JOB DESCRIPTION

View Vacancy – CPK – Senior Outreach and Strategy Officer, 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.

Job Category

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

Job Subcategory

Outreach

Job Description (Roles and Responsibilities)

Main purpose of job:

The jobholder will be part of the British Embassy’s Outreach and Chevening Team, whose role is to manage and enhance the UK’s relationships with China’s provinces and cities. The Team’s objectives include opening growth opportunities for the UK and its regions, supporting dialogue on global challenges, and increasing the UK government’s understanding of provincial developments.

The jobholder will be based at the British Embassy in Beijing but will sometimes be required to travel in North China and possibly more widely – to support relationship building and engagement at the provincial and city level. The jobholder will support delivery of a new strategy (currently under development) for deepening engagement with UK city-regions in line with the China Network’s country business plan, and assisting UK city-regions to develop their subnational links in China, particularly commercial and education links that advance the UK government’s Growth Mission.

The jobholder will also be responsible for gathering regional insights and producing reporting that can build UK understanding of the political and socio-economic landscape of North China and potential cooperation opportunities. Furthermore, the jobholder will play a role in championing greater use of AI and data, to inform and underpin the Team’s work and measure impacts against the country business plan.

The successful candidate will therefore need strong relationship management skills and strong analytical and communication skills (in English and Chinese), as well as initiative and agility.

Roles and responsibilities:

• Overall management and co-ordination of the China Network’s engagementacross China in line with their and UK government interests – working with Outreach Network colleagues and Embassy/Consulate teams. Building and maintaining a comprehensive overview of UK city-regions’ ‘China footprints’, partnerships, and priorities. (50%)
• Producing political and economic reporting / analysis- including through leading reporting on some political/socio-economic themes and how these are reflected in China’s provinces, incorporating insights and perspectives from Outreach officers, and contributing to reporting commissions from Embassy political/economic teams. (30%
• Using and leveraging AI tools and data to better inform Outreach Team’s external engagement and reporting, providing advice on opportunities for engagement and leading to increased use of data and evidence in reporting products. Data-gathering and analysis to measure Outreach and Chevening Team’s impact / performance against the country business plan, to present to senior managers and feed into strategic decision-making on Outreach/Chevening prioritisation. (20%)

Language Requirements:

Proficient in Mandarin and English.

 

Essential qualifications, skills and experience

• Degree level qualification or equivalent
• At least two years’ experience of working in government affairs or public affairs
• Strong relationship-building ability
• Strong research and writing skills (in English)

Desirable qualifications, skills and experience

• Kowledge/skills in AI and data
• Experience of engaging with UK or Chinese governments and institutions, especially at provincial/municipal level
• Knowledge of North China socio-economic landscape
• Understanding of the UK/China bilateral relationship and the role of UK local authorities

Required behaviours

Communicating and Influencing, Making Effective Decisions, Seeing the Big Picture, Working Together

Application deadline

10 December 2025

Grade

Higher Executive Officer (HEO)

Type of Position

Fixed term, with possibility of renewal

Working hours per week

35

Region

Asia Pacific

Country/Territory

China

Location (City)

Beijing

Type of Post

British Embassy

Number of vacancies

1

Salary Currency

CNY

Salary

RMB 29,488 for CB Chinese l RMB 38, 425 for CB Expat

Type of Salary

monthly

Start Date

21 January 2026

Other benefits and conditions of employment

This is a fixed-term role for 12 months with possibility of renewal.

This job will be based at the British Embassy in Beijing and full-time office working is expected. In line with China Network policy, some flexible working is possible so long as core hours are observed and by agreement with the line manager.

Learning and Development Opportunities:

The jobholder will have access to a range of e-learning and face-to-face learning opportunities made available via the FCDO’s ‘International Academy’ and through Learning & Development programmes organised by the British Embassy. There will also be other formal and informal opportunities for professional development, eg. job shadowing.

Working Patterns:

35 hours of work per week from Monday to Friday, 08:30-17:00. There may be occasions that may require you to work outside normal hours.

Other Information:

To get in touch directly with the hiring manager for more information about the role, please send a request to [email protected].

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.

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

Additional information

Please ensure that your application is authentically written based on your own experiences. If AI tools are used, their usage must only be limited to specific tasks such as ensuring formatting consistency and keyword relevance. The core content, personal narratives, and responses to behaviour and skill-based questions must genuinely reflect your professional journey, experiences, and achievements. We place great importance on originality and individual effort throughout the application process. Any form of plagiarism will result in immediate disqualification.

Please note that the deadline for applications is 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.

Note: 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.

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.

To ensure a successful application it is important that you explain how you demonstrate these behaviours, including through your experience. You are strongly advised to read the Success Profiles Civil Service Behaviours Framework, which provides detailed guidance on how the behaviours are defined. Applicants are encouraged to use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) format to prepare specific examples of when they have demonstrated these behaviours in their application. Using the STAR format to provide evidence of your skills and experience in your application and at interview helps to give a structure. You briefly describe the situation in which you showed the behaviour, and then explain your task in addressing the situation, what action you took and the result of this. 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. The start date mentioned in the job advert is a tentative start date and the successful candidate will be required to undergo security vetting procedures. 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.