Business & Money | Tuesday 6 September, 2016 11:00 am |

Diversification aided by digital technologies has become an imperative for companies in the Gulf region increasingly challenged by dropping gas prices and global economic uncertainty.

Industry leaders and experts from the top-ranked IMD business school will tackle these pressing issues for organizations in the Gulf region at an upcoming business forum in Dubai focusing on Business transformation in the GCC through diversification and digitalization: challenges, opportunities and success factors. Led by the President of IMD business school, Dominique Turpin, the event takes place on September 8th at Madinat Jumeirah.

 

 “Every organization needs to constantly evolve and adapt to their external environment to stay at the top of their game. This is especially true for companies in Gulf countries. They need to stay abreast of new trends and translate them into concrete actions to move to the next level. This means they have to innovate, capitalize on the latest technology, attract top talent, and to develop game-changing leaders,” says President Turpin.

 

The IMD Business Forum will bring together delegates from leading local and regional organizations. Regional business leaders speaking at the event include Georges P. Schorderet, CEO of the Almarai Group; Dr. Abdulrahman Aljadhai, CEO of ELM Group; and Raja Almarzoqi, President of the Gulf Monetary Council.

 

Dr. Hischam El-Agamy, Executive Director at IMD, who will give an introductory address at the Forum, says: “The main topics of the Forum focus on how economic diversification is more critical now than ever. How certain companies have become leaders in the Middle East, challenges to regional economic diversification, digital transformation, and business transformation will be other key themes. These effect companies in all industries from manufacturing to retail to services. IMD will share cutting-edge insights on digitalization, and shed light on real transformation projects taking place in the Gulf region that are revolutionizing business while enhancing quality-of-life for all.”
 

IMD Professor of Strategy and Technology Management, Tawfik Jelassi will provide further insights on digital transformation, while President Turpin will speak about the non-technical impacts of digitalization. The ELM presentation will present first-hand data about digitalization in Saudi Arabia. Raja Almarzoqi will give an overview of the economic landscape.

 

IMD has strong ties to the Gulf region and provides executive development programs to a number of organizations and officials based there. Recently 30 IMD MBA candidates visited Dubai to learn about the Smart Dubai initiative. They engaged in dialogue with leaders of Smart Dubai to gain a better understanding of how the platform will provide better services to the community and transform its quality of life, while also examining how the platform will stimulate business transformation at enterprises in Dubai.