Editorial

Dear members,

Happy New Year to you all!

As we start a brand new year, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support in 2018 which was a record year for GCC BDI in terms of delivering workshops, board evaluations and corporate governance services.  The GCC BDI team was delighted to see so many of you – over 110! – at the 6th Annual Chairman Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It was a pleasure to help plan the region’s business future together.

Speaking of new beginnings, I’d like to announce the launch of GCC BDI’s new certified director development programme – formally known as The World of Directorship – Certificate in Board Directorship. It has been developed to help improve the quality of board effectiveness in the region. The initiative has been specially tailored for GCC BDI and the region by Dr. Chris Pierce, CEO of Global Governance Services and formerly Director of Professional Standards and Professional Development at the Institute of Directors (IoD) in the UK.

The programme kicks off in April 2019 in Riyadh, supported by the CMA and the Institute of Finance, and will be composed of four two-day workshop modules: Corporate Governance Essentials; The Effective Director; The Effective Board; and Board Finance, Accounting, and Corporate Reporting. See the calendar here.

The Certified Director (Cert.Dir.) is a professional designation that is bestowed by the GCC BDI upon individuals who have successfully completed the four modules and passed an assessment test. See what our expert Dr Chris Pierce has to say about the value of director development here.

In this ‘Director Development’ themed newsletter issue, you’ll also find an insightful column from Alberto Ramirez Melgoza, who is a leading corporate trainer for oil giant Saudi Aramco. How does he think professional learning and certification can transform an organisation? Find out here.

New partnerships

GCC BDI has signed a three-year partnership with Saudi Arabia’s Alawwal Bank which has become the latest GCC BDI Corporate Affiliate. The funding will help to develop high-performance boards in the Gulf, supporting a programme of activity to raise corporate governance standards in the kingdom and the wider GCC.

Upcoming events
I’ll be giving a keynote presentation on ‘Board Composition and Diversity’ at the 11th Annual Board Secretary Conference: Innovation Meets Governance event in Dubai on 16 – 18 April 2019. I will be discussing all the key aspects of board composition, such as ensuring diversity representation and the right mix of director skills and competencies. So please do come and join us. Find out more here.

And don’t forget, we’ve already planned our workshops for 2019:

 Join us for next networking event
I would like to take this opportunity to invite you to the first GCC BDI Members Networking Event in Bahrain on 19 March 2019, kindly sponsored by Al Tamimi & Co. To RSVP, simply click here.

Finally, we wish you a successful 2019 and I hope to see you at one of our many events during the year.

Good reading!

Jane Valls


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