There were a few sore heads in Edinburgh on Thursday morning. Mine was ok, possibly due to the fact that my friend dragged me away at sensible o’clock and made me walk the half hour back to the station.

The occasion was gathering of everyone who was anybody in the Scottish Lib Dems to say farewell to our incredible Head of Campaigns, Adam Stachura, who is off to pastures new after getting the Scottish party back to winning form.

He took over the role just after the 2011 election. It had been a disaster and the party was in shock from the loss of two thirds of our MSPs. Weeks after that, our then much loved Head of Campaigns, Andrew Reeves, died suddenly at the age of just 43.

So Adam came in during the lean years and got us back to winning form. Hard working, irrepressible, cheeky as hell, determined and cheerful, he kept us going. His ability to develop a winning campaign on not much more than fresh air was legendary.

His are big shoes to fill. If you think you can, you have until this Friday to apply. 

Key to this role is the ability to build relationships, inspire and develop volunteer teams – building self-sufficient campaigning organisations at every level. Experience in training or mentoring is an advantage.

When it comes to campaigning, you’ll be equally at ease whether you’re using social media, verbal or printed communications to get your message to the voters. You’ll be someone who is inherently curious about what works best, be willing to try new things and will be able to make the most of data to make the right strategic decisions.

This role involves working across several levels of government and the ability to communicate well with stakeholders is another key ability.

Finally, you will be well organised, possess a good temperament that allows you to cope with the unexpected and be able to work without supervision in a challenging environment.

Could it be you?

* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings. You can find her on Bluesky at caronmlindsay.bsky.social