$650M says Saudi isn’t a maybe. Not to long ago Adam Neumann just launched Flow in Riyadh. Not with a trial. Not with a waitlist. With $350M from a16z, $300M from Saudi family offices, and a 92% trial-to-tenant conversion. That’s not testing waters. That’s a full send. Flow isn’t “WeLive in a thobe.” It’s a market signal: Saudi’s Build-to-Rent (BtR) market is wide open — and the smartest investors already see the opportunity. Here’s what most of them say behind closed doors: “Your recruiter is a force multiplier. Not overhead.” – a16z They tell founders this early and often — especially at Seed to Series A & B. Why? → Bad hires bleed runway → Slow hires kill momentum → And early team misses? They ripple for years You don’t need 300 resumes. You need 3 people: Who actually fit your GTM motion. Who understand your cultural context. Who can drive you to $10M+ ARR and beyond. Because early-stage hiring isn’t about headcount. It’s about trajectory. So if your recruiter isn't acting like a co-pilot? You’re not behind. But you’re definitely not in the lead.
Flow raises $650M in Saudi, a16z praises recruiters
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I’ve lost deals because I refused to say “yes” when the numbers screamed “no.” I’ve sat across founders who wanted a green light when what they needed was a hard stop. Here’s the reality no one talks about: A good consultancy isn’t about making the client happy. It’s about making the client ready. ✓ Sometimes that means slowing their launch. ✓ Sometimes it means scrapping an idea they’ve spent years dreaming about. ✓ And sometimes it means walking away because the fastest way to lose trust is to win the project and watch it fail. In Riyadh’s fast-moving market, flattery is easy. But the consultants who last are the ones who can deliver a painful truth with enough care that it lands as guidance, not ego. That’s the part I’ve learned to embrace, because protecting someone’s vision often starts with challenging it. What’s one piece of tough advice that saved you, even when you didn’t want to hear it at the time?
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A few months ago, I worked with a foreign startup eager to set up in Riyadh. Smart team. Good funding. Strong product. But within 6 weeks, they were already stuck. Why? They chose the wrong local partner. On paper, everything looked fine. But behind the scenes: Mismatched expectations. Unclear responsibilities. Slow decision-making. Every day wasted was costing them not just SAR, but credibility in a market where trust is currency. Here’s what we did differently: ✔️ Stepped in to renegotiate terms. ✔️ Rebuilt the partnership model based on accountability. ✔️ Opened doors to stakeholders who understood the market dynamics. The result? They saved 3 months of delays. And about 20k SAR in sunk costs. But more importantly, they got back momentum. That’s the part most people forget. Money can be earned back. Momentum? Once it slips, it’s hard to rebuild. What’s one costly mistake you’ve seen businesses make when entering a new market?
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Investors 🔊 If you’re only speaking to one developer, you’re limiting your perspective. Each developer will tell you their project is the best. But what if the right option for your goals lies elsewhere? That’s where a true advisor steps in. Our role isn’t to sell a launch. It’s to help you identify which projects align with your financial strategy, lifestyle goals, and long-term plans. In a market as fast-moving as Dubai’s, having unbiased guidance can make the difference between a good deal and the right one for you.
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How do you build a high-performing investment team in one of Saudi Arabia’s most specialised sectors? A government-backed private equity fund set a clear brief: find world-class investors with niche deal experience, fast. We delivered. Through global market mapping, executive search, and structured delivery, we helped the fund hire 30+ investment professionals from Analyst to C-level. We focused on: ✔️ Analysing candidate track records deal by deal ✔️ Pinpointing global talent hotspots and testing relocation interest ✔️ Providing data-led shortlists with clear comparisons ✔️ Identifying, engaging, and onboarding Saudi national talent to anchor the team locally Speed and precision were critical. With full end-to-end support from brief to offer, we kept alignment at every stage. The result? A complete, strategically aligned investment team and an ongoing partnership that now spans senior hires across the fund and its subsidiaries. Read the full case study to see how targeted executive search delivers results in complex investment environments. https://soamp.li/mBEY #InvestmentManagement #ExecutiveSearch #SaudiArabiaHiring
How do you build a high-performing investment team in one of Saudi Arabia’s most specialised
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The Future of Work is in the Gulf! 🚀 Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 is creating massive career waves, and the opportunities in IT and Finance are booming! I just posted a detailed article on how the Kingdom's digital transformation is unlocking 1000+ new job openings for skilled professionals worldwide. If you're looking for a challenging, high-growth role in a global financial or tech hub, you need to read this. From cybersecurity and AI to FinTech and investment banking, the demand for specialized talent is unprecedented. Read the full analysis and find out how to secure your role in this historic economic transformation: Article Link 👉 https://lnkd.in/gQF_CqVC #SaudiArabia #Vision2030 #GulfJobs #ITjobs #FinanceJobs #CareerOpportunities #DigitalTransformation #JobSearch #LinkedInPost
