A training programme to give company leaders an edge
MUSCAT: Company leaders in Oman, who are looking to gain an extra edge over their competitors as they develop a sustainable future for themselves and the country, will want to attend the Institute of Directors’ (IoD) first ever Chartered Director Programme in the Middle East, which is to begin in Oman on January 23.
This is being run in collaboration with the Intelligent Engineering of Networks (IEON), an IT consultancy firm, which has been working on many projects for governments and private businesses. Their most prestigious assignment to date has been setting up the software programme, as well as providing 24x7 IT and tech support to the new Muscat and Salalah international airports.
The IoD was first established in the United Kingdom by Royal Charter in 1906, and, since then, has gone on to help company leaders across the world hone their skills, thus helping their employees grow and develop.
“The airports have unfortunately had a difficult history, sometimes, and we’ve been on board pretty much from the very beginning,” said Naseer Ahmed Khan, managing director for IEON.
“As a director of a company, you have specific responsibilities, such as legal, strategic, marketing or financial responsibilities that you may not have the skills to fully discharge.
“I found that I had some gaps myself, so I decided to enrol in a course at the IoD in the UK, which is quite an old and reputed institution,” he added. “I then came back and used that knowledge to construct our strategy that enabled not just us, but our partners NCR (National Cash Registers), who are jointly collaborating with us in building and maintaining all of the IT suites in the airports, to not just survive these changes, but actually contribute to the airports being on track.”
The course is split into four sections. The first will be conducted on January 23-24, the second from January 30 to February 1, the third runs from February 13 to 15, and the final module will take place on February 18 and 19.
“Last year, the institute received a lot of course enquiries from both the UAE and Oman, and it is quite costly to send someone out here to teach this course, but because I had previously done it, they contacted me and asked me if I would like to do it, and as we’ve already delivered about 60 training courses with regards to the airports, we’re very well set up to do training courses, so we thought we’d go for it and organise the course,” said Khan.
Course
“People do want to do this sort of course, because they recognise the need for it, but, unfortunately, don’t know what is out there,” he added.
“The return on that knowledge and what I could use it for has been more than a 100 times worth what I paid for it. This is in some ways better than an MBA, since sometimes what happens with MBA courses is that they are too theoretical and don’t have enough practical skills, but this is a really intense course that teaches you the sort of practical know-how that you can actually use to great effect in the workplace.”
Tanfeedh
Oman wants to diversify its economy with the aid of the Tanfeedh directives and wean itself off fossil fuels and expand into other sources of income, and Khan believes courses like this help give company leaders that extra edge when it comes to piloting their company in the right direction in the future.
“Currently, what is happening is that countries like Oman often look outside their own country for expertise in certain matters, and this can be really expensive for the nation in the long-run,” explained Khan.
“With Tanfeedh looking to diversify Oman’s economy, it is very important for the nation to be able to stand on its own two feet, and provide company leaders and the next generation of managers with the skills required to lead their teams so that they can get the best out of them.
“I believe courses like this are very important in making that happen, because it means companies in the future will be selfreliant, and this can only be good for the country in the long-term,” he added. For further information visit learning@ieon.com or call +968 24170600.