Men account for up to 90 per cent of managerial positions in Arab World, highlighting the need to create equal opportunities for career women

December 29, 2010

Dr. Hussein El Kazzaz

SKOPOS Consulting, a leading Organisation Development (OD) solutions firm in the Middle East and Africa, has urged governments and private sector institutions in the Middle East to invest in a variety of women leadership development programs as part of efforts to provide equal opportunities to women and to further create more diversification in the workplace. SKOPOS has revealed in a study that women possess unique qualities such as innate soft skills that are increasingly being sought out by businesses and corporate organisations, underlining the importance and benefits of initiatives that aim to capitalize on the potential of career women.

Despite the high potential of women to succeed as business and corporate leaders, SKOPOS has revealed that only 10 per cent of managerial positions in the Arab World are occupied by women, indicating an inequality that needs to be addressed by strengthening leadership development programs for women in the region. SKOPOS likewise underlined the need to encourage women to actively participate in investment and entrepreneurial activities by providing special training that will equip them with the right skills to succeed as investors and entrepreneurs in a leadership capacity. In the GCC alone, SKOPOS noted that women collectively account for USD 40 billion in personal wealth, representing a huge potential for various investment and entrepreneurial initiatives to help contribute to the development of the region.

Dr. Hussein El Kazzaz, Managing Director of SKOPOS Consulting, said: “Women have great potential in the business and the corporate environment because they possess natural soft skills such as emotional intelligence, multi-tasking, organisational proficiency and communication skills that are invaluable in the business world. Unfortunately, there is not enough effort being exerted to fully develop the leadership potential of women, which is one of the reasons why there are very few women holding high-level positions in the corporate world. Our goal is to raise awareness about the unequal distribution of opportunities and subsequently encourage the business community and governments to provide appropriate training for the skills development and career advancement of women. Diversification in people is a key element in forming effective and successful organizations.”

“The investment potential of women, who account for over USD 40 billion in personal wealth in the GCC alone, is also enormous. As such, it is crucially important to create equal opportunities for women investors and to encourage them to venture into various investment and entrepreneurial activities. We must address the prevailing imbalance in terms of opportunities available to women to cultivate dynamism and generate greater activity in the investment sector,” added Dr. El Kazzaz.

SKOPOS has revealed that various leadership development tools for both men and women are available to support organisations realise the full potential of their human resources and develop a much stronger pool of leaders. In addition to leadership development programs, SKOPOS also pointed out the need to implement various corporate initiatives such as Change Management, Culture Transformation, Strategy Execution through cross-functional teams, Organizational Design, and Organizational Vision, Mission and Values, to cultivate the effectiveness and efficiency of business organisations.

To assist its clients in the Middle East, SKOPOS has disclosed that it has developed customised leadership training programs that take into account the specific needs and sensitivities of each client. Coredia, the leadership development arm of SKOPOS Group centres around building organizational leadership capacity that is aligned with and supports the business strategy. The program places strong emphases on Self Awareness, System Thinking, Strategic Thinking, Leadership Capacity and Management Capacity, while using various learning techniques to help develop the Leaders through workshops, work assignments and executive coaching.

SKOPOS Consulting uses both soft and hard management tools to implement change programs with its clients in the Middle East and Africa. The company utilizes a mix of coaching, conflict management, team building, leadership development, communication, succession planning, performance management and other proven Organisational Development tools to help its clients become highly effective. Founded in 1991 in San Jose, CA, SKOPOS Consulting now offers its services across a range of industries, serving clients such as HP, Zain, Cisco and Dubai Police Department. SKOPOS Consulting has offices in Dubai, Cairo and Bahrain.

Recent studies show that 86 per cent of executives believe working across different departments in their current leadership role is extremely important

July 15, 2010

SKOPOS Consulting, a leading Organization Development (OD) solutions firm in the Middle East and Africa, has called on businesses and organizations in the Middle East to focus on executive coaching to improve the performance of executive employees and stay competitive in the current environment. SKOPOS Consulting referred to recent studies that have shown that the development of leadership skills, multi-tasking skills, and particularly soft skills development from managers can have a significant impact in boosting performance across all levels of the organization. SKOPOS Consulting also pointed out studies showing that 92 per cent of managers feel that the ability to work across different departments becomes more important as they rise through the ranks.

