Marketing Director

About This Role

The Marketing Director – KSA is responsible for developing and executing the marketing strategy for HBS to drive brand growth, consumer engagement, and sustainable sales performance. This role focuses on delivering integrated 360° marketing campaigns, strengthening brand equity, and ensuring effective in-market execution while closely collaborating with Sales, R&D, and NPDS teams, Success in this position is measured by achieving AOP targets, improving brand health metrics, delivering strong marketing ROI, and building high-performing local talent in line with Saudization objectives.

Key Accountabilities:

• Develop and execute the annual marketing strategy and AOP for the KSA market, ensuring full alignment with group objectives, brand pillars, and commercial targets.
• Lead the planning and implementation of integrated 360° marketing campaigns across all channels (mass media, digital, social media, influencer, and trade activation) to drive brand awareness, consumer engagement, and sustainable sales growth in Saudi Arabia.
• Oversee consumer insights, market research, and competitive analysis for the KSA market and translate findings into actionable strategies that strengthen brand positioning and market share.
• Work closely with the R&D and NPDS teams to provide marketing input throughout the new product development process, from concept and consumer testing to packaging, positioning, launch planning, and post-launch evaluation.
• Collaborate strategically with the Group Chief Innovation Officer on innovation-related marketing matters, ensuring seamless integration between product innovation and go-to-market strategies.
• Build and optimize the digital marketing ecosystem, including social media platforms, paid campaigns, influencer partnerships, and content creation, while continuously improving ROI and performance metrics.
• Ensure consistent brand guardianship and visual identity across all touchpoints in the KSA market while adapting messaging to local consumer preferences and cultural nuances.
• Manage the marketing budget effectively for KSA operations, delivering strong return on investment and cost efficiency.
• Collaborate closely with the Sales, Trade Marketing, and Operations teams in KSA to align marketing initiatives with commercial plans and in-market execution.
• Provide strategic marketing support to the Egypt marketing team on group-level initiatives, best-practice sharing, and cross-market alignment when required, while respecting the local Egypt Marketing Director’s operational responsibility.
• Lead, develop, and mentor the KSA marketing team, fostering a high-performance culture, building local talent capabilities, and actively supporting Saudization targets.
• Monitor and report key marketing KPIs (brand health, awareness, share of voice, campaign ROI, volume/value growth contribution, innovation launch success rate, and digital metrics) on a monthly basis, driving continuous improvement.
• Represent the company at key industry events and build strong relationships with media, agencies, influencers, and trade partners within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Experience:

10 – 15 years of progressive experience in marketing, with at least the last 5 years in a Marketing Director or Senior Marketing Manager role within an FMCG (preferably food) multinational or large enterprise.

Proven track record in managing multiple product categories in the Saudi market.

Strong experience in new product development (NPDS) and launch processes in collaboration with R&D teams.

Solid background in P&L contribution, consumer research, digital marketing, and 360° campaign management.

Previous exposure to the Egyptian market or regional GCC operations is a strong advantage.

Education:

Master’s degree in Marketing, Business Administration (MBA preferred), or a related field.

Skills:

Excellent leadership and team development skills with proven ability to build high-performing teams and support Saudization.

Strong analytical and data-driven decision-making capabilities.

Exceptional communication, stakeholder management, and cross-functional collaboration skills.

Deep understanding of the Saudi consumer landscape, trade dynamics, and regulatory environment (including Saudization requirements).