We're hiring a Head of Operations
ESBE (Everest School of Business and Economics) is a UK-accredited, internationally recognised executive education institution specialising in sustainability, ESG, circular economy, and human capital transformation — purpose-built for MENA's financial, healthcare, energy, and enterprise sectors.
We hold accreditation from BAC and the CPD Standards Office, AACSB membership, and UKRLP registration. Our programmes serve mid-level to C-suite professionals across the GCC, Egypt, and North Africa — delivered through a unique model that combines deep advisory heritage with world-class academic rigour.
This is a rare opportunity to join a niche, high-impact institution at a pivotal stage of growth and take full ownership of the operational engine behind it.
What you'll actually do:
- Build the operational infrastructure from the ground up: SOPs, programme delivery playbooks, enrolment workflows, vendor management, quality assurance frameworks
- Own per-programme P&Ls and make sure every programme makes money, not just runs on time
- Plan and manage the full delivery lifecycle of in-person, online, and hybrid programmes across MENA — venues, instructors, materials, logistics, day-of execution
- Evaluate, select, and oversee the implementation of the right tech stack: CRM, LMS, automation platforms, reporting dashboards — you make the decisions, specialists execute
- Identify what should be automated across every department — enrolment flows, QA routing, marketing attribution, invoicing — and drive the organisation toward eliminating manual waste
- Build and manage the financial reporting infrastructure: programme costing models, budget tracking, margin analysis, CEO-level dashboards
- Coordinate across content production, business development, marketing, and an outsourced finance partner — you are the central nervous system of the operation
- Manage the people function: hiring, onboarding, performance management, team development, culture
- Own governance and compliance: accreditation readiness (BAC, CPD), risk registers, policy frameworks, contract management
- Lead programme logistics end-to-end: venue sourcing, instructor contracting, scheduling across concurrent programmes, contingency planning
- Support business development operationally: corporate proposal costing, delivery capacity planning, go-to-market readiness for new programme launches
- Build the client experience infrastructure: CSAT/NPS measurement, feedback loops, retention strategies, alumni engagement
- Report directly to the CEO with delegated operational authority across all functions
Who this is for:
- You've built operations before — not just managed them. You know the difference.
- You've worked in education, training, professional services, or EdTech and you understand programme economics.
- You think in systems, not silos. When you see a broken process, you don't write a memo — you design a fix and get it implemented.
- You're financially sharp. You can build a P&L model, calculate break-even, stress-test pricing scenarios, and have a real conversation about margins.
- You're a real project manager. Dependencies, critical paths, resource conflicts, contingencies — not just task lists.
- You understand modern technology well enough to make smart decisions about what to buy, what to build, and what to automate — even if you're not the one writing the code. You know what n8n, Make.com, HubSpot, and Notion are. You follow what's happening in AI and automation not because it's trendy, but because you see how it eliminates waste.
- You're comfortable with MENA markets. You understand the business culture in the Gulf, Egypt, and the Levant.
- You have 8–12+ years of experience with at least 3–5 in a senior ops leadership role.
- You speak English fluently. Arabic is a serious advantage.
- MBA or equivalent is a strong plus. PMP, Six Sigma, PRINCE2 — we value these if they come with real execution, not just certificates on a wall.
Who this is NOT for:
- If your idea of operations leadership is chairing weekly status meetings and reviewing reports other people wrote
- If you've never built a financial model or a project plan with real dependencies
- If your automation knowledge stops at we should use AI for that
- If you need a 50-person team and a 6-month planning cycle before anything moves
- If you think governance means more paperwork instead of smarter systems
Serious candidates only. You will be assessed on what you can build, not what you can describe.
If this sounds like the challenge you've been looking for, apply by sending your CV to this email: [Confidential Information]
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