Dr. Hussein El Kazzaz, Managing Director of SKOPOS Consulting, said, “Executive Coaching must form an integral part of a company’s strategy for Organizational Development. This is because Executive Coaching is a more effective development approach than training in unlocking a person’s potential to maximize their own performance. Executive Coaching can guide new managers rising through the ranks of an organization that may have a gap in inter-personal skills or basic management skills required in their new roles. Coaching in the past was intended for problematic leaders, whereas today about 90 per cent of coaching is aimed at high achievers to release their further potential.”

“The Middle East is a priority area for SKOPOS Consulting because of the region’s strong business and growth potential. The executive coaching solutions offered by SKOPOS are customised to serve as a powerful tool in boosting executives’ effectiveness and performance in the GCC,” added El Kazzaz.

Organizational Development through executive coaching is particularly important amongst GCC countries, because many regions of the Gulf are focusing on nationalization policies for their local residents. The UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman in particular are pursuing nationalization policies to empower their local population.

SKOPOS Consulting has also noted that increasing numbers of firms in the Middle East and North Africa region are seeking executive coaching solutions to help with employee retention. This is crucial considering that employee turnover has been proved to be a costly and time-consuming exercise, which affects the performance effectiveness of business organisations.

SKOPOS Consulting uses both soft and hard management tools to implement organizational change with its clients in the Middle East and Africa. The company utilizes a mix of coaching, conflict management, team building, leadership development, communication, succession planning, performance management and other proven organisational development tools to help its clients become highly effective. Originally founded in 1991 in San Jose, CA, SKOPOS Consulting moved to establish its Middle East presence in 2002. It is now fully owned, managed and operated independently by the Middle East team. It currently offers its services across a range of industries, including technology, government and telecommunications. The company has offices in Dubai, Cairo, Bahrain and Kenya.

Soft skills boost organisational effectiveness and performance – SKOPOS Consulting Group

May 25, 2010

SKOPOS Consulting, a leading Organisation Development (OD) solutions firm in the Middle East and Africa, has called on business organisations in the GCC to focus on the development of soft skills as part of a concerted effort to improve the overall performance of employees and enhance the business climate. SKOPOS Consulting pointed out studies that have shown that interpersonal skills, communication skills, responsiveness, ethics, inventiveness, ability to work in a team, and a positive attitude towards change have significant impact in boosting performance across all levels of the organisation, from entry-level employees to senior management positions.

Organisational capability to respond to change is increased through Organisational Development. The approach used by SKOPOS, changes the behaviours and beliefs of employees so that they can better adapt to new challenges. Soft skills enable employees and managers to perform optimally across all job categories and levels.

Dr. Hussein El Kazzaz, Managing Director of SKOPOS Consulting, said, “There is a pressing need to promote organisational development in the GCC to complement the growing reputation of the region as a fast-emerging business and investment hub. In particular, enhancing the soft skills of the regional talent is crucially important at this time of recovery after a challenging period during the global financial crisis. Employees should not only be able to handle challenges that are purely technical, but also be able to manage problems that are emotional, social or cultural in nature.”

“The Middle East has been a priority area for SKOPOS Consulting because of the region’s strong business and growth potential. The organisational development solutions offered by SKOPOS are customised to serve as a powerful tool in boosting organisational effectiveness and performance in the GCC,” added El Kazzaz.

SKOPOS Consulting has also noted that increasing numbers of firms in the region are seeking soft skills solutions to help with employee retention. This is crucial considering that employee turnover has been proved to be a costly and time-consuming exercise, ultimately affecting the performance of business organisations and losing valuable talent to competitors.

SKOPOS Consulting uses both soft and hard management tools to implement organizational change with its clients in the Middle East and Africa. The company utilizes a mix of coaching, conflict management, team building, leadership development, communication, succession planning, performance management and other proven organisational development tools to help its clients become highly effective. Originally founded in 1991 in San Jose, CA, SKOPOS Consulting moved to establish its Middle East presence in 2002. It is now fully owned, managed and operated independently by the Middle East team. It currently offers its services across a range of industries, including technology, government and telecommunications. The company has offices in Dubai, Cairo, Bahrain and Kenya.