Kearney, Senior Executive Assistant – Global Managing Partner (GMP)
About the job
As a Senior EA based in Kearney's Dubai office, you will provide critical administrative support to the Global Managing Partner. This role combines exceptional executive administration with strategic judgment, proactive problem solving, and the ability to anticipate what will help the Global Managing Partner operate at their best.
The successful candidate will bring structure, pace, discretion, and thoughtful challenge to a fast-moving global environment. They will manage complex logistics and relationships with precision, identifying risks and opportunities, and making practical suggestions that improve the GMP's effectiveness.
This is a high-trust role requiring excellent English communication, natural rapport with people at all levels, and a genuine willingness to learn how AI can be applied to stretch the role, improve ways of working, and create additional value.
The EA will also work closely with the Chief of Staff (CoS), providing support where appropriate, with day-to-day functional direction, feedback, and support from the CoS.
Key responsibilities
Travel and Calendar Management:
- Manage complex global calendar and travel, balancing strategic priorities, internal commitments, client needs, travel, time zones, and appropriate preparation time.
- Maintain meticulous attention to detail across travel plans, ensuring that arrangements are accurate, practical, clearly communicated, and aligned with the GMP's preferences.
- Prepare concise travel packs and ensure that relevant contacts, locations, timings, documents, and logistics are readily accessible.
- Act as a trusted gatekeeper, exercising sound judgment when prioritizing requests, resolving conflicts, and protecting the GMP's time.
- Prepare briefing materials, agendas, talking points, participant profiles, background research, and follow-up actions as required.
- Track commitments and decisions, ensuring that actions are followed through and that important matters do not get lost between meetings.
Executive Administration:
- Serve as the lead EA to the GMP, collaborating with a second EA in a different time zone to ensure seamless coordination, effective handovers, and continuity of support.
- Manage expenses, credit-card reconciliations, invoices, payments, and related records accurately and on time.
- Coordinate routine administration, including approvals, signatures and document management.
- Liaise with Finance, HR, IT, travel, and other support teams to resolve issues and keep processes moving.
- Provide administrative support to the CoS where required, while maintaining primary accountability to the GMP.
- Work closely with the CoS, who will provide day-to-day functional direction, feedback, and support and contribute to performance reviews.
Meetings and Events
- Coordinate end-to-end preparation for leadership, client, global, and board meetings, including agendas, papers, attendees, materials, rooms, technology, and actions or minutes as required.
- Work with relevant stakeholders to deliver well-organized, appropriate audience-investigators and events by anticipating risks, resolving issues discreetly, and ensuring all stakeholders are aligned.
Stakeholder Management
- Build trust, professional relationships with clients, partners, board members, senior leaders, assistants, and colleagues across the firm.
- Manage sensitive interactions and follow-ups with warmth, confidence, discretion, and sound judgment, connecting stakeholders and priorities to maintain momentum.
Strategic Partnership
- Take ownership of issues from identification through to resolution, using initiative rather than waiting for detailed instructions.
- Understand the GMP's priorities, working style, preferences, and business context, using sound judgment to focus attention on the highest-value matters.
- Support strategic priorities, special projects, and firm initiatives through research, coordination, and disciplined follow-through.
- Anticipate risks and dependencies, recommending practical approaches to scheduling, sequencing, preparation, and communication.
- Identify opportunities to simplify processes, improve efficiency, and strengthen coordination across executive support.
Executive Communication
- Draft, edit, and proofread clear, concise, and professional correspondence, briefings, presentations, and notes.
- Manage the GMP's mailbox by triaging and prioritizing messages, flagging urgent or sensitive matters, drafting responses, delegating where appropriate, and keeping the inbox organized.
- Maintain accurate records of decisions, actions, deadlines, contacts, documents, and recurring commitments, providing timely reminders where needed.
- Handle highly confidential and sensitive information with absolute discretion.
