Fourth Middle East HR Summit Declared A Success

Five-day event illustrates HR’s integral role in organisational success

The 4th Middle East HR Summit concluded on a high note today at the Abu Dhabi Exhibition Centre after hosting five intensive days of focused discussions on the key aspects of human resource management and development. More than 300 regional and international HR professionals attended the Summit which is recognised as the region’s premier annual conference and exhibition for human resource professionals.

Michelle Boyd, HR Summit Director at IIR Middle East said: “We are extremely pleased with the success of the fourth Middle East HR Summit. The enthusiastic response and participation from the region’s leading organisations and HR professionals made the event an effective forum for discussing pertinent HR issues and strategies.”

The Summit opened with an interactive workshop conducted by the No.1 Most Influential Person in HR according to HR Magazine – Professor Dave Ulrich – on the topic, “What’s Next For HR?” Professor Ulrich discussed how HR can create value for employees, line managers, customers and investors.

Delegates at the workshop described Professor Ulrich as “inspirational and informative”. Chris Conroy from Al Fahim Enterprises said, “He is at the leading edge of HR!”

Peter Bonny Salleh from Enoc said he was pleased to be able to see Professor Ulrich in person. “His book has been a great influence on my development as an HR professional and practitioner for years! He is a very knowledgeable speaker on HR with a very good balance of ideas and concepts, and practical application.”

Haitham Zamzam from the Environment Agency in Abu Dhabi described Professor Ulrich as “absolutely magnificent! The content was very beneficial and easily applicable in the work environment.”

The Summit also featured presentations, case studies and panel discussion from more than 50 international and regional experts in human resources who addressed the foremost challenges facing HR professionals including developing an HR strategy to achieve organisational growth, nationalisation initiatives, cultural diversity, engaging employees and corporate culture.

Afternoon specialist streams addressed the areas of reward management; managing, retaining and developing talent; and maximising performance.

The Middle East HR Summit Excellence Awards 2007 were celebrated at a gala dinner held on Monday 5 November at Emirates Palace.  The highlights of the evening were the HR Professional of The Year Award, which was granted to Mr. Mohammed Al-Bathi, Vice President of HR, SABIC, KSA and The Outstanding Contribution to HR Award, which was given to Mr. Surour Al. Alsamerai, General Manager HR, Gulf Bank, Kuwait.

Sponsorship for the The Middle East HR Summit has been exceptional with a number of key sponsors, such as the SP Jain Center of Management, Mawaride, ORC Worldwide, Grafton Recruitment, Focus Learning, Gulf Talent, Bayt, Source, Spengler Fox, Career MidEast and Human Assets all supporting the event.

Organised by IIR Middle East, the Summit, the region’s premier annual conference and exhibition for Human Resource professionals, also drew the participation of exhibitors such as Business Systems House, Focus Learning Corporation, Watson Wyatt, Synchronicity, Extended DISC, EMA Partners International and MAC.