Program Director / General Manager (Education & Consultation Platform)

About the Organisation

Our client is an independent, African-led education and consultation platform focused on helping individuals better understand the market, opportunities, processes and risks associated with building careers and businesses in the UAE and wider Gulf.

The platform offers practical education through academies, courses, workshops and mentoring, covering areas such as entrepreneurship, sales, finance, investing, technology, e-commerce, digital marketing and freelancing.

The organisation is now looking for an entrepreneurial and hands-on Program Director / General Manager to take ownership of the overall programme, member experience and programme operations.

Reports to: Founder

Role Overview

The Program Director will be responsible for the quality, performance and direction of the membership and academy programme.

The role will oversee curriculum development, programme scheduling, trainer and mentor management, member engagement, programme performance and operational delivery. The successful candidate will also work closely with the Founder to identify opportunities to improve, expand and scale the platform.

This is a hands-on leadership role requiring strong programme management, people leadership, commercial awareness and operational discipline.

Key Responsibilities

Programme & Curriculum

• Own the overall quality and direction of the academy and membership programme.
• Develop and continuously improve training curricula across all academies.
• Decide on relevant classes, workshops and mentoring sessions based on member needs and market demand.
• Prepare and manage the monthly training calendar.
• Review lesson plans and training materials to ensure quality and relevance.
• Monitor attendance, feedback and learning outcomes.

Trainer & Mentor Management

• Recruit, interview and approve trainers and mentors.
• Coordinate the Academy Lead Trainers.
• Establish clear standards for trainer quality and delivery.
• Monitor trainer performance and member feedback.
• Address performance or reliability issues and replace trainers where required.
• Build and maintain a strong network of industry experts and mentors.

Member Experience

• Monitor member engagement, attendance and satisfaction.
• Identify opportunities to improve the member journey and increase programme participation.
• Analyse feedback and implement improvements.
• Ensure members consistently receive valuable and relevant training and mentorship.

Programme Operations

• Ensure the smooth delivery of all classes, workshops and mentoring sessions.
• Coordinate trainers, mentors and internal teams against the programme calendar.
• Establish efficient processes and SOPs for programme delivery.
• Work with the Content/LMS Coordinator to ensure classes, recordings and materials are published on time.
• Resolve operational issues quickly and effectively.

Growth & Commercial Development

• Identify new programme and academy opportunities.
• Analyse member needs and market trends to develop relevant offerings.
• Support initiatives that improve membership acquisition, engagement and retention.
• Identify potential partnerships with industry experts, businesses and other organisations.
• Monitor the commercial performance of programmes and provide recommendations for growth.

Leadership & Reporting

• Lead and coordinate the programme team and Academy Lead Trainers.
• Establish clear KPIs and performance expectations.
• Prepare regular reports for the Founder covering programme performance, member engagement and key challenges.
• Translate the Founder's vision into structured and executable programmes.
• Take ownership of problems and develop practical solutions.

Ideal Candidate

We are looking for someone who is more than a programme administrator, someone who can take ownership of a growing education platform and build the people, processes and systems required to scale it.

The ideal candidate will have:

• 8 to 12+ years of relevant experience, ideally within education, training, academies, membership platforms, professional development or consulting.
• Experience managing training programmes, academies or learning platforms.
• Strong experience managing trainers, mentors, instructors or subject matter experts.
• Experience developing curricula, programmes and training calendars.
• Strong people-management and leadership capabilities.
• Excellent organisational and operational skills.
• Commercial awareness with an understanding of growth, engagement and retention.
• Strong reporting, analytical and problem-solving abilities.
• Experience working directly with founders or senior leadership.
• A highly hands-on, entrepreneurial and solutions-oriented approach.