Mohammad Shehzad Arbab joined Pakistan Administrative Service in 1981.  His strategic assignments in relation to the tribal area included his posting as Chief Executive,  FATA Development Authority and Additional Chief Secretary FATA. Before his posting as Chief Secretary, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2013, he served as Chief Secretary Azad Jammu and Kashmir. As Federal Secretary, he headed three Divisions. In 2018, he was appointed as Advisor to the Prime Minister on Establishment. The highlights of his career include the far-reaching Governance Reforms in Azad Kashmir and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and his contribution to the working of the Reforms Committee for mainstreaming tribal areas. As a member of the Reforms Committee, he authored the “FATA Reforms Committee Report, 2016”.