View Vacancy - CGZ - Senior Trade and Investment Officer, Education, Department for International Trade, EO

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.
Department for International Trade roles (DIT)
Department for International Trade (DIT)

The Department for International Trade (DIT) embraces and values diversity in all forms. We welcome and pride ourselves on the positive impact diversity has on the work we do, and we promote equality of opportunity throughout the organisation. DIT China would value applications from people from the widest possible diversity of background, culture, experience and gender. 

This is an exciting time to join the Department for International Trade (DIT) as a Senior Trade and Investment Officer for DIT China. Our aim is to promote UK trade and investment across the world which is vital for the prosperity of the UK. DIT 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.

DIT operates in 108 countries. Establishing new relationships around the globe, DIT promotes UK trade to ensure the UK takes advantage of the huge opportunities open to us, securing and improving economic well-being, stability, and helping to create tens of thousands of jobs. DIT has one of the largest representations of the 18 government departments working in China, which are coordinated and led by His Majesty’s Ambassador who is responsible for the UK’s relationship with China. His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner (HMTC) is responsible for Trade and Investment work in China, one of nine global regions and the largest DIT overseas network in the world. With c.190 staff across six posts - Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chongqing and Wuhan – DIT, as part of the UK government network in China offers a fast-paced place to work at the heart of UK-China Government relations.

MAIN PURPOSE OF THE JOB:

In the Education sector, DIT Education team is responsible for facilitating access to the whole-chain education resources, including K12 education (Early-Years Education, British-Style International/Bilingual Schools, All-round Education), English Education, Education Technology and Higher Education across the UK for the Chinese government departments, institutions, investors and various types of business partners. DIT Education team helps UK-based education succeed globally through organising forums, road shows, trade fairs and etc. in China and the UK, which offers assistance to companies in Britain to create business links with Chinese partners. Meanwhile, the DIT Education team is also actively engaging with DIT Skills Campaign to explore new cross-sector business opportunities in vocational education and training, given the quickly developing and changing market landscape in China.

For the Sports sector, the UK is the home of many modern sports and boasts a host of world leading sports brands and organisations such as the Premier League, World Snooker, Wimbledon, Formula One and Clipper Race. DIT Sports team is navigating and maximising business opportunities for British companies in sports IP, infrastructure, sports consulting, sports education and training, sports technology and sports retail and so on. 

It is an exciting opportunity at the forefront of the British Government’s growth agenda. Being part of the team, this role will be involved in developing and working with internal and external partners such as the DIT HQ sector teams, key internal and external partners and stakeholders such as the British Council, Trade Policy Unit, Outreach team, Prosperity team and the China Britain Business Council. 

The candidate will independently manage some export and inward investment projects from inception to completion in conjunction with other team members generating targeted leads and wins, conduct business development and market analysis, develop and manage client relationship and engage private and public stakeholders, ensuring clients’ needs are effectively met, and work closely with DIT London and other HMG partners to achieve synergy in four strategic focuses of the team.

Line-managed by DIT K12 Education Head and dot-line reporting to relative heads, the candidate will mainly work on Education Sector (60% in total, with more focus on K12 Education sub-sector), Skills Campaign (25%) and Sports sector (15%) in South China. Detailed responsibilities are outlined below.

Delivering strategic trade and investment plan (40%)    

  • Collect insights and analyse market trends for sector development in China
  • Support to design and deliver strategic trade and investment plans for relative sectors by working closely with the sector leads, HQ team and key stakeholders.
  • Build and maintain a pipeline of active projects for four strategic focuses in China market by collaborating with DIT HQ teams, establishing sustainable relationships with government and business decision makers in UK/China as well as frequently engaging with experts from education market.  
  • With unique understanding of the market trend, detail analysis of sector figures and consistent follow up on project, turn active export or FDI projects on the pipeline into real business results to contribute to team target.
  • Work closely with sector colleagues and internal/external partners across government like British Council, Outreach team, SIN, China Britain Business Council (CBBC) and etc., drawing on their knowledge and network to identify new business opportunities in the market for education business and timely engage with Chinese business that have an interest in education sector.
  • Independently lead on activities/campaigns of new product lines with high potential such as All-Round Education/Sports Education, to better contribute to long-term sector strategy and target. 
  • Provide ongoing aftercare support to existing UK exporters and investors in China looking at opportunities to grow their business. 

