Commercial Operations Lead - Sponsorships & CRM

THE; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 300,000 - 540,000; Full time

Job summary

THE is seeking an Associate Director, Commercial Operations in Abu Dhabi to lead the commercial operations framework, govern the sales pipeline, and provide visibility to senior stakeholders. You will oversee CRM systems, reporting, and cross-functional coordination with regional and international teams.

In this role, you will drive accountability, improve processes, and ensure resources are aligned to opportunities at the right stage. Experience in sponsorship, sports or events is advantageous.

Qualifications

• Strong experience in commercial operations, sponsorship sales, partnerships, business development or a related commercial environment.
• Proven experience managing complex sales pipelines and commercial processes.
• Strong understanding of CRM systems, ideally Salesforce or a comparable platform.

Responsibilities

• Lead the commercial operations framework supporting sponsorship, partnership and business development activity.
• Own governance of the commercial pipeline, ensuring clear visibility of opportunities, owners, values, stages, next actions and deadlines.
• Lead regular pipeline reviews, identify stalled or at-risk opportunities and drive accountability for agreed actions.
• Oversee CRM requirements, data quality, process consistency and ongoing system improvements.
• Own weekly, monthly and ad hoc commercial reporting, ensuring information is accurate, relevant and useful for decision-making.
• Provide senior stakeholders with clear visibility of commercial performance, priorities, risks and required actions.
• Coordinate inputs and deliverables across teams, establishing clear ownership, responsibilities and timelines.
• Connect commercial opportunities with relevant strategic thinking, insights and specialist expertise to strengthen partner and client conversations.

Skills

Commercial operations

Sponsorship sales

Partnerships

Business development

CRM systems

Reporting

Stakeholder management

Team coaching

Sales pipeline

Tools

Salesforce

Job description

THE is seeking an Associate Director, Commercial Operations in Abu Dhabi to lead the commercial operations framework, govern the sales pipeline, and provide visibility to senior stakeholders. You will oversee CRM systems, reporting, and cross-functional coordination with regional and international teams.

In this role, you will drive accountability, improve processes, and ensure resources are aligned to opportunities at the right stage. Experience in sponsorship, sports or events is advantageous.