What Makes The Family-Firm Tick? Five Research-Based Decision Drivers

Many articles and conferences about family business talks about succession and conflicts without addressing the basics of why it is that we study family firms. What are the fundamental differences that set family firms apart from non-family firms? Researchers have been studying these differences for decades to lay the foundations of the family business as an academic discipline, but practitioners and consultants have yet to successfully extract basic differences, and determine knowledge-based implications based on these differences.

Traditionally, researchers suggested that family businesses differed from non-family business due to the continuous interaction between the family aspect and the business aspect. The concept has since developed, addressing the many types of family business, and in the process demonstrated that the influence of the family varies from one business to another.

While practitioners and consultants were only focused on the pitfalls of family businesses, researchers have proven that in many cases family firms outperform their non-family counterparts. Subsequently, attempts were made to dig deeper and find the underlying drivers as to why family firms performed better in these particular cases. Family firms and non-family firms were revealed to operate differently (and perform better) in some scenarios because of a shared dual goal-state: both financial and non-financial goals were found to be in alignment. Through research, it was also shown that these non-financial goals -also referred to as socio-emotional wealth (SEW)- rank higher in importance to family firms than financial goals. Pursuing socio-emotional wealth is unique to family firms, and it encourages them to achieve higher financial gains over the long-term.

Can SEW be defined? FIBER is an acronym used to describe the five elements that combine to make socio-emotional wealth. These elements rein supreme to family firms, overshadowing the financial aspects: Family Control, Identification, Binding Social Ties, Emotional Attachment, and Renewal of the Family Bond. Family firms often make decisions that aren’t sound economically (from a financial perspective), but they are considered high utility maximizers to the family firm’s SEW.

Understanding Fiber: The Five Factors Of Socioemotional Wealth

1. Family Control

Families make decisions to reject acquisition offers, eschew employment of non-family upper management, going public, and becoming a part of larger cooperatives. While the decisions don’t necessarily appear correct from a profit-driven perspective, they opt to reject these offers all the same. This is most often done in order to maintain family control of the enterprise.

2. Identification

As many family firms bear the name of the family or are heavily associated with the family, these firms often decide key matters from a viewpoint that is rooted in protecting their legacy. Identification with the family firm colors these choices, rather than pure financial performance.

3. Binding Social Ties

As families have relationships within society –commonly found in the GCC family firms- many judgments are made to continue to frequent local suppliers or partners even if lower cost alternatives can be found elsewhere. These judgment calls are also influenced by the local environment, and a family firm’s desire to support and keep small businesses operating, as they are all part of one shared community.

4. Emotional Attachment

Many decisions within family firms are based on emotional attachment between the relevant family members. It may be the case that a course of action is pursued to satisfy the requests of one family member, while in other scenarios decisions are avoided or stalled to protect family members.

5. Renewal Of The Family Bond

The renewal of family bonds to the firm through dynastic succession is of paramount importance. The succession process and passing the business from one generation to another is part of family firm tradition. Families habitually avoid deciding to sell often because of this bond, and in order to keep the business as a source of income, employment, and power for future generations of the clan.

These five factors, part of the family firm pursuit of SEW, increases both the sense of family member belonging and their stewardship-like behavior towards the firm. It’s worth mentioning that SEW also emphasizes the long-term view over short-term gain, and the patient capital of family firms. The very same drivers of SEW also contribute to develop the mesh-style relationship between family firms and the communities around them, while simultaneously contributing to improving the overall brand of family businesses.

Four Marketing Methods That Weren’t Relevant 10 Years Ago (That You Can No Longer Ignore)

The digital age has been an incubator for all sorts of effective PR techniques. Though PR methods tend to change based on various consumer and behavioral trends, we’ve seen one major shift in communicative PR develop over the past decade: it has changed horizontally. Compelling your audience to support your product or service takes more than just having an interesting product; they want to know more about you, your team, and what goes on behind the scenes. Playing the mystery card and tossing out seasonal press releases just doesn’t cut it anymore in the age of sharing (and oversharing). Here are four tools and techniques that wouldn’t have been part of your marketing repertoire 10 years ago.

Living the Social Media Life

Social media platforms did exist a decade ago, but they were a mere fraction of what they are today and they weren’t catering to businesses. MySpace was designed for individuals to make new friends and then quickly got picked up by the performing arts community (specifically those in the music industry), and Facebook was designed to connect with friends from school. While MySpace is a thing of the past, Facebook and Twitter (and more recently Pinterest and Instagram) are catering to businesses with enterprise-friendly layouts and functionality.

Your business has basically come alive so to speak. Audiences are engaged by not only reading reviews or facts about your product or service, they want to learn about what your corporate culture is like and who the people are on the ground. It’s about who is involved in making the product (and not just the CEO), what their office spaces look like, and even what goes on among the staff. A great example is a BuzzFeed post about one of their employees mistakenly sending a global-staff email informing them he’d be late for work. It resulted in a hilarious (and super viral) post about the staff of BuzzFeed worldwide and their reactions to his glitch. People will tend to support a product if they can connect with the real people behind it. If your team is traveling to a convention in Muscat or Berlin, people who can’t attend want to see your team set up the stands and shut them down. It’s about as horizontal as it gets.

I Wanna Watch You do Cool Stuff

A catchy video ad will always be important and relevant; if it goes viral on YouTube or the lesser-utilized (but extremely important) Vimeo then you’ve struck Internet gold. But it’s not just that, regularly updating your videos on YouTube (or even Facebook) can maintain and increase your current following. There are many ways you can use video to your advantage beyond a conventional advertisement. The first thing that comes to mind is official demo vids. Whether you’re promoting an app, a phone or even a service, official demo videos are key. It’s one thing to put out a really nice image or video ad stating the different features of your product, but people want to see how it works behind the fancy editing and the Photoshop work- you can go beyond that.

