Executive Director

The Screen Directors Guild of Ireland is the representative body for directors working in film and TV in Ireland. We are a dynamic and agile organisation, respected across the industry for leadership in bettering directors rights.

SDGI has secured significant gains for directors in recent years. The priority now is to consolidate, defend, and expand those gains within a fast changing global production environment shaped by streaming, artificial intelligence, and evolving copyright and contractual norms.

The Screen Directors Guild of Ireland, SDGI, is seeking an Executive Director and Chief Negotiator to lead the next phase of rights protection and rights expansion for film and television directors working in Ireland.

The successful candidate will serve as SDGI’s chief negotiator, leading complex collective bargaining, enforcing and extending directors’ contractual and statutory rights, and representing the Guild in high level negotiations with producers, broadcasters, global streaming platforms, and government.

Working in close partnership with the Chair and Board, the Executive Director will operate with a high degree of autonomy and authority. This role requires strategic judgement, political acuity, and exceptional negotiation expertise, applied in the direct service of SDGI’s membership.

Applicants should be able to demonstrate most of the following:

• At least five to seven years of senior leadership experience in government affairs, law, labour relations, or cultural policy
• Proven responsibility as lead or chief negotiator of senior lobbyist
• Demonstrable outcomes achieved through negotiation, for example improved pay

• Strong working knowledge of law, copyright or adjacent intellectual property rights frameworks
• Confidence in interpreting and applying legislation and regulatory structures in practical negotiating contexts
• Confidence working directly with legal counsel and handling complex contractual language

• Experience lobbying government, regulators, or public bodies at senior level
• Ability to operate credibly with ministers, civil servants, multinational companies, and industry leaders
• Track record of building strategic alliances while maintaining clear negotiating positions

• Senior leadership experience in a union, representative body, public agency, NGO, or policy driven organisation
• Ability to work effectively with a board, manage governance obligations, and lead a small professional team
• Strong judgement, discretion, and resilience under pressure

• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills
• Ability to represent an organisation publicly, including with media and at international forums
• Capacity to explain complex rights and policy issues clearly to members and stakeholders

• Respect and passion for the screen, cultural, or creative industries
• Legal qualification or postgraduate study in law, public policy, or industrial relations
• Experience negotiating with multinational or transnational organisations

Applicants should be prepared to discuss specific negotiations they have personally led, and the outcomes achieved.

SDGI recognises that senior negotiators and policy leaders often value flexibility, autonomy, and clarity of mandate as highly as remuneration. For that reason, the structure of this role is intentionally flexible and can be shaped to suit the right candidate.

• A leadership role with purpose at the centre of Ireland’s film and TV community
• The chance to work with extraordinary creative minds and make a direct impact on their professional lives
• Flexible hybrid working, with an office in the heart of Dublin and an expectation of in person presence one day per week
• A competitive salary of €65,000 pro rata, negotiable, with pension provision
• A three year fixed term contract, renewable by agreement with the Board
• International reach and influence, representing Ireland’s directors abroad

• Part time by design: Offered on a three day per week basis as a senior, focused position
• Working pattern by agreement: Days and hours can be aligned to negotiation cycles, international engagement, or existing professional commitments
• Hybrid and remote working: Significant remote working is supported. International and non Dublin based candidates are encouraged to apply
• Remuneration and structure open to discussion: Salary, pension, and contractual structure may be discussed with exceptional candidates, including alternative engagement models where appropriate

This role will appeal to an experienced negotiator or leader seeking a senior, high impact position with genuine authority, flexibility, and the opportunity to deliver lasting sectoral change.

• Equal opportunities: SDGI is an equal opportunities employer. They strongly encourage applicants from all backgrounds to apply.
• International applicants: They welcome international candidates and may provide visa sponsorship where legally permissible.

Deadline: Applications close on Tuesday, 17 March 2026 at 5pm

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