Senior Manager Budget Strategy and Policies

About the role

The Department of Finance – Abu Dhabi is seeking a Senior Manager to lead its Budget Strategy and Policies function. You will head the Government Budget Sector’s Centre of Excellence, driving benchmarking, research, and alignment with international best‑practice standards such as the OECD Principles of Budgetary Governance.

Key responsibilities

• Lead benchmarking studies against leading government budgeting institutions and translate findings into actionable recommendations.
• Research, evaluate and disseminate best practices in public financial management, including medium‑term fiscal frameworks, performance‑based budgeting, spending reviews, capital budgeting and fiscal transparency.
• Assess the sector’s adherence to OECD Principles and other international standards, maintaining a documented compliance position.
• Conduct maturity and gap assessments across budget processes, governance, tools, capabilities and operating model, quantifying impact and root causes.
• Develop, obtain approval for and maintain a multi‑year enhancement action plan, prioritising initiatives by impact, feasibility, cost and inter‑dependency.
• Act as the technical reference point and trusted advisor to senior management on reform options, trade‑offs, implementation risks and international precedents.
• Manage transformational projects as the sector’s PMO, defining scope, deliverables, timelines, resources and success criteria, and monitoring execution against milestones and benefits.

Required profile

• Minimum 96 months (8 years) of experience in public financial management, budgeting or related fields.
• Proven experience leading large‑scale transformation or policy development projects within a government or public sector context.
• Strong analytical and strategic planning abilities, with a track record of delivering multi‑year action plans.
• Excellent communication skills to advise senior leadership and coordinate cross‑functional teams.

Required skills

• Financial Risk Management
• KPI Architecture
• Expenditure Analysis
• Benchmarking
• Budget Policy Development
• Public Financial Management
• Performance Management
• Fiscal Analysis
• Change Management