Arij Abanomi
Hospitality Director
Riyadh,Saudi Arabia
Summary
Accomplished professional specializing in strategic planning, program management, and team development. Proven leadership skills with a focus on mentoring and staff training. Expertise in contract negotiations, budget management, and regulatory compliance, ensuring optimal resource allocation. Committed to driving growth through continuous process improvements and data analytics.
Overview
2
2
Certification
31
31
years of professional experience
Work history
Director of Hospitality Services
King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz University Hospital
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
2022.01 - 2026.06
- Assisted in managing three service sections to ensure satisfaction of patients and staff.
- Supported three managers and their teams alongside three contractors, overseeing 120 contractor staff.
- Helped establish strategic direction by providing necessary resources to achieve objectives.
- Collaborated on various hospital committees to enhance service delivery.
- Coordinated VIP requirements to fulfill hospitality needs.
- Aided in launching housing services contracts and policies, including preventive maintenance.
- Contributed to policy preparation for hospitality, patient services, and employee and family services.
- Arranged contracts for children's day care services.
- Facilitated setup of food and beverage services.
Food Services and Food Safety Consultant
Self-Employed
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
2008.01 - 2026.06
- Assisted 6 organizations in formulating guidelines and policies
- Supported creation of educational materials for training and team development for 10 companies.
- Aided businesses in preparing for successful accreditation for 3 entities.
Nutrition and Health Education Consultant
Self-Employed
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
1995.01 - Current
- Assisted 3 organisations in developing guidelines and policies.
- Supported creation of more than 50 educational materials and facilitated team development.
- Aided 3 enterprises in preparation for accreditation processes.
- Drafted and reviewed 20 contracts for compliance.
- Established instructional standards and evaluated performance metrics.
- Collaborated with clients including directorate of nutrition and moh bin khaldoon polyclinic and 10 local restaurant companies.
- Presented lectures to more than 400 interns and new staff on interviews ,professional conduct, food safety and haccp guidelines.
- Conducted teacher training sessions to improve instructional skills.
- Fostered supportive learning environments through open communication.
- Organised staff development workshops to enhance teaching methods.
- Advocated for special needs students to secure resources and support services.
Manager of Hospitality Services
King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz University Hospital
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
2017.01 - 2022.01
- Assisted in managing department services to enhance patient satisfaction and hospitality services maintained at above 80%
- Supported accreditation processes for department compliance.
- Hired and mentored staff while overseeing contractor personnel.
- Facilitated staff training sessions to improve customer service delivery.
- Organized team-building activities to create positive work environments.
- Helped build relationships with clients for repeat business.
- Streamlined communication to enhance internal information flow.
Acting Director of Clinical Nutrition Services
King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz University Hospital
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
2017.01 - 2019.01
- Oversee department services ensuring patient satisfaction and delivering patient Clinical Nutrition Services while, arranging for accreditation.
- Hire, educate, mentor, and directly supervise 11 dieticians and technicians
- Establish strategic direction guaranteeing proper resources to assist with goals. Prepare and execute changes to enhance service quality, efficiency and patient experience. Assess team success and implement options to improve performance.
- Develop and lead training programs upgrading and promoting development of personnel.
- Helped launch Greenfield hospital including building services and clinics and training staff.
- Prepared policies and guidelines for departments in Clinical Nutrition.
- Arranged department accreditation for JCIA, CIBAHI.
- Optimised resource allocation to maximise productivity.
- Supervised staff training programmes with focus on skill enhancement.
- Recruited and developed high-performing teams, with focus on talent retention.
- Set strategic plans to govern functioning of Clinical Nutrition operations.
- Meet and exceed KPI and satisfaction service standards.
Director of Food and Nutrition Services
King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
2005.01 - 2017.01
- Managed all daily operations of food nutrition services and clinical nutrition services including educational programs for patients, hospital staff, and visitors (including diabetic/obesity clinic, and staff wellness/community educational programs. Hired, educated, mentored, and supervised 11 staff and 1 contractors (81 contractor staff overall personnel whilst complying with JCIA and MOH requirements.
- Collaborated with and tracked catering vendors.
- Introduced change through performance improvement program.
- Served on health education committee, inpatient/outpatient teaching team, and staff development team focused on helping improve patient care.
- Organized and facilitated several international symposiums.
- Negotiated and executed 30M+ Saudi riyals in catering contracts.
- Helped with arrangements, planning, and implementation of awareness weeks and educational activities.
- Trained more than 400 clinical nutrition interns.
- Carried out day-to-day duties accurately and efficiently.
- Quickly learned and applied new skills to daily tasks, improving efficiency and productivity.
- Successfully delivered on tasks within tight deadlines.
- Demonstrated respect, friendliness and willingness to help wherever needed.
- Offered friendly, efficient customer service and handled challenging situations with ease.
Chief Clinical Dietitian
King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
1995.01 - 2004.01
- Recognised for service accomplishments through awards including employee of the month and community award for nutritional education.
- Assisted medical staff in integrating dietary therapy into treatment plans.
- Monitored kitchen practices to ensure compliance with food safety standards.
- Evaluated effectiveness of dietary treatments using appropriate methodologies and techniques, ensuring optimal outcomes for patients.
Education
Master of Hospital and Health Administration - Hospital and Health Administration
King Saud University
Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaBachelor of Applied Science - Clinical Nutrition
King Saud University, Applied Medical Science College
Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaSkills
- Strategic planning and analysis
- Team leadership and development
- Contract negotiation and administration
- Continuous process improvement
- Customer management and vendor relations
- Policy compliance and procedure adherence
- Growth initiative strategies
- Effective contract negotiation techniques
- Corporate governance knowledge
- Resource allocation efficiency
- Ethics enforcement practices
- Board-level communication skills
- Visionary thinking
Certification
- Patient Safety Essentials Course, 2026
- Certified Strategic Foresight & Resilience Leadership, 2026
- ISO 22000 certification, 2026
- Certified celiac instructor 2025
- Harvard T.H.chang Advanced Patient-centred Clinical Nutrition, 2023
- SCHS license.
- Certified Hospital and Healthcare Administrator, 2002-Present
- Certified Clinical Dietitian, 1994-Present
- PMP ,2020
- ToT,2019
- Corporate Coaching, 2019
- HACCP certified 2019
- CPE-Annual Middle East Congress, 2019
- Emotional Intelligence Masterclass, 2019
- Quality Toolkit Course, 2018
- Agile Project Management, 2018
- MS Project 2016, 2018
- Photoshop Advanced, 2018
Affiliations
- Riyadh Dietetic Group, 1994-Present
- Down Syndrome Group, 1994-Present
- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Group, 2000
- KAYL, 2010-2019
Languages
English
Fluent
Arabic
Native
Timeline
Director of Hospitality Services
King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz University Hospital
2022.01 - 2026.06
Manager of Hospitality Services
King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz University Hospital
2017.01 - 2022.01
Acting Director of Clinical Nutrition Services
King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz University Hospital
2017.01 - 2019.01
Food Services and Food Safety Consultant
Self-Employed
2008.01 - 2026.06
Director of Food and Nutrition Services
King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital
2005.01 - 2017.01
Nutrition and Health Education Consultant
Self-Employed
1995.01 - Current
Chief Clinical Dietitian
King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital
1995.01 - 2004.01
Master of Hospital and Health Administration - Hospital and Health Administration
King Saud University
Bachelor of Applied Science - Clinical Nutrition
King Saud University, Applied Medical Science College