Export Development Specialist

Exports Development Specialist We are seeking a seafood trade professional to connect UK businesses with global opportunities and drive export growth. Quick overview of the role

• Job status: 2-year fixed term role. This opportunity is advertised on a full-time basis, however, applications from candidates interested in working part-time are also welcome.
• Location: Homebased (UK) or office-based in one of our offices in Edinburgh or Grimsby
• Salary: The starting salary for this role is £41,000 per year.
• Right to work Job role, responsibilities and relationships This new role, funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), is responsible for leading the UK-based coordination and delivery of agreed activity under the Seafood Exports Package (SEP). It ensures that the programme's activity reflects industry needs, supports UK Government trade priorities and delivers measurable benefits for UK seafood businesses. The role brings together stakeholders from across industry, government and international markets to identify opportunities, coordinate activity and strengthen the UK's seafood export capability. Through effective stakeholder engagement, market intelligence and programme delivery, the postholder will help connect UK seafood businesses with international buyers and overseas partners. They will also assist business export readiness and contribute to addressing barriers to trade. The role will support the achievement of the Seafood Exports Package objectives by promoting sustainable export growth, enhancing industry resilience and helping businesses access and succeed in international markets The main dimensions of the role are: The role will work across the four nations of the UK, with an international dimension through collaboration with overseas partners. Connecting UK businesses with overseas opportunities
• Connect UK seafood businesses with relevant overseas buyers, UK Government officials and seafood specialists.
• Maintain and leverage strong relationships with UK seafood businesses and industry stakeholders to keep abreast of industry needs and to facilitate export opportunities.
• Develop and maintain an effective network of international contacts that can support UK businesses pursuing export opportunities. Building export capability
• Support UK seafood businesses and representative bodies to improve their understanding of international markets and export opportunities.
• Support overseas buyers, UK Government officials and seafood specialists to better understand the UK seafood offer, including its quality, provenance and sustainability credentials.
• Contribute to export-readiness, training and knowledge-sharing activity, with a particular focus on UK seafood businesses seeking to enter or diversify into new markets. Delivering UK-based export promotion
• Lead the UK-based coordination of export promotion activity, including inward trade missions, meet-the-buyer programmes, exhibitions and other export development initiatives.
• Ensure UK-based activity is effectively connected to overseas market opportunities and delivers value for participating businesses. Working with Defra and government partners
• Work closely with Defra and relevant government partners to align Seafood Exports Package activity with wider UK export and trade priorities.
• Gather and share intelligence in a way that identifies and addresses barriers to trade. Developing stakeholder networks
• Build and maintain effective relationships across the UK seafood industry and with international partners.
• Facilitate connections between businesses, industry bodies, government and overseas stakeholders to support export growth.
• Maintain excellent records of stakeholder engagement. Key accountabilities will be:
• Lead delivery of the UK-based elements of the agreed Seafood Exports Package (SEP) work programme. Coordinate preparation, stakeholder engagement and follow-up to ensure the intended outcomes are achieved for UK seafood businesses.
• Ensure SEP activity reflects the needs, priorities and opportunities identified through engagement with UK seafood businesses, industry representative bodies, government and overseas partners.
• Ensure that UK-based activity is effectively informed by overseas market intelligence and coordinated with relevant international partners.
• Develop productive relationships with UK seafood businesses, industry representative bodies, government stakeholders and international partners.
• Ensure that relevant export opportunities, market developments and barriers identified through stakeholder engagement are communicated to the appropriate colleagues and partners.
• Provide accurate and timely information on programme delivery, performance, opportunities, risks and emerging issues.
• Maintain appropriate records and evidence of activity, stakeholder engagement, businesses supported and outcomes achieved.
• Contribute to effective governance of the Seafood Exports Package by ensuring that significant risks, issues, decisions and outcomes are appropriately documented and communicated.
• Represent Seafish and Defra professionally and credibly in engagements with industry, government and international stakeholders. Key Attributes: Planning and Organising
• Plan and coordinate the end-to-end delivery of UK-based events and initiatives such as inward buyer activity, meet-the-buyer events, exhibitions, exporter engagement, capability building and other export promotion initiatives.
• Ensure planned activity is aligned with agreed strategic priorities of the Seafood Exports Package, available resources, timescales and expected outcomes.
• Manage multiple activities and workstreams simultaneously, balancing competing priorities, deadlines, stakeholder requirements and available resources.
• Monitor progress against agreed workplans and performance measures and take corrective action where necessary.
• Organise and prioritise work with a high degree of autonomy, adapting plans where necessary in response to changing priorities, market opportunities and business needs.
• The jobholder will provide written reports on progress on activities and attend face to face meetings with Seafish colleagues and partner organisations as required. Decision Making and Judgement
• Assess information from UK businesses, overseas partners, government colleagues, trade bodies and market specialists to identify opportunities and determine appropriate priorities and design of UK-based activity.
• Interpret emerging trade, regulatory and market developments and consider their potential implications for UK seafood businesses and the delivery of the programme.
• Provide clear, evidence-based advice and recommendations to the Head of Team and Seafood Exports Package partners.
