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Editor’s Foreword
W
hilst the year may have got off to a swinging start, we are all aware of how tough 2016 could be. And while we forge away with our businesses and plan for every event, how can be certain that we are planning correctly? The simple answer sadly is that we can’t, but we can look to what the markets are doing to try to determine what we should be doing.
With the recent announcement from bankers everywhere that savers should be investing 10 percent in gold, Jeffrey Rhodes of Zee Gold looks at the year ahead for precious metals in our article, “Precious Metals Forecast for 2016”, he also follows this up with his predicitions for the Indian rupee on page 34. Security is an issue on all levels, and after last years headline hacks of major conglomerate businesses, should we be worried too? Of course we should! In our article, “2016 Security Risk” we seek to establish what you should be doing and why. We take this one step further in the article, “The Threat from Within” as we garner expert advice on why millennials are our best and worst bets when it comes to systems security and how we can start to fend off possible attacks now.
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Precious Metals Forecast 2016 *Indian Rupee V’s US Dollar *The Threat from Within
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Contents
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Foresight Page 14 – DMCC and DIFC’s Dispute resolution Authority Sign Memorandum to Pioneer Dubai Free Zone Collaboration Page 16 – Precious Metals Forecast for 2016 Page 20 – 50% of Business Procedures will include the Internet of Things Page 22 – Sustainability Comes to the Oil & Gas Sector
Success Series
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Page 28 – Debbie Stanford-Kristiansen, CEO, NOVO Cinemas
Money
Page 35 – DMCC Explores Credit Solutions for the Food Trade Page 36 – The Importance of Innovation for SME Growth Page 38 – Making the Future Perfect
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People
Page 40 – Getting Only the Best
Legal
Page 42 – New Saudi Companies Law
DMCC
Page 46 – DMCC and RichComm Global Services Explore the Future of Commodities at Third Global Commodity Conference in Dubai Page 48 – The Consultants Awards
Marketing
Page 50 – Tinting the Slack
Technology
Page 54 - The Threat from Within Page 56 – Lessons for Business From Governments Globally Page 58 – The Final Frontier
Hospitality
Page 60 – The Jood Palace – Luxury and Taste Redefined
Business Incubator
Page 61 – 10 Top Tips on Bringing a Project Together Page 64 – We Made It!
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DMCC and DIFC’s Dispute Resolution Authority sign memorandum to pioneer Dubai Free Zone collaboration Agreement will enhance access to world-class dispute resolution services for DMCC member companies Collaboration to help fulfill the objectives of the Dubai Plan 2021 and the UAE Vision 2021
MCC, the Government and Free Zone authority on trade, enterprise and commodities in Dubai and DIFC’s Dispute Resolution Authority (‘DRA’) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (‘memorandum’), to further enhance bilateral trade relations. The terms of the memorandum state that the two entities will collaborate to provide DMCC member companies with access to the DRA services, including DIFC Courts, which are recognised as one of the world’s leading commercial court systems. The agreement also provides a launch pad for initiatives that will enable the DRA to support DMCC members and DMCC’s exchanges and commodity trade platforms in respect of the enforcement of commodity and other commercial transactions. The signing ceremony hosted by DMCC was attended by Ahmed Bin
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Sulayem, Executive Chairman, DMCC and Michael Hwang, SC, Head of the Dispute Resolution Authority and Chief Justice of the DIFC Courts. Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman, DMCC, said, “A first of its kind, this MoU takes Free Zone collaboration to the next level as it will give DMCC members access to DIFC’s international court system as well as access to worldclass trade and financial infrastructure from Dubai’s leading Free Zones. “At DMCC we actively seek strong strategic partnerships so our member companies can succeed, trade with confidence, and in turn further contribute to Dubai’s commercial growth and the fulfilment of the Dubai Plan 2021.” Michael Hwang, SC, Head of the Dispute Resolution Authority and Chief Justice of the DIFC Courts, said, “The Dispute Resolution Authority in
the DIFC is another example of Dubai’s foresight in protecting businesses and residents through legal excellence, and we look forward to working with the DMCC to promote our full range of dispute resolution services to its member companies. “Alongside sharing knowledge and expertise, this memorandum also looks at the Dispute Resolution Authority role in supporting the enforcement of commodity transactions, which are a key component of the DMCC’s operations.” The terms of the memorandum, which strengthens ties between two of Dubai’s leading free zones, cover a range of areas of mutual benefit to DMCC and the DIFC’s Dispute Resolution Authority, including access to professional services, trade and financial infrastructure; and collaboration on events and knowledge sharing initiatives. The DIFC’s DRA was established in 2014 as a platform for delivering legal excellence in the Middle East and as the gateway to a suite of services available to businesses operating in Dubai. Its divisions, which include the DIFC Courts, the DIFC Wills and Probate Registry and the Academy of Law, work in partnership to provide businesses with unparalleled choice about how to resolve their commercial disputes, to develop legal talent and to protect individuals investing or living in Dubai. l
“A first of its kind, this MoU takes Free Zone collaboration to the next level as it will give DMCC members access to DIFC’s international court system as well as access to world-class trade and financial infrastructure from Dubai’s leading Free Zones” Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman, DMCC
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Precious Metals Forecast for 2016 By: Jeffrey Rhodes, CEO, Zee Gold DMCC
THE END OF THE BEAR MARKET? The precious metals sector suffered its third straight year of declines across the board in 2015 with global financial and commodity markets dominated by an (almost) single-minded focus on the US Federal Reserve Bank. This created the soap opera-like saga of “will they/won’t they” raise interest rates that accompanied every meeting of the FOMC. In the event we had to wait until December for the Fed to have enough confidence in the strength of the US economy to finally make their move when the US Central Bank raised interest rates by 25 basis points and signalled an end of the easy money policy that has been in place since the GFC in 2008. The other key macro factor that came into play in the second half of 2015 was a growing concern over the state of the world’s second largest economy, China, with fears of a slowdown weighing on
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Jeffrey Rhodes CEO, Zee Gold DMCC
T: +971 4 563 9807 E: info.zeegolddmcc@shirpurgold.com W: www.esselgroup.com
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Indications only| data source Thomson Reuters Eikon| Quoted US$
commodities in general with crude oil prices plunging by 35 percent, copper by 25 percent and the wider Thomson Reuters CRB Index also falling by 25 percent. Of the four precious metals, it was therefore no great surprise that the PGM’s, with their much greater reliance on industrial demand,
mainly from the auto-sector, should suffer the most with platinum falling year on year by US$310 or almost 26 percent and palladium losing US$231 or 29 percent of its value. In comparison the decline in values of gold and silver were relatively modest at US$122.50 or 10 percent and US$1.83 or 11 percent
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GOLD
Global equity markets have fallen sharply in January with the DJIA losing 11 percent of its value before stabilising at the end of last week amid growing concerns that the world could be on the brink of another Global Financial Crisis similar to that of 2008, with the catalyst this time around being China’s faltering economy rather than the collapse of the US banking system
respectively as savvy physical buyers in China and India took advantage of the lower prices. Also it is worth noting that gold’s losses in 2015 more or less mirrored the strength of the US dollar with the DXY gaining 9 percent on the year, highlighting the fact that the yellow metal’s traditional inverse relationship with the Greenback remains intact.
Gold has resumed its role as a safe haven store of value with the price rallying from US$1061 at the end of 2015 to reach US$1112 before easing back to US$1083 and then surging to US$1122 at the time of writing this report
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OUTLOOK FOR 2016 We believe that it is always wise to wait until the markets have started to take shape in January with all participants returning to the table after a period of time on the side-line ahead of year-end before trying to form our views on the likely direction of the markets for the year ahead. This approach has once again been vindicated given the extreme volatility that global financial and commodity markets have endured so far in 2016 as fears of a hard landing for the Chinese economy drove crude oil prices towards US$27, the lowest level since 2003, representing a further 27 percent decline on top of last year’s 35 percent fall in value. Predictably global equity markets have fallen sharply in January with the DJIA losing 11 percent of its value before stabilising at the end of last week amid growing concerns that the world could be on the brink of another Global Financial Crisis similar to that of 2008, with the catalyst this time around being China’s faltering economy rather than the collapse of the US banking system. Against this backdrop, gold has resumed its role as a safe haven store of value with the price rallying from US$1061 at the end of 2015 to reach
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US$1112 before easing back to US$1083 and then surging to US$1122 at the time of writing this report. Only time will tell if this rally is a temporary correction to the bear market that has been in place since 2012 or a more fundamental change in direction to the upside. This early action, in our opinion, sets the main silver
theme for global financial and commodity markets in general and gold specifically for 2016, that is a return to increased levels of volatility closer to the average trading ranges in the gold price seen over the last 15 years. Since 2001, when the long term bull market in gold began that saw the price rise from US$254 to
If gold has had a difficult time since the heady days of 2011 it bears no comparison to silver, which has fared even worse with the price falling from US$49.50 to hit a five year low of US$13.63 in December, a decline of 72 percent
its all time high of US$1920 in September 2011, the average volatility in the gold price as measured by the difference between the annual high and low has been 34 percent, whereas the price ranges in 2014 and 2015 were 23 percent and 25 percent respectively. We have already seen early signs of the return of investor demand for gold in its role as a safe haven asset in times of economic and geo-political turmoil with ETF holdings increasing by 4 percent in 2016, reversing the trend of investment
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outflows that has seen total holdings fall by 1,128 tonnes, or 47 percent since 2011. Given the fragile state of the current global financial and political landscape as we head into the New Year, we believe that gold should benefit from the uncertainty gripping the markets as investors engage “risk off ” mode and seek the safe haven of the yellow metal. Also, while many pundits predict another year of strength for the US dollar, given the likelihood of further rate hikes by the Fed in 2016, being “long dollars” remains a very crowded trade and some contrarians, including ourselves, are now looking for at least a sideways year for the greenback and perhaps a sharp reversal in fortune, especially in a Presidential election year with the financial world having serious reservations over each of the probable candidates. This leaves us to conclude that while fresh interest rate driven weakness in gold could emerge at some stage over the next 12 months that could see the price approach the magic US$1000 level to reach a projected low of US$1025, such a move would be temporary and find willing physical buyers from the usual physical suspects in China and India, and potentially Iran. platinum
palladium
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If our assumption of a return to a more typical trading range is proved correct that would suggest a high of US$1373. Looking at the likely average price of gold in 2016 it is worth noting that although gold has had a difficult three years the pace of decline has slowed from 15 percent in 2013 to US$10 percent in 2014 and 7 percent last year. Given our relatively positive outlook for gold in 2016 it is reasonable to suggest that this trend will continue with the chance that this year’s average price could even post a modest gain and reach US$1199. Technically gold is certainly on the cusp of a major break out to the upside; having penetrated the 100 day moving average at US$1105 to probe towards the 200 day MA set at US$1130, chart watchers will be well aware that if the yellow metal can clear this long term point of overhead resistance the next stop on the charts would be US$1190. The junior precious metal was the top tip for strong gains by most pundits (including ourselves) at the start of 2015 given its chronic shortage of supply versus annual demand. However despite these strong fundamentals, fears about a slump in demand from the auto-catalyst sector due to a combination of a
Platinum has had a terrible seventeen months with the price declining by 46 percent from US$1500 in the summer of 2014 to reach a seven year low of US$810 in January with the noble metal being dragged lower by a cocktail of factors
slowdown in perceived demand from China and the Volkswagen saga sparked a massive exodus by investors with ETF holdings slumping by 24 percent last year. Palladium hit a five year low of US$455 in January, an extraordinary slump of 50 percent in value since the summer of 2014, but has since recovered to reclaim a foothold above US$500. In hindsight it is not difficult to explain palladium’s extreme weakness over the last 17 months with the investment side of the market becoming overly long and weakness in the Rouble and the Rand more than compensating Russia and South Africa, the world’s top two producers responsible for 86 percent of global production, for the fall in the dollar price of palladium, while it also resulted in sales of above ground stocks in addition to newly mined metal to fill the supply versus demand shortfall. Given our view that the outlook for the USD in 2016 is flat to lower, this is unlikely to be such an important factor in 2016, and resumption of investment demand is unlikely to meet any significant supply side resistance. With the charts turning bullish following a MACD buy signal triggered by the US$50 rally over the last week, we expect palladium to challenge the 100 and 200 day moving averages set at US$585 and US$632 respectively in the first quarter of 2016. Once above these two long-term technical hurdles there is little resistance on the charts until US$705. Once the price reaches this level, our targeted high for 2016 of US$800 would be back on traders’ radar screens. We believe that we have already seen the lows for 2016 and predict an average price of US$655 this year. l
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50% of Business Procedures Will Include The Internet of Things Analysts Reveal Five Unexpected Implications Arising From the Internet of Things
ore than half of major new business processes and systems will incorporate some element of the Internet of Things (IoT) by 2020, according to Gartner, Inc. The impact of the IoT on consumers’ lives and corporate business models is rapidly increasing as the cost of “instrumenting” physical things with sensors and connecting them to other things, for example devices, systems and people, continues to drop. “Uses of the IoT that were previously impractical will increasingly become practical,” said W. Roy Schulte, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. “The IoT is relevant in virtually every industry, although not in every application. There will be no purely ‘IoT applications.’ Rather, there will be many applications that leverage the IoT in some small or large aspect of their work. As a result, business analysts and developers of information-centric processes need to have the expertise and the tools to implement IoT aspects that play a role in their systems.”
