Vice President - IT Airport Operations

edari; Dubai; On-site; AED 900,000 - 1,500,000; Full time

Job summary

edari seeks a VP of IT Airport Operations to define and lead the organisation’s technology vision aligned with corporate strategy. The role focuses on leveraging digital tech to drive operational efficiency, reduce costs, and enable innovation for a leading regional airline.

The position requires strong governance, enterprise IT management, and the ability to translate business challenges into clear roadmaps, metrics, and measurable value across the airline’s operations.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in a related field.
• Fluency in English.

Responsibilities

• Define and lead a technology strategy aligned with business objectives.
• Oversee enterprise-wide IT planning, prioritisation and execution of investments.
• Drive digital enablement and transformation across business units.
• Lead governance, cost control, risk management and ROI measurement of IT initiatives.
• Manage vendor relationships, partners and pilot programmes to validate value prior to deployment.
• Foster cross-functional collaboration and agile delivery with senior leadership.

Skills

Leadership experience

IT strategy

Digital transformation

Stakeholder management

Budgeting & governance

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science/Info Systems

Job description

We are currently seeking a VP of IT Airport Operations who will be responsible for defining and leading the organisation’s technology vision in alignment with corporate strategy. The position focuses on leveraging digital and emerging technologies to drive operational efficiency, optimise costs, enhance business agility, and enable innovation.

The role ensures scalable, well-governed IT operations while championing transformation initiatives that deliver measurable business value and sustainable competitive advantage.

Our client based inDubai, is one of the leading Airlines in the region.

Key Responsibilities:

• Define and lead a forward-looking technology strategy aligned with both short- and long-term business objectives, overseeing enterprise-wide planning, prioritisation, and execution of technology investments.
• Partner with executive leadership to ensure technology initiatives directly support growth, efficiency, and customer-centric outcomes, translating business challenges into clear technology roadmaps and performance metrics.
• Lead digital enablement and transformation initiatives across business units to improve revenue generation, customer experience, and operational performance through automation, self-service, and intelligent systems.
• Drive adoption of digital platforms and tools by leading change initiatives, upskilling teams, and embedding a digital-first mindset to ensure initiatives deliver tangible business impact.
• Continuously monitor technology trends and market innovations, assessing and implementing solutions such as AI, advanced analytics, cloud platforms, and cybersecurity capabilities that align with organisational needs.
• Establish and manage relationships with technology vendors, start‑ups, and strategic partners, leading benchmarking exercises, proof‑of‑concepts, and pilot programmes to validate value prior to full deployment.
• Promote cross‑functional collaboration and agile delivery by co‑creating solutions with business leaders, enabling experimentation and innovation through collaborative working models and structured ideation initiatives.
• Ensure strong governance, scalability, security, and compliance across the technology landscape, implementing value‑tracking mechanisms to measure ROI and identify continuous improvement opportunities.
• Build trusted and influential relationships with senior leaders and department heads to enable organisation‑wide optimisation and transformation initiatives.
• Lead IT service management to ensure reliable, high‑quality technology support, defining and managing service levels to minimise operational disruption and protect customer and employee experience.
• Own delivery of the annual technology work programme and associated budgets, ensuring proactive oversight of milestones, risks, costs, and stakeholder expectations through effective governance and steering forums.
• Provide leadership on sourcing strategies and build‑versus‑buy decisions, negotiating vendor agreements, service levels, and performance standards, and escalating issues appropriately when service quality declines.
• Contribute to enterprise architecture and technology strategy discussions to ensure selected solutions are future‑ready, scalable, and aligned with strategic priorities.
• Drive service improvement and optimisation initiatives to reduce costs, improve efficiency, and accelerate time to market through effective resource and portfolio management.
• Lead, coach, and develop high‑performing technology teams, fostering a culture of accountability, engagement, continuous feedback, and professional growth.

Knowledge, Skills & Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related discipline; a postgraduate degree or MBA is advantageous.
• Fluency in English.
• Extensive experience in technology management, product or project delivery, including significant leadership experience overseeing large-scale transformation programmes and diverse technology teams.
• Strong understanding of complex, regulated operating environments and emerging digital technologies.
• Relevant professional certifications in project, programme, or agile delivery methodologies are desirable.
• 5+ years of experience in leadership role and have managed team size of 50+.
• Minimum of 5+ years of experience in IT delivery
• 5+ years of IT experience in MRO/Airport Engineering, Flight Operations, Airport Operations & Corporate ERP