Senior Manager - Government Affairs (UAEN)

We are looking to hire a Government Affairs Senior Manager who will be responsible for managing executive government engagements, high-level stakeholder interactions, official visits, national and international events, delegations, and protocol-sensitive activities for our client based in Abu Dhabi – which is one of the largest companies in the region.This is a permanent role within the MD & CEO Office (Holding Company), under the Executive Affairs section, reporting directly to the VP, Government Affairs.We are looking for a proactive and experienced government affairs professional with a strong background in executive-level government engagement, protocol management, stakeholder coordination, and strategic event delivery. You should have experience managing high-profile engagements involving CEOs and senior executives, government authorities, public-sector entities, diplomatic missions, and international delegations, ensuring all activities are professionally coordinated, protocol-compliant, and aligned with organisational priorities.Key responsibilities:Manage the planning and execution of government-facing engagements involving the Group CEO, Executive Affairs Director, senior executives, government representatives, and institutional stakeholders.Support the VP, Government Affairs in developing and implementing the executive government engagement agenda in line with organisational priorities and CEO Office requirements.Coordinate national and international meetings, official visits, conferences, forums, roundtables, ceremonies, strategic events, and inbound and outbound delegation programmes.Develop structured engagement plans covering meeting objectives, stakeholder backgrounds, agendas, protocol requirements, briefing materials, logistics, timelines, and follow-up actions.Manage the executive engagement calendar, ensuring priorities, preparation requirements, dependencies, and responsibilities are clearly defined.Oversee the preparation and quality of executive briefing packs, stakeholder profiles, government entity profiles, talking points, key messages, background papers, agendas, and decision notes.Ensure the Group CEO and senior executives receive accurate, concise, and timely briefing materials ahead of high-level government meetings, official visits, and strategic engagements.Provide guidance on protocol requirements, executive etiquette, order of precedence, cultural considerations, stakeholder sensitivities, and appropriate representation for national and international engagements.Coordinate with government offices, ministries, authorities, municipalities, diplomatic missions, event organisers, protocol teams, strategic partners, and internal stakeholders to ensure seamless engagement delivery.Work closely with internal departments and subsidiaries to gather relevant information, project updates, data, and supporting materials required for executive meetings and events.Manage stakeholder communications, including meeting requests, event invitations, delegation proposals, speaking invitations, official correspondence, and follow-up letters.Track commitments, decisions, stakeholder requests, and action items arising from meetings, visits, delegations, and executive engagements, ensuring timely follow-up and closure.Prepare post-engagement summaries, action trackers, stakeholder updates, dashboards, and periodic reports for the VP, Government Affairs and Executive Affairs Director.Implement and maintain standard procedures, templates, checklists, briefing formats, stakeholder records, engagement trackers, and document repositories to ensure consistency, governance, and institutional knowledge.Manage, guide, and develop the Government Affairs Specialist, ensuring clear responsibilities, high-quality deliverables, accountability, and continuous improvement.Monitor engagement-related budgets and expenditure, where applicable, and support reporting on completed engagements, upcoming events, outstanding actions, and stakeholder priorities.Ensure all government engagement activities comply with organisational governance requirements, approval protocols, confidentiality standards, and document control procedures.Knowledge, skills & experience:Bachelor's degree in Public Administration, International Relations, Political Science, Business Administration, Protocol and Diplomacy, Communications, Event Management, or a related field.Preferably 8 years of progressive experience in government affairs, executive government engagement, protocol management, public affairs, international relations, stakeholder coordination, institutional events, or high-level executive meeting coordination.Preferably 3 years of supervisory or managerial experience, coordinating executive engagements, government meetings, official visits, strategic events, delegations, or protocol-sensitive stakeholder interactions.Demonstrated experience managing CEO-level or senior executive engagements with government authorities, public-sector entities, diplomatic missions, international representatives, or institutional stakeholders.Strong experience coordinating national and international meetings, official visits, conferences, forums, delegations, and high-profile events.Proven ability to prepare and review executive briefing packs, stakeholder profiles, talking points, agendas, official correspondence, meeting summaries, and action trackers.Strong understanding of government protocol, diplomatic practices, executive etiquette, cultural considerations, and stakeholder sensitivities, particularly within the UAE and international contexts.Experience working with government or semi-government entities, diplomatic organisations, infrastructure, utilities, environmental services, or large corporate groups is preferred.Strong stakeholder management, planning, coordination, communication, and organisational skills, with the ability to manage multiple high-priority engagements simultaneously.Ability to handle confidential, time-sensitive, and high-visibility assignments with discretion, sound judgement, attention to detail, and professional maturity.Experience supervising team members and coordinating cross-functional stakeholders to ensure executive readiness and effective engagement delivery.Proficiency in preparing executive-level documents, reports, presentations, engagement trackers, and briefing materials.Professional certifications or executive education in protocol management, diplomatic practice, public affairs, stakeholder engagement, international relations, or event management are an advantage.Availability:Preference will be given to candidates who are available to join immediately or within a reasonable notice period.We are looking for a candidate who will be able to work in the United Arab Emirates. Please apply with your resume and remember to provide us with your contact details.We will review your job application within 7 working days. Should your profile fit the requirements of the role, a consultant from Edari will be in touch with you to get a deeper understanding of your profile, to discuss the role in more detail and potential next steps.