View Vacancy – MNL – Head of Public Diplomacy, HEO

The British Government is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer.  We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. We do not discriminate on the basis of disability, race, colour, ethnicity, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, age, veteran status or other category protected by law. We promote family-friendly flexible working opportunities, where operational and security needs allow. The FCDO operates an agile workforce and to facilitate this, you may be required to undertake other duties from time to time, as we may reasonably require.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Policy & Political roles)

Communications, Press and Media

The British Embassy Manila is a large diplomatic mission delivering a dynamic and rapidly expanding programme of activity in support of the UK’s objectives on prosperity, security and consular matters. The Embassy is a modern, diverse and inclusive employer where everyone contributes to the embassy’s values of Well-being, Opportunity, Respect and Collaboration.

Main purpose of job:

The Head of Public Diplomacy will lead the British Embassy’s Public Diplomacy activity, developing and delivering a strategy that promotes the UK in the Philippines, using communication tools to amplify and underpin our policy work, and achieve our cultural diplomacy objectives.

Leading a small team which sits at the centre of all Embassy activity, the Head of Public Diplomacy will bring creativity, ambition and energy to a role which has exceptional autonomy and space to operate in a high profile environment with senior politicians, influencers, journalists, activists, and figures across public life. She or he will report directly to the Political Counsellor and closely with His Majesty’s Ambassador on a daily basis.

Working in an Embassy is unique in its exposure and opportunity, and being part of the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s global network brings great development opportunities and rare insights into geopolitical issues and the strong partnership between the Philippines and the United Kingdom.

Roles and responsibilities / what will the jobholder be expected to achieve?:

  • Lead the development and implementation of the Embassy’s public diplomacy strategies to support all aspects of the Embassy including political, cultural, trade and consular work through media engagements, high-impact campaigns and events, public diplomacy activities, and digital diplomacy, working collaboratively across the embassy and with the British Council.
  • Oversee delivery of strategic communication campaigns through the Public Diplomacy team, proactively finding innovative tools and platforms to engage internal and external audiences and liaising with traditional and social media, key influencers, Philippines government contacts, Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) Press Office, FCDO Communications Team, regional communications network, and other external stakeholders.
  • Lead on the delivery of our cultural diplomacy ambitions, harnessing our connections through sport, film and television, food, art, music, fashion, education etc. Find opportunities to partner with the British Council to deliver events and campaigns which promote and enhance UK/Philippines connections.
  • Build, develop and maintain the Embassy’s strong relationships with print and digital media contacts in the Philippines, providing relevant media handling advice to the Ambassador, visiting UK government representatives and members of the Embassy team, and collaborating with FCDO Press Office to engage with UK/international media and UK government press offices to deliver a whole of government approach to media and communications work.
  • Lead the Public Diplomacy Team comprising the Digital Diplomacy and Campaigns Manager, the Communications and Events Officer, and the Chevening Scholarships Officer, including identifying skills, training, and resources to ensure the team’s delivery of excellent quality work. Maintain a high level of performance and motivation within the team, by modelling strong leadership, offering a clear sense of direction, encouraging learning and development, and promoting a team spirit.
  • Lead the alignment of FCDO and Embassy core scripts, press statements, defensive lines, communication toolkits and key messages with key stakeholders, policy leads, and senior management; manage the communications resources including budget and assets.
  • Contribute to core Embassy functions including as acting as Media Manager during crisis, a critical role providing timely and effective communications and media advice to the Embassy Crisis Team and FCDO Communications Directorate.

Resources managed (staff and expenditure):

  • Digital Diplomacy Manager
  • Communications and Events Officer
  • Chevening Scholarships Officer
  • Annual budget TBC and sponsorship secured for events

You might not necessarily have worked in an embassy or foreign policy environment to succeed in this role. We encourage a broad range of backgrounds and experience in communications and public affairs. We are looking for:

  • Proven experience working in communications, public affairs, media or related field
  • A broad understanding of the Philippine political, economic, media and cultural environments and an active interest in Philippine global current affairs; and awareness of the role of the UK
  • Ability to create and maintain a network of senior media contacts in the Philippine mainstream media
  • Experience of influencing through digital and social media. Basic understanding of social media analytics.
  • Ability to lead a team and work collaboratively across the organisation
  • Exceptional communication skills (both oral and written) in both English and Tagalog
  • Highly organised with an eye for detail
  • Ability to manage self and others, and demonstrate proactivity
  • Imaginative, creative and passionate
  • Candidates are expected to have a valid NBI Clearance.

