Public Affairs Manager - EU and Italy

Job Description

Booking.com, the world’s leading accommodation website, is looking for an EU Public Affairs Manager - to be based in Brussels - to help drive its global Public Affairs function.

You will have a key role in shaping, managing and implementing our public policy strategy in Brussels and Italy. You will be representing the interests of Booking.com before European policy makers and other relevant policy and regulatory stakeholders in the EU environment, and help us analyse complex legal, regulatory and policy developments in the EU landscape.

The Manager Public Affairs EU will report into the Head of Public Affairs EMEA. You will also work closely with the rest of the Public Affairs team located at our global headquarters in Amsterdam and at strategic hubs around the world, as well as with other departments within the company, local offices, and external partners such as consultancies and trade associations.

This is a great opportunity for someone wanting to make a real impact as part of a small, global team.

B.Responsible - the successful candidate will:

• Help shape, manage and execute a public policy strategy to support business priorities and Booking.com’s corporate profile in the EU landscape (specifically within Brussels and Italy)
• Represent the company’s interests in Brussels and Italy engaging with relevant political and regulatory audiences
• Ensure continuous monitoring and evaluation of relevant discussions, regulatory decisions and stakeholder activity on key public affairs / reputational issues
• Draft position papers, consultation responses, presentations and briefings for internal and external meetings, and organize campaigns and events to advance those messages
• Proactively coordinate and communicate internally to align messaging and provide colleagues with a thorough understanding of EU developments
• Help facilitate high-level meetings with key stakeholders to promote and advocate the company’s public policy priorities
• Coordinate with external consultants and closely align with relevant trade associations
• Travel to and from Amsterdam, Italy and Brussels for business trips

B.Skilled - the ideal candidate will have/be:

• Master’s degree in policy, European Studies, international affairs, or other relevant field
• A proven track record of at least 5+ years of relevant EU experience, ideally in one of the European institutions in combination with inhouse or consultancy experience in the area of EU Public Affairs
• Deep understanding of policy and legal challenges facing the technology industry (digital single market, platform economy)
• Excellent oral communications skills and ability to distil complex information into clear messages that will resonate with political and regulatory audiences, as well as into simple updates for the business teams
• High quality written skills and practical experience in drafting materials for use by regulators, senior executives or politicians
• Experience developing creative and effective Public Affairs campaigns that underpin the company’s business objectives
• Outstanding organisational abilities, in particular, the capacity to manage multiple work streams at one time and the proactivity to drive work programmes forward and co-ordinate the involvement of all relevant stakeholders
• Experience working in fast-paced, multicultural environments
• Experience with managing sensitive reputational issues and/or crises
• Ability to engage directly with policy makers and to act as a spokesperson for the business
• A self-starter that is also an excellent team player with strong influencing skills and ability to inspire confidence, as well as the ability to establish and maintain effective relationships at all levels
• A high level of integrity with ability to develop both internal and external credibility; hands-on, results-focused and impactful
• Fluency in English and Italian are must-haves