Principal Design Manager

About the role

The Principal Design Manager will be accountable for leading the end‑to‑end design and delivery of complex, high‑rise, mixed‑use and luxury developments across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This senior position provides single‑point accountability for design excellence, integrating design management, technical assurance, innovation, compliance and stakeholder leadership throughout the project lifecycle.

Key responsibilities

• Lead and control the complete design process from requirements definition through delivery, including scope, basis of design, risk, quality assurance and statutory compliance.
• Act as Design Manager and/or Project Principal, applying Mott MacDonald management systems, QA/QC processes and governance requirements.
• Integrate and lead multi‑disciplinary design teams, ensuring robust coordination, independent checks and high‑quality technical outputs.
• Maintain ownership of design solutions, managing change control, authority approvals, reporting and escalation.
• Build and sustain trusted client and stakeholder relationships, serving as senior advisor on design‑related matters.
• Proactively manage technical, commercial, programme and reputational risk while identifying value‑enhancing opportunities.
• Champion innovation, digital enablement and sustainability, embedding future‑ready solutions and applying frameworks such as LEED and Estidama.
• Lead, mentor and develop teams, fostering a high‑performance, inclusive culture aligned with technical excellence.

Required profile

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or Architecture (Master’s degree advantageous).
• Chartered Engineer / Architect or equivalent professional registration preferred.
• Significant experience in design management within the built environment, including delivery of high‑rise and mixed‑use developments.

Required skills

• LEED certification framework.
• Estidama sustainability framework.