View Vacancy - Personal Assistant to the Deputy High Commissioner and Deputy Head of Mission AO (05/25 LOS)

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. The FCDO operates an agile workforce and to facilitate this, you may be required to undertake other duties from time to time, as we may reasonably require.
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Policy & Political roles)
Private Office

Main purpose:

  • The main purpose of the personal assistant to the Deputy High commissioner and Deputy Head of mission is to organise Senior Management’s time and activities so that they are effectively able to run the mission. The successful candidate will be part of a small team in the High Commission Private office. This office sets how the Deputy High Commissioner spends his time delivering on British objective in Nigeria.
  • The successful candidate needs to be able to organise a lot of demand on the Deputy High Commissioner’s & Deputy Head of Mission’s time. This will require shifting information to ensure the Deputy High Commissioner is using his time effectively. The role is also public facing you will be an important person receiving calls and responding to requests for the Deputy High Commissioner, so a strong customer service background is desirable.  The role will also look to organise the Deputy High commissioner’s travel which is often complex. The role will work across the mission to bring teams together to best deliver all our objectives. 

The successful applicant will also need to be:

  • Be highly organised and be able to shift between complex information. 
  • Be a team player that is able to work across a number of teams. 
  • Be a strong written and verbal communicator who is able to accurately record meetings and be able to speak confidently to seniors.  
  • Be comfortable in possession of sensitive or personal information, and the associated need for discretion.
  • Observe the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office’s diversity and equality policies.
  • Be IT literate with the ability to use the full suite of Microsoft 365 tools. Crucially outlook. 

Roles and responsibilities:

  • To effectively manage and support the Deputy High Commissioner (DHC) & Deputy Head of Mission through efficient running of their office, diary and travel management, and helping to co-ordinate key activities across the mission. 
  • Provide support to Senior Leadership Team and post under the direction of the DHC. Managing diaries of the Deputy High Commissioner & Deputy Head of Mission and their daily itinerary 
  • Receiving, dealing with and prioritising meeting requests from both internal and external stakeholders for DHC & DHM. 
  • Co-ordinating effectively events/ functions hosted by the DHC / DHM in conjunction with the Residence Manager. Issue out e-invitation/cards and monitor RSVPs to ensure maximum attendance at events.
  • Recording meetings and drafting minutes (Senior Leadership Team, Lagos Joint Management Board disciplinary panels and appeals, etc.) 
  • Receiving and dealing with official correspondences. 
  • Line managing and developing DHC's drivers. 
  • Receiving visitors to the Deputy High Commission. Covering for the Residence Manager when away
  • Any other duty as assigned 

Essential Qualifications:

  • Good interpersonal and customer service skills. 
  • Excellent IT skills (including, Microsoft Office): 
  • Ability to work with minimal supervision. The ability to respond flexibly to competing demands, often at short notice; Discretion and confidentiality. 
  • Events Management/ Customer Service
  • Experience working with senior management/director level staff in corporate environment. 

Required competencies:

  • Leading and communicating. Collaborating and partnering, managing a Quality Service, Delivering at Pace. 
  • Experience in office administration environment (diary & contact details management, managing frequent travel arrangements)

Experience:

  • Minimum of 3 years of proven experience working with Senior Management / director level staff in a corporate environment.
  • Experience of managing expenses and/or budget.
  • Excellent organisational skills, particularly attention to detail and the ability to forward plan.
  • Strong record of delivering with others.
  • Discreet and excellent interpersonal skills to handle sensitive and confidential situations and work collaboratively across the network.
  • Detail-driven individual with experience of organising logistics.
  • Previous event management experience.
  • Ability to produce briefing reports.

Language required:

  • English at expert level
  • Customer Service experience
  • Demonstrate the ability to prioritise well, working between teams and be able to assume responsibility for tasks with minimum supervision.
  • Have excellent judgement and emotional intelligence, with clear self-awareness and an understanding of verbal and non-verbal communication.
  • Be comfortable in possession of sensitive or personal information, and the associated need for discretion.
  • Experience of working in a diplomatic Mission and or international organisation.
  • Be IT literate with the ability to use the full suite of Microsoft 365 tools.
Changing and Improving, Communicating and Influencing, Delivering at Pace, Making Effective Decisions, Managing a Quality Service, Seeing the Big Picture
4 June 2025
Administrative Officer (AO)
Fixed term, with possibility of renewal
35
Africa
Nigeria
Lagos
British Deputy High Commission
1
USD
1,867.81 (Base salary is subject to tax and other statutory deductions)
monthly
28 July 2025
  • The British High Commission will never request any payment or fees to apply for a position
  • Employees recruited locally by the British High Commission in Lagos are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local employment law in Nigeria.
  • 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
  • The responsibility lies on the successful candidate to:
    1.Obtain the relevant permit
    2.Pay the fees for the permit
    3.Make arrangements to relocate
    4.Meet the costs to relocation
  • Employees who are not liable to pay local income tax on their Mission salary may have their salaries reduced by the equivalent local income tax amount.
  • Information about the Civil Service Success Profiles can be found on this link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/success-profiles
  • Please note: Job grade AA=A1, AO=A2, EO=B3, HEO=C4, SEO=C5
  • Reference checking and security clearances will be conducted on successful candidates
  • Please log into your profile on the application system on a regular basis to review the status of your application
  • 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
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.