Regional Strategic Key Account Director

Daikin Middle East & Africa (DAME) is a subsidiary of Daikin Industries Limited, a Japanese outstanding company and worldwide the biggest developer, producer and supplier of HVAC-R (heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration) solutions, including heating pumps and cooling technology.

DAME is Daikin’s Middle East and Africa regional HQ. The regional has headquarter in Dubai and other offices in Abu Dhabi, Cairo (Egypt), Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), Qatar as well as 2 production plants, and 2 sales subsidiaries and offices and a whole network of independent distributors and dealers across the MEA region.

Role Purpose:

We are committed to delivering innovative, sustainable climate solutions that shape a better future. The Regional Strategic Key Account Director plays a pivotal role in advancing this vision by driving strategic growth across high-potential vertical markets and empowering our affiliate offices to build and manage long-term partnerships with key customers.

This role is both visionary and hands-on — aligning Daikin’s regional objectives with market needs while supporting affiliate teams to implement a scalable, customer-centric Key Account Management (KAM) approach.

Key Responsibilities:

🔹 Vertical Market Leadership

• Define and execute strategic growth plans across priority verticals (e.g., Industrial, Hospitality, Pharmaceuticals, Real Estate Developers, Food & Beverage).
• Collaborate with Solution, marketing, and product teams to develop value-driven offerings tailored to each sector.
• Engage directly with top regional customers to establish trust, identify opportunities, and expand Daikin’s footprint.

🔹 Affiliate Enablement & Capability Building

• Guide and support MEA affiliate markets in developing localized Key Account structures aligned with Daikin’s regional KAM framework.
• Provide tools, governance, coaching, and performance benchmarks to ensure consistent execution.
• Foster a culture of collaboration and knowledge exchange across countries.

🔹 Regional Key Account Program Execution

• Lead the implementation of Daikin’s Regional Strategic Accounts Program, driving harmonization of account planning, pipeline development, and CRM usage.
• Ensure cross-border account coordination to deliver seamless customer experiences across multiple geographies.
• Regularly review account strategies with affiliates and recommend actions to optimize performance.

🔹 Customer-Centric Engagement

• Serve as the executive contact for strategic regional accounts, building multi-level relationships and ensuring Daikin is seen as a trusted advisor.
• Drive customer value creation through innovation, energy efficiency, lifecycle solutions, and digital tools.

🔹 Performance Monitoring & Reporting

• Define KPIs and success metrics for vertical growth and strategic accounts across the region.
• Ensure pipeline visibility and forecasting accuracy for strategic accounts across the region.
• Prepare regular reports and executive dashboards for MEA Leadership, providing insights on account performance, opportunities, and risks.
• Translate data into strategic recommendations for continuous improvement.

Candidate Profile:

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, Business, or a related field (MBA is a plus)
• Minimum of 10 years’ experience in key account management, vertical market development, or B2B sales leadership
• Proven ability to lead regional programs and influence across culturally diverse teams
• Strong commercial acumen and understanding of HVAC-R value propositions
• Excellent stakeholder engagement, communication, and negotiation skills
• Strategic mindset with execution capabilities
• Fluent in English; Arabic is a plus
• Willingness to travel across the MEA region

Success Metrics:

• Revenue and margin growth across strategic verticals
• Regional strategic account expansion and retention
• Affiliate adoption and maturity of KAM processes
• Stakeholder feedback from customers and internal teams
• Timely and impactful leadership reporting with clear performance insights
• Effective implementation of regional account tools and governance

Daikin Middle East & Africa FZE is a subsidiary of Daikin Industries Ltd. and the leading provider of heating, cooling, ventilation, air purification, and refrigeration technology. The company designs, manufactures and brings to market a broad portfolio of equipment, as well as tailor-made solutions for residential, commercial, and industrial purposes in Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). To date, Daikin EMEA has over 12 000 employees across more than 59 consolidated subsidiaries. It has 12 major manufacturing facilities based in Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany, Italy, Spain, Turkey, Austria, and the UK. Our aim is to drive sustainable and effective solutions, sparking a good climate for the generations to come. And all this can only be achieved because of our People. 

Good climate starts with people 
Our employees are the beating heart of our company. At Daikin, you get to work in a positive environment backed by trust, creativity and continuous improvement. Together, we create our top-quality solutions by empowering talented teams. You will get plenty of opportunities to learn and grow. We are deeply committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace culture that reflects the communities we serve. Good climate starts with people.