Studio Coordinator
BackDubai · Admin / Support · Full-Time
About the Role
DesignTomorrow is looking for a Studio Coordinator to join our Dubai studio in d3. This is the role that runs the studio so that everyone else can run the work: keeping a busy, design-led practice organised, welcoming and properly equipped, and making sure nothing is missed.
You will report to the Managing Director and sit at the centre of a multi-award-winning team of around 30 across Dubai and London. You will run the administrative side of the employee lifecycle from joining to leaving, own the UAE visa and labour process for the whole team, and give the leadership team dependable support with scheduling, travel and communication. You will also look after the whereabouts, attendance, seating and scheduling that keep a busy studio legible to itself, and provide remote administrative support to our London studio in coordination with the London office lead.
This is a role for someone who sees what the studio needs before it becomes a request. Discretion and judgement matter as much as organisation. What good looks like: a studio that is ready before anyone walks in, new joiners who feel expected on their first morning, directors who do not have to think about diaries, and confidential information that stays exactly where it should.
Requirements
- 3 or more years in office management, studio coordination, HR administration or executive support, ideally within a design or professional services practice.
- Working knowledge of UAE visa, labour contract and onboarding processes (MOHRE, GDRFA, free zone portals). This is essential.
- Fluent English with excellent written and verbal communication, able to represent the practice clearly, tactfully and professionally in every interaction.
- Highly organised with excellent time management and attention to detail. Comfortable holding several threads at once and prioritising between them.
- Confident with MS Office, Google Workspace and Miro, and quick to become fluent in our internal HR, recruitment and time-tracking systems.
- A demonstrable track record of handling salary, personal and management information with complete discretion, and a clear understanding of non-disclosure and data protection obligations.
- Proactive and composed under pressure: you bring a fix with the problem.
- Legally able to work in the UAE.
What you'll get:
- A role at the heart of a multi-award-winning studio, working directly with the Founder, Managing Director and design leads.
- A tight, non-hierarchical team that competes with the world's largest practices on design quality.
- A studio in Dubai Design District (d3), with a culture of internal events, CPD and team activities that you will help shape.
Responsibilities
- Open the studio each morning so it is clean, organised and inviting before the team arrives, and keep it properly equipped: supplies ordered before they run out, not after.
- Keep records and trackers accurate, complete and current.
- Run the administrative side of the employee lifecycle with the paperwork prepared and the right people prompted before each date arrives.
- Own the UAE visa and labour process end to end and in full compliance with UAE labour and immigration regulations.
- Support the Founder, Managing Director, Directors and Associates with scheduling, coordination and communication, handled with complete professionalism and confidentiality.
- Coordinate internal events, CPD sessions and team activities so the studio culture stays positive, engaging and inclusive.
- Be the studio's professional face to suppliers and service providers, from building management to IT, keeping those relationships courteous, efficient and well-documented.
- Provide remote administrative support to the London studio in coordination with the London office lead.
Salary
up to 15,000 AED per month, subject to experience.