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Through 2018, 75 percent of IoT projects will take up to twice as long as planned. Gartner expects three out of four IoT projects to face schedule extensions of up to 100 percent with the consequent cost overruns. The more ambitious and complicated the project, the greater the schedule overruns. For some projects, compromises will be made to keep them on-schedule, leading to significant weaknesses in performance, security or integration into existing processes. In the mid-to-long term, these compromises will require that the IoT project be refactored and perhaps even recalled and redeployed. “Product-centered enterprises will be the worst affected,” said Alfonso Velosa, research vice president at Gartner. “They will seek to launch smarter, connected products, although this will often be a reactive, tactical approach that seeks to address their competition’s IoT product. However, even for enterprises conducting internally centered projects that may focus on cost reductions, there will be people issues. Most of
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these issues will center on the normal introduction of a new technology model. It will be complicated by emerging business models that will require process and cultural change. Addressing both of these will lead to projects going over schedule.” By 2020, a black market exceeding US$5 billion will exist to sell fake sensor and video data for enabling criminal activity and protecting personal privacy. The nature of IoT solutions, how they are deployed, and the types of data they generate and consume are giving rise to new security and privacy implications that organisations must begin to address. This is a rapidly escalating risk to the company, bringing complexity unfamiliar to most IT and business leaders. “The IoT has enormous potential to collect continuous data about our environment,” said Ted Friedman, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. “The integrity of this data will be important in making personal and business decisions, from medical diagnoses to environmental protection, from commands to modify actions of machinery to identification and authorisation of physical access. A black market for fake or corrupted sensor and video data will mean that data can be compromised or substituted with inaccurate or deliberately manipulated data. This scenario will spur the growth of privacy products and services, resulting in an extensive public discussion regarding the future of privacy, the means to protect individual privacy, and the role of technology and government in privacy protection.” By 2020, addressing compromises in IoT security will have increased security costs to 20 percent of annual security budgets, from less than one percent in 2015. As use of IoT devices grows, however, the unique requirements of IoT architecture, design and
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implementation over multiple industry segments and scenarios will also grow. As a result, Gartner believes that the average security budget for IT, operational technology (OT) and IoT security requirements will respond to the growth of IoT devices across all business segments and scenarios, rising from less than one percent of annual security budgets in 2015 to 20 percent in 2020. “Major cybersecurity vendors and service providers are already delivering roadmaps and architecture of IoT security, in anticipation of market opportunity,” said Earl Perkins, research vice president at Gartner. “Small startups delivering niche IoT security in areas such as network segmentation, device-to-device authentication and simple data encryption are offering first-generation products and services, including cloud-based solutions where applicable. Large security vendors have already begun acquiring some of these IoT startups to support their early roadmaps and fill niches in their portfolios.” l
“The IoT is relevant in virtually every industry, although not in every application. There will be no purely ‘IoT applications.’ Rather, there will be many applications that leverage the IoT in some small or large aspect of their work” W. Roy Schulte, Vice President, Gartner
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Sustainability Comes To The Oil & Gas Sector COP21 Agreement to Fast-Track Green Building and Sustainability Initiatives in Middle East through 2016, Say AESG
ollowing the success of COP21, the UN Framework on Climate Change (UNFCCC) conference held in Paris in December 2015, the sustainability industry in the Middle East is set to gain prominence through 2016. In light of these developments, AESG expects to further extend its regional footprint by playing a pivotal role in providing sustainability consultancy services to leading government and enterprise institutions across the GCC. “The world is transitioning to a low carbon economy and the recent COP21 deal provides further impetus to this movement. As countries and enterprises accelerate their efforts towards sustainability, given our core focus on sustainability services, we believe we are uniquely positioned to help our clients, both in the private and public sectors, implement the measures necessary to deliver on this unique deal.” said Saeed Al Abbar, Director at AESG. The need for green building and sustainable development has seen steady increase in the Middle East in recent years and local
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governments have been playing an active role in establishing frameworks and initiatives in this regard. For example, the UAE government is eager to position the country as a global leading ‘Green Economy’ and to implement green growth initiatives such as the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy. An emerging trend in the Middle East has been the growing interest of the Oil & Gas sector in sustainability. “As the Oil and Gas sector is one of the industry’s most closely associated with climate change, the industry globally is taking a leadership role in energy management strategies. AESG has been working closely with this sector and implemented a number of projects for the oil and gas operating companies in Abu Dhabi which seek to maximise energy efficiency,” said Al Abbar. The market’s positive reception to AESG’s offerings has prompted the company to establish a new office in Abu Dhabi in 2016 that will focus specifically on the Oil and Gas sector. l
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2016 Security Risks By: Glen Ogden, Regional Sales Director, Middle East at A10 Networks
Who could forget the Sony email hacking incident, the Marriot systems security breach and a website (which will remain nameless), when the membership was leaked, it broke up families? With the blurring of network boundaries and the increasing number of connected devices, A10 Networks predicts even more attacks and vulnerability disclosures in 2016. Glen Ogden, Regional Sales Director, Middle East at A10 Networks provides insights into the top 5 security predictions for 2016 along with advice for regional organisations to protect against these threats. Security Predictions: #1 – Attacks Hidden In SSL Traffic Will Exceed Attacks In Clear Text Over the past few years, SSL encryption has become all the rage for both application owners and hackers and for good reason. Encryption improves security by providing data confidentiality and integrity. Unfortunately, encryption also allows hackers to conceal their exploits from security devices like firewalls, intrusion prevention systems and data loss prevention platforms. Some of these products cannot decrypt SSL without degrading performance, while others simply cannot decrypt SSL traffic at all because of their location in the network. Today, encryption accounts for roughly one-third of all Internet traffic, and it’s expected to reach two-thirds of all traffic next year when Internet powerhouses like Netflix transition to SSL. As a result, encrypted traffic will become the “go-to” way of distributing malware and executing cyber attacks simply. Whether sharing a malicious file on a social networking site or attaching malware to an email or instant message, many attacks will be cloaked in SSL. On top of this threat, movements like “Let’s Encrypt” make it even easier for hackers to generate SSL certificates to sign malicious code or to host malicious HTTPS sites. To counter the threat posed by SSL encryption, organisations can decrypt and inspect inbound and outbound traffic for cyber attacks. A dedicated SSL inspection platform enables thirdparty security devices to inspect encrypted traffic and eliminate the blind spot in corporate defenses.
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Security Predictions: #2 – IoT Will Gain Notoriety As Both An Attack Target And An Attack Source With the continued rapid growth in the Internet of Things (IoT), we expect to see an increase in both the number and severity of active exploits of connected devices. Analysts predict that there will be over 5 billion connected “things” by the end of 2016, and as the number of devices leveraging personal information grows, we will start hearing about exploits targeting consumer-oriented IoT devices. This will lead to more vocal advocacy for consumer protection through government regulation, or more likely, industry-driven mandates similar to those defined by Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). IoT-specific threats are exacerbated by a number of factors. These include the number of connected “things” is outpacing the ability to secure them; Many devices have little to no security built in; the fact that there is no formalised process for securing IoT devices. When you consider that an increasing number of devices provide access to personal information, it is surprising that more is not being made of this. However, at this time, meeting demand for capabilities will continue to be a higher priority than security. For those looking for more information about IoT threats and mitigation, resources are available. The OWASP Internet of Things Project has identified the top attack surface areas of vulnerability for IoT devices and has issued the following recommendations, as well
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Consumer drones are big now and they will get even bigger in 2016, with expectations to generate over US$1 billion in revenues. But their increased popularity will also introduce new cyber security and physical security risks as specific guidance for testing and security to manufacturers. They also recommend that consumers take the following steps to protect themselves from IoT-related threats. Security Predictions: #3 – Attackers Will Target Mobile App Vulnerabilities 2016 will see a continued rise in the number of attacks targeting mobile devices – something that probably won’t come as much of a surprise to anybody. But the scope of the problem and the potential for damage will. The sheer volume of mobile devices, the amount of malware (20 million apps by the end of 2016, according to Trend Micro), and the inherent vulnerabilities present in even legitimate mobile apps means that a major breach is bound to happen, potentially on a massive scale. To put it into perspective, Cisco recently released an advisory about a vulnerability in its WebEx for Androids app. This particular flaw leaves the app vulnerable to an exploit that could allow a secondary malicious app to acquire the same permissions as the WebEx application. Typically, an app will ask for permissions, effectively tipping the user to its intent. But by exploiting this vulnerability, the app can gain access without any notification. And with millions of potential targets (as many as 5 million may have downloaded the app), it’s only a matter of time before a vulnerability like this results in a major incident. Fortunately, at this time there are no reports of this particular exploit resulting in a breach. Additional threats exist in spear phishing attacks that exploit the fact that mobile users are more likely to click on a malicious link simply because it’s harder to identify it as suspicious on a smaller screen. And malware designed to look like valid apps can convince unsuspecting users to enter login data that can then be used to gain access to legitimate sites storing detailed personal and financial data. Mobile device users, particularly Android owners, need to remain diligent in validating what apps they choose to download and the attachments they choose to open.
