A Year in the Life
Our new region and its first year of life….
By Andrew Hurford
Time flies by… so fast in the Middle East and Dubai is no exception. The pace of change and the remarkable growth of the Emirate have ensured that this is the place to be seen to be operating from within the Middle East. However Dubai is not the only area of significant growth; Saudi Arabia is opening its borders with significant (sorry, huge multi-billion $) economic development projects - King Abdullah Economic City; Qatar is building one the world’s largest offshore islands – The Pearl; whilst both Oman and Abu Dhabi are becoming very active in the economic boom within the GCC. All of these activities mean very exciting times ahead for progressive businesses that really wish to operate and compete in the region. Quest is one of these businesses and this has been a very exciting time for a us in a very demanding market. But it has also been extremely frustrating and mentally challenging one too.
Establishing ourselves… has involved a steep learning curve since Quest made the bold decision to build on its ‘credentials’ with existing clients in banking, hospitality and FMCG in the UAE and KSA by officially opening its new Middle East Office in Dubai back in September 2005. Now firmly ensconced at new offices in Dubai Internet City, with tremendous views of Dubai’s premier construction site, The Palm, we have chance to reflect on what we have learnt, particularly with regards to better understanding the ‘culture’ and ‘changes’ affecting the GCC.
The market for consulting… in the GCC has become a much more mature one. Clients now want to work with consultants, showing real progress from the late 90’s style of having the consultants ‘do it for them’. As you can imagine, consulting projects in these times added little value to the recipients of such programmes. But with these changes, the market has become much more sophisticated, consultants can work with the internal team to really add value. This is the level of consulting that Quest is familiar with and strives to always achieve; our new and existing client base actually see Quest as an additional resource rather than an external consultant. This is why we are here….
Our first ‘official’… year of operation has been a significant success with existing clients in KSA and Dubai being serviced from Dubai as well as Australia. New clients in FMCG, Manufacturing and Government services undertaking exciting Strategy Implementation, Operational Improvement and People engagement Programmes have cemented our growth. This has been a great achievement and ensures that our growing portfolio of clients can be ‘managed’ locally rather than from a distance. This does ensure greater levels of customer satisfaction and is one of the key reasons for our local presence.
My year with Quest… was to primarily develop new and existing business across the GCC and this has been a significant challenge. Quest is new to the region and has had a limited brand presence up to this point; I am pleased to say that this has changed and Quest is being talked off within some of the major GCC organisations in such fields as property development, family owned international businesses, banking and semi-private government operations. The great client work by the Quest Team has provided a platform for value added growth during 2007. Exciting times are ahead for all who can brave the ‘heat, sand and constant noise of construction’. Seriously the GCC is a great place to live and do businesses.
It’s not all fun though… travelling in the GCC can be a constant battle, getting a visa for KSA is not a process for the faint hearted (now that would be a re-engineering challenge). The team has had to undertake strategic planning workshops in Indian restaurants in Luxar (good if you like curries); I have travelled extensively in the dark between Tehran and Isfahan (not for the faint hearted) and endured many hours of torture in KSA airports (not much comfort). On the whole though, I have lived in the UAE, visited KSA, Qatar, Bahrain, Iran, Australia, the UK, and I have always received a fantastic welcome and the depth of hospitality is both genuine and whole hearted.