Director - Projects

The Director is a senior delivery authority for Fitted's commercial, workplace, and exhibition fit-out portfolio. This role exists to ensure that every project, whether a corporate HQ, institutional space, or large-scale exhibition environment, is won intelligently, delivered rigorously, and closed professionally. This is a hands-on leadership role for someone who understands how design ambition, commercial discipline, and construction reality intersect, and who can take full accountability from bid strategy through to handover and post-project review. The Director is responsible not only for execution, but for building a repeatable, high-performing delivery platform as Fitted scales.

The main responsibilities for this role include:

Portfolio & Delivery Leadership

• Manage the end-to-end delivery of Fitted projects, from pre-contract strategy to final handover and close-out
• Set and enforce delivery standards across design development, procurement, construction, commissioning, and handover
• Ensure projects are delivered to programme, budget, quality, and contractual obligations
• Act as the ultimate escalation point for delivery, commercial, and site issues

Pre-Contract & Bid Leadership

• Support delivery input into tenders, negotiated bids, and procurement
• Feed into bid strategies that balance:
• design ambition
• construction methodology
• risk allocation
• commercial competitiveness
• Review and validate:
• programmes
• cost plans
• assumptions
• exclusions
• Support right-to-win decisions with clear delivery and risk logic

Commercial & Contractual Control

• Maintain oversight of:
• project budgets
• cashflow
• procurement strategy
• 
  subcontractor performance
• Lead the management of:
• variations
• claims
• final accounts
• Ensure robust contract administration and dispute avoidance
• Protect Fitted's commercial position while maintaining trusted client relationships

Team & Capability Building

• Build, lead, and mentor Project Managers, Site Managers, and Delivery Teams
• Define clear roles, responsibilities, and performance expectations
• Create a delivery culture that values:
• accountability
• clarity
• decisiveness
• collaboration
• Recruit and structure teams as the business grows

Supply Chain & Partner Management

• Develop and maintain a high-performing subcontractor and supplier ecosystem
• Manage performance management of:
• fit-out contractors
• specialist trades
• consultants
• Ensure safety, quality, and programme discipline across the supply chain

Governance, Risk & Compliance

• Ensure full compliance with:
• UAE regulations
• Landlord / master developer requirements

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• HSE standards
• Oversee risk identification, mitigation, and reporting
• Lead audits, inspections, and statutory approvals
• Drive structured post-project reviews and lessons learned

Knowledge, Qualifications and Skills required

12+ years experience in project delivery within Design & build, Commercial fit-out and exhibition / experiential environments

• A Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Architecture, Construction Management, or equivalent with
• Proven leadership of complex, multi-disciplinary projects
• Demonstrated responsibility for:
• large budgets
• multiple concurrent projects
• high-profile clients
• Strong background in:
• construction methodology
• contract management
• procurement
• programme control
• Deep experience in the UAE / GCC market
• Fluent professional English (Arabic an advantage, not a requirement)
• Degree in Engineering, Architecture, Construction Management, or equivalent
• PMP / similar certification advantageous but not essential

Personal Attributes We Are Actively Looking for:

• Calm under pressure
• Commercially astute
• Decisive, not bureaucratic
• Respected by contractors and consultants
• Trusted by clients
• Builder's mindset, not just a manager's