View Vacancy – AUH – Diary & Administrative Officer to HMA, DHM and DCG (Maternity Cover) – AO

The British Embassy Abu Dhabi has a vacancy for a Diary & Administrative Officer to His Majesty’s Ambassador (HMA), Deputy Head of Mission (DHM) and Deputy Consul General (DCG), job grade Administrative Officer (AO). This role is for Maternity Cover and for a fixed-term contract until 31st May 2025.

The jobholder will provide outstanding diary support to His Majesty’s Ambassador, Deputy Ambassador and Deputy Consul General.  The role-holder will need to have strong organisational skills, able to multi-task and prioritise issues. They will have good inter-personal skills, building effective relationships with the Embassy, colleagues in the Embassy in Dubai and external contacts. 

The Diary & Administrative Officer function will sit at the heart of the Executive Office team, akin to a Private Office and Secretariat. This team will provide and coordinate enhanced strategic support to the UAE Senior Leadership Team (SLT) across a variety of issues including Post strategy and leadership, governance and oversight of delivery, coordination of external engagement and hospitality, corporate culture and change management. The Diary & Administrative Officer will ensure the office provides excellent internal and external customer service and will support the Chief of Staff and Executive Officer to deliver an efficient and effective Private Office. 

The British Government is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer.  We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. We promote family-friendly flexible working opportunities, where operational and security needs allow.

Duties and responsibilities: 

• Day to day management of Senior Leadership Team’s diary and daily / weekly programmes. Prioritising of invitations. Forward planning for meetings, events etc, and commission necessary briefings; pulling together relevant papers for the Ambassador’s appointments; organising travel.
• Handling of incoming emails and calls, drafting routine correspondence and liaising with other Delegations in the UAE, FCDO colleagues in London and overseas.
• Management of Ambassador’s travel and entertainment budget and corporate credit card claims.
• Support to Deputy Ambassador – co-ordination of weekly schedule and transport plan, monitoring of social media and of emails on unclassified system. Manage / assist with programmes for inward visitors.
• Manage the Deputy Consul General’s office and diary, and often be the first point of contact for external enquiries (by phone and email).
• Manage appointments with UK government, diplomatic community and international organisation contacts.
• Ensure the SLT are fully briefed and prepared for upcoming events and meetings, coordinating with the relevant Embassy teams.
• Ensure the Residence, Transport, Security and Corporate Services are kept regularly updated on the Ambassador’s Programme.
• Be the Embassy’s point of contact for visa queries, including liaising with the regional visa hub and important applicants to chase and resolve queries, and where appropriate supporting applications.
• Take board and meeting minutes such as the weekly Chancery meetings, and quarterly Post Security Committees and Country Boards.
• Manage invites, seeking advice from relevant experts on attendance.
• Maintain the Private Office Contacts Database in Outlook and Teams and pro-actively keeping this up to date.
• Manage all mail addressed to the SLT from the general public. Requesting draft replies, chasing and monitoring responses to ensure replies are sent within the agreed time frame. Logging all incoming invitations and ensuring RSVPs are sent promptly. Scanning invitations/correspondence and forwarding to relevant departments for action.

The above list is not exhaustive, and the jobholder will be required to be flexible and take on other ad hoc tasks as required. 

Key behaviours required: 

• Making Effective Decisions: Use evidence and knowledge to support accurate, expert decisions and advice. Carefully consider alternative options, implications and risks of decisions.
• Changing and Improving: Seek out opportunities to create effective change and suggest innovative ideas for improvement. Review ways of working, including seeking and providing feedback.
• Delivering at Pace: Take responsibility for delivering timely and quality results with focus and drive.
• Communicating and Influencing: Communicate purpose and direction with clarity, integrity, and enthusiasm. Respect the needs, responses, and opinions of others.
• Working Together: Form effective partnerships and relationships with people both internally and externally, from a range of diverse backgrounds, sharing information, resources, and support.

Eligibility: 

• Applicants must be able to obtain an appropriate level of UK Security Clearance and be able to obtain a valid UAE police clearance certificate. Higher clearances can be granted only to certain nationalities. For this reason, candidates must be of British, American, Australian, Canadian, New Zealand or EU nationality in order to gain and maintain the level of clearance required.

• Applications will only be considered from those who are currently residing in the UAE and with a current and valid UAE resident visa.

• Applicants must be available in a full-time capacity to work on site at the British Embassy Abu Dhabi – this is not part time position or available for remote working.

• Previous experience as a Personal Assistant to a senior leader in a large organisation or with a government body.
• Excellent interpersonal skills. Able to maintain a range of contacts to build effective working relationships, and work closely with senior staff and their contacts.
• Excellent planning and organisational skills. Ability to work quickly and reliably with limited supervision, and able to prioritise a heavy workload and meet deadlines without compromising the quality of the work.
• Initiative to solve problems, raise matters of concern, and understand competing priorities. Ability to work rigorously and independently and make judgement calls on when to use own initiative to deal directly with enquiries and seek guidance where necessary.
• Demonstrates courtesy and consideration in dealing with stakeholders.
• Excellent communication skills in English, both written and spoken. Able to express ideas and messages clearly and concisely.
• Strong IT skills, including proficiency in MS Office applications (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams).
• Availability to work flexible hours when needed.