Head of Information Technology

About us :

We are developing a new convenience grocery retail chain in Saudi Arabia as a joint venture with a leading regional retailer. With 10 pilot stores planned in 2025 & over 1,250 stores targeted by 2030, the model blends neighborhood retail with a digital layer — fresh-led, tech-enabled & built for scale. Scope of role :

As Head of IT, you will be fully accountable for defining & delivering the end-to-end technology strategy of the venture. This includes stabilizing the first wave of stores running on the partner’s pilot IT stack, owning the full transition to a fit-for-purpose, scalable IT architecture & leading all infrastructure, systems & data workstreams going forward. You’ll serve as the central point of coordination between business stakeholders, technology vendors & integration partners. This role blends high-level strategic architecture with hands-on program leadership. Key Responsibilities

Own IT across all dimensions — pilot stability to long-term architecture Take over the live pilot IT environment, stabilizing operations & documenting learnings Lead the full transition away from partner systems toward standalone, scalable platforms Set IT direction across infrastructure, applications, data & integration layers Design & implement the target IT architecture Lead the definition of architecture across POS, ERP, WMS, OMS, loyalty, finance, analytics, middleware Develop current vs. future state system landscapes, integration models & rollout plans Define enterprise architecture principles aligned to business ambition & regulatory requirements Lead vendor engagement & tech stack selection Drive selection of best-fit solutions across domains considering local relevance, cost & scalability Manage implementation partners, contract terms & roadmap alignment Build IT team & delivery capability Lead transition from initial team (including managing handover from the junior IT manager currently supporting pilot rollout) to in-house IT function Establish foundational SOPs, documentation & training across tech touchpoints Coordinate cross-functional business enablement Ensure systems are designed around scalable business processes, not short-term workarounds Translate business process requirements into tech system design Partner with Ops, Commercial, Finance, Supply Chain & Marketing to ensure end-user readiness Lead internal onboarding to new tools, workflows & capabilities Qualifications & Experience

6+ years in IT leadership roles across retail, QSR, FMCG or other distributed physical formats Strong track record owning multi-system tech architectures : POS, WMS, OMS, ERP, Loyalty, Middleware, etc. Demonstrated experience building greenfield IT environments & managing end-to-end transitions Experience working in high-growth, build-mode environments a strong plus Experience managing vendor RFPs, solution evaluations & contract negotiations Strong program management and stakeholder alignment skills Familiar with Saudi regulatory landscape incl. ZATCA, local hosting, data residency Background in IT consulting or architecture frameworks (TOGAF, etc.) preferred Core Competencies

Architect & operator : Can design robust systems while driving execution & scale Strategic systems thinker : Sees the full picture across layers & translates business needs into architecture Pragmatic delivery focus : Able to prioritize MVP vs. future-ready and build in agile waves Cross-functional collaborator : Works seamlessly with tech & non-tech stakeholders Hands-on leader : Ready to get into the detail while setting long-term direction Personal Attributes

Relentlessly execution-driven, with ability to juggle multiple workflows Able to influence across partners, vendors, store staff & internal stakeholders

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