New rules for the work of our commercial attachés abroad

Unified electronic database, focused trainings and objective evaluation methodology. These are part of the changes in the work of the Offices for Trade and Economic Affairs (OTEA), which have already been approved by the Order of the Minister of Economy and Industry Nikola Stoyanov. This is part of the general change in the work of our trade attachés abroad, which the ministry team is committed to when taking office. The rules were also developed with the participation of employers' organizations.

The new and more effective rules for the work of our sales representatives include a clear methodology by which their performance is evaluated. Until now, such a practice did not exist and the assessments, including the decision to extend the overseas mandates, were made on a subjective basis.

According to the new rules, all OTEAs will fill a reporting form with specific elements in it, which will be sent to the ministry every quarter. In this way, their work will be reported through investment projects, export agreements, meetings with administrations and businesses, assistance provided to companies, organized visits and forums, etc.

An electronic database of all OTEAs is already functioning, in which the long-term important information and projects on which each sales representative works will be stored. The goal is to have a solid foundation and information that will allow him to continue the activities of his predecessor when replacing one attaché with another. Until now, cases were not rare in which operational work was not transferred between seconded employees and thus foreign economic relations were not upgraded, but were restarted at each personnel change in a given destination.

Precisely for the purpose of better coordination between a newly appointed employee and one who leaves for Sofia, the new rules provide for a waiting period. Thus, the employees will pass on to each other the work and the information about started initiatives that need to be continued, as well as the established contacts with the administration and business in the host country.

Special attention is paid to the preparation of personnel who apply for OTEA. The requirements for their foreign language training have been increased, and each of them must develop a concept for the foreign economic relations with Bulgaria of the country for which they are applying. A uniform approach has also been introduced regarding the possibility of applying for long-term secondment, equal for all applicants - employees of the Ministry of Economy and Industry and external experts who participate in the competition. The requirements regarding the possessed competences of long-term seconded persons have also been increased. In this way, a competitive selection is guaranteed and it is primarily based on their expertise and experience. Along with this, the political element in the composition of the selection committee has been removed in order to ensure the objectivity of the selection.

A special training and training program is being developed for the new trade representatives in cooperation with the Diplomatic Institute at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In this way, they will get basic and specific information that will allow them to enter the activities of OTEA as quickly as possible. Similar trainings are made for Bulgarian diplomats, but until now the trade attachés have not gone through them.

We remind you that a week ago the election of trade representatives started in seven countries, which were also announced in the mass media. This is also part of the overall change in promoting their activity and attracting more personnel to apply for these positions. Until now, such open procedures have rarely been performed. Until August 2022, not a single public procedure was implemented, and for the whole of 2021, there were only two. The public procedures will provide an opportunity to select trade attachés from the widest possible range of candidates, which will also increase the quality of the work of the Bulgarian Trade and Economic Affairs Office.

The activity of OTEA is key to attracting more investments and promoting Bulgarian exports. Our commercial attachés abroad establish contacts with companies that may be interested in starting projects in our country and have the task of supporting Bulgarian companies that want to enter the relevant market. In order to facilitate the connection with them, on the initiative of Minister Nikola Stoyanov, an interactive map was developed with their contacts and location, which is available on the website of the Ministry of Economy and Industry.