[NSCS] Assistant/Senior Assistant Director (Strategic Planning)

National Security Coordination Secretariat; Singapore; On-site; SGD 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

The National Security Coordination Secretariat is seeking a proactive individual to strengthen national security through critical and systems thinking. This role involves analyzing risks across various domains and engaging with multiple agencies to build consensus on national security strategies. The ideal candidate will have policy experience, excellent writing skills, and the ability to navigate complex stakeholder dynamics.

Qualifications

• At least three years of policy experience preferred.
• Excellent writing skills to deliver analyses synthesising information.

Responsibilities

• Set and implement the strategic direction for NSCS.
• Build shared risk pictures to inform decision-making.
• Engage multiple agencies and stakeholders.

Skills

Critical Thinking

Systems Thinking

Influence

Writing Skills

Engagement

Job description

What the role is:

The role will give you the opportunity to strengthen:• Critical Thinking: You will keep abreast of national security developments and synthesise information across domains (geopolitical, economic, social, environment, etc.) to identify and analyse cross-cutting national security risks. These include economic security risks, digital security risks, concentration risks, and inter-dependency risks.• Systems Thinking: You will integrate analyses of external developments and Singapore’s vulnerabilities and how the latter will change over time. You will recommend the best way to structure the Whole-of-Government response to the risk. This will require you to suggest constructive solutions which balance multiple policy considerations across domains. For specific risks, you could contribute to the full policy value-chain from strategic planning, policy formulation, policy-operations, to comms and implementation (e.g., legislation).• Influence: You will need to mobilise colleagues from a wide range of agencies, with different mandates and policy considerations, to work with you on the overall risk assessment. You will need to build consensus on the risk level Singapore can live with and the Whole-of-Government action needed to mitigate the risks. This would require you to build extensive and deep networks across domains and seniority levels, and develop a deep understanding of their considerations and constraints.• Depending on your performance and experience, you could be given the opportunity to lead a team or project.

What you will be working on:

You will be part of a team which:• Sets and implements the strategic direction for NSCS. This will entail building structures, processes, and capabilities within and across NSCS and Whole-of-Government (WOG) to effectively deliver our mission.• Hunts out Singapore’s cross-cutting vulnerabilities that could be exploited or disrupted, and builds shared risk pictures (through data analysis and policy analysis) to inform WOG PS-level decision-making to tackle complex, collective-action problems.• Pitches and discusses your proposals with PSes across WOG, including the economic, social, digital, and security sectors.• Works with MOF to assess and prioritise resourcing to build WOG national security capabilities.

What we are looking for:

• At least three years of policy experience preferred;• Intellectual curiosity, and clear logical and systems thinking;• Excellent writing skills to deliver analyses synthesising information from multiple domains, including data-driven outputs;• Experience engaging multiple agencies and stakeholders, with skills to listen empathetically, sense dynamics, and persuade and negotiate across agencies and seniority levels to achieve desired outcomes;• Ability to move between macro and micro perspectives;• An intuitive grasp of Singapore’s security imperatives;• Interest in current affairs;• Ability to work in a dynamic environment and pick up new skills/ domain knowledge if necessary;• Proactive, articulate, purpose-driven, persistent, and patient.

About National Security Coordination Secretariat

The National Security Coordination Secretariat’s mission is to build a shared picture of cross-cutting national security risks, and mobilise the multi-agency effort needed to mitigate risks.We work to secure Singapore against risks in any domain that could compromise Singapore’s survival and success. This includes vulnerabilities to disruptions to day-to-day life, social divisions, and coercion to act against our national interest. Such risks impact multiple sectors and require multi-sector responses to effectively mitigate risks to Singapore.