Political Officer

Introduction

The British Embassy in Slovakia is part of a world-wide network, representing British political, economic and consular interests overseas and is now looking for a Political Officer.
The main purpose of the job is to support the senior political officers, the Ambassador and Deputy Head of Mission on policies covering the full breadth of the UK’s relationship with Slovakia. This will mean working on our trade, defence and security, cultural, including science and technology, and wider foreign policy relationship. You will work with an experienced team who will help you develop expertise in your lead areas and will support you to work independently and proactively.

Roles and Responsibilities:
• Lead on coordinating visits of UK Ministers and officials to Slovakia (occasionally out of hours), ensuring that briefing is accurate, and that the logistics of the visit are well managed;
• Working with a senior political officer on public / cultural diplomacy, including speeches, receptions and events by the Ambassador;
• Undertaking analysis and research in support of the policy work of the senior political officers;
• Provide support to the Embassy Press Officer as required;
• Other admin work.

Essential qualifications and experience:
• Secondary grammar school graduate with a degree;
• University graduate;
• Ideally, an understanding of the Slovak government structure and its functions, and an interest in politics and international relations;
• Fluency in English and Slovak, including excellent written English and verbal communication skills;
• Good team skills and a proven ability to work flexibly, collaboratively and under pressure with a range of colleagues and stakeholders;
• Willingness to undertake a variety of tasks, excellent organisational skills, self motivated and proactive;
• Good problem solving, critical thinking and analytical skills;
• Good IT skills including Microsoft Office and Outlook;
• Experience of working in an administrative/visits manager role in a company.

Required competencies:
Changing and Improving, Making Effective Decisions, Collaborating and Partnering, Managing a Quality Service, Delivering at Pace.

Other benefits and conditions of employment:
This is a full-time position of 5 working days, 36,5 hours per week, for a contract period of 1 year with a probation period of three months.
The monthly salary for this position is € 1,400 gross, payable 13 times a year.

The successful candidate will be subject to confirmation of a background check and security clearance.
All applicants should have the right to live and work in Slovakia. The British Embassy does not sponsor for work permits.
Staff recruited locally by the British Embassy in Slovakia are subject to terms and conditions of service according to Slovak Labour Law.

Additional information
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.

Please find further information and the application for this opportunity through the link below:
https://fco.tal.net/vx/appcentre-ext/brand-2/candidate/so/pm/4/pl/1/opp/2966-Political-Officer-SVK163/en-GB

Only applications sent through the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Local Staff Vacancies webpage will be considered.