Senior Manager - Projects

Role Overview

Senior Manager - Projects at Al Ghurair, responsible for end-to-end planning, execution and governance of the Foods delivery portfolio across multiple delivery streams and stakeholder groups.

Company Overview

Al Ghurair Foods is a strategic business within Al Ghurair Investment Group with growth priorities for 2028 and beyond to be a Foods value chain player with leadership in grains, and a Top Ten Foods CPG player. The role supports this growth through steady, well-governed IT projects and enhancements that keep operations, systems and reporting running reliably across the Foods business.

Role Purpose

This senior-management delivery role converts business requirements and COE-approved solutions into well-governed delivery that lands on time, within budget and to expected quality. The incumbent leads a cross-functional delivery squad without positional authority, delivering two distinct streams: structured roll-out projects with defined phases and cutovers, and high-volume flows of small change requests, optimisations, enhancements and Business-As-Usual items.

Key Responsibilities

Planning & Governance

• Lead end-to-end project management including scope definition, resource planning, budgeting and risk mitigation.
• Develop and implement project governance frameworks, KPIs and performance dashboards.
• Establish project tracking metrics and executive reporting.
• Own project chartering, planning, budgeting, resourcing, risk and issue management.
• Maintain compliance with local authorities such as DEWA, RSB, Trakhees and DP World, ensuring timely submissions and approvals.

Delivery Management

• Deliver projects on time, within budget and to scope across the Foods delivery portfolio: multi-entity Microsoft Dynamics 365 roll-outs, Advanced Warehouse Management deployments, BI, reporting, analytics and automation initiatives.
• Manage the continuous stream of small change requests, optimisations, enhancements and Business-As-Usual items that keep the estate current.
• Triage, size, prioritise and release small change requests in short cycles without destabilising the core platform or starving the project stream of capacity.
• Ensure both delivery streams are predictable and audit ready.
• Lead through clarity of plan, credibility of judgement and disciplined governance.

Stakeholder & Vendor Management

• Lead a cross-functional delivery squad drawn from functional and technical consultants, BI and data engineers, COE specialists, business super-users and vendor resources across their own reporting lines on a matrix basis.
• Partner with negotiated and transparent capacity commitments with line managers who own those people.
• Drive stakeholder engagement at senior levels across departments including Finance, Legal and Operations.
• Direct and supervise cross-functional project teams, external consultants and contractors to ensure cohesive execution.
• Oversee vendor performance, contractual risk mitigation and vendor performance KPIs.
• Work closely with IT Centres of Excellence, vendors and business stakeholders across Foods.

Operational Excellence

• Approve procurement strategies, evaluate vendor contracts and oversee negotiations in alignment with legal and financial standards.
• Champion the development of Standard Operating Procedures, continuous improvement initiatives and team capacity building.
• Oversee documentation systems, quality assurance and knowledge management for all technical and commercial deliverables.
• Monitor team performance reviews and compliance with milestones.
• Direct supervision of Project Managers and Coordinators, with indirect influence over cross-functional teams.

Qualifications & Experience

• Minimum 8-10 years of experience in project management, including 3-5 years in a leadership role delivering complex infrastructure or industrial projects.
• Minimum Bachelor's Degree in Engineering (Civil/Mechanical/Chemical) or Project/Construction Management.
• Master's Degree or PMP/Prince2 certification preferred.
• Demonstrated success in managing large-scale capital projects, infrastructure development or manufacturing/industrial upgrades.
• Experience working with government agencies, regulatory authorities and international consultants is highly desirable.

Skills & Competencies

• Expertise in project lifecycle management (initiation to closure), including scope, cost, quality and schedule control.
• Working knowledge of food manufacturing and distribution operations: poultry, starch and value-added processing, warehousing, dispatch and transport.
• Hands-on fluency in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations and Advanced Warehouse Management capability.
• Proficiency in the Microsoft data and automation stack including Power BI, Power Platform and Azure data services.
• Proficient in project management tools and platforms such as Microsoft Project, Primavera and Oracle ERP.
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams without positional authority through credibility and transparent communication.