Trade Commissioner / Country Manager, Thailand
- Applications are considered on a rolling basis
- Bangkok
We are now looking for a Trade Commissioner to head up the office and to be part of growing our footprint and presence in Thailand and the Emerging Mekong (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar) region. Business Sweden has been present in Thailand since 2008 and our team offers strategic advice and operational support that helps Swedish companies to expand and grow their business in the region.
Today Southeast Asia (SEA) has more than 670 million inhabitants and a combined GDP of 9.34 trillion USD, driven by massive investments in physical and digital infrastructure, increased value-add and strengthened pace of innovation in the manufacturing sector together with a rapidly growing middle class driving domestic consumption overtaking exports as primary driver of growth.
Thailand is the second biggest economy in Southeast Asia and offers many interesting opportunities for Swedish companies. Sweden has a long trade tradition with Thailand that goes back more than 100 years. Swedish export consists primarily of telecommunication equipment and engineering products such as machinery and equipment, paper products, transport equipment, and steel and forestry products. Today, around 100 companies from or related to Sweden are active in Thailand, and total exports from Sweden amounted to approx. 7.5 bnSEK in 2022. There are significant untapped opportunities for Swedish companies – especially related to digitalization, advanced manufacturing and machinery, healthcare, and automotive.
The Emerging Mekong markets are small by comparison, but Sweden has a long-standing engagement in Laos’ nascent forestry industry, and Swedish companies are increasingly investing in production in Cambodia.
What do we expect from you?
As a Country Manager/Trade Commissioner, you will have responsibility for sales and delivery and for developing the Business Sweden staff. You will be based in Bangkok and report to Emil Akander, Vice President and Head of Region South and Southeast Asia, based in Singapore.
Your responsibilities will include:
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Representing interests of Swedish enterprise and Business Sweden in the market
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Selling and marketing Business Sweden's services to existing and potential clients in both Sweden and in the SEA region, including add-on sales in on-going projects
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Maintaining continuous contact with existing and potential client enterprises and stakeholders
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Managing, planning, and participating in the execution of consulting / internationalisation assignments
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Full Profit & Loss responsibility
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Management of the office and employees, inspiring and developing the team
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Developing business processes and organisation
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Operating from a global perspective to promote Swedish industry and companies
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Work in a Team Sweden context with the transition from aid to broader cooperation, coordinating export promotion initiatives with development cooperation
You will have very close relations to the Swedish representations in the market. This means that you will be an official representative for Sweden, acting in close collaboration with the Swedish Foreign Service and other organisations.
Work with great people
Skills & Requirements
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You have an academic degree within Business Administration and/or Engineering
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You have at least 10 years of relevant working experience
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You are a strong leader and have experience of management of employees
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You have an interest in growing and developing talent
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You have performed successful strategic sales and have a proven track record of developing customers, deep customer insight and strong negotiation and closing skills
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You are analytical, reflective, focused and action oriented
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You have in depth experience from multi stakeholder projects, including government clients (Swedish and non-Swedish)
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A high level of proficiency in both written and spoken English and Swedish is a requirement
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You have Swedish citizenship
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Experience from living/working in Thailand and South or Southeast Asia is highly meriting
As a person we believe you have a business-oriented mind-set with a positive "can do attitude” and strong self-motivation. You are perceived as a strong leader and have an outstanding ability to build personal relations, empathy, and trust. You have a vision and a strong drive to develop Business Sweden’s operations in Thailand and Southeast Asia even further. You furthermore have excellent organisation, communication and problem-solving skills as well as an ability to handle multiple priorities. To enjoy working and living in Thailand you must be open minded, and solution oriented since the environment can be unpredictable and requires drive and on-the-spot thinking to achieve results.
Does this describe you?
If so, please send your CV together with a personal cover letter as soon as possible as we will be screening applications continuously, but no later than 15th of April 2023.
Great Place to Work
Global exchanges and career opportunities
Exclusive focus on our client’s growth agenda
Extensive responsibility
Diversified teams with world class colleagues
Training academy for continuous development
Entrepreneurial environment
About the company
Business Sweden is a global consultancy organization with approximately 500 colleagues working in 46 countries. We all share the same passion - creating maximum value for Sweden.
Business Sweden’s purpose is to help Swedish companies grow global sales and international companies invest and expand in Sweden.
Through our consultancy services we offer our customers strategic advice and hands-on support in their international growth and establishment.
Business Sweden is owned by the Swedish Government and the industry, a partnership that provides access to contacts and networks at all levels.
At Business Sweden we value and encourage applications from candidates with diverse backgrounds related to culture, gender, age, ethnicity, race, religion and belief, disability, nationality, sexual orientation and gender identity.
The diversity of our people is an important foundation of our culture and builds a workplace where everyone can contribute with unique experiences, perspectives and cultures.
OUR VALUESOur high performance culture rests on that all our employees live our core values. We will never have guidelines for every situation we will meet, but if all of us are guided by a strong sense of our values, we will always navigate in the right direction.
RESPONSIBILITYThis is the foundation of our culture. Taking responsibility is a way to show commitment to our work. We take ownership of the relationships with our clients and stay true to our word.
COLLABORATIONAlone we can do so little; together we can do so much. Collaboration knows no geographical borders. At Business Sweden, we act as one global team to create the best possible value for our clients.
IMPACTBy monitoring the world around us and identifying possibilities , we make a difference by helping companies to seize new, sustainable business opportunities. We create impact both for our clients and for Sweden.
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