Department Manager – Strategic Planning

This is a full-time, on-site opportunity based in Saudi Arabia and requires relocation to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Our client is a leading international project and construction management organization supporting major infrastructure, urban development, and transformation programs across global markets. They are seeking a senior Department Manager – Strategic Planning to provide leadership across long-range planning, infrastructure strategy, capital investment prioritization, and master planning activities supporting major development programs in Saudi Arabia. The successful candidate will be a highly experienced strategic planning professional with a background in engineering or urban planning and a strong track record delivering complex, large-scale planning initiatives. This role requires extensive knowledge of infrastructure and urban development, particularly water and wastewater systems, as well as the ability to work effectively with government authorities, utility providers, regional stakeholders, and major developers. Responsibilities Provide strategic leadership for the Client’s long-term infrastructure and development planning activities, ensuring planning decisions support broader organizational and regional objectives. Establish and maintain structured approaches for identifying, evaluating, sequencing, and prioritizing future capital projects. Guide projects through early-stage development, registration, evaluation, and approval processes, ensuring appropriate governance and strategic alignment. Lead the preparation and periodic refinement of national and regional master planning frameworks. Assess proposed infrastructure investments against long-term development strategies, service requirements, performance objectives, and available capital resources. Review project business cases and provide senior-level recommendations on investment priorities and strategic fit. Oversee the development of multi-year capital project portfolios and work with regional teams to ensure plans remain current as priorities and development requirements evolve. Coordinate with finance, engineering, operations, infrastructure, and other specialist functions to establish and refine capital expenditure requirements. Ensure infrastructure planning is coordinated with wider urban expansion and development strategies at municipal, regional, and national levels. Build effective working relationships with government agencies, municipalities, utility providers, developers, and other key stakeholders involved in infrastructure planning and delivery. Evaluate changing water and wastewater demand requirements and incorporate future service needs into long-term infrastructure strategies. Track the progress of approved master plans and investment programs, identifying strategic gaps, dependencies, and areas requiring intervention. Provide recommendations on organizational capability, staffing structures, responsibilities, and resource requirements within the Strategic Planning function. Support the development of integrated infrastructure and asset information systems, including the effective use of GIS data to support strategic planning and decision-making. Develop frameworks for knowledge transfer, technical development, and capability building within the Strategic Planning team. Work closely with major developers to understand future development requirements and coordinate the planning of water and wastewater services. Support the development of commercial and inter-organizational arrangements, including service agreements and MOUs, required to facilitate infrastructure provision. Coordinate with regional teams and other stakeholders to maintain progress on infrastructure commitments, agreements, and associated projects. Review infrastructure needs arising from major and mega-development programs and ensure critical utility requirements are reflected in relevant strategic and master plans. Participate in senior stakeholder meetings and provide strategic planning advice to Client leadership, government representatives, developers, and infrastructure partners. Promote consistent application of quality, environmental, health, safety, and organizational policies across all planning activities. Drive improvements to planning methodologies, processes, governance, and departmental practices. Perform other related duties as assigned by the Project Director. Qualifications Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Engineering, Urban Planning, Infrastructure Planning, or a related field from an accredited university. 20+ years of professional experience in strategic planning, infrastructure planning, master planning, urban development, or similarly complex fields. Extensive senior-level experience contributing to or leading large-scale national, regional, or international development initiatives. Demonstrated expertise in strategic master planning and urban development, preferably involving large-scale or nationally significant programs. Advanced knowledge of infrastructure planning principles and the integration of utilities, transportation, development, and population growth requirements into long-term plans. Strong track record in developing water and wastewater master plans and determining long-term infrastructure and service requirements. Experience overseeing multi-year capital investment programs and evaluating projects based on strategic priorities, business cases, performance objectives, and available resources. Familiarity with formal project governance and approval frameworks, including Stage-Gate or comparable processes. Proven experience working with government organizations, municipalities, utility providers, developers, and other public- and private-sector stakeholders. Experience supporting infrastructure planning for major or mega-development projects with complex utility requirements. Strong understanding of water and wastewater demand forecasting, infrastructure capacity planning, and coordination between utility requirements and urban development. Experience evaluating organizational capabilities and supporting the development of effective team structures, responsibilities, and knowledge-transfer programs. Experience working with GIS or other centralized infrastructure information systems is preferred. Demonstrated ability to manage competing priorities and make strategic recommendations regarding major infrastructure investments. Strong leadership, analytical, communication, stakeholder engagement, and strategic decision-making capabilities. Significant international experience is required; experience within the Middle East, particularly Saudi Arabia, is strongly preferred. Familiarity with the KSA infrastructure, government, utility, and development environment will be considered a significant advantage. Arabic language capability is an asset but not required. Compensation & Benefits CAD $195,000–$210,000 annual salary, based on experience and qualifications. Senior leadership opportunity with an internationally recognized organization. Opportunity to contribute to major infrastructure, urban development, and strategic planning programs in Saudi Arabia. Exposure to high-profile national and regional development initiatives and multidisciplinary project environments. Opportunity to influence long-term infrastructure investment and development strategies. International career exposure and collaboration with government, engineering, development, and infrastructure stakeholders. Relocation opportunity to Saudi Arabia. Only candidates selected to move forward in the hiring process will be contacted.

Lead long-term infrastructure and urban development planning, focusing on capital investment prioritization and master planning frameworks in Saudi Arabia. Coordinate with government agencies and utility providers to ensure water and wastewater services align with regional growth strategies.

Requires a degree in Engineering or Urban Planning with over 20 years of experience in large-scale strategic infrastructure initiatives. Must have a strong track record in water/wastewater master planning and experience working with high-level government and private stakeholders.

• Relocation opportunity to Saudi Arabia • International career exposure

• LeadershipPreferred

Identified from the job description. Confirm important requirements above.

• Strategic Planning
• Infrastructure Planning
• Urban Development
• Master Planning
• Capital Investment Prioritization
• Water and Wastewater Systems
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Project Governance
• GIS
• Demand Forecasting
• Capacity Planning
• Business Case Review
• Leadership
• Analytical Thinking
• Strategic Decision-making

• Management & Leadership
• Engineering
• Construction
• Government & Public Sector
• Consulting

Minimum education

Bachelor’s degree

Minimum experience

10+ years

Apply by

Sep 16, 2026

Posting language

English

Working hours

40 hours per week

Seniority

Executive

Application method

Direct apply is available