Sr. Director, Marketing Services, KSA, Bahrain & Oman

About the Role
This position is part of the company's rapidly growing marketing services business, which is an integral component of the company’s strategic growth priority to deliver value-added services through client engagements. We are seeking a seasoned leader to oversee the growth of Marketing Services across KSA, Bahrain, and Oman. The selected candidate will be responsible for translating the CEMEA Marketing Services strategy into a sub-regional plan, establishing senior client relationships, and collaborating with country business development teams to acquire new clients and deepen existing partnerships with financial institutions, merchants, and fintechs. This role will require strong collaboration with the company's Consulting & Analytics (VCA), Products, Sales, and Finance to execute marketing strategies, brand advisory, research and insights, cardholder lifecycle marketing, and comprehensive marketing execution.

The ideal candidate will possess a balanced blend of leadership capabilities, commercial discipline, and extensive marketing expertise. They will set clear priorities for the KBO Marketing Services business, lead a high-performing client-facing team, and manage relationships in a fast-paced environment characterized by direct and matrixed reporting structures. A consultative approach, combined with strong analytical skills and digital marketing technology capabilities, is essential for this position. The individual will be responsible for the KBO Marketing Services pipeline, P&L, annual plan, and will develop scalable capabilities that assist clients in strengthening their brands, acquiring and engaging consumers, and advancing their omnichannel marketing maturity.

This role will report to both the VP, Marketing Services, CEMEA and the Head of Marketing, GCC.

Essential Functions

• Own and operate the KBO Marketing Services pipeline, P&L, and financials to achieve short-, medium-, and long-term objectives.
• Develop senior relationships with clients in financial institutions, merchants, and fintechs; deeply understand their business objectives and marketing imperatives.
• Create and commercialize marketing advisory and services that align client needs with the company's brand positioning, sponsorship assets, data insights, and execution capabilities.
• Collaborate with the company's Consulting & Analytics (VCA), Products, Sales, Finance, and KBO country leadership to provide a unified 'One Company' approach for client engagements.
• Build, lead, and continuously develop a high-performing client-facing Marketing Services team across KSA, Bahrain, and Oman.
• Manage the annual planning cycle through a strategic, bottom-up approach to ensure pipeline governance, resource prioritization, delivery oversight, and financial accountability.
• Enhance capabilities in advisory, digital, martech, and measurement; ensure client satisfaction and maintain transparent executive-level communication on performance, risks, and progress.
• Oversee policy and process governance along with quality assurance and delivery excellence in collaboration with supporting business functions such as Compliance, Sourcing, and Controllership.

This position requires at least 3 days in the office, with specific expectations to be confirmed by your Hiring Manager.

Qualifications
What you will need:

• Minimum 15 years of work experience with a Bachelor’s Degree or at least 12 years of experience with an Advanced degree (e.g., Masters/MBA/JD/MD).
• Proven track record of building and developing diverse, top-performing, and highly engaged teams.
• Independent, self-starter capable of driving complex strategies across large teams.
• Strong experience in building relationships and collaborating across countries and various business units to execute strategies and develop new business opportunities.
• Excellent influencing skills spanning a matrix environment.
• Ability to manage complex projects and processes with multiple stakeholders at different levels.
• Proficient in identifying issues, analyzing data, synthesizing findings, and making strategic recommendations.
• Strong executive presence with the capability to communicate effectively with senior executives, complemented by excellent presentation skills and strong written abilities.
• Proven ability to foster a goal-oriented culture that pushes team achievement to higher standards.
• Decision-making aligned with the company's vision and acting as a representative of the brand to both internal and external stakeholders.
• Required client marketing, consulting, sales, or other client-facing experience.
• Capability to quickly grasp market/client strategies and utilize insights to identify growth opportunities through joint marketing programs.
• Preferred experience in pitching and advising clients on data-driven marketing strategies, with insight into market or region dynamics.
• Strong analytical and critical thinking skills; adept at translating data and insights into effective marketing strategies.
• Familiarity with the payments marketing landscape and a working understanding of payment product economics is preferred.
• Comfortable operating in areas not fully defined, actively seeking new ideas and capabilities, and developing scalable solutions.
• Strong financial acumen with the ability to collaborate with all finance divisions.