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📊 Finance & Market Snapshot | October 2025 Markets are shifting - rate cuts, trade tensions, and slower job growth are all reshaping Australia’s economy. What we’re watching at Ares Partner: 💡 Unemployment climbs to 4.5%, another RBA rate cut looks likely. 💡 Housing and hiring soften, but demand for Finance & Accounting talent rises. 💡 Businesses need sharper insight, stronger cashflow strategy, and smarter decision-making. At Ares Partner, we connect exceptional finance professionals with the companies driving stability through uncertainty. 💼 #AresPartner #FinanceRecruitment #AccountingJobs #MarketUpdate #RBA #InterestRates #EconomicOutlook #FinanceCareers #AccountingProfession #BusinessLeadership
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One month in Riyadh, and a thought I’ve been meaning to share It has been just over a month since I moved to Riyadh. But this post isn’t about my move itself; rather, it is about something I noticed much earlier, when I started working on a few projects in Saudi Arabia from Azentio's Bangalore office last year. Mainstream narratives around Saudi Arabia still revolve around oil and mega projects like NEOM. Naturally, like most people, I also assumed that’s where all the action is. But the more I worked with various stakeholders here, the clearer it became that some of the most meaningful progress is happening quietly in the digital backbone that supports the financial sector. For instance, lending in KSA is remarkably seamless. Primarily because of a set of government-led digital systems that quietly enable everything behind the scenes. Nafath: Secure digital and biometric authentication, eliminating the need for in-person interactions for fingerprint scanning, etc. Yakeen: Fetches verified personal data, reducing manual input during onboarding. GOSI - General Organization for Social Insurance: Validates salary and employment details instantly, removing the need for manual payslip uploads. Nafith | نافذ: Facilitates the creation and validation of electronic promissory notes, streamlining legal agreements. And many more.. Each of these systems might seem small in isolation, but together they, along with many other similar integrations, make lending in KSA one of the smoothest, least paper-dependent processes I’ve seen. It is easy to get distracted by skyscrapers and giga-projects when we talk about Saudi Vision 2030. But perhaps what’s even more impressive is the invisible digital infrastructure being built underneath. Yes, I still feel that the startup ecosystem is yet to leverage these capabilities to the fullest. But the outlook seems pretty positive. One API, one verification layer, one digital bridge at a time. #fintech #lending #ksa
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𝗚𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗵𝗮'𝘀 𝘀��𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗦𝗠𝗘𝘀 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸. All 29 outlets closed this week after 17 years. The reflection in this child's eyes shows more than lost bubble tea – it shows the harsh reality of cash flow pressure. 𝘊𝘢𝘴𝘩 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴. Rising operational costs and declining consumer spending create impossible choices. Yet many business owners miss critical support available through government grants designed specifically for these challenges. At Palais Consultancy, we help SMEs access funding that established brands somehow overlook: 𝗛𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗲𝗲𝘀: Government wage support covers substantial salary costs during critical growth phases, making expansion financially viable without depleting working capital. 𝗨𝗽𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗳𝗳: Workforce training funding supports professional development programmes that strengthen team capabilities without straining cash flow. 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Productivity and automation grants support system upgrades and equipment that reduce operational costs and improve efficiency 💼 Our SME clients access these programmes strategically while competitors wonder why cash flow continues tightening. We diagnose operational needs, match businesses to suitable funding, and position applications professionally. The difference between closure and growth often comes down to knowing support exists and how to access it before pressure becomes unsustainable. What operational challenge is cash flow preventing you from addressing right now? #BusinessConsulting #PalaisConsultancy #GovernmentGrants #SMESupport #CashFlowManagement #BusinessTransformation #SingaporeSME #GongChaClosure #GrantApproval
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From Billable Hours to Value Metrics Lockstep promotions and billable hours are on their way out. Firms are shifting toward value-based metrics — rewarding innovation, client impact, and strategic thinking instead. That shift is already reshaping salaries and career paths across South Africa. 📘 Dive into the full report (135 pages) free: https://lnkd.in/eXF2gMnB or robgreen.substack.com #LegalInnovation #LegalCareers #LawFirmLife
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From Billable Hours to Value Metrics Lockstep promotions and billable hours are on their way out. Firms are shifting toward value-based metrics — rewarding innovation, client impact, and strategic thinking instead. That shift is already reshaping salaries and career paths across South Africa. 📘 Dive into the full report (135 pages) free: https://lnkd.in/dKsdhADQ or robgreen.substack.com #LegalInnovation #LegalCareers #LawFirmLife
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This tells us that capital follows certainty, not novelty. Investors aren’t cautiously dipping toes, they’re betting on tenancy conversion, and they expect returns through service and scale. Not hype. So here’s the question: If your market required no experimentation, only execution, would you be raising at Series A or already running full operations?