RMG is a new creative campus in Dbayeh, Lebanon, opening in early 2028. The lease is signed and the project is self-funded by its founder.
The campus combines private offices, day offices and hot desks, hourly meeting rooms, a production studio and a rooftop. It runs on its own software and is built around a community of makers and the clients who hire them.
The founder works remotely, so the campus needs a strong leader on the ground from day one of the pre-opening phase.
The role
The Pre-opening Project Director owns the management, coordination and execution of the pre-opening plan, from today until the General Manager takes over.
This is not a construction manager role. "Execution" here means everything needed to open: offer, money, legal, design, build, tech, team, operations, brand, sales and launch. You make sure each of these moves on time, with the right owner, and that the founder always knows where things stand.
What you'll do
• Own the pre-opening plan across its 14 workstreams, turned into a calendar of deliverables, owners and dates, kept current every week.
• Keep the plan, the decision log and the KPI dashboard in one place, as the single source of truth. Set up the project dashboard within your first month.
• Coordinate the architect, contractor, owner's PM/QS, tech partners, lawyers, accountants and suppliers so their work fits together.
• Run the weekly project meeting and send a short weekly report to the founder.
• Prepare the decisions the founder needs to make, with options, costs and a recommendation, and record what was decided.
• Track budget and spend against plan monthly with the accountant, and keep a risk list with a fallback for each risk.
• Manage the key gates: design freeze, suppliers contracted, pre-sales opening, readiness for soft launch.
• Support hiring of the General Manager and the first team, and hand over a clean project with a 2–4 week overlap.
You'll fit if you
• Have 10+ years of experience, including at least one pre-opening or new-venue project led end to end (ideally a hotel opening or a real estate development; mixed-use or coworking also considered).
• Run projects with real plans, budgets, milestones, risk lists and status reports.
• Have coordinated architects, contractors and suppliers without being the construction manager.
• Work well with a remote founder: clear written updates and good judgement on what to escalate.
• Have a strong network and experience working in Lebanon.
• Are fluent in English and Arabic. French is a plus.
Nice to have
• Exposure to coworking, members' clubs or creative industries.
• Experience with a tech or software rollout.
• PMP, PRINCE2 or similar.
• Comfortable with Notion, project dashboards and spreadsheets.
The person
Organised, calm and hands-on: a doer, not only a reporter. You lead partners without formal authority over them, and you're honest about delays and problems, early.
Terms
• Fixed-term, full time, on site in Dbayeh. About 9–12 months, ending when the General Manager starts and the 2–4 week handover is complete.
• Reports to the founder.
• Start as soon as possible.
• Package competitive for a senior role in Lebanon, discussed with shortlisted candidates.
Your first 90 days
-
Learn the plan and the people. Set up the project dashboard, decision log and weekly report.
-
Build the full calendar of deliverables, owners and dates across all 14 workstreams, with the risk list in place.
-
Run the plan on a steady weekly rhythm, with the first milestones delivered on time.
How to apply
Apply through this form (about 30 minutes): https://tally.so/r/0VQaoN
- You'll be asked for your CV, a short description of a pre-opening or development project you led, and seven short written questions (about 100 words each).
