Main purpose of job:

This exciting role in the Embassy’s Political Section will help deliver UK strategic objectives in Thailand. The role focuses on the management, oversight, and implementation of programmes and projects on a wide range of issues, including human rights, parliamentary democracy, security and rule of law. The jobholder will also be responsible for: designing and coordinating a programme of events that maximises UK political engagement within Thailand; arranging important visits by UK Ministers and Senior Officials that support UK-Thailand bilateral relations; and providing policy support to the wider Political Section.
Roles and responsibilities:

Programme & Project Management (45%):

The jobholder will be the Political Section’s programme and project management lead. Specific tasks will include:

• Advising Political Section’s and wider Embassy’s policy officers on all aspects of the organisation’s approach to project management, including by keeping up to date with latest guidance issued by UK headquarters, and advising on best practice to ensure impactful projects that deliver value for money.
• Acting as Secretariat to the Embassy’s Programme Delivery Board to monitor project progress and coordinate across teams, including by scheduling meetings, preparing agendas, collating and circulating papers and taking the minute.
• Ensure best practice is adhered to regarding: calls for bids from potential project partners; completing due diligence assessments; development of strong project bids; budget forecasting and spending; preparation of contracts and grant agreements; ensuring project partners are aware of and can comply with UK rules and procedures; and completion of monitoring and evaluation reports.
• Work with the team’s thematic policy leads to identify future funding opportunities, and to coordinate the Embassy’s bids to these funds.  Develop a network of implementing partners to ensure a strong pool for our calls for bids. Ensure a pipeline of activity that keeps the UK engaged on strategically important issues in Thailand.
• Maintain relationships with project partners during the project cycle, identifying and initiating actions to deal with emerging issues and risks.

Visits & Events (30%): 

The jobholder will support the Embassy’s Political Section in preparations for important visits by acting as the Visits Officer, with a particular focus on visits by Ministers and senior officials from the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).  The jobholder will oversee, design and coordinate a programme of events for the Embassy’s Political Section that maximises the impact of UK political engagement within Thailand. Specific tasks include: 

• Understanding UK strategic objectives in Thailand, and identifying key stakeholders for FCDO Ministers and Political Section to engage.
• Acting as Embassy lead on coordination for FCDO Ministerial visits to Thailand, owning visit programmes, managing visit meetings, liaising across the Embassy and externally with Embassy partners as necessary, and flagging risks and issues to Embassy leadership.
• Support visits by FCDO senior officials to Thailand by coordinating programmes, suggesting programme elements, and setting up meetings and events as necessary.
• Ensuring the team has an effective and up-to-date contacts database.
• Design an events plan, to deliver targeted and creative events for Political Section that maximise UK influence and impact in Thailand, as well as provide good value for money for UK taxpayers.
• Undertake evaluations and lessons learned exercises to understand how we can improve delivery against objectives through future visits and events.

Team protocol lead (5%)

The jobholder will provide advice and support on all protocol matters on behalf of the Political Section, including:

• Drafting Notes Verbale and other official correspondence.
• Liaising with Royal Thai Government on protocol matters relating to the team’s work.
• Following protocol guidance and providing advice to colleagues.

Policy support (10%)

The jobholder will provide policy support to the Embassy’s Political Section. This may include:

• Ad hoc policy support, including research, analysis and reporting on a range of emerging policy issues.
• Supporting policy leads on delivery of their priorities, including by setting up meetings with external stakeholders, communicating with the Royal Thai Government and keeping on top of developments.
• Attending meetings and drafting meeting readouts.

Other (10%):

The nature of working in Political Section means that priorities and areas of focus can change at short notice. Occasionally, the jobholder will be expected to support the wider Political Section by taking on new work or tasks not outlined above.

The jobholder will be expected to contribute to the wider Embassy in support of corporate and crisis management objectives. The Embassy has a wide range of internal committees to take part in, such as our Inclusion, Green, and Learning and Development Committees. All members of staff undergo crisis management and response training, and should be ready to fulfil a crisis role as required.

Resources managed (staff and expenditure): 

• Oversight of approximately £160,000  [in 2022/23] cross-Embassy programme fund, and local management of other funding streams.
• Management of the Project and Team Administration Officer [AO level].
• Government Procurement Card holder.

• Proven project management skills and experience.
• Strong interpersonal skills and initiative, with the ability to work collaboratively as part of a team.
• Dynamic, well organised self-starter with excellent communication skills.
• Good knowledge of Thai politics and Thai current affairs.
• Proven ability at gathering, summarising, analysing and presenting information clearly and concisely in English.
• Positive attitude and proactive approach.
• Ability to make decisions and to work with limited supervision; ability to use own initative to drive forward work.
• Comfortable working with Microsoft Office applications including Word and Excel.
• Ability to prioritise own workloads and make adjustments to accommodate urgent work items.