I’ll use an example that’s close to home: Elixir guitar strings. Elixir’s key selling point is that their strings are coated with a material that prevents the strings from rusting in a short period of time, hence a better tone and longer life. Their videos on YouTube venture further than famous Elixir users demoing their strings. They have videos that teach people how to restring their guitar and keep their instruments well-maintained. Of course, they use Elixir strings and tape those videos at Elixir workshops and factories. And yes, the person in the video discusses their role with Elixir briefly and mentions which Elixir workshop is taking place, but they’re giving the user –their target audience- so much added-value with their useful approach to engaged marketing.

Let Me Tell You a Story.. on My Blog

Like social media platforms, blogging did exist 10 years ago but it was still in early development stage- and it wasn’t directed at businesses. Many people resorted to blogging on MSN Spaces (now Windows Live Spaces), where they talked about their traveling experiences and why Fallout Boy’s Pete Wentz used the best eyeliner. Businesses at the time opted for their primary .com or .net website with all the basic info, and if people wanted to know more they’d call the contact phone numbers. That has obviously changed, and I’m not just talking about Pete Wentz’ level of relevance.

Many businesses, especially those that provide a service of some sort, are incorporating blogging into their official corporate communication strategies. It doesn’t have to be related to their product; it could be their views on changing market and consumer trends or their take on some recent developments in the industry. An excellent example of this in the region is Bayt.com, an employment-oriented platform for the MENA region. Their blog posts range from tips on using their portal to advice to help you nail your job interview. I even read a blog post about how to boost your staff’s morale. Our Editor was featured in their Day in the Life section along with a multitude of other industry professionals- Bayt.com’s work is interesting and it drives web traffic.

I’d also include research reports and infographics under this category. Marketing agencies these days may put out a seasonal infographic about consumer trends or developments in a particular market. While this might not be as directly communicative as one might assume, revealing info from your research shows that you trust your user base and that you’re more or less willing to start a dialogue with them.

I App-Solutely Agree, Count Me In!

Businesses developing brand apps is something that is becoming more pervasive. It makes sense as more people are spending time on their smartphones and tablets for functions that they’ve previously executed exclusively on their laptops. Many apps for brands have useful features like recent updates, interactive maps to locate a branch, and more. You can really play with this one, depending on the type of business you’re in. F&B brands can have apps that allow you to order food to your current location without calling, and perhaps a retailer can allow users to check the availability of certain items, to see whether they are out of stock or not.

An interesting example? The Pampers “Hello Baby Pregnancy Calendar” mobile app. Giving consumers more ways of accessing your product or service is a great way of keeping them coming back for more. Users looking at their tablets and smartphones and seeing your company’s logo on a daily basis will definitely keep them closer, and perhaps even turn them into advocates. In our Tech section, read an overview on the state of mobile apps for brands with Born Interactive CEO Fadi Sabbagha.

Innovation, Disruption And Growth: Now Is The Right Time To Invest In MENA’s Tech Scene

Away from the screaming headlines about gloom and doom in the Arab world is the rarely told story of a trend whose promise is nothing short of transformative. The rise of the digital economy has, for the first time in decades, turned the region into the site of a remarkable market opportunity that, if tapped, would take it on an entirely new economic trajectory.

With a collective GDP of US$2.85 trillion, the Arab world ranks among the top ten largest economies; larger than that of India, Russia or Brazil. More than half of the 369 million strong population are under the age of 25, and the burgeoning middle class is young, educated and globally connected. Tellingly, over the past few years the levels of connectivity have been increasing drastically. Between 2007 and 2012, internet penetration jumped 294%, while mobile data traffic grew 107% in 2013, compared to 86% in Asia Pacific, 77% in North America and 57% in Western Europe. Moreover, the recent roll-out of low-cost affordable smartphones in emerging economies is sure to accelerate broadband penetration. Soon, social and mobile technologies will be within everyone’s reach.

Ronaldo Mouchawar, CEO and Co-founder of Souq.com

Ronaldo Mouchawar, CEO and Co-founder of Souq.com

Through ever higher connectivity, entrepreneurial activity and easy access to technologies that are lowering the costs and barriers to starting a business, the Arab world is positioning itself as a hub for innovation, disruption and growth. In fact, entrepreneurial vigor is already palpable across various Arab cities, from Cairo to Amman, Dubai to Jeddah to even war-torn Gaza. Startup investments have actually tripled between 2009 and 2012. In co-working spaces, accelerators and university halls, there is a new breed of tech-savvy entrepreneurs who are building products and technologies that are catching up with global trends (digital content and e-commerce) or solving big problems (e-payments, ed-tech, health and green energy). PayFort and Telr are tackling head-on inefficient online payment systems to boost e-commerce, while Nefham, Edraak, Tahrir Academy and SkillAcademy are using the power of technology and MOOCs to make online education more accessible to Arab youth.

Startups are not just disrupting the education and payment sectors, but also a whole range of markets, from real estate (AqarMap and Property Finder) to food delivery (Foodonclick and iFoodi.jo) to digital and social media marketing (The Online Project) to online recruitment and job placements, (Akhtaboot and Bayt.com) to big data, (Eqlimi.com). One of the most interesting is Jamalon, a Jordanian startup that is set to disrupt the archaic Arab book distribution industry.

Digital Arabic content is actually one of the new economy’s most high-performing industries. One study mentions that today’s market size is in billions. Saudi Arabia ranks at number one globally in YouTube views per capita. UTURN, a Saudi startup that produces local, high quality online entertainment, has 286 million views so far. Similarly, Jordan-based creative company Kharabeesh has garnered, to date, around 365 million views and more than three million subscribers.