Relationship management and business development (30%) 

  • Proactively build and maintain key relationships with the Chinese governments, and other public organisations to support delivery of project opportunities and to address business environment and market access issues.
  • Identity and build relationships with senior leaders in key companies, authorities, institutions and other organisations in China and the UK, including intermediaries and trade associations to understand their business intentions and needs.
  • Maintain a close working relationship with internal partners and support them to achieve their targets for service deliveries, revenue and business opportunity responses.
  • Expand the business network by organising and participating in relevant sector-focused events.
  • Work together with Export Support Service - International Markets team to provide trade advise to UK education exporters

High Impact VIP/Senior visits and events (offline, hybrid or online) (20%)  

  • Play an active role in planning, managing and following up on high-level visits and events that contribute to sector targets and address business environment and market access issues.
  • Act as a leading coordinator for the development of important visit programmes that contribute to your sector targets, working with the British Council, CBBC and other networks where appropriate.
  • Support trade event with the delivery, including procurement, reporting etc.
  • Work with teams for online/offline/hybrid visits

Corporate Contribution (10%)

  • Participate in wider HMG activities. These may include being active on various committees and in other corporate roles.

RESOURCES MANAGED:

  • N/A

  • Broad understanding of education and sports industry.
  • Excellent communication and networking/relationship building skills.
  • An adaptable self-starter with enthusiasm and energy able to work alone as well as in a team.
  • Well-organised, multitasking, motivated and diligent.
  • Good IT skills, including Word, Excel, Power Point, Outlook and database management.

LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS:

  • Language: English & Mandarin
  • Level of language required: English: Excellent/ Highly proficient;

  • Track records and network for developing and landing business success in education and sports industry.
  • Strong business development, marketing or operations background gained in an international G2G and B2B environment.
  • Strong market research and data analysing skills.
  • Experience of working with Chinese government, government agencies, companies, industry associations in education industry.
Managing a Quality Service, Delivering at Pace, Communicating and Influencing, Working Together
4 December 2022
Executive Officer (EO)
Fixed Term, Full-time
35
24 months
Asia Pacific
China
Guangzhou
British Consulate General
1
RMB 19,096 per month
2 January 2023
31 December 2024

We offer a competitive package, which includes basic salary, good leave entitlement, and insurance plan etc. The monthly salary is RMB 19,096/ month. We also offer excellent development opportunities and a 22-day annual leave entitlement in pro rata. Conditioned working hours are 35 hours/ week from Monday to Friday and flexible working can be arranged upon personal needs and business hours of operation.

LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES:

There is much opportunity to develop on the core areas of the job, as well as wider, and to establish expertise and build capability. We are strongly supportive of the jobholder continuing to develop their trade and investment professional skills.

In addition, opportunities and activities include:

  • Courses and learning modules offered through the International Trade Profession and Diplomatic Academy.
  • Attending external events and conferences hosted by academic institutions, business chambers, and beyond.
  • Learning and Development programmes, which have recently included leadership, line management, effective remote working and trade policy.
  • Opportunities for job shadowing across the network.
  • An individual bid fund providing funding to support more tailored learning and development needs.  

Staff recruited locally by the British Consulate-General Guangzhou are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local Chinese employment law.

Employment offers are subject to successful clearance of pre-employment and security checks. Staff who are locally recruited by the British Consulate General are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local Chinese employment law.

No accommodation or relocation expenses are payable in connection with this position. All candidates must be legally able to work and reside in the country of the vacancy with the correct visa/work permit status or demonstrate eligibility to obtain the relevant permit. Any costs related to obtaining or renewing permits and visas are the responsibility of the successful applicant.

Please note that your application must be submitted before 23:55 on the day mentioned in the above field "Application deadline."

Please be aware that the deadline for submitting applications is considered to be the time zone for the country where the vacancy has arisen.

We advise you to allow enough time to complete and submit your full application since only applications completed and submitted before the deadline will be considered.  Applicants called for an interview will be assessed on the core behaviours listed above.

All applicants are required to mandatorily fill the online application form completely including the employment and educational details, experience, professional skills and behaviour based questions. We will be thoroughly reviewing the applications and incomplete form in any respect may not be considered while shortlisting for the next stage.

For inclusivity and diversity, please remove the following personal information when uploading your CV: name, address, email address, age, date of birth, gender, and nationality.

The start date mentioned in the job advert is a tentative start date and the successful candidate will be required to undergo security vetting procedures. Any offer of employment will be subject to the candidate achieving suitable clearances.

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This opportunity is closed to applications.