Issue 5 Public Sector Excellence UAE

SHARING EXCELLENCE

EMPOWERING EXCELLENCE

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p.20Dr. Amin Al Amiri, Undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Health, lends his insights into the UAE’s healthcare sector and shares some of his experiences in UAE government leadership

Among many determinants of an organization’s success, the quality of its products and services is one of, if not the most important.

ISSUE 5 MAY 2015

PSE Magazine is the first and only public sector and business excellence magazine in the UAE and aims to be the number one business excellence magazine in the region by 2018. By sponsoring PSE, you can:

For details on our sponsorship packages and opportunities, contact:

Khalid MohammedGeneral Manager-Public Sector Publishing FZ-LLC

Tel: 050-3188891Email: [email protected]

Sponsor Public Sector Excellence today

Position your organization as a local and regional leader and supporter of government excellence. Enjoy exclusive branding and advertising opportunities to over 15,000 PSE readers through premium ad positions in our monthly magazine.

Engage in a worthy corporate social responsibility initiative by supporting our goal to promote excellence in public services.Gain access to key government leaders and influencers through our VIP meet and greets and interviews.

Assume a leadership position in public sector excellence at all our events and competitions.Last but not least, take advan-tage of our extremely competi-tive sponsorship package rates as compared to our regular rate card

PSE Magazine is the first and only public sector and business excellence magazine in the UAE and aims to be the number one business excellence magazine in the region by 2018. By sponsoring PSE, you can:

For details on our sponsorship packages and opportunities, contact:

Khalid MohammedGeneral Manager-Public Sector Publishing FZ-LLC

Tel: 050-3188891Email: [email protected]

Sponsor Public Sector Excellence today

Position your organization as a local and regional leader and supporter of government excellence. Enjoy exclusive branding and advertising opportunities to over 15,000 PSE readers through premium ad positions in our monthly magazine.

Engage in a worthy corporate social responsibility initiative by supporting our goal to promote excellence in public services.Gain access to key government leaders and influencers through our VIP meet and greets and interviews.

Assume a leadership position in public sector excellence at all our events and competitions.Last but not least, take advan-tage of our extremely competi-tive sponsorship package rates as compared to our regular rate card

Issue 5 - MAY 2015

A look at some of the good practices and innovative solutions in public healthcare from around the globe

Dr. Amin Al Amiri, Undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Health, lends his insights into the UAE’s healthcare sector and shares some of his experiences in UAE government leadership

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1430WORD FROM THE EDITOR

Denise Daane, Managing Editor at PSP introduces our fifth issue of PSE: The Health Edition

CURRENT NEWS AND AFFAIRSA summary of the latest public-sector news and current affairs across Abu Dhabi

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AT A GLANCEThis month we conclude this series of project management process groups with the Project Closing process

KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE“Breaking Down Silos to Achieve Strategic Agility” by Sarah Wachter, INSEAD Knowledge Contributor

SHARING EXCELLENCE BENCHMARKS

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An in-depth look at the present and future state of Abu Dhabi’s healthcare system

Enabling Excellence through Processes, Products, and Services

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34BUILD YOUR SOCIAL PROFILE

Crowdsourcing: Learn how the public sector can pick the brains of its citizens in shaping public policy

OFF TOPICExplore some of Abu Dhabi’s finest Middle Eastern food experiences

LOCAL ENTERPRISELMs. Aisha Al Rashedi, Founder and Owner of Rashat Soukar, shares her story in starting a business from scratch in the UAE

IDEA WATCHDrones: Why this technology and its potential applications is on the top of the Technology Watch List

IN FOCUSEMPOWERING EXCELLENCE

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

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Stay in the loop with our monthly issues. Each issue we provide an in-depth look at the key Abu Dhabi public sector industries that are shaping the city today.

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In June, PSE navigates through the capital’s formidable real estate and construction sector that has devel-oped into a modern day marvel

PSE’s July issue takes readers on a tour of Abu Dhabi’s exciting and rapidly growing tourism industry in the Tourism Edition.

In August, we explore the growth and development of Abu Dhabi’s banking and finance industry into the world class system it is today

JUNE 2015

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

WORD FROM THE MANAGING EDITOR

TO OUR SUBSCRIBERSWHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED THEIRVALUABLE FEEDBACK AND SUGGESTIONS,WE OFFER A WORD OF APPRECIATION AND CONTINUE TO ENCOURAGE OUR READERS TO SHARE THEIR OPINIONS

M AINTAINING A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE and keeping fit has long been a popular topic of discussion, and with summer approaching, most residents will be planning their holidays to escape from the heat. Abu Dhabi has so much to offer in the line of healthcare—state-of-

the-art hospitals and clinics, fitness centres, nutritional outlets, organic mar-kets and cafes, and more. The list is long and continues to grow!

In this month’s health edition we cover the capital’s dynamic and comprehensive healthcare system, and take you through Abu Dha-bi’s healthcare industry in our “In Focus” section, highlighting some of the milestones achieved over the years in healthcare reforms and public awareness initiatives. Looking abroad, we bring you updates on good practices in global public healthcare and innovative solu-tions that have been introduced to tackle existing and new diseases and illnesses.

In our episode on “Sharing Excellence,” PSE offers you an interesting interview with H.E Dr. Amin Alamiri, the undersecretary of the UAE Min-istry of Health, who provides us with a broad view on some of the country’s key public health policies and initiatives that have been implemented to alleviate the health concerns facing citizens and residents.

Continuing with our series on Excellence Enablers, this month’s “Empow-ering Excellence” provides readers with an in-depth look at how to enable excellence in corporate performance through processes, products, and ser-vices. In “Knowledge Exchange,” Sarah Wachter, INSEAD Knowledge Contrib-utor, discusses one of the biggest challenges currently facing public sector organizations around the world in her article titled “Breaking Down Silos to Achieve Strategic Agility.” In “Project Management at a Glance,” we continue from where we left off in our last issue’s project execution article, and carry through into the project closing process.

We travelled to Sharjah for our “Local Enterprise” section, to bring you an inspiring story of local entrepreneur Aisha Al Rashedi, mother of seven, a government employee, and businesswoman who shares her journey in es-tablishing her own business. As customary, we continue to provide you with updates on Abu Dhabi government news and affairs, as well as our monthly “Idea Watch,” where we explore the rapidly evolving technology of drones and their peaceful applications. In our “Off Topic” article, we visit a selection of some of Abu Dhabi’s finest Middle Eastern dining experiences.

To our subscribers who have contributed their valuable feedback and sug-gestions, we offer a word of appreciation and continue to encourage our readers to share their opinions via email to [email protected]. Also, stay tuned for some upcoming competitions with great prizes in our future issues.

If you have missed any of our previous issues, or are looking for addition-al articles, downloads, and professional resources please visit our website: www.psemagazine.com

Best regards,

Denise Daane

Managing Editor

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PUBLIC SECTOR NEWS AND AFFAIRS

Abu Dhabi Current News and Affairs

GENERAL GOVERNMENT NEWS

UAE CITIZENS GRANTED EASIER ENTRY TO EUROPE

After an agreement signed in Brussels, UAE nationals no longer require a visa to travel to the 25 countries in The Schengen area, in ad-dition to eight other applicant countries.

H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Na-hyan, the UAE Foreign Minister described the agreement with the European Union as a significant achievement for UAE diplomacy. Citizens can now travel to most European countries without going through the process of applying for a Schengen visa.

ABU DHABI EXCELLENCE AWARD IN GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE INTRODUCTORY ROUND CONCLUDED

The Abu Dhabi General Secretariat of the Executive Council has stated in a press re-lease that its introductory rounds for gov-ernment entities participating in the fourth session of the Abu Dhabi Award for Excel-lence in Government Performance (ADAEP) have been concluded.

The introductory rounds are aimed at informing government leaders about the details of the Award’s fourth session and affirming their prominent role in urging their departments and employees to strive for excellence in government ser-vices.

MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS

MUNICIPAL SYSTEM LAUNCHES THE NOCS FOR UTILITIES, INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAMME

The Department of Municipal Affairs has announced that the Municipal System reached an agreement with 13 public and private entities concerned with the issuance of NOCs in respect of public utilities and the infrastructure of Abu Dhabi Emirate. The agreement aims at simplifying operations, and reducing procedures of obtaining NOCs by individuals and companies.

The agreement was made in the context of the program of issuing NOCs relating to facilities and infrastructure in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, which was launched by the Government in 2011, and designed by Abu Dhabi Systems & Information Centre in col-laboration with the Municipal System and 19 relevant entities.

HEALTH

SLOW CRIPPLING OF POLIO AND UAE’S EFFORTS RECOGNIZED WORLDWIDEOn 30th April 2015 the UAE received due recognition for its efforts in eradicating polio

and becoming a polio-free country since 1993. The Global Polio Eradication Initiative indicated imminent disappearance of this crippling disease worldwide. The attendees included representatives from the WHO, UNICEF, Rotary International, American CDC, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The UAE was praised for its role in the fight against this debilitating disease, and the WHO Director of Polio Operations, Dr Hamid Jafari commented that; “The UAE has been a key partner providing not only funding, but on-the-ground support as well.” The UAE’s hard work in helping Paki-stan overcome its problems involving polio vaccination was also lauded.

The event followed on the heels of HAAD’s National Polio Campaign, which is responsi-ble for vaccinating 254,082 children.

MEDIA, ARTS, AND CULTURE

MUCH AWAITED DEBUT Asma Alshamsi, a local puppeteer has add-

ed a new creation to the colorful cast of If-tah Ya Simsim – the Arab version of Sesame Street. The new addition is Shams, a bubbly six-year-old girl who intends to make her debut at the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair – May 7 to May 13, much before the re-launch of the show.

Bidaya Media spokesperson had this to say:“The public debut of Shams is an incred-

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PUBLIC SECTOR NEWS AND AFFAIRS

ible milestone in our journey to bring one of the region’s most loved television shows back into homes of old and new fans alike.”

Shams was also available to welcome chil-dren at the Knowledge Square in the Cre-ativity Corner throughout the book fair.

TOURISM AND TOURISM DEVELOPMENT INDUSTRY

DESERT CHALLENGE COMES TO AN ENDOn 3rd April 2015, the 25th world-class

Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge ended on a sparkling note at Yas Marina Circuit with a dinner, followed by the prize awarding ceremony. The event was held under the patronage of the Ruler’s Representative – for the Western region – H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan. It forms the opening round for FIM Cross Country Rallies World Championship and the sec-ond round of the FIA World Cup for Cross Country Rallies.

Vladimir Vasilyev (Russia) owned the cars title for his second consecutive time while Marco Coma (Spain) won in the bike cat-egory after previously winning this title seven times! Mohammed Bin Sulayem, President, and Tarek Al Ameri, CEO of Yas Marina Circuit presented the trophies. Ahmed Al Fahim and Mansour Al Helei, both UAE nationals, were awarded tro-phies for the T3 buggies and T2 production class cars categories, respectively while Mohammed Abu Issa (Qatar) received the quads crown.

EDUCATION

ADEC HOSTS THE 3RD PRIVATE EDUCATION INVESTMENT FORUM

The Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) has organized the 3rd Private Education Investment Forum to attract investors and operators to establish new schools and/or expand existing private schools. The Educa-tion Investment Forum is hosted annually in alignment with ADEC’s strategic initia-

tive to develop a private schools promotion and business development plan, which will increase the number of schools providing quality education, while offering affordable quality options for students across the Emir-ate of Abu Dhabi.

In addition to the contribution for the betterment of the education system in Abu Dhabi, private schools also play a pivotal role in the economic development of the country, with Dh3 billion generated from private schools annually, and an estimat-ed requirement of a further 60,000 private school seats in the next five years.

ARCHITECTURE

MASTABA – A MASSIVE PROJECT WITH MATCHING BENEFITS

Christo, an octogenarian, is an avant-gar-de artist, known for his megalomania. After finishing the Floating Pier project (Italy) next year, Christo will revisit his plans for Masta-ba in Abu Dhabi – Mastaba means a trap-ezoid bench-like tomb in Arabic. He plans to erect this model of architecture near the Liwa Oasis, Al Gharbia.

Mastaba is expected to be 300 meters tall and was the brainchild of Christo and his wife way back in 1977. Forty years later, Christo is still connected to Abu Dhabi by the Christo and Jeanne-Claude Award. Budding artists of the UAE are awarded this annual prize.

All of Christo’s projects are sale-funded through his designs which are sold to pri-vate collectors and museums. The expect-ed financial impact on Abu Dhabi is prom-ised to be enormous since the Mastaba is expected to attract $390m in the Dubai Expo 2020 alone.

POLICE AND DEFENSE

MINISTRY OF INTERIOR LAUNCHES BRAINSTORMING SESSION TO PROMOTE

INNOVATION IN DEVELOPING IDEAS FOR CHILD PROTECTION

The Ministry of Interior (MoI) Child Pro-tection Center conducted a brainstorming session to generate creative ideas in the field of child protection. According to the MoI website, the initiative is the first of its kind in this field and has been implemented in a methodical manner in accordance with specific rules by expert, Lieutenant Colonel Dr. Omar Ibrahim Al Ali, Deputy Director at the Creativity and Leadership Develop-ment Center. Present at the session were an elite group of Zayed University students who were invited to contribute their ideas and innovative solutions to community is-sues, including child protection.

THE UAE’S SEARCH AND RESCUE TEAM DEPLOYS ITS HUMANITARIAN MISSION IN NEPAL

The UAE Search and Rescue Team at the Ministry of Interior, started its humanitari-an mission by providing logistics support to the international relief operation to aid the victims of the earthquake in Nepal which caused the death of over 7,000 people and injured 16,000 people, according to Lt. Colonel Mohammed Abdul Jalil Al An-sari, Head of the UAE Search and Rescue Team, Director General of Civil Defense in Abu Dhabi.

