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 OwnPre-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 For15+ 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).