Head of Market

We are seeking a dynamic and commercially focused Head of Market to lead the English and Examinations business in Pakistan for a prominent international education and cultural organisation. This senior leadership role is based preferably in Islamabad, with Karachi or Lahore also considered, and requires on-site presence with travel across the country as needed. Pakistan represents a strategically vital market, serving tens of thousands of young people and supporting hundreds of thousands of examinations annually through a broad national network. The portfolio includes school examinations, English-language testing, professional and university qualifications, as well as an emerging online English-learning platform with significant growth potential. The successful candidate will drive a unified market strategy by integrating Operations, Business Development, Sales, Marketing, and Customer Service, managing a large cross-functional team through both direct and matrix leadership.

Key Responsibilities
- Develop and implement the commercial strategy for English-language and examination services across Pakistan.
- Take ownership of the business’s commercial performance, focusing on revenue growth, profitability, and long-term sustainability.
- Analyze P&L and performance data to identify risks, opportunities, and actionable growth solutions.
- Expand the business through existing institutional relationships, partnerships, and customer channels.
- Build and maintain a sustainable pipeline of new business opportunities.
- Identify and pursue opportunities to broaden examination services, qualifications, and English-learning products.
- Drive the growth and development of the organisation’s online English-learning offering.
- Lead and align teams across Operations, Business Development, Sales, Marketing, and Customer Service.
- Provide effective leadership to both directly and indirectly managed teams.
- Strengthen relationships with school networks, awarding bodies, channel partners, universities, and government stakeholders.
- Ensure customer needs and market trends guide commercial decisions and service development.
- Enhance the end-to-end customer journey and ensure consistent service delivery across the market.
- Represent the organisation with senior internal and external stakeholders.
- Collaborate with regional and global teams to align Pakistan’s strategy with wider organisational priorities.
- Maintain high standards of governance, operational delivery, and risk management.

Required Qualifications
- Proven senior commercial, business development, or general management experience within a large organisation or market.
- Demonstrated success in growing revenue through both existing relationships and new business development.
- Experience in creating, managing, and converting a meaningful commercial pipeline.
- Strong financial acumen with the ability to analyze P&L and use insights to inform business decisions.
- Commercially astute with a focus on sustainable growth and profitability.
- Experience leading large or cross-functional teams through direct and matrix management structures.
- Excellent stakeholder management skills, capable of influencing senior external partners and internal teams.
- Customer-centric mindset with the ability to identify opportunities based on evolving market needs.
- Experience operating across multiple locations, customer segments, or service lines.
- Ability to balance strategic leadership with hands-on commercial execution.

Preferred Qualifications and Benefits
Experience in education, English-language learning, examinations, assessments, qualifications, educational publishing, or awarding bodies is highly desirable. Candidates from other large-scale, consumer-focused sectors such as FMCG or retail may also be considered if they demonstrate strong commercial leadership, customer focus, and experience managing complex businesses. Experience working within international organisations or across international markets is an advantage.

This role offers the opportunity to lead one of the organisation’s most important markets, shaping the future growth of its English and Examinations business in Pakistan. The successful candidate will inherit an established portfolio with extensive national reach and strong institutional partnerships. Key opportunities include unifying multiple functions under a cohesive commercial strategy, expanding relationships with leading education partners, developing new business channels, growing emerging English-learning services, and enhancing the experience for learners, institutions, and partners. This position combines significant commercial responsibility with meaningful educational impact.