With Facebook’s high initial market capitalisation, the initial share price set in the IPO are seen by many analysts as a bit on the expensive side, especially when the initial valuation have already factored an assumption of high revenue growth projections for the next five years.

However, over the long term, there is no doubt that Facebook is in a very strong position to leverage its global reach as the world’s largest social media site, with close to a billion users.

According to Frost & Sullivan, while Facebook is already mature in terms of number of social media users, and facing growing competition from Google in this area, it is still relatively immature in terms of their advertising model, which is where the vast majority of its revenues currently come from.

“Facebook is currently finding it difficult to compete with Google’s more mature and more developed advertising platform. To gain full industry confidence, it will be critical that Facebook spends a lot of time and resources developing its advertising model further. Just recently for example, General Motors withdrew its USD 10 million advertising budget from Facebook,” says Frost & Sullivan Analyst.

He added, “On the flip-side, Facebook’s immature online advertising model, combined with their massive global reach, gives them huge potential to grow for very high revenue growth over the longer term and compete head on with Google in terms of advertising revenues.  Google on the other hand while still displaying solid growth in online advertising revenues, no longer has the potential for such rapid growth due to its more mature advertising platform.”

According to Frost & Sullivan forecasts, whilst the opportunity for revenue growth is immense, one area Facebook will need to be cautious about is in the area of privacy. Many Facebook users have complained about its privacy settings over the past few years and as a result, some have turned away from Facebook.  “It is imperative that Facebook addresses privacy issues in order to not get on the wrong side of Governments. If judiciousness is not exercised, the privacy issue could even lead to a complete ban on Facebook by a country’s government. By now, some countries have limited Facebook usage or completely banned it, like China. As such, regulation by country regarding privacy laws are something that Facebook needs to be mindful as it could potentially limit their growth and ultimately their revenues.

Facebook has recently begun to explore new business models and opportunities in areas such as online shopping, in a similar way to which Google is now diversifying its business model from its origins as only a search company. Frost & Sullivan expects a lot more action from Facebook in this area during the next few years.

Facebook has so far been successful in making their online platform highly interactive through applications that enable the sharing of media such as photos, content, and videos. Facebook’s recent Instagram acquisition is one example of how it is transforming its platform into a one-stop shop for social media communication and collaboration. It is critical that Facebook continues with this strategy in the coming years and develop richer communications platform where users can, not only Instant Message and make phone calls, but have access to functionality such as video conferencing sessions. Current market indications are that Facebook is fairly well placed to succeed with this strategy over the longer term.

The new partnership presents outstanding opportunities for corporates in DIFC to connect with financial institutions in New South Wales, Australia’s largest state economy. The MoU will further support the promotion of unexplored investment opportunities between New South Wales and the GCC region among potential investors from both sides.

The MoU was signed by Chris Eccles, Director General, Department of Premier and Cabinet, and Abdulla Mohammed Al Awar, Chief Executive Officer of DIFC Authority.

Abdulla Al Awar said, “As we continue to reinforce DIFC’s position as a global financial centre, we remain cognisant of the critical importance of establishing and maintaining strong collaborations with peers, key institutions and government bodies that are driving economic development around the world. Our partnership with NSW Trade & Investment falls well within this strategy and presents vast mutual opportunities in the areas of investment, education and financial sector development.”

The region has had strong economic ties with Australia for many years, particularly the UAE, which is considered Australia’s largest merchandise trade partner in the Middle East with two-way trade at over USD 5.3 billion in 2010-11.

Australian investment in the UAE was worth USD 1.060 billion in 2010. In addition, over 15,000 Australians live and work in the UAE with more than 600 Australian companies doing business in the Emirates.

“We are confident that this MoU will take DIFC’s and the wider region’s economic relations with Australia to the next level, and unveil significant investment opportunities on both ends, particularly in infrastructure. The GCC region alone is expected to spend about USD 968 billion on projects including infrastructure developments over the next decade, while infrastructure expenditure in NSW is estimated to be in excess of USD 770 billion between now and 2018. Our region can also benefit a lot from the policies adopted by the Australian government to support these opportunities, including mobilising public-private partnerships and creating a range of solutions for infrastructure financing,” Al Awar added.

