Main purpose of job:

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) is the UK government department charged with promoting and financing international trade and development, and championing free trade. In Brazil, DBT operates within the British Embassy in Brasília, and Consulates in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte and Recife, with a team who work primarily through a number of sector specific export promotion campaigns.

This is a brilliant opportunity to work on one of the most important export campaigns for the British government in Brazil, supporting business (exports and investment) between the UK and Brazil in the Infrastructure sector, and working to overcome market barriers in the Brazilian market that prevent British companies doing business in this specific sector. 
 
The UK has a long history in the Infrastructure sector and is home to a strong, diverse range of companies working in the sector’s supply chain. It is an important sector in Brazil and your role will be to support UK companies to do business in Brazil, with an emphasis on innovation and sustainability. You will be responsible for leading a team of one person who will deliver on the DBT’s network objectives in line with the main pillars of:

• Trade Support – work with UK companies to develop opportunities and support their business in Brazil.
• Promotion – showcase UK technology and innovation mainly for the Water and Sanitation, Railways and Airports sectors at trade shows and new promotional forums.
• Market Access – identify and create action plans for the key market barriers facing UK companies when doing business in sub-sectors including but not limited to water and sanitation, railways and airports.

The successful candidate will need to be an enthusiastic self-starter, have good business acumen and excellent stakeholder management and leadership skills. They will need to be confident in managing collaborative relationships with senior contacts in the UK and Brazilian business community. The post holder should have experience as a manager and believe in the development of their team members.

Working as part of a wider UK in Brazil network that seeks to ensure that our policy, trade and development work is aligned in order to increase clean, low-carbon and sustainable growth in Brazil, showcasing UK public and private sector expertise whilst maximising commercial opportunities for the UK and developmental gains for our partners.

The post holder will be responsible for supporting the management of an existing pipeline of commercial opportunities (accessible to UK companies) and researching and validating new opportunities as and when they arise. Their success in this position will primarily be measured on the value of exports you assist British companies to obtain and the ability to support their team to achieve this.

The candidate will be supported by DBT sector teams based in London, who will source British companies to respond to the commercial opportunities that arise.

The post holder will need strong interpersonal and organisational skills and a high level of emotional intelligence that will allow them to pitch approaches appropriately. This position will see the successful candidate exposed to ministers to senior members of companies and therefore strong communication skills and a high level of resilience and persistence are essential.

The successful candidate will be responsible for delivering a number of high profile events, both in Brazil and the UK, sometimes remotely, that will be designed to showcase the best of British infrastructure to our customers. This will require careful delegation to both external contractors and your team and colleagues across Brazil and Latin America.

The position will suit an energetic, self-starter with a passion for the infrastructure sector. It will require someone who has a positive and proactive attitude that thinks in terms of opportunities, not problems, and will be able to motivate and inspire their team to deliver challenging targets.

Roles and responsibilities:

The successful candidate will integrate and support the whole DBT team through the following activities:

• Plan, negotiate and deliver on ambitious goals aligned with the network objectives of: Trade Support, Promotion and Market Access. Conduct a detailed management of the sector’s KPI’s, creating contingencies when necessary and regularly reporting status updates to senior management. Design a long-term strategy for the Infrastructure sector in Brazil, communicate the plan and deliver medium and short term outcomes
• Account manage UK companies, suppliers and potential buyers within the Brazilian Infrastructure sector. This will entail creating and regularly updating an account management document, as well as regular engagements with stakeholders, to follow-up on all potential opportunities and delegate actions and contingencies to the team where necessary.
• Develop a network of contacts within the Infrastructure sector to identify new opportunities for UK businesses. The successful candidate must show proactivity and creativity in finding those new opportunities.
• Research and follow trends within the Infrastructure sector. With a focus on innovation, technology and sustainability, the successful candidate must be able to identify strengths and expertise from the UK supply chain for potential opportunities within the Brazilian Infrastructure sector.
• Prospecting new and emerging commercial opportunities in Brazil in both public and private sectors.
• Produce content for events, missions and webinars, as well as lead the preparation of market research reports, internal briefings and visiting programmes.
• Work as one UK Government team in Brazil and collaborate with regional leadership of the Infrastructure sectors well as teams from other sectors within the Brazil network with similar objectives.
• You will be based in São Paulo but must consider regional outreach to other Brazilian states.
• Raise awareness in the UK of trade opportunities in Brazil, including via joint work with other DBT teams and partners.

Leadership

• Line manage an analyst, carrying out an appraisal process regularly.  Supporting the team in developing their understanding of the Infrastructure sector, their own career progression, and in developing their leadership and commercial skills.
• Support the DBT Brazil Sector Lead and Regional Director for Infrastructure in developing and implementing the UK’s strategies for Brazil in this sector.

Resources managed: 

1 Analyst (who manages an intern)

• University Degree in related field e.g International Relations, Engineering or other related areas to the role;
• Significant relevant experience in business development and/or client relationship management role.
• Fluent in English and Portuguese
• Outstanding command of MS Office tools (PowerPoint, Excel, Word).
• Some knowledge of the infrastructure sectors either in Brazil or the UK.