Building an Effective Working Relationship with the Human Resources Department

October 31, 2014 By in HR Tags: ,

One of the challenges faced in writing about management is that it can be difficult to differentiate between what might seem like platitudes and genuine advice. For example in terms of managing one’s human resources the idea of succession planning seems like a great idea, but what does it actually mean? It is like advising a sick person to just get better. Great advice, but useless in terms of actionable information.

How comfortable are managers with their HR skills? A simple, but valuable, proxy for an answer is the number of results for books matching the keyword “human resources” on Amazon: 209,344. Assuming a lack of authors and publishers with a fetish for publishing human resources books in the absence of any demand, it would appear that managers have an unslaked thirst for solutions to their HR challenges. So how to solve this epidemic? Perhaps the answer lies not so much in generating new concepts or recycling old concepts but in explaining in better detail well established concepts.

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My Zawya Story: Positive Cash Flow Challenges

October 30, 2014 By in Strategy, Negotiation Tags:

This post is part of the My Zawya Story series.

Most entrepreneurs would be surprised that positive operating cash flow can present challenges. After months, even years, of striving for the magical cash flow break even point what problems can there be once this goal is reached? The challenge is sustainable growth as painful initial sacrifices on expenses are reversed and short term investment horizons on the income front need to be extended.

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My Zawya Story: Negative Cash Flow Lessons

October 29, 2014 By in Project Management Tags: , ,

This post is part of the My Zawya Story series.

Negative cash flows are a standard feature of any start up and most SMEs when they go through a negative economic cycle. Anyone who has been through that knows well the sheer terror of wondering what he will tell his team on pay day when he does not have the funds to pay their salaries, or what he will tell suppliers, or how he can explain to his shareholders that he needs more funding. It is a sobering experience. Continue reading →

Saudi Oil Price, the Global Economy and Correcting Media Economists

October 29, 2014 By in Economy Tags: ,

The hysteria surrounding Saudi Arabia’s increase in oil production and a subsequent drop in oil price to the mid-eighties and possibly lower is non-sensical. It’s nearly as bad a media reaction as if oil prices had moved the same amount upwards. Reports in the media have focussed on the possible political machinations of such a ‘dastardly’ move and the economic effect on oil producing countries not least of which is Saudi Arabia. Personally, the first thing that comes to my mind is that oil has dropped around 30% in the last few months and that is great news for the global economy and the world’s population. Why aren’t people rejoicing?

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Discovering the Meaning of Entrepreneurship

October 28, 2014 By in Entrepreneurship Tags:

عربي

Entrepreneurs, often romanticised as modern day pioneers hewing their future from the raw fabric that is the global economy, have come to epitomise the current professional’s dream: master of your destiny, flexible schedule and lifestyle, ability to dictate the culture of the business with fantastic riches to be reaped. The salutary books on the subject buoyed by a sea of magazine articles and blogs has spread and reinforced these dangerous ideas to every corner of the globe. Any attempt to temper or broaden the discussion is met with a tidal wave of criticism usually accusing sceptics of being anti-capitalist and closed-minded. This is unfortunate as it makes it harder for would be entrepreneurs to receive a better idea of what can be a rewarding professional life. Continue reading →

Deconstructing Strategy

October 27, 2014 By in Strategy, Strategy Cornerstone Tags: , ,
This entry is part 1 of 3 in the series Strategy

I think that it is safe to say that most people entering the work force view strategy as some kind of mystical plan developed by all knowing executives using arcane skills. At the other end of the spectrum I don’t think that there exists a C-level executive who at least once didn’t wonder whether strategic planning wasn’t a ritualistic sham, a cosmic joke played on executives the world over. I know that I have experienced both feelings.

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My Zawya Story: Deciding the Business Model

October 27, 2014 By in Strategy, Strategy Cornerstone Tags: ,

This post is part of the My Zawya Story series.

As an investor I have seen many entrepreneurial mistakes and one of the greatest misunderstandings has to be the difference between a market opportunity and a business model. A market opportunity is a gap in demand and supply, in particular a demand for products or services which is not met by current supply. This creates the potential for profit but does not guarantee it. To get from the what, potential profit, to the how, actual profit, requires a business model. I have seen many promising entrepreneurs fail even after identifying lucrative market segments simply because they jumped in without planning how they were going to convert the opportunity into revenue let alone profit.

In terms of Zawya the opportunity was clear: there was a high demand for Middle East data and information with little comprehensive supply. Ihsan and I were on opposite sides of the two main issues: how to source the data and information and how to generate revenue.

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My Zawya Story: Two Initial Decisions

October 26, 2014 By in Corporate Governance, Strategy Tags: ,

This post is part of the My Zawya Story series.

After the acquisition there were many decisions that had to be made by Ihsan and I, some quite contentious. Two that stand out are the new geographic location for Zawya and control of the finances of the company.

Although I am an Emirati, I founded Saffar in Bahrain, which up until that point had been the dominant financial hub in the GCC. Although Dubai had by that time taken some steps to building itself into a financial hub it was still early days and the terrorist attacks on the US on 11 September 2001 looked to be an extremely negative event for any positive developments in the region.

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A World of Grumpy Old Men

October 26, 2014 By in HR Tags:

عربي

I reached a senior executive level at a relatively young age. This was met with incredulity by many people. Some believed that as an Emirati I must have been appointed to my position due to family connections. Others accepted that I might have a strong education but I had no experience. All felt that I had not ‘earned’ my position. That a certain amount of ‘seasoning’ in the trenches was part of the unwritten code for promotions. It was puzzling.

I asked my friends and colleagues in London and New York what the norms were in these global financial centers. They painted a completely different picture, a culture based on meritocracy and accountability where there is nothing wrong with ‘seasoning’ but firms were happy to back a younger candidate if he exhibited potential. Indeed, these companies felt that creating a fast track system was an important element of their success.

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