Chief Operating Officer, Asset Management United Arab Emirates (Fulltime office (FTO)) Full-time

To provide executive leadership and strategic direction over the operational and financial functions of a regulated asset management firm, ensuring end-to-end excellence across business processes, governance, systems, and performance.
The COO responsible for building an agile, scalable, and resilient operating platform that enables product innovation, efficient execution, and regulatory alignment. This role is critical in enhancing the firm’s infrastructure to support a growing and diversified product suite—spanning mutual funds, private asset structures, and institutional mandates—while also ensuring financial discipline, transparency, and robust reporting.
The ideal candidate will be both a strategist and an executor: someone with deep experience across traditional and alternative investments, operational design, regulatory environments (particularly DFSA/DIFC), finance, and risk. They will play a key role in modernizing technology, elevating client service standards, and positioning the firm for long-term success in a competitive and evolving market landscape.

Operational Strategy & Leadership

• Build and embed scalability into our operating platform to support product innovation, regional expansion, and AUM growth.
• Oversee and streamline the full operational lifecycle across front, middle, and back-office functions.
• Evaluate and enhance current operational systems, technology, and structures to ensure alignment with global best practices.
• Build and scale infrastructure to support expansion into new products (mutual funds, private asset structures, institutional mandates), as well as lead into new areas such as fund tokenisation, blockchain integration, and digital asset infrastructure.
• Coordinate and manage both in-house and outsourced operational functions with a focus on efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and control.
• Design and implement standard operating procedures (SOPs), workflows, and compliance frameworks across the business.

Front Office & Portfolio Support

• Lead the evaluation, selection, and implementation of front-office systems including portfolio construction, trading, risk analytics, and data.
• Work closely with investment teams to align systems with portfolio management needs.
• Ensure seamless integration between portfolio management tools and middle/back-office systems.

Technology & Innovation

• Identify opportunities to incorporate technology and automation across the firm to enhance productivity, reduce manual processes, and improve data integrity.
• Oversee implementation of digital solutions that support reporting, risk management, and operational efficiency.
• Help with the integration of artificial intelligence/LLM tools within the organization to drive innovation and efficiency
• Collaborate closely with portfolio management, product development, sales, and other teams to integrate technological innovations that enhance operational efficiency and deliver superior client outcomes.
• Champion a data-driven culture with robust governance of data flows, lineage, and usage across the firm.

International Product & Fund Development

• Lead and manage the operational aspects of fund launches, including GCC-compliant structures and private funds.
• Navigate and ensure compliance with local and international regulatory regimes that the firm operates in currently or in future.
• Partner with legal and compliance on structuring, documentation, and jurisdictional requirements.

Governance & Board Reporting

• Comfortable operating at board level, including preparation of board packs, management information (MI), and strategic financial presentations.
• Experience engaging with regulators, boards, and investors, and representing the firm at senior governance levels.
• Deep understanding of corporate governance frameworks, including roles within risk, audit, and compliance committees.

Risk & Compliance

• Oversee risk management practices, aligning with investment, operational, and financial risks.
• Support compliance teams in maintaining and improving the regulatory control framework across jurisdictions.
• Ensure proper oversight and management of outsourced relationships to maintain compliance and control standards.

People & Talent Management

• Proven leadership of cross-functional teams.
• Ability to develop and mentor high-performing operations, finance, and risk teams.
• Strong focus on succession planning, team development, and cross-functional team integration.

• 12+ years of experience in asset management, with senior-level responsibility across operations and finance.
• Strong technical and operational expertise across mutual funds, private asset structures, and institutional mandates.
• Deep knowledge of front-to-back investment processes, including trade execution, settlement, reconciliation, and risk oversight.
• Track record of leading transformation initiatives, including system implementation, outsourcing, and workflow optimization.
• Well-versed in GCC regulatory and market environments; experience with DFSA/DIFC is highly desired.
• Strong understanding of portfolio systems, data architecture, and operational automation tools.

Core Competencies

• • Entrepreneurial, high energy, a “doer” that will roll their sleeves up and make things happen
• Strategic thinker with commercial acumen and strong execution capability
• Commercially aware and analytically strong, with attention to both detail and the big picture.
• Strong leadership, communication, and change management skills.
• High integrity, independence, and professional judgement.
• Comfortable navigating ambiguity and making decisions in complex, multi-stakeholder environments.

Resilient under pressure and capable of balancing short-term responsiveness with long-term planning