(L-R) Chris-Eccles and Abdulla Al Awar signing the MoU

Honourable Barry O’Farrell MP, Premier of New South Wales said: “Attracting conventional and Islamic finance investment into infrastructure and other sectors of NSW is an important part of the NSW Government’s efforts to position Sydney as a leading international financial services centre.”

Last year, DIFC welcomed two leading Australian financial firms, Macquarie Capital Finance (Dubai) Limited and Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ANZ), which is among the world’s 25 largest banks by market capitalisation. In addition, the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has had an MoU with the Australian Securities and Investment Commission since September 2006.

Barrett added: “Quality vocational education can provide an essential springboard for ambitious young people by offering practical skills and experience that employers value. Equipped with these skills, the youth can look forward to a promising career. However, it is imperative that vocational education remains flexible to help adults acquire new skills amidst the changing technology and economic landscape. Additionally, well-informed, impartial career advice and guidance is central to ensuring individuals make informed choices.”

Barrett’s comments came during a panel discussion titled Is there a Future for Vocational Education in the Region? The event was organised by Dubai Knowledge Village (DKV), a member of TECOM Investments’ Education Cluster.

Moderated by Eithne Treanor, CNBC, Special Correspondent, the discussion also included speakers Dr. Naji Al Mahdi, Executive Director, National Institute for Vocational Education; Dr. Howard Reed, Director, Dubai Women’s College and Senior Director, Higher Colleges of Technology, and Dr. Abdullatif Al Shamsi, Director-General, Institute of Applied Technology.

Defining the meaning of vocational education in the UAE, Dr Howard Reed said: “Vocational education includes professional programmes such as business and law, technical courses such as IT, and services, especially health services. Once we deviate too far from these areas, the demand for vocational education among Emiratis will probably remain small. Here, stakeholders in key industry segments are faced with the question about why Emiratis do not join the private sector when it is said to provide the majority of new jobs. Furthermore, policy makers need to identify what would motivate Emiratis to take up occupation in the private sector in the professional, technical and service industries.”

Dr. Naji Al Mahdi said: “There has to be a future for vocational education in the region. Achievement in vocational training programmes leads to rewarding jobs and successful careers. The skills required for employability may vary from country to country. For instance, the UAE, Kuwait, and Qatar demand white-collar skills while blue-collar skills are needed in Bahrain, Oman and Saudi Arabia. However, whatever the skill level, vocational education will play an increasingly pivotal role in helping young nationals meet the challenges of the workplace.”

The DKV Breakfast Club events focus on current business-related issues in the context of global best practices to help companies run more efficient operations. The participation of an increasing number of decision makers, government officials and HR professionals serves as a testimony to the success of the DKV Breakfast Club initiative.

Established in 2003, Dubai Knowledge Village is home to over 450 professional centres specialised in HR development, professional testing, as well as management training and consultancy services.

The distinction recognises His Excellency Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qassimi’s exemplary efforts and achievements in positioning Sharjah on the global map of culture and communication while leading institutions such as Sharjah Media Centre. His Excellency also spearheaded the launch of Al Sharqiya TV and conceptualised the Government Communications Forum in Sharjah, a first-of-its-kind event in the Middle East that attracted participants from all over the world.
Organised by The Leaders International Magazine Malaysia, the Middle East Business Leaders’ Awards 2012 acknowledged business visionaries from across diverse industry sectors for their outstanding achievements and consistent contribution to the region’s economic development. The gala ceremony was held on 15^th May at the Armani Hotel in Dubai.

His Excellency Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qassimi received the prestigious award from Shahul Hameed Dawood, Group CEO, My Events International, in the presence of HE Ahmed Fadil Shams El Deen, Consul-General of Malaysia in Dubai.

