WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM TRÈSIND STUDIO FOUR SEASONS LONDON BREITLING MASERATI LEVANTE THE DUBAI AIRSHOW DRIVING AMBITION Oweis Zahran, founder of OWS Auto Parts, shares his entrepreneurial journey PURE INTERPRETATION Chef Niko Romito’s Michelin-starred vision at Bulgari Hotel Dubai is Italian food at its most authentic CREDIT WHERE IT’S DUE Inside the UAE’s national credit insurance agency with CEO Massimo Falcioni NOVEMBER 2019 # 154 THE GUIDE TO GOOD BUSINESS AND BETTER LIVING CEO OF UEMEDICAL, MOHAMMED ALI AL SHORAFA AL HAMMADI SHINES A SPOTLIGHT ON THE REGION’S HEALTHCARE INDUSTRY MANAL OMAR THE PEACEMAKER, ACTIVIST AND AUTHOR ON THE ART OF EMPOWERMENT PLUS : MARCO PIERRE WHITE INSIDE HIS LATEST UAE VENTURE IMPECCABLE TIMING ELEVATE YOUR WRIST GAME GREAT ESCAPES THE BEST DESTINATIONS FOR BUSINESS AND PLEASURE UA E AED 20 BAHR AIN BHD 2 KUW A IT KWD 2 OM AN OMR 2 Arabian Business N OV 2 019 HEALTHCARE’S DILEMMAELITE DRAGONFLY Lighter than air Learn more at hp.com/go/elitedragonfly Intel® Core™ i7 vPro® processor © Copyright 2019 HP Development Company, L.P.22 18 contents November 2019 20 14 Business 14 NEWS A round-up of this month’s news highlights from the region and beyond 18 GLOBAL VIEW: TECH IPOS Is there a profitable future for tech companies that float? CEO takes a closer look at the issues surrounding the digital disruptors when they go public 20 INSIGHT: ETIHAD CREDIT INSURANCE Massimo Falcioni, CEO at Etihad Credit Insurance, shares insights on how ECI supports economic growth in the United Arab Emirates 22 INSIGHT: PIRELLI Pirelli’s General Manager for the region, Alberico Avogadro, talks about his approach to driving growth at the Italian tyremaker 24 INSIGHT: VAZIR GROUP Vrinda Gupta explains how a setback after university propelled her to open her own business NOVEMBER 2019 C EO M I D D L E E A S T 3 24 164 C EO M I D D L E E A S T NOVEMBER 2019 contents November 2019 Leadership 28 WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM Mirek Dusek tells CEO about the WEF and its events taking place in Dubai 32 MANAL ON A MISSION Activist, peacemaker, and powerhouse negotiator Manal Omar is on a mission to empower women 36 THE SWEET SPOT Bahraini businesswoman Sonya Janahi discusses how she built multiple companies from the ground up 38 COVER STORY: UEMEDICAL In conversation with medical industry trailblazer Mohammed Ali Al Shorafa Al Hammadi 42 LESSONS FROM LEADERS CEO’s Young CEO of the Year Oweis Zahran, founder of OWS Auto Parts, shares his entrepreneurial journey 44 LESSONS FROM LEADERS Bani Haddad, founder and managing director of Aleph Hospitality, on making the move from employee to leader 42 44 38 32 28 34Every Experience Matters Why simply satisfy your customers when you can thoroughly impress them? More meaningful relationships and lasting impressions drive experience excellence. Deliver this new standard to your employees and customers—everywhere in your business. avaya.com6 C EO M I D D L E E A S T NOVEMBER 2019 Pleasure 46 A D D R ES S W I TH A V I E W CEO gets a sneak peak inside Dubai’s most hotly anticipated new hotel opening 49 LUXURY ESCAPE The Ritz-Carlton Ras Al Khaimah Desert Al Wadi is a resort with a wild side 58 D R I V E : MASERATI LEVANTE Behind the wheel of the effortlessly elegant Maserati Levante 52 ST YLE: MENSWEAR Statement accessories for the successful man 54 WATC H ES FO R M EN Wristwatches that convey status and impeccable taste 56 ST Y LE & J E W ELLERY Sparkle and statement pieces for the successful woman 60 ESCAPE: FOUR SEASONS LONDON A destination for those who want to be in the heart of the city 62 MARCO PIERRE WHITE The celebrity restaurateur introduces his newest restaurant in Abu Dhabi 64 MANDA R A SPA Rest and revive at this high-end home to relaxation 65 CLIENT DINNER: TRÈSIND One of the city’s finest restaurant’s has upped the ante with a tasting experience that redefines Indian gastronomy 66 GR EEN IS SU ES Being an eco-warrior these days is not easy, writes