Inside Stake’s Operational Playbook

In this edition of Industry Voices, we sat down with David Harte, Director of Operations at Stake, the leading fractional real estate investment platform in MENA, with over AED 1 billion invested by users in 170+ countries.

We spoke with David to unpack the infrastructure, systems, and leadership culture powering the company’s rapid growth, from how the team scales across new markets to the operational principles behind Stake’s execution.

From Banking to Stake

David began his career in the world he had always seen himself in, as an investment banking analyst at Rothschild & Co in London. It was the traditional finance path he had worked hard to reach. But once inside, while he was excited by the work and those around him, he felt something fundamental was missing; he found himself craving more ownership and exposure to high-growth entrepreneurial environments. 

As he progressed through the ranks in banking, he started to get more exposure to transactions involving early-stage businesses raising capital, as well as transactions based in the Middle East, particularly in Dubai. He was struck not only by the sheer volume of capital flowing into the region, but also the influx of top-tier talent, and the pace at which an innovation-friendly ecosystem was emerging.

Drawn by the region’s energy, David began mapping the Dubai startup ecosystem. That’s when he discovered Stake, a digital real estate investment platform that gives users access to fractional ownership in high-quality Dubai residential properties, without the usual barriers like large down payments, endless paperwork, or illiquidity. Through the app, users can browse vetted properties, invest with a few clicks, and earn rental income monthly. Everything from property acquisition to income distribution, property management and ultimately the final sale, is handled by the Stake team.

But for David, the real draw wasn’t just the business model; it was the leadership and founding team. Rami Tabbara, Manar Mahmassani, and Ricardo Brizido brought together a rare mix of strengths: deep expertise across finance, real estate, and product development. For someone eager to learn, it was the ideal environment. "I'm coming to a startup with this desire to learn as much as possible and soak it all in," he says. "With those three minds coming together, I was like, okay, even if the company doesn’t succeed like I think it will, at least I'm going to learn a lot from these guys.”

Operational Reality Check: Startup Chaos

As David joined Stake two and a half years ago as Strategy & Operations Manager, the company was experiencing classic startup challenges. Growth had outpaced operations, and while the team’s caliber kept things running, the underlying systems weren’t built to scale. “There was a lot of coordination on Slack, email, WhatsApp, with a lot of offline data” David recalls.

What he saw was a company operating with processes built for the short-term, not necessarily scale. “What happens in all startups is you're forced to be scrappy in the early days,” he says.

David’s strategy focused on building processes designed for future scale rather than current needs. A perfect example: the dividend distribution process for Stake’s investors. In the early days, the team spent days going through each property’s financials to calculate investor payouts. That worked with under 100 properties but was impossible to scale to the thousands of properties they aimed for. “That’s a significant number of days spent over the course of the year for some very important people in the business, just doing one process,” David says. “Now, we’ve managed to automate large parts of this, with robust validations, and it takes a matter of hours versus days.”

The solution was a full operational overhaul: automated recognition of payables and receivables, pre-populated and ‘live’ cash flow models, and tech-enabled dividend distribution systems. The result? Speed, less scope for human error, stronger audit trails, and real-time visibility into the financial health of our properties.

The Scaling Philosophy

David’s operational philosophy is built around striking the right balance between speed and scalability. At Stake, the team follows a dual-track approach that allows for fast market moves while laying the groundwork for long-term sustainability. Entering new product lines or markets inevitably means you may need to be a bit more pragmatic and scrappy on the building side, whereas there always needs to be a strong focus on refining and scaling our core products and processes. 

By looking at things through this lens, Stake is able to move quickly into new opportunities without compromising on operational discipline. A balance that’s hard to find in high-growth startups.

Real-World Testing: The Saudi Arabia Launch

That philosophy was soon put to the test with Stake’s expansion into Saudi Arabia. The task was significant: entering a new market while maintaining operational excellence.

What gave Stake an edge was its state of readiness. “Because we’d been operating successfully in Dubai for four years before launching in Saudi, we had a playbook,” David says. “We had standard operating procedures we could implement in Saudi before we even launched, so we didn’t have to go through that awkward, scrappy stage again.”

Still, the move came with its own set of challenges. “Saudi’s our neighbor, but the markets and regulations are very different,” David notes. Partnerships, legal frameworks and compliance procedures all came with unforeseen obstacles.

The experience reinforced a core principle in David’s approach: operational infrastructure must be both robust and flexible. While core processes could be replicated, winning in a new market required tuning those systems to local dynamics, without losing speed or control.

This highlights a broader truth about building in the region: the Middle East is developing a startup ecosystem that’s evolving in parallel with its regulatory framework. “Everyone’s building here together,” David says, referring to how founders, investors, governments, and regulators are all building at the same time, each shaping their part of the landscape. This synchronized growth creates both opportunities and friction, where success depends on more than just execution. It requires a willingness to engage deeply with a system that’s still in formation.

