Head of Strategic Workforce Planning

The Head of Manpower Planning is responsible to lead Abu Dhabi Airports centralized Strategic Workforce Planning function, providing a single, accountable line of governance over both the in-house (FTE) workforce and outsourced manpower. The role unifies workforce planning, cost control and reporting across the total workforce, ensuring that headcount and contingent labor are planned, justified and managed as one - delivering full visibility of cost, headcount and efficiency to management.

• Single line of oversight - provide consistent governance and monitoring of both in-house and outsourced manpower across the organization, ensuring control is not fragmented across functions.
• Operating framework - own, maintain and continuously improve the end-to-end operating framework for outsourced manpower - covering demand review, due diligence, approval, onboarding and reporting.
• Outsourcing policy - develop and steward the outsourcing policy, setting clear standards, decision rights and accountabilities that the business units follow.
• Integrated planning - lead strategic workforce planning across the total workforce, aligning in-house FTE and outsourced manpower to business demand, the operating plan and ADA’s longer-term strategy.
• Demand challenge - set the standards by which manpower demand is tested (must-have vs. good-to-have) before it is approved, ensuring resourcing follows a validated need.
• Scenario & capacity planning - direct scenario modelling, capacity planning and workforce analytics to inform leadership decisions on structure, sourcing mix and cost.

• Total workforce cost - support cost discipline by ensuring combined in-house and outsourced manpower cost remains within the approved OpEx envelope.
• Budget governance - direct full budgetary control over manpower - including the 2027 manpower planning cycle and the review of business-unit budgets for outsourced staff.
• Finance partnership - partner with Finance to consolidate and streamline contingent spend into a single, transparent view of cost, headcount and efficiency.

• Lead the unit - lead and develop a team of three specialists (Planning & Systems, People Analytics, Manpower Planning), setting direction, standards and performance expectations.
• Business partnering - act as the senior advisor to business units and COE leadership on workforce structure, sourcing strategy and rate-card governance.
• Reporting to leadership - provide management and relevant committees with accurate, decision-ready reporting on workforce cost, headcount, utilization and efficiency.
• Any other responsibilities assigned by Line Manager to achieve divisional objectives.

• Provide a safe system of work by collaborating and consulting with HSE and other relevant teams to ensure that departmental practices support a safe and healthy workplace.
• Ensure team participate in required HSE training and awareness sessions, and encourage reporting of any incidents, hazards, or unsafe conditions.
• Oversee departmental compliance by ensuring corrective actions are closed in a timely manner and reinforcing adherence to HSE & Quality requirements across the team.
• Strategic thinking - connects workforce decisions to business strategy and cost outcomes.
• Governance & control - sets and enforces standards, with strong judgement on risk and compliance.
• Commercial & analytical acumen - interprets data and cost information to drive sound, defensible decisions.
• Influence & stakeholder management - credible with senior leadership, Finance and business-unit heads.
• Leadership - builds, directs and develops a high-performing specialist team.