In fact, digital Arabic content has always been a fertile field for local startups. It is where the real potential of the tech scene first proved itself with the rise and eventual sale of Maktoob to Yahoo! in 2009. After the acquisition, Maktoob’s founders created several new companies including Souq.com, now under Jabbar Internet Group. Maktoob is the story of one successful exit, that helped kick off e-commerce, which today is the region’s fastest emerging market, surging from almost zero in 2008 to $9 billion in 2012. According to a study by PayPal, projections point to robust growth that could well reach $15 billion in 2015.

In the last couple of years, international and local funds have invested more than $250 million in the e-commerce industry. Leading investors, among them Naspers, Tiger Global Management, Rocket Internet, J.P. Morgan, Lumia Capital and Abdel Latif Jameel, have poured funding mainly into Souq.com, MarkaVIP and Namshi. Commonly referred to as the Middle East’s Amazon, Souq.com, founded in 2005, raised a total of $150 million in financing, with the latest round valuing the company at over $500 million.

Yet access to funding is still one of the main challenges startup founders face in scaling their businesses, as indicated by a recent study published by Wamda Research Lab (WRL). According to the survey, of the businesses that received funding between 2009 and 2012, only 21% raised more than $500,000. With 36% of entrepreneurs mentioning the lack of sufficient venture investments as a major barrier to scalability, it is obvious that more startup financing is needed, and investments larger than $500,000 are a pressing priority.

The MIT Enterprise Forum Arab Startup Competition in Cairo, Egypt eariler this year

The MIT Enterprise Forum Arab Startup Competition in Cairo, Egypt eariler this year
Image credit: mitefarab.org

But it is a measure of the dynamism of the digital economy that it has been consistently delivering such an impressive performance in spite of the hurdles. For example, the response from the young startup investment landscape has been rather swift. Among the leaders in this space are incubators and accelerators, such as Oasis500, Flat6Labs and Gaza Sky Geeks, as well as early stage and venture capital funds, such as MENA Venture Investments, DASH Ventures, BECO Capital and iMena. Wamda Ventures is launching a scalability fund focused on growth companies in the internet space. Similarly, Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP) and Silicon Badia have launched funds focused on the same industries.

There are also corporate funds investing in the region’s tech sphere, such as MBC Ventures, STC Ventures and Vodafone Ventures. In parallel, in countries like Lebanon, the Central Bank has allocated $400 million to guarantee up to 75% of Lebanese banks’ equity investments in SMEs, incubators, accelerators and funds.

Significantly, the momentum is not only regional. Rocket Internet and MTN’s recent partnership to invest around $400M in e-commerce, as well as 500Startups’ active investment in outfits in Amman and Dubai are just two examples of growing international interest in local tech opportunities. At the same time, the Arab expatriate community in Silicon Valley has been playing an active role in bridging the Middle East and U.S. markets. TechWadi, for one, is leveraging its network to connect the region’s startups with U.S. mentors, capital and accelerators.

Moreover, according to WRL’s mapping, since 2008, there has been a sharp increase in the number of institutions supporting entrepreneurs in the Arab world. Currently, there are over 140 organizations actively working with regional startups. Wamda, Endeavor, Dubai SME and MIT Enterprise Forum Pan Arab Region have facilitated access to knowledge, networks and new markets.

The Arab world’s rising digital economy is dynamic, exciting and ripe for exponential growth. It is the right time to invest in it. Supported by patient capital, Arab startups will run with every opportunity. There will come a day when the next Alibabas will emerge from the Arab World, and if players pool their capital, resources and networks to support the rising generation of tech entrepreneurs, that day will come sooner than we dare hope.

Bootstrapping Startups In Dubai

Dubai is the fastest growing and most dynamic city in MENA today- it’s rife with opportunities for startups to build successful businesses, but it’s an expensive place to live and an even more expensive place to execute your enterprise model. Unlike Silicon Valley, startups here don’t have the option of working out of a garage or a dorm room. Like other businesses in Dubai, startups need to rent office space before being able to open a bank account, get a business license and in turn get a work visa to operate legally in the country. As the co-founders of Melltoo, a social network for buyers and sellers in the UAE, we’ve been there and done that and we’ve survived to share our tips on how to start up in Dubai for cheap.

Business License

Making Use of Free Zone Options

Unless your startup physically sells goods in the UAE, incorporating in a free zone is the best option for a business license. You can opt for a freelancer’s license but this has limitations since you are only allowed one work visa. Another option is to apply for a “flexi-desk” which can subsequently be upgraded as your startup grows. in5 Innovation Hub at Dubai Knowledge Village (TECOM) is a government-initiated incubator that provides subsidized licensing and workspace as well as introductions to mentors and investors. You can expect to shell out approximately (and possibly over) AED8,000 for license and rent for the first six months. The drawback is that there is a rigorous application process and startups have to be selected to join the program.

Melltoo is part of the in5 program; in addition to the cost-savings, in5 has been a great place to network. We’ve been introduced to many important mentors and investors since being incubated. The Dubai Technology Entrepreneurship Center (DTEC) is scheduled to open at Dubai Silicon Oasis in early 2015. Co-working space here can be leased for under 12,000 a year, but these numbers do not include the various fees that are associated with completing the incorporation paperwork, including employer I.D. cards, bank letter requests and others. Interestingly enough, we discovered that different branches of the same bank were asking for different fees, so definitely shop around.

Office Space

Basing Your Business Somewhere Affordable

Co-working spaces are great, but they aren’t always ideal. Firstly, they are all situated in Dubai, so you’ll have a hard time commuting if you live in one of the other Emirates. Due to its popularity, in5 is crowded and growing your workspace there is not really possible, and DTEC is yet to open. There are several other options, including The Cribb by i360 in Al Quoz, Impact Hub in downtown Dubai, and The Make Business Hub in Al Soufouh; none of these are terribly cheap. The Melltoo team of nine has decided to keep our expenses super low by working out of our house in Ras Al Khaimah (RAK).

