Construction Director - Villa Projects

Hill International (Middle East) Limited; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 200,000 - 300,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading construction firm in Abu Dhabi seeks an experienced professional to provide overall leadership and oversight of the construction phase throughout the project lifecycle. The ideal candidate will have over 20 years of experience in construction, particularly luxury villa developments, and substantial familiarity with Abu Dhabi local authority requirements. Responsibilities include monitoring contractor performance, ensuring compliance with quality standards, and leading coordination with local authorities to support project goals.

Qualifications

• Minimum 20 years of construction experience, especially in luxury villa developments.
• 5+ years dealing with Abu Dhabi local authorities and approvals.
• Experience managing project close-out and handover stages.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership and oversight of the construction phase.
• Monitor performance of consultants and contractors.
• Oversee inspection activities and implement improvements.
• Lead coordination with local authorities.

Skills

Leadership

Stakeholder management

Decision-making

Construction management

Quality benchmarking

Regulatory compliance

Technical oversight

Education

Bachelor's degree in civil engineering

Job description

Overview

Provide overall leadership and oversight of the construction phase throughout the project lifecycle.

Responsibilities

• Monitor and evaluate the performance of the Supervision Consultant and Contractors to ensure compliance with contract requirements.
• Review, validate, and verify reported progress across all construction activities and status reports.
• Oversee and manage the technical submittal, approval, and RFI processes to ensure timely resolution.
• Identify opportunities to optimize construction sequencing, productivity, and overall project progress.
• Oversee inspection activities, identifying areas for improvement in inspection methodologies and execution.
• Monitor QHSE performance across all construction activities, identify deviations, and ensure corrective actions are implemented.
• Lead coordination and interface management with Abu Dhabi local authorities and statutory bodies.
• Ensure compliance with Hill Internationals Quality, Environmental, Health, Safety, and Occupational Health policies, manuals, and procedures.
• Review and assess contractor technical, daily, weekly, and monthly progress reports.
• Provide strategic input and recommendations on construction methodologies to support the Main Contractor.
• Support project close-out, testing, commissioning, and handover activities.

Qualifications, Experience, Knowledge and Skills

• Bachelor's degree in civil engineering (mandatory).
• Minimum 20 years of construction experience, with significant exposure to luxury villa developments.
• Minimum 5 years of proven experience dealing with Abu Dhabi local authorities, approvals, and regulatory procedures.
• Demonstrated experience managing project close-out and handoverstages.
• Extensive experience managing subcontractors and complex subcontract packages.
• Proven track record serving in senior construction leadership roles on similar projects.
• Strong technical background with a minimum of two full project life-cycle experiences as part of a Project Management team.
• Extensive experience in:
• Management of inspections, mock-ups, prototypes, samples, and quality benchmarking
• Progressive verification of works against contract specifications, drawings, and approved mock-ups
• Construction submittals and RFI management processes
• Strong familiarity with Abu Dhabi local authority requirements and procedures.
• Background working on commercial, residential, and/or industrial projects, particularly those with extensive landscaping scopes.
• Excellent leadership, coordination, stakeholder management, and decision-making skills.