Thamma Al‑Masar launches in Saudi with Ross McAuley as Managing Director

Thamma Al‑Masar has launched as a Saudi-registered strategy and business consultancy with a long-term commitment to fostering a genuinely Saudi business and nurturing local talent.

The new consultancy is built to support organisations across Saudi Arabia and the GCC as they navigate one of the most ambitious and exciting economic and cultural transformations in the world.

Thamma Al‑Masar’s work spans strategy, brand, insight and experience design, supporting both public and private sector organisations across areas including giga-projects and destinations, government ministries and authorities, corporate transformation, culture and creativity, luxury hospitality and sport and entertainment.

Thamma Al‑Masar will partner with leadership teams across the Kingdom and the GCC to define growth strategies, build distinctive brands and design meaningful customer and citizen experiences aligned with Vision 2030. While investment and ambition in the Kingdom have never been greater, many organisations face a critical challenge: translating bold vision into execution at pace.

The consultancy is built to close that gap, combining strategic clarity with practical delivery to help leaders make better decisions, build stronger brands, and create experiences that people actively choose.

The company has also appointed of Ross McAuley as Managing Director, bringing deep regional leadership experience across destination development, brand, commercial strategy and customer experience.

McAuley joins after more than two decades leading transformation across the region. Most recently at Qiddiya, he worked at the heart of one of Saudi Arabia’s flagship giga-projects, shaping its commercial strategy and global positioning. His experience spans destination development, brand and customer experience at scale, including senior roles at Jumeirah Group and GEMS Education.

“Vision 2030 is creating significant commercial opportunity, and raising expectations for what great looks like,” said Ross McAuley, Managing Director. “The challenge isn’t ambition, it’s execution. Thamma Al-Masar exists to help leaders turn bold ideas into real-world impact, quickly and effectively.”

Thamma Al‑Masar is powered by Yonder, a global, insight-led strategy consultancy with offices in London and New York. ‘Powered by Yonder’ means Thamma Al‑Masar draws on Yonder’s global capabilities, proprietary tools and methods, and international experience across insight, strategy, brand and experience design, thus enabling rigorous, insight-led strategy and the ability to carry that strategy through to execution.

The consultancy’s ambition is to build a locally rooted business by developing Saudi talent, with the goal of becoming increasingly locally led over time.

Saudi Arabia’s transformation, spanning giga-projects, global tourism destinations, new sports leagues, cultural institutions, and digitally enabled public services, has created extraordinary opportunity for organizations that can turn ambition into tangible outcomes.

“Thamma Al‑Masar is a market-first business designed around Saudi and GCC client needs, powered by Yonder’s global expertise and standards,” said Michael Simmonds, CEO of Yonder Consulting. “Ross brings decades of leadership experience in the region, spanning destination development, commercial growth and experience-led transformation. Together, we’re excited to invest in Saudi talent and leadership, and to support organizations as they turn ambitious strategies into implemented change and meaningful impact.”