Foreign affairs officers analyse foreign affairs policies and operations, and write reports outlining their analyses in a clear and comprehensible manner. They communicate with parties who benefit from their findings, and act as advisers in the development or implementation of or reporting on foreign policy. Foreign affairs officers may also perform administrative duties in the department, such as assisting with problems concerning passports and visas. They promote friendly and open communication between different nations’ governments and institutions.
ISCO skill level is defined as a function of the complexity and range of tasks and duties to be performed in an occupation. It is measured on a scale from 1 to 4, with 1 the lowest level and 4 the highest, by considering:
the nature of the work performed in an occupation in relation to the characteristic tasks and duties
the level of formal education required for competent performance of the tasks and duties involved and
the amount of informal on-the-job training and/or previous experience in a related occupation required for competent performance of these tasks and duties.
Foreign affairs officer is a Skill level 4 occupation.
These occupations require some skills and knowledge of foreign affairs officer. They also require other skills and knowledge, but at a higher ISCO skill level, meaning these occupations are accessible from a position of foreign affairs officer with a significant experience and/or extensive training.
This knowledge should be acquired through learning to fulfill the role of foreign affairs officer.
Labour legislation: Legislation, on a national or international level, that governs labour conditions in various fields between labour parties such as the government, employees, employers, and trade unions. Foreign affairs policy development: The development processes of foreign affairs policies, such as relevant research methods, relevant legislation, and foreign affairs operations. Foreign affairs: The operations of a foreign affairs department in a government or public organisation and its regulations. Government policy implementation: The procedures related to the application of government policies at all levels of public administration. International law: The binding rules and regulations in the relations between states and nations, and legal systems dealing with countries rather than private citizens.
These skills are necessary for the role of foreign affairs officer.
Create solutions to problems: Solve problems which arise in planning, prioritising, organising, directing/facilitating action and evaluating performance. Use systematic processes of collecting, analysing, and synthesising information to evaluate current practice and generate new understandings about practice. Advise on public relations: Advise business or public organisations on public relations management and strategies in order to ensure efficient communication with target audiences, and proper conveying of information. Analyse foreign affairs policies: Analyse the existing policies for the handling of foreign affairs within a government or public organisation in order to evaluate them and search for improvements. Analyse problems for opportunities: Identify and anticipate problems in order to choose a course of action, come up with appropriate solutions or even identify opportunities for further development. Manage administrative systems: Ensure administrative systems, processes and databases are efficient and well managed and give the sound basis to work together with the administrative officer/staff/professional. Assess risk factors: Determine the influence of economical, political and cultural risk factors and additional issues. Advise on foreign affairs policies: Advise governments or other public organisations on the development and implementation of foreign affairs policies.
This knowledge is sometimes, but not always, required for the role of foreign affairs officer. However, mastering this knowledge allows you to have more opportunities for career development.
Government representation: The legal and public representation methods and procedures of the government during trial cases or for communication purposes, and the specific aspects of the governmental bodies being represented in order to ensure accurate representation. Diplomatic principles: The practices of facilitating agreements or international treaties with other countries by conducting negotiations and attempting to protect the interests of the home government, as well as facilitating compromise. International commercial transactions rules: Pre-defined commercial terms used in international commercial transactions which stipulate clear tasks, costs and risks associated with the delivery of goods and services.
These skills and competences are sometimes, but not always, required for the role of foreign affairs officer. However, mastering these skills and competences allows you to have more opportunities for career development.
Apply conflict management: Take ownership of the handling of all complaints and disputes showing empathy and understanding to achieve resolution. To be fully aware of all Social Responsibility protocols and procedures, and to be able to deal with a problem gambling situation in a professional manner with maturity and empathy. Speak different languages: Master foreign languages to be able to communicate in one or more foreign languages. Observe new developments in foreign countries: Observe political, economic and societal developments in the assigned country, gather and report relevant information to the relevant institution. Establish collaborative relations: Establish a connection between organisations or individuals which may benefit from communicating with one another in order to facilitate an enduring positive collaborative relationship between both parties. Use different communication channels: Make use of various types of communication channels such as verbal, handwritten, digital and telephonic communication with the purpose of constructing and sharing ideas or information. Think analytically: Produce thoughts using logic and reasoning in order to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems. Maintain relationships with government agencies: Establish and maintain cordial working relationships with peers in different governmental agencies. Facilitate official agreement: Facilitate an official agreement between two disputing parties, ensuring that both parties agree on the resolution which has been decided on, as well as writing the necessary documents and ensuring both parties sign it. Develop promotional tools: Generate promotional material and collaborate in the production of promotional text, videos, photos, etc. Keep previous promotional material organised. Show intercultural awareness: Show sensibility towards cultural differences by taking actions which facilitate positive interaction between international organisations, between groups or individuals of different cultures, and to promote integration in a community. Perform public relations: Perform public relations (PR) by managing the spread of information between an individual or an organisation and the public. Develop international cooperation strategies: Develop plans which ensure a cooperation between international public organisations such as researching different international organisations and their goals and assessing possible alignment with other organisations. Ensure cross-department cooperation: Guarantee communication and cooperation with all the entities and teams in a given organisation, according to the company strategy. Develop professional network: Reach out to and meet up with people in a professional context. Find common ground and use your contacts for mutual benefit. Keep track of the people in your personal professional network and stay up to date on their activities. Report analysis results: Produce research documents or give presentations to report the results of a conducted research and analysis project, indicating the analysis procedures and methods which led to the results, as well as potential interpretations of the results. Present reports: Display results, statistics and conclusions to an audience in a transparent and straightforward way. Advise on legislative acts: Advise officials in a legislature on the propositioning of new bills and the consideration of items of legislation. Advise on licencing procedures: Advise individuals or organisations on the procedures involved in requesting a specific licence, instructing them on the necessary documentation, the application verification process, and licence eligibility. Build international relations: Build positive communication dynamics with organisations from different countries in order to build a cooperative relationship and optimise information exchange. Manage government policy implementation: Manage the operations of the implementation of new government policies or changes in existing policies on a national or regional level as well as the staff involved in the implementation procedure.
