View Vacancy - Head - Trade & Investment, Grade – HEO, Colombo

The British Government is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer.  We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. We do not discriminate on the basis of disability, race, colour, ethnicity, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, age, veteran status or other category protected by law. We promote family-friendly flexible working opportunities, where operational and security needs allow. The FCDO operates an agile workforce and to facilitate this, you may be required to undertake other duties from time to time, as we may reasonably require.
Other British Government Departments (Partners across Government, including UK Visas)
Department for Business and Trade (DBT)

Note: All applicants are required to mandatorily fill the complete online application form including the employment, educational details, behavioural and technical/ professional skills questions. We will be thoroughly reviewing the application forms only with all the required details and the shortlisting is not basis CV/ cover letter. Forms that are incomplete in any respect will not be considered while shortlisting for the next stage.

This is an exciting time to join the Department for Business and Trade (DBT). Our aim is to promote British trade and investment across the world which is vital for the prosperity of the UK. DBT brings together policy, promotion and financial expertise to break down barriers to trade and investment in markets across the world to help businesses succeed. This is a great opportunity to be part of an international team that contributes to the success of the UK's trade goals.

The jobholder will lead DBT’s Trade and Investment work in Sri Lanka, leading and empowering a small team. The jobholder will also play an active role in support of the One HMG agenda in country, particularly working closely with the Prosperity Team and contributing through wider corporate responsibilities at post.

We reserve the right to review, revise or amend the roles and responsibilities from time to time reflecting the changing needs of business.

Roles and responsibilities / what will the jobholder be expected to achieve:

  • Proactively build market intelligence and a network of business contacts in Sri Lanka in order to support UK companies in market.
  • Management and leadership of the team, playing an active role in supporting the One HMG agenda in country.
  • Pre-positioning HMG for imminent privatisation opportunities and restructuring in Sri Lanka, which will present opportunities for UK legal and financial services.
  • Engaging Sri Lanka on improving the investment environment and promotion of sustainable energy.
  • Identifying opportunities for UK expertise and businesses to shape the green economy.
  • Supporting the team’s engagement with and promotion of UK exporters in priority sectors, including financial and professional services, energy and infrastructure.
  • Work with the team to implement Sri Lanka’s FDI strategy, identifying and working with key investors on FDI projects in Sri Lanka, docking into the South Asia FDI team.
  • Contributing to building and improving the wider corporate culture at the British High Commission in Colombo, taking part in committees and taking a representational role where required.
  • Build relationships with stakeholders in the government and business communities, including through Ministerial visits, and use expertise of local context to advise stakeholders in the UK.
  • Work with Trade for Development on promotion of the Developing Countries Trading Scheme and ODA funded trade programmes operating in the region.
  • Lead trade policy work in Sri Lanka including driving implementation and resolution of market access barriers.
  • Identify areas for collaboration on multilateral trade objectives.
  • Representational work as and when required.

Resources managed (staff and expenditure) – NA

Language requirements: 
Language: English
Level of language required: Expert

Working patterns: The 40 conditioned hours per week includes 1hour lunch break.

Learning and development opportunities (and any specific training courses to be completed):

All new staff undertake a workplace induction and there are a number of mandatory e-learning courses covering areas such as diversity, health and safety, and information management.

The job is a fantastic opportunity to make a real impact on the UK’s trade links with Sri Lanka building on the success of incumbent. We will give you the freedom and space to develop the sectors and build your networks, and we will support you to get the right learning and development. You will need to be collaborative and flexible too to fit in with the network’s ethos; and, importantly, focussed on delivering results and contributing to the wider corporate agenda. To be successful:

Qualifications:

  • Graduate/Post-Graduate. Candidates without the required educational qualifications but with exceptional practical experience will be considered.

Experience:

  • You will need to be a self-starter with track record of delivery, and worked in an international environment
  • Minimum of 5 years of relevant commercial/business development experience.
  • You will need to have strong analytical skills to apply this to identifying key opportunities and risks for the market.
  • You will need to be strategically aware to identify emerging opportunities in Sri Lanka and match it to UK’s strategic priorities.
  • You will need to have excellent interpersonal skills and be a credible and strong team player
  • You will need to have experience of developing and managing productive relationships with senior stakeholders and partners including Government and Private Sector, and of using these to deliver.
  • You will have strong commercial experience in a business facing role.
  • You will need excellent verbal and written English skills. You will be expected to produce written work in Standard English to a very high standard.
  • IT competent. Highly competent in standard MS Office tools, such as Word, Outlook, PowerPoint and Excel and skilled at using digital and social media to gather information efficiently.
  • Basic understanding of budget management.
  • Experience of working in/with UK companies’ knowledge of the business environment and of UK business related policies.
  • A good knowledge of the UK and Sri Lanka business environment.
  • Marketing and presentational skills.
  • Experience of working in trade/export promotion
  • Experience of working on trade policy
Communicating and Influencing, Delivering at Pace, Managing a Quality Service, Seeing the Big Picture
25 January 2026
Higher Executive Officer (HEO)
Full-time, Permanent
40
South Asia & Afghanistan
Sri Lanka
Colombo
British High Commission
1
LKR
LKR 475,007+12% EPF+3% ETF per month
monthly
1 April 2026

For British High Commission (BHC) candidates, the Country Based Staff BHC Terms & Conditions will apply. 

For other than BHC candidates, starting salary will be LKR 475,007+12% EPF+3% ETF per month. Other benefits include 13 month’s salary (pro-rated) and medical insurance coverage. 

Employment offers are subject to successful clearance of pre-employment and security checks. 

FCDO operates an agile workforce. To facilitate this, you may be required to undertake other duties from time to time as we may reasonably require. The BHC is recognised as a good employer, with a robust, fair and transparent performance management & appraisal system.  The High Commission takes pride in its organisational culture and its strong and diverse team. We offer leave entitlements as per Sri Lankan labour laws.  

We treat people with respect and equality and have a policy of zero tolerance for any form of discrimination, bullying, or harassment.

Note: All applicants are required to mandatorily fill the complete online application form including the employment, educational details, behavioural and technical/ professional skills questions. We will be thoroughly reviewing the application forms only with all the required details and the shortlisting is not basis CV/ cover letter. Forms that are incomplete in any respect will not be considered while shortlisting for the next stage

To Apply:

Please note applications without (1), (2) and (3) will not be considered. Point (4) to be adhere strictly.

  1. Complete the Online Application Form.
  2. Complete the Experience, Professional Skills and Behaviour based Segments in the Online Application Form.
  3. Evidence of your nationality and permission to work in Sri Lanka must be included with your application form, for example, photocopies of the details page of your passport and/or visa.

Please ensure that your application is authentically written based on your own experiences. If AI tools are used, their usage must only be limited to specific tasks such as ensuring formatting consistency and keyword relevance. The core content, personal narratives, and responses to behaviour and skill-based questions must genuinely reflect your professional journey, experiences, and achievements. We place great importance on originality and individual effort throughout the application process. Any form of plagiarism will result in immediate disqualification

To ensure a successful application it is important that you explain how you demonstrate behaviours and technical / professional skills, basis your experience. You are strongly advised to read the Success Profiles Civil Service Behaviours Framework, which provides a detailed guidance on how these behaviours are defined for each position. 

Applicants are encouraged to use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) technique to prepare specific examples of when and how you have demonstrated these behaviours in your application, by evidencing a structured response, including your skills and experiences. You briefly describe the situation in which you demonstrated the behaviour, and then explain your task in addressing the situation, what action you took and the result of this.

Internal candidates applying for this position must have prior approval from their line manager, else the application will not be considered. 

We will accept only online applications received by ­­midnight on 25 January 2026 (23:55hrs Sri Lanka Standard Time).

Please note that all the applicants will be required to strictly adhere to the security guidelines of the British High Commission. Applicants who do not have the required qualification & experience should kindly abstain from applying, as their applications will not be considered.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted, and no telephone enquires will be dealt with. Appointable candidates who were unsuccessful may be placed on a ‘reserve list’.  If during the reserve period of 12 months the same or a largely similar role becomes available, that role may be offered to the second or subsequent candidate.

We welcome all applications irrespective of age, race, colour, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, belief, caste, or creed. We are also open to applications from people who want to work flexibly.

Note: The British High Commission in Colombo is an equal opportunities employer, dedicated to inclusivity, a diverse workforce and valuing difference. Staff recruited locally by The British High Commission in Colombo is subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local employment law. 

" The start date mentioned in the job advert is tentative and the appointment will be subject to successful clearances including police verification, references, medical, educational, and professional checks. "

Please be aware that you will only be able to apply to vacancies for Country Based Staff roles with the British Government through this official tal.net site (operated by Oleeo). Jobs may be advertised on third party websites, however our adverts will always link back to the official tal.net site. If you complete and send an application through any other site, we will not receive it.

This opportunity is closed to applications.