• Exercise sound judgement in identifying issues that can be resolved within the role and those that require escalation to Defra, regulatory specialists, senior management, or overseas partners.
• Respond flexibly to changing circumstances and emerging opportunities, recommending adjustments to planned activity where this will improve outcomes for UK seafood businesses.
• Exercise appropriate judgement when handling commercially sensitive, complex, or potentially contentious information.
• Ensure that significant decisions, recommendations, risks and issues are appropriately documented and communicated to support effective governance and accountability. Essential working relationships will include: Internal relationships
• Reporting to the Head of International Trade Promotion to ensure the effective delivery and coordination of Seafood Exports Package activity.
• Work in partnership with the Trade Engagement Manager and Industry Engagement Officer to successfully deliver the international trade promotion work programme.
• Liaise with colleagues in the Communications and Industry Engagement teams to ensure external-facing communications enhance our stakeholder engagement and increases the visibility and impact of trade promotion activities.
• Liaise with colleagues in the Regulation team to report and action any market access barriers identified. External relationships
• Maintain and develop strong relationships with a wide range of industry stakeholders across the four nations of the UK.
• Act as a key point of contact for UK seafood businesses seeking to develop or expand export opportunities, ensuring they are connected to relevant market intelligence, buyers, overseas contacts and sources of specialist support
• Work closely with Defra to report and address barriers to trade identified. Represent Seafish and Defra confidently and credibly in discussions with UK industry, government departments, trade bodies and international partners. Knowledge, skills and experience required To be a suitable candidate for this role you should: Knowledge
• Demonstrable commercial knowledge of the UK seafood sector, including industry structure, supply chains, opportunities, and challenges.
• A good understanding of the international trade environment and the factors affecting overseas markets.
• Some knowledge of the regulatory and policy landscape which affects UK seafood exports.
• Knowledge of using market intelligence and evidence to identify new opportunities and inform decision-making.
• An understanding of how to promote products in international markets is desirable. Skills
• Ability to proactively build and maintain strong networks with a diverse set of stakeholders.
• Strong project management leadership skills including managing priorities, risks, resources, and deadlines to deliver successful outcomes.
• Works autonomously, using sound judgement to resolve issues and make informed recommendations whilst also being able to coordinate and contribute across the team.
• Strong communication and influencing skills, with the ability to convey complex or sensitive information clearly and persuasively. Confident in chairing and facilitating discussions, and in presenting to senior stakeholders and international audiences.
• Produces high-quality briefings, reports and presentations for senior and external audiences.
• Supports effective governance, accountability, and decision-making.
• Ability to act as an effective link between business needs and regulatory requirements, whilst being able to handle potentially contentious information with discretion and sound judgement.
• Demonstrates Seafish guiding principles – team player, innovator, specialist, enabler. Experience
• Significant experience leading projects, programmes, or stakeholder initiatives, preferably involving international engagement or industry events.
• Experience leading end-to-end event delivery, including stakeholder engagement, communications, logistics and evaluation.
• Proven experience building and managing, complex relationships across industry, government and international organisations recognising differing contexts, priorities and stakeholder requirements.
• Experience of developing and using proportionate performance measures to monitor programme delivery, evaluate outcomes, managing risks and demonstrate value for all.
• Experience of managing project budgets, monitoring, procurement of services and ensuring value for money against organisational and funding requirements. Special features:
• Driving licence is desirable but postholder must be willing and able to travel independently to meetings, events and industry locations across the UK and occasionally overseas.
• The role is a two-year fixed-term appointment aligned to the delivery of the Seafood Exports Package.
• The role will require attendance at events, meetings and stakeholder engagements outside the normal workplace and may involve some work outside standard office hours to support international activity or events.
• The role involves working with commercially sensitive information and requires appropriate confidentiality and professional judgement. Salary and benefits All roles within Seafish are classified and have defined salary bands. This role sits within Job Family C in our pay structure, and the starting salary is at £41,000. A new member's appointment on the pay structure is dependent on the experience they bring to the role when they start. New candidates normally start at the lower end of the range unless they can demonstrate considerable experience in the requirements of the role. Additional benefits include:
• 25 days annual leave plus Bank Holidays and wellbeing break when the organisation closes between Christmas and New Year (3 additional days).
• Optional five days per year paid volunteering leave for an activity of your choice.
• Trust and Performance culture – you work in a way that suits you to get your work done to the expected standard.
• A generous employer pension scheme – we'll double your contribution up to a maximum employer contribution of 10%.
• A range of health and wellbeing benefits including Cycle to work scheme and Techscheme, life insurance including health and wellbeing support, gym discounts and eye care.
• Our unlimited employee assistance scheme is a support service available 24/7 – it offers confidential, impartial advice on anything you need such as work, family, finance support or anything else personal to you.
• A professional development culture with plenty of learning opportunities.
• Rewards for high performance each year. Application process To apply for the post, you should email your application to recruitment@seafish.co.uk. Please include “Seafood Exports Development Specialist” in the subject line of your email. Your application should include:
• A covering letter or a short video explaining why you are a suitable candidate.
• A recent copy of your CV so we can find out more about your skills and experience.
• A completed copy of our recruitment consent form. The deadline for applications is 13 November 2026.