View Vacancy - Head of Consular Network & Vice Consul

The British Embassy in Rabat invites applications for the position of Head of Consular Network & Vice Consul, Grade B3 (L) to start as soon as possible.

Main purpose of the job:

The Consular Section’s district covers all of Morocco and Mauritania. The jobholder has overall responsibility for the delivery of high-quality Consular Services to vulnerable British Nationals and their next-of-kin in Morocco (and on occasion in Mauritania). Contribute to delivering the Country Business Plan and coordinate delivery of Consular network objectives. Lead & manage the team. Lead proactive work on partnerships, prevention activities and crisis planning. The job will be based at the British Embassy in Rabat though will require monthly visits to the Marrakech office.

Main duties and responsibilities:

Leadership & Resources (30%)

• Provide effective leadership to the Morocco Consular Team; direct line management of four Pro Consuls (two each in Rabat and Marrakech) and performance oversight of three Honorary Consuls in Morocco and one in Mauritania.

• Manage team operations; coordinate absences to ensure sufficient service coverage; coordinate training; ensure team make maximum use of systems, tools & IT available

• Represent Consular Section inside and outside the Embassy; lead on Post meetings, EU consular meetings, and with key external partners; work alongside the wider Embassy team

• Coordinate delivery of Consular network objectives and outcomes; monitor/amend progress and outcomes quarterly with Consular Regional Operations Manager

• Ensure Management Information is completed accurately by team; monitor and react to trends in this information to improve delivery

• Administer, profile and delegate the Morocco consular budget effectively

• Ensure teams respect established financial and data handling processes and procedures

Consular Services (45%)

• Coordinate delivery of consular assistance to vulnerable British Nationals and their next of kin by Pro Consuls; provide oversight/guidance to consular staff leading on cases

• Provide consular assistance to British Nationals and their Next of Kin on specific cases which are high-risk, high-profile or where resources dictate

• Ensure assistance provided is best practice and in line with Business Plans/Consular Strategy; ensure Casework system notes are well written and clear; ensure team understand and follow policy changes

• Provide timely updates on high-risk, high-profile or significant consular cases or trends to Consular Regional Operations Manager and senior staff

• Provide a quarterly summary of assistance work

• Manage Emergency Travel Document (ETD) processing and the working stock; oversight of public services at the consular counters by the Rabat Pro Consuls

• Coordinate response to public correspondence; lead on cases involving MPs and other high-risk/high-profile cases, liaising closely with Consular Regional Operations Manager

• Providing the lead on Notarial and Documentary services. Ensuring all applications are dealt with in a timely manner and according to our Public Service Agreement targets

Partnerships & Communication (15%)

• Coordinate cultivation of key strategic partners in Morocco; ensure cross-team sharing of contacts; manage EU, Colloque and key local authority relationships. Develop working-level contacts with local authorities and other diplomatic missions. To also build contacts with external stakeholders such as airlines, tour operators, welfare authorities, local charities, and British community groups

• Develop a programme of outreach work for the team; ensure team builds operational contacts (eg police, airlines, local charities; mortuaries, hospitals etc)

• Deliver, promote and evaluate prevention activities

• Deliver sustained engagement with British Community; through an effective network of consular wardens; and a regular consular newsletter

• Responsible for relationships with key internal partners; including initial response call centres, Consular Directorate, Media, Corporate Services and Political sections

Crisis Planning (10%)

• Carry out the role of Consular Manager in response to any crisis

• Maintain a readiness to respond to a declared crisis within the whole team, based on named roles within the crisis plan; provide Regional resilience support in crises

• Ensure consular team devotes at least one full day every quarter to crisis preparedness; lead preparations with discussions, drills, tests and exercises; work alongside the wider Embassy team on crisis planning

• Update the Consular parts of the Crisis Management Plan; ensure consular outreach and new contacts are incorporated into the CMP; ensure all staff have access to Crisis Hub

• Lead provision of consular crisis training and mentoring of staff within the Embassy to improve our capability to respond to a crises in Morocco

Key Competences:

• Leading and Communicating: Effectiveness in this area is about leading from the front and communicating with clarity, conviction and enthusiasm. It’s about supporting principles of fairness of opportunity for all and a dedication to a diverse range of citizens.

• Managing a Quality Service: Effectiveness in this area is about being organised to deliver service objectives and striving to improve the quality of service, taking account of diverse customer needs and requirements.

• Changing and Improving: People who are effective in this area are responsive, innovative and seek out opportunities to create effective change. It’s about being open to change, suggesting ideas for improvements to the way things are done, and working in ‘smarter’, more focused ways.

• Collaborating and Partnering: People skilled in this area create and maintain positive, professional and trusting working relationships with a wide range of people within and outside the Civil Service to help get business done.

• Staff Management: proven experience delivering results through others

• Customer Service: proven experience in a customer-facing role meeting the needs of a wide range of customers.

• Resilience: Flexibility and patience to deal with difficult situations, including the ability to sometimes work unsocial hours in a consular emergency or crisis.

• Networking skills: proven track record of developing and maintaining a range of external contacts

• Autonomy: must be confident and able to work and act without close supervision.

• Mobility: must be willing and able to travel throughout Morocco, sometimes at short notice, in response to operational needs (full costs and expenses will be paid). Monthly visits to Marrakech office are required, as are at least annual in-person meetings with the Honorary Consuls.

• IT skills: able to effectively use Microsoft Office package, and other common IT software, to improve team communication and delivery

• Excellent English, both written and spoken (IELTS score of at least 7 or equivalent in English)

• Fluent in French and Arabic (Classical and Darija)