Director of Placemaking & District Identity

Qiddiya Investment Company; Riyadh; On-site; SAR 900,000 - 1,350,000; Full time

Job summary

Qiddiya Investment Company seeks a Director-level leader to drive placemaking and thematic development across assigned districts. The role anchors identity, experiences and development outcomes from early planning through delivery, coordinating with executive stakeholders and multidisciplinary teams.

You will align masterplans, assets and public realm around a coherent place ambition, balancing creative quality with commercial value and long-term legacy.

Qualifications

• Degree in urban design, architecture, landscape architecture, planning or related discipline.
• 18–20 years of placemaking, thematic development, urban design or masterplanning with senior leadership.
• Led complex mixed-use, cultural or destination districts from vision to delivery.
• Engaged executive stakeholders and led multidisciplinary teams toward commercially viable outcomes.
• Expertise in district identity, public realm, governance, procurement and budgeting.
• Excellent strategic judgment, negotiation and executive communication with sensitivity to Saudi context.

Responsibilities

• Lead place vision, narrative, positioning and thematic strategies across districts; set priorities and experience objectives.
• Direct internal thematic strategies; safeguard authorship and guide consultant interpretation.
• Embed placemaking in master plans and asset designs; align with spatial planning and development decisions.
• Establish cohesive thematic expression across scales balancing citywide and local distinctiveness.
• Lead translation of strategies into designs, Place Books, experience frameworks and actionable guidance.

Skills

Leadership

Strategic planning

Stakeholder engagement

Placemaking

Thematic development

Urban design

Masterplanning

Governance

Budget management

Education

Degree in urban design, architecture, landscape architecture or planning

Job description

Qiddiya Investment Company seeks a Director-level leader to drive placemaking and thematic development across assigned districts. The role anchors identity, experiences and development outcomes from early planning through delivery, coordinating with executive stakeholders and multidisciplinary teams.

You will align masterplans, assets and public realm around a coherent place ambition, balancing creative quality with commercial value and long-term legacy.