Green Strategy Advisor

The newly created Department for Business and Trade (DBT) oversees the domestic business environment, breaks down international barriers to trade and investment, and helps boost economic growth by ensuring the UK is a country where businesses can thrive. 

Climate change is driving the biggest and fastest global industrial transformation ever seen – a change that will impact the business environment and international trade for decades. We need to help ensure UK businesses are well-placed to take advantage of the commercial opportunities from the global green transition and that DBT’s wider work is aligned with the Government’s climate policy ambitions. 

At the centre of the department, in its Ministerial Strategy Directorate, sits the Global Futures Group – an internal thinktank and strategy team focused on driving positive change on long-term issues affecting the UK and global economy. For this group, we are recruiting a Green Strategy Advisor to support our work on aligning the department’s business and trade policy with the Government’s climate goals.  

In this role, you will work on a range of strategic research projects to future-proof the department’s work on climate and environment, while also supporting the coordination of its agenda. You will be exposed to a range of different topics and demands which makes for an exciting job but can at times be fast-paced and demanding. While the team works mostly on topics in the nexus between economic and environmental policy, you may also be asked to support other projects within the Global Futures Group and the wider Ministerial Strategy Directorate with the support of your line manager and other colleagues.  

Horizon scanning and strategy development – You will have a keen interest in climate and economic policy and pro-actively track the frontiers of thinking to help spot opportunities and risks to the UK, applying that to your work. You will take a think tank approach to generate new insights on long term issues affecting the UK and global economy. This will include supporting the team’s research projects to develop the Department’s approach to climate and environment.  

Clear communication – You will be an articulate communicator, both on the page and in person, and be able to tailor your work and adapt your messaging to be relevant to a range of audiences. You will communicate complex arguments clearly and concisely and create innovative and visually engaging reports. 

Effective delivery – You will work on a range of projects and processes, working closely with other teams to coordinate the Department’s position. This will involve drafting and advising on briefings for Ministers and senior officials, preparing, checking and advising on correspondence, PQs, Freedom of Information requests, and responses to other ad-hoc requests to help deliver Ministerial communications. 

Collaborating and influencing with internal and external stakeholders and partners – You will help develop and maintain the team’s network of contacts across the department, Whitehall and with experts outside government to shape the department’s thinking and identify issues and opportunities to deliver our objectives.

Essential Criteria

• Interest in climate and economic policy making, allowing you to apply your own knowledge and curiosity to help solve complex policy problems. 
• Numerate – comfortable using quantitative and qualitative analysis to make evidence-based arguments. 
• Stakeholder management – experience collaborating with a range of stakeholders to deliver objectives. 

Desirable Criteria

• Experience in climate policy, either within the Civil Service or externally. 
• Experience in trade policy, business policy or international macroeconomic policy. 
• Experience in supporting or conducting research projects.

Person Specification

• We are looking for an individual with the drive to innovate and take initiative. You will be keen to upskill yourself on new policy areas, look for gaps or flaws in existing policy, and be eager to come up with innovative solutions to help solve them.
• You will also be comfortable using analysis to make compelling evidence-based arguments.  
• As a team player, you will be ready to adapt and support your team, and equally draw on your team’s support when producing joint outputs.
• You will support a positive team culture, treating others on the team with kindness and respect.
• You will be comfortable working to tight deadlines and high standards to ensure to Ministers are presented with the right advice at the right time.  

We’ll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Delivering at Pace
• Working Together
• Making Effective Decisions

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an average employer contribution of 27%

Please refer to the attached candidate pack for further information on our benefits.

We recognise the challenges that people with (multiple) protected characteristics may experience on the job market and in their career progression. We are fully committed to being an inclusive employer and ensuring equal opportunities. We are keen to make our workforce as diverse as possible, and we hope to attract applications from underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities, people with a disability, and people with gender diverse identities.

Job contact :

• Name : Laura Deslandes
• Email : Laura.Deslandes2@businessandtrade.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : dbtrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk