By Editorial Team · 7/23/2026
Building a nuclear program is fundamentally a leadership challenge before it is an engineering or construction challenge. The decisions that shape program outcomes — technology selection, regulatory posture, contractor structure, workforce strategy — are made by a small number of senior executives during the 24 to 36 months before first concrete is poured. Getting those hires right is the single highest-leverage act a nuclear program owner can take.
Below are the leadership roles Saudi Arabia's nuclear program will need to have in place well before construction begins, why each matters, and the profile of professional the Kingdom should be recruiting.
─── Chief Nuclear Officer (CNO)
The most consequential single hire on any new-build nuclear program. The CNO owns the technical direction of the program, is accountable to the board and to the regulator, and sets the safety culture that governs every subsequent decision. On a first-of-a-kind national program, the CNO is also the primary interface with reactor vendors, the national regulator, and international partners.
Required profile: 25+ years of nuclear operations and program leadership. Direct experience with new-build delivery — ideally as CNO or deputy on a completed or in-progress program. Regulatory credibility with a Tier-1 nuclear regulator (NRC, ONR, ASN, or equivalent).
─── Licensing Director
The licensing pathway determines the program's schedule as much as any engineering decision. The Licensing Director owns the regulatory strategy, manages the submission workstream, and is the day-to-day interface with the national nuclear regulator. On a first-of-a-kind program, this role also shapes how the regulator itself develops — a responsibility that has no analog in mature nuclear countries.
Required profile: senior licensing leadership on a completed new-build program. Experience navigating a developing regulatory environment is a significant advantage. Barakah, Hinkley Point C, and the US AP1000 programs are the natural talent pools.
─── Head of Nuclear Safety
Independent of the CNO in reporting line, the Head of Nuclear Safety owns the safety case, the operational safety framework, and the independent oversight function that gives the board and the regulator confidence that the program is being built and operated to international standards.
Required profile: senior nuclear safety leadership at an operating utility or new-build program. INPO / WANO evaluator experience is highly valued. Independence of judgment matters more than tenure.
─── Owner's Engineer Lead
On a program of this scale, the Owner's Engineer function is the technical counterweight to the EPC contractor. This leader manages the engineering oversight team, reviews EPC deliverables, and is the technical decision-maker when disputes arise between the owner and the contractor. Underinvesting in this role transfers technical authority to the EPC — a decision that is difficult to reverse and expensive to live with.
Required profile: senior engineering leadership from a nuclear owner, Owner's Engineer firm, or reactor vendor. Direct new-build experience is essential. Familiarity with the selected reactor technology is a significant advantage but not a prerequisite.
─── Program Director
The Program Director owns delivery — schedule, cost, and interface management across the EPC contractors, the Owner's Engineer, and the owner's own organization. On a 16-reactor program executed in phases, this role is closer to a portfolio director than a single-project manager. It requires someone who has run a megaproject organization, not someone who has managed a single project within one.
Required profile: senior program leadership on a nuclear new-build or comparable megaproject (LNG, major rail, large petrochemical). Experience managing multiple concurrent EPC contractors is essential.
─── Head of Human Capital / Workforce Development
This role is chronically underweighted on new-build programs and chronically overstretched when the program reaches construction and the workforce demand becomes acute. The organizations that staff this function early — with genuine authority and resources — produce materially better workforce outcomes.
Required profile: a combination of nuclear industry HR leadership and Gulf region workforce development experience. The Saudization component is not optional; it is a program requirement and a national priority.
─── Commercial and Contracts Director
The EPC contracts for a 16-reactor program represent the most complex commercial relationships the Kingdom will enter in the energy sector for a generation. The Commercial Director structures those contracts, manages the commercial interface with EPC contractors throughout delivery, and owns claim management — the function that determines whether overruns are absorbed by the owner or contested with the contractor.
Required profile: major nuclear or megaproject commercial and contracts experience. NEC4 or FIDIC contract management background. Claim and dispute resolution experience on complex infrastructure programs.
─── The sequencing question
These roles are not all needed on day one. The sequencing matters. The CNO and Licensing Director should be hired first — before technology selection is finalized. The Head of Nuclear Safety and Owner's Engineer Lead follow as the regulatory and EPC frameworks are developed. The Program Director and Commercial Director are needed as contract structures are being negotiated. Head of Human Capital should be brought in early but is often delayed — that delay costs the program on Saudization outcomes.
A rough sequencing:
| Now — 12 months | 12 — 24 months | 24 — 36 months |
| ---------------------- | ---------------------- | ---------------------- |
| Chief Nuclear Officer | Owner's Engineer Lead | Commercial Director |
| Licensing Director | Program Director | Head of Human Capital |
| Head of Nuclear Safety | | |
─── What the talent market looks like
The professionals in these roles are not numerous. Globally, the population of executives with genuine major nuclear new-build delivery experience — owner-side — numbers in the hundreds, not thousands. Many are still engaged on active programs: Hinkley Point C, the Polish new-build program, South Korea's domestic fleet.
The US-Saudi agreement has materially changed the calculus for American professionals considering Saudi roles. Regulatory uncertainty about the bilateral framework was a genuine deterrent. That deterrent is now removed.
The organizations that begin mapping this talent — building relationships, understanding availability windows, engaging confidentially — will be positioned when the mandates are formally issued. The organizations that wait for job postings will be competing for what's left.
─── Saudi Nuclear Energy is an independent executive search and workforce intelligence firm supporting the organizations building nuclear power in Saudi Arabia. We are not affiliated with the Saudi government, KACARE, or any nuclear regulator.