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2016 will see a continued rise in the number of attacks targeting mobile devices – something that probably won’t come as much of a surprise to anybody. But the scope of the problem and the potential for damage will Security Predictions: #4 - Cloud Services Will Increase Attack Surface And Burden Perimeter Security. Back in the good old days, networks were relatively well-defined. Servers were provisioned in the data center or the DMZ. Organisations could lock down their sensitive data and carefully monitor access to servers with data center and intranet security tools. Those “good old days” are gone. Today, many organisations are migrating their application servers to the cloud or they are ditching their existing applications and moving to softwareas-a-service (SaaS) solutions such as CRM, HR, email and file sharing apps. Organisations are also embracing cloud productivity apps such as Microsoft Office 365 and Google for Work. The transition to cloud services has slashed costs and allowed easy access to business apps from any location. However, cloud applications have also introduced new security challenges, including: An increased attack surface: Before, attackers needed to gain access to the corporate network before they could probe and attack applications. With applications hosted in the cloud, malicious users can now attack apps from any location and any device. Uneven data monitoring and auditing: Organisations should track access to sensitive data to detect and stop suspicious activity and for forensics. But it is much more difficult to monitor access to third-party SaaS applications than internal apps because apps are hosted in the cloud and application traffic is often encrypted. Limited control over security: Organisations must rely on SaaS vendors to implement strong defenses and fix vulnerabilities that arise quickly. While many SaaS vendors have undergone rigorous SAS 70 or ISO 27001 audits, they are also under pressure to rapidly innovate and to support Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) for third-party integration; business demands could lead to more vulnerabilities. Increased traffic at the network perimeter: The adoption of cloud-based services will inevitably increase the load on secure web gateways and perimeter firewalls. Since much of this traffic is encrypted (see security prediction
#1), businesses must ensure that their security devices can keep up with demand. Security Predictions: #5 – Drone-Related Threats Will Grow Consumer drones are big now and they will get even bigger in 2016, with expectations to generate over US$1 billion in revenues. But their increased popularity will also introduce new cyber security and physical security risks. Drones serve a myriad of purposes, from military to agricultural to surveillance applications to even delivering packages from the sky. However, drones also present a wide range of risks, from privacy invasion to corporate espionage to terrorism. Star Wars movie executives are already developing plans to prevent drone owners from taking photos of their upcoming movie sets. Executives in other industries should also take heed. For example, oil exploration companies should be wary of competitors using drones to learn where they are drilling for oil. And IT administrators should make sure that drones do not gain access to corporate Wi-Fi networks by providing closer proximity for the use of sniffers and other snooping tools. While drones do not pose as serious a threat as other cyber security attacks such as malware, IT administrators should consider any potential cyber security or physical security risks that drones pose for their organisation in 2016. What Enterprises Can Do to Prepare for 2016 While it is challenging to predict which threats will cause the most damage in the future, we believe that trends like encryption, IoT, mobility, cloud and Internet-connected drones will introduce dangerous security risks in 2016. To prepare for these risks, organisations should implement a multi-layered defense that can protect servers and endpoints, whether those servers are hosted in a data center or in the cloud and whether endpoints are traditional computers or mobile devices. While employees cannot always predict the future, organisations will be ready to handle future risks with the right security technologies and processes in place. l
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Debbie StanfordKristiansen Success Series Interview:
CEO, Novo Cinemas
As the CEO of Novo Cinemas, and a contacts list in her phone of the great and the good of film from around the world, you would be forgiven for thinking that Debbie StanfordKristiansen has a gilded jet-set lifestyle of parties with the uber-famous and dinner dates with high society. But as the CEO of Novo Cinemas, and having over 1,000 staff depend on her judgments that she makes, life is not as it seems ith a steely determination, Debbie works around the clock to ensure that the customers and employees of Novo Cinemas all have the best experience that they can. This takes a lot of planning and a lot of work. Business Insight got an understanding to just how much when we had a chat… “My career path began at the tender age of 22 as an Organising Executive for a Business Tourism Exhibition in Geneva, Switzerland. That’s where my passion for travel and becoming a people person began. My whole career has been about the customer experience; the journey, delivering the WOW factor and the extraordinary and its one I have loved every minute of. For me, it’s always been about making others happy. “I have been very fortunate throughout my career to be given opportunities to grow and advance as well as experience working in many different countries around the world from Europe to Latin America, Caribbean, Asia Pacific to Australia, and in the last 11 years here in the
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region, 9 years in Bahrain and the last 2 here in Dubai,” said Debbie when asked about her career. You have worked in some vastly differing areas… My career journey has spanned through Event Management, Venue Management, Destination Marketing and now Entertainment. I can honestly say I have had one of the most amazing, colourful, culturally diverse and dynamic careers I could have ever wished for. I have been lucky enough to work with truly fantastic, inspiring and dedicated individuals, but also with great mentors. I have loved every second of it. Not everyone gets to enjoy the job they do and travel the world whilst doing it. I can truly say without a shadow of a doubt that I have loved every job I have had culminating now with my role as CEO of NOVO Cinemas. My most important role is as a Mother and a Wife, I never take for granted how lucky I have been, and for all of that, I feel truly blessed.
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success
Everyone should have a business plan, no matter how small your company is. It should be the staple basis for everything you do, the decisions you make, how you want your company to operate, how you want your company/brand to be perceived and valued, how to drive sales, how to build customers and retain them
Previously as Global VP of Sales (2002-2005) prior to your move to the Middle East, how has your background in sales helped you in your present role as CEO? The most striking of attributes that I have carried with me from my background in sales are qualities I cherish as a CEO: 1. Integrity and trustworthiness: the very best salespeople are the ones you can trust. That sort of honor and integrity is crucial for CEO’s. It is about mutual respect. 2. Strategic thinking: In sales and in business as a whole, numbers mean everything and figuring out how to reach them requires a very specialised type of thinking. It is crucial to know how to interpret and analyse data. 3. Conviction and drive: to inspire confidence in your team, you have to be invested in your business. That is conviction and it fuels the drive that keeps you hungry for more.
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What are the day-to-day challenges that you face and how do you overcome these? Balancing personal and professional time is always the toughest challenge but it’s important to have balance, especially for my family - it’s something I’m constantly working on. The nature of business is 24/7, we entertain people, that’s what we do and what we love to do but I constantly strive for balance. I find that I’m always trying to be one step ahead of the competition. I want to be a leader not a follower; whether that’s through our Technology offering or our Customer Service; making our Customers happy is what drives me and what drives the team. It’s all about the Customer Journey and the Experience we create, the before, the during and the after to deliver on our promise of A Great Time Out! And delivering a Great Time Out across 3 territories can be a challenge. Managing 3 territories (almost 1,000 staff and still growing) and trying to keep everyone happy and motivated to always deliver their best and always achieve their best… I need more hours in the day! What do you believe the secrets to your success have been? True success is when you give it your all. I have been very fortunate throughout
my career, great opportunities, working for amazing people. Most importantly, I have been lucky to have great mentors who have taught me to never give up, stand by what you believe in, work hard, always give your very best no matter how hard and how challenging. But my most cherished piece of advice, I received from my Grandfather. He always told me, it doesn’t matter if you are talking to the road sweeper or the Queen; make sure you always treat everyone with mutual respect. Treat people the way you want to be treated yourself and never think you are better than anyone else and be a good person and kind to others. You have just opened a cinema in Dragon Mart. What is the thought process behind your decisions to move into new locations? A lot of work goes into selection of a new location/new territory, sometimes several months of planning involving the entire senior management team. This is supported by very high-level detailed feasibility studies that look at the demographics of the location, to determine what exists and where the market is underserved. If opportunities do exist we need to ascertain how we can support the community and give them something they want. What are the main points that you as a CEO would want considered before you took the business in that direction? There is a huge captive audience in International City, Al Warqaa, and the surrounding areas, but in addition Dragon Mart’s high visitors numbers on a daily basis there are also the others to consider - from both Tourists and regional residents especially from Oman and Saudi Arabia. We wanted to cater for these audiences. We always ensure with every project, we carry out a detailed feasibility study, look at the location, look
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A lot of work goes into selection of a new location/new territory, sometimes several months of planning involving the entire senior management team. This is supported by very high-level detailed feasibility studies that look at the demographics of the location, to determine what exists and where the market is underserved at the surrounding areas, look at the demographics of the residents, to ensure every NOVO cinema we deliver is targeted and focused towards the customer/patrons. It’s not a one size fits all, it’s all about understating who are customers are and making sure we deliver something they want and need. What is next for Novo? We are focused on ensuring that every NOVO Cinema is up to the highest level of standards our customers have come to expect. Our 2016 expansion plans will see our numbers swell to a little over 208 screens with an estimate of around 30,000 seats. These include our highly anticipated opening at IMG Worlds of Adventure in Dubai, our North Gate opening in Qatar, in addition to a couple of other key strategic openings which will be announced in the very near future. Our aforementioned numbers also account for our renovation plans and expansions at Ibn Battuta Mall - expansions to include 2 x 7Star theatres and in DFC we will expand with additional screens as well as the introduction of an IMAX and 7*star screens. Renovations will also extend to our Megamall and Buhairah venues. Our expansion plans continue in 2017 with our opening at Wafi City in Dubai and further expansions across the region. Very Exciting Times!
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True success is when you give it your all. I have been very fortunate throughout my career, great opportunities, working for amazing people
You have cinemas throughout the region and every country has different film licensing restrictions. This must bring on some very unique challenges. How do you plan for these? There is no absolute way to mitigate such challenges; sometimes they are out of our control. The best way to navigate these waters is to always plan ahead and be prepared. We have solid marketing and media plans in place, and then back those plans up. Ultimately, the more you know your business and the environment you operate in, the more likely you will succeed. Everyone makes mistakes in business. Please explain one or two of your mistakes and how you resolved them.
I believe that mistakes should be celebrated and learned from. We are only human after all and life is a continuous learning for all of us. This reminds me of a story I was told, ‘A CEO was told by a nervous young employee, that the company website was down. This was a big deal – this company made most of its sales online, and downtime cost them thousands of dollars an hour. When the CEO walked into the IT department everyone went quiet. They thought they had a pretty good idea what was coming, and were sure it wouldn’t be good. “IT Department,” says the CEO, “I want to thank you for finding this weakness in our system. Thanks to your actions, we can now learn from this, and fix the system, so something like this can’t happen in the future. Good work!” Dubai is an entrepreneurial city, yet a surprising number of SMEs that I speak with do not have a business plan. Can you please explain the importance of a business plan? A solid Business Plan is key to being a great success but more importantly, sustainable for
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success
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success
In business, whom do you most admire and why? Sir Richard Branson, I love his approach to business and to his employees, he is so inspiring for so many reasons but the way he values his employees really resonates with me. He is successful in everything he does, a fabulous example of a true Leader! Why do you believe there not that many female CEOs when compared to male? I think sometimes women underestimate themselves and how strong they are. First and foremost they are fantastic multi-taskers but more often than not, they don’t stop to see how much they have done and how much they accomplish on a daily basis, juggling family life and work pressures. Yes, it’s hard, but women can do it. Sometimes, it’s just about having the confidence and belief in you. I try hard to be a good role model for women, there are so many bright talented women out there, and sometimes they just need that little bit of extra encouragement to believe they can do it. I would love to see more Women CEO’s out there. What would you recommend to any women who have career aspirations of getting to the top? Have confidence in yourself. Be committed and don’t be afraid. Find something that you can be passionate about, and most importantly, you must believe in yourself. Anything is possible in life, but you need to seize it. You have to be committed and you have to want to make it happen future growth. Everyone should have a business plan, no matter how small your company is. It should be the staple basis for everything you do, the decisions you make, how you want your company to operate, how you want your company/ brand to be perceived and valued, how to drive sales, how to build customers and retain them. My “checklist” if you will, to highlight the importance of a business plan is: To map the future To know your company/market (SWOT analysis) do your homework To invest wisely To develop and communicate the correct course of action, be responsive to change and be able to adapt quickly to that change, one size doesn’t fit all, understand your customers, understand your markets
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Most importantly, I have been lucky to have great mentors who have taught me to never give up, stand by what you believe in, work hard, always give your very best no matter how hard and how challenging
What is the one piece of standout advice that you have been given during your career? Always be true to yourself, be honest, be committed, be passionate, be respectful, be kind to others and above all, LOVE what you do! l
To have a blueprint to steer your efforts To manage your success (financial growth) To anticipate the future
And above all to know your employees, know how to develop them, motivate and nurture them and invest in their training, their future. Your employees are always your greatest assets, your greatest Brand Ambassadors; they are key to your success.