First off, rent and living expenses are generally cheaper outside of the Emirate of Dubai. In addition, we installed a porta-cabin next to our house which we use for office space. The porta-cabin is large enough to house some of our team members who don’t normally reside in RAK. Some team members work remote for the most part, but come and do sleepovers every so often. Working from our living quarters has had unexpected benefits. Firstly, there’s no commute, saving time and money. Secondly we’re immersed in our startup, and we are constantly brainstorming and feeding off one another’s energy. Lastly, the proximity of living and working quarters builds a rapport among team members- we’re more family than co-workers. For events and meetings, we use in5.

Promo Materials

Sourcing Good Quality Supplies for Less

As startups, you should be resourceful and constantly keep an eye and ear on what’s happening around you. In the UAE, the souks are still a hive of commer- cial activity and where great deals on basic things like t-shirts and business cards can be found. “Little Bangladesh” in Ajman is a good place for decent quality screen-printed t-shirts and other customized clothing. We got our first 50 t-shirts printed up for AED6 a shirt, a steal compared to AED50 at Virgin Megastore. For business cards, most print shops in old neighborhoods like Bur Dubai and Deira will give you a good deal. However, you will be well-advised to get the graphic design done elsewhere because that is not their strong suit (see the next section on generic services for more on how to do this). This advice applies to other marketing paraphernalia too, such as roll-up banners for events and the basics like stationery.

Melltoo interns at in5

Melltoo interns at in5
Image credit: Melltoo

In-House Vs. Freelance

What And When to Outsource

Outsourcing generic services to freelancers can mean great cost-savings for startups. There are loads of things that we could do ourselves, but we don’t because the opportunity cost of our time is far too high. The three hours it would take me to design a business card are better spent working on product development. One word of caution though, freelancers need to be managed as you would manage brand new employees. Never assume they will understand something you take for granted because things are done very differently in different cultures. Instructions should be crystal clear and laid out step by step in a retrievable form if possible.

For instance, we had our video explainer outsourced. Many screenshots were used in the video and we had to specify the exact screenshot we wanted in which scene and carefully label the graphic assets so that the outsourcing team could find everything easily to reduce the number of revisions. In addition, we would record screencasts with instructions and feedback for the outsourcing team. There are lots of freelancing websites out there. If you are looking for freelancers with local knowledge and skills, Nabbesh. Otherwise, our favorites are Upwork and Fiverr.

Marketing

Small Cities Means Captive Audiences

As rapidly as the population of Dubai is growing, it’s still a small (and rather intimate) city. Unlike large metropolitan areas like New York or London where groups of people are hard to nail down, it isn’t too difficult to locate your target audience here. As long as you know who they are, you should know where to find them. If you are targeting the tech industry, social media is the first place to look. This will provide your first clues to who your target audience is and where to find them in the real world. Because Dubai is expat-dominated, there exists many meet-up groups organized by location and interests. Once you’ve found your audience, go out there and network. Melltoo was created to be the next-gen classifieds marketplace, Facebook for classifieds.

So our audience is easy to locate, they are people who are selling their things using social media. And whenever we tell someone in this group about the Melltoo app, they thank us. That’s when we know we have the right target audience because they have the need for our product.

Meltoo app

Meltoo app
Image credit: Meltoo

Public Relations

Telling Your Story

Again, Dubai is a small place and the media is a good way to get your start- up known quickly. Do not think that you need a public relations firm to represent you in order to get coverage. All you need is a good story. You should be able to tell your own story and if you can’t, then no one else can. This is important not only for PR but for investors and customers alike. Not everyone is a good writer, so find a freelancer to write up your press release. The next steps are important, search for articles about other startups or companies similar to yours. Make a list of the journalists who wrote these articles.

Connect with them through social media and write them an email explaining your story. Tell them the why of your startup before you get into the what. Keep it concise and on-topic; the point of the email is to get them interested, not to tell them your entire story.

Get Involved

Startup Conferences and Competitions

Startup conferences are an essential part of learning from and participating in the ecosystem. It is also an effective way to introduce yourself to potential mentors and investors. However, they are not cheap and conference passes can run anywhere from hundreds to thousands of dirhams. In our experience, asking for a discount usually works. But even better is networking to get yourself invited. The Melltoo team was invited to the recent ArabNet conference held at the Palm Atlantis this past June. A venture capitalist from Riyadh paid for our US$1,800 passes to the conference. We first met him in Cairo, where we were finalists at the annual MITEF Arab Startup Conference. Incidentally, that was an all-expense paid trip. Which brings us to startup competitions- another effective way to network and meet mentors and investors.

Human Resources

Invest in Training and Cultivating Your Team

Because Dubai is an expensive place, you have to pay your employees fairly, and for experienced employees you need to pay a premium. Most startups cannot afford this. One option is to offer equity to entice talented people to take a pay cut to work with you. But not everyone will go for this. We chose to go a different way by hiring and training highly motivated interns who are willing to work in exchange for real-life experience in a startup. What this means is that you must offer them real value in return in the form of training and experience. Do not relegate your interns to pouring coffee and making photocopies, you must give them tasks that provide value for your startup and that provide a learning experience for the intern. Think about something you are doing that is essential that you can teach someone else to do. That’s what your intern should be doing. The key here is to recruit the right people. Existing skills are not important, attitude and willingness to learn is what you should look for. Of course, if you do a good job training your interns, they will eventually become full members of the team. But as new career entrants, their expected compensation will still be lower than someone mid-career or in senior positions. And if you did your job right, they will be as passionate about the startup as you and money will become secondary.

Starting up in Dubai is anything but cheap. But as a bootstrapping startup, being resourceful has allowed us to cut some corners and real- locate our limited resources to more valuable uses. In the six months since we launched the Melltoo app, we’ve had over 30,000 downloads and we acquire about 350 new users daily. All this while working out of a porta-cabin in true startup spirit.