The Minister of Interior utilized the Se-curity Media’s drones to assess the dam-aged buildings’ integrity. This was the first experience worldwide to use the drones in search and rescue operations and field scanning to provide further safety and pro-tection to the human element participating in such operations.

Al Ansari highlighted that the team’s mission in Nepal, from the moment of arrival, was focused on providing med-ical services, which included examining and assessing patients, supporting hos-pitals with the latest medical tools and equipment, as well as training Nepalese doctors and nurses to introduce the best methods in categorizing different medical conditions. This comes as an embodiment of the UAE’s willingness to help victims devastated by natural disasters around the world.

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PROJECT MANAGEMENT AT A GLANCE

A FTER ALL THE BLOOD, sweat, and tears (fig-uratively speaking, we hope) expended in the

previous project phases—Initiation, Planning, Execution, and Moni-toring and Controlling—we finally arrive at the stage where we close the project. We look at what we’ve built, marvel at its glory, clock out, go home, put our feet up, and relax.

Oh, if only it were that easy.The good news is, if the rest of the

project has been well managed, the closing phase should not be diffi-cult. In closing, the project manag-er basically ensures that all project tasks have been completed, includ-ing the documentation, and re-ceives formal acceptance from the project customer that the project

has met all requirements outlined in the final approved Scope Docu-ment. Let’s step through the details of the process.

Scope VerificationIn the Project Planning phase

we created a Statement of Scope. During the Project Execution phase we may have made changes to the

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practicing project managers, how-ever, will tell you there’s a more di-rect and easier test to ensure proj-ect completeness: The schedule has every item checked off.

This comes with a caveat, of course. In the planning phase, did you ensure your task list, which was used to create the schedule, included everything needed to fulfill the scope? If you did, you’re golden. This is where we go back to meticulously planning the proj-ect. That Scope Statement should have been treated like a sacred document. It wasn’t cobbled to-gether just to check it off the list of required documentation; it was written as if the project manager’s professional life depended on it. That’s because it does. The Scope Statement is the contract between the project and the customer. If you’ve been reading this series of articles, this may sound like a bro-ken record, but a project manager risks professional suicide if plan-ning isn’t given the utmost impor-tance. Yes, this article is about clos-ing the project, but closing can be a bear if the project wasn’t planned and executed properly.

Let’s assume that the project man-ager did plan and execute carefully. With the Statement of Scope gen-erating the list of activities that had to be accomplished to produce all deliverables within that scope, and with the activity list generating the schedule, we get to the end of the schedule and find, magically, that every item in it has been checked off. Because we have received cus-tomer acceptance as we completed each and every deliverable during project execution, the final accep-tance should be no more than a matter of paperwork.

Yes, you want to verify that all deliv-erables within the Scope Statement are complete to the customer’s sat-isfaction. But, the practical reality is that the schedule, properly done,

provides the project manager with a checklist that does exactly that.

Close ProcurementsIf our project included purchasing

hardware or services, we probably have some purchase agreements to check up on. Of course, all organi-zations always pay their invoices as soon as humanly possible (we pause briefly for a smile), but just in case one might drop through the cracks, it’s the project manager’s responsi-bility to ensure that each and every purchase agreement is either paid or is in the process of being paid. It’s rare that a PM has any direct au-thority for making payment, but at a minimum, he or she has the ob-ligation to ensure that all contracts are being managed according to the organization’s policy. In short, the PM ensures that nothing has fallen through the cracks.

In some cases, it may be necessary to close out general ledger accounts that were opened specifically for the project or manage other finan-cial or cost accounting processes. As with so many other tasks in the project, the project manager prob-ably will not do this, but will ensure that it is complete before calling the project closed.

If there were problems with a purchase it may be the case that final resolution won’t be complete for months or even years, but this doesn’t hold up the closing of the project. Rather, the situation is turned over to another process within the organization and is docu-mented within the project records. Clearly, every contract dispute is not the project manager’s responsibili-ty, but documenting the source and current status of the dispute must be part of the project closing docu-mentation. During the Project Mon-itor and Control phase, the project manager made sure that all con-tractual obligations between the enterprise and vendors were well

original scope, but at this point in the project, we should be able to proudly present the final scope document, including all updates, and be able to check off each item in it as having been complete to the project customer’s satisfaction. In parallel with the Project Execu-tion phase, we monitored and au-dited the project to ensure that all outputs met the requirements ob-jectives. By diligently ensuring the customer was satisfied with the output as the project progressed, we should get to the completion having no questions about what was actually produced.

That’s one way of verifying that the project is complete and all re-quirements have been met. Most

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managed. He or she checked off obligations as they were fulfilled, or documented disputes and disagree-ments as they occurred. If there were contract problems, now, at the project closing phase is where documentation concerning the dis-pute is turned over to the proper organization to be handled. If any documentation remains to be ap-proved or if any action items were created through the audits, they need to be closed or turned over to another process outside of the proj-ect so that the project no longer has responsibility for them. This other process might involve a negotiated settlement, arbitration, or litigation. In any case, the project documenta-tion will include all specifics of the dispute. Even though the project is closed, documentation will remain to support the organization’s case.

Transfer New Service or Process

Whether the the final deliverable of the project was a building, new software, a process, or service, the transition of the end result from project to daily use should have been built into the project delivera-bles as part of the scope. So, a new building, at the end of the project should be in the hands of a property manager or building maintenance group. New software should be in the hands of IT production. A new process should be owned by the or-ganization it serves.

Project closure, however, requires that all documentation is complete regarding the transference of the physical plant, hardware, or pro-cess. This is where all i’s are dotted and all t’s crossed. All stakeholders know beyond a shadow of a doubt that the project now has nothing to do with the output, the result of the project. Not only do they know it, but they sign their name to a document stating the fact. The ab-solute last thing a project manager

wants is for his or her phone to ring three months after completing the project and have someone request further ostensible project-related activities. If this happens, and the project manager cannot produce documentation showing that the project has no more responsibility in that area, someone (read, proj-ect manager) has messed up. As we said in the last article, if it’s not it writing, it didn’t happen. The pro-cess of formal transfer of project deliverables, with physical sign-off, cannot be stressed enough.

elease Project PersonnelThis process varies widely accord-

ing to the organization, and it’s for that reason that Organization Pro-cess Assets are again so important. It may be the case that the project manager really has nothing to do in this area; a functional or weak matrix organizational structure may preclude the PM from having any responsibility for formally releasing personnel from the project. Howev-er, in cases where the organization is projectized or utilizes a strong ma-trix structure, the project manager will have some administrative du-ties to perform. This may be an in-formal process of verbally informing the team member’s line manager

that the project is complete and the services of the person are no longer required. On the other hand, there may be paper or automated forms that the project manager is required to fill out to update a personnel as-signment system, acknowledging that the person is now available to work on other projects or services. Projectized organizations may also require that the project manager provide performance reviews of the project personnel.

Lessons LearnedIn life, things go well and some-

times, not so well. Authors and historians document life’s success-es and failures. Intelligent people read those accounts—stories and histories—and learn from them. Likewise, during the course of the project things go well, and things don’t go so well. The problem is, there is rarely a novelist or histo-rian to document the story. With-out that, lessons we might use for future projects go to waste. Like a good history book, a document of lessons learned from a project helps to guide future projects. We don’t have to keep making the same mis-takes over and over. All we have to do is ask whether a similar situation has ever existed and find out how

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those who preceded us handled it. This may be as simple as, “We used XYZ vendor for wiring and they were horrible! Never use them again.” Or the situation might have involved a very specific software setting that caused a problem for a develop-ment team. The lesson might just as well concern a very successful process or project innovation, such as, “We studied every article and followed all suggestions on project management in Public Sector Excel-lence Magazine and our project ran without a hitch.”

The point is, Lessons Learned can be positive or negative. Anything the project team learned that might possibly help another future project should be documented. Not only should they be documented, the information should be readily and easily available to future project per-sonnel. It does no one any good for a paper list of lessons learned to be filed in a cardboard box in an offsite warehouse. With today’s technol-ogy, there is absolutely no reason every lesson learned from every project cannot be entered in an in-dexed database, easily searchable by keywords. People love to give advice and tell others of their ex-periences—IF—they believe that advice and experience is actually going to do some-one some good. A project team will approach a lessons learned information gather-ing session with extreme cynicism if they be-lieve their comments will be filed in a dark corner of an obscure warehouse. But if they know that their wisdom will live for future generations

and be useful and actually used by others, they will put every effort into documenting successes and failures.

Yes, but… Yes, but some projects do not

complete successfully. There are as many possible reasons for this as there are failed projects and there always seems to be sufficient blame to pass around so that nobody needs to go back to their office without at least a little egg on their face when a project “has gone south.”

Scope creep, those seemingly insig-nificant changes and additions to the project, may have become an un-bearable weight, causing the entire project to crash and burn. Unman-ageable risks may have become is-sues that could not be overcome. Key personnel may have left the compa-ny. Costs, for whatever reason, may have spiraled out of control.

It may simply be the case that business conditions changed; the

project became unnecessary or an-other project requiring the budget and personnel became more im-portant or urgent.

Whatever the cause, most of the above closure activities still have to be carried out. The difference being, rather than have the project cus-tomer sign off on final deliverables, they may be asked to sign off on a statement of partially completed deliverables or other agreements or statements of understanding. The issue is that all parties have to know the status of the project so that they can make plans for limit-ed, or no, project deliverables.

Part of the close process will be an evaluation of all costs that will be incurred if cancelation of pro-curement con-tracts incurs p e n a l t i e s .

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Procurement agreements, even if not complete, still need to be closed out and possible cancel-ation provisions invoked.

Unfortunately there is no “Can-celed Project Process.” Each one is different so it’s important to consider all project deliverables, procurement contracts, personnel issues, and myriad other consider-ations and properly handle all the normal steps noted above as well as any issues that arise as a result of “dismounting in mid-stream,” as it were.

And One More ThingWhat follows is not in the Project

Management Body of Knowledge, that tome known only to profes-sional project managers, normally sitting on a shelf somewhere near his or her desk (good for reference but not what one would call enter-taining reading by any stretch of the imagination). No, what this au-thor has to say about project clos-ing is only gleaned from decades of experience, not only managing projects, but in life. And here it is: the last thing a good project man-ager does, the last thing a good project sponsor does, is to express gratitude to the project team. Yes, normally they have received a sal-ary for their work and even out-standing work may be considered just and fair trade for the remuner-ation they’ve received.

But research has shown that in the workplace, money is not a mo-tivator. When the employee feels they are not being sufficiently com-pensated the issue of money is a de-motivator. But once an employ-ee feels they are being fairly com-pensated for their work, money loses its motivational flavor. It’s ex-actly the case with water or food—once you have enough of it, getting more is not a driving force.

What is a driving force for most

humans, and employees normally count themselves among this group, is feeling appreciated, even needed. A project team is normally assem-bled for a one-time project; they are a team only for a short time. For that brief period, with good project management, they feel as if they are part of a group of talented in-dividuals who have come together temporarily to produce something new and, hopefully, wonderful. Then at the close of the project they go their separate ways. People who may have enjoyed working with their team members may find that they never have the opportunity to work together again. By the end of a successful project, there is a spirit of camaraderie, of success, of winning.

This is the perfect time to capi-talize on strong feelings of being part of a team, of being proud of having accomplished a goal. What a shame, when project teams are disbanded without taking advan-

Inputs

Accepted Delivered Organizational Process Assets

Project ManagementPlan

Final Productsand Services

Lessons Learned

Expert Judgement

Project MeetingsAnalytical Techniques

Ex. Statistical and trend Analysis to analyze project data for future improvements

Outputs

Tools & Techniques

Deliverables get accepted in the Verify Scope Process

The Project Manager makes sure all workis done and that each deliverable has been accepted by stakeholders

Organizational Process Assets

including:

tage of these positive emotions to encourage team members by demonstrating the company’s grat-itude. The size of the team and the resources of the company play a big part in what kind of demonstra-tion of gratitude is given, but a spe-cial luncheon, possibly with a few awards for those who went above and beyond the call of duty should be considered a minimum effort on the part of the project sponsorship.

With a closing celebration, the team members will have a sense of closure that helps generate good morale in the rest of their work life. With a closure that helps to give meaning to a project, when they are requested on another project, em-ployees will be more likely to look forward to the opportunity and will give it their best efforts.

And from a project manager’s per-spective, that is as close to heaven on Earth as one can get.

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Global Benchmarks

in Public

Heal

thca

reO

PERATIONAL MODELS for public healthcare vary widely throughout the countries of the world, from the complete unavail-

ability of government paid health-care to complete coverage. Most developed nations of the world pro-vide some level of support for their nation’s healthcare system, but the amount and nature of the support varies widely. The categories of sup-port, used by the World Health Or-ganization (WHO) as criteria against which to measure effectiveness, can be seen in who is covered, the fi-nancial extent of the coverage, and

exactly what services are covered.

Government-provided, or public universal health care is a complicat-ed proposition under the best of cir-cumstances. Factors that contribute to complexity include, but are cer-tainly not limited to social, cultural, political, and economic conditions within the country. Yet, govern-ments attempt to mitigate the diffi-culties caused by these factors and compromise where necessary to achieve workable solution for their citizens. No system has yet achieved perfection and the process to im-prove continues.

Designs of health care payment systems fall into four categories:

Out-of-Pocket

Out-of-Pocket is another term for “no public health care.” Today, only a handful of the poorer nations have no public health care system. Those who can afford to pay for health care services do so, while others

rely on private charity, payment-in-kind (barter for health care with whatever goods of value the con-sumer possesses), or do without, relying on traditional or folk medi-cine. One might find this system in use in rural parts of some countries in Africa, South America, and India.