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MONEY
2016 Forecast – Indian Rupee V US Dollar
By: Jeffrey Rhodes, CEO, Zee Gold DMCC
Given the importance of the value of the Indian Rupee exchange rate versus the US Dollar in determining physical demand for both gold and silver from the one world’s most important markets, Jeffrey Rhodes gives us his view on the year ahead for this key currency pair
he Indian rupee has been caught up in the extreme volatility that has descended on the global financial markets in 2016. This has been sparked by fears over a hard landing for China’s economy this year with emerging markets in general being affected across the board. The result of all of this has been the sharp declines in currency values. However we believe that this current weakness in the rupee to be both short lived and misguided, and this view is shared by some of the major players in the global investment funds space. Indeed Rupee sovereign bonds, Asia’s best performers for two years in a row, are still the top pick for a number of global funds. Plunging oil prices, a stable currency, limited exposure to China combine to paint a bullish picture for the Indian economy in 2016, which already has the strongest growth in the world at 7.4 percent per annum in 2015. We also still view
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the current exchange values as an attractive entry point for potential Rupee buyers. The INR versus the USD has fallen by 17 percent since May 2014 with the exchange rate rising from 58.25 to 68.20 at the time of writing this report in a straight-line move, and technically it is starting to approach oversold territory with the 30 day RSI sitting at 64. While we do not rule out a possible test of the all time high of 68.80 posted in August 2013 in the wake of the balance of payments crisis brought on by a combination of crude oil prices well above US$100 per barrel and imports of gold, our view is that the current strong fundamentals of the Indian economy and possibility of a trend reversal for the USD in 2016 will result in a stronger rupee with an initial target of 65 on the charts and potential to probe the long-term uptrend line that intersects on the charts at 63.25. l
Jeffrey Rhodes CEO, Zee Gold DMCC
T: +971 4 563 9807 E: info.zeegolddmcc@shirpurgold.com W: www.esselgroup.com
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MONEY
DMCC Explores Credit Solutions for the Food Trade Financing the trade of food was key on the commodities agenda this month as DMCC, the authority on trade, enterprise and commodities in Dubai, launched its inaugural Dubai Food Trade Finance Forum
imed at addressing key issues facing the industry, and establishing solutions to move it forward, the forum brought together stakeholders from the banking and food trade communities and facilitated dialogue. Discussions focused on stimulating SME lending within the food commodities market and exploring new methods in the current credit environment. The event was developed in close collaboration with the Dubai Food Trade Advisory Group which comprises of key representatives from multinational trading firms, SME trading companies, financiers, and logistics operators. Gautam Sashittal, Chief Executive Officer of DMCC commented, “We see tremendous growth opportunities in the food commodities sector and our mandate at DMCC is to facilitate that growth. We wanted to bring everyone together today to discuss challenges and present alternative solutions so industry players can trade with confidence. We believe that this is a collaborative effort, and our discussions today are centred on how the banking and the trading sectors can re-calibrate their business approach to better respond to current market trends.”
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It was full house at the Dubai Food Trade Finance Forum with the participation of over 50 SMEs from the food trading sector, along with representatives from leading financial institutions, including Emirates NBD and National Bank of Fujairah. The first panel discussed how to rebuild trust in SME lending, looking at what banks can do to better understand the needs of SME food traders, and highlighting changes that food trade SMEs can make to be more attractive to lenders. Solutions were proposed to improve transparency and reporting mechanisms, and the panel considered securitised lending alternatives and the need for specialised commodity financing products tailored to the needs of the food trade. The second panel focused on alternative sources of trade finance from non-banking institutions such as collateralised lending, receivables financing, and trade finance from investment funds. Panellists gave step-by-step guidance on how to access products such as the DMCC Tradeflow and practical examples of the range of issues that SMEs can address to prepare their businesses for these alternatives. Sashittal concluded, “At DMCC, we believe in trade and enterprise which is why we continue to create new marketplaces and host events such as The Dubai Food Trade Finance Forum.” l
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MONEY
The Importance Of Innovation For SME Growth
The UAE has long been seen as the centre of innovation in the region and attracts talent from all ends of the world. That is thanks to its geographical location, literally in the middle of the world, as well as top-down government policy that are pro-business, supportive of diversification and embracing of technological innovation. In 2014, SMEs accounted for some 92 percent of businesses in the UAE; they contributed around 60 percent of the UAE’s GDP and provided 86 percent of all private sector employment according to the UAE ministry of Finance
MEs are the lifeblood of any local economy, and innovation is the lifeblood of all SMEs. SMEs have to think differently and implement new ideas quickly in order to survive, especially in a competitive market like the UAE.
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SME Innovation Beehive, the UAE’s first peer-to-peer (P2P) finance platform, in collaboration with Thomson Reuters, launched in November 2014 an in-depth study on SME innovation. The study looked into how SMEs in the UAE approach innovation, how they apply it for commercial success and how they can learn from each other’s experiences. The study was based on a roundtable discussion with some of the most successful SMEs in the country across a range of industries, coupled with an in-depth survey. One of the key findings of the study was that 45 per cent of the SMEs surveyed believe that the definition of innovation in the UAE is adapting an existing idea to a new market. Whereas entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley are more likely to innovate by bringing new products and services to market, entrepreneurs in Dubai are more likely to adapt existing ideas to the region quickly and efficiently. These entrepreneurs are often second-movers in the concepts that they apply, but firstmovers in the local market. The biggest driver of innovation in the UAE was defined as “the competitive pressure of the market” by 33 per cent of respondents, with 26 per cent of respondents describing it as “the desire for industry leadership and meeting consumer demand”.
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Key Factors When asked about the key factors spurring future innovations, the surveys revealed three important themes: knowledge, community, and transparency. The study revealed that SMEs have an innovative mentality and the ability to generate creative ideas. However, many business owners don’t understand how to successfully execute an innovation strategy, and leverage it for the long-term benefit of the company. Reasons such as limited budget for research and development, constant demographic changes and the lack of support from partners and clients are an impediment for businesses to allocate time and resources to focus on innovation. Another interesting finding of the study shows that a lack of funding to invest in innovation is an obstacle, with 51 per cent of respondents highlighting that access to finance would be a major enabler to innovation.
When asked about the key factors spurring future innovations, the surveys revealed three important themes: knowledge, community, and transparency
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MONEY
Funding Pressures Despite their significant contribution to the economy, SMEs continue to struggle to secure funds for growth and innovation. This lack of accessible finance is a result of tightened credit checks by banks and reduced liquidity in a fragile market. As expected, survey respondents pointed out the need for a financial stability as a crucial element for innovation, especially in a market where the consequences of a default not only negatively affects ones business, but could lead to penalties such as travel bans or even jail for paying with cheques that bounce. Alternative finance options are addressing this need for faster access to lower cost
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financing by alleviating the constraints and high cost of conventional lending. Since Beehive launched in 2014, the company has channelled almost AED 30 million to around 60 SMEs in the UAE. Craig Moore, Founder and CEO of Beehive, commented, “Throughout the year, we have come to understand what an impact funding is having on innovation for SMEs in the region. By providing SMEs with the finance, infrastructure and government support to focus on innovation, we can help fuel the ambitions of the SME ecosystem, and be needed catalysts for innovation within the SME community.” l
In 2014, SMEs accounted for some 92 percent of businesses in the UAE; they contributed around 60 percent of the UAE’s GDP and provided 86 percent of all private sector employment Issue 23 | 37
making the future perfect An Interview with Leena Pawani
Founder & CEO of ICareInsure (Financial Boutique) It is said that like in archery, in business too it is the focus that is very important. One has to set a target and then single-mindedly work hard towards achieving it. Only then does one succeed
eena Parwani, a young and talented Dubai-based entrepreneur, Founder & CEO of iCareinsure a Financial Boutique is totally focused on building her business and creating a sizeable base of happy and satisfied clients. Leena is a financial architect who conceives designs and executes personalised financial security solutions for her esteemed clients. Leena’s job is to find customised bespoke solutions to her clients’ investment and insurance requirements and that is what she specialises in. She firmly believes in the adage – No one will care how much you know till they know how much you care. Leena feels that diligently following this motto has ensured her clients that indeed she cares. Leena began her career by working for major corporate houses and insurance firms before she graduated to establishing her own financial consultancy iCare in 2014. Since then, Leena has earned a formidable reputation among her diverse clientele by offering effective and customised products in areas such as Family Estate Planning, Wealth Creation, Income Protection, Life Insurance, Pension and Children’s Education. iCare’s client base ranges from extremely high net worth individuals to those with mid-level incomes. Leena feels that people, particularly expatriates, should have a strong financial plan in place in order to meet any exigencies like job, loss, illness or even death of the breadwinner. “I want to create awareness among people by offering expertise on
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family estate planning, wealth creation, income protection, life insurance, pension and children’s education. Also important is to have a security plan for families with special needs children. We realise that special needs children are going to be dependent on parents or siblings for support throughout their lives so it is imperative to create a financial blanket so that they are well looked after and provided for during their lifetime,” Leena asserted. She is particularly passionate about special needs children as she herself has a child with special needs. Apart from this, Leena also focuses on ladies to acquire life cover and critical illness plans. “Ladies are often decisionmakers on essential issues that affect their families and future of their children so they are an obvious focus point for us,” said Leena. She also feels that many people get so preoccupied with creating wealth when they are young and healthy that often they neglect getting insured while they easily can do so.” It is important to hold personal insurance to safeguard assets. A major illness can easily eat away any savings you might have. And once an illness is diagnosed, getting insured becomes that much more difficult and expensive. So the secret to insurance is to invest in it when you don’t need it to help plan for the day when you might,” advised Leena. She also explained that while medical insurance can take care of illness expenses, income protection schemes can ensure cash flow in time of financial needs. At the same time, Leena further emphasised that while providing traditional benefits, in this
day and age, insurance can also serve other important purposes like estate and business wealth preservation, estate equalisation and maximisation, asset conversion and facilitating charitable bequests. When Leena was asked what is her longterm vision for iCareinsure, she replied, “I would like to see iCareinsure become a leading independent advisor as well as a trusted financial shopping partner for individuals and companies operating in the Middle East and Africa. I would like to see iCareinsure become the champions in the insurance industry. I would like to offer solutions that take care of financial risks while at the same time facilitating
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is focused, we can control costs while suggesting the most appropriate solutions on offer.” She is also the Top Of The Table consultant for the past two years at Million Dollar Round Table, which is ‘Best Among Best’ recognition. When off work, Leena spends time with her two children - her daughter, who is a special needs child and her prime reason to promote the concept of insurance for children with special healthcare needs and her son whom she refers to as a resource of thoughts as she loves to spend time talking to him. She feels that his difficult questions and innocent yet creative answers inspire her to unlearn things which ultimately make matters simpler for her. Leena likes to gain more knowledge and insight by listening to motivational speakers and she listens to soothing music to unwind as she copes with a busy work load and a hectic lifestyle. With her unwavering focus and dedication to her work and a compassionate and emotional involvement in providing the best solutions to her ever-expanding client base, Leena Parwani is steadily moving towards achieving her vision and the lofty goals that she has set for herself and her team. l Website: www.icareinsure.com Email: leena@icareadvisory.com Phone number: +971527693333 & 04-3918995.
