Dear members,

Welcome to the newly spruced up GCC BDI newsletter, where we endeavour to provide you with even more value from our business network.

Each quarter, as well as receiving the usual informative articles based around a major GCC corporate theme, you’ll also find interviews with our founders, corporate affiliates and membership partners who will offer their cumulative years of insight on different regional topics.

We’ve also introduced a CSR section and, each quarter, the GCC BDI newsletter will focus on an NGO as part of our effort to support these organisations and the voluntary work they do. In this issue, we look at Mission to Seafarers, a wonderful organisation that helps to protect the region’s vulnerable sailors.

This issue, our theme is the thorny subject of IT security in the GCC. What’s on the big data agenda for 2017? How can organisations protect themselves in an era of Internet of Things and networked data? Find out with input from experts at PwC, ELM and Tasnee.

Upcoming events

The GCC BDI will be hosting our 5^th Chairman Summit in collaboration with Morgan Stanley followed by our tenth anniversary dinner on 1 November at Al Faisaliah Hotel, Riyadh. The summit keynote address will be given by HE Mohammed Al Jaaden, Minister of Finance, Saudi Arabia. We’re also hosting a great list of panelists at this event, including Colm Kelleher, the President of Morgan Stanley and John Burbank, Founder of Passport Capital, USA. This event is by invitation only. Please check for the latest updates on our website. (LINK)

The GCC BDI’s Bi-Annual Survey 2017 will also be launched at our Chairman Summit. This survey will be our fifth report on board effectiveness in the GCC and will mark the GCC BDI’s 10th anniversary. Board effectiveness and corporate governance have come a long way in the past 10 years. A decade of change in the region where corporate governance as a discipline is still relatively young marks an important milestone of progress, both in the regulations and in the quality of their implementation, especially by public-listed companies and banking organisations.

Our other important research resource, the GCC BDI Remuneration Survey 2017, in collaboration with Heidrick and Struggles, is in the final stages of preparation. This survey is designed to provide participating companies with an analysis of board directors’ remuneration and board composition in the Gulf.

GCC BDI workshop highlights

11 September 2017 – IT Governance & Cyber Security Workshop – Dubai, UAE

27 – 28 September 2017 – Developing an Ethical Work Culture Workshop – Dubai, UAE

2-3 October 2017 – Foundations of Directorship – Al Khobar, KSA

Networking Dinner

1 October 2017 – GCC Board Directors Institute ‘Alumni Networking Dinner’, Al Khobar – KSA

1 November 2017 – 10th Anniversary Dinner – Riyadh. KSA

I’d like to also remind you to ensure you to sign up for your alumni and corporate memberships.  More details can be found in this link.

We hope to meet you at one of the many events and occasions we will be hosting in the coming months. Please let us also take this moment to share our joys on the auspicious occasion of Eid. We wish you a happy and peaceful holiday filled with wondrous blessings for you and your beloved ones.

With my very best wishes

Jane Valls

Executive Directors