View Vacancy - Regional Crisis Adviser (SRB21.037)

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 (Consular Roles)
Consular

Note: Due to COVID-19, you may experience some delay in the progress of this recruitment campaign. We are working hard to minimise any disruption. You may find more information in the Additional Information section below.

The British Embassy in Serbia is part of a world-wide network, representing British political, economic and consular interests overseas and is now looking for a Regional Crisis Adviser (Europe South Network) based in Belgrade.

Main purpose of job:

Diplomatic posts are at the frontline of a UK government response to an overseas crisis affecting British people and interests. This role focuses on ensuring posts have the right plans and skills to be able to respond to a range of different crisis scenarios. The Regional Crisis Adviser (RCA) is responsible for understanding the risks that different Embassies and Consulates face and providing support and advice to help them improve their ability to respond.

RCA is expected to champion the FCDO’s crisis management methodology and training products, supported and directed by Crisis Management Department (CMD) in London.

Key areas of work:

  • Crisis Preparedness: Develop a coherent approach to crisis management across the Europe South region (Portugal, Spain, Italy, Malta, Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Serbia, Croatia, North Macedonia, Kosovo, Albania, Romania, Bulgaria, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Slovenia, Montenegro, Gibraltar and Cape Verde) by supporting crisis preparedness for Embassies and Consulates. RCA is responsible for providing high quality guidance and training so that posts are well prepared to effectively respond to a crisis, in line with FCDO policy and guidance.
  • Crisis Response: Provide support and advice to posts experiencing or approaching a crisis to ensure the most effective response.
  • Crisis Improvement: Maintain a good understanding of the crisis risks within the specific region, providing input to and quality assurance of post crisis management plans, highlighting key risks to the Consular Regional Director (CRD) and CMD and applying lessons from crises and exercises. Maintain good relationships with both internal and external crisis management stakeholders in order to enhance regional risk assessment and horizon scanning.

 Roles and responsibilities:

  • Network and Post Support: To prioritise crisis preparedness work in the region based on an understanding of risk and horizon scanning. To act as expert adviser to Post Crisis Management Committees making recommendations to ensure policy and guidance is followed by Posts. To encourage and help embed a ‘whole of mission approach’ to planning and crisis preparedness. Act as a champion for IT systems and ensure relevant staff across the region keep their skills and access up-to-date to reflect latest developments. Working with CMD and the CRD provide advice and support to posts in crisis.
  • Quality Assurance: To advise posts on development of their crisis management plans (CMPs), and crisis preparedness working to achieve a consistent quality across the region, merging local knowledge with central crisis management guidance. Work with CMD’s Planning Team to identify risks, capability and capacity gaps and to help Posts take steps to improve their preparedness. 
  • Training & Exercising: Deliver effective crisis workshops, table tops and design semi-live exercises in your region liaising closely with the CMD Training & Exercising Team and using the latest training approaches and materials. Identify any potential skills gaps in crisis management techniques and work with CMD to address them. Help CMD to coordinate and prioritise regional exercises, and assist in the delivery of overseas training events. Champion the various learning methods to help promote and develop crisis management learning in region.
  • Stakeholder Engagement & Lessons Learned: to actively support Posts’ engagement with host governments and major UK crisis management stakeholders to ensure good understanding of host country and regional crisis structures and maintain up-to-date liaison contacts. To participate in, and facilitate where appropriate (e.g. for locally managed crises), the crisis lessons learned process. To identify, record and share best practice regionally. Working with CMD to ensure lessons learned are taken forward and incorporated back into CMPs across the region.
  • Excellent English language skills (written and oral);
  • Experience of working in an international or governmental organisation;
  • Excellent inter-personal, communication and team working skills;
  • Excellent organisational skills and a proactive approach;
  • Resilience, with ability to work unsupervised and innovate;
  • Self starter with strong time management skills - able to work to deadlines and targets and manage a sometimes heavy workload;
  • Excellent IT skills (Outlook, PowerPoint, Word and Excel).
  • Experience of providing training in a professional environment, ideally with an externally validated professional accreditation, such as CIPD;
  • Familiarity with crisis management issues and techniques;
  • A familiarity with crisis issues and an ability to understand risks across a range issues;
  • Familiarity with UK consular procedures.
21 March 2021
Executive Officer (EO)
Fixed Term, Full-time
39
8 months
Europe, Eastern Europe & Central Asia
Serbia
Belgrade
British Embassy
1
EUR
2,135
26 April 2021

This is a full-time, fixed-term contract of 8 months to cover a maternity leave . Working hours 39 gross hours per week. The job holder can expect to work remotely due to COVID restrictions but there may be opportunities to travel to the Europe South region should circumstances allow.

The salary is € 2,135 gross and subject to payment of all mandatory social security contributions (19.9%) and tax (10%), in line with local regulations.

In addition to monthly salary, staff receives a meal allowance of €70 per month and transport allowance of 4,040 dinars per month (review each February) as per Terms & Conditions.

The successful candidate will be subject to professional background and security clearance and must have pre-existing work authorization for Serbia in order to apply.

The successful candidate will be hired as a temporary member of staff under the terms and conditions which apply to all Country Based Staff (CBS) in employment relationship; tax and social contributions will be paid accordingly.

All contributions are deductable at the source. If for any reason the Employee is required to work for periods longer than the conditioned hours overtime may be paid.

Staff recruited locally by the British Embassy in Serbia are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local Serbian employment law.

Additional Information (due to Covid 19):

  • You may experience some delay in the progress of this recruitment campaign and we are working hard to minimise any disruption

  • Interviews will be done remotely if the existing situation determines this to be the right course of action

  • Starting date may be delayed depending on circumstances at the time and it will be agreed with the selected candidate.

Please note that the deadline for applications is 23:55 on the day mentioned in the above field “Application deadline”.

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.

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

FCDO does not pay for travel related expense incurred in interviews (including Security Check) or accept any financial risk, including cancelation or reschedule costs. The FCDO will not meet the costs connected with relocation if offered a position.

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.