The NHI Model

The National Health Insurance system uses private-sector pro-viders who receive payment for services from a government-run insurance program. Citizens pay into the program through tax-es or other mandated fees. This program is relatively inexpensive and simple-to-manage because all parties involved operate on a no-compete, not-for-profit mod-el. Costs are controlled, however, through limitations on the medi-

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cal services that are paid, so some needed care may not be available through the healthcare system. The NHI system is found in Taiwan, South Korea, and Canada.

Bismarck ModelNamed for Otto von Bismarck, this

system is used in Germany, Switzer-land, France, Belgium, Japan, the Netherlands, and other countries. A variation of it has recently been adopted by the US. In this system, purchasing health insurance is man-

dated by the government while health insurance and medical pro-viders, even if private enterprises, are highly regulated. In this system, health insurance is normally a ben-efit of employment. For those who are self-employed, having a govern-ment-approved health insurance policy is a government mandate.

Beveridge ModelWilliam Beveridge is given credit

for the design of the system used in Great Britain, New Zealand, Spain,

and most of Scandinavia. In this system, healthcare is a government service completely financed by tax-es. The government owns most of the hospitals and employs most of the doctors. Those hospitals and doctors that remain private still bill the government for their services, thus patients never receive a bill. The benefit this model is low cost per capita, but costs are controlled by limiting the services available to the public and the amount that doctors are allowed to charge for services.

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Australia

of the state of health care among member nations, focusing on a different topic in each report. Its goal is to provide information to policy-makers and influential or-ganizations that provide funding for government and private health initiatives and influence decisions toward higher quality health care for more people.

Their measure of public health-

According to the WHO, Austra-lians can expect to live an average of 74 healthy years. In this coun-try, healthcare is a combination of services funded by the Common-wealth, State Government, and pri-vate health insurance.

The universal health insurance plan since 1984, Australia’s Medicare pro-gram provides treatment in public hospitals without fee from the con-sumer. Subsidized care is provided for vision, dental, and psychological care, as well as consultations with general practitioners, specialist care, physician-prescribed tests, and most surgical procedures. The Australian government also provides special healthcare benefits to war veterans and their dependents.

Some of Medicare’s funding comes through an income tax surcharge to Australians earning more than a prescribed threshold. Benefits are based on a govern-ment-established fee schedule. While doctors are free to set their own consultation fees, they are en-couraged to accept the Medicare

WHO’s Top 5 Public Healthcare SystemsBased on these criteria, the WHO rated these countries as having the best healthcare systems.

benefit as full payment. The system itself comprises three programs in addition to a program specifically for the lowest income residents. The first is free healthcare to the general public. Another program covers conditions specific to mili-tary service-related conditions. A third program makes certain med-ications available at reduced rates to citizens who are war veterans or senior citizens. For low-income cit-izens there are discounts on med-icines and concessions on certain

health services.

A surcharge on income for people who earn over a threshold set by government encourages these peo-ple to purchase private insurance. Those individuals then have a wid-er array of choices in doctors and health facilities; they can use doc-tors and public or private hospitals of their choice. Depending on the policy, income, and age of the policy holder, that person may be entitled to rebates on some medical costs.

care systems of member countries uses five criteria to determine rela-tive quality of care provided. These criteria are quality, access, efficien-cy, equity, and the extent to which citizens of member nations are able to lead healthy lives.

Quality of HealthcareQuality indicators for a country’s

public healthcare system are mea-

WHO Public Healthcare Excellence Criteria

The World Health Organization is the directing and coordinating au-thority on matters of health care internationally in the United Na-tions. As such, it shapes the agen-da of research into health-related topics and sets norms and stan-dards of health care and wellness. Each year, WHO issues its report

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Let’s Benchmark!

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sured with respect to effective-ness, safety, coordination of care, and the degree to which care is pa-tient-centered. Other factors in the quality realm included the extent to which health information tech-nology is improving, how much of the total health care resources are dedicated to prevention, and the monitoring and coordinating of pa-tient care.

Access Patient access to health care can

be evaluated on cost concerns and whether primary and specialized care is received in a timely manner. Affordable care and timely care can be conflicting requirements, so the report takes a subjective look at the balance between these two criteria.

EfficiencyEfficiency is gauged on whether

the right care is received for the patient’s needs. For example, it is deemed inefficient for a patient

to be relegated to an emergency room, with its high cost structure and long waits, when the condi-tion can be easily and quickly be treated by a physician.

EquityThe WHO considers healthcare

to be a public right, universal, meaning that anyone should be able to receive necessary health care without suffering financial hardship as a result.

Healthy livesThe WHO measures

healthy lives using three main criteria: incidence of mortal-ity that should have been prevented by medical care, in-fant mortality, and a healthy life expectan-cy to the age of sixty years.

FranceIn France, healthcare is seen as so

important that its national director is a cabinet-level government posi-tion. Employees pay for compulso-ry health insurance through a pay-roll tax; the self-employed pay the same tax on their income. Insur-ance companies are all non-profit organizations that negotiate an-nually with the government to set service fees and prices.

When visiting a doctor, the pa-tient will pay a small fee for the ini-tial office visit, but will receive re-

imbursement for most or all of that fee from the government. If neces-sary, the general practitioner will refer the patient to a specialist or a hospital. Alternatively, the patient may go directly to a specialist, but the specialist will then only receive payment correspondent with the general practitioner rate. Virtually all medical practitioners in France have contracts with the national health insurance plan so fees for services are standard throughout the country.

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Let’s Benchmark!

GermanyThe oldest national healthcare

system, Germany’s is based on the aforementioned Bismarck model where universal healthcare is fi-nanced via mandatory health in-surance. Insurance may be provid-ed by private insurers or through the public insurance plan. Salaried workers and those earning below a government-mandated income threshold are automatically en-rolled in one of the many “sickness funds,” while those who earn above the limit, students, and govern-ment employees have the option of private health insurance. Rates for the public system are determined by income level while private insur-ance premiums are actuarial, based on risk factors of the insured.

Benefits covered by Germany’s health insurance are of three ba-sic types: basic health insurance, accident, and long-term care. Of these, accident insurance, covering injury at the work place and while commuting to and from it, is the re-sponsibility of the employer.

The Netherlands continues to take top honors in the Euro Health Con-sumer Index, earning the number one position in 2014, and has been in the top three countries in this in-dex since 2005.

Health insurance in the Nether-lands, as with other countries in our report, is mandatory. However, health insurance paid for by indi-vidual premiums covers common medical care, while costs associat-ed with long-term nursing care are considered separate and paid for by the government from general taxes.

Dental insurance is provided as part of health insurance, but not all procedures are covered by public in-surance. If the procedure is deemed purely cosmetic, payment for the treatment may be denied. For this reason, some Germans carry addi-tional private dental insurance.

Costs are maintained through reg-ulation by the Federal Joint Commit-tee which not only negotiates with doctors and hospitals to set rates for procedures and all other aspects of health care, but makes regulations governing all facets of health care in the country.

Netherlands18

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Let’s Benchmark!

Canada

The Canada Health Act was de-signed to ensure reasonable access to all necessary medical services. It discourages user fees and, through equalization payments, tries to en-sure access to all by leveling the play-ing field between prosperous prov-inces and those that are less so. In remote areas, primary care and emer-gency services, community-based health programs, and non-insured

health benefits programs are offered in collaboration with Aboriginal or-ganizations and other provincial and territorial systems.

Canada’s federal government sets and administers the public health-care system so that it meets na-tional standards throughout the country. As mentioned above, it works with smaller governing orga-

nizations to coordinate the overall healthcare system so that it is eq-uitable everywhere. The provincial and tribal units are responsible for local administration, hospital plan-ning and funding, payment for and negotiation of pricing for profession-al services, and for the promotion of the general public health.

Primary care providers are the first point of contact, ensuring con-tinued care and ease of movement throughout the system, even when the patient requires specialized ser-vices. This comprehensive service covers a range of areas—disease and injury prevention and treat-ment, emergency services, refer-rals to coordinated and specialized care, etc. Private practice doctors are paid based on a fee-for-service schedule. Those in public practice are paid salaries or blended pay-ments.

Secondary or specialized care re-fers to care in hospitals, commu-nity, or long-term care facilities. In Canada, the majority of hospitals are managed by regional health au-thorities or voluntary organizations under the watchful eyes of a board of trustees. The government does not fund home-based medical care but it does pay for care in long-term care facilities, and it provides cover-age to seniors, low-income patients, and children.

Health insurance premiums are not based on risk factors, instead every-one is covered under the same risk pool, making insurance relatively more expensive for healthy indi-viduals so that those with high risk profiles do not have to pay as much as they would under a risk-based pricing system. Those who cannot afford health insurance are subsi-

dized through a system of allowanc-es based on income.

Insurance regulators oversee the entire process, ensuring all insur-ance providers offer the same ser-vices and that collusion between insurers does not happen. Insurance companies receive forty-five per-cent of their income from consumer

premiums, and so have incentive to compete on price. They can nego-tiate with hospitals and doctors to maintain costs in order to offer low-er premiums. However, even with competition, insurance companies have no incentive to avoid payments to policy holders because the gov-ernment will compensate insurers whose payouts exceed income.

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015


Enabling Excellence through Processes

AMONG MANY determi-nants of an organization’s success, the quality of its products and services is

one of, if not the most important. Skillful marketing, adept product placement, business process acu-men, market timing—all are vitally important to success. But without the level of quality in the prod-uct or service that the customer demands, an organization cannot be successful. An organization

that wants to achieve excellence must be diligent in designing, im-plementing, and continuously im-proving excellent products and services.

Most government and semi-gov-ernment entities in Abu Dhabi are part of the service sector, and the government employs the EFQM (European Foundation for Quality Management) Excellence Model to help ensure that the services it pro-

vides to its people are of the highest quality. Through this model, the gov-ernment can make sure its services meet international benchmarks of quality. Their success in this regard can be seen in the steady growth of numerous economic indicators including GDP, standard-of-living indicators, and citizen satisfaction indices. With the goal of being one of the top five performing govern-ments in the world, policies devel-oped by and employed within the

Delivering Excellence in the following domains:

Our Expertise, Your Edge

Capability Building:Training and DevelopInternational Benchmarking 360 Degree Leadership AssessmentsTailored Training Solutions

ContactLevel 4Al Mamoura Building, Block BAbu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

PO BOX 46400Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

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20

Delivering Excellence in the following domains:

Our Expertise, Your Edge

Capability Building:Training and DevelopInternational Benchmarking 360 Degree Leadership AssessmentsTailored Training Solutions

ContactLevel 4Al Mamoura Building, Block BAbu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

PO BOX 46400Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

02-659 403002-659 4292

Management Services:Business Process ImprovementQuality Management and Excellence ConsultingKnowledge ManagementHR Consulting

Strategy and Marketing:Strategy Development and Implementation Corporate Performance ManagementMarketing and Corporate Branding

www.solidusmc.com | [email protected]

Issue 5 - MAY 2015

International FZ-LLC

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22

Issue 5 - MAY 2015


government of the UAE have helped many industries to lay claim to be-ing the best in the world.

With a savvy and demanding cus-tomer base that expects nothing but the best, and a government vision to provide citizens and residents with just that, public sector entities have their work cut out for them. In this article, we explore some of the key elements that must be consid-ered and implanted into any organi-zation that aims to deliver product, service, and process excellence.

Design and Manage Processes to Optimize Value

All processes have, as their root objective, the furtherance of orga-nizational goals. To be profitable and acceptable to the entire organi-zation, they must be designed from the point of view of that high-level goal. Processes need to be lean, effi-cient, and most importantly, strate-gy driven. The successful implemen-tation of any organizational strategy is contingent on processes that have been designed and implemented in the best, most efficient manner possible. Improving process quality may seem to be a mundane task, but it is of utmost importance to the long term survival and success of any organization. Therefore, leaders should make time to manage those boring process maps covered with boxes, arrows, and diamonds.

Process management should al-ways be a core component of any organization’s management system. End-to-end processes must be de-signed and implemented via lead-ership’s direction, and should be frequently analyzed, categorized, and prioritized for effective manage-ment and continuous improvement. Through these various management approaches, an organization should be able to improve its product and service development and production processes and better manage oper-

ational and strategic performance. A constant process review and im-provement cycle will ensure that an organization’s products and services continue to deliver value and meet, if not exceed, customer and stake-holder expectations, all the while cutting costs, improving efficiency, and reducing errors and waste.

Quality management has been and continues to be among the most discussed business management topics of our era. Quality Manage-ment Systems such as the ISO 9001, Lean, and Six Sigma are effective quality management systems that aim at delivering and maintaining product and service excellence. These systems, or frameworks, can be adopted to assess and/or audit process effectiveness and efficien-cy at regular intervals and promote continuous process improvement. As such, most excellent organiza-tions employ a large portfolio of management systems to ensure compliance and efficiency across all key functions and processes with-in an organization. However, as so many of us already know, earning a quality certification or accreditation is one thing; implementing a quality management system is something completely different. According to most Forbes 500 organizations, it boils down to one thing: A culture of excellence that starts with an or-ganization’s leaders and that is ad-opted by all employees.

The importance of innovation in business has been discussed numer-ous times in this segment. A culture of innovation, cultivated by the lead-ers, and adopted by the people of an organization is a key ingredient in ensuring your organization is and remains ahead of the competition. Innovation can be integrated into you organization’s management sys-tems by designing work flows that integrate brain storming and idea generation activities into your pro-cess review and improvement pro-cesses. Finally, leaders must ensure

that innovation is always recognized, rewarded, and encouraged in order to keep great ideas coming.

