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Job Category : Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Residence and Support Staff)

Job Subcategory: Private Office

Job Description (Roles and Responsibilities)

Main purpose of job:

• This role offers the opportunity to work at the heart of a large and busy Embassy, with exposure to a range of policy and leadership issues. 

• You will work within the Private Office team as one of the Executive Assistants to the Ambassador, Deputy Ambassador and the Deputy Permanent Representative to the African Union, supporting senior leaders in their decision-making. You will report directly to the Private Secretary to the Ambassador.

• Together, you will play a central role in the running of the Embassy, whether managing the busy diary of the principle, managing an Embassy-wide event, or helping drive effective decisions internally. You will build relationships with staff across the embassy’s policy and operational teams as well as with external partners in government, NGOs and other diplomatic missions.

• The jobholder will become a core part of the interface for the Embassy’s senior leaders and the wider embassy and diplomatic community. The demands will be high, in accordance with the busy and high-profile nature of the principals’ work. For example, you will be expected to work from the office, and you will often have to step in to cover for Private Office colleagues when on leave. 

• In return, you will get unparalleled exposure to the full breadth of the Embassy’s work, with opportunities to develop areas of interest, and to build a valuable network of contacts both internally and across the wider diplomatic community.

Roles and responsibilities: 

• Providing strategic and administrative support to His Majesty’s Ambassador, the Deputy Head of Mission, or the Deputy Permanent Representative to the African Union, using strong organisational, communication and problem-solving skills to manage their diaries, arrange meetings, and ensure their ability to focus on priorities.

You will take initiative in organising briefings and other logistical arrangements so the principal has what they need on time and can deliver effectively for the embassy.

You will also be expected to develop an understanding of the core policy areas of your principal (Bilateral diplomacy, Development, African Union). You will liaise with contacts across the embassy on these policy areas at team leader level. You will need to be able clarify information on behalf of the principal to support them to make informed decisions on complex issues.

Lead organisation of high-profile and VIP Events at the Embassy, working closely with the Events team and the Residence team, including managing invitations and RSVPs through to leading on event design, catering and logistics. You will be responsible for finding solutions to tricky issues as they emerge.

You will use this understanding to take decisions on how best to prioritise your work and will use strong written and oral communication to ensure that you and the principal are working seamlessly together. You will regularly be required to provide succinct oral briefings at short notice, updating the principal on preparations for upcoming engagements. You will also be required to be able to communicate clearly in writing.

You will also build a network of contacts within the Ethiopian Government, NGOs and other international organisations, representing the British Embassy externally when arranging appointments or handling in-coming requests and invitations.

• Managing the Secretariat for one of the four Embassy decision-making boards: this requires leading on cross-cutting Embassy-management functions, attended by senior leaders.  You will be required to agree agendas for each meeting, working with team leaders to determine the most important priorities to discuss. You will need strong drafting skills to bring out the detail of conversations when recording minutes and providing recommendations to your principal on areas to follow-up. You will work closely with the Head of Private Office but will be expected to be able to act independently in setting agendas, exchanging information with policy leads, and negotiating deadlines.

• Managing the Embassy forward-look calendar, tracking and collating upcoming major events, visits, and travel across the embassy into one document. You will be responsible for enabling senior leaders to have strategic oversight of embassy activity, taking the initiative to share the calendar regularly, and identifying potential calendar issues in advance. You will coordinate across the embassy to build a comprehensive picture of embassy activity, create innovative ways to ensure seniors are sighted, and influence decision-making based on your understanding of embassy priorities.

• Managing the contact database. You will develop and maintain up to date contact information of the Embassy’s senior interlocutors across government, civil society, business, and other diplomatic missions, to facilitate arranging meetings and hosting events to help build important embassy relationships.

This position is an exciting opportunity for someone who is comfortable taking the lead on a new piece of work the elements of which will evolve over time.  The job holder will also be expected to have a strong focus on delivering and improving, using feedback and other monitoring techniques to spot opportunities to make the Boards even more effective.

Resources managed: 

No staff or resources managed directly however the position is critical to the running of the Embassy. In this regard, you are expected to support the Ambassador and Senior Leaders in a timely and efficient management of their expenses as well as expenses related to ministerial visits, high level functions within the Private Office. 

Application deadline 9 January 2024

Grade  Executive Officer (EO)

Type of Position Permanent

Region Africa

Country/Territory Ethiopia

Location (City) Addis Ababa

Type of Post British Embassy

Salary USD 635.75

Start Date 1 March 2024

Other benefits and conditions of employment  

Learning and development opportunities:

The Embassy offers a comprehensive p of L&D opportunities to support the jobholder in the development of their role and the development of their career path. For these positions, it is likely the successful candidate will be able to shadow officers with similar roles in other Embassy’s in the region and at the FCDO in the UK. 

Working patterns:

The jobholder will be expected to work on-site at the Embassy during core working hours due to the fast-paced nature of the roles. However, the jobholder will be able to discuss flexible working options.
 The Embassy has flexible working options that depend on the needs of the jobholder and the business. These can be discussed with the line manager and quality assurer (who is the DD).  

Additional information 

• Must be able to legally work in Ethiopia

• Please complete the application form in full as the information provided is used during screening

• Please check your application carefully before you submit, as no changes can be made once submitted

• The British Embassy will never request any payment or fees to apply for a position

• Employees recruited locally by the British Embassy in Addis Ababa are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local employment law in Ethiopia

• 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;
  Obtain the relevant permit
  Pay the fees for the permit
  Make arrangements to relocate
  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:  AA=A1, AO=A2, EO=B3, HEO=C4, SEO=C5

• Reference checking and security clearances will be conducted on successful candidates

• Appointable candidates who were unsuccessful may be placed on a reserve list. If during the reserve period of 6/12 months the same or a largely similar role becomes available, that role may be offered to the second or subsequent candidate

Job Requirements

Essential qualifications, skills and experience: 

• Experience of managing a diary/office and strong organisational skills.

Desirable qualifications, skills and experience:

• Understanding of how an embassy operates.

Required behavior's: 

• Making Effective Decisions, Delivering at Pace, Communicating and Influencing, Working Together

How to Apply

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. HERE