About the Role
Noon Academy, a leading edtech platform in the Middle East, is seeking a Senior Project Manager - Facilities Expansions to join its team in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. With over 14 million students and teachers using the platform and having recently secured Series B funding, the company is focused on revolutionizing the physical classroom experience. This role is key to transforming schools across Saudi Arabia by accelerating growth, improving profitability, and creating effective learning environments. The Senior Project Manager will oversee the end-to-end execution of expansion and engineering projects, from initial assessment to final handover, ensuring projects meet defined scope, timeline, quality, and operational requirements.
This position involves managing the complete project lifecycle for campus expansions, refurbishments, and fit-out programs. The role requires close collaboration with academic leaders, operations teams, design specialists, external consultants, and contractors to deliver projects on time, within budget, and to high standards. Responsibilities include planning, procurement, construction, commissioning, and handover, with a focus on schedule adherence, cost control, risk management, and quality assurance in a fast-paced setting.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead the delivery of facilities expansion projects, including new builds, extensions, refurbishments, and specialist learning space fit-outs, from feasibility studies through to final handover.
- Develop and maintain integrated project plans, budgets, risk registers, and milestone tracking, ensuring robust reporting to senior stakeholders.
- Manage the procurement process and contract administration for consultants and contractors, ensuring adherence to procurement policies and best practices.
- Coordinate multidisciplinary teams, including architects, engineers, MEP specialists, AV/IT professionals, and specialist suppliers, to translate educational requirements into built outcomes.
- Drive site-based project management activities, encompassing program management, site supervision, quality control, health & safety compliance, and securing necessary statutory approvals.
- Implement effective quality assurance and commissioning processes to ensure completed works meet all functional, technical, and safety standards.
- Manage stakeholder engagement with school leaders, operations personnel, finance departments, and external authorities to align project delivery with operational needs and academic calendars.
- Provide mentorship and line management to project team members, contributing to the continuous improvement of project delivery frameworks and templates.
Qualifications and Requirements
- Proven track record of successfully delivering complex facilities projects, including new builds and refurbishments, with a value of £2 million+ or equivalent international projects.
- Possession of a chartered or professionally recognized qualification in construction, engineering, project management, or a related discipline (*, MRICS, CEng, PMP, CIOB).
- A minimum of 7+ years of relevant experience managing design and construction projects, with direct responsibility for budgets, programs, and procurement.
- Strong commercial acumen, including demonstrated experience in contract administration using frameworks such as NEC, JCT, FIDIC, or equivalent.
- Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills, with the ability to present effectively to senior leadership and external authorities.
- Demonstrable experience in site-based project management, including a thorough understanding of health & safety compliance and quality assurance processes.
- Ability to work full-time Sunday to Thursday (GMT +3) for coordination with regional teams and project sites, with potential flexibility for site visits outside these hours.
- Legal right to work in the relevant locations and the capacity to travel regularly to project sites, including potential regional travel.
Required Skills
- Project Management
- Facilities Management
- Construction
- Engineering
- Procurement
- Contract Administration
- Risk Management
- Quality Assurance
- Stakeholder Management
- Communication
- Health & Safety Compliance
- Site-based Project Management
- Sustainable Design Principles
- BREEAM
- LEED
Additional Information
This is a full-time role based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The role may require site-based work depending on project needs, with regular travel to project sites and potential overnight stays. Candidates should be available to commence employment at short notice. Experience delivering projects within the education sector or other client-facing environments where minimizing disruption to operations is critical is highly advantageous. Familiarity with sustainable design principles, BREEAM, LEED, or other environmental standards is beneficial. Experience working in the Middle East or with regional statutory authorities and local supply chains is a plus. Arabic language ability is advantageous. The ideal candidate will be a pragmatic, solutions-focused project leader who thrives in dynamic environments, balancing technical delivery with strong stakeholder relationships. This individual will confidently own projects end-to-end, make decisive trade-offs, maintain high standards of quality and safety, and act as a collaborative team player who can mentor others and help mature project delivery processes.
