Conferences & Exhibitions Section Head

Job Title: Conference & Exhibition Section Head

Sector: Tourism

Department: Abu Dhabi Convention & Exhibition Bureau

Section: Conference & Exhibition Section

Job Purpose: Grow awareness of Abu Dhabi as a global conference and exhibition destination and develop the local conference and exhibition ecosystem through capacity and capabilities building; whereby we have a ready pool of stakeholders to partner the Abu Dhabi Convention & Exhibition Bureau (ADCEB) in attracting and/or launching international and regional conferences and exhibitions.

• Contribute to ADCEB’s annual business plan and budget, ensuring the Section’s objectives align with departmental and DCT strategies.
• Set clear KPIs related to event acquisition, conversion rates, economic impact, and ecosystem engagement, and ensure targets are met or exceeded.
• Monitor the sector and Section performance, identify shortfalls, and implement corrective actions as required.
• Support the continuous review and improvement of the MICE Strategy, aligning with evolving market opportunities and stakeholder needs.

• Secure conferences and exhibitions in Abu Dhabi through business development activities and submit proposals or bids (if applicable) in response to the Request for Proposal (RFP) issued by the relevant conference/ exhibition organisations. Develop proposals that are inspiring, timely and respond to the organisers’ unique needs. Manage the business development process end-to-end including strategy development, liaison and communications with relevant stakeholders in UAE and/or Abu Dhabi.
  
  Supervise less experienced team members and guide them on business development process.
• Coordinate with other units and departments within DCT to conduct feasibility studies in relevance to any business event and/or bid opportunities (if applicable) to ensure that any bids or engagements with local and international organisers would further advance DCT’s strategic priorities.
• Conduct research and benchmark analysis to understand the operations of local ecosystem of conference and exhibition organisers / sector champions and experts (e.g. governmental departments) and Abu Dhabi’s economic priorities (e.g. Abu Dhabi 2030 Vision) in order to identify business event opportunities. Supervise and guide less experienced team members on research and business development processes.
• Identify local thought leaders and sector experts that could typically support business development activities; bids (if applicable).
• Work closely with tourism sector’s ecosystem e.g. venues, hotels, etc, and business event organizers to create attractive packages and incentives for conferences and exhibitions. Manage special programs/initiatives to increase conferences and exhibitions.
• 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 identify strategic partnerships and initiatives to deliver that objective.
• Develop and maintain relationships with business event organisers/associations including UFI, IAEE, SISO 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 trade shows or MICE association’s events to generate association convention business leads to build a pipeline of business events in Abu Dhabi.
• Spearhead and coordinate with internal and external stakeholders to develop the business events strategy for prioritized industry clusters.
• 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 section’s CRM database and business intelligence to influence key decision-makers to choose Abu Dhabi as host city for the identified business events.
• Closely coordinate with MICE officers in international markets in relationship management with MICE stakeholders by providing projects’ background…