the growth of wealth for families and companies to build solid legacies.” Leena is a strong believer in adages and yet another one that likes to adhere to revolves around long-term goals. “At iCare, we believe in the simple saying – Short-term goals win games while long-term goals win championships. Our goal is to be the champions in our field.” Given that Leena started iCareinsure less than two years ago, she has indeed come a long way, “We have observed significant growth in our customer base. This has been achieved by aiding clients through right advice and adding value to their financial portfolios. We aim to continue with the
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same strategy to win the trust of even more clients in the coming years.” When asked to describe her work in a sentence, Leena replied, “I am helping you buy a little bit of tomorrow – today.” Given that the insurance and financial consultancy field is already crowded with agents and consultants, Leena opined that her consultancy stands out in many ways. “We believe in connecting with the clients and helping them make intelligent decisions. First we study and evaluate a client’s needs and requirements and then offer customised solutions using quality international portfolios. Since our advice
When asked to describe her work in a sentence, Leena replied, “I am helping you buy a little bit of tomorrow – today” Issue 23 | 39
people
Getting Only The Best
This month, Nuria Gonzales Martin, HR Director for Food Fund International, gives us her concise summary of exactly what you should be looking for with your candidate
How do you read a CV? What exactly do you look out for? In the first instance the CV must be formatted in a clean style. Long, unformatted CVs, in strange text fonts or colours are not appealing. Furthermore spelling errors, colloquial words like “cum”, and poor grammar are also a turn off. The CV is then reviewed to identify whether the candidates previous work experience matches our requirements in terms of knowledge and skill. I ask myself several questions for example; • Does the candidate have a good length of service history? • Does the candidate’s previous employers relate to our industry? • Are they a reputable? The CV should be concise, duplications of tasks and responsibilities are unnecessary. If the person has been working for a considerable period of time they shouldn’t detail job duties for every position they have held. Job titles, company name, dates, and potentially a brief summary will do, highlighting any achievements that they wish to be known. Instead I want to see their last 2-3 roles described, how these roles and experience relate to the role they are actually applying for now. A CV is basically in sales terms an, “invitation to treat” so they shouldn’t be gaudy, have lengthy un-relation personal bios, introductions that bear no relevance to the job, or go on for 7 pages. Another little helpful hint to readers is to ensure that their name is included in the saved file name, that way the CV is much easier to retrieve. HR managers/business leaders will get hundreds of CVs through for any one position. Trying to retrieve a CV of a candidate that you wish to interview from numerous files called CV is a complete waste of time! l
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people
The CV should be concise, duplications of tasks and responsibilities are unnecessary. If the person has been working for a considerable period of time they shouldn’t detail job duties for every position they have held. Job titles, company name, dates, and potentially a brief summary will do, highlighting any achievements that they wish to be known
Top Tips to finding the right people to interview •
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Always telephone to screen potential candidates. Use this time to confirm key roles, duties etc. Ask Why they are looking for a new role, and what they want from their next position? Do they sound Motivated? Identify someone who has energy, sounds motivated, and isn’t bored in their current profession Remember an ideal candidate is someone who is confident when answering your questions and who asks you questions about the role potentially on offer, the company, who their teammates are, and what their roles is likely to be. Have they asked about working time and salary? Ultimately, you want someone that will go the extra mile for your business
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LEGAL
New Saudi Companies Law By: Dr. Eyad Reda, Country Managing Partner, Saudi Arabia and Rakesh Bassi, Head of Jeddah Office, DLA Piper
Do you need to re-examine your current or future KSA investments and structures? he Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s (“KSA”) new Companies Law (“NCL”) shall take effect on 2 May 2016, bringing changes for local and foreign investors and causing many to relook at their investment structures. Officially announced by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (“MOCI”) in November and published in the Official Gazette on 4 December 2015, the NCL follows a comprehensive comparative analysis study of other countries’ companies’
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laws. Drawing upon international best practice, it seeks to strike a balance between corporate governance and entrepreneurship, creating an environment conducive to companies by enhancing their value, activities, growth and their overall contribution to the KSA economy. Since the enactment of the previous Companies Law in 1965, there has been much discussion over the years in relation to potential changes. The announcement by
MOCI is therefore long awaited and marks a significant change in the legal framework to carry out business in KSA. Expected to have a long-lasting impact, the NCL will touch on many parts of the corporate domain. Perhaps none more so however than to change the way that foreign and local investors do business in the KSA. The NCL will have a significant impact on investors’ relationships, current investments and potential transactions and
The changes should ease some of the issues that foreign investors currently face. They may also, in turn, prompt investors to reevaluate their choice of investment vehicle going forward
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LEGAL
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LEGAL
The Changes To look at this in greater detail, the table below examines noteworthy changes under the NCL as they relate to LLCs and JSCs: •
General changes
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Expressly recognising the position of a holding company that can be established in the form of an LLC or a JSC as long as, amongst other things, it identifies itself as a holding company by including ‘holding’ in its name. In-kind contributions to capital will need to be valued by a certified evaluator. Existing companies must adopt new constitutional documents. MOCI will issue new model articles and bylaws by 9 March 2016. Companies will be required to amend their affairs to conform within one Hijri year from when the NCL comes into force.
Provisions relating to LLCs
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One shareholder may now establish a LLC - previously, the law required two.
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When incorporating and amending articles of association, publication on MOCI’s website will be sufficient instead of publication in the official gazette or a local newspaper.
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No statutory minimum share capital - but there is a concept introduced that it must have enough funds to achieve its objectives.
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The statutory reserve which needs to be put aside each year by the company is no longer needed once the reserve has reached 30 percent of the share capital. This is reduced from the previous requirement of 50 percent of the share capital and will mean that less cash is ‘trapped’ in the LLC.
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The shareholders shall not lose, except in certain circumstances, their limited liability status. Shareholders shall no longer be liable if the company’s debts exceed 50percent of the company’s share capital. Instead, if the General Manager or Board does not call the shareholders to meet, or the shareholders do not resolve to continue the company or dissolve it, the company shall dissolve by operation of law.
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Shareholders will be personally held liable for debt of the LLC if : (i) in bad faith it causes the LLC to be dissolved or the LLCs activities to be suspended prematurely (ii) it fails to separate the LLCs assets from its own; (iii) it undertakes business for the LLC before incorporation.
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If the number of shareholders in an LLC exceeds 50, the company should be converted to a joint stock company within one year, otherwise the company shall be considered dissolved under the NCL, unless the increase in shareholders was as a result of an inheritance or provisions of a will.
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There is a specific duty of confidentiality imposed on shareholders and the information they receive in relation to the LLC.
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The government, public juristic persons, companies that are totally owned by the government, and companies of capital not less than SAR 5 million, may incorporate a one-person joint stock company, with full authority of the shareholders assemblies, including the foundation assembly.
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The number of shareholders required for a Closed JSC has been reduced from five to two shareholders.
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The minimum capital required for JSCs has been reduced from SAR 2 million to SAR 500,000. The new law also introduces a concept whereby a JSC’s capital must be enough to achieve its objectives; how the authorities interpret this (if at all) remains to be seen.
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A chairman of the JSC cannot be appointed as an executive officer. A director however should be appointed to the position of Deputy Chairman.
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If a director misses three meetings, an ordinary general meeting of the shareholders has the powers to dismiss him.
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The minimum number of directors on the board is three, with a maximum of 11.
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Directors owning a specified minimum number of shares of the relevant company will no longer be required current guarantee shares should be able to be transferred back to the original party who provided them.
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Greater flexibility in relation to conducting General Assembly Meetings can be found in the modern articles of associations, recognising the use of modern telecommunications and permitting new meetings to be held one hour after the previous inquorate meeting.
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JSCs may issue sukuks and other debt instruments.
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JSCs are allowed to purchase or mortgage their shares. In terms of preference shares, although these are permissible under the current law, we are not aware of anybody in the Saudi market who has exercised this right. Under NCL, we expect further implementing regulations detailing how to do this and that this will also lead to greater interest amongst investors.
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All shareholders may now attend shareholder meetings (previously shareholders could only attend if they held greater than 20 shares).
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The NCL puts in place three categories of penalties - the two more severe sanctions being able to be imposed by Bureau of Investigation and Public Procurement and third category falling within the jurisdiction of MOCI and the Capital Markets Authority (“CMA”) (as applicable).
Provisions related to JSCs
Penalties
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LEGAL
Dr. Eyad Reda Country Managing Partner, Saudi Arabia T +966 11 201 8900 eyad.reda@dlapiper.com
Rakesh Bassi Head of Jeddah Office T +966 5444 70140 rakesh.bassi@dlapiper.com
The statutory reserve which needs to be put aside each year by the company is no longer needed once the reserve has reached 30percent of the share capital. This is reduced from the previous requirement of 50percent of the share capital and will mean that less cash is ‘trapped’ in the LLC
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therefore must be understood by those either currently doing or looking to do business in the KSA. Importantly, the changes should ease some of the issues that foreign investors currently face. They may also, in turn, prompt investors to reevaluate their choice of investment vehicle going forward. Historically, the two corporate vehicles of choice for the foreign investors have been that of the limited liability company (“LLC”) and the joint stock company (“JSC”). Whilst these two vehicles are likely to continue to be the favorite models for doing business in KSA, it will be interesting to see which model emerges as the preferred choice as new implementing regulations are brought in and practice surrounding the NCL reshapes. Together with the existing benefits of JSCs (namely being, greater prestige, access to public markets, share pledges, the ease of transferring shares and the ease of changing the constitutional documents), the relaxing
of restrictions surrounding their use under the NCL will most likely make them a much more viable and attractive option for foreign investors over the traditional LLC model. It is therefore likely that we will see an upturn in the use of JSC structures over the coming years with it emerging as the vehicle of choice for investment in the KSA. Fundamentally however, in order to fully understand the NCL impact, we need to wait to see how SAGIA and MOCI will interpret, facilitate and enforce the rules. We are aware that MOCI is currently restructuring its company department, putting in place new implementing regulations and model articles and bylaws. In addition SAGIA’s new policies and procedures concerning the NCL are in their final stages of development and are expected to be released in early 2016. These changes by MOCI and SAGIA will affect the impact of the NCL, and therefore further developments in this space need to be closely monitored by those with existing investments or plans to invest in the Kingdom. l
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DMCC and Richcomm Global Services Explore the Future of Commodities at Third Global Commodity Outlook Conference in Dubai
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DMCC
Commodities industry experts from across the world gathered in Dubai on 7 February for the Third Global Commodity Outlook Conference (GCOC), hosted by Richcomm Global Services and DMCC in association with DGCX and Thomson Reuters he conference saw keynote speakers General Bheki Cele, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Republic of South Africa; Omar Khan, Director - International Offices, Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry; H.E. Anurag Bhushan, Consul General of India; Hind Al Youha, Director – Foreign Trade Policies, Ministry of Economy, UAE; Gautam Sashittal, CEO, DMCC; Paresh Kotecha, Chairman & Managing Director, Richcomm Global Services DMCC, and over 400 delegates identify and debate key challenges as well as strategic opportunities for the year ahead. In his welcome address Gautam Sashittal, Chief Executive Officer of DMCC, spoke of the ‘commodities super cycle’, questioning whether or not it is a myth as well as addressing the
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need to continuously adapt in the commodities marketplace where demand, although at a modest increase, will always rise in line with the growth of the world’s population. Speaking on what the future holds in terms of supply, demand and technology, he said, “Global trade is still forecast to increase 3 per cent in 2016 and although the requirement for commodities is set to continue, the delivery mechanisms are changing and evolving. “Advancements in the digital sphere, which the World Economic Forum is calling the 4th Industrial Revolution, mean today’s market structures will need to adapt to the trading environment of tomorrow.” This year’s GCOC addressed five key themes and topics: macroeconomic trends, energy, agricultural, base and precious metals. Panel sessions saw delegates’ debate and
exchange views and opinions on risk, market trends and the upside market potential. In the session dedicated to the energy sector outlook, Eli Mashmoor, Head of Futures Execution Trading, MJD Partnership/Mercuria mapped out their predictions for Brent and WTI price levels for 2016, and discussed whether or not the sector has potential for price appreciation this year. Agricultural panel experts Rohit Mahabir of Louis Dreyfus Commodities and Thomas Morley of the World Food Programme highlighted how the El Niño weather phenomena will affect crop yields, and if 2016 is expected to be a turnaround year for major agricultural commodities. The conference concluded with an exchange of ideas on precious metals, assessing how any further interest rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve may influence price volatility. Tawhid Abdullah, Chairman of the Dubai Gold & Jewellery Group, along with Junaid Anwar Khan of the National Bank of Fujairah and Rajab Hamed of Sabayik Al Kuwait Company, stressed that gold typically gains value whenever there is pressure on high-yield markets or a continued slowdown in major economics. “Hosted by Richcomm Global Services and DMCC the GCOC has undoubtedly grown in stature since its inception three years ago to become a firm date in the annual global events calendar. We see the forum as an essential vehicle for the global commodities industry to come together to identify how to lead and respond to current market trends as well as gearing up for a sustainable future. Next years’ event will be no exception and we already look forward to welcoming everyone to Dubai once again in 2017,” concluded Paresh L. Kotecha of Richcomm Global Services. l
This year’s GCOC addressed five key themes and topics: macroeconomic trends, energy, agricultural, base and precious metals
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DMCC COnsultants awards
DMCC recently hosted an exclusive Consultants Awards and annual luncheon at Almas Tower for all consultants who work with the DMCC Free Zone
oderated by Belal Jassoma, Product & Services Development Manager at DMCC, the event was inaugurated with a welcome speech by DMCC CEO Gautam Sashittal. Krysta Fox, Director of the Free Zone, presented some of the main achievements of 2015, which included being awarded the number 1 global Free Zone of the year, and reaching the milestone of 11,500 member companies with over 44,000 employees working on the Free Zone. Krysta Fox also shared the results of the 2015 Customer Satisfaction Survey, which registered an overall satisfaction score of 85 percent; an increase of 2 percent compared to 2014. Also highlighted in the presentation was the DMCC road map for 2016, with major enhancements and additions to DMCC’s platforms, improvements of standards and a strong commitment to the member promise, to be the most customer friendly service provider. A Q&A session addressed issues and opportunities raised by consultants during a DMCC exercise to gather feedback about the Free Zone and its services. Krysta Fox was joined on the panel by Ahmed Hamza, Director of Operations, James Bernard, Director of Business Development and Stephen Kishore, Director of Customer Excellence. The event concluded with an awards ceremony that recognised the respective consultancies for their outstanding achievements and commitment to the DMCC Free Zone. l
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15 consultants were acknowledged and awarded a certificate of recognition by DMCC, while another five consultants were awarded the following accolades:
#1 Top Performing Consultant Award 2015: PANIS AND SHAH ASSOCIATES DMCC #2 Top Performing Consultant Award 2015: KSI SHAH & ASSOCIATES DMCC Best Clients Profile 2015 Award: AL TAMIMI & COMPANY Most Innovative Idea 2015 Award: MY BUSINESS CONSULTING DMCC Best New Consultant 2015 Award: MAGUS CONSULTING DMCC
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#ThankUShkMohd
Crowd sourced by DMCC employees in honour of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai via social media platform Yammer
marketing
Tinting the Slack Two weekends ago, the three founders of our startup: Nik, Ryo and I, took a weekend retreat to the woods The founder’s retreat was sparked by the massive growth our company has experienced — from 3 to 37 people in less than three years, a brand new 10,000 sq ft office space, and one big question: what kind of company do we want to build? etting together with just the three of us made us remember the old days when Ryo and Nik, our technical co-founders would hack things together late at night, while I kept them company and growth hacked the business side of TINT. As much as we love how big our company has become, we missed those early-startup days building the company with just the three of us. So during our retreat, we decided to do something lightweight and powerful for our product, building the feature, the landing page, and the deck of use-cases with just the three of us in 2 days. It was fun remembering how we used to hack things up late at night, and I am proud to say that just one week later we’ve released the feature to our customers. Let me tell you what we built and why. We decided to integrate Slack, the popular office communication app, as a channel in our product. This means that in addition to social channels, like Instagram and Facebook, TINT users will now be able to collect content shared from any public channel in their Slack, and display it on the company’s About Page, screensavers, or even public screens around the office. We wanted to help organizations increase employee advocacy and engagement in a social and simple way.
