Senior Design Manager - Rail Infrastructure

Parsons; Riyadh; On-site; SAR 391,000 - 614,000; Full time

Job summary

Parsons Corporation in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, seeks a Senior Design Manager - Rail Infrastructure to lead end-to-end design and engineering for rail projects, including mobility systems and station developments. The role oversees concept through procurement, manages scope, schedule, and budget, and aligns deliverables with Qiddiya project objectives.

The ideal candidate has 15+ years in large-scale infrastructure design, strong leadership across multidisciplinary teams, and proven experience with

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering or related field.
• Minimum 15 years of experience managing complex design and construction projects.
• Extensive involvement in concept, design, and procurement phases.
• Previous professional experience within an engineering consultancy is required.
• Strong leadership of multidisciplinary engineering and design teams.

Responsibilities

• Champion health, safety, wellbeing, and security throughout design and project delivery.
• Coordinate discipline leads, internal departments, consultants, contractors, and external stakeholders.
• Develop project-delivery plans covering preparation, design, procurement, execution, and closeout.
• Monitor schedule, cost, scope, resource, HSE, quality, and performance objectives.
• Lead constructability reviews and ensure alignment with contractual obligations.

Job description

Senior Design Manager - Rail Infrastructure Job Snapshot

Role: Senior Design Manager - Rail Infrastructure

Location: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Industry: Transportation-Trucking-Railroad

Function: Project Management

Experience: Minimum 15 years

Job Type: Full-time

Parsons is hiring a Senior Design Manager - Rail Infrastructure in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for the Qiddiya project within the Transportation-Trucking-Railroad industry. The manager will lead the safe, timely, and efficient delivery of design and engineering activities covering rail infrastructure, mobility solutions, and station developments. This senior position requires extensive experience across concept design, detailed development, procurement, and multidisciplinary engineering consultancy. The successful candidate will control scope, schedule, budget, resources, interfaces, approvals, constructability, contracts, and change while maintaining alignment with Qiddiya 's strategic objectives.

Job Details

Country: Saudi Arabia

City: Riyadh

Industry: Transportation-Trucking-Railroad

Function: Project Management

Salary: 35000-55000 SAR per month Estimated salary range based on similar jobs in Riyadh; please confirm the final offer with the employer.

Gender: Any

Candidate Nationality: Any

Job Type: Full-time

Role Context

Rail and station developments depend on the coordinated delivery of civil, structural, architectural, systems, mobility, operational, and commercial requirements. Decisions made during concept and design can significantly affect construction feasibility, authority approvals, passenger experience, cost, and long‑term performance. The Senior Design Manager will establish a clear route from early options to approved and buildable solutions. Resolving interfaces with adjacent projects and securing stakeholder non‑objections before stage gates will help protect procurement and construction timelines.

