An exciting opportunity has opened up at the British Property Federation, the UK’s leading property trade body, for a External Affairs Officer. The External Affairs Officer will have responsibility for two core areas of stakeholder engagement: with parliamentarians and policy makers, and with our new industry network:
- You will support a proactive programme of engagement with policy makers and influencers – including Ministers, civil servants, MPs and Peers, think tanks, and other trade associations – by monitoring ongoing political activity and assisting with a wide range of public affairs projects such as roundtable discussions and party conference events;
- You will also be the key secretariat for BPF Futures, our new membership network for junior real estate professionals, ensuring that objectives are met and the roll out of the programme is successful.
Both areas of responsibility will require strong interpersonal and network-building skills, and an organised approach will be essential. This role presents a hugely exciting opportunity for the right candidate to use and expand your relationship-building skills with both politicians and business executives, while creating and executing rewarding engagement programmes from start to finish.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
As the External Affairs Officer, your responsibilities will include:
- Supporting the parliamentary engagement programme and enhancing our relationships with Westminster Parliamentarians;
- To monitor and respond to parliamentary business, providing briefings and updates to the BPF team and to produce briefings for Parliamentarians;
- Managing the party conference programme, and attend conferences and events where appropriate;
- Drafting and coordinating ministerial correspondence; organising ministerial meetings and roundtables;
- Building productive relationships with external political stakeholders including think thanks and other trade associations;
- Working with the events and policy teams to support a long-term programme of events and relationship building with other policy-makers, including devolved authorities, arms-length government bodies, and civil servants;
- Providing secretariat services to BPF Futures, our recently launched initiative for professionals new to the industry (more info can be found in the full job description).
PERSON SPECIFICATION
The successful candidate will have the following:
- Proven experience working in a public affairs or parliamentary role;
- Excellent written and oral communication skills;
- Ability to analyse and present complex information in an accessible way;
- Strong interpersonal skills and an ability to build effective relationships and networks;
- Knowledge and understanding of parliamentary process and procedures;
- Interest in current affairs and politics;
- Some experience organising events is desirable;
- Some knowledge of the real estate sector is desirable.