Director - Operations (Housing Solutions)

We are looking for a Director – Operations to lead the incubation, launch, and scaling of our new workforce housing, co-living, and student housing business. This is a rare opportunity to build an operating business from the ground up — owning everything from pre-mobilisation and design integration through to go-live and stabilisation.

As the business's single point of accountability, you will integrate development and design teams, the appointed operator, Group Legal, Group IT, and external partners into one coordinated programme — shaping the operating model, technology infrastructure, and commercial strategy that will define this business for years to come.

What You'll Own

• Pre-Opening Leadership & Business Incubation – Lead the end-to-end Go-Live Operational Roadmap, from regulatory alignment and operating model design through to team build-out and executive reporting.
• Development, Design & Construction Coordination – Act as the operational counterpart to the development team, embedding operability into design, MEP, and construction decisions.
• Operating Model, SOPs & Service Standards – Author the full SOP architecture, resident lifecycle procedures, and KPI/SLA frameworks, and stand up the Human Empowerment Programme.
• Leasing Partnerships & Commercial Performance (B2B & B2C) – Structure corporate block leasing and B2C bed-leasing models, manage the operator partnership, and drive revenue growth.
• Technology & Property Management Infrastructure – Lead selection and rollout of the full PMS, CRM, booking engine, and resident app ecosystem.
• Legal, Compliance & Risk Coordination – Ensure full regulatory compliance (Ejari, visa, fire safety, RERA, DLD, data protection) and manage government relationships.
• Strategy & Future Growth – Develop the long-term strategic plan and codify the playbook for scaling into future assets.

What We're Looking For

• 15+ years of progressive operations experience in workforce co-living, staff accommodation, purpose-built student accommodation, serviced residential, or hospitality-led residential platforms, including 5+ years at Director level with full P&L accountability.
• Proven pre-opening/incubation track record — having mobilised at least one large-scale residential or co-living asset from construction handover to operational stabilisation.
• Direct experience structuring both B2B corporate block leasing and B2C bed-leasing models.
• Experience appointing and managing third-party managed housing operators, including commercial/SLA negotiations.
• Hands-on experience implementing full property management technology stacks (PMS, CRM, booking engine, bed allocation software).
• Strong knowledge of the Dubai regulatory environment (Ejari, visa/labour accommodation standards, fire safety, RERA, DLD, data protection).
• UAE/GCC market experience essential; exposure to multi-entity real estate platforms spanning development, asset management, and operations is a strong plus.
• Entrepreneurial builder mindset, sharp commercial acumen, high technology fluency, and exceptional stakeholder management skills (Chairman-level credibility required).