His Excellency Sheikh Sultan Bin Ahmed Al Qassimi receiving the award with the organisers

HE Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed Al Qassimi said: “The distinction acknowledges the collective efforts of the entire team at Sharjah Media Corporation. The International Media and Communications Sector Award reflects Sharjah’s continued priority to nurture a culture of excellence.“We commend the Middle East Business Leaders’ Awards for creating a platform that recognises devoted efforts. The awards serve as an inspiration for the region’s thriving business community,” he added.

Supported by the CEO Clubs UAE, IEMQ and endorsed by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Middle East Business Leaders’ Awards 2012 awarded achievers across 20 categories. The ceremony drew the participation of over 250 internationally acclaimed business leaders from the GCC region and Malaysia, including His Excellency Khalil Al Khonji, Chairman of the Federation of GCC Chambers of Commerce.

Sharjah had yet another recipient of the Middle East Business Leaders’ Awards this year. Rashid Alleem, Founder and Chairman of the Sharjah-based Alleem Knowledge Center, won an award in the Training and Human Capital Development category. Winners of the previous two editions of the awards include His Excellency Khaled Soliman, Group Chief Executive Officer of Galadari Brothers Co. LLC, His Excellency Abdulrahim Hassan Naqi, Secretary-General of the Federation of GCC Chambers, and His Excellency Abdul Rahman Saif Al Ghurair, Chairman, Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Sharjah Media Centre, the communication arm of the Government of Sharjah functions under the umbrella of Sharjah Media Corporation. The centre is a government entity mandated to develop the media landscape in Sharjah and oversee the multi-pronged media requirements of the emirate. Moreover, in addition to consolidating the presence of Sharjah on the regional and international media landscape, Sharjah Media Centre prioritises the nurturing of local media talent for preparing a well-informed pool of industry professionals

Thestudy found most organisations are now enabling BYOD in the enterprise, with astaggering 95% of respondents saying their organizations permit employee-owned devices in some way, shape or form in the workplace. This study also concluded that the average number of connected devices perknowledge worker is expected to reach 3.3 by 2014, up from an average of2.8 in 2012. IT managers are balancing security and support concerns with thevery real potential to reap significant cost and productivity benefits from theBYOD trend.

What’s more, the survey found that BYOD is just the gateway to greater business benefits. Over three-fourths (76%) of IT leaders surveyed categorised BYOD as somewhat or extremely positive for their companies, while seeing significant challenges for IT. These findings underscore that BYOD is here to stay, andmanagers are now acknowledging the need for a more holistic approach — one that is scalable and addresses mobility, security, virtualisation and network policy management, in order to keep management costs in line while simultaneously providing optimal experiences where savings can be realised.

These research findings support Cisco’s assertion that mobility needs to extend wellbeyond BYOD to include the integration of service provider mobility, enterprisemobility, security, collaboration and desktop virtualisation solutions.

Key Survey Findings

More IT and business leaders saying yes to BYOD

95% of organisations allow employee-owned devices in some way, shape or form in the workplace.

84% of respondents not only allow employee-owned devices, but also provide some level of support.

36% of surveyed enterprises provide full support for employee-owneddevices. In other words, they will provide support for any device (SmartPhone, tablet, laptop, etc.) the employee brings to the workplace.

Mobility and device use are on the rise: 78% of U.S. white-collar employees use a mobile device for workpurposes, and 65% of white-collar workers require mobile connectivity to dotheir jobs. By 2014, the average number of connected devices per knowledgeworker will reach 3.3, up from an average of 2.8 in 2012.

On average, mobility initiatives will consume 20% of IT budgets in 2014, compared to 17% in 2012.

Most IT leaders (76%) consider consumerisation somewhat or extremely positive for their companies.

Among respondents, the top two perceived benefits of BYOD were improved employee productivity (more opportunities to collaborate) and greater job satisfaction.

