Offshore Director Full Time NEW

The Offshore Director is the single point of accountability for Front End’s entire offshore business and operations. Reporting directly to the CEO, the role unifies marine operational command, fleet management, offshore project delivery, regulatory compliance, and commercial leadership under one mandate — ensuring Front End operates its fleet safely and efficiently, and bids, wins, mobilizes, and executes offshore work with precision, discipline, and a healthy, protected margin.

The role combines two traditionally separate functions — Head of Marine Operations and Business Development — because Front End’s offshore strategy depends on operational reality and commercial decisions being driven by one leader. The successful candidate must be equally credible on the bridge and in the boardroom: a marine operator who understands Saudi Aramco’s offshore requirements in depth, and a commercially astute executive who can build pipeline, structure contracts, and defend profitability.

2. Scope of the Offshore Business

The Offshore Director is accountable for the full Front End Offshore capability portfolio across the marine asset lifecycle — from seabed to surface — spanning oil & gas, renewables, and maritime infrastructure:

• Construction & Installation — marine vessel chartering, subsea installation, offshore platform transportation and heavy-lift installation, subsea pipeline installation and trenching, subsea packer and anchor systems for well completions.
• Surveying & Monitoring — pre-lay and post-lay subsea surveys, as-laid and as-built verification, platform and subsea structure inspections, marine seismic acquisition (streamer, OBN), multiphysics and CSEM surveys, floating LiDAR for offshore wind, structural monitoring and life-of-field asset integrity.
• Drilling & Decommissioning — jack-up rig operations and offshore drilling, offshore platform removal and decommissioning.
• Logistics & Support — emergency and routine fueling for offshore vessels, autonomous aerial logistics, ROV operations and subsea intervention, and integrated offshore support services.
• Offshore Mining — polymetallic nodule collection and subsea mining technologies.

3. Key Responsibilities

3.1 Fleet Management & Marine Operations

• Hold overall accountability for the safe, compliant, and commercially optimal operation of the owned and chartered fleet (PSV, AHTS, crew boats, jack-up/self-elevating units, and project/support vessels).
• Maximize fleet utilization and uptime; minimize off-hire through disciplined planning, maintenance, and vessel-breakdown prevention and verification.
• Direct moving of offshore units into, within, and out of fields; anchoring, towing, safe mooring and snap-back prevention, and maneuvering within 500-metre zones.
• Oversee Dynamic Positioning (DP) operations and DPO competency; lifting operations; AHTS, rig-supply, and safety standby vessel operations; and grounding and collision prevention.
• Govern diving and ROV operations (surface-supplied, mixed-gas, and saturation diving) and subsea intervention to the required marine and safety standards.
• Own onshore–offshore communications, journey management, and vessel master guidance and oversight.

3.2 Strategic & Commercial Leadership (Business Development)

• Own the offshore P&L; set and deliver the annual business plan, revenue, and margin targets agreed with the CEO.
• Build and convert the offshore commercial pipeline — lead identification, qualification, bids, tenders, RFQs, and proposals — across chartering, subsea, survey, drilling support, and decommissioning.
• Define commercial strategy and pricing logic; structure charter and project contracts to protect margin and manage risk (off-hire, mobilization/demobilization, redelivery, escalation, and cashflow exposure).
• Set and enforce a standardized bid model and minimum bid floor so contracts are won profitably and managed without unplanned cost or schedule surprises.
• Develop and manage strategic partnerships, JV/consortium arrangements, and key supplier relationships to extend capability and competitiveness.
• Maintain and grow tier-1 client relationships, with particular focus on Saudi Aramco qualification, registration, and continued performance standing.

3.3 HSE, Marine Assurance & Regulatory Compliance

• Champion an uncompromising HSE culture and Stop Work Authority across all offshore and marine activity.
• Ensure full compliance with the Saudi Aramco Marine / Offshore Operations Manual and applicable IMO, DNV, BIMCO, OCIMF, and ISPS requirements.
• Govern marine risk assessment, job safety analysis, work-permit systems, personnel transfer at sea, PPE standards, and passenger/manifest management.
• Maintain readiness and standards for safety and lifesaving equipment, firefighting (including FIFI vessels), and fixed H2S/LEL monitoring systems.
• Direct emergency management — incident notification, classification, reporting, and investigation; near-miss reporting; emergency assistance; and safety standby vessel cover.
• Ensure environmental compliance: fuel-efficiency and GHG-reduction measures, waste handling and disposal, and oil record-book discipline.

3.4 Offshore Project Delivery & Port Operations

• Accountable for delivery of contracted offshore projects — mobilization, execution, milestones, dependencies, schedule, cost, and close-out.
• Oversee port and shore-base operations and interfaces (Ras Tanura, Tanajib, Western Region facilities), ISPS compliance, and cargo, product, and bulk loading/discharge.
• Ensure cargo-hose and equipment storage, maintenance, and inspection regimes meet standard.
• Engineer the redelivery process into every contract from the outset to eliminate delays, missed timelines, and unplanned cost.

