British High Commission Head of International Markets Africa – Jobs in Johannesburg – South Africa
Main Purpose of Job:
Based in the British Trade Office in Johannesburg, this role is an exciting opportunity to work with business and government in an international setting covering the entire Africa region at the UK Department for Business and Trade (DBT). DBT is the department for economic growth. We support businesses to invest, grow and export, creating jobs and opportunities across the UK. As part of our remit, we promote British trade and investment across the world. We bring together sector, policy, promotion and financial expertise to break down barriers to trade and investment in markets worldwide to help UK businesses and investors succeed.
DBT has over 3,000 staff across the globe in over 100 countries. Our aspiration is to address some of the challenges facing the UK, by helping British businesses to internationalise and grow overseas. DBT divides the world into nine regions, each led by His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner (HMTC). The Africa region is led from Johannesburg and represents 54 markets with a team of 100+ staff.
You will join DBT’s International Markets (IM) Africa Team, part of DBT’s global ecosystem of export support for smaller UK businesses. The IM team is a free UK government service, and provides its clients with market-specific insight and guidance, provided by our teams in diplomatic posts.
IM Africa is the first port of call for smaller UK businesses looking to explore Africa’s numerous trading opportunities. IM is part of the UK Government’s commitment to support UK businesses sell to the world and grow the UK economy through exports.
It is an exciting time to join the IM Africa team. The service has now been up and running for over two years, and the new UK government has made clear its mission to deliver economic growth and support UK business. This role offers the opportunity to drive the development of this important work in an Africa context.
Responsibilities will include:
Strategy: The jobholder will shape and deliver the team’s demand strategy (essentially what are the key growth countries and sectors within Africa which match the UK offer), working with senior colleagues in DBT Africa and the IM UK team to ensure IM Africa’s support for smaller UK businesses contributes to growing UK exports, and including driving new businesses, to the region;
Stakeholder Engagement: You will build and manage effective and professional working relationships with senior leaders in Africa, colleagues across DBT (Africa and UK colleagues, including International Trade Advisers and Sector teams) and external partners and stakeholders, such as chambers of commerce, trade associations and agencies (including Scottish Development International, Invest Northern Ireland and
Trade & Investment Wales) and other business organisations with an interest in Africa and you will work to further embed IM into the broader DBT team.
Delivery: You will be responsible for overall governance and operational effectiveness of the IM Africa team, ensuring the team meet KPIs, driving continual improvement of the service, from upskilling the team to ensuring products and tools are fit for purpose; Improvements and oversight will come from ensuring the people, process and tools available to IM Africa are effective, for example through remote management of advisors in other African markets, and oversight of the enquiries hub;
Leadership: You will lead a team of seven spread across the continent, ensuring the team delivers against a set of ambitious key performance indicators (KPIs). You will play an active role in developing an inclusive environment within your team, and you will also ensure the team is actively engaged in their learning and development objectives. You will manage the delegated team budget, including travel and subsistence;
Communications & Insight: You will promote IM internally and externally, identifying opportunities and running a number of activities to boost smaller UK businesses export growth throughout Africa, using data to drive continual improvement and support DBT Africa’s priorities.
Essential Qualifications, Skills and Experience
At least three years’ experience working in trade and investment, including relevant professional or hands-on trade related experience in Africa and/or holds a relevant undergraduate degree;
Experience of leading a commercially focused team to deliver value for money outcomes;
Strong leader and team player who is flexible and proactive and can work across organisational boundaries;
Line management experience or experience of leading multiple teams, including managing remotely and across multiple geographies and cultures;
Proven track record of cross-team capability building and developing others, building skilled teams to meet objectives;
Excellent stakeholder management skills with experience managing senior and external stakeholders;
Excellent communication skills in English (both written and oral)
Desirable qualifications, skills and experience
Experience and/or understanding of DBT Africa’s priorities and activities;
Experience and/or understanding of UK export policy and DBT’s export-facing activities;
Experience of working with UK SMEs to enter African markets
Experience working in an international organisation
Required Behaviours
Communicating and Influencing, Leadership, Making Effective Decisions, Managing a Quality Service
How to Apply
For more information and job application details, see; British High Commission Head of International Markets Africa – Jobs in Johannesburg – South Africa
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