Director Asset Management

Job description / Role

Overview of the role

Responsible for the day-to-day management of Doha Festival City Mall, ensuring operational excellence, financial performance, and superior guest experience. The role oversees retailer relations, revenue generation, asset management, budgeting, and business planning, while leading on-site teams and coordinating specialty leasing and concierge programs.

The ideal candidate will drive operational efficiency, stakeholder engagement, and income growth, maintaining the mall’s physical integrity and enhancing its overall value by maximizing Net Operating Income (NOI) in line with revenue and expenditure targets.

What you will do

• Prepare annual retail operations budgets covering capital, manpower, OPEX, and income forecasts.
• Submit budget projections to the Board of Directors for review and approval.
• Regularly review financial performance and take corrective actions for negative variances.
• Use past experience, team input, and market trends to forecast revenue and expenditure accurately.
• Identify potential financial risks and report findings to the Board of Directors.
• Ensure tight management of debtors and consistent delivery of EBIDAT targets.
• Develop and maintain a comprehensive service charge (S/C) budget and matrix.
• Ensure all operational expenditures are recoverable from tenants and audited annually as per international standards.
• Assist in preparing and reviewing monthly and annual financial reports.
• Support re-forecasting, P&L analysis, lease abstracting, and budgeting activities.
• Assist in the collection of monthly receivables as required by the Senior General Manager.
• Oversee asset condition and maintenance programs to maximize lifecycle and salvage value.

• Oversee mall marketing initiatives and events, ensuring proper promotion and retailer engagement to drive footfall and tenant sales.
• Enhance the guest experience and handle guest complaints promptly and effectively.
• Develop and execute an innovative, targeted marketing plan with the Senior General Manager and Marketing Manager, ensuring effective budgeting and brand consistency.
• Maintain strong community relations and monitor political or regulatory developments that may impact operations, taking proactive corrective action.
• Foster tenant relations through regular meetings and communication, ensuring awareness and compliance with lease terms.

• Maintain high operating standards, ensuring quality, cost, and timeliness through transparent vendor selection (minimum three tenders), and submit recommendations for approval as per DOA.
• Supervise and provide leadership to the concierge, specialty leasing, administrative, and reception teams.
• Evaluate property development needs, recommend improvements, and ensure timely execution of approved projects within defined scope and compliance standards.

• Conduct regular performance appraisals, identify training needs, and initiate internal or external training as required.
• Ensure team motivation, engagement, and delivery of expected work standards.
• Maintain strong coordination with corporate departments, ensuring alignment and cohesive operations across functions impacting Centre Management.

• Present comprehensive reports on tenants, income, expenditure, positioning, and competition to the company, supported by subordinate and market research data.
• Compare actual performance against budget projections and propose ways to enhance performance and design concepts.
• Ensure all reports reflect accurate and up-to-date information to represent the company’s real-time position.

Required skills to be successful

• 20+ years of experience in the relevant field within reputable organizations, including at least 5–7 years in a senior management role overseeing shopping centre or retail operations.
• Strong knowledge of all aspects of leasing and marketing, including strategy development, implementation, and operations.
• Proven ability to collaborate and communicate effectively with tenants, service providers, and internal teams to ensure smooth operations and stakeholder alignment.

What equips you for the role

Degree in business administration with specialization in marketing and real estate with extensive knowledge of developing commercial real estate properties.

Masters in Business Administration (Marketing, Accounting) etc. is preferred.

About Al-Futtaim Malls

Al-Futtaim Malls provides development and asset management expertise, specializing in building retail-led super regional malls in prime locations across MENA and beyond. With a proven track record of creating both sustainable revenue growth and value enhancement for tenants, Al-Futtaim Malls delivers exceptional experiences and exciting shopping environments for customers.

Part of the Al-Futtaim Group, Al-Futtaim Malls leadership team brings more than 30 years of experience and a deep understanding and knowledge of the retail sector, both from a shopper’s point of view but as curators of space or landlords to other brands. The company has a directly managed portfolio including over 9 million sqft of retail space across four malls in the MENA region and two under development. Malls under the Al-Futtaim Malls portfolio include Dubai Festival City Mall and Festival Plaza in the UAE, Cairo Festival City Mall in Egypt, Doha Festival City in Qatar and Zenata Mall, Morocco.

Leveraging the expertise of its parent company, Al-Futtaim Malls established PLEX Management Services offering a full array of services including asset management and development, leasing, and brand experience expertise to shopping mall landlords and retail organizations globally. Implementing global best practice and deploying Al-Futtaim Mall’s deep understanding of mall management and retail dynamics, PLEX promises to deliver continuous growth and long-term value for its partners.

About the Company

Established in the 1930's, the Al-Futtaim Group initially operated as a trading enterprise. Rapid development throughout the 1940's and 50's saw it establish itself regionally as an integrated commercial, industrial and services organisation, positioning itself one of the leading business houses in the lower Gulf region. Today, it operates collectively over 40 companies bearing the Al-Futtaim name, dominates many market segments in the UAE, and has expanded its sphere of operation to include Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Egypt.

The Group comprises a diverse range of strategically positioned operating subsidiaries and associate companies, structured to give the Al-Futtaim Group the flexibility and versatility to keep ahead of local competition while keeping pace with the ever-evolving global business scenario. The Groups continued investment in world-class systems technology is clear evidence of its commitment to maintain leading edge performance and service delivery.

The success of the Al-Futtaim Group can be attributed to a business approach that combines the ability to change with the traditional values of integrity, service and social responsibility that define its core business philosophy. This, linked with the Groups belief in decentralisation, gives the heads of the operating companies a high degree of functional autonomy and authority, providing the Group with essential flexibility, and individual employees a clearly defined work culture and sense of responsibility.