Senior Director Project Controls📣 Job Ad

About Qiddiya and the Role

Qiddiya Investment Company is dedicated to revolutionizing the entertainment and leisure industry in Saudi Arabia. We are seeking a Senior Director - Project Controls to join our team in Riyadh. This full-time role is pivotal in establishing and leading a high-performing, standardized integrated Project Controls function within Qiddiya’s Transport Business Unit, encompassing Cost Planning and Reporting, Programme (Schedule) Management, and Document Control.

Role Purpose and Impact

Reporting to the Executive Director, Development Management Office, the Senior Director will be instrumental in bringing rigor, consistency, and confidence to how cost, schedule, and reporting are managed across all transport projects. This position involves overseeing and enhancing the project controls framework for critical transportation infrastructure projects within the Qiddiya destination. Your leadership will ensure the efficient handling of multiple projects essential for developing a seamless experience across our entertainment platform.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the establishment of an integrated Project Controls Framework governing cost planning, schedule management, change control, and reporting across all projects.
• Create detailed cost planning standards and templates, defining inputs, assumptions, and review checkpoints to drive consistency across project cost plans.
• Oversee the preparation, validation, and ongoing maintenance of project budgets, ensuring traceability between approved budgets, cost plans, and funding sources.
• Collaborate with the Central Development Unit and Finance to embed the budget approval process, track funding allocations, and provide transparent reporting of financial performance.
• Ensure all projects maintain accurate and logically structured programmes, validated through formal schedule assurance reviews.
• Manage scheduling, budgeting, cost control, and risk management activities to ensure timely and cost-effective project execution.
• Work collaboratively with project managers, engineers, and stakeholders to define project baselines and establish governance structures.
• Provide expert analysis and insight into project performance, preparing detailed reporting for senior management and stakeholders.
• Provide senior management with clear, reliable, and data-driven insights through regular dashboards and performance reviews.
• Embed project control staff within project teams to ensure accurate data capture, timely reporting, and partnership with project delivery.
• Ensure document control processes maintain version integrity, traceability, and audit readiness.
• Continuously review and improve project controls processes in line with industry advancements and organizational objectives.
• Maintain a strong focus on compliance, safety, and quality assurance throughout project lifecycles.

Strategic Objectives and Collaboration

• Develop and implement a consistent, robust cost planning framework across all projects, replacing ad hoc practices with clear methodologies, templates, and governance requirements.
• Work closely with the Central Development Unit to define and embed a transparent budget approval and funding process, ensuring all projects have approved budgets aligned with corporate systems.
• Strengthen programme management discipline by introducing logical, evidence-based schedule validation across all projects, ensuring realistic and defensible baselines, float, dependencies, and critical paths.
• Embed cost, schedule, risk, and change management integration within project reporting, ensuring one version of truth and a common control baseline.
• Partner closely with the Transport Business Unit Governance team to align processes, approvals, and reporting with organizational standards and external assurance requirements.
• Work seamlessly with the Senior Directors of Procurement, Commercial and Finance, Risk and Compliance & Reporting, and maintain strong interfaces with the Central Delivery Unit (CDU) and Strategic Delivery Unit (SDU) to ensure alignment and transparency across the delivery program.

Qualifications and Experience

• A minimum of 10 years of experience in project controls, with a significant portion in a leadership capacity.
• Proven ability to establish and lead integrated project controls functions within complex organizations.
• Demonstrated expertise in cost planning, schedule management, change control, and reporting.
• Experience in developing and implementing robust frameworks, methodologies, and governance for project controls.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to provide data-driven insights and recommendations.

Leadership and Team Development

The Senior Director will be responsible for recruiting, developing, and empowering a capable project controls team covering cost, programme, and document control disciplines. This includes fostering a culture of accuracy, responsiveness, and continuous improvement within the team, while also building capability within the planning team to challenge delivery timelines and assess delay impacts objectively.