3.5 People, Competency & Saudization

• Lead, structure, and develop the offshore organization across fleet/technical, marine ops, HSE, delivery, crewing, and commercial.
• Govern crew manning, key-personnel duties, officer qualifications, CV/competency review, familiarization, evaluation, and continued monitoring (including DPO evaluation).
• Drive Saudization of the marine workforce in line with Saudi Aramco contractor requirements and national objectives, and manage crew mobilization, rotation, and departure.

3.6 Financial & Commercial Management

• Build and maintain the standardized offshore financial and operating model (opex, utilization/off-hire assumptions, crew-rotation cost, supply requirements, drydock and survey reserves, and cashflow).
• Defend a healthy target margin on the charter and project business and report variance against plan to the CEO.
• Approve bids within delegated authority and ensure disciplined cost control and working-capital management across the portfolio.

4. Saudi Aramco Marine Operations Compliance Mandate

The Offshore Director must be able to operate to, and hold the organization to, the Saudi Aramco Marine / Offshore Operations Manual. The role carries direct accountability for compliance across the following functional areas of that manual:

• Health, Safety & Environment — water management, handling of hazardous substances and contaminated backload, living-quarters and provisions standards, safety/lifesaving and firefighting equipment, FIFI and H2S/LEL systems, risk assessment, work permits, personnel transfer at sea, PPE, journey management, weekly safety meetings, vessel inspections, Stop Work Authority, and environmental/oil-record compliance.
• Management of Emergencies — incident notification, classification, reporting and investigation; near-miss and high-potential reporting; shift-manager/incident-manager responsibilities; emergency assistance; and safety standby vessel preparedness.
• Contractor Vessel Operations — field movements, onshore-offshore communications, diving and ROV operations, Dynamic Positioning, lifting operations, 500-metre zone maneuvering, grounding and collision prevention, jack-up/self-elevating units, vessel master guidance, towing assistance to tankers and barges, helicopter operations, AHTS/rig-supply/standby vessel procedures, anchoring, vessel-breakdown verification, and safe mooring.
• Port Operations — Ras Tanura, West Pier, Tanajib, Jeddah, Duba and Jizan facilities; ISPS code requirements; loading and discharging of cargo, products and bulk; and cargo-hose storage, maintenance and inspection.
• Crew Manning, Competency & Fitness — officer appointment and qualifications, CV/resume review, familiarization and evaluation, continued monitoring, DPO evaluation, Saudization of the marine contractor workforce, and crew mobilization and departure.

5. Qualifications & Experience

Essential

• Senior leadership experience (typically 15+ years) in offshore marine / OSV operations, with a substantial track record managing fleets and offshore projects in the oil & gas sector.
• Demonstrable P&L ownership and commercial / business-development success — winning and profitably delivering offshore charter and/or subsea/project contracts.
• Deep, current working knowledge of Saudi Aramco offshore/marine operating requirements and the regional offshore market.
• Strong command of marine HSE, marine assurance, and international standards (IMO, DNV, BIMCO, OCIMF, ISPS).
• A marine/nautical or engineering background — e.g. Master Mariner / Chief Engineer Certificate of Competency, or an engineering degree — combined with business education (MBA or equivalent commercial credential strongly preferred).
• Experience operating at executive level and reporting to a CEO or Board.

Desirable

• Established Saudi Aramco and tier-1 client relationships and qualification experience.
• Experience with subsea, survey, drilling support, decommissioning, and/or offshore renewables scopes.
• Knowledge of Saudization frameworks and Saudi maritime regulatory environment; Arabic an advantage.

6. Core Competencies

• Marine & technical authority — commands respect on fleet, operational, and safety matters with vessel crews, clients, and regulators alike.
• Operational discipline — executes to plan with precision; engineers out the recurring problems (redelivery delays, schedule slips, unplanned cost, cashflow surprises).
• Business acumen & commercial savviness — reads the market, structures deals, prices and protects margin, and turns operational capability into profitable, well-managed contracts.
• Leadership & coordination — builds and aligns a high-performing offshore organization and drives cross-functional teamwork between operations, commercial, and delivery.
• Client & stakeholder management — credible with tier-1 clients and partners; protects and grows Front End’s standing and reputation.
• Judgment under pressure — makes sound, safety-first decisions in live offshore and emergency situations.

7. Key Performance Indicators

• Fleet utilization and off-hire performance against the standardized model.
• HSE performance (incident and near-miss rates; Aramco/marine audit outcomes).
• Offshore revenue, margin, and EBITDA versus plan.
• Bid win-rate and pipeline conversion; quality and discipline of contract terms.
• On-time, on-budget project delivery and clean, on-schedule vessel redeliveries.
• Saudi Aramco qualification standing and client satisfaction.
• Saudization and crew-competency targets.