Cross-Functional Innovation

David’s role sits at the intersection of multiple business functions, where he focuses on building collaborative systems that strengthen overall organizational effectiveness. “Operations, particularly in a startup at this stage, needs to be the function in the middle of absolutely everything,” he says. “I need to be aware of what is going on across the business at all times, and perhaps more importantly, I need to be there to contribute and help solve problems we face”.

This cross-functional mindset has led to concrete innovations. One standout example is his collaboration with one of the co-founders and CPTO, Ricardo. “I work extremely closely with our CPTO on building out our internal processes and ensuring we are as tech-enabled as possible. It became clear that tech and operations go hand-in-hand, so why not have an engineering team dedicated to operational scalability and internal process efficiency?” David recalls. “So we built a team of engineers that we call the Operational Scalability Squad, that is fully focused on achieving and maintaining internal operational excellence, and this has proven to be extremely powerful.”

Importantly, this idea didn’t emerge from a particularly formal planning process; it grew organically from ongoing collaboration. “That maybe wouldn’t have happened if we took a more traditional approach to operations,” he reflects. “It really comes from having those regular conversations with each other, and trying to understand our collective problems. Maintaining close relationships across the broader team allows me to see things through their lens and ultimately have a better frame of reference to grow and improve the business” 

Performance Measurement

To keep all this running smoothly, performance needs to be measured the right way. Instead of focusing solely on numbers, David prioritizes system scalability and strategic enablement. “At the end of the day, operations is there to facilitate the growth and success of the business,” he explains. “So the KPIs have to align with the KPIs of the business. If the company’s objective is launching in Saudi Arabia, then my KPI is ensuring that happens successfully, making sure all the necessary infrastructure is in place.”

His measurement philosophy prioritizes capability building over simply tracking activity. For him, success is measured by how efficiently resources are used. “It’s about doing more with less,” he explains. “The fewer people and the less time it takes to get the same output, the better. You design a process not just for today’s business, but with an eye on the future, asking, if we’re five times bigger in five years, will this still work?”

Build vs. Buy Framework

Stake’s technology strategy is rooted in clear, pragmatic decision-making—whether it’s about building in-house tools, buying external solutions, or integrating AI. The goal isn’t to chase trends, but to create real operational value and long-term strategic advantage.

Rather than defaulting to one approach, David uses a case-by-case framework. “Sometimes you’re forced to use external tools because they can be implemented much faster,” he explains. “And if they already exist for the use case you want, why not use them?”

Cost plays a role in the equation, but flexibility and strategic value often tip the scale toward building in-house. “It depends on the price as well,” he adds. “I always love being able to build stuff internally because you have a lot more control over what you can produce. It’s a lot more customizable.”

There’s also a long-term lens on intellectual property. “If you can build a solution that has IP in it, it also makes your offering and company a lot more valuable,” David notes.

That same lens applies to AI, “we only use AI where it’s genuinely adding value to our business,” David says. “We’re not going to claim we’re AI-enabled or launch a chatbot just to make headlines.”

Culture & Leadership at Stake

As Stake scaled to a team of 100+, preserving its startup DNA became an intentional focus. “A lot of it comes down to the culture that’s been built, and a mindset that starts with the founders and then trickles down into each department,” says David. “You need to have that mentality yourself. That’s what you then look to bring in when you’re growing the team.”

This approach was supported by early structural decisions, such as placing a strong importance on their People & Culture function from the outset. Additionally, Stake reinforces its culture through hiring—bringing in operators who are energized by ambiguity, who thrive in high-velocity environments where priorities shift fast and execution cycles are intense.

David’s leadership style is a big part of what keeps that spirit alive. His philosophy is rooted in continuous learning, collaboration, and building long-term capabilities across the team. “This is my favorite part of the job, being able to work with such a diverse group of people who are all experts in their domain,” he shares. “I just want to keep learning from the best people around me.” 

That drive to learn shapes how Stake operates at every level. Cross-functional collaboration is how the company runs. Teams are expected to move beyond their silos, share context, and work together to solve hard problems. “Everyone can really contribute across the whole business,” David says. “Each of us is constantly looking to learn, including the founders, and that really creates an exciting environment to work in.”

Future Vision

That same mindset of learning, adapting, and building for the long term extends beyond internal operations and into Stake’s broader ambitions. 

Until recently, the company has focused on residential real estate in Dubai, guided by both market demand and regulatory structure. “Fractional investing in Dubai residential properties is our bread and butter, and while we recently launched a fund distribution offering in Saudi Arabia, we are always focused on what is next”. As new regulations emerge, doors are opening to broader asset classes, deeper financial services, and new investor segments.

As Stake cements its position in the Middle East, the team’s sights are set far beyond regional borders.. “We’re close with a lot of big players in the real estate game globally,” he says. “And we’ve built a model that has supported international investment from day one.” The ambition is clear and so is the benchmark. “We don’t compare ourselves to others in the region,” David adds. “We see ourselves as a global leader in our space, and that’s where we ultimately see ourselves operating, on the global stage”

Across each phase, whether launching a new product or entering a new geography, the same principles apply. Standardized systems, long-term scalability, and operational clarity. These foundations have enabled Stake to move quickly while retaining consistency in execution.

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