View Vacancy – Commercial Officer

Main purpose of job:

This is an exciting and demanding position for an exceptional individual to take up the role of a Commercial Officer in the area of defence and security for Colombia within the fast-paced environment of the Department for Business and Trade (DBT). We seek a talented officer with the drive  and exceptional people skills to help British businesses increase high value exports to Colombia and bring new exporters to the region.

Based at the British Embassy in Colombia, you will work with both public and private sectors in Colombia to build a strategic pipeline of exports. You should be interested in the defence and security sector, but greater emphasis is placed on the ability to form customer relationships and achieve results. Good prioritisation skills are also important. Internally, close work with other embassy teams and senior officials will be key.

With UK stakeholders, you will have frequent communication with British companies both those that know Colombia well and some that are less knowledgeable about the region. You will also be required to seek out UK companies that have not exported to Colombia before and alert them to opportunities. Your familiarity of procurement processes in Colombia and advice on entering the market will therefore be indispensable. 

You will work in the wider Department of Business and Trade team at the embassy and will also support wider team objectives including on events and engagement with other teams in the Latin American and Caribbean region. Experience of organising events would be a welcome attribute. Excellent budget management and experience of line management are both essential.

Roles and responsibilities:

The Commercial Officer will be responsible for the following sector(s) (subject to change): Defence and Security.

The Commercial Officer will (subject to reasonable change) be responsible for:

1)    Leading work that supports defence and security exports from the UK to Colombia, through well-planned interventions (meetings, introductions, events, marketing, partnerships, government engagement, etc.), resulting in the delivery of a highly ambitious export value target across the sector(s) for which the officer is responsible;

2)    Developing close professional relationships with senior contacts across the Colombian military, government and private security sector, to ensure the UK offer is properly understood and that British exporters fully understand Colombian needs.

3)    Work closely with colleagues in other Latin American and Caribbean countries, to identify opportunities for British defence and security exports beyond Colombia. Support smaller teams as required to help British security sector exporters access opportunities in those countries.

4)    Project manage a diverse “pipeline” of trade-related projects, with UK and regional sector team colleagues to support future UK exports, moving quickly from identification of major opportunities to commercial wins;  

5)    Develop a robust understanding of market access barriers affecting the sector(s), a prioritised assessment of these and plan of action to address these via appropriate levers;

6)    Work closely with the Embassy’s defence team to facilitate information concerning export licenses, Colombian defence procurement strategies and any other issue impacting UK security exports;

7)    Manage budgetary resources. The officer is responsible for monthly forecasting of the budget allocated to the sector to ensure that all delegated funds are between 99 and 100% spent by the end of the financial year;

8)    Support the wider work of the DIT Colombia team and other Embassy sections (when required), including regional engagement, internal coordination and planning, events, analysis and briefing; 

9)    Identifying and taking-up L&D opportunities to improve existing skills and/or develop new ones;

10)    Fulfil the requirements of performance appraisal process, including establishing and executing a personal development plan; 

Perform other reasonable tasks as requested by the Director or Deputy Director of DBT Colombia.

Resources managed: 

Line management of one Officer
Management of operational budget

Essential on arrival:  

• Evidence of excellent written and oral communication (English and Spanish).
• Strong track record of interpersonal and relationship building, ideally with senior businessmen and/or public officials.
• A strong interest in the defence and security sector.
• Five or more years relevant professional experience.

Must have the legal status to live and work in Colombia. 

Language requirements:

Spanish / English

Level of language required:  Level of language required: High level/Working level English and Spanish (At least C1 level under CEFR).