Provide Optimum Value for Customers throughProducts and Services

Any company following the EFQM Model for Excellence needs to strive to provide its customers with the highest value. These stakeholders are primarily satisfied through the products and services that are de-veloped and produced for them. Organizations need to keep coming up with innovative ideas to optimize the value of products and services for customers and embrace creative solutions as a way to keep improv-ing their products.

For this to be possible, it is im-portant to know exactly what the customer’s expectations, moods, and tastes are and what they deem valuable. This knowledge may be gained through market research or surveys and other forms of cus-tomer feedback. This helps antic-ipate where the market is going and what changes the organization may need to make to improve the current product and to help steer future product development and marketing. The company may even involve current customers and sup-pliers in helping to dream up and develop innovations for better products and services for existing customers and to broaden the cus-tomer base. (Also see our article in this issue, “Crowdsourcing—Em-powering the Public.”)

An important component of prod-uct development is technology. Technological advancements are sometimes hard to keep up with, and therefore having a savvy in-formation technology director on board is invaluable. Excellent orga-nizations stay up to date with the

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Specializes in the design and construction of exhibition stands.

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For Design Consultation, please contact us at:P.O. Box 487 151 Dubai, UAET : +971 4 428 0779 / +971 4 428 0780F : +971 4 429 3236Email : [email protected]

23

Issue 5 - MAY 2015


technology trends, especially those which may impact their products or industry, and make appropriate in-vestment decisions to ensure they are always one step ahead.

A recent shift in focus from the traditional customer satisfaction model to the “Customer Lifetime Value” approach means that not only do excellent organizations strive to provide the products and services customers want today, but they anticipate what their cus-tomers will want tomorrow, next year, and five years from now. At-tracting new customers is much more costly than keeping existing customers happy. Excellent orga-nizations get to know their cus-tomers well. They manage current products and services in a way that delights their customers and develop new products and ser-vices that will keep them coming back year after year.

Efective Promotion, Marketing of Products and Services

Marketing your products and ser-vices is all about creating the right value proposition. Developing a val-ue proposition is an essential part of business strategy. It defines the val-ue that an organization can deliver to its customers through its product and service offerings. Combining this with a clearly defined business model that irons out the core ca-pabilities, processes, partners, and target markets, an organization can identify a “unique selling point” that can aid in marketing strategies. From here, other details such as tar-get customers, market positioning, and distribution can be determined.

Once an organization has defined its value proposition, it then uses savvy marketing strategies to pro-mote products and services to target customers and various user groups. The excellent organization carries

out its marketing in a systematic way, targeting current customers as well as seeking to attract and develop new ones to broaden market share.

Organizations are often accused of false advertising and in many cases fail to deliver all the great features and benefits claimed about their products and services. This is nev-er the case with excellent organi-zations. Advertising should never go overboard; great organizations make sure they can deliver on all the promises they make in their marketing campaigns because they know and understand the risk of damaging their integrity.

Production, Delivery and Management

Understanding customer expecta-tions and needs while keeping your value proposition in mind is a difficult task. Organizations must incorporate this delicate balance in production and delivery processes. Unsuccessful organizations disappoint, mediocre ones meet needs, but excellent orga-nizations’ products and services are strong enough to not only fulfill, but exceed all expectations and delight their customers.

Product management is import-ant, but excellent organizations understand that this process does not end once a customer receives a product or service. They pro-vide post-delivery support in the form of customer service, techni-cal support, warranty and refund provisions, as well as provisions to recycle and reuse products where applicable. Such mindfulness helps organizations be considerate of the environment and society, and al-lows them to give something back to the planet. It is a great way to limit the depletion of natural re-sources and to maintain a good and healthy public image.

Production, delivery, and prod-

uct management are processes that should concern a wide range of stakeholders. Excellent orga-nizations have learned to involve their people, customers, partners, and suppliers in optimizing the ef-fectiveness and efficiency of their value chain. Key among these stakeholder groups are the front line employees. Employees need to be provided with the necessary tools, competencies, information, and empowerment to be able to maximize the customer experi-ence. Additionally, processes can be continually improved by com-paring them to internal and exter-nal benchmarks including local and international market leaders, in order to recognize and incorporate innovative and beneficial practices in the organization’s processes.

Managing Customer Relationships

Customer Relationship Manage-ment is an art that differentiates mediocre organizations from ex-cellent organizations. Customers need to feel valued, cared for, and respected by their favorite com-panies. When they buy a product or use a service they enter into a bond. It is the job of the organiza-tion to solidify this with integrity, honesty, and openness.

Customers should feel that they can reach the organization when needed, and that the company should be ac-cessible and attentive to their needs. Thus, excellent organizations have made themselves available to cus-tomers on a daily basis, some even going as far as being available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Offering memberships and subscriptions to customers is one way that excellent organizations use to add long term value and customer engagement. Etihad Airways has come up with a nice way to help customers remain open with them about any breach of values and ethics. Their Ethics Line is

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

available not just for customers but for other stakeholders as well. It is re-garded as a great initiative to engage customers and improve their image and value positioning by maintaining a dialogue with stakeholders based on trust, transparency, and open-ness.

Monitoring customers’ experiences is essential to understanding them and ensuring that they return. Feed-back from customer surveys, com-plaints and suggestions, social media polls and reviews should be contin-uously monitored. Customer percep-tions and experiences must be doc-umented, reviewed, and improved. An unsatisfied customer can hurt an organization more than any satisfied customer can make up for, as those who have been disappointed are much more likely to tell others about their grievances which can end in a messy and viral public relations di-saster. This is why it is important to address complaints, make amends as quickly as possible, and turn any customer frowns into smiles again.

The successful enterprise, one that achieves excellence, does not do so by chance. The path to excellence is fraught with obstacles, obstacles that may not be apparent. Some ob-stacles are unavoidable and can be dealt with. Others have to be avoid-ed, else they create an environ-ment or situation from which the organization cannot recover. This is why organizations that achieve suc-cess and go on to reach excellence actively and continuously look for ways to improve everything they do along the path to producing the product or service that eventually reaches the customer. They seek out ways to improve every aspect of their business, even those that seem to be running perfectly be-cause an excellent organization knows that there is no perfection and that anything can be improved. Excellent management dedicates themselves to becoming better at everything they do every day.

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE

Breaking Down Silos to Achieve Strategic Agility

THERE ARE TWO main ob-stacles to delivering better public services, according to the architect of a model

implemented in Scotland. Sir John Elvidge, Scotland’s Permanent Sec-retary from 2003 to 2007 identified the country’s focus on incremental change and siloed departments as major hurdles to change.

The story of how Scotland cre-ated a suppler and more effective civil service is documented in a new INSEAD case study: Strategic Agility in Nations, The Scottish Ex-ample. The civil service went from a siloed structure of departments

each focused on its own incre-mental improvement, to abolish-ing departments and setting or-ganisation-wide goals, which were measured and assessed according to long-term outcome-based per-formance indicators in the context of a national framework for devel-opment.

“The problems, which were the driving force of the change, were on the one hand, being very suc-cessful in conventional narrow terms – such as rates of educational achievement,” Elvidge told INSEAD Knowledge. But, on the other, this “apparent success sat side by side

with long-term, intractable fail-ure.” For instance, Scotland had the worst life expectancy rates in West-ern Europe.

Incremental success, long-term failure

The first step he took, through long term foresight analysis was to help civil servants discover and rec-ognise the issue (the appearance of success but an inability to address key societal problems successfully) and to gain their support for deep changes across the operations of government.

Sarah Wachter, INSEAD Knowledge Contributor

Scotland’s civil cotland’s civil service overhaul holds lessons for enhancing national competitiveness.

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KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE

The next step was to engage them in a new way of working. “We re-structured government in such a way that integration was the guid-ing principle,” he said. “Our re-sponse was to move away from the conventional structure of govern-ment – a department of education, a department of justice etc. acting separately - and try to achieve the idea of government as a single or-ganisation,” he said.

Change starts at the top

Instead of driving organizational change from the middle up, which Elvidge said is often the case in change processes, he focused on the top three to four levels of the

hierarchy as the driving force for integration. The most senior gov-ernment officials were to become the agents of change. The heads of department became directors-gen-eral. They met weekly and were made collectively responsible for a set of organisation-wide out-comes. The directors group in turn set up a similar network of peers, to spread change across the whole civil service.

Cross department teams were set up across the organisation. All had to deliver on one of five themes for a better nation that were selected by Scotland’s polit-ical leaders (a smarter, healthier, greener, safer-and-stronger, and wealthier-and-fairer nation) and focus on seventeen key areas to

make progress on these.

Networks, not islandsElvidge borrowed a metaphor for

the ‘change narrative’ from com-puter networks: “To encourage people to use the skills of building and operating networks, in place of techniques around command and control,” he said.

The logic behind integrating civil service departments sprang from the multi-dimensional origin of so-cial problems, Elvidge said: “Foster-ing a culture of getting departments to work together came from the na-ture of the societal problems. Solu-tions existed in different functional areas from where the problems manifested themselves.” He found that rising juvenile crime rates were due more to family breakdown, weak education and health care, not to inadequate police staffing, for example.

Seeing is believingElvidge led the civil service to see

the need for departments to work closer together emanated from the way problems needed to be tackled: “People could see the common na-ture of the solutions was that links between problems and solutions had to involve a dialogue across functional boundaries,” he said.

To get civil servants to work to-gether, Elvidge broke up the senior leaders into groups of about 10, in which they were encouraged to sup-port each other in meeting common objectives, identify leadership gaps across government functions, and pass along what they had learned from these shared experiences throughout the public sector ranks.

A stroke of political luckAt the critical moment when the

major changes were to be imple-mented, Elvidge’s reforms got a

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KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE

boost from an unlikely source, a major change of government. In 2007, an untested political party, the Scottish National Party (SNP), started governing as a minority par-ty. The country shifted away from many years of stable coalition gov-ernments.

Elvidge reckons that such politi-cal circumstances appeared to in-crease the willingness to take the risk involved in radical change. The SNP was keen to be seen making positive changes in the run-up to this year’s referendum on Scottish independence from the UK.

The SNP committed to policymak-ing based on outcomes, and to as-sess and report on the govern-ment’s performance based on value created, which it records at its web-site, Scotland Per-forms. The SNP also pledged to govern as a united cabi-net instead of as individual minis-tries.

Almost seven years on, Elvidge admits that the massive under-taking involved in changing decades-old behavior of the civil ser-vice, and for a body of evi-dence to develop to determine the project’s success, will take lon-ger.

Early signs of successStill, preliminary evidence of suc-

cess is trickling through. One ex-ample Elvidge cites is crime rates, where law and order had reached their limits of effectiveness. Scot-land had at the time the highest teen reoffending rates in the UK. Once again, the drivers of repeat offenders, especially teen of-fenders, were found outside the

sphere of law and order, in the fabric of communities – in fam-ilies, schools, housing. “Greater focus on how one could improve those aspects of community life has impacts on the offending rate, and we’ve seen incidents of crime fall,” he said.

Scotland also put a new approach in place, whereby panels of lo-cal volunteers meet with children at risk more broadly, because the children have been abused, missed school, or have a lack of parental su-pervision. The program has shown impressive results. Youth crime in

as it were, appear to be the most committed to the change.”

Be radical Change through more integrated

ways of working is something with which many countries are experi-menting. But Elvidge counsels them to be bolder. And to take stock of what’s working and what’s not. “The evidence suggests that some of the things that are more conven-tionally done - strong units at the center trying to drive integration, interdepartmental groupings of var-ious kinds - do not have a sufficient degree of success,” he said.

Yves Doz, INSEAD Emeritus Profes-sor of Strategic Management, who

developed the cases, opines, “if governments do not become

much better at develop-ing integrated answers

to these issues, then the loss of European competitiveness will get worse. If they manage to develop these capabilities, then the situation can improve rela-

tively rapidly.”

“Most governments have given up on this

idea of working in a more strategic fashion, working in

a more unitary fashion, working in a way which is going not just to

accomplish marginal improvements on small issues but really deal with societal problems of the future. Like aging, health care, youth inclusion, unemployment and so on. So I think that just the fact that Scotland did it is already a powerful message,” he added.

Elvidge concurs and presses other countries to take another view; “I would encourage them to take the view that the radical steps we’ve taken in Scotland are less challeng-ing than they appear,” Elvidge said.

Glasglow has dropped every year since 2006, with steep falls in teen offenses reported in other Scottish cities.

Commitment to change inevita-bly wanes with time. But one vec-tor of reform continues to burn brightly, Elvidge said: “Change has been enthusiastically embraced by emerging younger leaders. So the people who own the future,

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http://www.scotland.gov.uk/About/Performance/scotPerforms

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/About/Performance/scotPerforms

Issue 5 - MAY 2015

Sharing Excellence

EQUAL PARTS HEALTH ad-vocate and medical advi-sor, Dr. Amin Al Amiri is the Assistant Undersec-retary of Public Health Policy and Licensing at

the Ministry of Health, a position he has held since 2006. Dr Al Amiri is responsible for the Medical Licens-ing and Advertising Regulation de-partment, the Drug department and the Empowerment and Health Care Compliance department within the Ministry of Health. His Excellency also oversees all Public Health Poli-cies within the Ministry. Dr. Al Amiri also has several voluntary commit-ments, which he actively supports alongside his current position. One of the most notable among these is his role as Secretary General of the Sharjah Voluntary Award, which he has held for 13 years. Not to men-tion he has also had many publica-tions published in the field of blood transfusion medicine in local and in-ternational journals. Moreover he’s been awarded for his vast voluntary services by the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf Exec-utive Office and the Arab League, as well as receiving the Sheikh Rashid Award for Culture and Science.

