Director of Development

Action Hotels is a dynamic hospitality company focused on building and expanding a high-performing hotel management platform across the region. We partner with hotel owners and investors to deliver strong operational performance, revenue growth, and long-term asset value through proven systems, commercial expertise, and hands-on leadership.

About the Role

We are looking for a Director of Business Development to drive the expansion of our portfolio and third-party hotel management platform
. This role will focus on identifying new opportunities across multiple verticals including new developments, conversions, and third-party management contracts. Main responsibility will be leading negotiations to successfully close hotel management agreements with owners and investors seeking professional operations, revenue optimization, and sustainable asset performance.

This is a strategic, commercial role for a proven hospitality dealmaker with strong market relationships and the ability to convert opportunities into long-term partnerships.

Key Responsibilities

As Director of Development, you will:

• Lead the asset-light growth strategy
  , targeting third-party management agreements, new hotel projects, and conversion opportunities.
• Identify, qualify, and pursue new business opportunities across the UAE and key regional markets.
• Build and manage a strong pipeline of hotel owners, developers, institutional investors, and asset managers.
• Structure and negotiate hotel management agreements
  , ensuring commercial competitiveness and alignment with company objectives.
• Develop compelling proposals, feasibility summaries, and owner pitch presentations in coordination with operations, finance, and revenue teams.
• Conduct market research, competitive analysis, and location assessments to support expansion decisions.
• Drive end-to-end deal execution from lead generation through LOI, term sheet, contract closure, and handover to operations.
• Represent Action Hotels in industry events, investor meetings, and networking forums to strengthen brand visibility and relationships.
• Collaborate with internal teams to ensure deliverable commitments, brand standards, operational readiness, and performance targets.
• Maintain strong reporting on pipeline performance, conversion rates, and business development activity.

What You’ll Bring

To succeed in this role, you should have:

• Strong experience in hospitality business development
  , owner acquisition, hotel expansion and or third-party hotel management growth.
• Demonstrated success in negotiating and closing hotel management agreements or similar long-term commercial contracts.
• Strong network within the hospitality ecosystem: owners, developers, consultants, brokers, banks, and investment firms.
• Commercial mindset with the ability to evaluate deals and understand key hotel performance drivers (RevPAR, GOP, NOI, CAPEX planning).
• Confidence in presenting to senior stakeholders and handling complex negotiations with multiple decision-makers.
• Excellent communication, persuasion, and relationship management skills.
• A proactive, entrepreneurial approach enabling comfortable working independently and driving growth outcomes.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Hospitality, Business, Finance, or related field
• MBA or advanced hospitality qualification is a plus
• 8–12+ years of relevant experience in hospitality development, hotel acquisitions, or third-party management business development.
• Strong knowledge of the Middle East hospitality market (regional exposure is a plus).
• High proficiency in MS Office (PowerPoint, Excel) and CRM/reporting discipline.
• Fluent in English (Arabic or additional languages is an advantage).

Why Join Us

• Lead growth for an asset-light hospitality platform
• Direct exposure to owners, investors, and C-suite leadership
• Competitive compensation with performance-linked incentives
• Opportunity to shape long-term regional expansion strategy