Senior Manager Operational Readiness DA

About the Role

Qiddiya is seeking a Senior Manager, Operational Readiness DA, to provide strategic leadership for operational readiness across major assets and programs. This full-time position is based in Riyadh, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and focuses on ensuring an integrated and controlled transition from project delivery into safe, compliant, and sustainable operations. The role involves setting readiness direction, governing assurance and activation decisions, and aligning senior stakeholders on priorities, risks, and outcomes.

Key Responsibilities

• Define operational readiness strategy, governance, standards, assurance methodology, and activation decision gates for assigned portfolios.
• Lead integrated readiness planning across people, process, technology, facilities, safety, security, commercial, regulatory, and service workstreams.
• Provide senior oversight of readiness milestones, interdependencies, risks, issues, decisions, and evidence-based completion status.
• Ensure operational requirements are embedded across design, procurement, commissioning, handover, mobilization, and opening plans.
• Chair senior readiness reviews and direct recovery plans for critical gaps that may affect safety, compliance, customer experience, or activation dates.
• Oversee operating model, workforce, training, SOP, OS&E, technology, facilities, and service mobilization readiness.
• Provide governance for permits, licenses, and regulatory interfaces, ensuring accountable teams maintain clear ownership and timely delivery.
• Advise executive leadership on readiness status, activation options, residual risks, and required decisions.
• Lead assurance reviews, inspections, rehearsals, and operational trials, and recommend readiness to proceed through key stage gates.
• Oversee consultants, contractors, and operators supporting readiness, ensuring clear scope, quality, schedule, and accountability.
• Build team capability through direction, coaching, performance management, and consistent quality standards.
• Champion continuous improvement, lessons learned, and standardization across the operational readiness function.

Qualifications and Experience

• A Bachelor's degree in business administration, engineering, operations management, project management, or a related discipline is required. A Master's degree is preferred.
• Candidates should have 7+ years of relevant experience in operational readiness, mobilization, project delivery, or asset activation for major or complex programs.
• Professional certifications such as PMP, PRINCE2, facilities management, operational readiness, HSE, risk, or program management are preferred.

Work Environment

This role operates within a dynamic environment focused on the strategic leadership of operational readiness for major assets and programs at Qiddiya. The position requires collaboration with various stakeholders and oversight of complex transitions from project to operational phases.