Language requirements:

Language: English and Filipino

Level of language required: Fluent

  • Strong existing network of contacts in the Philippines media

Communicating and Influencing, Delivering at Pace, Making Effective Decisions, Managing a Quality Service, Seeing the Big Picture, Working Together

11 December 2024

Higher Executive Officer (HEO)

Full-time, Permanent

36

Asia Pacific

Philippines

Manila

British Embassy

1

PHP

110,342.82

monthly

24 February 2025

Benefits:

The British Embassy Manila offers the following:

  • A competitive compensation package
  • 36-hour work week
  • Guaranteed 13th and 14th month pay
  • 20 days paid annual leave (calculated on Pro-rata basis if joined after 1 January)
  • Extensive medical insurance
  • Life insurance
  • Access to a guaranteed 5 days of learning opportunities a year.

Learning and Development Opportunities:

You will be encouraged to pursue your own learning and development while in the job and will be able to access a range of on the job opportunities as well as training and other forms of L&D where appropriate. There are also opportunities to get involved in other Embassy activities, both professionally and socially.

The British Embassy is committed to being a learning and development organisation and encourages all staff to pursue continued learning and development in the workplace. We offer a supportive and friendly working environment where staff work to the values of: integrity, honesty, objectivity and impartiality.  Everyone is encouraged to take responsibility, be innovative and work together.

There is plenty of opportunity to develop on and off the job, and to establish expertise and build capability. We are strongly supportive of the job holder continuing to develop their professionalism.

In addition, opportunities and activities include:

  • Courses and learning modules offered through the International Trade Profession and Diplomatic Academy.
  • Attending external events and conferences hosted by academic institutions, business chambers, etc
  • Learning and Development programmes, which have recently included leadership, line management, effective remote working and trade policy
  • Opportunities for job shadowing across the network
  • An individual bid fund providing funding to support more tailored learning and development needs.

Working Patterns:

The British Embassy in Manila encourages flexible working, and working from home for up to three days a week is common. The nature of this role means that there will sometimes be a requirement to attend events out of hours, but time off in lieu will be granted on those occasions.

Other Information:

Employment offers are subject to successful clearance of pre-employment checks. Staff recruited locally by the British Embassy Manila is subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local Philippine employment law.

No accommodation or relocation expenses are payable in connection with this position. All candidates must be legally able to work and reside in the country of the vacancy with the correct visa/work permit status or demonstrate eligibility to obtain the relevant permit. Any costs related to obtaining or renewing permits and visas are the responsibility of the successful applicant.

Employees who are not liable to pay local income tax on their Mission salary may have their salaries reduced by the equivalent local income tax amount.

Candidates are expected to have a valid NBI Clearance.

The FCDO operates an agile approach to delivery. To facilitate an agile workforce, you may be required to undertake other duties from time to time as we may reasonably require.

 

Please note that your application must be submitted before 23:55 on the day mentioned in the above field “Application deadline.”

Please be aware that the deadline for submitting applications is considered to be the time zone for the country where the vacancy has arisen.

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. 

All applicants are required to mandatorily fill the online application form completely including the employment and educational details, experience, professional skills and behaviour-based questions. We will be thoroughly reviewing the applications and incomplete form in any respect may not be considered while shortlisting for the next stage.

For inclusivity and diversity, please remove the following personal information when uploading your CV: name, address, email address, age, date of birth, gender, and nationality.

Only shortlisted candidates for interview will be contacted. Interviewees will be assessed on the core behaviours/qualifications listed above. Unsuccessful candidates will be notified via the system in due time. Appointable candidates who were unsuccessful may be placed on a ‘reserve list’.  If during the reserve period of 6 months the same or a largely similar role becomes available, that role may be offered to the second or subsequent candidate.

The start date mentioned in the job advert is a tentative start date. Any offer of employment will be subject to the candidate achieving suitable clearances.

Please be aware that you will only be able to apply to vacancies for Country Based Staff roles with the British Government through this official tal.net site (operated by Oleeo). Jobs may be advertised on third party websites, however our adverts will always link back to the official tal.net site. If you complete and send an application through any other site, we will not receive it.

To apply please copy and paste this link: https://fco.tal.net/vx/appcentre-ext/candidate/jobboard/vacancy/1/adv/
To help us track our recruitment effort, please specify on the application form/indicate in your cover letter where (globalvacancies.org) you saw this job posting.

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