Employees want to work their way: Employees are turning to BYOD because they want more control of their work experience:

40% of respondents cited “device choice” as employees’ top BYOD priority (the ability to use their favorite device anywhere).

Employees’ second BYOD priority is the desire to perform personal activities at work, and work activities during personal time.

Employees also want to bring their own applications to work: 69%of respondents said that unapproved applications — especially social networks, cloud-based email, and instant messaging — are somewhat to much more prevalent today than two years ago.

Employees are willing to invest to improve their work experience.According to Cisco IBSG, Cisco employees pay an average of USD 600 out-of-pocket for devices that will give them more control over their work experience.

Benefits of BYOD add up: Thebenefits of BYOD vary based on an employee’s role and work requirements. Cisco IBSG estimates that the annual benefits from BYOD range from USD 300 to USD 1,300 per employee, depending on the employee’s job role.

BYOD does bring complexity: Security and IT support

Security and IT support are the top BYOD challenges: Respondents cited security/privacy and IT support for multiple mobile platforms as the top challenges of BYOD.

Device proliferation requires new policy, approach to controlcost: According to Cisco IBSG analysis, only 14% of BYOD costs arehardware-related, highlighting the importance of choosing the right governanceand support models to control these costs.

Desktop virtualisation on the rise

Companies recognise the value in desktop virtualisation: 98% of people surveyed were aware of desktop virtualisation. Sixty-eight per cent of respondents agreed that a majority of knowledge worker roles are suitablefor desktop virtualisation and 50% noted that their organisation is in theprocess of implementing a desktop virtualisation strategy.

Desktop virtualisation benefits, three key areas: (1) business continuity so that workers can access applications through multiple locations and devices even if, for example, a server goesdown, (2) employee productivity, and (3) IT costs.

Data protection is the number one concern: Ensuring that only the right people have access to sensitive company and customer data is a top priority.

Solving challenges and creating opportunities for optimal your way mobile experiences

Cisco offers a broad portfolio of mobility products and services to help serviceproviders and enterprises develop a holistic, scalable approach to their mobility initiatives while keeping operational costs in line and optimising theuser experience.

Enterprise:

For the enterprise, Cisco is driving innovations around what’s called the Cisco Unified Workspace. The Unified Workspace is an integrated and strategic approach to the enterprise workspace that is squarely focused on helping employees access all of the people and resources they need to do their jobs effectively from wherever they are, on whatever device they choose and with an enhanced quality of experience. In short, with the Unified Workspace, everything that makesworkers efficient and productive moves with them. For example, instead of an employee just having voice while on the road, why not also provide the workerwith location and presence capabilities?

As partof the Unified Workspace, employees will access some information on the device itself, like the platform-independent versions of collaboration applicationssuch as Cisco WebEx and Cisco Jabber. Other applications or data may be accessed virtually through a virtual desktop centralised in the data center with full rich-media capabilities using the Cisco Virtualisation Experience Infrastructure (VXI).

To bring this strategy to life, Cisco is offering a set of “Smart Solutions”that have been fully tested and validated and can help CIOs and IT leaders increase business efficiency and remove the cost and complexity associated with mobility. The solutions, built on a common technology framework and backed byservices from Cisco and partners, help increase employee satisfaction and productivity by enabling personnel to work their way, helpingensure the business is highly secure and intellectual property is protected.

There are three Smart Solutions that can be offered to customers and partners:

BYOD Smart Solution: The Cisco BYOD Smart Solution transforms the workspace, providing end-to-end BYOD lifecycle management. The solution helps secure data with unified policy, delivers uncompromised experiences with powerful collaboration tools, and simplifies operations with proactive management.

VXI Smart Solution: The Cisco VXI Smart Solution is a desktop virtualisation system that spans Cisco’s Data Center, Borderless Networks and Collaboration architectures to deliver a superior collaboration and rich media user experience in a fully integrated, open and validated desktop virtualisation solution.

