Executive Assistant

Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence; Sunnyvale (CA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus

401K Plan

Generous PTO and holidays

Parental Leave

Employee Assistance Program

Life insurance and disability

Job summary

Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence seeks an Executive Assistant to be the Lab Director's strategic gatekeeper and right-hand partner. You will optimize executive bandwidth, manage a high-demand calendar across the US, Paris, and UAE, and coordinate complex travel and meetings with precision.

The role requires 8–10 years of senior support experience, strong communication skills, and fluency in modern productivity tools.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or higher in a related field required.
• Minimum 8–10 years of executive support with C-suite or lab leadership.
• Experience managing international schedules across multiple time zones including UAE.
• Proven discretion, confidentiality, and high emotional intelligence.

Responsibilities

• Serve as primary operational anchor and gatekeeper for Lab Director.
• Anticipate needs and resolve roadblocks to protect executive time for strategic work.
• Manage an international calendar across time zones, coordinating with UAE team.
• Coordinate complex travel itineraries including UAE-related travel.
• Draft agendas, briefing packets, and capture actions and follow-ups.
• Filter and triage requests; draft professional correspondence and summaries.

Skills

Executive support

Gatekeeping

Calendar management

Communication

Time management

Cross-cultural communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business Administration or related field

Tools

Microsoft Office

Calendar software

Slack

Video conferencing tools

Tracking platforms

Job description

Position Summary

The Executive Assistant will serve as the strategic gatekeeper and day-to-day right hand to the Lab Director. In a fast-scaling frontier AI research organization, the Director's focus must remain dedicated to technical breakthroughs, model launches, and top-tier talent acquisition. This role goes beyond standard calendar management: you will optimize executive bandwidth, eliminate schedule fragmentation, act as a strategic gatekeeper for candidate pipelines, and handle high-stakes operational coordination across our global research hubs (US, Paris, and UAE).

Key Responsibilities

• High-Level Executive Support & Strategic Operations:
  • Serve as the primary operational anchor and trusted gatekeeper for the Lab Director, carefully managing high-volume, cross-channel communications with internal teams, external partners, and key stakeholders.
  • Anticipate needs far in advance, solving operational roadblocks before they reach the Director to ensure their time and energy remain locked onto high-priority scientific and leadership goals.
• Complex Calendar & Time Management (Including International Time Zones):
  • Exercise rigorous, strategic judgment in managing a fast-moving, high-demand calendar. Protect the Director's time fiercely, resolve scheduling conflicts proactively across multiple time zones (including coordination with the UAE team), and ensure they are thoroughly briefed for every meeting, pitch, or commitment.
• International & UAE Team Liaison:
  • Act as a key point of contact and primary operational bridge between the Lab Director and UAE-based team members and stakeholders. Facilitate smooth communication, align cross-border workflows, and navigate international cultural nuances with high professionalism.
• Advanced Travel & Logistics Management:
  • Coordinate complex, multi-destination domestic and international travel itineraries (including seamless travel planning to and from the UAE), comprehensive agendas, and logistics, ensuring contingencies are in place for any last-minute changes.
• Meeting & Stakeholder Coordination:
  • Plan, coordinate, and execute high-stakes leadership meetings, lab-wide gatherings, and strategic syncs (spanning international schedules). Draft clear agendas, compile comprehensive briefing packets, and capture accurate action items and follow-ups.
• Gatekeeping & Professional Communications Hub:
  • Filter and triage incoming requests with diplomacy and discretion. Draft professional correspondence, status reports, executive summaries, and memos on behalf of the Director with absolute confidentiality.

Academic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Communications, Science, or a related field preferred (or equivalent combination of education and professional experience).

Professional Experience

• Minimum 8-10 years of dedicated executive support experience partnering with C-suite executives, senior leaders, founders, or high-level academic/scientific lab directors in a fast-paced, high-stakes environment.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex international schedules, cross-border workflows, and communications across multiple time zones (specifically including seamless coordination with UAE-based teams and stakeholders).
• Proven track record of proactive calendar management, rigorous gatekeeping, and handling confidential information with absolute discretion and high emotional intelligence.
• Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills with a zero-error mindset, a laser-focused resilience under pressure, and the ability to act as a proactive, independent problem-solver.
• Proficiency in modern productivity and collaboration tools (Microsoft Office suite, advanced calendar management software, Slack, global virtual meeting ecosystems, and tracking platforms).

Preferred Skills

• Prior background, familiarity, or experience working within a scientific research, academic laboratory, technology, or advanced modeling environment.
• Experience navigating cross-cultural dynamics and building professional relationships within Middle Eastern / UAE business or institutional settings.
• Demonstrated ability to track action items and independently drive leadership-driven administrative and operational workflows to completion.
• Fluency in English and Mandarin (preferred).

Compensation

$90,000 - $130,000/year + discretionary performance bonus + benefits

The posted salary range represents the company’s good faith estimate of the base compensation for this position upon hire. The actual base compensation offered may vary within this range depending on individual qualifications, including but not limited to relevant skills, experience, education, certifications, and specific business needs. In addition to base salary, total compensation includes an annual discretionary performance bonus and comprehensive benefits.

Benefits Include

• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision benefits
• Bonus
• 401K Plan
• Generous paid time off, sick leave and holidays
• Paid Parental Leave
• Employee Assistance Program
• Life insurance and disability

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses and identifying potential inconsistencies or verification signals in application materials based on available information. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.