Nationwide hires Tanya Joseph as director of external affairs

Tanya Joseph, architect of the award-winning This Girl Can campaign, has joined Nationwide Building Society as director of external relations.

Having started her career as a journalist, Joseph then joined the civil service and spent five years as Tony Blair’s press secretary.

She has held senior comms positions at organisations including Grayling and Sport England – and has provided strategic counsel to organisations including Tesco, Mars, Heinz, the Nuffield Trust and the Royal Mint.

Joseph also won Marketer of the Year at the Masters of Marketing Awards 2015 for her work on This Girl Can.

She is chair of The Pool, an online platform aimed at women, vice-chair of the Fawcett Society and a trustee of the Thomson Foundation – a charity dedicated to raising standards of journalism in developing countries.

Joe Garner, Nationwide’s CEO, said: “I’m delighted that Tanya is joining the Society. Her breadth of experience will support Nationwide’s ambition and contribute to our core purpose of ‘building society, nationwide’, engaging and collaborating with a wide range of policy makers and influencers.

“The success Tanya achieved with the This Girl Can campaign is another demonstration of why she is a great fit for Nationwide, as we look to advance on our campaigning work tackling important national issues such as housing.”

Joseph added: “I am particularly excited about supporting the Society’s focus on housing. As an institution with a history of more than 130 years, it is uniquely placed to take a leadership role in addressing this long-term social issue.”