Remote Expert Smart Solution: CiscoRemote Expert is an integrated solution that will enable a virtual face-to-faceconsultation through immersive video and online form sharing at work or in thehome by identifying and accessing the most appropriate subject matter expertfrom any location.

Service Provider:

The enterprise solutions referenced above are key components of Cisco’s comprehensive mobility offering which also includes an extensive technology andservices portfolio for service providers. Cisco offers solutions that can enable high performance mobile networks, with seamless roaming between cellular and Wi-Fi networks, all while helping to ensure the experience is optimised for the service and devices being used.These technologies enable service providers to meet growing bandwidth demands effectively, while increasing their ability to monetise the customers both on and outside of their networks. For example, just as many coffee shops advertise hotspots today, additional mobility services offered by service providers could enable those same businesses to attract additional customers.

According to the next Visual Networking Index Study (to be released on 30th May), total devices and connections on the internet will grow from 10.3 billion in 2011 toa whopping 18.9 billion in 2016 — nearly doubling in only five years. This provides service providers with clear opportunities to grow their business and offer value added services to customers.

Barrett added: “Quality vocational education can provide an essential springboard for ambitious young people by offering practical skills and experience that employers value. Equipped with these skills, the youth can look forward to a promising career. However, it is imperative that vocational education remains flexible to help adults acquire new skills amidst the changing technology and economic landscape. Additionally, well-informed, impartial career advice and guidance is central to ensuring individuals make informed choices.”

Barrett’s comments came during a panel discussion titled Is there a Future for Vocational Education in the Region?. The event was organised by Dubai Knowledge Village (DKV), a member of TECOM Investments’ Education Cluster and the region’s premier destination for human resources management as part of the DKV Breakfast Club, a bi-annual networking event for decision makers.

Moderated by Eithne Treanor, CNBC, Special Correspondent, the discussion also included speakers Dr Naji Al Mahdi, Executive Director, National Institute for Vocational Education; Dr Howard Reed, Director, Dubai Women’s College and Senior Director, Higher Colleges of Technology, and Dr Abdullatif Al Shamsi, Director-General, Institute of Applied Technology.

Defining the meaning of vocational education in the UAE, Dr Howard Reed said: “Vocational education includes professional programmes such as business and law, technical courses such as IT, and services, especially health services. Once we deviate too far from these areas, the demand for vocational education among Emiratis will probably remain small. Here, stakeholders in key industry segments are faced with the question about why Emiratis do not join the private sector when it is said to provide the majority of new jobs. Furthermore, policy makers need to identify what would motivate Emiratis to take up occupation in the private sector in the professional, technical and service industries.”

Dr Naji Al Mahdi said: “There has to be a future for vocational education in the region. Achievement in vocational training programmes leads to rewarding jobs and successful careers. The skills required for employability may vary from country to country. For instance, the UAE, Kuwait, and Qatar demand white-collar skills while blue-collar skills are needed in Bahrain, Oman and Saudi Arabia. However, whatever the skill level, vocational education will play an increasingly pivotal role in helping young nationals meet the challenges of the workplace.”

The DKV Breakfast Club events focus on current business-related issues in the context of global best practices to help companies run more efficient operations. The participation of an increasing number of decision makers, government officials and HR professionals serves as a testimony to the success of the DKV Breakfast Club initiative.

Established in 2003, Dubai Knowledge Village is home to over 450 professional centres specialised in HR development, professional testing, as well as management training and consultancy services.

The workshops were aimed to help organisations bridge existing gaps in their quality and human development initiatives and bid successfully for the awards.

The first of the workshops was to train new applicants in the 2012 cycle on conducting self assessments and writing a well-organised award submission document, based on the latest European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) 2010 Excellence Model.  It was the second workshop for new applicants being held this year.

The second workshop was intended to help applicants in the 2011 cycle of DQA and DHDA analyse the feedback report they received after the award cycle, and prepare an action plan for participating in the award again after two years, as all past applicants participating in the award need to submit an action taken report based on their previous feedback report.

