Regional Partnership Manager

Destinus; Saudi Arabia; On-site; SAR 480,000 - 600,000; Full time

Job summary

Destinus is seeking a seasoned Partnerships Manager to drive the company’s regional growth in the Middle East. You will shape partnership strategy, identify key allies, and advance collaborations with defence and industrial partners.

You will lead negotiations, coordinate with legal, finance, engineering and production teams, and travel frequently to meet senior stakeholders. Fluent English required; Arabic a strong advantage.

Qualifications

• Significant experience in partnerships, business development, strategic alliances, or international commercial roles within defence, aerospace, or adjacent high-technology industries.
• Strong understanding of Middle Eastern defence ecosystem, including government stakeholders, defence organizations, industrial players, procurement structures, and localisation initiatives.
• Proven ability to build trusted senior-level relationships and navigate complex, multicultural stakeholder environments.
• Experience structuring and negotiating strategic partnerships, industrial cooperation agreements, joint ventures, localisation, or co-production arrangements.
• Strong commercial judgement and the ability to translate regional opportunities into clear partnership strategies and business cases.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute Destinus partnership strategy across the Middle East supporting market access sovereign alignment localisation and long-term commercial growth.
• Identify and build relationships with strategic defence partners government-linked entities system integrators capability providers and industrial organizations across the region.
• Lead the development and commercial negotiation of strategic partnership agreements working towards sustainable and mutually valuable structures.
• Evaluate opportunities for joint ventures technology partnerships local industrialisation and other long-term cooperation models.
• Build strong relationships with senior decision-makers and become a trusted commercial interface between Destinus and key regional partners.
• Analyse regional defence priorities procurement frameworks industrial policies competitive dynamics and localisation requirements to identify new opportunities.
• Develop business cases and partnership strategies for priority countries and opportunities across the region.
• Work closely with Business Development Legal Finance Engineering Production and other internal teams to ensure partnerships are commercially attractive technically feasible and executable.
• Represent Destinus in partner meetings industry events and strategic discussions across the Middle East.

Skills

Partnerships

Business development

Strategic alliances

International relations

Education

MBA

Advanced degree in Business/IR/Engineering

Job description

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute Destinus partnership strategy across the Middle East supporting market access sovereign alignment localisation and long-term commercial growth Identify and build relationships with strategic defence partners government-linked entities system integrators capability providers and industrial organizations across the region
• Develop industrial partnerships localisation models co-production opportunities and manufacturing alliances aligned with customer and country requirements
• Lead the development and commercial negotiation of strategic partnership agreements working towards sustainable and mutually valuable structures
• Evaluate opportunities for joint ventures technology partnerships local industrialisation and other long-term cooperation models
• Build strong relationships with senior decision‑makers and become a trusted commercial interface between Destinus and key regional partners
• Analyse regional defence priorities procurement frameworks industrial policies competitive dynamics and localisation requirements to identify new opportunities
• Develop business cases and partnership strategies for priority countries and opportunities across the region
• Work closely with Business Development Legal Finance Engineering Production and other internal teams to ensure partnerships are commercially attractive technically feasible and executable
• Represent Destinus in partner meetings industry events and strategic discussions across the Middle East

Qualifications

• Advanced degree in Business, International Relations, Engineering, or another relevant discipline. An MBA is a plus.
• Significant experience in partnerships, business development, strategic alliances, or international commercial roles within defence, aerospace, or adjacent high-technology industries.
• Strong understanding of the Middle Eastern defence ecosystem, including government stakeholders, defence organizations, industrial players, procurement structures, and localisation initiatives.
• Proven ability to build trusted senior‑level relationships and navigate complex, multicultural stakeholder environments.
• Experience structuring and negotiating strategic partnerships, industrial cooperation agreements, joint ventures, localisation, or co‑production arrangements.
• Strong commercial judgement and the ability to translate regional opportunities into clear partnership strategies and business cases.
• Familiarity with advanced defence systems, UAVs, missile systems, autonomous technologies, or other complex defence programmes is a strong advantage.
• Understanding of relevant export control and international trade requirements is an advantage.
• Fluent English is required. Arabic is a strong advantage. Willingness and ability to travel frequently across the Middle East.

You are strategic but highly hands‑on. You know how to build trust across cultures, navigate complex stakeholder environments, and turn relationships into meaningful partnerships. You are comfortable operating with autonomy, opening doors, negotiating at senior level, and moving quickly when opportunities emerge. You thrive in an ambitious international environment and want to play a direct role in expanding Destinus' presence across the Middle East.