About the Role
We are seeking an experienced Director – Landscape & Parks to lead the strategic development, delivery, and management of landscape and parks assets for a major destination development in Saudi Arabia. This role involves overseeing the full asset lifecycle, from development planning, design assurance and delivery through commissioning, handover, operational readiness and long-term asset management. The Director will ensure that parks, green spaces, landscape infrastructure and associated public realm assets are fit for purpose, sustainable, accessible, maintainable and aligned with operational requirements, visitor experience and long-term asset performance.
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Key Responsibilities
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Landscape & Parks Asset Management
- Establish and implement the strategic framework for managing landscape, parks and public realm assets throughout their lifecycle.
- Oversee asset registers, condition assessments, asset performance monitoring and lifecycle management plans.
- Ensure assets meet operational, functional, safety, accessibility and sustainability requirements.
- Develop asset optimisation strategies to improve utilisation, performance, reliability and long-term value.
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Asset Acceptance & Handover Governance
- Establish asset acceptance criteria, technical standards and handover requirements for landscape and parks infrastructure.
- Review proposed asset transfers to ensure completeness of documentation, compliance, maintainability and operational readiness.
- Assess outstanding defects, maintenance liabilities, warranties, lifecycle costs and associated risks before asset acceptance.
- Coordinate with development, design, construction, commercial and operations teams to resolve asset-related issues before handover.
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Parks & Landscape Operations
- Oversee the operational management and maintenance of parks, gardens, green corridors, streetscapes, recreational spaces and public realm assets.
- Establish maintenance strategies, service standards, SLAs and operational KPIs.
- Monitor contractor performance, maintenance quality, asset condition and service delivery.
- Drive continuous improvement in operational efficiency, maintenance planning and asset reliability.
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Landscape Development & Technical Assurance
- Provide strategic oversight of landscape planning, design development and technical reviews to ensure alignment with long-term operational and maintenance requirements.
- Review landscape proposals, planting strategies, irrigation systems, hardscape, softscape and associated infrastructure.
- Ensure design solutions consider lifecycle costs, climate resilience, water efficiency, accessibility and maintainability.
- Provide recommendations on design optimisation, value engineering and asset suitability.
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Sustainability & Resource Optimisation
- Drive sustainable landscape and parks management, including water conservation, efficient irrigation, native planting and biodiversity enhancement.
- Establish strategies for reducing operational expenditure and optimising resource utilisation.
- Promote climate-resilient landscape solutions suitable for the Saudi Arabian environment.
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Financial & Commercial Management
- Oversee CAPEX and OPEX planning, asset lifecycle costs and maintenance budgets.
- Evaluate financial implications of asset acceptance, maintenance liabilities and long-term operational commitments.
- Establish cost-control mechanisms and performance reporting frameworks.
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Leadership & Stakeholder Management
- Lead multidisciplinary teams responsible for landscape asset management, parks operations and public realm performance.
- Establish governance frameworks and coordinate with development, engineering, construction, facilities management and other stakeholders.
- Oversee consultants, contractors and service providers, ensuring accountability and compliance with contractual obligations.
Candidate Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in Landscape Architecture, Horticulture, Agriculture, Urban Planning, Civil Engineering, Asset Management or a related discipline.
- 20+ years of relevant professional experience, including substantial senior leadership exposure.
- Demonstrated experience in landscape and parks asset management, public realm governance, municipal parks management or large-scale destination developments.
- Proven track record in asset lifecycle management, asset acceptance, handover governance and operational readiness.
- Strong understanding of landscape infrastructure, horticulture, irrigation systems, parks maintenance and public realm operations.
- Experience developing asset management strategies, condition assessments, maintenance frameworks, lifecycle plans and operational KPIs.
- Strong commercial and financial understanding, including CAPEX/OPEX management and lifecycle cost optimisation.
- Experience managing consultants, contractors, service providers and multidisciplinary stakeholders.
- Exposure to giga-projects, master-planned developments, urban developments or large-scale destination assets, preferably in Saudi Arabia or the GCC.
