Manager Operational Readiness📣 Job Ad

About Qiddiya and the Role

Qiddiya, a leading entertainment, sports, and cultural destination, is seeking a Manager - Operational Readiness to join its team in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This full-time position is central to ensuring the timely and efficient launch of assets by overseeing the integrated Operational Readiness (OR) schedule. The role serves as the single source of truth for the OR programme scheduling, providing critical early visibility of risks to readiness milestones.

Role Purpose and Scope

The Manager - Operational Readiness is responsible for developing, maintaining, and governing a comprehensive OR schedule. This involves aligning all OR activities, milestones, and dependencies with asset delivery timelines, trial operations, and opening dates. The scope covers various readiness workstreams, ensuring a coordinated approach to project completion and operational handover.

Key Responsibilities

• Build and maintain the integrated OR master schedule using Primavera P6, encompassing all readiness workstreams such as workforce mobilisation, training, systems readiness, SOPs, permits and licensing, FF&E/OS&E, trial operations, and handover.
• Align OR schedules with project delivery milestones, stage gates, and asset opening dates, maintaining interfaces with PMO and delivery partner schedules.
• Develop countdown plans and T-minus schedules for asset openings, including trial operations and soft opening phases.
• Track progress against baseline, identify slippage and critical path impacts, and escalate risks to readiness milestones with proposed recovery options.
• Produce scheduling reports, dashboards, and lookaheads utilizing Power BI and Excel for OR leadership and governance forums.
• Coordinate schedule inputs from functional leads and consolidate updates on an agreed cadence.
• Maintain schedule change control, baseline management, and documentation of assumptions and dependencies.
• Support workforce ramp-up planning by aligning recruitment, onboarding, and training timelines with operational need dates.

Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Project Management, Business Administration, or a related field.
• 5–8 years of dedicated scheduling and planning experience, ideally within operational readiness, giga-projects, entertainment/hospitality openings, or large-scale infrastructure.
• Demonstrated hands-on expertise with Primavera P6, including baseline and change control on complex programmes.
• Experience supporting asset openings, trial operations, or commissioning-to-operations transitions is strongly preferred.
• PMP, PMI-SP, or equivalent certification is considered an advantage.

Work Location and Type

This is a full-time position based in Riyadh, Riyadh Province, Saudi Arabia.

Application Information

Interested candidates who meet the outlined qualifications and experience are encouraged to apply for this role at Qiddiya.