Business representatives attend the DED workshop

“A distinguishing feature of the Dubai Quality Award and Dubai Human Development Award is their broad knowledge platform. It allows participants to be updated on the best practices in quality and human development and pursue excellence in performance, productivity, and social responsibility,” said Mohammed Bushanain, Executive Director, Corporate Quality & Management Excellence at the Business Excellence Department of DED.

“Overall, DQA and DHDA provide a significant opportunity for organisations and employees for self-improvement and contributing to economic growth.  The self-assessment component of the awards process is a good opportunity for organisations to evaluate existing strategies and practices against the DQA criteria. Likewise, the feedback report teaches previous applicants of the awards to address gaps and make a successful bid in future,” added Bushanain.

Nearly 30 potential applicants from various sectors including services, transportation, manufacturing, trade, hospitality, telecom, government, finance, travel, construction and healthcare attended the DQA workshops. The workshops were led by Norman Hughes, EFQM Trainer and Business Improvement Consultant, Footloose Enterprises Ltd, UK.

“The Dubai Quality Award and the Dubai Human Development Award have succeeded in stimulating a quality and excellence drive across the region. Globally, quality and human capital are recognised as key metrics of performance excellence and sustainability. It is therefore critical to train organisations on the performance parameters that define quality and sustainability,” Hughes said.

The date for receiving the final submission for the 2012 cycle of Dubai Quality Award and Dubai Human Development Award is 30^th September, 2012. Applicants interested in applying for the awards should register their intention to participate on bec@dubaided.gov.ae. 

Startup Weekend is a 54-hour event where participants pitch startup ideas for online and mobile applications, and form teams to compete for awards and cash prizes. Since 2007, Startup Weekend events have been held around the world to foster entrepreneurship through a fast-paced, competitive format that attracts software developers and designers as well as participants with business, marketing and industry-specific expertise.

As a key sponsor, Qualcomm is holding a workshop for participants, prior to the Startup Weekend event, to provide business and application development mentoring. The workshop, to be held on 17^th May at 9.30am to 5:00pm, at twofour54 (Lime Green Building), will be for software developers who plan to attend Startup Weekend Abu Dhabi.

At the workshop, developers will receive free access to various Qualcomm software development tools and will receive training on using them to create cutting-edge mobile applications. In addition, participants will be introduced to the Qualcomm Developer Program (QDEV), and after the event will be part of the Qualcomm network and receive continuing access, updates and support as part of the QDEV network.

“The UAE is renowned throughout the Middle East as a fertile ground for entrepreneurship and innovation,” said Ziad Matar, head of Middle East and Central Asia at Qualcomm. “Startup Weekend Abu Dhabi is a great event for aspiring entrepreneurs to learn from industry experts and gain the tools and knowledge to help them realise their dreams.”

Deem Albassam, one of the organisers for Startup Weekend Abu Dhabi, said, “Startup Weekend events depend on contribution from the community. We are indebted to Qualcomm and all our sponsors, as well as the mentors, judges and volunteers, to help make Startup Weekend a success for participants.”

To register for the Qualcomm workshop, visit

http://swabudhabi.org/?page_id=429

To register for Startup Weekend Abu Dhabi, visit

http://swabudhabi.org

The Chairman, accompanied by His Excellency Jamal Majid Bin Thaniah, Vice Chairman, DP World, called on the Senegalese President in Dakar May 14^th. They also met the new Prime Minister, His Excellency Abdoul Mbaye and congratulated him on his appointment.

Their talks covered DP World’s investments and operations in Senegaland efforts to step up mutual cooperation.

During their visit to the Senegalese capital, Bin Sulayem and Bin Thaniah also toured Terminal à Conteneur, West Africa’s largest and most modern container terminal, managed and operated by DP World Dakar.

