Programming & Placemaking Sr. Manager

About Riyadh Holding

Riyadh Holding Company is a prominent Saudi company with over four decades of experience in designing, developing, and operating integrated, sustainable urban ecosystems. The company delivers innovative real estate solutions for public-benefit projects across the Riyadh region, focusing on service-oriented developments, the activation of public spaces and parks, and the advancement of logistics and mobility solutions. These efforts contribute to sustainable urban growth and align with the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030, creating long-term value for communities and stakeholders.

Role Summary

Riyadh Holding is seeking a Programming & Placemaking Sr. Manager to join the team at King Abdullah Gardens in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This full-time role is accountable for destination planning and year-round programming, translating destination strategy, visitor needs, and assets into an integrated portfolio of experiences, programs, and activations. The Sr. Manager will lead annual and multi-year planning, programming prioritization, destination readiness, and performance planning. The role requires coordination with internal functions and delivery partners to ensure initiatives are commercially viable, operationally executable, and aligned with King Abdullah Gardens’ strategic objectives.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain the destination portfolio across products, experiences, programs, and activations.
• Assess initiatives based on visitor demand, strategic fit, readiness, commercial potential, operational feasibility, and expected impact.
• Support destination readiness planning and identify gaps affecting visitor experience and program delivery.
• Own the annual destination programming framework and calendar across the Gardens and destination assets.
• Develop a balanced mix of signature, seasonal, recurring, educational, and cultural programming aligned with target visitor segments.
• Identify programming opportunities that increase visitation, dwell time, repeat visitation, and destination value.
• Coordinate programming requirements with Events & Activation, Visitor Experience, Marketing, and commercial functions.
• Translate destination assets and botanical content into visitor-facing experiences and commercially viable concepts.
• Develop business cases, scopes, and briefs for priority destination initiatives where required.
• Develop scopes and briefs for delivery partners and coordinate implementation with operators.
• Assess partnership and private-sector participation opportunities supporting destination programming.
• Monitor delivery against approved plans, budgets, timelines, and strategic objectives.
• Establish KPIs for programming and destination initiatives.
• Track visitation, participation, dwell time, satisfaction, repeat visitation, and commercial performance.

Qualifications and Experience

• 5-10 years of relevant professional experience.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and manage destination portfolios and programming.
• Experience in coordinating with various internal and external stakeholders.
• Proven track record in assessing commercial viability and operational feasibility of initiatives.

Work Location

This full-time position is based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, specifically at King Abdullah Gardens.