Fawaz AlOtaibi On Restructuring The Family Business

“There’s a reason why larger firms tend to adopt corporate structures: it accelerates growth which is something every generation in a family business should strive for if they want the business to continue,” explains Fawaz Moeid Sadoon AlOtaibi, CEO, Awab Holdings. AlOtaibi joined the family business in 2009, directly after completing his Engineering degree at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada. He returned to Saudi Arabia and quickly took over the family firm. “I didn’t have the chance to work elsewhere because my father wanted to retire, and so he did. I had his full support in running the business, but I didn’t know how! Nevertheless, being an engineer I was trained to solve problems, so I started self-learning the business by reading numbers, asking for reports from management, and observing. Thinking back to that time, I wish I had a mentor. I started a three-year project and failed, and I vowed to never venture into a project or investment without a proper study beforehand. I took what I learned from my failure and realized that I needed a vehicle to be able to manage multiple companies efficiently, so we created the holdings company.”

Awab Holdings, then Awab Trading Establishment, was launched in 1977 as a general trading and contracting company. The company transitioned in 2010, becoming purely a holdings company acting as an umbrella owner of several businesses across a diverse list of industries including automotives, healthcare, information technology, and real estate. “My father was not born into wealth, and from a very early age he had to work along with his siblings to provide for the family, but he also realized the importance of an education so he completed his secondary education. My uncle had a talent for fixing cars, and my father used to help him with the finances. In 1965 they decided to create a company called Takwa, today one of the largest auto spare parts dealers in Saudi Arabia.”

A few of the Awab Holdings companies include their real estate development arms like Ousatco in Lebanon and namesake Awab operating in the Kingdom, their company Cepco Medical Services specializing in hospital preparation, Jubail Motors Company and Takwa Group for automotive spare parts, and Codeit, an IT-consultancy and application company. Each of the aforementioned companies are managed by professionals, and have Awab Holdings as a board member. The holdings group also has a portfolio of investments managed by investment firms on behalf of Awab. Moeid Sadoon AlOtaibi, Fawaz’s father and Founder of Awab, now acts as Chairman of the Board at 76 years of age.

Why was a holding company needed for their family business? AlOtaibi says that while it’s also about preservation of the existing business and legacy, it was mostly motivated by potential success and growth- part of a larger strategy of incorporating tactics that are a part of laying the foundations for future expansion. When discussing introducing measures that impose organizational order, 29 year-old AlOtaibi points out that family firms often lack the structure and the hierarchy of non-family enterprises, so a corporate outlook is needed. “Corporates introduce aggressive accountability which is sometimes lacking in a family firm. Today as family members working in the firm, we all have responsibilities and are held accountable for them- meaning a family member is also at risk of losing his or her position if he or she does not deliver, just as much as he or she stands to reap the rewards of that position.”

The AlOtaibi family, led by Moeid, went about creating their holdings group. The senior AlOtaibi transferred all of his equity to the holdings company, giving his children their shares in accordance to Sharia (Islamic law), “leaving him owning practically nothing. Some considered it a bold move, yet –as most bold moves do- it turned out to be a great move. With equity comes responsibility, and my siblings and I started acting much more responsible after that. In the GCC, the founder is usually the patriarch of the family, and we are blessed that our father is still with us as he always has the final say if any dispute arises. There should always be a patriarch who would hold a certain authority so not to have disputes turn into power struggles or internal conflicts. So although today my father is not involved in the business decisions, he still holds the chairman position and we must seek his approval before venturing into something new.”

On the topic of succession, AlOtaibi discusses the danger it can pose to a family firm that is unprepared for the transition of power. “Inheritance is a course of life, and Islam has given us a creed of how to go about inheritance. Unfortunately, more often than not in a family business, inheritance leads to the collapse of the business as it is hard to divide a non-monetized entity without dissolving it, and in the absence of the family patriarch it might also lead to the breakdown of a family.” Fawaz says that a “family constitution” is needed, that all founding members agree with and can adhere to, helping to prevent the damage that an irresponsible or disenchanted family member can cause to the business. AlOtaibi frankly comments that he’s thankful that he has not yet had to experience that particular challenge.

One challenge he has fielded since he became CEO? “Resistance, resistance, resistance. If you are someone thinking of going through this process, expect a lot of resistance from the existing employees- especially the previous generation’s ‘team’. You will not be able to fire people on the spot because of their history with your father, uncle or whomever, regardless of how incompetent they might be, and you’ll realize that sometimes you don’t have the final say in the company you’re heading. But that’s okay! Create your own team, be much more efficient, and write-off those costs by creating more growth. Also, the process is a lengthy one that will take years to finish, so don’t expect instant results.”

High prevalence of the family business model across the GCC makes it a hot topic of discussion. Deeply ingrained in the enterprise culture of the Gulf, family businesses and their success or potential failure has far-reaching economic implications. The SME space, heavily permeated by the family business model, stands to gain when clans do well, and stands to take a serious hit when they don’t. “Family businesses contribute to approximately 80 to 85% of the global GDP, and in the GCC they are the top non-oil, nongovernment contributor to the GDP. That is why maintaining and ensuring the succession of family business is a national matter, not only a private matter.” A Saudi Arabian national, AlOtaibi says that his contemporaries in the Kingdom are talking more and more about the family business model. Between him and his friends, restructuring techniques and other family firm corporate introductions are a constant topic of discourse.

