Executive Director - Design Management

About the Role

Aldar is seeking an Executive Director – Design Management to lead and govern the Design Management function across three product verticals: Upper & Luxury Residential; Commercial, Retail & Hospitality; and National Housing, Education & Civic. You will own the translation of commercial development briefs into high-quality, market-differentiated design outcomes, balancing design ambition with commercial and programme constraints, and build a world-class in-house design management capability serving D-Sell, D-Hold and Government clients.

Key Responsibilities

Design Leadership & Strategy

- Establish the design vision, standards and governance frameworks across all three Design Management verticals and Aldar's full asset portfolio.

- Direct the design response to commercial briefs, ensuring proposals meet target customer, price point, unit mix, key features, timeline and budget requirements.

- Define design standards, material palettes and innovation opportunities for each product typology.

- Chair design quality reviews at every stage gate, with authority to approve or escalate to the GDS Committee.

Client & Stakeholder Engagement

- Act as the primary executive interface between GDS Design Management and the three client groups, maintaining strong relationships with CDOs and Development Management Directors.

- Present design recommendations and stage-gate outcomes to the GDS Committee, GCEO and BU CEO.

- Manage escalations where Design Management and Development Management cannot agree on brief alignment.

Design Consistency & Innovation

- Drive design consistency within each typology while fostering innovation with Design Innovation and Interior Design teams.

- Establish shared design knowledge frameworks and cross-vertical synergies.

- Oversee integration of AI-assisted design tools and modular design thinking across teams.

People & Capability

- Lead, develop and retain a high-performing multi-disciplinary design management team across all verticals.

- Define performance goals, succession plans and capability roadmaps aligned to GDS strategy.

- Identify capability gaps and drive attraction of top-tier design talent.

Required Qualifications and Experience

- Minimum 16 years' experience in architectural design management or urban development, including at least 6 years in a senior executive leadership role.

- Minimum 6 years managing large, multi-disciplinary design teams at senior manager level or above.

- Proven experience leading design across multiple asset classes (residential, commercial, hospitality, civic) in the GCC or comparable markets.

- Master's degree in architecture, Urban Design or a related discipline.

Preferred Qualifications

- Professional registration (RIBA, AIA or equivalent).

- LEED AP or equivalent sustainability credential.

Skills

- Design management across residential, commercial, hospitality and civic typologies.

- Ability to read and respond to commercial development briefs with financially grounded design proposals.

- Executive communication and presentation skills at C-suite and board level.

- Proficiency in BIM, design management platforms and AI-assisted design and review tools.

- Stakeholder management and conflict resolution across multiple client groups.