Head of Partnership Management

Lead the design, development, and management of strategic partnerships that support the academic, cultural, and research mission of the higher education institution. Act as the primary liaison between the institution and external partners across the cultural, academic, governmental, and creative sectors. Promote collaborative initiatives that enhance the visibility, relevance, and impact of the educational institution within the creative and arts ecosystem. Develop a long list of partners while ensuring that all partnerships are aligned with institutional strategy, regulatory frameworks, and quality standards. Foster a culture of collaboration, innovation, and mutual value creation across all units of the educational institution.

Strategic Responsibilities

Develop and implement a comprehensive partnership model that ensures alignment with financial and strategic goals.

Lead the negotiation and structuring of partnership agreements, including academic collaborations, joint programming, research partnerships, and industry linkages.

Position the educational institution as a key enabler and collaborator within the national and global creative and arts ecosystem.

Drive initiatives that support student internships, faculty exchanges, and collaborative cultural productions.

Operational Responsibilities

Manage partnerships engagements, including prospecting, vetting, onboarding, implementation, and review.

Ensure compliance with higher education institution governance protocols, MoUs, and contractual obligations.

Organize partnership activation events, workshops, and networking forums.

Track and report on key outreach KPIs such as student engagement, lead conversion rates, and geographic reach.

Coordinate outreach materials in collaboration with the communications and branding teams.

Ideal Experience, Capabilities and Skills Industry Experience

10–15 years of experience in partnership development, business development, or stakeholder engagement, preferably in cultural, creative, or academic institutions.

Proven ability to build cross-sector partnerships in support of cultural and educational missions.

Familiarity with the Saudi cultural landscape, Vision 2030 objectives, and regional cultural policy frameworks.

Experience working with museums, art institutions, festivals, creative hubs, and government cultural entities.

Management Capabilities

Strong strategic planning and stakeholder mapping skills.

Demonstrated ability to lead complex negotiations and develop partnership.

Experience aligning partnership initiatives with academic programs and institutional priorities.

Capable of managing teams, timelines, and multi-stakeholder projects.

Interpersonal & Leadership Skills

Excellent relationship builder with cultural sensitivity and diplomatic acumen.

Able to engage with a wide range of stakeholders from government, industry, academia, and the arts.

Skilled communicator in both Arabic and English, with strong presentation and persuasion skills.

Collaborative leader with a proactive, mission-driven approach.

Creative thinker who can translate vision into impactful external engagements.

Seniority level

Director

Employment type

Full-time

Job function

Administrative

Industries

Government Administration and Government Relations Services

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