By Shannon Wylie

At the Heart

Meet Dr. Amin Alamiri, the Ministry of Health’s Medicine Man

However, his roots are much more deep seeded in the country’s future of ‘fitness’ following his initial inau-guration back in April 1985. Since joining the Ministry, Dr. Al Amiri has insisted on turning matters of health into pulse points that would eventu-ally see the Emirates become a lead-er in many forward thinking health plans namely blood transfusion, his area of specialty. Now thirty years on, almost to the date, and we’re meeting with Dr. Al Amiri exclusive-ly to discuss the Emirates’ successful state of health, legislation and the fu-ture of healthcare in the UAE.

“Anything that relates to human health is a top priority,” begins Dr. Al Amiri. “But we’re not just focus-ing on Emiratis, everyone who lives in the UAE, who we consider to be part of our nation, part of our fam-ily, is important and therefore we work as one, together. However if we are to talk about importance, blood transfusion has a top priori-ty because without sufficient sup-plies of safe blood you can’t save a human’s life because there is no substitute for blood transfusion or blood components anywhere in the world.” Dr. Al Amiri has been at

the forefront of blood transfusion, a department he proudly acknowl-edges is now ‘fifth best worldwide’ after he first stepped foot into the sector in 1986. “We were the first country to have a double accredita-tion for blood transfusion. I was also the first Emirati to be a Director and then Assistant Undersecretary to handle this sector.” Moreover when asked what spurs him on to fight new frontiers in the field of medi-cine, Dr. Al Amiri replied: “Here you get a taste of your work, you know that you’re doing something for humanity, and for patients, you’re helping to save human lives and you can really feel it.” But his achieve-ments don’t stop there.

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ANYTHING THAT

RELATES TO HUMAN

HEALTH IS A TOP PRIORITY “

Dr. Al Amiri first studied chemistry at the Emirates Uni-versity before joining the Minis-try of Health. Then to further his education Dr. Al Amiri moved abroad to work in the med-ical laboratory technology industry across the United Kingdom, the United States of America and the Nether-lands. Later he went on to gain his Masters at the Univer-sity of Aberdeen in Scotland fol-lowed by a PhD in blood transfu-sion and medicine, a degree that would later prove vital to his posi-tion within the Ministry of Health.

Forging foundations in the field of chemistry puts Dr. Al Amiri in a statutory position to serve the Emir-ates’ growing capacity to produce and administer medicine – a top priority in order to combat grow-ing health issues, namely diabetes, hyper retention and OBCT (obesi-ty). “We can’t say we’ll eradicate these non-communicable diseases completely but we’ll minimize them gradually,” confirms Dr. Al Amiri. “We have a target for the year 2021, which is in line with that of the fed-eral government, to minimize such diseases by controlling the lifestyles of people through public aware-ness and education programs; this includes concentrating on youth to ensure that we expose them to healthy lifestyles,” continues Dr. Al Amiri. Campaigning to combat the health of future generations is a serious issue within the Emirates and one that is currently taking the limelight, for good reason.

In parallel to educating and en-hancing the public health sector, Dr. Al Amiri says: “One of the oth-er targets that we’re concentrating

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Sharing Excellence

on is to be a leader in the pharma-ceutical industry.” It’s an industry that is estimated to be worth AED-6billion by 2018, which is exponen-tially higher than last year’s stated market value of AED5billion. “We have 13 factories that produce 990 medicines, with two more that will be functioning by the end of 2015 and by 2020 we’ll have 30 pharma-ceutical factories,” confirms Dr. Al Amiri. This only proves positive for solidifying the future state of health within the Emirates. “As well, over the past three years, we’ve been behind international companies to help them produce innovative med-icine in the Emirates. Four MOUs have been signed, with the first be-tween Merck Serono and Neophar-ma, Abu Dhabi, the second was be-tween Pfizer and Neopharma, Abu Dhabi, followed by Merck Sharp Dohme (MSD) and Julphar in Ras Al Khaimah, and Ventus with Global Pharma, Dubai.”

According to Dr. Al Amiri, “five products have entered the market since April 1 with more companies set to follow.” A feat that would seem impossible in other coun-tries, within such a short time span, however Dr. Al Amiri confirms that: “With flexible regulation and fast track registration, a single drug can be approved in the Emirates within three months if the file is complete.” By pushing pharmaceutical bound-aries the health and wellbeing of the UAE can continue to be maintained, whilst growing proportionately. This strategy also ensures that health-re-lated issues that are paramount to the MENA region are at the fore-front of health reforms locally and internationally too. However Dr. Al Amiri confirms that: “Without dif-ferent medicines, a physician, hos-pital or clinic, cannot save a human life and you cannot treat patients, you cannot help them. You cannot diagnose illness and you cannot prevent them.” Hence the bottom line doesn’t sit with just one health care division it is instead a focused,

educated, and emphatic evaluation of several sectors coming together for the good of the public, the emir-ates community and the greater world of medical practitioners.

Besides enticing foreign companies to set up on our shores, the Ministry of Health is edging ever closer to en-suring that the region remains one of the best in the world. In order to do that Dr. Al Amiri and his team are for-

hospitals too.” With stringent crite-ria, pillars are now becoming para-mount for measuring the success of the Ministry of Health’s output, of which they could one day be strengthened and streamlined into a model for medical treatment em-ulated the world over.

With a focus that is unrelenting, the Ministry of Health is also dedi-cated to ensuring that not only are

ever studying groundbreaking prac-tices. “You need to study the existing market and the best practice world-wide but to implement the best prac-tice you need to make sure that you can improve existing services and compete with the strongest coun-tries. It’s a competition. If there’s no competition, then you won’t be able to improve services and become the best. It’s a challenge.”

A challenge Dr. Al Amiri has wel-comed with open arms and togeth-er with His Highness the Prime Min-ister, has been separated into two different sectors to aptly administer the appropriate attention to each field: service provider and regula-tory body. “This is the best model worldwide and this is a model that is being practiced in Singapore and Australia. You cannot have both under the same umbrella.” Within the Ministry of Health, Dr. Al Amiri tackles the universal mission to sep-arate the sectors aptly. “My sector is responsible for drug legislation, regulation, compliance, auditing and control. We now audit our own

health services a top priority but so too are their advancements in digi-tal services. When asked about the sector’s e-services Dr. Al Amiri con-firmed that 95 per cent of services are now electronic and that just this year, at the Emirates Government Summit, they were awarded for the “success of their e-services model”. Currently the e-services extend to the licensing of health profession-als, the licensing of hospitals, facto-ries and pharmacies, the evaluation of health professionals as well as the evaluation of the import and export of medicines and goods. According to Dr. Al Amiri any service that is not currently available electronically, will be soon.

A clear vision, international trajec-tory and a drive to ensure that ev-eryone who lives within the borders of the UAE is provided with the best medical services, places the Minis-try of Health on track to becoming one of the world’s leading health-care sectors. “Nothing stops us from being number one, there are no barriers,” concludes Dr. Al Amiri.

IT’S A COMPETITION. IF THERE’S NO COMPETITION, THEN YOU WON’T BE ABLE TO IMPROVE SERVICES AND BECOME THE BEST. IT’S A CHALLENGE”

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IN FOCUS

Abu Dhabi’s Healthcare

SectorT

HE EMIRATE OF ABU DHABI has one of the best health care systems in the world that encompasses a comprehensive range of health services through

which all UAE residents are covered under health insurance plans. It con-sists of an open system for all cer-tified health service providers, and delivers top quality care in compli-ance with high international stan-dards.

According to a World Bank re-port, Abu Dhabi is one of the leading medical destinations in the region and is renowned for dispensing high standards of medical care.

Providers of health services are independent, predomi-nantly private, and follow the highest international quality standards. As of the last pub-lished survey in 2012, there were a total of 5,528 physicians, 969 dentists, 12,375 nurses, 4,319 al-lied health professionals and 1,993 pharmacists working at 1,508 licensed facilities in the capital. These facilities in-clude 39 hospitals, 540 health care cen-ters, 316 clinics, and 454 pharmacies lo-cated in Abu Dhabi.

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IN FOCUS

Health Care in Abu DhabiWith an ever-increasing pop-

ulation, the health industry in Abu Dhabi is also set to expand significantly over the coming five to ten years. The responsibility of managing and overseeing the de-velopment of the health sector in Abu Dhabi rests with two govern-ment authorities:

1. Health Authority Abu Dhabi (HAAD)

2. Health Services Company Abu Dhabi (SEHA)

These two independent govern-mental agencies are continually striving to upgrade the quality and standards of the health system in accordance with Abu Dhabi Vision

2030, launched in 2007 under the patronage of H.H Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi.

Roles and Responsibilities of the Authorities

Health Authority Abu Dhabi (HAAD) regulates and develops poli-

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

IN FOCUSIN

TEGR

ATED

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CAR

E-Cradle-to-grave”, the individual’s care throughout life-Access to care of all types

-Address healthcare issues specific to Emiratis

-Capacity planning – including rural areas in the Western and Eastern Regions

IMPR

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CE -Track outcomes and processes from healthcare providers to drive quality improvement

-Publish outcomes and processes once data is validated

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-Emiratization

-Encourage Research, Innovation, Education andTraining

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-Be prepared at anytime for a major disaster or disease outbreak

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-Community initiatives to enhance wellness and awareness

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-Reduce waste-Encourage Private Sector-Effective management of funded mandates-Elimination of loss transfer for non-mandated healthcare provision-Ensure appropriate reimbursement framework

-Including Telemedicine-Tool to drive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 above

Credit: www.haad.ae

cies for the health care sector in the city. The responsibilities of HAAD are varied and cover all aspects of health care services in the city.

The key functions of the authority include:

Defining regulatory frameworks for the health care system

Developing and implementing projects and work plans that pro-mote health care.

Encouraging world-class quality and performance targets

Initiating programs to improve societal health

Ensuring health care services comply with regulations and en-forcing standards

At the strategic level, HAAD en-sures best practices in the health care sector and is responsible for overseeing that stringent medi-cal practices are maintained and patients receive proper medical treatment. Coping with a rap-idly expanding population, this responsibility is of paramount importance and requires the de-velopment of a large infrastruc-ture and health care program.

Health Services Company Abu Dhabi (SEHA) manages govern-ment owned health care facilities in the city. Its stated mission is to continuously improve health care in Abu Dhabi to recognized inter-national standards. The authority operates 12 hospitals with 2,644 beds, 62 ambulatory and primary healthcare centers, and two blood banks.

Main responsibilities of SEHA include:

Ensuring health care services are provided efficiently

Implementing initiatives to in-crease the number of qualified, professionally-trained doctors and other paramedical sta

Building solid foundations for research, development, and edu-cation throughout the health care sector

Developing the infrastructure re-quired to support/achieve world class standards for healthcare de-livery

Establishing and repositioning ambulatory health care services

SEHA (Arabic for ‘health’) actively strives to establish Abu Dhabi as a market leader in providing integrat-ed high quality healthcare services. It also endeavors to build patient trust by ensuring patient safety in the healthcare system.

Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC), managed by Cleveland Clinic, serves as the flagship insti-tution for SEHA’s healthcare sys-tem. SKMC was created in 2005 as a result of the merger of all public health organizations in the capi-tal. The health institution provides comprehensive health care ser-vices that cater to the needs and priorities of the community.

Evolution of Public and Private Health Care in Abu Dhabi

The healthcare system has seen tremendous growth in the past few years, with a strong demand for quality services to combat increas-ingly new diseases; especially those associated with lifestyle.

What started as a simple public health service has quickly trans-formed, but also systematically de-veloped into a world class health system where top quality care is assured. In 1970 there were only

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

IN FOCUS

seven public hospitals. That fig-ure has now grown to 12 hospitals that accommodate 2,644 beds.

With a steadily increasing popu-lation, there was a clear need for additional health care facilities in the region. This need was filled by the private sector in Abu Dha-bi. Private clinics via investors saw this as an opportunity to provide paid, high-level health care. In part, this was also introduced as

private health insurance was tied into many expatriate employment contracts which, in turn, financed the growth of private health care.

Through these investments, pri-vate health care has grown tre-mendously, with facilities offer-ing top notch medical treatment encouraging a steady stream of visitors from abroad seeking all types of medical treatment in the capital.

Strategic Goals and Key Priorities in the Health Sector

The growth of the medical sector is dependent on large investments in technology, which Abu Dhabi is in a position to make. Abu Dha-bi’s health authorities and service providers, in conjunction with the Abu Dhabi government leadership understand the importance of at-

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

tracting the world’s best health-care institutions. This is a key component of the government’s health policy.

HAAD has initiated a number of major improvement initiatives in the healthcare sector. The first of these was the provision of lifelong care for UAE citizens and residents allowing access to all types of healthcare services, with particular emphasis on medical issues spe-cific to Emiratis. A drive to ensure quality and safety and enhance pa-tient experience is the second on the list of priorities. Attracting and maintaining a knowledgeable and talented workforce is also central to the execution of HAAD’s strate-gic plan and involves encouraging research, innovation, education, and training in the field.

At a macro level, priorities also include emergency preparedness in the event of a major disaster or pandemic outbreak and a public health approach to wellness and prevention. The latter includes community initiatives to enhance wellness and awareness. Most of us have seen the recent “Say no to tobacco” campaign” as well as the “Flying Angels” drive target-ed at improving child passenger safety among residents. Such cam-paigns are instrumental in raising awareness and promoting safe and healthy lifestyles.

In addition, one of the biggest changes proposed over the next five years is moving towards a world-class paperless health care e-service system in the capital. With the health system going through major growth and in-creasing the pressure on existing facilities, resulting in longer wait-ing periods, a paperless e-service system has the potential to im-prove customer service perfor-mance by up to 80%. Additional-ly, this improvement in customer relationship management also has

the potential to reduce costs and improve services.

