IT Infrastructure Lead

Duncan & Ross; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 450,000 - 750,000; Full time

Job summary

Duncan & Ross seeks an experienced IT Infrastructure Lead to own enterprise infra in a hands-on, transformation-focused role in Dubai. The assignment covers data centres, cloud, networks, storage, and resilience, reporting into the technology leadership and collaborating with the SVP of Technology & AI.

You will drive insourcing from outsourced services, build internal capability, and ensure UAE IA compliance, risk management, and measurable improvements within an 18-month programme.

Qualifications

• Extensive senior IT infrastructure leadership experience.
• Proven end-to-end ownership of complex enterprise infra.
• Direct UAE IA requirements experience is mandatory.

Responsibilities

• Own enterprise IT infrastructure including data centres, cloud, networks, storage, and computing.
• Assess current infra, identify gaps, and define improvement plans.
• Strengthen disaster recovery, business continuity, and resilience.
• Lead risk assessments, crisis response, and remediation testing.
• Ensure UAE IA controls and governance alignment.
• Manage vendors, SLAs, costs, and transition plans to insource.
• Build internal teams and establish KPIs.

Skills

IT leadership

Disaster recovery

UAE IA

Vendor management

Hybrid cloud

Security governance

Executive liaison

Job description

Job description

Role Overview

We are seeking an experienced IT Infrastructure Lead for a confidential large UAE-based industrial group. Reporting into the technology leadership structure and working closely with the SVP of Technology & AI, the successful candidate will take ownership of enterprise infrastructure, operational resilience, disaster recovery, business continuity, and infrastructure capability development.

The assignment requires a hands‑on leader who can assess the current environment, strengthen service reliability, and help rebuild internal infrastructure capabilities, including the transition from outsourced to internally managed services where appropriate.

Key Responsibilities

• Take end-to-end ownership of enterprise IT infrastructure, including data centres, cloud, servers, storage, networks, connectivity, end-user computing, and infrastructure operations.
• Assess the existing infrastructure environment, identify operational and architectural gaps, and define prioritised improvement plans.
• Establish and strengthen disaster recovery, business continuity, backup, high availability, and operational resilience capabilities.
• Lead infrastructure risk assessments, crisis response, recovery planning, testing, and remediation.
• Ensure infrastructure controls and operating practices align with applicable UAE Information Assurance (UAE IA) requirements.
• Translate regulatory and security requirements into practical infrastructure controls, evidence, remediation actions, and governance.
• Manage infrastructure vendors, service providers, SLAs, performance, costs, and service quality.
• Evaluate outsourced infrastructure services and develop transition or insourcing plans to strengthen internal ownership.
• Build and develop internal infrastructure teams, clarifying responsibilities, processes, escalation paths, and operational KPIs.
• Work with cybersecurity, applications, enterprise architecture, and business teams to ensure secure, resilient, and scalable services.
• Provide clear reporting on infrastructure risks, resilience, service performance, investment needs, and transformation progress to senior leadership.

Required Experience and Skills

• Extensive experience in senior IT infrastructure leadership, ideally as an Infrastructure Head, IT Infrastructure Director, or equivalent.
• Demonstrated end-to-end ownership of complex enterprise infrastructure environments.
• Strong experience in disaster recovery, business continuity, high availability, crisis management, and resilience testing.
• Direct, demonstrable experience with UAE Information Assurance (UAE IA) requirements is mandatory.
• Experience building, restructuring, or insourcing infrastructure operations and internal technical teams.
• Strong vendor management, operational governance, service management, and executive stakeholder engagement.
• Ability to work hands‑on in a time-bound transformation assignment and deliver measurable improvements.
• Preferred Background
• Experience in large industrial, manufacturing, engineering, energy, or other complex enterprise environments.
• Exposure to hybrid cloud, data‑centre modernisation, network transformation, identity and access management, and infrastructure security.
• Experience transitioning from outsourced IT operations to an internally owned operating model.

Assignment Details

• Location: Dubai, UAE.
• Work arrangement: Fully onsite.
• Contract: Initial 3 months, with potential extension.
• Programme: Approximately 18 months.
• Availability: Able to start within the next few weeks.

Important Screening Criteria

Candidates must be able to explain their direct UAE IA experience, including the specific requirements, controls, assessments, audits, or remediation activities they have handled. General ISO 27001, cybersecurity, or other regional compliance experience alone does not establish UAE IA experience.

Vertical:

Technology