Manager – Business Development – Majid Al Futtaim

Majid Al Futtaim is hiring a Manager, Business Development in Dubai, a role focused on identifying and progressing new commercial opportunities, with a particular emphasis on real estate development, site selection, and lease negotiations. This sits within the broader development and retail real estate business that Majid Al Futtaim is known for, including its shopping malls, mixed-use developments, and retail partnerships across the region.

The role involves evaluating potential development sites and business opportunities, conducting the kind of market and financial analysis that underpins a solid investment or leasing decision, and negotiating lease terms with tenants or partners once an opportunity has been identified. Because real estate development decisions carry significant capital commitments and long timelines, this role requires genuinely rigorous analysis alongside the relationship and negotiation skills needed to actually close deals with landowners, tenants, or development partners. There’s likely also a strategic planning component, contributing to how Majid Al Futtaim prioritises which markets or site types to pursue next.

This role suits someone with a background in real estate development, commercial property, or business development within a property-adjacent industry, who combines strong analytical and financial modelling skills with genuine negotiation experience. Familiarity with site selection criteria and lease structuring in a regional real estate context is a significant advantage, as is comfort managing long, multi-stakeholder deal processes.

It’s a strong opportunity for a commercially minded real estate professional who wants to work on the front end of development strategy at one of the region’s most significant property and retail groups.

Business development decisions in real estate carry some of the largest financial stakes of any function within a group like Majid Al Futtaim, since a single site selection or lease negotiation decision can commit the company to a multi-year, capital-intensive development that either performs well or underperforms for years afterward. Getting this role right means the company pursues the right development opportunities and negotiates lease terms that protect long-term returns, while getting it wrong can lock the business into underperforming assets or unfavourable lease structures that are extremely difficult to unwind later. Because Majid Al Futtaim's business is built substantially around shopping malls, mixed-use developments, and retail real estate, the quality of site selection and lease negotiation directly shapes the commercial viability of the retail and entertainment experiences the group is known for across the region. This role also has ripple effects across the tenant ecosystem, since favourable, well-structured leases attract stronger tenant mixes, which in turn drives footfall and revenue across the wider development. In a competitive regional real estate market where prime sites and strong tenant relationships are genuinely scarce, the negotiation and analytical skill applied in this role has a direct, lasting effect on the commercial success of whatever development it touches.

Business development experience in real estate at a group the scale of Majid Al Futtaim builds genuinely rare and valuable expertise, since exposure to large-scale site selection, development strategy, and lease negotiation at this level isn't something available at smaller regional developers or brokerages. The financial modelling and market analysis skills built in this role are highly transferable across real estate investment, development, and even broader corporate strategy roles, making this a strong foundation for a long-term career in property or commercial strategy more generally. The negotiation experience gained managing lease agreements and development partnerships also builds a specific and valuable commercial skill: the ability to structure deals that protect long-term value rather than just closing quickly, a distinction that becomes increasingly important as someone moves into more senior real estate or investment roles. Working within Majid Al Futtaim's development business also provides direct exposure to how one of the region's most significant retail and real estate portfolios is actually built and managed, which is a genuinely differentiated credential on a resume within the regional property sector. For someone building a career toward senior real estate development, investment, or strategy leadership, this Business Development Manager role offers exactly the kind of deal-making and analytical experience that positions someone well for future Director or Head of Development roles, whether that progression continues within Majid Al Futtaim or moves to another major regional developer or investment firm.

• Experience in real estate development, business development, or commercial property within a comparable regional market
• Strong financial and market analysis skills for evaluating site selection and development opportunities
• Proven experience negotiating lease terms or comparable commercial agreements
• Ability to manage long, multi-stakeholder deal processes involving landowners, tenants, or development partners
• Strong strategic thinking, with the ability to contribute to broader market and site prioritisation decisions
• Bachelor’s degree in real estate, business, finance, or a related field
• Excellent relationship-building and negotiation skills