Challenges and concerns in the Health Sector

As Abu Dhabi continues its eco-nomic development, it has be-gun to experience certain lifestyle problems such development often brings with it. According to New York University, Abu Dhabi’s Pub-lic Health Research Center, The Emirate of Abu Dhabi is confront-ing major public health challeng-es in tobacco use, obesity, diabe-tes, and cardiovascular diseases. In 2012, it was reported that 36% of the adult national population were obese—33% males and 38% females—while 21% of the adult population suffer from diabetes, split 22% between males and 20% females, ranking the rate of diabe-tes in Abu Dhabi one of the highest in the world. The Center has begun to conduct the first cohort study in Abu Dhabi which is expected to provide unique and substantial evi-dence for both lifestyle and genetic determinants of common diseases in the Abu Dhabi population.

Keeping up with the rising de-mand for health care facilities due to the rapid increase in population, estimated to exceed five million by 2030, has become one of the great-est challenges to the health care system. Currently, the population is just over 2.3 million and is growing at a rate of around eight percent per year. The vast majority of this growth is due to the influx of expats who make up approximately 79.6% of the total population as of 2013. In a 2012 survey, it was recorded that there were 4,226 operational hospital beds in Abu Dhabi. Howev-er, health officials announced that a further 1,300 would be needed by 2021 were Abu Dhabi to meet the growing demand for in-patient care. In addition to this, between 1,200 and 1,700 additional doctors

would be required to treat the in-creasing number of patients over the coming years.

The other concern is controlling possible outbreaks of infectious diseases. MERS and the latest Eb-ola threats had been identified in the past, and are still considered, as serious concerns according to HAAD. Since Abu Dhabi has be-come a major business and tourist destination as well as a significant transit hub in the region, such an outbreak could be difficult to con-trol and preventive measures will always be a top priority.

Key Improvement Initiatives in Healthcarea

Due to increasing life expectancy, rapid population growth, and grow-ing affluence, the UAE’s healthcare technology sector is set to expe-rience considerable expansion in the next five years. The scale of the ongoing projects in Abu Dhabi is un-precedented in the region’s health-care industry.

Public sector investment in the health care sector is expected to grow to more than Dh12 billion this year. Many new mega hospitals are being opened both in the public and private sectors. For example, design and enabling works have been com-pleted for the new 745-bed Mafraq Hospital and the 687-bed Al Ain Hospital. Also planned are replace-ments or enhancements to existing facilities such as Tawam Hospital, Al Sila, and Al Ghiathy.

Upcoming Mubadala Healthcare ventures include the recently de-livered Cleveland Clinic Abu Dha-bi, a multi-specialty hospital built in partnership with top US-based Cleveland Clinic, which is current-ly phasing in its 30+ complex and critical care specialties with the goal of being fully operational by 31 May 2015.

IN FOCUS

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

Abu Dhabi’s

Healthcare

Highlights

As of 2012 Healthcare survey results

39 Hospitals

12,375 registered nurses

969 Dentists

540 health care centresand 316 Clinics

1,993 Pharmacists across 454 Pharmacies

5,528 physicians and 4,319 allied health professionals

Managed by

including publicly managed.....

12 hospitals 2,644 beds

62 Ambulatory &Healthcare Centres

2 Blood Banks

With a large percentage of the population overweight and either having or being at risk of type two diabetes, there are a range of programs that are being run by HAAD, with the two major pro-grams focusing on exercise and healthy eating. These are also be-ing looked at in conjunction with creating a more walk-friendly ur-ban infrastructure and also the development of bicycle paths and facilities. The UAE government also plans to remove all “junk” food from school canteens and provide healthier alternatives, an initiative that has already been adopted by several schools across the Emirates.

The goals for the growth in new mega hospital projects in Abu Dha-bi is twofold; firstly, to manage the increasing demand of health institu-tions in the capital, and secondly, to promote medical tourism by attract-ing patients from around the world. Major global companies and brands including clinics, healthcare IT and equipment companies, and private healthcare providers have already started flocking to the Emirate to take part in this lucrative and fast growing industry.

In summary, there has been a paradigm shift in the health in-dustry over the last two decades, which subsequently has spurred great changes in the regulation of health care facilities. New legisla-tion and regulations are in place to ensure that local standards ad-here to international best practic-es. Further, a number of measures and incentives have been intro-duced to attract foreign direct investment to create a thriving private healthcare economy. With the current five year strategic plan looking to further build the health industry, it is likely that Abu Dhabi will become a medical hub for the region, further fueling economic growth and diversification away from oil and gas.

IN FOCUS

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

LocalEnterprise

Aisha Rashid Obaid Al RashediFounder and Owner of Rashat Sukar

WHEN WE ASK Ms. Aisha to give us a brief about her, she gets straight to the point. “They call me Umm

Mansoor. I am originally from Ras Al Khaimah. I married in Sharjah where I have been residing ever since with my family. I am the mother of sev-en children and have 23 years of experience in education.” We laugh as she realizes that her response sounded like a scene from the mov-ie The Gladiator. She then continues to introduce how she first uncov-ered her entrepreneurial potential: “I started my business from home in 2007. I have always loved to cook and my food usually receives good reviews! At first, my business was to cater to friends and family and through word of mouth for gather-ings, buffets, and all other sorts of events. I was one of the first Emira-tis to start a home based business in the Emirates. Thanks to my friends and family who love my cooking, orders starting coming in and I was delivering buffet-style meals to all sorts of events and social gatherings in no time.” When Umm Mansoor saw the potential from her small-scale home-based business, she de-cided to give it a real shot. “In 2011 I decided to start a formal business and registered ‘Rashat Sukar’ (Ara-bic for ‘A Hint of Sugar’),” says Umm Mansoor. In the same year, a royal decree announced that the Khalifa

Fund for Enterprise Development, Abu Dhabi’s government sponsor-ship local business start-up fund, would expand its funding reach to cover all seven Emirates. Umm Mansoor decided to try her luck and applied for funding from the Khal-ifa Fund. “Al Hamduli Allah, I was among the first UAE nationals out-side of Abu Dhabi to receive funding from the Khalifa Fund.”

Umm Mansoor received diplomas in entrepreneurship and hospital-ity from The Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Establishment for Small and Medium Enterprises Develop-ment. As part of the program, she enjoyed an internship at the Burj Al Arab, where she learned the tricks of the trade in the hospitality and service industry. However, her expe-rience in the kitchen came naturally. Umm Mansoor says, “I love to cook. I always have and always will enjoy cooking. This is what I am passionate about and I have always been good at it. However, I have had some great support. The Khalifa Fund together with the Ministry of Foreign Trade, have organized many trips to some of the best international trade and food and beverage exhibitions in the world. I have been fortunate enough to be part of groups that travelled to Hong Kong, Malaysia, and mainland China to participate in some of the best trade shows in the industry.” In

addition to the post-funding support she received, Umm Mansoor tells us that she received a lot of support from the Khalifa Fund even before receiving funding. They supported her with workshops and tutorials on market analysis, feasibility studies, and business planning to help her put a successful business plan together; a plan worthy of funding. “Khalifa Fund held a conference in Abu Dhabi to introduce their services, inviting Emiratis from the Northern Emirates to participate and encouraging us to start our own business. H.H Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed himself was there in person and I got to meet him personally! It is amazing to see our leaders get so involved in supporting small businesses. We are truly bless-ed!” she says proudly.

Umm Mansoor goes on to tell us the very familiar story of the rough start up that most entrepreneurs ex-perience. “In 2011, I opened Rashat Sukar on Mohammed bin Zayed Street in Sharjah, thinking that lo-cation was one of the key factors. Right after opening, major construc-tion started on the street which was estimated to take three years, blocking access for customers to my shop!” Umm Mansoor says rather

By: Faisal Chareuf

LIKE MOST of our readers, our local entrepreneur of the month is also a public sector employee who has been working with the Ministry of Edu-cation for the past 23 years. In this feature of “Local Enterprise,” Ms. Aisha Al Rashedi tells our readers how she manages to juggle a full time job and a business of her own, among other major responsibilities.

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LocalEnterprise

casually before continuing. “That is when I decided to change my strat-egy. If my customers couldn’t get to me, then I would prepare orders and deliver to them!” She focused her efforts on establishing distribu-tion deals with local supermarkets and souks, which meant she would now have to work on her product packaging, labelling, delivery, and other requirements that came with this change in strategy. “I got some cars, hired some drivers and got to work. We would prepare and pack-age all our cakes and sweets at the shop and have them delivered to our distribution/retail partners as well as directly to our customers. I was successful in negotiating deals with a number Dubai and Sharjah Co-operatives and local souks.”

Next, Umm Mansoor tells us more about some of her learning experi-ences in establishing a professional business that is in it for the long run. “If you want to compete in the UAE market, you have to put in all your effort. Yes, I make great cakes! But that is not enough to successfully compete here. I had to learn how to package our products, include labels with detailed ingredients and expiry dates, and learn how to nego-tiate distribution agreements. I also had to make sure I understood what customers wanted, what the latest trends and favorite flavors were, and then learn how to make and perfect these products. This was all new to me but I was determined to succeed.” She adds proudly, “I have introduced the first ice cream that I know of and now offer it in four fla-vors!” Umm Mansoor is constantly browsing through cookbooks, web-sites, and TV stations for the latest and greatest recipes and delightful ideas. Then, as Umm Mansoor ex-plains, it’s a matter of trial and er-ror. “Self-improvement is one of the most important goals for me. I want to learn to be great in all aspects of my business, from cooking to mar-keting and even accounting. I think this is one of the key attributes re-

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quired for success: The willingness to learn and improve.”

Umm Mansoor tells us she be-lieves that the UAE market presents extremely lucrative business op-portunities for those willing to put in the effort required to succeed. However, she says that because the market conditions are so ripe, it has become very competitive. There-fore, entrepreneurs have to invest a lot of time into market research, analysis, and feasibility studies be-fore launching their business. “With the Expo 2020 coming and the rap-id growth of the economy, now is a perfect time for anyone who wants to open their own business. But it’s not about having the money and just deciding to open a business. En-trepreneurs must be willing to put in the extra work to study the mar-ket, study the competition, and an-alyze all the market factors that can work for and against him or her.”

As part of the Ministry of Education leadership program, Umm Man-soor delivered lectures to local high school students in Sharjah for her final course project. Having many years of experience in education, she strongly believes that entrepreneur-ship and practical business manage-ment courses should be offered to high school students to get them thinking about starting their own businesses. She says, “Locals should be introduced to entrepreneurship and business skills at an early age. They should be encouraged to start thinking about establishing their own business before they leave high school.” Umm Mansoor has pro-posed her idea to introduce elective business and entrepreneurship class in local schools and the idea has been received with great enthusiasm. She felt that the students were very re-sponsive and extremely interested in learning how they can become busi-nessmen and women.

Umm Mansoor started with two employees whom she trained to pre-

pare the cakes using her special rec-ipes as well as a driver for deliveries. Today, she has ten employees: three drivers and seven kitchen and store staff. Her biggest distributors today include Union Co-op, Sharjah Co-op and Aswaaq Sharjah, with many more in the pipeline from Sharjah and Dubai. After her recent success with her sweets and cakes, Umm Mansoor is now looking to expand her business into a comprehensive catering business that offers a wide variety of food and dessert options.

ning!” I ask Umm Mansoor if she believes that the motive for such encouragement was free cake and we have a good laugh.

I then ask Umm Mansoor what ad-vice she might give to anyone look-ing to start their own business in the UAE. She responds by saying, “This is a great time to start your own business in the UAE. As I mentioned previously, the time is ripe and the economy is growing fast. There are so many opportunities and so much

SELF-IMPROVEMENT IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT GOALS FOR ME. I WANT TO LEARN TO BE GREAT IN ALL ASPECTS OF MY BUSINESS, FROM COOKING T O MARKETING AND EVEN ACCOUNTING”.But this, she explains, will require considerable investment in capital. “Before I can do this, I will need to in-vest in new equipment and machin-ery for food preparation, cooking, and packaging. This way, I will be able to increase the capacity and quality of our production output.” In addi-tion to expanding her product and service line, she aims to continue to expand her distribution channels to cover all of the Emirates through the major supermarket and retail chains. “I want to compete with the large local and multinational companies in the UAE,” Umm Mansoor claims confidently.

We were curious to ask Umm Man-soor how in the world she manages to juggle the responsibilities that come with being a mother of sev-en and a full-time government em-ployee but still have time to manage her own business. Her answer: “If it weren’t for the support of my hus-band and family, I would not have been able to reach where I am to-day. My friends have also been very supportive of me from the begin-

government support available. However,” she adds, “competition is fierce. We do not need any more generic business ideas. We need new and innovative ideas. This is what works and this is what people want here. Most importantly, entre-preneurs should be dedicated and persistent if they wish to succeed.”

Next, we discuss some of the key challenges that business start-ups face in the UAE. “It differs from business to business. Every business is faced with its own unique challenges. However, I believe that one of the biggest chal-lenges is recruiting the right people. The local labor laws also make things tough for us to recruit and retain good employees. Keeping motivated and keeping a positive attitude I believe is the most important challenge that I think applies to anyone starting their own business. You just need to get up every day and do what you have to do with a positive attitude. Staying moti-vated is tough sometimes, especially when things don’t go as planned, but you just have to pick yourself up and carry on.”

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Idea Watch

Drones:

AN UNMANNED AERIAL VEHI-CLE, or UAV, is a remote-con-trolled unmanned aircraft. The first such remotely con-

trolled flight took place in 1916. However, today’s modern UAV tech-nology can be traced to the 1970s.

The concept of carrying out ae-rial military operations beyond international boundaries without having to risk pilots attracted sig-nificant attention from many gov-ernments. As a result, the tech-nology was heavily militarized and used in warfare. Today, though, UAV technology isn’t restricted to only military usage, but also offers

incredible potential for commercial and other non-governmental use.

