View Vacancy – Consular Officer (GRC21.114)

Due to COVID-19, you may experience some delay in the progress of this recruitment campaign. We are working hard to minimise any disruption. You may find more information in the Additional Information section below.

The British Embassy in Athens is part of a world-wide network, representing British political, economic and consular interests overseas and is looking for a Consular Officer based in Corfu.

The main purpose of the job is to help provide resilience to our consular networks across Europe. We need dynamic, well-organised people with a passion for customer service to offer clear guidance and assistance to UK nationals. The roles will cover many aspects of consular and the work that the Embassy leads on. Provide high quality, professional and efficient consular services to visiting and resident British nationals in Corfu. Be a fully engaged and a proactive member of the Corfu consular team, the Greece/Cyprus Network and the wider Europe South Network, to contribute to the achievement of business plan objectives and full Consular Strategy delivery.

Roles and responsibilities:

• Assistance (60%) – Provide a high level of consular assistance and support to British Nationals in a range of situations including hospitalisations, death, arrest, rape and sexual assault, financial difficulties, missing persons and child custody.Maintain high level of awareness of consular policy and utilise appropriately and effectively the whole range of IT and other tools necessary to achieve a high standard of customer service, with a view to consular excellence. Print Emergency Travel Documents. Provide appropriate advice and carry out any notarial service, based on the hub/spoke agreement with Athens Consular Section. Give UK nationals information to help them follow procedures necessary for the Post EU Exit period;     Other tasks that support UK nationals a result of the UK leaving the EU. Cooperate fully with local and wider team, including the Consular Contact Centre and Global Response Centre, if and when a case requires it.
• Policy & network projects (10%) – Take responsibility for and lead on implementation of consular policy/network projects, following consultation with Vice Consul, aiming to improve our services. Take part in Greece/Cyprus network and regional projects and events, as and when necessary. Engage appropriately with local and wider regional consular team/s. Share and communicate through local and regional channels.
• Influencing and External Stakeholder Management (15%) – Build and maintain relationships with local authorities and services (such as police, prison, court, social services, hospitals, local administration, etc). as well as key stakeholders, charities and support organisations in order to provide assistance to British Nationals; Be proactive in liaising and partnering with local interlocutors as and when possible, to show a modern and professional service, working to proactively inform and safeguard British nationals.
• Corporate management responsibilities (5%) – Manage office cash flow and complete all required transactional returns. Receive customer payments in accordance with FCO regulations. Report to Vice Consul for authorising purposes, as necessary. Ensure all post information is current and visible on appropriate internal and external platforms.
• Personal Learning and Development (5%) – Take responsibility for carrying out a Personal Development Plan for the short and medium term, based on business and personal learning needs.
• Crisis (5%) – Take responsibility for maintaining and testing crisis IT and other equipment. Ensure information on the Crisis Management Plan is current. Participate in post and network crisis exercises. Be a confident Crisis Hub user.

• Proven customer service experience of at least three years and a strong sense of customer service delivery, including an ability to support customers in difficult or traumatic situations;
• Fluency in oral and written English and a good level of Greek language skills ( minimum C1 level for English and minimum B2 for Greek according to Common European Framework of Reference for Languages *);
• Good knowledge of Microsoft Office applications (Outlook, PowerPoint, Word and Excel);
• Excellent communicator, strong outreach and networking skills, ability to work collaboratively with colleagues throughout Europe and the UK;
• Excellent interpersonal skills, attention to detail, strong analytical perspective and problem solving skills;
• Excellent time management and organisational skills; the ability to work without close supervision managing an often heavy workload;
• Previous experience in a customer facing role and ability to respond to a wide range of customer needs;
• Resilience and resistance to trauma; ability to cope with the challenging nature of consular work;
• Good general knowledge of Greek administration system;
• Valid passport.