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colleagues within your organization through your slack account. In addition to private messaging, slack has “channels” that any number of employees in an organization can view and participate in. A typical channel might be devoted to one topic, like #winning or #customer-requests or #announcements. But the basic premise of TINT works just as well for a private social channel as a public one: that when you display content created by people who love your brand (be it employees or fans), they will feel compelled to create and share more content on your brand’s behalf. And that can be yield huge ROI for your organization…
Slack as a Social Channel Slack is not your typical “social network.” Unlike Twitter or Instagram, most conversations in slack are private. And companies or organizations have closed networks — you can only contact other
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marketing
When asked about the key factors spurring future innovations, the surveys revealed three important themes: knowledge, community, and transparency
The Value of Getting Your Employees Sharing Our typical customers use TINT because getting your audience to share more on social channels has many advantages. One of the big ones is that every time someone shares content so they can see it on a big screen or your website, that content is also sent out on their social networks, to their followers. They become your marketing force. For slack, the effect is the same: employees sharing more. But the motive is a bit different. Rather than “User Generated Content” (UGC), we call this “Employee Generated Content” or EGC. Increasing the amount of EGC is a powerful move for any business. According to the National Business Research Institute, a 12 percent increase in brand advocacy generates a 2x increase in revenue growth.
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“In today’s environment where there is an alarming lack of trust in all institutions, employees are increasingly the key prism for brand credibility and trust. Engaging them can provide companies the best way to humanize and unify their enterprise voice — a strategic imperative in today’s environment.” –Micho Spring Chair, Global Corporate Practice Weber Shandwick Couple these two stats, and you can see the power of encouraging employees to be brand advocates. At TINT we spend huge amounts of energy investing in our culture, because we see the value in keeping our employees engaged. By displaying our #fun Slack channel (full of team photos) on screens in our offices and our #winning Slack channel (full of accomplishment announcements) on our laptop screen savers, we are uniting the
“In today’s environment where there is an alarming lack of trust in all institutions, employees are increasingly the key prism for brand credibility and trust. Engaging them can provide companies the best way to humanize and unify their enterprise voice — a strategic imperative in today’s environment” Micho Spring Chair, Global Corporate Practice Weber Shandwick
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Where will organisations display their Slack Content? From recruitment to company-wide campaigns, celebrating wins or just getting employees to discuss what they like and what they want to improve upon, motivating employees to post requires one critical step: having a place to display that content. Brands that use us for social engagement often display content on their websites, screens in stores, digital billboards, or jumbotrons at events. These are all great options for Employee Generated Content as well, but bringing EGC into your office offers a few more options. In Office TV Screens It’s easy to connect TINT to TV screens around your office with our Chromecast integration. We’ve seen some amazing office displays, from giant screens showcasing EGC in the Conde Nast cafeteria, to funky displays at Wix HQ.
Company Computer Screensavers Rather than a slideshow of nature pictures or nothing at all, computer monitors can be turned into EGC displays in their downtime. Using Screensaver Ninja & TINT, curated content from a slack #winning or #fun channel (for example) can become everyone’s desktop screensaver and help motivate everyone as soon as they start their day at work. #winning Ultimately, integrating Slack will just make it easier to do awesome initiatives with Employee Generated Content. Curious about all the ways current TINT customers are already using employee content to move their company forward? Check out this post with real examples of how EGC is being used for recruitment, creating support for new company initiatives, highlighting employee knowledge, and improving internal communications. l
strength of our brand and external successes with the culture we’ve built in our office. Reasons to Collect Employee Generated Content There are two big reasons that collecting Employee Generated Content can impact your bottom line: 1. Employee Advocacy 2. Employee Engagement Both of these can supplement other efforts, like providing great photos and fodder for recruitment materials, or displaying wins submitted by employees across the office — maybe even connecting offices in different locations. At TINT, we use our screens to display content from our #self-improvement program. According to the Edelman Trust Barometer, employees are trusted more than celebrities and CEOs, having about the same clout as a journalist. Employees are the biggest marketing assets and best advocates your organization has, yet they’re often untapped. By curating and displaying their Slack messaging content onto public screens, you empower them to be the voice and content creators for your brand. This results in increase of employee engagement and employee awareness of all the amazing moments your team has.
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technology
The Threat from Within By: Jacob Chacko, Business Lead – SMB & Commercial, Middle East & Turkey at Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company
The finance sector has a data security problem, but it goes beyond external threats from hackers — this is a threat from within he finance sector is in agreement: there’s a major global threat to the success of the banking and finance industry, one that ignores boom and bust cycles, doesn’t care about stock market fluctuations and wouldn't bat an eyelid if interest rates suddenly jumped ten points. But this threat is also an essential and highly successful ingredient in the revival of the finance industry’s fortunes. What is this unwitting, non-malicious threat? It’s your mobile-tech carrying employees themselves.
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Which Ones? You’ve heard of Generation X (you might be one yourself), Generation Y (you probably employ a few of these), and Generation Z (the Internet’s digital natives), but there’s another category to add to the list: #GenMobile. Brought up in a world where mobile devices are an integral part of everyday life, #GenMobile is defined by a productivity-focused attitude that finds it as easy to share a status update as it does a password or mobile device with a colleague. And this is why your #GenMobile workforce is both an asset and a threat to your business. To identify the true nature of this new type of employee, Aruba Networks surveyed 11,500 workers in 23 countries,
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asking them detailed questions about their work, their approach to data and their take on corporate and personal security in a technological landscape dominated by mobile devices. Who Are They? #GenMobile are generally young (18-35), highly effective and mostly indifferent to computer security. Given the finance sector’s risk-averse take on data security, you’d be forgiven for dismissing the idea of a ‘threat’ from your own highly trained staff. But with an alarming four-out-of-every-ten finance organisations admitting to having lost data through the misuse of a mobile device (25 percent higher than other industries) this is something that we should all wise up to. Why? #GenMobile, as the name suggests, are 100 percent comfortable with mobility, flexible working and using multiple mobile devices to get the job done. #GenMobile will stop at nothing to get their work tasks completed, and 51 percent say that mobile technologies enable them to be more productive and engaged at work.
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technology
This fervent need to get things done means 56 percent will disobey their managers to get complete a task — while three-quarters are happy to take IT issues into their own hands without getting in touch with their IT department. Sharing is also a risk factor, as 60 percent of respondents reported being happy to let others use their work mobile devices at least once a month, while a fifth don’t have passwords on their mobile devices at all, in part to make sharing easier. You won’t be surprised that security only limps into the top five of office tech concerns for #GenMobile. Five Tips To Turn A Threat Into A Safe Bet So what do you do? Lockdown of all mobile devices? Implement a highly restrictive password policy? Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater just yet — this new generation is already contributing to the overall health of the finance sector. They bring bigthinking creativity, better collaboration and new ways of doing things… priceless in an era
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#GenMobile, as the name suggests, are 100 percent comfortable with mobility, flexible working and using multiple mobile devices to get the job done. #GenMobile will stop at nothing to get their work tasks completed, and 51 percent say that mobile technologies enable them to be more productive and engaged at work
when consumer behaviour is changing at an incredible speed. Yet the impact of a security breach is both seismic and often irreparable. The only way you can fight to ensure that you advance technologically, and remain as safe as can be, is to plan for every eventuality – that includes planning for #GenMobile. l
Here are some ways you can make sure your organisation is prepared for #GenMobile: • Over a third of businesses don’t have a basic mobile security policy in place. Make sure you have a policy covering roles, devices, locations and other contextual attributes • Create enforcement rules that extend from applications to devices to the network • Make sure your security measures and policies map back to your organisation’s business objectives • Training is vital: all staff should have needs-assessed training to help them understand why policies are in place and how they can help • Take heed of feedback. By listening to what you are being told, you may improve your IT workflows and performance
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technology
Lessons For Business From Governments Globally Author: Kasey Cross, Sr. Product Marketing Manager at A10 Networks
State-sponsored cyber-attacks strike with shocking frequency. The motives, methods and results of these state-sponsored attacks vary, but the implications are clear: Every organisation that stores sensitive information has a proverbial bullseye on its back. Well-funded and extremely efficient, with seemingly unlimited resources and talent at their disposal, state-sponsored cyber-criminals would appear to be an unbeatable foe ell, there are various ways government enterprises in the Middle East can protect themselves. In addition to patching vulnerabilities and implementing multifactor authentication, every agency must also deploy intrusion prevention systems and data loss prevention tools to block attacks. Here is a more detailed look at what government agencies should do to keep nation-state attackers at bay.
