Director, EU Affairs

Department: Advocacy 

Team: GSMA Europe 

Location: Brussels  

Position type: Permanent 

About the Team 

GSMA Europe represents the interest of mobile network operators in Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). GSMA Europe team, primarily based in Brussels, focuses on the promotion and execution of the GSMA’s global programmes and advocacy initiatives at the regional level, as well as managing and delivering regional priorities defined by its members through GSMA governance bodies. 

What the hiring manager says 

The ongoing legislative cycle in the EU is expected to deliver major change in the digital services sphere.  As Public Policy Director, you will develop and deliver an advocacy agenda that is related to forward-looking digital policy issues. The role offers an exciting opportunity to lead the policy debate, work together with mobile operator experts and represent the mobile industry to governments and regulators at a crucial time.  

Elsa Sependa – Head of Public Policy, Europe 

About the Role 

The role will contribute to GSMA Europe’s efforts to advance the mobile industry’s collective public policy interests at the EU and national level. You will be responsible for establishing the regulatory positions of the industry on digital services matters, as well as developing and executing an engagement strategy. 

Key roles and responsibilities include to: 

• Work with GSMA members to understand their perspectives, assist in the development of clear policy priorities, and manage GSMA’s Digital Economy expert group 

• Collaborate effectively across the GSMA. This includes working closely with other advocacy teams and technology experts to align and incorporate their messaging. 

• Develop policy positions and draft responses to regulatory authorities' consultations and proposals  

• Provide systematic monitoring, analysis and dissemination of political intelligence to inform GSMA's policy and advocacy work 

• Develop and ensure the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of an outreach strategy  

• Build and maintain relationships with stakeholders at governments, regulators and other third parties to advance GSMA positions 

• Represent the GSMA at internal and external meetings and events  

• Organise small-scale events, supporting both our advocacy work and our efforts to position the GSMA as a thought leader and constructive contributor to the policy debate 

• Assess opportunities for partnering with other organisations on a common platform 

About You 

The candidate will demonstrate: 

• Extensive knowledge of digital economy issues, with a particular focus on privacy, data access, artificial intelligence, digital regulation, online harms and cybersecurity 

• Solid understanding of EU players and processes  

• Proven ability to negotiate and reach consensus on policy positions  

• Experience in building and maintaining relationships with key stakeholders to gather intelligence of policy directions and to leverage their influence in the policy making process 

• Fluent and compelling written and oral communications skills in English 

• Experience working in a complex and challenging environment with multiple stakeholders 

• Cultural awareness and a desire to work with teams around the world 

• Ability to work in a small team and to show the necessary flexibility to ensure the collective job gets done 

Contract type

Worker type

What We Offer

Working at the GSMA offers you unparalleled access to the mobile industry. We offer a chance to truly shape the direction of mobile, whatever your role. By joining the GSMA, you will be exposed to a fast-paced rapidly evolving environment, working on global solutions, genuinely fascinating and industry-changing projects and a stimulating and dynamic environment designed to enable you to flourish.

In addition to architect-designed offices and competitive compensation, our benefits include fantastic learning & development opportunities, generous holiday allowances, four additional days off for professional development and many others.

To learn more about the GSMA, visit our career site, our LinkedIn page and our Twitter page.

Being You at the GSMA

We care deeply about diversity, equity and inclusivity and aspire to be the best at it. Your well-being and work/life balance is important, so flexi-time and remote working is available to all staff. We're keen to ensure everyone is equal, represented and connected so we particularly encourage applications from all demographics. The sucess of the GSMA year on year will continue to be contributed by people from all walks of life.

GSMA Values

Our values not only drive our culture – they shape how we work and interact inside and outside our global organisation.

Passionately driven

We approach everything we do with unparalleled capability, tenacity and commitment, knowing that the challenging scale, pace and complexity of our work is what leads to its world-changing impact.

Insightful leaders

We continually develop and engage our expertise, insight and creativity so that we’re always ready to respond to the changing landscape with authority, agility and nuance.

Stronger together

We lean on each other so the industry can lean on us, embracing our diversity by actively seeking out perspectives and skill sets beyond our own, fuelling each other’s successes and constantly asking how we can help.

Underpinning our values is our collective mindset to show up purposefully as good human beings every day, in every situation. When we’re at our best – we are collaborative, considerate and compassionate to others, and we create a safe space for one another to thrive, assuming positive intent in our colleagues. And if we aren’t at our best and the pressure is on – we feel free to be ourselves but still remain curious, lean into the tough stuff and we are always respectful to others and accountable for the part we play.