Chief Specialist - Research & Development | UAE National

Roads and Transport Authority; Dubai; On-site; AED 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Roads and Transport Authority in Dubai seeks a senior leader to oversee research governance, partnerships, and IP enablement. You will guide R&D centers, awards, and PoC programs, ensuring outputs align with RTA strategy and future directions.

Responsibility includes policy development, publishing frameworks, and strategic university collaborations to raise research quality and impact. The role demands extensive experience in governance, IP clauses, and KPI-driven leadership.

Qualifications

• 9+ years of experience for Master’s degree or 11+ years for a Bachelor’s degree in research governance or R&D leadership.
• Expertise in designing and governing R&D programs, partnerships, and IP management.
• Certifications such as PMP or PRINCE2; knowledge of research ethics (CITI) is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead governance of research programs, IP enablement, and KPI alignment with strategy.
• Steer R&D centers, awards, and proof-of-concepts to deliver high-quality studies.
• Develop and update research policies, processes, and publishing frameworks.
• Plan strategic partnerships with universities and centers with clear metrics.
• Supervise projects from concept to delivery within scope, schedule and budget.
• Coordinate with related foundations and governance bodies for integration.

Skills

R&D governance

Research partnerships

Policy development

Leadership & mentoring

Education

Master’s degree

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

PMP/PRINCE2

CITI research ethics

Job description

Lead research governance, partnerships, programs, and IP enablement; steer R&D centers, awards, and proof-of-concepts; and deliver high-quality studies and outcomes aligned with RTA strategy and future directions.

Roles and Responsibilities

Develop and update Authority research and studies policies, processes, systems, annual plans and KPIs, aligning them with RTA strategy and standards.

Promote a research culture and define publishing frameworks, authorship rules, and review cycles for Authority research outputs.

Establish governance for R&D centers, aligning portfolios, KPIs, and annual plans with future directions and sector needs.

Define proof-of-concept governance with selection criteria, test protocols, evaluation gates, and reporting cadence.

Direct the RTA Scientific Research Award framework, rubrics, calendar, and improvement actions to raise submission quality.

Plan strategic research partnerships with universities and centers, defining scopes, benefits, IP clauses, and performance indicators.

Operations

Supervise corporate research projects from concept to delivery, meeting scope, schedule, budget, and quality gates.

Coordinate research initiatives with Dubai Future Foundation and integrate deliverables into departmental plans.

Govern the central database for research outputs; enforce data standards, metadata, access controls, and publication workflows.

Prepare policy/strategy documentation, leadership presentations, and periodic reports on research indicators, initiatives, risks, and corrective actions.

Scout internal researchers, deliver awareness programs, and mentor early-career researchers to strengthen the pipeline.

Provide linkages to legal and IP experts; guide researchers to register and protect IP per approved procedures.

Draft and review MoUs and collaboration agreements; monitor partner obligations, deliverables, and realized benefits.

Product/Process Improvement

Review research and PoC outcomes; mandate adoption, iteration, or closure; capture lessons and reusable methods.

Review and develop R&D sources, frameworks, and tools; enhance researcher toolkits, templates, and guidance to improve collaboration and study quality.

Analyze performance trends; recommend corrective actions; and update research policies, processes, frameworks and KPIs.

Qualifications

• 9+ years in case of Master’s degree(11+ years in case of Bachelor’s degree)
• Expertise in R&D project design/execution, academic partnerships, and research governance
• Certifications such as PMP/PRINCE2 (or equivalent), research ethics(e.g., CITI)
• Preferred expertise in Applied/ Industial Research, Data, AI