View Vacancy - Science and Innovation Assistant

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)
Science and Innovation

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) promotes the United Kingdom’s interests overseas, supporting our citizens and businesses around the globe. The British Embassy in Colombia leads on diplomatic relations with Colombia. This role is based within the Science & Innovation team, which is part of a wider team called Economic, Climate and Science (ECS).

The Science and Innovation Assistant role assists the Science and Innovation team with events, finance, stakeholder visits, office management and policy assistance tasks. The successful candidate will assist with the delivery of British Embassy related activities and visits focused on key UK-Colombia science and innovation priority areas. The job holder will also support the Head of Science and Innovation  in the development and implementation of projects through the FCDO’s Science and Innovation Network (SIN).

The successful applicant will be based in the British Embassy Colombia (in Bogotá) and will report to the Head of Science and Innovation.

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

Logistics, Visits and Event Management:

  • Lead on the organisation of events (in-person and virtual). Assist the Science and Innovation team in the delivery of Embassy activities and visit programmes; sending and tracking invitations, issuing and managing virtual platforms; liaising with external suppliers, generating social media content, booking facilities and arranging meetings with local and UK stakeholders.
  • Provide ad-hoc support for wider ECS or Embassy events during peak times of activity.

Financial & Project Management:

  • Manage procurement/invoicing processes for the Science and Innovation Team; requesting requisitions, tracking and receipting invoices; liaising with project leads and implementers to ensure payments are on track, and with finance colleagues from the regional hub on procurement processes.
  • Support the Head of Science and Innovation on project management, monthly and quarterly financial reporting to UK colleagues on SIN budgets.
  • Opportunity for greater responsibility in designing and leading a particular project activity based on the the job holder’s skills and interests.
  • Organise logistics and content of delegations and events in Colombia and the UK, as well as Governmental visits

Office Management:

  • Proactively act as information officer within the Science and Innovation team by organising key electronic files on Microsoft Teams, preparing compiling meeting minutes, assisting with drafting letters, translations etc.
  • Assist the Science and Innovation team with organisational tasks; activity calendar updates, coordinating documents for cross-team policy updates and contact database management.
  • Provide support to the Head of Economic, Climate and Science team with administrative tasks as requested.

Data gathering and presentation:

  • Lead on gathering data on different topics relevant for the Science and Innovation Network projects
  • Assist with fact finding research to support policy briefing notes for various projects
  • To assist in the preparation of presentations within the Science and Innovation team

Corporate:

  • Actively participate in team and wider Embassy meetings
  • Represent SIN/the Embassy when necessary or on behalf of the Head of Science and Innovation
  • Produce useable drafts for more senior grades, and to adapt style and content to suit different audiences
  • Deputise for the Head of Science and Innovation as appropriate

Financial (payments, procurement & budget monitoring) and event/visit management experience. Time management and prioritisation skills. The job holder needs to be able to anticipate their workload and anticipate future spikes in work and how to deliver.

Other include:

  • Proven high level of organisational and administrative skills
  • Strong interpersonal and team working skills
  • Experience working with budgets
  • Strong IT skills including MS Office (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Teams)
  • Experience in organising events
  • At least 2 years of experience in programme or project management
  • Experience in social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn)
  • Presentation skills
  • General knowledge of the Colombian or UK science and innovation ecosystem
  • Experience working in or with Academia or research sectors
  • Willingness to travel when required
  • Academic degree or equivalent in relevant field
Making Effective Decisions, Managing a Quality Service, Delivering at Pace, Communicating and Influencing, Working Together
21 August 2022
Administrative Officer (AO)
Full-time, Permanent
35
Latin America and Spanish speaking Caribbean
Colombia
Bogota
British Embassy
1
COP
$4,474,982
26 September 2022

Must have the legal status to live and work in Colombia.

Employees who are not liable to pay local income tax on their Mission salary, eg some non-local national staff and some spouses or partners of UK diplomatic staff, will have their salaries abated by an equivalent amount.

Learning and development opportunities:

The British Embassy is committed to the ongoing training and development of our staff and we offer a comprehensive learning and development programme with opportunities for funding to study for qualifications and complete training via our Learning Academy both online or in-person, either at the Embassy or overseas.

Working patterns:

The FCDO in Colombia has a flexible working scheme and staff are encouraged to take advantage of it. The jobholder will alternate working from the office and from home as agreed with their line manager.

Opportunity to work in a diverse and multicultural work environment. Some flexibility will be required during periods of exceptional workload.

The British Embassy Network offers a strong benefits package. This package includes generous vacation and leave time, flexible working patterns, and enriching learning and development opportunities.

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.