View Vacancy - ROK - Trade Diplomacy Officer, AO

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.
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Policy & Political roles)
Political, Public Diplomacy, Trade Policy

Main purpose of job:

The successful candidate will be a key member of the Trade Diplomacy Team in the British Embassy, supporting on the UK’s trade policy objectives in Korea such as the UK-Korea Free Trade Agreement (FTA), Supply Chains work and Market Access priorities. The officer will work closely with teams across the Embassy, as well as with teams based in the UK. The successful candidate will also engage regularly with external stakeholders. The role may include travel to the UK as required.

Working for the British Embassy Seoul means you will be at the cutting edge of important international issues, and all staff are expected to be agile and flexible, refocussing on shifting UK priorities as they develop. 

Roles and responsibilities:

Trade Policy / Free Trade Agreement (FTA)

  • Carry out trade policy research and reporting in support of UK priorities, notably the UK-Korea Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations which commenced in January 2024
  • Support arrangement of bilateral meetings including at ministerial level
  • Manage events and the hosting of external stakeholders including businesses and political contacts, in support of our Trade Diplomacy and FTA objectives
  • Monitor media, government, and academic resources to contribute to reporting to HQ
  • Manage general FTA enquiries (e.g. approved exporters, tariffs, etc.)

Market Access

  • Monitor and provide updates on British companies’ market access issues in Korea
  • Support the Senior Market Access officer to implement market access campaigns
  • Engage widely with government and business to understand and help resolve UK market access barriers

Project Responsibilities

  • Support the Embassy’s FTA team as the responsible project officer
  • Monitor project progress against milestones and timelines, keeping relevant documentation updated and producing project reports and dashboards
  • Ensure good information management, keeping project documents securely stored and clearly structured

Administrative Support and Budget Management

  • Manage teams’ budget including project funds
  • Help Senior Officers with logistical arrangements for events and meetings
  • Support the team by handling purchase orders and payment processes for events/meetings/projects/etc.
  • Provide ad hoc support to all parts of the team, including across Trade Policy, Market Access and Regularly update stakeholders’ organograms and team’s database.

Corporate Responsibility

  • All staff at British Embassy Seoul are expected to dedicate 10% of their time to a corporate role
  • Roles are varied and staff can be creative. The role should support the functioning of the Embassy and help to make it a happy and inclusive place to work.

Resources managed (staff and expenditure):

No line management responsibility.

Provide support managing team budget and project funding, often in excess of £150,000 per year.

  • Experience in international relations and/or international trade work
  • Fluent in English and Korean
  • Strong IT literacy including good knowledge of Microsoft Office Programmes (Word, Excel, Powerpoint)
  • Knowledge of international and/or trade policy
  • Knowledge of Korean commercial legislation and the domestic business environment
  • Project management experince and/or qualifications
  • Event and customer management skills
  • Budget Management experience
Changing and Improving, Communicating and Influencing, Delivering at Pace, Working Together
31 March 2024
Administrative Officer (AO)
Full-time, Fixed term, with possibility of renewal
36
Asia Pacific
South Korea
Seoul
British Embassy
1
KRW
3,572,151 per month
13 May 2024

The position is being advertised on a 1-year contract with possible extension. 

Learning and development opportunities:

The British Embassy in Seoul offers a full range of L&D opportunities, including learning sets, e-learning and face-to-face classes. Online courses and on the job learning will form the core of the jobholder’s induction into embassy work and these may be enhanced by an additional induction course in the UK.   Every member of staff is entitled to 5 L&D days per year.

  • Successful candidate will be expected to complete mandatory online learning courses and encouraged to pursue other relevant training opportunities.
  • Formal learning to be agreed between successful applicant and Line Manager.

The British Embassy is committed to investing in L&D for its staff, and provides a range of L&D opportunities, from learning sets to speaker events, group learning to job shadowing opportunities, as well as an extensive suite of online learning materials. Where job-specific training is identified the British Embassy will provide access to appropriate courses.

Working patterns:

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, religion, sexual orientation, age, veteran status or other category protected by law.   

Normal working hours are Monday to Friday, 09:00 – 17:15 (17:00 on Fridays). However, occasional evening and weekend working may be required, for which time off in lieu is given. The British Embassy Seoul encourages flexible working and various flexible working arrangements are possible with line manager agreement, including working from home. 

Specific flexible working options can be discussed, but successful candidates should typically be able to work from the office at least 4 days per week. 

Other information:

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

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.

Staff who are recruited by the British Embassy Seoul are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local employment law. 

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.
 
Only shortlisted candidates for interview will be contacted. Interviewees will be assessed on the core behaviours/qualifications listed above. Unsuccessful candidates will be notified via the system in due time. Appointable candidates who were unsuccessful may be placed on a ‘reserve list’.  If during the reserve period of 6 months the same or a largely similar role becomes available, that role may be offered to the second or subsequent candidate.

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.

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.