APACMEA Regional Operations - ME

APACEMEA Regional Operations – Middle East | Barclays

The APACMEA Operations VP will play a pivotal role in managing operational delivery across the APACMEA region, ensuring processes are efficient, compliant, and aligned to business growth objectives. Sitting within Global Markets Operations (GMO)—the function responsible for enabling the seamless execution and servicing of products across Middle Office, Prime Services, Post Trade, Settlements, and Asset Servicing—this role is at the heart of delivering operational excellence in a dynamic regulatory and market environment.

This position will oversee the design, execution, and continuous improvement of operational processes, embedding strong risk management and governance practices. You will monitor performance metrics, identify trends and opportunities for efficiency, and drive initiatives to strengthen controls while supporting regulatory compliance. A key aspect of the role will be fostering strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders—including business leaders, project teams, vendors, and service providers—to ensure operational delivery meets service level agreements and aligns with strategic objectives.

The role demands a leader who can act as a catalyst for change, champion a culture of continuous improvement, and create an environment where colleagues feel empowered to share ideas and raise concerns. You will use data-driven insights to develop and track KPIs, provide expert guidance to senior stakeholders, and navigate complex priorities across multiple business functions to deliver effective solutions at pace.

As our global markets business continues to expand across the Middle East, this role will play a critical part in preparing for and supporting growth into Saudi Arabia. This includes future responsibilities such as establishing a Saudi-based operational framework, developing regulatory processes in line with local authorities, and supporting the potential physical setup of an office in the Kingdom. While the initial location is Dubai, candidates should demonstrate openness to international mobility and the ability to adapt to strategic developments, including a possible relocation to Saudi Arabia over the medium term (2+ years).

Essential Skills / Basic Qualifications

• Over 10 years’ experience in Investment Banking Operations, Global Markets Operations and/or Corporate Banking Operations
• Proven understanding of the operational requirements for supporting a new entity buildout
• Experience in expanding or introducing new products and managing their operational impact
• Strong knowledge of regional and local regulatory frameworks
• Excellent numerical and analytical skills
• Positive, proactive, and solutions-focused mindset with strong attention to detail
• Ability to present complex information in a concise and impactful manner
• Detailed understanding of at least 2–3 of the following product families:
  • Securities
  • Listed Futures & Options
  • Foreign Exchange
  • OTC Derivatives

Desirable Skills / Preferred Qualifications

• In-depth knowledge or prior experience in multiple Markets and Corporate Post Trade functions, ideally in:
  • Middle Office
  • Trade Management
  • Confirmations
  • Settlement & Delivery
  • Asset Servicing
• Advanced proficiency with documentation, planning, and presentation tools (e.g. MS Office, SharePoint, Visio, MS Co-Pilot, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint)
• Experience with Salesforce, Alteryx, and Blue Prism preferred

This role is based in Dubai.

You may be assessed on the key critical skills relevant for success in role, such as risk and controls, change and transformation, business acumen strategic thinking and digital and technology, as well as job-specific technical skills.

Purpose of the role

To manage operations within a business area and maintain processes, risk management initiatives and compliance with relevant regulators.

Accountabilities

• Identification of trends and opportunities to improve areas and develop new process and procedures through the monitoring and analysis of operation data and performance metrices.
• Management of operations for a business area and promote efficient processes, risk management and compliance initiatives to support the bank's operations.
• Collaboration with internal stakeholders (including business leaders, project manager and SMEs) and external stakeholders (including vendors and service providers) to support business operations and promote alignment with the bank's objectives and SLAs.
• Management of operational professionals and provide guidance, coaching and support to improve colleagues' delivery quality.
• Management and development of KPIs to measure the effectiveness of operation functions, utilising data and technology to support the identification of areas that require improvement.
• Compliance with all regulatory requirements and internal policies related to customer experience.
• Creation of a safe environment for colleagues to speak up, actively and regularly encourage and solicit feedback to ensure people agenda remains focused on the right areas.
• Management of attrition by working closely with HR in implementing retention initiatives for work force.

Vice President Expectations

• To contribute or set strategy, drive requirements and make recommendations for change. Plan resources, budgets, and policies; manage and maintain policies/ processes; deliver continuous improvements and escalate breaches of policies/procedures..
• If managing a team, they define jobs and responsibilities, planning for the department’s future needs and operations, counselling employees on performance and contributing to employee pay decisions/changes. They may also lead a number of specialists to influence the operations of a department, in alignment with strategic as well as tactical priorities, while balancing short and long term goals and ensuring that budgets and schedules meet corporate requirements..
• If the position has leadership responsibilities, People Leaders are expected to demonstrate a clear set of leadership behaviours to create an environment for colleagues to thrive and deliver to a consistently excellent standard. The four LEAD behaviours are: L – Listen and be authentic, E – Energise and inspire, A – Align across the enterprise, D – Develop others..
• OR for an individual contributor, they will be a subject matter expert within own discipline and will guide technical direction. They will lead collaborative, multi-year assignments and guide team members through structured assignments, identify the need for the inclusion of other areas of specialisation to complete assignments. They will train, guide and coach less experienced specialists and provide information affecting long term profits, organisational risks and strategic decisions..
• Advise key stakeholders, including functional leadership teams and senior management on functional and cross functional areas of impact and alignment.
• Manage and mitigate risks through assessment, in support of the control and governance agenda.
• Demonstrate leadership and accountability for managing risk and strengthening controls in relation to the work your team does.
• Demonstrate comprehensive understanding of the organisation functions to contribute to achieving the goals of the business.
• Collaborate with other areas of work, for business aligned support areas to keep up to speed with business activity and the business strategies.
• Create solutions based on sophisticated analytical thought comparing and selecting complex alternatives. In-depth analysis with interpretative thinking will be required to define problems and develop innovative solutions.
• Adopt and include the outcomes of extensive research in problem solving processes.
• Seek out, build and maintain trusting relationships and partnerships with internal and external stakeholders in order to accomplish key business objectives, using influencing and negotiating skills to achieve outcomes.

All colleagues will be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Values of Respect, Integrity, Service, Excellence and Stewardship – our moral compass, helping us do what we believe is right. They will also be expected to demonstrate the Barclays Mindset – to Empower, Challenge and Drive – the operating manual for how we behave.