued support to industry more widely by delivering projects, fostering relationships, and collaborating with stakeholders to maximise the reach of Seafish support and drive positive change.

This role is responsible for supporting the seafood industry in Northern Ireland by leading and advancing initiatives that benefit the seafood supply chain. This is achieved through building and maintaining strong relationships with seafood businesses, as well as key stakeholders such as the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), other government bodies, public sector partner organisations and academic institutions.

By fostering these connections, the role aims to expand the reach of our support and position Seafish as a valuable industry contributor, driving economic growth and adding value across priority work streams aligned to our Annual Plan.

• The job holder must hold a full UK driving licence and will undertake a moderate to significant amount of driving in the execution of their role.
• There will be a requirement to visit quaysides, processing plants, and potentially fish farms. There may be occasional requirements to board fishing vessels, which require a good level of physical fitness. Ideally, you should have a basic awareness of safety practices, but training on working in and around harbours, as well as boarding fishing vessels, will be provided.

• Build and maintain relationships with businesses across the Northern Ireland seafood supply chain, DAERA contacts, Local Authorities, partner organisations, relevant public bodies and non-industry based institutions (e.g. academia) to maximise engagement with our work, and make sure key stakeholders understand what we do and are connected to the products and services that are of most benefit to them.
• Represent Seafish locally and nationally in Northern Ireland, acting as the primary contact to help seafood industry stakeholders understand what we do and how it adds value.
• Be the first port of call for general enquiries, promote funding opportunities, expand the reach of our services and improve stakeholder sentiment towards Seafish.
• Manage engagement with the Seafish Northern Ireland Advisory Committee and maintain an appropriate scope of engaged members to capture industry insight, enhance advocacy for our work and position Seafish to have a positive impact on local industry priorities that align with our Corporate Plan objectives.
• Capture and share insight on evolving industry needs, challenges and opportunities so that Seafish can provide relevant and valued support at a local and national level.
• Provide…