Regional Director, Middle East & Africa

Job Description

The Regional Director, MEA (RD MEA), is a key member of the EMEA Leadership Team. This role represents ULS in the MEA region and is responsible for driving business strategy, fostering external relationships, and bringing local managers together to support employee engagement and culture across all the matrixed ULS sites in the region.

The RD MEA acts as a growth partner across all business units (COUs), orchestrating cross-functional collaboration to optimize enterprise success.

Responsibilities

• Strategic Leadership & Growth Partner
• Develop and execute MEA regional strategy in alignment with EMEA and global goals.
• Partner with COU General Managers and functional leaders to drive profitable growth.
• Lead cross-COU go-to-market strategies for priority countries (e.g., UAE, KSA).
• Identify and evaluate key investments, competitive positions, footprint strategy etc.
• Identify and support M&A and strategic partnership opportunities.
• Facilitate market sensing and communicate emerging trends to corp. development.
• Support external engagement with government agencies and industry associations.
• Lead regional mgt. meetings promoting collaboration and sharing best practices.
• Guardian & Risk Mitigation
• Serve as legal signatory and board representative for ULS legal entities in MEA.
• Provide leadership for ULS’s site leaders across the MEA region.
• Ensure compliance with local labor laws, ESG standards, and business licensing.
• Champion a strong safety culture and oversee implementation of EHS policies.
• Provide crisis management leadership and ensure business continuity.
• Partner with Public Affairs to maintain influential relationships with regulatory bodies.
  
  

Key Success Metrics

• Achieve double-digit revenue growth for the MEA region.
• Build strong, trust-based partnership with COU and functional leaders (SPI, Legal).
• Maintain employee engagement scores at or above the EMEA average.
• Ensure a zero-injury safety record across all sites.
• Uphold ULS values throughout the region: Safety, Respect, Growth and Integrity.
  
  

Qualifications

Required Experience:

• 10+ years of P&L responsibility – the key stakeholders are the P&L holders.
• Matrix leadership experience – orchestrating across functions & businesses.
• Deep familiarity with UAE and KSA business environments.
• Experience in global organizations (preferably US-headquartered).
• Solid financial acumen (CapEx, OpEx, IRR analysis).
• Success in cross-functional collaboration and influence without direct authority.
  
  

Preferred Experience:

• M&A experience (buy-side or sell-side).
• Experience from the Testing, Inspection & Certification (TIC) industry.
• Understanding of key sectors: Energy Transition, Sustainability & Buildings, Connectivity/AI and Mobility/Automotive.
• Experience establishing low-cost service centers.
• Public company experience partnering with legal, finance and communications.
• Fluent in English and Arabic proficiency is a plus.
• Master’s degree (MBA or equivalent) preferred.
  
  

Core Competencies:

• Strategic Thinking & Execution.
• Cross-Cultural Leadership.
• Stakeholder Engagement.
• Public Speaking & Influence.
• Risk Management & Compliance.
• Values-Driven Leadership (Integrity, Safety, Respect & Growth).
  
  

About Us

A global leader in applied safety science, UL Solutions (NYSE: ULS) transforms safety, security and sustainability challenges into opportunities for customers in more than 110 countries. UL Solutions delivers testing, inspection and certification services, together with software products and advisory offerings, that support our customers’ product innovation and business growth. The UL Mark serves as a recognized symbol of trust in our customers’ products and reflects an unwavering commitment to advancing our safety mission. We help our customers innovate, launch new products and services, navigate global markets and complex supply chains, and grow sustainably and responsibly into the future. Our science is your advantage.