Four Ship-to-Shore (STS) cranes and ten10 Rubber Tyred Gantries (RTGs) were installed at the terminal recently, completing the upgrading work, which also included new gate complex and new reefer storage facilities. The terminal was opened to business last November after DP World carried out new expansion work that more than doubled capacity to over 600,000 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent container units) under a concession agreement signed in 2007.

HE Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Chairman, DP World, said: “We are extremely honoured to meet His Excellency Macky Sall and congratulate him on his election as President of Senegal. DP World’s commitment toSenegalis long term and is driven by the immense economic possibilities in this great country.

His Excellency Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Chairman, DP World and his Excellency Jamal Majid Bin Thaniah, Vice Chairman, DP World during their meeting with the newly-elected President of Senegal, His Excellency Macky Sall.

“As the most modern and efficient terminal in western Africa, DP World Dakar acts as a growth engine in a rapidly developing emerging market region. We look forward to building on our excellent relations with the Government of Senegal.”

Jamal Majid Bin Thaniah, Vice Chairman, DP World, said: “As Africa’s favoured first port of call for vessels south-bound from Europe, DP World Dakar occupies an important place as a commercial gateway for both Senegal and the west African hinterland. We remain committed to constantly improve efficiencies at DP World Dakar and offer world class, reliable, value added services to our customers and continue to support the economic growth of this great nation.”

Since winning the Dakar concession in 2007, DP World has introduced window berthing, where vessels book a specific time they can berth, virtually eliminating waiting time at anchorage. In addition, DP World has reduced truck turnaround time to less than half an hour, and introduced clear tariffs and processes supported by modern technology systems.

Importantly, DP World Dakar has directly created more than 200 jobs for local Senegalese people. Under the company’s management, specialised training has been given to all terminal employees to bring operational efficiencies in line with DP World’s global standards.

More than 200 executives assembled in the Godolphin Ballroom at Jumeirah Emirates Towers to listen to, via satellite feed, the renowned management expertise of Jim Collins and his presentation at the FORTUNE Leadership Summit in Atlanta, USA.

The event was organised by biz-ability, a corporate leadership training and development company, as part of its annual World Thought Leader Seminars for clients and senior business people.

Previous seminars have featured business coach Liz Wiseman, author of “Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter”, and business strategist Verne Harnish, author of the bestseller “Mastering the Rockefeller Habits: What You Must Do to Increase the Value of Your Growing Firm”.

Collins’ latest research, documented in his new book “Great by Choice”, explores why some companies thrive in uncertainty, even chaos, and others do not. Based on nine years of research, supported by rigorous analysis and infused with engaging stories, Collins and co-author Morten Hansen identify the principles for building a truly great enterprise in unpredictable, tumultuous, and fast-moving times.

Collins refers to these great organisations as 10X, not only for surviving during difficult times, but because they beat the industry index by at least 10 times. “How they do this is rather counterintuitive,” Collins said. “The 10X companies changed less in reaction to their changing world than the comparison cases.”

During the three-hour seminar Collins told delegates there are three vital practices a company should adopt to help it succeed during challenging times.

“First, leaders need to be fanatical about discipline. You must ensure extreme consistency of actions, values, goals, performance standards and methods. Second, be empirical and let your decisions be informed by evidence rather than your gut instinct or the views and experiences of others. And third, create a culture of productive paranoia. Remain hyper vigilant and highly attuned to threats and changes in your environment. Then prepare for the worst possible scenarios with contingency plans. It’s really important to do this when things are going well,” said Collins.

“Contrary to popular belief, the signature of mediocrity is not an unwillingness to change; the signature of mediocrity is chronic inconsistency,” he added.

Hazel Jackson, CEO of biz-group, the holding company of biz-ability, said, “The biz-group has been working with Jim Collins’ principles for more than seven years, incorporating his management techniques into many of our business strategy and leadership training programmes. This is the first time Jim has allowed international audiences to participate in his seminars via satellite feed, which is testament to the strength of our partnership. We are delighted to facilitate for our clients and the wider UAE business community such exclusive access to this high calibre of world thought leaders.”