The British Embassy Dubai has a vacancy for a Learning Designer, job grade Higher Executive Officer (HEO) on a fixed-term contract for two (2) years.   

The role is based within the Office of the British Embassy in Dubai, but has a global remit, working with stakeholders across the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) in service of 19,000+ staff across 270+ posts and 168 countries. 

The FCDO has set out a high ambition vision for establishing a new College as a world class institution for international relations, capability and professional development. This is a high-profile project which forms part of the FCDO 2030 agenda. We aim to situate the FCDO as the lead and main source of capability and expertise on development, diplomacy and international leadership for the UK government. Our current vision is to achieve an FCDO learning culture which equips all staff with the right capabilities and expertise in the right places to support FCDO 2030. 

We are currently on a journey to transition our existing Learning and Development (L&D) function into the College and are looking for an individual who can operate at the intersection of business partnering/consulting and instructional design. Joining an existing team of  learning and digital learning designers, you will – on a project basis – partner with organisational stakeholders to understand their challenges, define problems, and identify where learning interventions could be most effective. From there, you will design impactful, evidence-based learning solutions that span various modalities including digital, face-to-face and blended.

This is not a traditional ‘order-taker’ design role. We are looking to drive a change in how our stakeholders think about L&D. As such we are looking for someone with strong workplace L&D skills and experience who can act as a reliable learning advisor and at the same time design impactful learning solutions. You will bring strong consulting and business partnering skills and a design thinking mindset, being curious, analytical, and human-centred. You will also be expected to bring an AI-savvy approach, understanding how generative AI and related tools can be used responsibly and in partnership with your own expertise throughout the learning design and development process.  

The FCDO is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer. We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability. We do not discriminate on any basis, including categories protected by law. In keeping with the FCDO’s commitment to disability inclusion in the workplace, hiring managers must incorporate the principles set out in the FCDO Disability Confident scheme job applications in the CBS recruitment process.  Our CBS are recruited by Missions in-country in line with local employment laws.  

Duties and responsibilities:   

Stakeholder engagement and analysis  

• Partner with stakeholders to conduct early-stage consultation and analysis and uncover the real performance or capability needs behind initial requests; take the lead role in guiding them through this process.
• Combine information and formulate recommendations in reports and presentations for stakeholders to gain their agreement, support, and buy-in.

Learning design and development 

• Design engaging, multifaceted learning solutions (e-learning, face-to-face, blended, performance support job aids and so on) applying evidence-based learning models and frameworks to your designs. 
• Design and implement approaches to measuring impact and evaluating the effectiveness of interventions. 
• Collaborate closely with digital learning designers to create high-quality, user-centred digital assets. 
• Work with team members on both quality assurance and quality control of assets.  

Project leadership and management 

• Lead on small design and development projects using appropriate project management skills.   

Innovation and continuous improvement  

• Stay ahead of developments in the field of AI, learning science, and learning design and delivery, applying these to your work appropriately and responsibly.
• Show a strong commitment to your own growth and that of others by continuously developing your skills, staying up to date with the latest L&D research and practices and sharing this with others.  

The above list is not exhaustive, and the jobholder will be required to be flexible and take on other ad hoc tasks as required.  

Key behaviours required:  

• Communicating and Influencing: Communicate purpose and direction with clarity, integrity, and enthusiasm. Respect the needs, responses, and opinions of others. 
• Working Together: Form effective partnerships and relationships with people both internally and externally, from a range of diverse backgrounds, sharing information, resources, and support. 
• Making Effective Decisions: Use evidence and knowledge to support accurate, expert decisions and advice. Carefully consider alternative options, implications and risks of decisions. 
• Changing and Improving: Seek out opportunities to create effective change and suggest innovative ideas for improvement. Review ways of working, including seeking and providing feedback. 
• Managing a Quality Service: Deliver service objectives with professional excellence, expertise, and efficiency, taking account of diverse customer needs.  

• 5-7 years’ experience in a workplace in learning design and development role. 
• Professional qualification in L&D, such as CIPD, ATD or equivalent. 
• A proven track record in consulting/business partnering with clients; ability to ask the right questions, uncover real needs, and challenge assumptions.
• Ability to design learning programmes and offers across multiple formats; ability to apply evidence-based learning design principles, frameworks and approaches to your designs, drawing on insights from learning science; ability to evaluate impact.
• Basic digital learning design skills – use of e-learning authoring tools and multimedia with the ability to collaborate effectively with specialists. 
• An understanding of how AI is reshaping L&D and the ability to apply AI tools effectively and ethically. 
• Excellent English language ability, communication, stakeholder engagement and influencing skills.
• Ability to lead projects and apply project management skills: create a schedule, liaise with stakeholders, anticipate, flag and manage risks. 
• Demonstrates a proactive, self-starting approach to work; able to take ownership of tasks, work independently without close supervision, and drive progress with minimal direction.