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Decrypt And Inspect SSL Traffic State-sponsored hackers can hide attacks in encrypted SSL traffic to evade detection. As a result, network security solutions, such as next-gen firewalls and intrusion prevention systems, need to be able to inspect all incoming and outgoing traffic for threats; not just the data that is sent in plain text. What you can’t see can hurt you. To ensure state-sponsored hackers do not bypass your security controls, decrypt and examine all traffic. Below are five features for IT teams to consider when selecting an SSL inspection platform: SSL performance: In addition to assessing current Internet bandwidth requirements, IT also must factor in SSL traffic
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growth and ensure the inspection platform can handle future SSL throughput requirements. Compliance: To address regulatory requirements like HIPAA, Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) and Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX), an SSL inspection platform should be able to bypass sensitive traffic, like traffic to banking and health care sites. Heterogenous networks: IT should look for SSL inspection platforms that can decrypt outbound traffic to the Internet and inbound traffic to corporate servers with multiple, flexible deployment options. Additionally, the platforms should intelligently route traffic with traffic steering, granularly parse and control traffic based on custom-defined policies and integrate with a variety of security solutions from leading vendors. Security infrastructure: SSL inspection platforms should not just offload SSL processing from security
State-sponsored hackers can hide attacks in encrypted SSL traffic to evade detection
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technology
Kasey Cross is responsible for security evangelism for the Thunder Application Delivery Controller (ADC) product line at A10 Networks. She has over 10 years of experience in marketing and management positions at leading information security companies, including Imperva and SonicWALL. She was also the co-founder and CEO of Menlo Logic and led the company through its successful acquisition by Cavium Networks. She received a bachelor’s degree in economics and physics from Duke University
devices but also maximize the uptime and performance of those devices. It’s important the platforms can scale security deployments with load balancing, avoid network downtime by detecting and routing around failed security devices and support-advanced health monitoring to rapidly identify network or application errors. SSL certificates and keys: To ensure certificates are stored and administered securely, IT should look for SSL inspection platforms that provide device-level controls to protect SSL keys and certificates, integrate with third-party SSL certificate management solutions and support FIPS 140-2 Level 2 and Level 3 certified equipment and Hardware Security Modules (HSMs). Fortify Web Applications Against Attacks Web application data is an attractive target for state-sponsored hackers. Attackers have been known to exploit application vulnerabilities to gain access to Web servers or steal records from databases. One way agencies can protect against this is with a certified Web application firewall (WAF), which filters all application access by inspecting both the traffic toward the application and the response traffic from the application. A WAF offers granular control of the application’s data flow and is capable of protecting against various attacks including SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS) and cross-site request forgery (CSRF) attacks, among others. For instance, a WAF can prevent buffer overflow attacks by setting accepted maximum thresholds for aspects of HTTP
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You should assume that any communications over public networks can and will be intercepted
requests and blocking requests that exceed the configured limits. Use Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to Secure Data You should assume that any communications over public networks can and will be intercepted. Therefore, agencies of all sizes should implement Internet Protocol Security (IPsec) VPNs to prevent snooping and data theft, as well as to address compliance. Though it’s no guarantee your data will be protected, you should still encrypt sensitive data sent over the Internet using IPsec encryption. While IPsec is a mature and well understood technology, new networking paradigms like cloud computing, as well as escalating bandwidth requirements, are compelling large enterprises and service providers to rethink their VPN strategies. As a result, agencies need to develop VPN architectures that can: • Support unprecedented IPsec throughput levels • Leverage BGP routing for high availability and rapid scaling
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Spin up new IPsec tunnels and gateways on-demand in cloud environments Minimise power consumption and rack space requirements for data center efficiency
Monitor And Audit Access To Sensitive Data If you store sensitive data in databases or files, be sure to track all activity including access and changes. The will help detect anomalous activity, prevent illicit access and measure the impact of an intrusion if an incident does occur. For instance, if someone requests every credit card record, accesses large quantities of data at once or during unusual times of day or escalates their privileges, it could indicate a cyber attack is underway. Monitoring and auditing user access to sensitive data ensures there is a trail to link security violations to specific user names. Train Employees On Security Best Practices Your own employees will often be your weakest security links. Therefore, it’s important for organizations to educate their teams and enforce best practices, such as choosing a strong password, to prevent advanced cyber attacks. Users should also be instructed to identify social engineering attacks, phishing threats and other malicious activity. Otherwise, they’ll likely become a victim. The world has changed. The lone hacker is no longer the face of cybercrime. That bad actor has been replaced by entire nation states with dedicated professional teams of infiltrators. They are formidable. They are relentless. They are coming for your data. Protect it. l
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technology
The Final Frontier By: Cherif Sleiman, General Manager, Middle East at Infoblox
Securing Infrastructure and Data from DNS-based Threats NS, or Domain Name System, is the protocol used for converting fully qualified domain names (FQDNs) like www.google.com into machine-usable IP addresses that computers use to communicate with each other Without a working DNS protocol, it would be almost impossible to have an Internet of Things that communicate with each other and organisations would not have a cyber-presence. In short, the internet as we know it would not exist without a robust DNS infrastructure. Given that DNS servers are mission-critical infrastructure, it is crucial that they continue to respond to queries even when they are under attack. When designing a DNS infrastructure, it is important to build an environment that is not only sufficient for current needs, but also provides room for future growth. In addition, while architecting the DNS, it is also important to understand the security threats the DNS might be vulnerable to.
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Securing The DNS Platform Against Hacking Hacking of DNS servers is becoming more prevalent every day. Conventional DNS servers have multiple attack surfaces and extraneous ports such as port 80 and port 25 that are open for attack. Hackers can use these ports to access the operating system (OS) and hack the servers. If
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an enterprises’ DNS servers don’t support tiered security privileges, any user could potentially gain access to OSlevel account privileges and cause configuration changes that could make the servers vulnerable to hacks. In order to protect DNS services from various hacks, DNS servers should be secured in the following ways: • Hardened appliance with minimal attack surface - The infrastructure should not have any extra or unused ports to access server or power external devices (e.g. Wi-Fi) and no root login access within operating system. It should have role-based access to maintain overall control • Secured access methods – There should be twofactor authentication for secured login access, web and API access should use encryption to secure communication and DNS TSIG keys should be used for strong authentication of DNS updates
Hacking of DNS servers is becoming more prevalent every day
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technology
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High availability and disaster recovery - Simple, configurable fail-over and failback to ensure service availability Simple, unified updates for OS and applications - Updates for both the OS and applications should be accomplished in a single process to reduce downtime and risk of incompatibility Security certification by an accepted industry organisation - External validation of security measures must be taken on hardware, applications/OS, and manufacturing process. The bar should be set at a minimum of Common Criteria EAL2 certification which covers verification of hardware, software and manufacturing processes Simple DNSSEC implementation DNSSEC reduces the risk of attacks like cache poisoning. It should be simple to implement and self-manage the updating of encryption keys between servers Secure Forwarder Configuration – Restrict queries to DNS Forwarder servers to those sent by authorized addresses Detailed audit logging – This enables compliance and control over server configurations and operations
Defending against DNS attacks Another consideration is the protection of the DNS infrastructure from external attacks. Authoritative DNS servers are reachable from the internet. Even though the server sits behind a firewall, most of these attacks cannot be mitigated by typical firewalls. Firewalls are ill-prepared to protect DNS against application-layer attacks. The ones that do, the so-called NextGen firewalls, tend to have very little coverage for DNS protocols. These solutions typically spread their security policies across a large number of protocols and sacrifice depth for breadth of coverage. There are a whole spectrum of attacks that can target DNS: • Dos/DDoS – Send 10s or 100s of thousands of queries per second to the DNS server in order to exhaust resources on the server and cause a service outage • DNS reflection/DrDoS – Use 3rdparty DNS servers (open resolvers) to propagate DDoS attacks • DNS amplification – Use specially crafted queries to amplify response and congest bandwidth • DNS-based exploits – Attacks that exploit vulnerabilities in the DNS software • TCP/UDP/ICMP floods – Flood a victim’s network on Layer 3 with large amounts of traffic
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DNS cache poisoning – Corrupt the DNS cache data with a rogue address Protocol anomalies – Cause the server to crash by sending malformed packets and queries Reconnaissance – Attempts by hackers to get information on the network before launching attacks DNS tunnelling – Tunnelling of another protocol through DNS for data exfiltration Protection from these attacks should be done at the DNS level. The DNS appliance should have: Intelligent detection and mitigation - It should detect and drop the attack queries before they reach the core DNS server. The DNS server should not spend valuable CPU and memory resources to process these requests. This can be achieved by offloading the threat protection to builtin dedicated compute Automatic threat updates – It should stay up-to-date with new and evolving threats automatically. There should be no need for writing scripts or manually applying new protection rules to the DNS server every time a new threat is detected Fine-tuning of protection – DNS traffic patterns and attacks might not be the same for each organization and customization of protection is necessary to minimize false positives. It should allow for adjusting of parameters for each rule and customize them for the environment Centralised visibility of attacks – Centralized reporting capability is important to provide visibility into the load on the system, diagnose problems, and identify attacks that are happening across the network Secure Authoritative Name Servers – External authoritative name servers should have recursion disabled. Inbound/ outbound zone transfers should be disabled or secured with TSIG to prevent resource exhaustion attacks
Preventing Malware And APTs From Using DNS Data breaches are growing at a staggering pace. Investing in next-generation firewalls or Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPSs) can stop some Malware from entering the network, but not all. Trends like Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) complicate the situation further and provide new avenues for Malware to enter and go undetected for longer periods of time. Malware and APTs evade traditional defences by using DNS to find and communicate with botnets and command-and-control servers. Botnets and command-and-control servers hide behind constantly changing combinations
Firewalls are ill-prepared to protect DNS against application-layer attacks
of domains and IP addresses. Once internal machines connect to these devices, additional malicious software is downloaded or sensitive company data is infiltrated. Sometimes Malware and APT attacks are hidden or disguised by external attacks on networks. During an external attack, IT staff are distracted in protecting the network and might miss alerts or warning logs about Malware and APT activity within the network. In order for DNS to detect and block queries for malicious domains and networks, a Response Policy Zone (RPZ) must be configured and implemented. At a very minimum the RPZ must have the following capabilities: Configurable RPZ policy – RPZ should be configured to apply either Pass-through, Block, NXDOMAIN or Substitute policies to malicious traffic Up-to-date threat data – The threat data should come either from Generic malware or targeted APT (though ideally, it would come from both) Timely visibility on malicious DNS queries and infected devices – data should include the number of attempts to reach malicious domains, the names of the malicious domains and the date/time. Security Built In Is Better Than Security Bolted On Many IT organisations today are using load-balancers, IPS and firewall devices, generic DDoS protection solutions and cloudbased solutions to try and counter DNS-based attacks. All of these solutions are limited in what they can and cannot protect. Most of them are external solutions that are “bolted on” rather than built from the ground up to secure enterprises’ DNS against attacks. None of them can compare to the effectiveness of a purposebuilt, DNS-specific defence solution l
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The Jood Palace: Luxury and taste redefined Dubai is known the world over as a hospitality hotspot. Even so, the sheer sophistication complemented by the warmth of Arabian hospitality at Jood Palace Hotel is in a class by itself. Located in the commercial and business heart of Dubai the five star hotel boasts luxurious accommodation, world-class culinary venues including an authentic Indian cuisine restaurant and International Buffets rabian hospitality is the stuff of legends. From the time you check in the hotel’s multi-lingual team of experts ensure all your requests and your satisfaction are given utmost priority and focus. The Concierge Desk is very helpful the suggesting places to visit and then making arrangements to ensure your stay is enjoyable and memorable. The hotel has a number of outstanding fine dining restaurants. The award-winning Handi restaurant is offers sizzling flavours of authentic North Indian cuisine served with a distinct Jood Palace flair. Complete with a show kitchen and Tandoori oven, the restaurant specialises in Tandoori breads, grills and biryani. The flavours are indisputably a cut above what you’ll find elsewhere. From the tandoor, or Indian style oven/grill, try the Murg Tikka Husseini. For seafood lovers there is the exquisitely cooked Lassoni Jhinga (king prawns in garlic sauce). The chef ’s special Five-lentil Dal is mouth watering, wholesome and rich with cumin, while the Aloo Gobi has the tang of tomato and a dash of spice typical to the Indian subcontinent.
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Le Rendezvous’ international buffet and a la carte fare provides you with a perfect start to the day. Wherever you may be from Le Rendevous had something to offer for everyone. From Egyptian style Foul Madamas to English style kippers and beans, whatever tickles your taste buds you will find it in the buffet or on the menu. The Jood Palace offers some the largest rooms available in the city with the options of Deluxe and Premium Rooms for our single travellers, couples and families. The rooms are all tastefully designed with plush carpets and elegant décor while being equipped with all modern comforts to help you unwind and enjoy your stay. The Jood Club rooms are specially designed for today’s business travellers while the Deluxe Rooms and Ambassador Suites cater to couples that want privacy and families that want space and comfort. The Jood Palace redefines luxury and cuisine for the more discerning taste. Couple this with it Arabic charm and warm hospitality, and you have a winning formula for a luxurious, sumptuous and memorable stay in the heart of Dubai. l
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business incubator
10 Top Tips On Bringing A Project Together Zander Muego, Regional Director of Construction and Property Consultant, Thomas & Adamson, delivers project management and cost management consultancy for a diverse range of projects, from leisure and entertainment industry fit-outs to large-scale Government construction projects. He is the epitome of a project manager, but how can he effectively manage a number of people, all with differing agendas, to come together and work as a team? Tone At The Top This is a term used in the realm of ‘corporate governance’, but while sitting around the table with a number of contractors and consultants, the atmosphere will be heavily influenced by the approach taken by those leading the project. This will usually be a combination of the client and project manager (PM), both of whom must lead by example. When dealing with several entities, it is even more important for the success of the project that the PM
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is positive and ensures any negative influences do not demotivate the team and interfere with the team’s function. Lead From The Front The PM has to lead by example – ticking boxes and moving responsibility around the table will more than likely result in nothing getting done. The PM should take appropriate areas of responsibility on their own shoulders, which in turn creates acceptable norms within the group. A pro-active and hands-on approach will inspire the team.
