View Vacancy - Business Development Executive (ESP516)

The British Embassy in Madrid is part of a world-wide network, representing British political, economic and consular interests overseas. We are seeking to recruit a Business Development Executive to represent SDI - Scottish Development International - which is an integral part of the Embassy.

In October 2016, the First Minister of Scotland announced that SDI’s resources in Europe would be supplemented to ‘double the number of SDI staff working across Europe’ to support Scottish companies to trade internationally during the uncertainty of the 2-year period of Brexit negotiations. This position has been identified as one of the additional staff roles which are being created across Europe. Each post is being recruited for a fixed-term appointment for the period during which the UK Government and the EU negotiate the UK’s exit from the EU and allowing for some limited extra time after this negotiation period ends to wrap up outstanding matters that have not been completed during the negotiation period itself.  

The main purpose for this position is to undertake trade development during the Brexit negotiation period which will increase and widen the on-the-ground support available to Scottish companies who have the ambition, capacity and capability to export their products and/or services into Europe. Additionally to support Scotland’s foreign direct investment activities and identify new opportunities from the region.

Main Roles and Responsibilities:

Explore better ways to support Scottish companies who are looking to trade in Spain, as well as engage Scottish companies in Spain to achieve greater international revenues and exports, with the overall objective being to sustain economic growth in Scotland. The post should be able to:

• Have or gain an understanding of the Life and Chemical Sciences, Energy, Technology and Advanced Engineering (TAE) and Food and Drink sectors in Spain;
• Look for any cross sector opportunities across these sectors e.g. Technology in Life Sciences Food and Drink, Energy etc;
• Provide trade advice and guidance to individual Scottish companies wishing to access Spain as a trade market, and those seeking to increase international revenues from exports into this market;
• Work closely and in collaboration with SDI field Senior Executives based in Paris who lead in these sectors across Southern Europe;
• Work closely and in collaboration with the Department for International Trade (DIT) team based in Madrid and across Iberia to identify trade opportunities for Scottish companies;
• Consider/explore any potential trade opportunities in Portugal in collaboration with the DIT team based there;
• Identify opportunities to support Scottish companies engagement in the market through a brokerage or ‘meet the buyer’ activities by:
• Identifying 20 companies in Spain who would be open to having further discussion/engagement with Scottish technological companies;
• Map out each individual company operations to understand their internal networks, influential leaders, key contacts, procurement/supplier engagement process, supply chain opportunities and appetite to engage with a Scottish SME audience;
• Ability to articulate any trade or inward investment opportunities in the Short term;
• Identify ways to engage with decisions makers to get more Scottish SMEs involved in Spanish supply chains to increase trade/export activities;
• Explore markets to understand key influencers (private and public sector) including trade organisations who can support engagement into key commercial opportunities;
• Look for innovative approaches to engage in these markets and identify accelerators, intermediaries and networks that will support Scottish companies’ individual international growth plans and strategy;
• Identify events, conferences and organisations who could be contribute and support a trade mission of Scottish companies looking to do business in Spain;
• Identify and attend sector specific trade shows, exhibitions and conferences in the region, reporting opportunities, trends and findings to sector teams and companies as appropriate.
• Work in partnership with colleagues in SDI and DIT to support the attendance of Scottish companies or delegations at such events in Spain;
• Contribute proactively to market intelligence and strategy for the above sectors, and build collaborative relationships with both internal and external stakeholders.

• Knowledge and understanding of one or more of the sectors named, or must be able to demonstrate the ability to quickly acquire the requisite level of specialist knowledge to engage credibly with industry representatives in the sector;
• Ability to provide business and trade development support to international companies on a 1to1 basis;
• Strong customer relationship management skills;
• Ability to manage a diverse range of customer relationships and projects;
• Strong communication skills, and must be IT literate and comfortable using MS Office platform as well as DynamicsCRM;
• Fluency in English, as well as Spanish is required;
• A relevant degree level qualification (or equivalent level of experience);
• Business development as well as research and analytical skills acquired in an international market development context;
• Strong team-working ability with experience of working in a multi-partnership context.

Other information: 

• Working with a wide variety of colleagues and partners, the role will be focussed on supporting company growth within an international context, and will often be required to work autonomously away from our main office locations.
• The post-holder should expect to spend a significant amount of time out of the office in direct customer and client facing activity.
• Travel to Scotland for training and sector development activities is expected on a regular basis
• Attendance at evening and weekend events will sometimes be a feature of this role.