“Saudi Arabia has a relatively young economy, and many family businesses are today making the transition to the second generation. Add to that masses of the new generation -my generation- that have been educated abroad, and are now coming back to join the family business. They’re eager to put their mark on the history of their companies,” he says. He is a big proponent of the family firm going corporate, and instilling some procedural layers in the areas of human resources mentioning “employee retention strategies, career paths, clear responsibilities, and job security,” as a few examples. “Creating a holdings company is just a vehicle that would make managing different companies across several industries more efficient. Each company should have its own management structure and freedom to create new strategies. The holdings should only appoint, monitor and support each company’s management board. The only disadvantage is that the subsidiaries might lose the family feel and atmosphere present at the holdings level.”

While AlOtaibi is a champion of the corporatization of the family business, he still has strong attachments to some of the more traditional aspects- like family values. “I believe that families should start structuring their businesses as corporates, yet still keep the family values they would always live by and keep- sort of a family corporate which is kind of an oxymoron.” AlOtaibi says that a benefit of transitioning is that his family has been brought closer, family members that are employed by the business feel a strong sense of support, and that the overall morale in the company has improved noticeably. Awab Holdings has put a series of checks and balances into place with stipulations, keeping the shareholders satisfied with the company’s direction. “In our model, we segregate equity from management. Some equity owners man- age, but not all do. We have an owner’s board which convenes once a year to discuss how the business is doing, and convenes regularly for family matters. Then there’s a management board which convenes quarterly to discuss with the CEO detailed matters of the business, and to make sure the plan is adhered to.”

AlOtaibi adds that family members must be voted into a company station, and that once they’re voted-in they hold the position for five years. To continue to hold that same position, they must be re-elected, and cannot spend more than two terms –a total of 10 years- in the same position for several reasons: to bring fresh ideas and innovation to the post, to ensure equality of family members and equal opportunities, and finally, to prevent internal power struggles. What about shareholders? “Shareholders usually complain when the business suffers, so the best way to avoid shareholder concerns and complaints is by creating growth and profits. Easier said than done, I know,” admits AlOtaibi indicating that they have seen a considerable rise in profitability, and it’s largely because some of the businesses under the umbrella were under-performing prior to the transition.

There’s also a bonus for family members with an entrepreneurial eye who aren’t employed by the company: “We have a structure that helps retain non-involved family members with entrepreneurship spirits by introducing a ‘sweat fee’. The family entrepreneur presents his ideas to the management board and if approved, the holdings will fully finance the idea, and the family entrepreneur will receive 25% equity in the new company and manage it on his own for five years.” So if you aren’t already part and parcel of the family and the family business, you can pursue your own entrepreneurial venture and still have both the financial and systematic support of the family behind you.

“Being an entrepreneur means being flexible and always wanting to challenge the status quo whether it’s in your business, community or even culture. That’s why it’s absolutely important to keep that flexibility and realize that no business structure is set in stone. My model was really a collection of more than one business structure that I have come across, and will keep on changing throughout the years. It’s also important to know that there’s no pre?t-a?-porter solution in business models, and what might work for my family might not work for another. Also, what might work for my family today might not work five or 10 years down the road, but we do our best given the circumstances we are in and we try to predict any changes that might happen in the future and place the solutions today.”

Above all, AlOtaibi is most keen on preserving his father’s legacy and the solvency of the family business. His shifting schema centers around a formula built to last, and it rests on the foundations of family values blended with a corporate-type democratic fairness and approach. AlOtaibi is big on unity: “I always say to my siblings, ‘It takes the whole family to build the business, and it takes one family member to bring it down.'” His careful planning, research and measured action should prevent anything of the sort for Awab Holdings, and hopefully take their business into a third generation.

UAE’s Small Business Market Should Study Customer Lifecycles

As a significant contributor to the nation’s economy – 40% in Dubai, and 60% of the overall UAE economy – the small and medium business (SMB) market is a highly dynamic one with unique connectivity needs that must be supported. While the UAE already presents numerous opportunities for SMBs to seize, the arrival of Expo 2020 in Dubai is going to further enhance prospects for the nation’s fledgling businesses. This is, of course, a great outlook for the economies of both the UAE as a whole and Dubai as an individual emirate, but it also presents a unique opportunity for companies to provide services tailored to needs of SMBs. In order to develop products that will not only successfully serve them better, but that will provide you with the competitive edge needed to succeed, it is essential to understand them and identify what sets them apart.

Understanding the Market

An important starting point in building unique value propositions is to begin by segmenting the potential customer base by identifying their unique requirements. Each segment will have different value proposition needs, as well as individual financial potential and go-to-market approaches. It’s important to combine attitudes and needs with firmographics and behaviours; this is an area in which clarity and focus will enable service-providing companies to be proactive and responsive, thereby giving them an edge over their competition.

With segmentation, effective marketing –which is all about recognition and complete understanding of not only the target market, but the environment of potential customers– is possible. To ensure a successful marketing strategy that will identify new clients and customers, you must look at four points to gain customer insight:

1. Who are the best customers to target?
2. What are the target customers’ buying motivations?
3. What are their purchasing or buying criteria?
4. What are their purchasing or buying cycles?

Customer First

The focus in today’s rapidly changing world should be on providing the best value to SMBs, by designing targeted propositions. At du, we use a concept called ‘Customer First’ in order to address the specific needs of the SMB market; this puts the customer at the heart of everything we design, drawing on insight and inputs directly from the customer.

Alongside this, we provide our customers with as much peace of mind as possible, by offering them price transparency and price predictability. This gives them complete control of their spending, eliminating bill shock, allowing for an expected amount to be allocated into budgets for telecom and ICT needs. For an SMB, keeping a tight budget is important, making this an essential plus point for any service provider to offer.

Beyond this, we place a strong emphasis on the importance of building and maintaining ongoing relationships. We do this through the creation of an ecosystem of events, forums, networking and mentoring sessions. Not only do these add value and build a strong rapport, but they provide a superior level of customer experience that we can continuously improving on – our customers are important to us, and we are constantly innovating in order to deliver the best to them.

