Senior Project Planner

About the Company

Astek Middle East is part of Astek, a global engineering and technology consulting group founded in France in 1988 and now present on five continents. The Middle East entity delivers IT and technology services across Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Jordan, supporting clients in public and government, healthcare, transportation, banking, retail, airlines, and tourism. With 10,000 employees worldwide and revenue of €620 million in 2023, Astek focuses on digital transformation and complex systems engineering for international clients. The group promotes a strong culture of entrepreneurship, innovation, and continuous skills development. More information is available on the Astek Saudi Arabia and UAE country pages, and candidates can reach Astek Middle East at [email protected].

About the Role

We are seeking a Senior Project Planner to support the planning, scheduling, and progress monitoring of energy efficiency, sustainability, construction, and infrastructure projects across Saudi Arabia. The role will be responsible for developing and maintaining project schedules, tracking milestones, analyzing schedule performance, and providing planning insights to project management teams to support timely project delivery.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain detailed project schedules, including WBS, critical path, and resource-loaded plans.
• Monitor project progress against approved baseline schedules and identify delays and variances.
• Prepare weekly and monthly planning reports, S-curves, look-ahead schedules, and milestone tracking.
• Coordinate with project managers, engineers, contractors, and other stakeholders to collect and validate progress data.
• Conduct schedule analysis and identify potential bottlenecks and critical path impacts.
• Support schedule recovery planning and mitigation of project delays.
• Assist with time-impact analysis and extension-of-time claims when required.
• Participate in project meetings and provide planning and scheduling input.
• Maintain accurate project planning records and ensure schedule updates are completed on time.
• Support project teams with planning data, forecasts, and schedule-related analysis.
• Ensure planning activities follow established project management procedures and standards.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Construction Management, or a related field.

Required Skills

• Minimum 3 years of relevant experience in project planning and scheduling.
• Candidates with extensive experience, including 10+ years, are encouraged to apply.
• Proven experience in project planning, scheduling, and progress monitoring.
• Professional experience in Saudi Arabia or the GCC.
• Demonstrated experience working with project management teams and multiple stakeholders.
• Professional accreditation relevant to planning or project management.
• SCE registration if holding an engineering qualification, where applicable.
• Strong analytical, quantitative, and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent English communication skills, both written and spoken.

Preferred Skills

• Advanced proficiency in Primavera P6.
• Experience with project scheduling, resource loading, baseline management, and progress tracking.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Project.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills, including data analysis, pivot tables, and reporting.
• Knowledge of Earned Value Management (EVM).
• Experience with schedule delay analysis and Time-Impact Analysis (TIA) is an advantage.
• Knowledge of Power BI or similar reporting and dashboard tools is a plus.
• Strong understanding of WBS, critical path analysis, S-curves, and look-ahead schedules.
• AACE Planning & Scheduling Professional (PSP) certification.
• PMP certification.
• Primavera P6 certification.
• Experience in energy efficiency, construction, infrastructure, or sustainability projects.
• Experience with contract administration, claims, and extension-of-time processes.
• Previous project experience in Saudi Arabia.

What We're Looking For

We are looking for an experienced Project Planner who can take ownership of project schedules, identify schedule risks, provide accurate planning information, and work effectively with project teams and stakeholders. Candidates with 3+ years of relevant experience are encouraged to apply, including professionals with significantly more extensive experience. Interested candidates are encouraged to apply.