Senior Design Manager - Infrastructure and Land Development
AtkinsRéalis · Dubai
Job Description
Overview
We are seeking an experienced and highly motivated Senior Design Manager to lead the design delivery of complex multidisciplinary infrastructure and land development projects across the Middle East region. The successful candidate will be responsible for managing the full design lifecycle from pre concept planning through detailed design and construction support. The role requires strong technical leadership, project management capability, commercial awareness, and the ability to coordinate large multidisciplinary teams delivering integrated infrastructure solutions. The Senior Design Manager will act as the focal point between clients, project managers, discipline leads, technical specialists, contractors, and stakeholders to ensure projects are delivered safely, efficiently, on schedule, and within budget while maintaining the highest standards of quality and innovation. The role also requires active participation in business development, strategic growth initiatives, technical excellence programs, and the continuous improvement of design delivery processes across the business.
Your role
Design Leadership
- Lead and oversee the design delivery of major infrastructure, land development, utilities, and urban development projects.
- Establish and implement project design management plans and delivery strategies.
- Direct multidisciplinary design teams to ensure coordinated and integrated project solutions.
- Drive technical excellence and consistency of design outputs across all project stages.
- Ensure design solutions meet client requirements, project objectives, authority regulations, and industry best practices.
- Lead technical reviews and design assurance activities throughout project delivery.
- Resolve complex design issues and facilitate timely technical decision-making.
- Promote innovative and sustainable design approaches that enhance project value.
Strategic Infrastructure Advisory
- Contribute to the development of city-wide and regional infrastructure strategies aligned with growth, economic development, sustainability, and resilience objectives.
- Advise clients on infrastructure prioritization frameworks and phasing strategies.
- Develop strategic infrastructure plans covering transportation, wet utilities, dry utilities, district energy, digital infrastructure, and integrated urban systems.
- Provide strategic advice to government entities, developers, municipalities, and infrastructure authorities.
- Support clients in establishing governance structures, operating models, policies, and performance management frameworks for infrastructure delivery.
Project Delivery and Coordination
- Manage the design process from project inception through planning, concept, preliminary design, detailed design, tender support, and construction stages.
- Coordinate interfaces between infrastructure disciplines including transportation, highways, structures, wet utilities, dry utilities, landscape, environmental, and digital engineering teams.
- Develop and maintain integrated design schedules and resource plans.
- Monitor design progress against project milestones and implement recovery measures where required.
- Ensure project deliverables are produced on time, within budget, and to required quality standards.
- Support project managers in managing project risks, opportunities, and stakeholder expectations.
- Lead internal and external design coordination workshops.
Client and Stakeholder Management
- Act as the primary design interface for clients and key stakeholders.
- Build and maintain strong client relationships through proactive engagement and technical leadership. Provide strategic technical advice to clients during project planning and delivery.
- Present design solutions and recommendations to senior client representatives and regulatory authorities.
- Lead coordination with government agencies, utility providers, and approval authorities.
- Ensure stakeholder requirements are effectively incorporated into project solutions.
Design Governance and Quality
- Establish and maintain effective design governance procedures across projects.
- Ensure compliance with company quality management systems and design assurance processes.
- Lead independent technical reviews, value engineering exercises, and design verification activities.
- Monitor compliance with relevant local, regional, and international standards.
- Champion continuous improvement initiatives and lessons-learned programs.
- Support implementation of digital design and BIM best practices.
Commercial and Risk Management
- Support preparation of design budgets, work plans, and resource forecasts.
- Monitor design performance against commercial objectives and agreed budgets.
- Identify and manage technical, commercial, and delivery risks.
- Contribute to contract management and change control processes.
- Support project managers in maintaining project profitability and effective resource utilization.
- Participate in project performance reviews and reporting.
Business Development
- Support the growth of the Infrastructure and Land Development business through technical excellence and client engagement.
- Lead technical inputs for proposals, bids, and project pursuits.
- Develop innovative solutions and methodologies that strengthen competitive positioning.
- Participate in client presentations, interviews, and industry forums.
- Identify opportunities for repeat business and cross-selling of services.
- Promote the broader company service offering across the infrastructure lifecycle.
Team Leadership and Talent Development
- Lead, mentor, and develop multidisciplinary design teams.
- Foster a collaborative, innovative, and high-performance culture.
- Support recruitment, succession planning, and staff development initiatives.
- Coach project engineers and design managers in technical and project delivery skills.
- Encourage knowledge sharing and continuous professional development.
- Champion diversity, inclusion, and employee wellbeing initiatives.
Digital Delivery and Innovation
- Promote adoption of BIM, Digital Engineering, GIS, Common Data Environments (CDE), and emerging technologies.
- Ensure digital delivery requirements are incorporated into project execution plans.
- Drive innovation in design processes, automation, data management, and project delivery.
- Support implementation of company digital transformation initiatives.
- Collaborate with Digital and Information Management teams to improve design efficiency and quality.
Health, Safety and Sustainability
- Champion a strong health, safety, and wellbeing culture across all projects.
- Ensure design solutions comply with health and safety requirements and principles of safe-by-design.
- Promote sustainability, resilience, climate adaptation, and environmental responsibility in project delivery.
- Support achievement of project sustainability objectives and client ESG goals.
About you
Qualifications
Essential
- Bachelor's Degree in Civil Engineering, Infrastructure Engineering, Transportation Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related discipline.
- Minimum 15 years of experience in infrastructure and land development design projects.
- Proven experience leading multidisciplinary design teams on large and complex developments.
- Demonstrated success in delivering major infrastructure and urban development projects.
- Strong understanding of design management processes and multidisciplinary coordination.
- Professional registration such as CEng, PE, or equivalent.
Preferred
- Master's Degree in Engineering, Project Management, Infrastructure Planning, or Business Administration.
- PMP or equivalent project management certification.
- Experience across the Middle East region.
- Experience working on smart cities, major urban developments, and giga projects.
Success Measures
- Successful delivery of infrastructure and land development designs that meet project objectives.
- Achievement of project schedule, quality, safety, and commercial targets.
- High levels of client satisfaction and repeat business.
- Effective management and development of multidisciplinary teams.
- Successful implementation of digital delivery and innovation initiatives.
- Reduction in design risks, rework, and programme delays.
- Contribution to regional business growth and technical excellence.
Rewards & benefits
Explore the rewards and benefits that help you thrive – at every stage of your life and your career.
This includes:
- Tax-free salary.
- Life insurance coverage.
- Medical insurance.
- Annual leave balance.
- Company gratuity scheme.
- Discretionary bonus program.
- Annual flight contribution.
- Transportation & housing allowances.
- Employee Wellbeing Program: 24/7 access to specialists in finance, legal matters, family care, personal health, fitness, and nutrition.
Seize every opportunity to sharpen your skills, expand your expertise, and be recognized for the impact you make.
About AtkinsRéalis
We're AtkinsRéalis, a world-class engineering services and nuclear organization. We connect people, data and technology to transform the world's infrastructure and energy systems. Together, with our industry partners and clients, and our global team of consultants, designers, engineers and project managers, we can change the world. We're committed to leading our clients across our various end markets to engineer a better future for our planet and its people.
Worker Type
EmployeeJob Type
RegularAt AtkinsRéalis, we seek to hire individuals with diverse characteristics, backgrounds and perspectives. We strongly believe that world-class talent makes no distinctions based on gender, ethnic or national origin, sexual identity and orientation, age, religion or disability, but enriches itself through these differences.