Head of Department for Project Development and Communication

Do you want to lead project development and strategic communication at DGI Østjylland?

We have big ambitions, and ambitions require leadership. Therefore we are expanding our leadership team with a new department head for Project Development and Communications.

Can you translate good ideas into strong projects, create financing for new initiatives, and set strategic direction for our communication? And do you thrive in leadership, relationships and cross-collaboration? Then you are the one we are looking for.

You will be responsible for strengthening our project development and grant work and for elevating communication as an even stronger strategic capability in DGI Østjylland.

The job

You will have the management responsibility for four employees attached to three active projects and for our communications team, which consists of two communications staff and three interns annually.

And you are lucky. Because you will have a team of skilled and engaged employees who are passionate about their work and about making a difference. Your task is to set a clear direction and create the framework for them to succeed. You should be close enough to spar, motivate and develop, but at the same time give space, responsibility and trust. You must ensure high professional quality and create coherence and collaboration across the organization.

Therefore we are looking for someone who both has leadership experience and professional depth in project development and communication. You do not need to be able to do everything yourself. But you should be able to lead different professional disciplines, ask the right questions and set direction. And when needed, you should also be ready to roll up your sleeves yourself.

Project Development

Here you will have both the responsibility to set direction and to be involved in creating. You must be able to spot opportunities, bring the right people together, and translate ideas and strategic ambitions into strong projects and grant applications.

You should, among other things

• lead and develop larger strategic development projects and coordinate our overall project portfolio
• identify new project-, grant- and partnership opportunities and make them concrete, as well as build and develop strong relationships with foundations and other funders
• write and qualify project descriptions and grant applications yourself
• advise and support staff and project managers in project development and project management

You have documented experience with project development, project writing and grant collaboration and can translate strategic opportunities into projects that can live in reality.

Communication

Communication for us is about more than visibility. We want to be closer to the member associations and our partners, and we want to be a clear and credible voice for civil society and strong communities.

You will have the overall responsibility for the communications area. One of your first key tasks will be, together with the communications team, to develop a new communications strategy that translates the ambitions in Strategy 2030 into clear choices, priorities, and actions.

You should, among other things

• set the direction for and develop DGI Østjylland's overall communications effort based on DGI's overarching brand
• increase awareness of our offerings, competencies, and values among member associations and partners
• strengthen our press work, branding and digital communication so that DGI Østjylland positions itself as an even clearer and more relevant societal actor
• be the natural link between DGI Østjylland and DGI's national communications department

Leadership

Together with the director and three other department heads, you help set the direction for the entire organization and translate the board's decisions and Strategy 2030 into action.

We have a strong and engaged leadership community. We challenge each other, help each other, and have an open and trust-based collaboration. We are ambitious and take our shared responsibility seriously, but fortunately not always ourselves. There should also be room for laughter along the way.

You report to the director of DGI Østjylland and will have good opportunities to shape both your own area and the organization's further development.

We imagine that you

• have experience with personnel management, professional leadership, operations management, and strategic leadership
• know Danish civil society and voluntary sector and preferably have insight into the connection between sport, health and community
• thrive in a politically led organization and can translate strategic and political ambitions into action in collaboration with the board, the organization and external actors
• have a relevant postgraduate education and preferably a leadership qualification

And a bit more personal

You lead with trust, curiosity and courage. You listen and involve, but also dare to set direction, make decisions and give responsibility and space to others.

You are strong in relationships and have an eye for creating connections both internally and externally. You take initiative, see opportunities and bring people together. At the same time you communicate clearly and precisely, both orally and in writing, and you manage to combine a desire for development with structure, so good ideas do not stay just in the thinking but are brought to life.

And if you also contribute with good humor, that is certainly not a disadvantage.

No one can know everything. But we hope you can recognise yourself in most of it.

Who are we?

At DGI Østjylland we work for more sport and movement, stronger sports associations and vibrant communities.

We cover eight municipalities: Favrskov, Norddjurs, Odder, Randers, Samsø, Skanderborg, Syddjurs and Aarhus. With 710 member associations, 261,874 members and more than 32,000 volunteers, we are Jutland's largest sports organization.

With DGI Østjylland's Strategy 2030 we strengthen our role as an active societal actor and development partner. Together with municipalities, foundations and other actors we work for better frameworks for civil society and for bringing the potential of sport and communities into play in areas including health, well-being and local community development.

We believe that DGI Østjylland is among the best workplaces in Denmark. We are about 40 dedicated colleagues who care about each other and challenge each other professionally. Every week we have an hour of paid employee exercise together, which brings a smile to the face and sometimes sweat on the brow. You can look forward to that.

Workplace and working hours

Your workplace is DGI Østjylland's office at Klamsagervej 19B, 1st floor, 8230 Åbyhøj.

You are hired with no upper limit on working hours and must be prepared that some of the work takes place in the evenings and occasionally on weekends.

Salary is negotiated individually based on qualifications. And we might as well be honest: DGI is not the highest payer. On the other hand we believe we have a lot of other things on offer that make the job worth applying for. For example you will get a flexible work life with cross-DGI networking, flexible working hours, health insurance, paid internet and social events.

Practical

The application deadline is November 30, 2026 at 23:59.

We expect to conduct the first round of interviews on December 7 and the second on December 11. Between the two interviews, a personality profile will be prepared with a follow-up interview with our HR department. You will also be given a task in connection with the interview process.

If you would like to read more about DGI Østjylland and our Strategy 2030, you can do so here.

If you have questions about the position, you are very welcome to contact Director Bjørn Ruben Skovsgaard on 27 59 55 15 or Department Head Jane Østergaard on 30 29 83 27. Please feel free to text first, so we can find a good time to talk.

We look forward to hearing from you.