Commercial DronesDue to technological advance-

ments in the technology, drones have started to shed their percep-tion as purely war tools and are now being considered as a game changing technology in every oth-er sector, similar to automobiles or computing. Due to the incred-ible improvements in GPS, digital camera, computing, wireless com-munication, and battery technol-ogy, commercial drones now offer businesses unrivalled advantages

in terms of efficiency and a broad range of applications. They are now used in geophysical surveys, forest protection, communications, and various other ways.

The potential of civilian drones in terms of new applications indi-cates the technology can replace previously existing applications in a wide variety of industries and further extend a new dimension to pre-existing applications. Drones can significantly reduce the danger to humans in many spheres of op-erations and are significantly more cost effective compared with other current practices.

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

Idea Watch

Commercial Applications of UAV Technology Agriculture

The application of drones in ag-riculture deserves special men-tion due to the various merits and amazing potential to trans-form the economy by reducing costs and improving efficiency. Instead of farmers surveying the land on vehicles, they can use drones to survey from the air. The bird’s eye view of the land helps in shortening the process and saving one of the most pre-cious resources: time. Further-more, an agricultural drone is capable of spraying crops from a height of two to three feet above ground, resulting in more target-ed application and less loss due to the effects of wind.

The agricultural use of drones can be segregated into two broad categories. First, equipped with the proper sensors, they can be used for remote sensing of dis-ease or general health problems, look for areas of problem hydra-tion, and gather data with which to chart growth and identify prob-lems early in the growing season. Agricultural managers can then use this information for precise targeting of remedies, potentially using less of the remedy and re-acting more quickly, improving or even saving crops. Second, drones can be equipped for application of fertilizers or herbicides and ap-ply the same precisely when and where needed, possibly resulting in the use of fewer chemicals and lesser quantities.

Infrastructure Surveillance

UAV technology possesses inher-ent surveillance qualities, making it a highly cost effective and pro-

ductive surveillance technique. The technology can be used for the surveillance of electrical infrastruc-ture, pipelines, road conditions, etc. Surveying large land areas using ground transportation is ex-tremely time consuming and ardu-ous. A better solution was the use of helicopters, but this is expensive and poses risk to human life. By us-ing drones rather than surface ve-hicles or helicopters, environmen-tal disruption is reduced, capital and expense costs are far less, and there is no risk to life.

Disaster and Emergency Management

Smaller hand launched drones have been developed which are equipped with sensors capable of detecting life, an application which is proving to be extremely helpful in disaster management and relief operations. Whether it’s monitoring or reconnaissance of disaster-affected regions or de-livering relief articles to affected

Feature Drone: Ambulance Drone

A Belgian engineering graduate, Alec Momont has unveiled a drone he calls the Ambulance Drone that can deliver first aid equipment and even has a defibrillator at-tached to it. People suffering from cardiac arrest must receive immediate medical at-tention. Even a very slight delay in response time can drastically reduce their chance of survival. The ambulance drone can sub-stantially reduce response time, significant-ly increasing the survival chances of people in need of immediate medical attention.

The ambulance drone functions via tracking mobile calls and standard GPS protocols to determine the exact location of the caller. The drone has a microphone, speakers, and a camera that can be used to provide basic verbal assistance to the distressed caller to stabilize or revive the victim.

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

Idea Watch

populations, drones have proven to be the optimum technology in every way.

Drones offer incredible versatili-ty and are well suited for ad hoc situations, a prime consideration in disaster-struck regions. Natural catastrophes such as earthquakes or floods can impact a large area which can be difficult to survey. Aside from providing relief, drones can also be used in the prevention of disasters such as floods. Water levels can be observed in disaster prone areas and seasons to detect early warning signs of impending disaster so authorities can formu-late and implement a disaster pre-vention strategy.

Natural Resource Extraction

Drones can assist in the explora-tion of oil and minerals extraction by using them to acquire informa-tion about the region and build 3D models of the terrain. Remotely piloted drones, due to their size,

relatively low cost, and inherent versatility can obtain data not available to surface exploration or even helicopters. Specifically, map-ping of terrain from a low altitude is easy and safe. The use of drones in exploration for precious metals, coal, and oil is already becoming commonplace.

Drones Complementing Satellites

Even though satellites cover huge areas at a time and pho-to resolution can be astounding, drones can be used to acquire an even more detailed view of the re-gion in question. Changing the op-erational program of a satellite is extremely restricted and only rel-atively minor options are available for those already in orbit. Unlike satellites, drones can be retrieved, upgraded, and re-tasked at will. Their sphere of operations is virtu-ally unlimited and their automat-ed GPS-generated flight pattern can be changed quickly and at a very low cost.

Communications

Drones can also substitute for communication satellites, which tend to function at far below max-imum effectiveness in poor weath-er conditions. Because drones fly at lower altitudes, their signals are less likely to be distorted due to weather conditions. Drones can also be used in weather forecasting and journalism, as they can gather on-site information and provide live data feeds from the scene.

There are some missions where a drone is the only safe and effective option. Consider, for example, a hurricane tracking mission, where any alternatives to a drone would be unable to safely penetrate through icing conditions, lightning, and strong wind shears. With cur-rent drone technology capacity, we can build rugged platforms to withstand the most severe weath-er conditions, producing a truly all-weather aircraft for remote weather analysis.

Filming and PhotographyAs Drones are experiencing an

increasingly rapid adoption rate commercially, film makers and photographers now have a won-derful new addition to their film-ing arsenal. The new platform offers increased versatility in terms of creativity, which would previously not be possible. These drones are GPS stabilized, and so are easy to fly and perfect for the average user.

Given their usefulness and rela-tive low cost, it is not surprise that the usage of drones in Hollywood has also already been approved by the US Federal Aviation Administra-tion. To date, six different film and TV production companies can now utilize a UAV for filming purposes. This will further facilitate the adop-tion of drones in other commercial ventures.

Fast pizza deliverymaybe???

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

UAE Drones for Good AwardJanuary 12th 2015, Abu Dhabi –

At the government summit in Feb-ruary 2014, the UAE Government announced the Drones for Good Award, which was dubbed as the World Cup of Drones. The initiative will highlight the positive aspects and the incredible humanitarian potential of this technology.

Three different competitions are held: international, national, and government entities, summarized below.

• International Competition

The international competition is open to individuals, teams, and non-governmental entities from around the globe. There will be three different phases: open call, semifinals, and finals. The winner of the international competition receives 1 million USD.

This year’s winner of the interna-tional competition is Patrick Thevoz, creator of Flyability, the world’s first collision resistant drone for search and rescue. Designed for the disas-ter relief sector, Flyability is a small, lightweight drone which has the unique capability of being able to collide with obstacles without los-ing stability and of being safe to fly in contact with humans. It has the unusual ability to squeeze into tight

indoor spaces and search for po-tential disaster victims thanks to its geodesic exoskeleton design

• National Competition

The national competition is open to all UAE citizens and residents, including anyone who is working, living, or studying in the country and is open to individuals, teams, and non-governmental entities. The competition is held in three different phases: open call, semifi-nals, and finals. The winner of the competition receives 1 million AED.

The winner of the 2015 Nation-al Drone Award is the New York University Abu Dhabi for their cre-ation, the Wadi Drone. The Wadi Drone was designed and built to document the vast diversity of the UAE’s wildlife by gathering images of different Wadi’s flora and fauna. The 2.2-kg drone can fly for up to 40km around the Wadi Wurayah National Park, the UAE’s first mountain protected national park, and collects data from 120 camera traps that capture images of wild animals at the park.

• Government Entities

The third competition is a special category exclusively designated for UAE Government Entities. Un-like the other two competitions, the Government Entities award

doesn’t carry a financial reward. Instead, they will be honored and recognized for their work towards creating a better world.

The initiative taken by the UAE gov-ernment has been acclaimed globally, as it will significantly help to improve the negative association of drones with militarized war machines. Fur-thermore, it will provide talented individuals with a platform to voice their innovative ideas. The initiative has been considered as a good step towards a better tomorrow.

The 2015 winner in this category is Etisalat for their Etisalat Network Drone. Designed to support logis-tics and disaster relief, the Etisalat drones can instantly extend network coverage; critical in times of emer-gency. The drones can be used to save lives by providing connectivity to remote locations such as off-shore oil rigs or ocean vessels. Connect-ed through Thuraya network, the drones extend GSM coverage and enable people to use their existing mobile phones in the most critical conditions. The drones can also de-liver high-grade medical diagnostic tools to emergency sites, enabling non-medically trained individuals to administer basic medical procedures and, under real-time supervision from doctors connected wirelessly to the emergency site from the hos-pitals, remotely execute life-saving procedures in real-time.

Idea Watch

International National Government

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

Build Your Social Profile

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015


Crowdsourcing

Empoweringthe Public

collaboration and innovation, en-abling the user to more effectively gather input and achieve the de-sired outcomes.

Importantly, in times of tight bud-gets, crowdsourcing reaches more people, more effectively, and at a lower cost than traditional engage-ment methods. Whether the need is citizen input for a new urban plan, public consultation during policy de-velopment, or a “grand challenge” to seek innovative solutions for so-cial issues, crowdsourcing provides a highly accessible method of engage-ment that can lower the overall cost, while raising both the quality and quantity of participation. It is worth noting that participants in well-de-signed crowdsourcing engagements report stronger connection as a re-sult of having the opportunity to contribute in a meaningful way. This stronger connection is a large step toward more satisfied citizens.

Crowdsourcing RewardsThe benefits crowdsourcing offers

have made it an attractive online tool for companies in the public and private sectors. Some of the most popular advantages of incorporating this in the overall marketing strategy of a company are:

Stakeholder Engagement: Crowd-sourcing is an excellent way to en-gage the public, whether they be consumers, customers, clients, or any other type of stakeholder of the enterprise. Citizens and residents can participate by contributing their ideas, experiences, and suggestions in the formulation of public strategy, policy, and service design. Seeking the buy-in of citizens and residents for changes that will impact their community is a great way to en-gage the public sector’s number one stakeholder: The Public.

Gauging Public Opinion: Crowd-sourcing allows public sector enti-ties to share ideas related to their policies and services, efficiently distribute legislative and regulatory matters to concerned parties, and provide a platform for the public to participate in decision making by voicing their views and opinions. By doing this, public policy makers and government decision makers can gauge public opinion and cus-tomer sentiments on a wide range of issues, helping policy makers to make informed decisions on gov-ernment initiatives and services that better serve their constituents’ needs and desires.

Lower Costs: Crowdsourcing is an

C R O W D -SOURCING, a relatively recent phe-

nomenon in the digital world, refers to the practice of gathering information, ideas,

and input from a large group of people through

digital media. The online community becomes the

major source of contribu-tion, as opposed to traditional

means such as employers or suppli-ers. Crowdsourcing has become an important tool in the overall use of social media and is being employed by both the private and public sec-tor alike in many countries around the world.

Crowdsourcing is the most signif-icant improvement in citizen and stakeholder engagement in de-cades. Effective citizen engagement is demanded, and increasingly man-dated by governments and other public sector organizations to help ensure that plans, policies, and pub-lic services reflect the needs and priorities of key stakeholders. This method of public input goes beyond forums and surveys by providing an interactive online process, focused on specific objectives, that guides

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

inexpensive method of gathering large amounts of information. Com-pared with any other social media channel, it is more cost effective and time efficient. It allows people to contribute to debates and discussion on a much larger platform than any

other practical option and generate innovative solutions and ideas.

Public-private Partnership: This is an excellent way for the gov-ernments to focus on public-pri-vate collaborations in order to find better solutions to public issues. It also leads to greater transparen-cy, hence increased trust in public services. Services such as polic-ing have been revolutionized with crowdsourcing. More and more people are now reporting inci-dents and actively participating in debates aimed at improving police


are especially keen on incorporat-ing this concept in their pursuit of a more open and transparent frame-work. There are several examples of the use of crowdsourcing on the in-ternational front, in both public and private sectors:

The United Nations has used the Crowdicity crowdsourcing plat-form to gathered ideas, insights, and contributions from over 8,000 young people from 173 nations. From this was created the first ever crowdsourced policy document to be granted official status by the United Nations. An independent panel of judges saw the global ini-tiative, which harnessed the com-bined voice of young people from all around the world, to co-create solutions for social good and inform world leaders about their priorities for the ICT sector.

The Challenge.gov initiative in the US is an excellent example of crowdsourcing being used to spur various challenges with the aim of greater government efficiency. A tool for public-private collaboration to incentivize research and devel-opment of innovative solutions to problems, the program also gives awards in order to motivate greater participation from the public.

Crowdsourcing has been very suc-cessful on the commercial front. It has led to the birth of several fash-ion houses in that industry. For ex-ample, ModCloth.com started off as a crowdsourcing initiative to allow people to design and vote on the designs they made. This venture has now become a full time busi-ness and demonstrates just how ef-fective crowdsourcing can be in the entrepreneurial world.

The Transport Safety Administra-tion (TSA) in the US has its own crowdsourcing application called IdeaFactory. It enables all workers to share ideas and suggestions on how to improve its performance.

services worldwide.

Fresher Ideas: Because there is, for practical purposes, no limit to the number of people participating in crowdsourcing initiatives, it presents an opportunity for various projects

and ideas to be shared simultane-ously. For example, the General Ser-vices Administration (GSA) in the US asked its employees for ideas to improve organizational performance and efficiency. Within a span of six weeks, 632 ideas were submitted, with the top five being implemented in subsequent months.

