I turn diagnosis into a result, not a report that gets filed.
Seventeen years from operations to strategy: experience that crossed every layer, and an impact that carries into every engagement.
Advice that works is advice that has been through delivery.
I started in management and operations in 2009, then moved through IT, procurement, data protection and governance, and from there into strategy. A path with no shortcuts, and that is what gives my work its value when I sit with a team living the problem from the inside.
I lead projects that take an organization from diagnosis to proof: maturity assessment, gap analysis, operating model redesign, market entry strategy, governance build out, and performance measurement. My portfolio spans healthcare, insurance, maritime, automotive, tourism, technology and telecom.
Senior Manager, Digital Transformation
Strategy and consulting at a Big Four firm, leading a team of more than 45 specialists across seven sectors.
PhD and MBA
A PhD in Business Administration from Effat University and an MBA with honors from Dar Al-Hekma University.
McKinsey, Harvard, Wharton
Global executive programs, plus 44 professional certifications across six domains.
Services
All servicesFrom vision to impact
Strategic planning and execution, market entry, operating model design, business development, and portfolio and performance management.
Learn more Transformation & TechnologyDigital transformation that works
Transformation programs, ERP implementation on SAP S/4HANA, process automation, enterprise architecture, and applied AI.
Learn more Governance, Risk & ComplianceGovernance as an enabler
Building a GRC system, risk management with ISO 31000, information security with ISO/IEC 27001, data protection and privacy, and Saudi regulatory compliance.
Learn moreImpact in numbers
Library
All piecesResearch
Open the research trackPhD in Business Administration
Effat College of Business, Effat University. The track splits into three branches: the academic one organized by course, business theories, and publications.
Open the track PublicationsThree papers under review
Three papers submitted to peer reviewed conferences in 2026.
See the list The master's trackTwenty one academic works
Study guides and applied papers produced during the MBA.
Open the trackEvery large transformation starts with a conversation.
Happy to connect about collaboration, consulting, or sharing ideas.
Services
I work in four areas. Each one begins with a diagnosis and ends in a result you can measure.
Ready to start?
Tell me the challenge and the result you want to reach, and I will come back with a clear line of work.
Library
What I have learned, written in a form you can use.
Ninety four pieces on management, strategy, technology, governance and general knowledge, in Arabic and English.
Research
This is not a publication list. It is my working research track: the doctoral track with its academic, theory and publication branches, and the master's track with its completed works.
The doctoral track
Effat College of Business, Effat University, Jeddah.
These are the axes the papers I am working on turn around.
Seven core and seven electives, each with its own pieces in the academic branch below.
The academic branch is organized by course: seven core and seven electives. Each course opens onto its own topics and the pieces that belong to it.
Theories and the fields of business management: a map of the fields and the theories each one rests on. Twelve core fields and twelve sub fields. Each field opens onto its theories, and each theory is a piece with its origin, its mechanism, its use in research, its critique and its references.
The publications branch is the papers and the conferences. Three papers are currently submitted to peer reviewed conferences and are under review, so they appear here with short titles and a single line on the subject. Full details are published once a decision is issued.
The master's track
An MBA from Dar Al-Hekma University, 2024 to 2025, with distinction and honors. The coursework produced two kinds of work: study guides that summarize the material, and applied papers that take a framework down onto a real company.
A research collaboration, or a conversation about a paper?
Happy to hear from researchers, supervisors, and institutional research teams.
Resume
From operations to strategy.
Seventeen years of experience, backed by academic education, global executive programs, and forty four professional certifications.
A transformation and growth advisor who combines operational depth with strategic vision. Over more than seventeen years, I moved from managing operations, technology and procurement to leading strategy and executive advisory. Today I lead a consulting practice within a Big Four firm, advising leaders and boards on growth strategy, operating model redesign, governance and digital transformation. My background spans ERP systems, data protection and risk management, backed by a PhD in Business Administration in progress, a master's degree with honors, executive programs from Harvard, Wharton and McKinsey, and forty four professional certifications.
Professional experience
Senior Manager of Digital Transformation, Strategy and Advisory
- I lead a first tier consulting practice with a team of more than 45 specialists, achieving cost reductions, higher organizational maturity, and sustained performance improvement across client portfolios.
- I advise executive leaders and boards on growth strategy, market entry, operating model redesign, and organizational innovation across seven sectors.
- I apply strategic, operational and governance frameworks across the full consulting cycle, from maturity assessment and gap analysis to implementation and performance measurement.
Previous professional experience, 16 years
Manager of Strategy, Risk and Business Development
Lead IT Officer and Data Protection Officer
Technical Support and Procurement Specialist
Administrative Executive
Education
PhD in Business Administration
Master of Business Administration
Executive programs
McKinsey Forward Program
Strategy: Designing and Executing Corporate Renewal
Digital Leadership Certificate
Measurable impact
Professional certifications
Skills
Strategy and growth
Transformation and technology
Governance, risk and compliance
Research, analysis and advisory
Contact
Start with a conversation, not a form.
I read and answer every message myself. Write to me directly by email, reach me on LinkedIn, or use the digital card if you want to save my details.
The fastest way to reach me
Write me the challenge, the result you need, and the timeline. I usually come back within two working days.
WhatsAppFor direct requests and quick questions
+966 55 564 5623Tell me the service you want, or start from the services page so the request arrives written out.
LinkedInFor professional contact and following the work
linkedin.com/in/saif3liThis is where I share what is worth sharing from the library and the research track.
XFor the shorter notes
x.com/saif3li_phdThe same work in a shorter form, in Arabic and English.
ORCIDThe research identity
0009-0008-5154-8961For academic contact and for linking papers to the research identity.
Research mailFor research and academic work
Kept for research correspondence, publication, peer review and conferences.
Digital cardSave my details in one tap
dot.cards/saifEvery channel on one card that saves straight into your contacts.
What makes a message useful
What is not working today, and how do you know? Two lines are enough.
What does success look like, and who will judge it?
When do you need the result, and what constraints sit on the team or the budget?
For research collaboration, add the field of the paper, the target conference or journal, and the deadline.