Associate Director, Interior Design

Surbana Jurong Group; Singapore; On-site; SGD 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

SAA is a leading interior design practice, part of the Surbana Jurong Group, headquartered in Singapore. The role focuses on managing design development and documentation across multiple hospitality, retail, and workplace projects, ensuring the Design Director’s vision is realized.

You will mentor junior designers, collaborate with FF&E, branding, and architectural teams, and drive integrated design solutions while maintaining studio standards and budget discipline.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in interior design, interior architecture, or architecture.
• At least 10 years of professional interiors design experience on medium to large-scale projects in hospitality, retail, workplace, and public space.
• Professional certification or licensed architect is strongly preferred but not required.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design development and documentation phases for multiple projects, ensuring the Design Director’s vision is realized.
• Develop and produce presentations including mood boards, material palettes, furniture plans, and 3D visualizations for client reviews.
• Generate comprehensive construction documents, FF&E specifications, and custom millwork drawings and detailing.
• Resolve complex design and technical challenges, collaborating with architects, consultants, and vendors.
• Manage project timelines, deliverables, and budgets in coordination with the Project Manager.

Skills

Interior design

Design leadership

Team mentorship

Education

Bachelor's or Master’s degree in interior design/architecture

Tools

AutoCAD

SketchUp

Adobe Creative Suite

Job description

A career at SAA gives you the opportunity to be part of a team that makes a real difference to people’s lives; creating places and spaces that form meaningful experiences in the way people connect with their communities. From the moment of ideation to the exhilaration of creation, you will be amongst passionate and talented colleagues from around the globe, working together to make a mark in the evolution of our urban societies. At SAA, we continually strive to enrich the greatest endeavour of all – human life – the quality of which all good designs are benchmarked against. And in this endeavour, we share with you the opportunity to give true meaning to the work that sustains it.

SAA. Building Dreams, Enriching Lives.

Key Responsibilities

Design Development & Project Leadership

• Lead the design development and documentation phases for multiple projects, ensuring the Design Director’s vision is realized.
• Develop and produce compelling presentations, including mood boards, material palettes, furniture plans, and 3D visualizations for client reviews.
• Help to generate comprehensive construction documents, detailed FF&E specifications, and custom millwork drawings and detailing.
• Resolve complex design and technical challenges proactively, collaborating with architects, consultants, and vendors.
• Manage project timelines, deliverables, and budgets in coordination with the Project Manager.

Client & Team Collaboration

• Serve as a primary day-to-day client contact, building strong relationships and managing communication with professionalism and clarity.
• Lead internal project meetings and actively participate in client presentations, articulating design rationale.
• Mentor and provide clear direction to intermediate and junior designers, reviewing their work and fostering their professional growth.
• Collaborate effectively with FF&E, branding, and architectural teams to ensure a fully integrated design.

Technical Execution & Quality Control

• Oversee the FF&E process: sourcing, specification, procurement, and installation logistics.
• Conduct site visits, review submittals, and address RFI’s, ensuring adherence to design intent throughout construction.
• Uphold and advance studio standards for documentation, detailing, and materials innovation.
• Maintain current knowledge of materials, products, codes, and sustainability standards.

Pre-requisites and Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or master’s degree in interior design, Interior Architecture, or Architecture.
• At least 10 years of professional interiors design experience, with a proven track record on medium to large-scale projects in Hospitality, Retail, Workplace, Public Space design.
• Professional certification (or registered architect license) is strongly preferred but not required.
• Mastery of design software (AutoCAD, SketchUp, Adobe Creative Suite and visualization tools.
• Extensive experience developing FF&E specifications, budget, and schedules.
• Excellent verbal, written, and visual communication skills.

Real Impact, Made Together

SAA is a member of the Surbana Jurong (SJ) Group, a diverse and collaborative collective of problem solvers for the built environment, continually reimagining ways to create a smart and sustainable future. As one of SJ’s 10 member companies, SAA is part of a global network of professionals in more than 120 offices in over 40 countries.

SAA is a leading full-service architecture practice headquartered in Singapore. With over 50 years of design and built expertise, we are committed to the pursuit of excellence in the design and delivery of people-oriented architecture that connects communities with their urban environments. Guided by our core values of being Urbanistic, Humanistic, and Optimistic, our practice delivers projects that engage seamlessly with the built environment—creating meaningful relationships by placing people, their culture, and their communities at the centre of our designs. At SAA, over 200 multinational professionals collaborate with partners and clients in challenging conventional designs within an increasingly complex, technology-driven world; bringing innovative and enduring solutions to all our projects. Over the last decade, our focus on surpassing expectations in design and service delivery has allowed us to create and deliver works diverse in scale, typology and complexity. Today, our consultancy has grown to include Master and Urban Planning, Interior Design, and Medical Planning; strengthening our vision to positively shape the world around us. As a member of the Surbana Jurong (SJ) Group, SAA has access to the increased resources and wider scale of SJ’s global platform and infrastructure, heightening our ability to provide clients and partners greater value in our design and service offerings.