Key Challenges for SMBs

The SMB sector plays an important role in the UAE’s well-diversified economy, comprising 95% of small business and employing 42% of the nation’s workforce. As a sector, SMBs contribute 40% to the value of Dubai’s economy, and 60% to the UAE’s economy. In simple terms, the economy grows if SMBs grow. With the winning of Expo 2020, the UAE government is now even more focused on providing more momentum to this sector by promoting entrepreneurship and SMB development.

There are, however, a unique set of SMB-specific challenges, such as limited budgets, a fragmented market, a wide range of service preferences, and decision-making processes that vary from one company to the other. These are all hurdles that must be overcome, if the sector is to truly benefit from outsider support. A good starting point for success in this instance is to address the uniqueness of the SMB market. It’s imperative to give it the importance it deserves, rather than treating it as a larger version of the consumer market, or a smaller version of the large enterprise market.

Amongst other key factors to consider is the fact that SMB owners are very busy– they’re raising a new enterprise baby, so to speak, and are committed to seeing their venture grow and succeed. For a third of UAE SMB owners, travel is a necessity for their business to succeed, which is something to definitely consider, as they will likely lean towards products that offer them travel-specific benefits. Time is a premium for them, too; they want convenience, they want quick services, and they want as little hassle as possible in getting them. What SMB owners want, in short, is real engagement, from partners who will support and manage their growth, and who will become part of their success story. Understanding this and catering to it has been a key driver of our successful partnership with SMBs over the years.

du’s Growth Mantra

For SMB customers, it’s important to full emphasize the benefits of your proposition, so that they can clearly see the reasons why they should adopt your solution, but also so that they can make quick, informed decisions. This is crucial for us, at du, and we ensure that pricing is transparent, and that both products and services are specifically designed to meet the individual needs of customers. We have identified several aspects that are especially important for success. These are:

a) Familiarity and Consistency Consistently delivering on the service parameter that the customer expects is an easy way to attract more business. As SMBs become more familiar and more satisfied with our offerings and services, they often come back to ask for more. It is important for us to be part of this customer journey, from initial purchase to cross-selling, and then to intelligently bundling more services along the growth path of the customer.

b) Word of Mouth The other key aspect we strive to achieve is powerful customer references from our clients. Word of mouth is a powerful medium for growth, and we encourage our client base to provide us with feedback as well as promote our business by voicing their support.

c) Customer Lifecycle Management (CLM) To attract business continuously, we strive to understand our SMB customers and provide them long term benefits through a customer lifecycle management mindset. For example, we provide the customer with a unified bill, identity management, and consistently ensure a good experience. This enables the growth of their business, and of ours. A dedicated qualified retention team is our greatest asset and that is at the core of our success.

d) Adopt digital experiences We clearly see that more and more SMBs understand the importance of going digital, and want business benefits from this sphere. In the coming years, the digital channel will have a significant role to play in the buying experience of customers, adding more services, taking care of their account digitally, providing after sales service and also making their payment online. Our digital initiatives play a big role in fulfilling these ambitions.

Being a big player in the small business market means that you must consider evolving customer lifecycle needs. Businesses today need to be more agile and innovative, both in the design and delivery of services, and finding a reliable partner that supports their vision and business growth is critical. The future looks promising, and we are ringing in change at a rapid pace to empower SMBs with the ability to make the most of tomorrow’s opportunities.

Infographic: E-Commerce in the Middle East

E-commerce is on fire in the MENA region, and it’s not surprising given the fast growth in our digital sector. This especially applies to the GCC, which has been behind most of this impressive boom, expecting to jump from U.S.$9 billion to $15 billion by 2015. This short infographic by PayTabs highlights the current status of e-commerce in the region, and gives you an idea about where the digi-dirham space is headed. Cha ching!

E-Commerce in the Middle East (Infographic)

Image credit: PayTabs

Tips When Raising The Seed: Startup Pitching

Each month you hear me talk about my experiences as an entrepreneur spearheading my startup Brndstr Inc. Over the past six months, we’ve covered a lot of the facets of managing a new company, expansion advice, and even how to pitch. I’ve shared my advice and suggestions from firsthand experience. In this piece, I wanted to go back to the very beginning- raising the cold, hard cash!

As an entrepreneur with a killer idea, you believe that you have all the makings for success but you’re lacking one crucial thing: the funds. It is common to hear people say I want to raise $X and give away X% -TV shows like Dragons’ Den base their concept around such figures- but how do you get in a position where these negotiations can happen? I have decided to put my suggestions into five points of things that startups may not think about when seeking to raise funds.

1. Who you know is as important as what you know

Networking is integral to your startup’s success. People look to VCs and investors for help because they know that these people have a strong network. Their LinkedIn connections are powerful, and their phone books are full of influential people. My advice is that you too can build your own network. If you get yourself out there at events, meet people, mingle with groups that you want to be a part of, you will find you that you too soon have a network. It may not happen overnight, but persistence is key is pays off in the form of a network- potentially leading you to an introduction to an investor.

2. Perfecting your delivery and your pitch

Although you may know your idea like the back of your hand, you need to be able to tell potential investors with a very simple descriptive framework. You need to hook the potential investors, and get them interested in learning more. You need to be able to explain to someone what you do in the time it takes to travel in an elevator- believe it or not it’s known as an “Elevator Pitch”.

3. Element of surprise

When speaking and pitching to investors I always suggest having something that they don’t expect. These guys will see many ideas and business plans- do something that will make them remember you. I have said it many times before but I always personally handwrite a note to anyone I meet. This personal touch goes a long way in a world where everything is digital and online.

4. Failure is only feedback

You will almost definitely pitch to someone who says no. When this happens you need to take the feedback as to why they turned you away, and then build on it. Something I did was when unsuccessful: I would email the person shortly after with a breakdown on their feedback and discuss ways I would overcome the problems that they pointed out. If the case is the person just simply didn’t get your idea, then they are not right for you anyway.

