Credit Assessment Lead

The Credit Assessment, Lead is a senior-level position within the Credit Intelligence Department of the Company, responsible for leading the credit assessment function across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The role combines deep technical expertise in corporate credit analysis with team leadership responsibilities, ensuring that the KSA credit team delivers high-quality, timely, and well-justified assessments in full alignment with the company's grading methodology.

The Credit Assessment, Lead serves as the primary credit authority for the KSA market, acting as a trusted partner to internal stakeholders across Underwriting, Commercial, and Claims, while also maintaining an active and visible presence in the local market through direct engagement with buyers and key sector participants. The role plays a pivotal part in shaping the credit risk profile of the KSA portfolio and in driving the strategic direction of credit intelligence activities in the region.

This role will suit someone from one of the Top 4 Consultancy Firms and preferably an Arabic Speaker

Key Responsibilities

Credit Assessment and Portfolio Management

The Credit Assessment, Lead is responsible for overseeing the assessment of SMEs and large-cap companies operating in the KSA market, ensuring that each entity is assigned an accurate and well-supported grade in accordance with the company's grading methodology and key risk factors by sector. Assessments must reflect a thorough understanding of the company's financial position, industry dynamics, and macroeconomic context, and must be clearly documented and defensible to internal stakeholders.

The role is accountable for the active monitoring of the credit portfolio in line with established sensitivity thresholds, ensuring that any deterioration in credit quality is identified and acted upon promptly. This includes maintaining a regular schedule of buyer visits and market engagement to ensure that the team's assessments are grounded in real-time market intelligence and direct counterparty insight.

Team Leadership and Development

As the Credit Assessment Lead for KSA, the role holder is responsible for managing, mentoring, and developing the local credit team. This includes setting clear performance expectations, providing ongoing coaching and feedback, and fostering a culture of analytical rigor, continuous improvement, and professional development. The Credit Assessment, Lead ensures that the team operates efficiently, meets all internal deadlines, and maintains the highest standards of assessment quality.

The role also plays a key part in building the team's capabilities in sector analysis, financial modelling, and stakeholder communication, ensuring that the KSA credit function is well-positioned to support the growth ambitions of the business in the region.

Sector Intelligence and Reporting

The Credit Assessment, Lead is responsible for preparing and presenting detailed quarterly sector insights and reports, providing a comprehensive view of credit trends, risk concentrations, and emerging vulnerabilities across key sectors of the KSA economy. These reports are shared with senior leadership and internal stakeholders to inform underwriting strategy, commercial positioning, and risk appetite decisions.

This role also leads to the delivery of ad hoc analytical requirements, including country and sector matrices, large risk reports, and other credit intelligence outputs as required by the business. All deliverables are expected to be of the highest analytical quality and submitted within agreed timelines.

Stakeholder Engagement and Transversal Projects

The Credit Assessment, Lead maintains close and productive relationships with internal stakeholders across the Underwriting, Commercial, and Claims departments, ensuring that credit decisions are communicated clearly, understood in context, and aligned with the broader business strategy. The role acts as a key point of escalation for complex or sensitive credit cases, providing expert guidance and well-reasoned recommendations.

In addition to core credit responsibilities, the Credit Assessment, Lead actively participates in transversal projects within the Credit Intelligence Department, contributing to the continuous improvement of processes, tools, and methodologies across the wider credit function.

Key Objectives and Performance Indicators

The Credit Assessment Lead KSA is assessed against a combination of quality, timeliness, and commercial impact metrics. Key performance indicators include response time on credit assessments, the quality of assessments as measured by their effectiveness in mitigating claims, the timely submission of large risk reports, and the regularity and quality of SME and large-cap buyer contacts and visits. The role is also measured on the timely review of sensitive risks and the on-time delivery of ad hoc requirements such as country and sector matrices and sector reports.

At a leadership level, the Credit Assessment, Lead is expected to demonstrate measurable impact on team performance, capability development, and the overall quality and consistency of credit output from the KSA team.

Skills and Competencies

Technical and Professional Skills

This role requires strong expertise in corporate credit analysis, with a proven ability to assess both SMEs and large-cap companies across a range of sectors. The Credit Assessment, Lead must possess deep knowledge of GCC markets and key regional trade sectors, combined with a solid understanding of the company's grading methodology and the risk factors that drive credit decisions in the region. A minimum of five to eight years of relevant experience in banking, audit and consulting, or the credit insurance industry is required.

A master's degree in finance or accounting, or an equivalent qualification in Audit or Finance, is required. A CFA or equivalent professional qualification is highly desirable. Strong business writing and communication skills in English are essential; proficiency in Arabic is considered a significant advantage given the KSA market context.

Leadership and Interpersonal Competencies

The ideal candidate is an agile, collaborative team player with the ability to lead by example and inspire high performance within the credit team. The role demands the ability to make and justify grading decisions with confidence, even in complex or ambiguous situations, and to communicate those decisions clearly and persuasively to internal stakeholders. Strong negotiation skills are essential for sourcing the necessary information from counterparties and for managing internal alignment on sensitive credit positions.

The Credit Assessment, Lead must be self-motivated, proactive, and committed to continuous personal and professional development. The ability to manage multiple tasks and projects simultaneously, adapt to constant change in a dynamic business environment, and maintain a high standard of output under pressure are all critical attributes for success in this role. Excellent communication and presentation skills are required to engage effectively with senior leadership, internal teams, and external market participants.

Future Challenges

The Credit Assessment Lead KSA will need to navigate a rapidly evolving credit landscape in the Kingdom, shaped by Vision 2030 transformation initiatives, significant shifts in key sectors such as construction, retail, and energy, and an increasingly complex macroeconomic environment. The ability to maintain the quality and timeliness of credit assessments while managing a growing and diversifying portfolio will require strong prioritisation skills and a highly capable, well-developed team.

Adapting to constant change in a dynamic and competitive business environment — while simultaneously driving the continuous improvement of credit processes and methodologies — will be the defining challenge for the Credit Assessment, Lead in the years ahead. The role will also need to stay ahead of emerging risks, including those arising from geopolitical developments, digital disruption, and evolving regulatory frameworks in the KSA market.