Key Responsibilities

• Champion health, safety, wellbeing, and security throughout design and project delivery.
• Ensure team practices align with Qiddiya policies, procedures, values, and transport objectives.
• Participate in safety investigations, inspections, audits, and improvement initiatives.
• Provide visible, inclusive leadership to multidisciplinary design and engineering teams.
• Direct the integrated delivery of rail, mobility, station, and associated infrastructure designs.
• Coordinate discipline leads, internal departments, consultants, contractors, and external stakeholders.
• Manage design options, technical assessments, recommendations, and final solution development.
• Identify and resolve interfaces with adjacent developments, infrastructure packages, and operational systems.
• Develop project‑delivery plans covering preparation, design, procurement, execution, and closeout.
• Monitor schedule, cost, scope, resource, HSE, quality, and performance objectives.
• Prepare clear progress reports and escalate issues requiring leadership decisions.
• Maintain a customer‑first approach across planning, design reviews, and delivery decisions.
• Control design scope and verify alignment with contractual obligations.
• Lead constructability reviews and confirm that proposed solutions reflect actual delivery conditions.
• Manage scope changes through the approved change‑control process.
• Identify potential change impacts early and communicate their effect on cost, schedule, quality, and interfaces.
• Conduct formal design audits at key development stages.
• Secure approvals and stakeholder non‑objections before applicable stage gates.
• Verify compliance with project specifications, relevant codes, and regulatory requirements.
• Identify design and delivery risks and implement practical mitigation strategies.
• Address technical roadblocks while maintaining project momentum.
• Lead post‑project reviews and capture lessons for future packages.
• Set clear expectations and promote collaboration, accountability, innovation, and high performance.
• Mentor and coach team members through constructive feedback and professional guidance.
• Support procurement by developing detailed scopes of work.
• Facilitate market engagement with designers, contractors, consultants, and delivery partners.
• Collaborate with commercial teams to maintain contract compliance and cost control.
• Implement consistent project‑management processes, tools, templates, and reporting standards.
• Review drawings, calculations, specifications, reports, and other technical documents for quality and accuracy.
• Coordinate cross‑functional information flow and ensure required project inputs are available.
• Participate in design meetings, value‑engineering workshops, site inspections, and public‑engagement activities.
• Promote continuous improvement throughout design and engineering delivery.

Ideal Profile

• Bachelor 's degree in Civil Engineering, Project Management, Risk Management, or a related field.
• Higher National Diploma in Engineering, Project Management, or Construction Management may also be considered.
• Minimum 15 years of experience managing complex design and construction projects.
• Extensive involvement in concept, design, and procurement phases.
• Previous professional experience within an engineering consultancy is required.
• Proven ability to lead projects from initiation through design, procurement, execution, and closeout.
• Experience controlling scope, schedule, budget, resources, quality, and technical interfaces.
• Strong record of managing several projects or workstreams simultaneously.
• Demonstrated leadership of multidisciplinary engineering and design teams.
• Understanding of regulatory compliance, risk management, quality assurance, and change control.
• Knowledge of relevant engineering techniques, design calculations, codes, and standards.
• Ability to review technical documents for accuracy, completeness, and contractual compliance.
• Strong understanding of construction practices and project economics.
• Excellent spoken and written English with high‑quality technical‑writing skills.
• Strong problem‑solving, conflict‑resolution, prioritization, and decision‑making abilities.
• Adaptability within a fast‑paced environment involving evolving priorities and deadlines.
• PMP, PRINCE2, AgilePM, or an equivalent professional certification is desirable.
• Professional engineering licence from a recognized registration body is preferred.
• Previous experience in Saudi Arabia or the wider Gulf region is highly desirable.

Skills Set

• Rail design management
• Station‑design coordination
• Mobility‑systems integration
• Multidisciplinary engineering leadership
• Concept and detailed design
• Design‑option assessment
• Scope management
• Project controls
• Design‑stage governance
• Stage‑gate approvals
• Stakeholder non‑objections
• Constructability reviews
• Contract alignment
• Change‑control management
• Interface resolution
• Value engineering
• Procurement support
• Technical scope preparation
• Regulatory compliance
• Quality assurance
• Design‑risk management
• Microsoft Project
• Primavera P6
• Aconex
• AutoCAD
• BIM
• Two‑dimensional CAD
• Three‑dimensional CAD
• Microsoft Word
• Microsoft Excel
• Technical‑document review
• Progress reporting

Why Join Us

This opportunity provides leadership responsibility across the design of rail, mobility, and station assets for the Qiddiya project. The role combines strategic decision‑making with technical coordination, procurement support, stakeholder approvals, and multidisciplinary team development. It offers a strong pathway toward design‑director, engineering‑director, and major‑program leadership positions within Saudi Arabia 's expanding Transportation-Trucking-Railroad market.

About the Company

Parsons Corporation provides engineering, design‑management, program‑management, and project‑delivery services for complex transportation and infrastructure developments. Its multidisciplinary teams coordinate technical, commercial, safety, and stakeholder requirements to support reliable project outcomes.