The pathway
How you actually get there, here
How you become one varies far more by country than what one does. This is the UK route. Most people take one of these ways in; the right one depends on where you're starting from.
- 1
Head of Internal Communications (Large Enterprise)
3-5 years in previous roleSkills to master
- Deep understanding of organisational dynamics, managing a large team, advising C-suite on sensitive topics, developing enterprise-wide communication strategies.
You're ready to move on when
- Successfully led internal comms for a significant corporate event (e.g., M&A, major reorganisation).
- Demonstrated ability to influence senior leaders and shape internal narrative.
- Managed a multi-functional comms team and significant budget.
- 2
Senior Manager, Global Change Comms (within a large, complex organisation)
5-8 years in previous roleSkills to master
- Mastery of change management methodologies, leading comms for multiple concurrent transformation programmes, building and managing a team of comms professionals, advanced stakeholder mapping and influence.
You're ready to move on when
- Owned the end-to-end comms strategy for 2-3 major business transformations (e.g., ERP implementation, digital transformation).
- Consistently achieved high adoption rates and positive sentiment scores for transformation initiatives.
- Proven ability to mentor and develop junior comms talent.
- 3
Communications Director (Consultancy, specialising in Change)
4-6 years in previous roleSkills to master
- Managing complex client relationships, developing strategic comms proposals, advising diverse C-suite clients, delivering measurable impact across various industries.
You're ready to move on when
- Successfully led change comms engagements for multiple large corporate clients.
- Demonstrated ability to translate client business objectives into effective comms strategies.
- Strong track record of business development and team leadership within a consultancy environment.