Global Best PracticesThe concept of crowdsourcing has

become increasingly popular in the public sector in most developed nations. Governments worldwide

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015


Launched in 2011, CityGuard, a crowdsourcing application devel-oped by Abu Dhabi Systems and Information Centre, allows Abu Dhabi citizens and residents to report incidents and civic issues by capturing audio, video, or pho-tographs and then uploading the file for access by the authorities. The file is then geo-tagged to let authorities identify the exact lo-cation of the incident. The aim of the app is to improve government services and the city image with the help of the public. Therefore, several incident types such as public safety, consumer protec-tion, and environmental issues have been identified. Among the participating government entities are the three municipalities of the Abu Dhabi Emirate, Abu Dhabi Po-

Case Study

CityGuard

The introduction of the con-cept of Smart Government in the UAE meant a need to ensure that government entities are forward thinking, responsive, and proac-tive in providing services to the general public. Since then, the government has emphasized the use of phones and mobile apps to implement its Smart Government objectives. In this regard, crowd-sourcing has been widely integrat-ed in the government’s transition to a technology-enabled govern-ment in various ways.

Public sector companies in Abu Dhabi can use crowdsourcing to im-prove the services they offer to peo-ple, and to invite and evaluate feed-back on their products and services. Investment companies can use it to encourage investors to share ideas on possible investment opportuni-ties. Similarly, as was pointed out by the example of Eureeca above, many companies in Abu Dhabi can follow in its footsteps to develop new businesses and generate an entrepreneurial environment in the country. This would not only devel-

op investment opportunities in the country but would also help the government to uphold its reputa-tion of a smart government.

The benefits of crowdsourcing can be significant, but it takes plan-ning and strategy to do it right. Cit-izen engagements have their own unique requirements: Who are the right participants? What are the right topics? What technology is right for the engagement? How long should the engagement be? What results can be expected? Make sure you have the answers to these questions before embarking on your crowdsourcing initiative.

lice, Department of Transport, Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority, and Health Authority - Abu Dhabi.

Since its launch in 2011, CityGuard

has been widely regarded as a huge success. Cases reported in 2014 consisted of 46 different categories. The most common cases reported were related to damaged roads (522 cases), waste disposal (320 cases), accumulation of waste (200 cases), and parking related issues (133 cases). CityGuard has been downloaded by over 70,000 users. To date, over 9,000 cases have been reported, of which 86 per cent have been closed successfully.

With its slogan “Your City, Your Community, Your App”, CityGuard aims to increase civic participa-tion and collaboration between the public and the government in improving the city’s image and the overall wellbeing of those liv-ing in the emirate.

They can vote on ideas and decide if a suggested practice is worth im-plementing. This has led to TSA’s adoption of several new policies such as TSO Referral Bonus and a website called Job Swap which al-lows workers to post interests in swapping job locations.

Crowdsourcing has snowballed into crowdfunding in the UAE. The concept is being extended to solic-it funds from potential investors to startup businesses and introduce new products and services. In 2012 a Dubai based company called Eu-reeca was established to combine

the concepts of crowdsourcing and crowdfunding to enable entrepre-neurs to invest in business oppor-tunities. Such initiatives can propel entrepreneurial activities in the UAE to new heights, and can also be seen as an economic driver towards Vision 2030.

Crowdsourcing in Abu Dhabi

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

off topic

Li Beirut

A Selection ofAbu Dabi’s FinestMiddle Eastern Dining Experiences

Complementing the overall theme at Jumeirah, Li Beirut’s menu is a mix of traditional Lebanese and the chef’s own signature Lebanese-in-spired dishes. This restaurant boasts a graceful outdoor terrace with a spectacular view, but in the summer you may prefer the elegant interior.

Traditional or experimental, Leb-anese or Arabic, every dish from the masterful chef is sure to please. Chicken liver in pomegranate sauce and honey fudge dessert have turned some of the most trusted re-viewers into fans.

02 811 5666

Daily from 12:00 - 15:00 and 19:00 - 00:00 (Bookings are essential!)

Jumeirah at Etihad Towers, Cor-niche Street, Opposite Emirates Palace in the Ras Al Akhdar area

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

02 596 1440

http://abudhabi.capitalgate.hyatt.com/en/hotel/dining/18Degrees.html

Breakfast – 6:00 - 10:30; Lunch – 12:00 - 15:00; Dinner – 19:00 - 23:30

Hyatt Capital Gate, Near Abu Dhabi Exhibition Centre, Al Safarat

off topic

18º

al Mayass

The signature restaurant of Hyatt Capital Gate is an exquisite experi-ence. The view of the sunset from eighteen floors above the city and the quality of food compete to offer an unforgettable experience. With a wide range of Eastern Mediterra-nean dishes from Italy, Greece, Tur-key, and other cultures, the three show kitchens always serve fresh,

seasonal cuisine.

This is a great location for meetings throughout the day as the dining area is spacious and the tables are set far apart. 18⁰ has received rave reviews from some of the toughest

critics—the lamb ribs and Arabi-an Mezze have been given special mention. Tables with the best views are almost always occupied nights and weekends. To ensure your best dining experience, make sure you reserve your table in advance.

Sheraton Hotel & Resort, 1st Street and Corniche Road

Al Mayass is a small but global chain of family owned restau-rants. The owners bring togeth-er traditional Lebanese cuisine influenced by their Armenian heritage with handpicked dé-cor to create an intimate, fam-ily-like experience.

This cozy setup in a cottage on the beach side of the Sheraton feels like it was lifted straight out of a Middle Eastern mov-ie. It’s not just the decor or the location but the warm and wel-coming demeanor of the staff and the flavorful cuisine that keeps this venue buzzing with customers.

02 644 0440 almayassnyc.com 12:00 - 23:30

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

off topic

KamoonBetter known as “The Beach

Restaurant”, Kamoon is a great location with an amazing view of stars, skyscrapers, and the sea. The restaurant is part of the Rotana brand, firmly rooted in the values of the Arabian culture and does not serve alcohol.

The Middle Eastern cuisine is spot on for lunch and dinner or a relax-ing time with a sheesha by the sea. This is one of the preferred restau-rants for local Emiratis to dine with friends and family.

Marakesh

An opulent and classy interior makes Marakesh an authentic Mo-roccan experience. Live perfor-mances by belly dancers, singers, bands, and authentic, tradition-al music keep guests entertained while they enjoy some of the best traditional dishes from Morocco.

The Moroccan restaurant is quiet and captivating unless you visit on a buffet evening when it is buzzing long after midnight. The chef pre-pares the dishes to suit global taste buds; dishes can be bland for some, so a preference for spices must be mentioned at the time of order.

02 614 6020

Open daily 19:00 - 03:00

Millennium Hotel Abu Dhabi, Al Markaziyah

Lunch – 12:00 - 16:00; Shisha – 12:00 - 24:00; Dinner – 18:00 - 23:30; Dinner & Shisha – 18:00 - 00:30 (Thurs & Fri)

02 657 0000Beach Area, Khalidiya Palace Rayhaan by Rotana Hotel, West Corniche Road, Ras Al Akhdar

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Issue 5 - MAY 2015

Mijana

off topic

A contemporary Arabic restaurant, Mijana is tucked in the picturesque courtyard of the Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi Grand Canal. The cuisine is authentic Lebanese and Middle Eastern regional and brings the old and the new together in great style.

With live Arabic music, the ambi-ence and the view from the terrace keep many patrons coming back for more. It is one of the best restau-rants in Abu Dhabi to bring a guest for a business lunch or dinner.

Sat-Thu 12:30 - 16:00, 19:00 - 01:00; Fri 16:00 - 01:00

arabiannightsvillage.com/restaurant-food-drink.php

02 818 8282

02 676 9990

The Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, Grand Canal, Al Maqtaa

Arabian Nights Village, Razeen Area of Al Khatim, Abu Dhabi Al Ain Road, Al Khatim

A hidden gem on the Abu Dhabi Al Ain Road, Al Maqam offers local Emi-rati and Arabic dishes as well as international fare. Seating can be chosen from a number of options in the dining hall or on the terrace.

This venue offers fine din-ing in true Emirati style but is best enjoyed on a weekend getaway along with the day safari or the overnight desert safari package.

55

Visit: www.adu.ac.ae

Led by our vision for a better future for every generation, Abu Dhabi University was founded in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain to promote academic excellence through degree programs in various specialties. Our 23 bachelor’s degree, 8 master’s degree and doctorate degree programs are all accredited by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research. We at Abu Dhabi University proudly continue to pave the way forward to a new era, providing you with the finest learning environment and resources to empower your future.

Bachelor of Science in Civil EngineeringBachelor of Science in Computer EngineeringBachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering

Apply today for tomorrow’s success.Toll Free: 800 ADYOU (23968) | Email: [email protected]

TODAY WE CREATETOMORROW’SSUCCESS

A DIVERSE CHOICE OFBACHELOR’S, MASTER’S ANDDOCTORATE DEGREE PROGRAMS

@ADU_Tweets

ADUCHANNEL

@AbuDhabiUni

College of Engineering Programs are Internationally Accredited by ABET*

*

About ADUAbu Dhabi University (ADU) was chartered as a private institution of higher learning in the year 2000 under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Ruler's Representative in the Western Region and President of Abu Dhabi

Khalifa City, Abu Dhabi and the other in Al Ain City. ADU has four Colleges: the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS); the College of Business Administration (COBA); the College of Engineering (COE); and the University College (UC); all of which is open to students from all nationalities and uses the American model of higher education.

Vision Abu Dhabi University is an internationally recognized for quality education and applied research that drives regional economic and social development in the region and beyond.

MissionThe mission of ADU is to produce highly qualified career-oriented graduates in alignment with regional and global needs through excellence in teaching, student learning, faculty scholarship and engagement in community development.

Undergraduate & Postgraduate Programs

Scientific Research and tailored to meet the dynamic demands of the regional industry.

College of Arts and Sciences• Bachelor of Arts in Arts, Culture and Heritage Management • Bachelor of Arts in English• Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication• Bachelor of Science in Environmental Health & Safety• Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science• Bachelor of Science in Public Health• Bachelor of Law (In Arabic)• Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication (In Arabic – O�ered in Fall 2015)• Professional Post-Graduate Diploma in Teaching (Al Ain)• Master of Law (In Arabic – O�ered in Fall 2015)

College of Business Administration• Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting• Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance• Bachelor of Business Administration in Human Resources Management • Bachelor of Business Administration in Management• Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing• Bachelor of Business Administration• Master of Business Administration Concentrations in: (Logistics & Supply Chain Management ; Project Management; Human Resource Management; Finance)• Master of Human Resources Management• Doctor of Business Administration

College of Engineering• Bachelor of Architecture• Bachelor of Science in Aviation• Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering• Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering• Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering• Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering• Bachelor of Science in Information Technology • Bachelor of Science in Interior Design • Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering • Master of Engineering Management• Master of Project Management • Master of Science in Civil Engineering Concentrations in: (Structural Engineering; Construction Engineering Management)• Master of Science in Information Technology

Visit: www.adu.ac.ae

Led by our vision for a better future for every generation, Abu Dhabi University was founded in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain to promote academic excellence through degree programs in various specialties. Our 23 bachelor’s degree, 8 master’s degree and doctorate degree programs are all accredited by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research. We at Abu Dhabi University proudly continue to pave the way forward to a new era, providing you with the finest learning environment and resources to empower your future.

Bachelor of Science in Civil EngineeringBachelor of Science in Computer EngineeringBachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering

Apply today for tomorrow’s success.Toll Free: 800 ADYOU (23968) | Email: [email protected]

TODAY WE CREATETOMORROW’SSUCCESS

A DIVERSE CHOICE OFBACHELOR’S, MASTER’S ANDDOCTORATE DEGREE PROGRAMS

@ADU_Tweets

ADUCHANNEL

@AbuDhabiUni

College of Engineering Programs are Internationally Accredited by ABET*

*

About ADUAbu Dhabi University (ADU) was chartered as a private institution of higher learning in the year 2000 under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Ruler's Representative in the Western Region and President of Abu Dhabi

Khalifa City, Abu Dhabi and the other in Al Ain City. ADU has four Colleges: the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS); the College of Business Administration (COBA); the College of Engineering (COE); and the University College (UC); all of which is open to students from all nationalities and uses the American model of higher education.

Vision Abu Dhabi University is an internationally recognized for quality education and applied research that drives regional economic and social development in the region and beyond.

MissionThe mission of ADU is to produce highly qualified career-oriented graduates in alignment with regional and global needs through excellence in teaching, student learning, faculty scholarship and engagement in community development.

Undergraduate & Postgraduate Programs

Scientific Research and tailored to meet the dynamic demands of the regional industry.

College of Arts and Sciences• Bachelor of Arts in Arts, Culture and Heritage Management • Bachelor of Arts in English• Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication• Bachelor of Science in Environmental Health & Safety• Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science• Bachelor of Science in Public Health• Bachelor of Law (In Arabic)• Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication (In Arabic – O�ered in Fall 2015)• Professional Post-Graduate Diploma in Teaching (Al Ain)• Master of Law (In Arabic – O�ered in Fall 2015)

College of Business Administration• Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting• Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance• Bachelor of Business Administration in Human Resources Management • Bachelor of Business Administration in Management• Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing• Bachelor of Business Administration• Master of Business Administration Concentrations in: (Logistics & Supply Chain Management ; Project Management; Human Resource Management; Finance)• Master of Human Resources Management• Doctor of Business Administration

College of Engineering• Bachelor of Architecture• Bachelor of Science in Aviation• Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering• Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering• Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering• Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering• Bachelor of Science in Information Technology • Bachelor of Science in Interior Design • Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering • Master of Engineering Management• Master of Project Management • Master of Science in Civil Engineering Concentrations in: (Structural Engineering; Construction Engineering Management)• Master of Science in Information Technology

Whether you choose to stroll amongst the cafés of the Corniche, or savour the

hustle and bustle of the Central Market, a serene oasis awaits your return.

You will be captivated by Arabic splendour and tones and textures as warm as the

welcome you will receive.

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Issue 5 Public Sector Excellence UAE

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