Head of Client Acquisition

Role overview

This position is responsible for setting up and leading Emirates Investment Bank’s Client Acquisition Office. The aim is to convert key acquisition channels, referral networks, and partnership opportunities into a reliable flow of qualified prospects and funded private banking relationships.

Purpose of the role

The Client Acquisition Lead will create, run, and continuously refine the bank’s Client Acquisition Office. This includes shaping and delivering the acquisition plan across referral programmes, opportunities within the Al-Futtaim Group ecosystem, introducer partnerships, strategic alliances, digital outreach, and relationship-based prospecting.

The role owns the full acquisition journey, starting with lead generation and qualification, then moving through Relationship Manager allocation and conversion into funded client relationships. It will act as the main owner of acquisition performance and work closely with Private Banking, Marketing, Product, Operations, Treasury, Compliance, Technology, and external partners to support the bank’s growth goals.

Key performance indicators

• Volume of qualified leads generated
• Number of meetings scheduled with Relationship Managers
• Conversion rate from prospect to client
• Count of newly acquired clients
• Net new assets under management
• Productivity of introducers
• Effectiveness of referral programmes
• Lead response turnaround time
• Rate of completed qualification
• Quality of CRM data
• Pipeline conversion ratios
• Adherence to service-level agreements
• Diversification of acquisition channels
• Development of partnerships
• Efficiency of acquisition spend
• Growth of the acquisition pipeline

What you will do

You will define the acquisition strategy for affluent and high-net-worth client segments, build a scalable model aligned with private banking growth targets, identify new business development avenues, and keep the approach current by tracking market trends, competitor moves, and industry best practices.

You will also design and manage referral programmes for clients, employees, and business partners; onboard and oversee introducers and strategic partners; develop opportunities within the Al-Futtaim Group ecosystem; negotiate commercial terms with approved introducers and referral sources; and set governance standards for referral activity.

On the campaign side, you will oversee acquisition initiatives across approved channels, coordinate with Marketing and external agencies, ensure messaging stays consistent, approve campaign priorities, and monitor campaign performance and return on investment.

For lead management, you will own the process from lead origination through to conversion tracking, define qualification rules, lead scoring, and routing approaches, establish Relationship Manager allocation frameworks, remove bottlenecks that slow conversion, and help Relationship Managers improve outcomes.

You will define acquisition reporting standards, review performance on a weekly and monthly basis, analyze lead quality, channel performance, and acquisition costs, monitor economics and return on investment, and present results to Executive Management.

In governance and control, you will make sure all acquisition activity complies with UAE regulatory requirements, set policies, procedures, and service standards, maintain CRM governance and reporting accuracy, protect client information in line with information security expectations, and support Internal Audit, Compliance, and Risk reviews when needed.

You will contribute to strategic projects, support EIBx growth initiatives, take part in product launches and acquisition-related programmes, help improve CRM, marketing automation, and lead-management tools, and support future enhancements to the operating model.

As a manager, you will lead and develop the Client Acquisition Office, oversee the Client Acquisition Specialist, set team goals and performance benchmarks, encourage accountability and client-centric behaviour, promote cross-functional cooperation, and ensure disciplined execution of all acquisition work.

Qualifications

• A bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Finance, Marketing, Economics, or a related field is required.
• An MBA or a professional banking qualification is preferred.
• Additional certifications in Wealth Management, Digital Marketing, Business Development, or Sales Leadership would be an advantage.

Experience

• At least 10 years of experience in Private Banking, Wealth Management, Retail Banking, or Financial Services is required.
• A strong record of success in client acquisition and business development is essential.
• Prior exposure to acquisition channels, introducer networks, and partnerships is needed.
• A solid understanding of affluent and high-net-worth client segments is important.
• Experience in UAE financial services is strongly preferred.
• Earlier leadership experience is preferred.

Additional information

This role includes accountability for both commercial outcomes and operational discipline. The successful candidate will be expected to work closely with internal stakeholders across Private Banking, Marketing, Product, Operations, Treasury, Compliance, and Technology, as well as with external partners, to build a robust client acquisition engine.