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Cover All The Bases When pulling multiple entity teams together, clearly defining the roles and responsibilities is essential. There will often be a unique set of circumstances surrounding a project with multiple entities; and when there are gaps problems will arise. The project manager needs to ensure every element of the required scope is covered. Developing a responsibility matrix will help. As the team is formed, this needs to be checked and monitored to ensure everything is covered and there are no gaps. Face Time You need to meet regularly, but not too much. Striking a balance in this regard is important. Often in multi-party projects there is too heavy a reliance on meetings. If the team members are based in different locations, meetings can turn into an inefficient use of people’s time, leaving insufficient time to execute the actual work. Finding ways to collaborate without the need for physical attendance can work very well – there are a multitude of online platforms that facilitate sharing of documents and related content while you speak face-to-face. Where in-person meetings are required, a
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Always ensure the deliverables and KPIs are tied to the wider objectives of the project, as this often gets lost along the way
great approach, which has been implemented by one of our clients, is the use of high tables with no seats. This avoids people getting too comfortable and keeps the meeting brief and to-the-point. The result of this can be quite impressive, with people getting through the discussion in half the time. Team Selection Ther is a whole world of academic research about which composition of individuals produces the best team, but from experience this is very difficult to put into practice when dealing with multiple external entities rather than internal teams. However, you still have the challenge of ensuring the team functions properly together, so this cannot be ignored. Often, with multiple entity teams, the focus will be on function, technical skills and cost. Wherever possible, keep an eye on bringing together the right mix of personalities
and consider who will work well together. Culture Of Inclusion You must try and establish a culture within the team where everyone is willing to contribute in an appropriate way. This is particularly relevant for regions like the Gulf, where there are often many nationalities and cultures involved in any project. If one entity has a particularly strong position they will voice their opinion passionately over a more circumspect or cautious member of the team. The responsibility falls with the group leader, who must encourage everyone to give an equal level of input where appropriate and allow each team member to contribute in a manner they feel comfortable. Establish A Communication Protocol With this newly formed group of multiple entities, you must consider how to ensure the right information goes to the right people at the right
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Often, with multiple entity teams, the focus will be on function, technical skills and cost. Wherever possible, keep an eye on bringing together the right mix of personalities and consider who will work well together
time. Important messages can get lost and there can be breakdowns in the project as a result. On the flip side, an equally challenging problem can be the insistence of individuals to copy everyone in to every piece of communication, resulting in information overload. The project manager should establish the protocol at the outset and monitor this as the project proceeds to ensure the process is followed throughout.
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Align Incentives If multiple entities from several companies are working under different financial incentives, there may be disparity in terms of the common goal. Therefore, the PM must ensure everyone has the same, or at least interlinked KPIs. For example, when we are managing the design phase of a construction project, issues can arise where specialist consultants are too focussed on their specific area - not the wider project objectives. The project manager must ensure the coordination between such diverse team members is reflected within their contracted deliverables and project KPIs so all parties are working towards a common goal. Linking Strategy To Deliverables Always ensure the deliverables and KPIs are tied to the wider objectives of the project, as this often gets lost along the way. This can be a common problem in the business world in general and one of the most challenging concepts for any manager or business leader to get a grip of. It is common in the construction industry for projects to have ‘gateways’ or
‘milestones’ throughout the design phase to ensure the project team takes a step back and reviews the status of the project against the original brief. This will often identify the project needs to be pulled back in line, to ensure the solution being developed represents value, as defined within the original project brief. Cope With Conflict Particularly while going through the forming stage of the group’s development, there will almost certainly be conflict and it needs to be addressed quickly in order for the entire team to perform as a unit. This task will often land at the doorstep of the project manager. Any conflict is about getting the disagreeing parties to communicate with each other in a constructive manner. This will usually involve taking the issue ‘off line’ in the sense of the wider team and working through what are often communication breakdowns rather than fundamental issues. Such issues should always be dealt with as soon as possible, otherwise it can fester and resurface later in the project in a much more damaging way. l
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We Made It!
How are your New Year resolutions going? Are you still on track? If you are, congratulations! If you have been slacking a little its ok just get back to it today. Don’t be too hard on yourself it’s not easy and we all have ups and downs hen I went to the gym the first two weeks of January I realised something that I see every year The gyms are packed - it’s almost like the black Friday of fitness. It is hard to find a free bench to work out. The classes are full and all the towels are already being used. After only a few weeks it gets less crowded, and today I had almost the whole gym to myself. I talked to a friend of mine that was super dedicated at first and has not been doing that well and he gave me a whole list of reasons why it was hard to stick to his new resolution. Here are some of the points that came out of this discussion.
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Get Help Especially if you are a beginner, ask for assistance. It’s hard enough to decide to make a change, having to deal with learning what to do and how to do it, will only make it harder. It is an investment of your time, so why not invest wisely as well. If you are on a tighter budget try getting a personal trainer for the first month just to get you started. They will teach you the basics so you don’t end up with an injury. Alternatively, have an online coach give you a nutrition plan and workout schedule every other week. Try to find one that will follow up with you.
Manage Your Expectations If you wanted to learn anything, say a language, to play an instrument, or master the use of a new software like Photoshop, would you expect to be able to perform great after 2-3 weeks? A month? 6 months? Certain things take time. It is vitally important to remember when you hit that point of resistance. Eating Whatever You Want You have probably heard it 100 times, calories in calories out - but do you really understand calories and why it is so important to know how many calories you
By: Ben Ouattara C.E.O of Beyond Films, Film Director, Physique Athlete and Motivational Speaker
are eating and how many you are burning? If you are struggling with weight loss chances are you are not counting calories! No matter what anyone says, you cannot loose weight if you eat more calories than you burn. If you don’t count them now do you know if you eat more or less than you burn? No matter what diet you are on, paleo, Atkins, low carb/ketogenic, liquid diet any of them, they are successful in making you loose weight because they put you in a caloric deficit. So instead of blaming the diet and trying a new one every time, I highly recommend you start counting calories and you will be much more successful.
Just Keep Going – You Are Doing Great Whatever you started, remember it is something new and just the fact that you are doing it and pushing through is admirable. You might already feel a difference in your body, maybe you lost weight or your clothes are more loose that before, or you may not have any physical changes, but you are finding the workout a bit easier than before and you have more power or endurance. It will still be hard especially if you are a beginner or it has been a while since you did anything, but accept that it is part of the process and keep going. Remember Failure and abandoning are two completely different things.
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How To Calculate Calories The amount of calories we burn a day is individual and must be calculated. You can do it yourself but if you don’t know how, the best way would be to see a nutritionist or ask a personal trainer that knows about nutrition. I don’t want to overwhelm you with the science and numbers and formulas, because it might scare you and make you feel like you need to understand everything before you can start making changes. This could lead you to procrastinate on your goal. Take it one step at a time. I worked out for 10 years before I understood the power of calories, and by adjusting just a few things I was able to get in the best shape I have ever been in. Trust me if you want to see change there is no way around this. 95 percent accuracy = 0 percent result The reason why it is so important to understand calories is that even if you get someone to do a workout/meal plan for you, and you stick to it to 95 percent of the time but decide that you want to eat a small snack here and there throughout the day, this small snack might get you in a calorie surplus and make all your efforts equal to zero. If you stick to your diet to 95 percent, it is unlikely that you will 95 percent of the result. You might end up with 0 percent. Invest Just 1 Day Just for fun, use the myfitnesspal app or any calorie tracking application for just one day and track everything you are eating. Even if you eat out you can find the calories of most restaurants online and try to find out how many calories you are eating throughout the day, you might be surprised. Learn More Knowledge is power. We learned so much in school, languages, math, science, history, and we keep up with politics or watch TV shows and know which celebrities are dating. Imagine if we put this to use into the area that we want to change? If we invest just 30 min a day throughout the day to read articles, listen to a podcast or watch YouTube videos about a few simple topics related to our goals we could learn new ways of achieving them. At
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You have probably heard it 100 times, calories in calories out - but do you really understand calories and why it is so important to know how many calories you are eating and how many you are burning? first it might be frustrating and overwhelming, but soon it will become your world, and the better you understand what you need to do, the easier the implementation will be. Take It Easy Studies have shown that a combination of weight training and cardio has been the most effective to loose weight in men and women of any age when compared to any other sport. This is why I would always recommend the gym for anyone that is serious about transforming his or her body. However, your first goal should be to find your way of including movement and
physical activity in your life on a regular basis. Don’t obsess about trying to loose as much weight in the shortest time possible. By forcing yourself this way, it will become something you hate every single day you do it. Give yourself time to grow. Try to find a sport you enjoy. Maybe the gym is not for you, but that doesn’t mean you wont enjoy yoga, or a spinning class or swimming. Try to choose a sport that you already know or that is not too technical so you do not have to learn too much before being able to fully engage physically like snowboarding or roller-skating for example. If you are a total beginner it is maybe not the best choice if your goal is to loose weight.
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Whatever you started, remember it is something new and just the fact that you are doing it and pushing through is admirable Go Outside Living in Dubai we are blessed to have so many outdoor activities we can do. We have the beach, the desert, numerous parks, and endless gyms and facilities you could go swimming in. That doesn’t include paddle boarding or kayaking around the palm, jogging or walking along Jumeirah beach, renting a bike to tour the marina. There are numerous free classes from yoga to cross fit all around town, for example you can workout in the JLT Park every Friday morning check out www.hspdubai.com. My wife Dina offers a free boot camp for women on kite beach every Saturday morning, you can contact her at dina@dinas.tv. No Time? No Problem
I worked out for 10 years before I understood the power of calories, and by adjusting just a few things I was able to get in the best shape I have ever been in
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more challenging like an Iron-Man Competition, if you really want to put yourself through the paces. There are many challenges and charity runs in Dubai every year that are a great way to work towards a goal and during the event meet new likeminded people. Cool App : Couch to 5K C25k stands for couch to 5k and is a free application from Zenlabs for android and iPhone. C25K is a fantastic program that’s been designed to get just about anyone from the You don’t have time to drive to a gym every day or make the timings of classes? No problem. If you are dedicated there is always a way. You can always work out at home. Here are just a few Ideas. • If you live in a tower, walk up and down the stairs for 30 min while listening to a podcast or some cool music early in the morning or at the end of the day. If it’s too easy for you try adding 50 squats at every 10th floor. • Get a home trainer like a steady bike or a stepper in your house and workout while watching your favorite TV show and save time. Get a workout DVD or follow a YouTube channel that has great home workout classes two really great channels are : youtube.com/fitness blender youtube.com/befit These are completely free and they have videos for every level. Challenge Yourself It is fun to challenge yourself and sign up for a fitness challenge. There are many events that have different entry levels, like a half marathon, or you could opt for something
couch to running 5 kilometers or 30 minutes in just 9 weeks of 3 sessions a week. On their website c25k.com they have a great forum with progress reports from members that encourage each other by sharing their experiences successes and failures. It’s always good to know you are not alone and you will find it motivating to read about overweight people in worse shape than you are giving 100 percent. For the more advanced runners, Zenlabs also has a 10K half marathon and full marathon app. I hope these Fitness insights can help you to stay on track and motivated and where ever you are on your journey remember to have fun. l
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THE PHILLIPS GROUP SPECIALIZING IN LEADERSHIP SOLUTIONS The Phillips Group is a boutique executive search firm specializing in placements in the MENA Region. From assisting Fortune 500 companies acquire and retain top performing senior executives or to advising leading Chief Executive Officers on developing their human capital, The Phillips Group has experience acquiring leadership talent from all four corners of the world. WE ARE THE EXECUTIVE SEARCH SPECIALISTS. Call us now for high touch bespoke service if you are looking to hire the best in your industry.
M: +971 50 940 7537 T: + 971 4 352 2849 shane@tpgleadership.com www.tpgleadership.com
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