Conventions Section Head JOB

Job Title: Conventions Section Head

Department: Abu Dhabi Conventions & Exhibitions Bureau

Role Purpose

Enhance Abu Dhabi’s business tourism landscape, developing and promoting the Conventions sector, raising awareness of Abu Dhabi as a major MICE destination particularly in the areas of association congresses, conventions and meetings in-line with the defined strategic objectives.

Key Responsibilities

Annual Planning & Performance Management

• Contribute to the development of the Abu Dhabi Convention & Exhibition Bureau department’s annual business plan, ensuring that the plans for the conventions section are relevant, challenging and achievable.


• Monitor and report on the performance of the unit and individuals in line with the defined criteria.


• Identify potential shortfalls against performance targets and recommend activities to address such issues.

Conventions Operations

• Manage to position Abu Dhabi as the premier destination for business events in the region by leveraging the strengths of Abu Dhabi’s key industry sectors and developing unique related products.


• Develop and maintain relationships with business event organisers/associations including ECA, ICCA, UIA, IAEE, PCMA, IAPCO, CIC, MPI, destination management companies and relevant MICE stakeholders to develop and promote Abu Dhabi as an attractive destination for business events.


• Manage and co-ordinate participation in relevant international tradeshows to generate association convention business leads to promote and drive attendance to business events in Abu Dhabi.


• Spearhead and coordinate with internal and external stakeholders to develop the business events strategy for prioritized industry clusters.


• Develop creative and relevant proposals to attract significant world congresses, conventions and meetings, managing the bidding and pitching process from start to finish including strategy development, liaison and communications.


• Coordinate with Abu Dhabi MICE stakeholders on congress and convention opportunities.


• Ensure leveraging data gathered by business intelligence team (MICE baseline, MICE steering model metrics, etc.) to perform analyses on segments, understand Abu Dhabi baseline, monitor gap to target vs. steering model metrics in-line with the defined strategy.


• Manage leveraging CRM database and business intelligence to influence key decision-makers to choose Abu Dhabi as host city for the identified business events


• Ensure participation in tourism committee on ad hoc basis to increase coordination with senior government stakeholders

Relationship & Reporting

• Foster positive relationships and strong links with government and other key stakeholders, working closely with government agencies, international offices and ambassadors on the identification and development of business.


• Ensure timely reports are issued on the performance of the activities and KPIs with corrective action taken to mitigate deviation from plans, escalate red flags and provide recommendations for improvements.


• Ensure that all section reports are prepared timely and accurately and meet DCT requirements, policies and quality standards. 

People Management  

• Manage the effective achievement of assigned objectives through the leadership of the Section by setting of individual objectives, managing performance, developing and motivating staff to maximize performance.  


• Lead the talent development initiatives for the assigned section, collaborating with technical/discipline experts and thereby ensure the availability of talent to fit business requirements.  


• Act as a role model and drive adherence to organizational values and ethics by employees of the assigned section to foster a value driven culture within the organization.  

Budgeting and Financial Planning  

• Manage the preparation and recommend the section budget and monitor financial performance versus the budget while ensuring all sectional activities are conducted in line with the approved guidelines.  

Policies, Systems, Processes & Procedures  

• Manage and ensure effective implementation of functional policies, procedures and controls covering all areas of assigned section activity so that all relevant procedural/legislative requirements are fulfilled while delivering a quality, cost-effective service.  

Continuous Improvement 

• Lead the identification of opportunities for continuous improvement and sustainability of systems, processes and practices considering global standards, productivity improvement and cost reduction.  

Communication and Business Relationships

Internal

• Tourism


• DCT Relevant Sectors / Departments

External

• Business event owners (e.g. trade associations, PCOs, institutions)


• Key Vendors & Suppliers


• Government Authorities


• Trade intermediaries (e.g. chamber of commerce)


• MICE B2B/ B2C/ B2B2C Media, Business Media

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s (Master’s preferred) in Strategy, Hospitality Management, Project Management, Tourism, Business Administration or any other decree within relevant industry 

Experience

• 6 to 8 years of experience in Tourism, MICE, Destination or any other experience within similar role or industry.


• At least 4 years of experience in a managerial position.


• Previous experience in strategic planning or equivalent is highly preferred.


• Strong knowledge in the tourism sector. 

Skills

• Full professional English proficiency both in speaking and writing 


• Arabic bilingual desirable but not mandatory  


• Skilled in MS Office (PowerPoint, Word and Excel)


• Knowledge and functional understanding of the tourism industry, regionally and globally


• High level of competency in relevant software applications


• Self-motivated with a proven ability to complete work in a timely manner


• Ability to quickly integrate with existing business software tools and knowledge of other relevant industry software


• Excellent written and verbal communication skill - including appropriate stakeholder alignment


• Evidence of creating, implementing, and managing policies and procedures


• Ability to multi-task and to prioritize work effectively


• Ability to work under own direction and high degree of initiative