- Work collaboratively within the Office of the GMP, with clear division of responsibilities, reliable handovers, and consistent communication across time zones.
AI-enabled ways of working
- Stay curious about the practical application of AI in executive support, knowledge management, research, communication, scheduling, and workflow improvement.
- Learn and apply relevant AI tools responsibly, in line with firm policies, confidentiality requirements, and information-security standards.
- Identify opportunities to use AI to improve preparation, prioritization, efficiency, and the quality of outputs; not simply to automate tasks.
- Test, learn, and share effective approaches that stretch the role and create measurable value for the GMP and the wider office of the GMP.
Measures of Success
Success in the role will be demonstrated by:
- The GMP being consistently well prepared, well positioned, and able to focus on the highest-value priorities.
- Complex travel, calendars, meetings, and board-related requirements being delivered accurately and smoothly.
- Stakeholders experiencing clear communication, strong coordination, and reliable follow-through.
- Issues being anticipated and resolved early, with practical recommendations offered proactively.
- Strong, trusted relationships being maintained with clients, board members, senior leaders, and colleagues across the firm.
- Administrative and executive-support processes becoming more efficient through continuous improvement and effective use of AI.
- The GMP having confidence that important details, commitments, relationships, and emerging needs are being actively managed.
Who you are
After nearly 100 years, we know this business is fundamentally about making connections - between facts, figures, insights, strategies, tools, technologies and above all, people. That's why, we look for proactive, positive, and flexible individuals who are always unapologetically their unique selves.
We want to hear from you if you:
- Have a relevant degree, professional qualification or equivalent practical experience
- Have 10 years experience as an Executive Assistant supporting senior executive(s), business leader, partner, board member, or equivalent.
- Have experience working in a global professional services environment.
- Have experience coordinating complex international travel and high-stakes meetings or events.
- Possess interest in, or willingness to learn, practical AI applications for productivity and executive support.
- Possess excellent written and spoken English, able to communicate appropriately with people at all levels. Clear, concise, and polished communication style.
- Are a natural relationship builder who creates rapport easily and works effectively across cultures and levels of seniority.
- Have strong judgment, discretion, confidentiality, and emotional intelligence.
- Are proactive problem solver who takes ownership and remains composed under pressure.
- Are a strategic thinker who can see the bigger picture, connect information, and anticipate needs.
- Have exceptional organization, prioritization, time management, and attention to detail.
- Have high level of responsiveness, reliability, and personal accountability.
- Are comfortable working independently while collaborating closely with a broad network of colleagues and support teams.
- Are adaptable, resilient, and able to manage changing priorities without losing sight of quality.
- Are curious and open-minded about new technology, including the responsible use of AI.
What we can offer you
Every day, our people work to be the difference for our clients, our communities, and our colleagues. Helping them to make an impact, they are sustained by a competitive remuneration package plus comprehensive benefits and perks, including but not limited to:
- Generous retirement/pension savings contributions
- Comprehensive medical insurance for employees and their families
- Structured and on-the-job learning and development opportunities
- Personalized opportunities to help you chart a unique career journey to pursue your own personal and professional goals
Learn more at Kearney.com/careers.
Apply now. Submit your cover letter, CV (.doc or .pdf format only) via our website.
Equal employment opportunity and non-discrimination
Kearney prides itself on providing a culture where our employees belong and thrive equally, which means our people feel comfort, confidence, and joy as they do great things for our firm, our colleagues, and our clients. That's why Kearney is committed to building a diverse workforce and inclusive environment. Kearney is an equal opportunity employer; we recruit, hire, train, promote, develop, and provide other conditions of employment without regard to a person's gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, race or ethnicity, religion, age, national origin, disability, marital status, pregnancy status, veteran status, genetic information, or any other differences consistent with applicable laws. This includes providing reasonable accommodation for disabilities or religious beliefs and practices. We encourage everyone to apply, including those who may not feel historically represented in consulting.
