Fair Manager – Art Dubai

About the role

The Fair Manager is responsible for the year‑round planning, management and successful delivery of the annual Art Dubai fair. This key position oversees the transformation of the fair plan into action, coordinating timelines, budgets, production, exhibitors, partners and on‑site operations.

Key responsibilities

• Develop and maintain day‑to‑day oversight of the fair plan, ensuring actions, deadlines and decisions progress across all teams.
• Lead operational delivery through installation, live days, dismantling and close‑out, managing risks and resource constraints.
• Support production with venue build, exhibition layout and infrastructure, communicating details to marketing, partnerships and exhibitor relations.
• Oversee ticketing, event access, accreditation and health‑safety compliance, ensuring venue and licensing requirements are met.
• Manage partner and sponsor commitments, monitor exhibitor deliverables and coordinate visual identity collateral.
• Maintain relationships with venue, contractors, fabricators and suppliers, monitoring performance against scope, quality, timelines and budget.
• Prepare and monitor the detailed fair delivery budget, reporting material variances to senior stakeholders.
• Lead the fair planning rhythm, recruit and brief temporary staff and volunteers, and document lessons learned post‑event.

Required profile

• Excellent cross‑cultural communication, negotiation and interpersonal skills.
• Proven project‑management experience delivering multi‑workstream events against fixed timelines.
• End‑to‑end budget management, including preparation, tracking and variance reporting.
• Working knowledge of event production requirements such as exhibition layout, ticketing and health‑safety compliance.
• Experience leading and briefing temporary or seasonal staff during peak delivery periods.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to meet deadlines across multiple teams.

Required skills

• Project management
• Budget preparation and monitoring
• Ticketing and accreditation
• Exhibition layout planning
• Health and safety compliance