Shane McGinley 55 62 49 46 56 58 60 52 65 contents November 2019have nothing but the greatest admiration for entrepreneurs. My respect is coupled with a sense of fascination for a path that is different to the one that most of us choose. I’m not an entrepreneur myself, although at a recent Women XChange networking event at Intersect by Lexus (check them out — the energy and positivity was infectious) someone very generously described me as a ‘corporate entrepreneur’, which was a new term to me. I think that many of you reading will fit into this category, too! A corporate entrepreneur manages brands or projects, looks after clients and faces challenges much like any other business person, but they do so within the relative security of an existing organisation. Individuals who make that huge leap, embrace true risk and stare into the void of the unknown fill me with a sense of awe. In this edition, I have had the great pleasure and privilege of speaking with some of the region’s most outstanding entrepreneurs, and I can’t wait for you to discover their insights in this very special edition of CEO Middle East. A woman who needs little introduction, Manal Omar is a trailblazing activist, author, peacemaker and negotiator. This month, she is organising Across Red Lines, a women’s retreat dedicated to leadership through accessing life force energy through a faith lens. Omar served as Associate VP for the region at the US Institute of Peace under the Obama administration, was an advisor for the Libya Stabilisation Team, was one of Arabian Business’ Most Influential Arabs in 2011 and 2012, and has worked at Oxfam. In setting up Across Red Lines, she goes beyond her usual remit of working with governments and NGOs. “After many years of seeing how awful humanitarian situations were preventable, I realised that my skills would be best used in prevention,” Omar tells CEO. “So I stepped back from the highest level of government work and really started to think about what prevention would really mean... I realised that nurturing truly evolved women is a step towards creating a world with purpose and a region without conflict.” You can read more about Manal Omar on page 32. A very different kind of entrepreneurial journey is revealed on page 44. Bani Haddad presides over Aleph Hospitality, a company he founded following a successful 25- year career in hospitality. It provides hotel owners with a customised alternative to traditional hotel management models. Haddad is refreshingly candid about what it takes to make that leap, saying: “With each [corporate role], once I had established the business, I had a feeling of being overly comfortable, which I believe is an innate characteristic to those that embrace the entrepreneurial lifestyle.” Finally, although there is plenty more to discover within the pages of the magazine, I wanted to mention that this month we also caught up with one of the winners of last month’s CEO Middle East Awards. Awarded as Young CEO of the Year, Oweis Zahran comes from a family of business leaders, but is adamant that each true entrepreneur has to forge his own true path. Turn to page 42 to read about how he identified a gap in the market and built his business around it. With the festive season looming just around the corner, there’s also our Pleasure section to discover, which does exactly what it says on the tin, and offers up inspiration for the fun and finer things in life. From destinations to desirables, there’s something to discover to bring a sense of joy as we enjoy the best that life has to offer, both inside and beyond the workplace. Enjoy the issue! Jola Chudy JOURNEY OF AN ENTREPRENEUR FROM THE EDITOR I Share your views on thought leadership and innovation by getting in touch. Q U ESTI O N S? CO M M E NTS? Jola.Chudy@itp.com JOLA CHUDY Editor in Chief ED IT OR ’S P OR TR AI T: O LI VE R @ P HO TO SO LU TI ON S. M E 8 C EO M I D D L E E A S T NOVEMBER 2019THE BEAUTY IN THE DETAILS 10TH GEN INTEL® CORE™ PROCESSORSNext >