5. Be realistic and fair

When you sit down and meet potential investors, you will ultimately need to discuss equity and investment amount. Personally, I would never start by saying how much you need and what you are willing to give away. In your plan and mind, have a range- this means you should be able to quantify the maximum and minimum of what you’re willing to negotiate. You may find that from the meeting, that person has a lot more to offer and is therefore worth handing over that extra equity that you were reluctant to part with. Don’t get caught up on percentages, in my opinion it’s better to own a little of something than a lot of nothing.

Raising money is always a huge topic of conversation in the startup space, and everyone has their own way and ideas on what’s best to do. At the end of the day you need to make sure you not only have a partner that can fund your idea, but also one that you can work well with. You are building a long-term relationship so make sure you ultimately get on in terms on vision cohesion and even chemistry. Good luck raising the funds, and catch you next month for more ‘trep talk!

The Pro Guide To Social Media

Here’s a social media quick study. Learn how to play the social media game like a real public relations professional, and protect yourself in the process.

Don’t Air Your Dirty Laundry

If this is not something you want associated with you for the rest of your career, do not post it on social media. Full stop.

You Are Not a Lone Ranger

At all times remember that putting yourself out there with your real identifying information means that anyone can quickly link you to both your company and to your personal associates.

On Top Of the Game

Share things in real-time only after you’ve read them to yourself first and confirmed that they are in good judgment. If you have even the slightest bit of doubt, do not share it.

Opinion Leader

Be the person on the timeline who is elegant and eloquent. Use the best of your personality to convey a positive, witty and effective person. No one wants to hire someone posting things like “Hate my job, get me outta here.”

Take The High Road

When you are faced with a difficult social media situation, opt for the less-is-more tactic. Do explain yourself concisely with a confident voice and avoid any aggressive undertones.

Social Media Is a Double-Edged Sword

It is the best way to promote positive corporate aims, and it is also the best way to promote corporate failings.

Disclaimers Do Not Matter

If you think that your “tweets are my own” bio is going to protect your superiors from having to answer for your bad behavior online, you are sorely mistaken. When you go down, your superiors are left to clean up the mess.

The Web Is Its Own Boss

All of the media clout in the world cannot silence the internet when it gets going. The web is a platform for all and by default that means that public opinion cannot be quelled.

Virality Is Inevitable When You’ve Done Something Wrong

If you make a mistake, it will spread far and fast. All it takes is a few retweets or an Instagram repost or a Facebook share. It will haunt you long after you’ve said it.

Deleting Doesn’t Help

The first thing that people do when they see a disaster-in-the-making is screenshot whatever is happening in anticipation of the expected delete. Deleting the offensive comments often fans the flames.

PRO-Partnership On The Advantages Of Doing Business In Qatar

PRO-Partnership was established in Qatar in 2010 with the express intent of providing corporate partnerships to foreign investors who wish to start or expand their business in Doha. Jane Ashford, director of PRO-Partnership says that, “as one of the fastest growing economies in the world and as a country striving hard to realize economic diversification, it was very important for PRO-Partnership to offer opportunities to foreign investors. In this way, our clients can contribute towards the expansion of Qatar’s economic base and help to develop a strong private sector.”

Ashford further underlines how PRO-Partnership supports the National Vision 2030. “With Qatar encouraging the use of investment in different sectors, PRO-Partnership assists foreign entities to establish in a range of industries’ such as real estate, education, finance and construction. PRO-Partnership is 100% Qatari owned, allowing us to become the local share-holder in a corporate capacity protecting the investments of foreign entities establishing a legal presence in Qatar.”

Another reason to head to Doha? Qatar was also one of the world’s fastest growing economies during the global economic crisis. “From 2008 to 2012 real GDP growth was 12%, compared to China’s at 9%. Growth in Qatar is estimated at over 6% in 2014. In contrast, the IMF is forecasting world growth for 2014 at 3.6%,” says Ashford, citing the UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) 2014. Qatar’s economic growth is due to a number of different factors including the landing of the rights to host World Cup 2022; the implementation of the National Vision 2030; the plans to build a metro system in Doha and a national and international rail network by 2016; and the rapid population growth. “Qatar has significant oil and gas reserves, estimated to be 60 and 160 year respectively. Energy production per head dwarfs the other Gulf countries. Most of Qatar’s major energy projects are now up and running and the government is using the revenue generated to diversify its economy,” adds Ashford.

However, when it comes to establishing a business in Doha, the most common method available to foreign investors is to operate under a Limited Liability Company (LLC). According to Ashford the company must have one or more local Qatari partners possessing a minimum of 51% of the shareholding. “The main challenges facing foreign investors include [aspects like] sourcing the right local partner, obtaining a minimum share capital of QR200, 000 and overcoming the bureaucratic process which involves procuring a number of licenses and visas as part of the set-up. Certain sector groups will also be required to obtain special licences, for example if you are engineers you will be required to register the company with Urban Planning, and obtain an engineering licence.”

In addition, one of the requirements for all LLCs is that they must have a registered office. “Finding the right size office space, in the right location, at the right price can also be challenging. Engineering offices will be required to have a minimum size office of 200 square meters.” Ashford says that it’s imperative to speak to the right contacts who are aware of the system and how it works. “Businesses should get good legal advice, to ensure that the business is set up correctly and in the best manner.” In the UAE, setting up a LLC, Branch Office or Trade Representative Office is very similar to Qatar, but Ashford points out some differences in the options available to a foreign investor.

Source: PRO-Partnership

For instance, the UAE offers the option of setting up within a free trade zone. Setting up as a free zone entity allows the investor to own the business 100% without the need of a local Sponsor or National Service Agent. There are numerous free zones in the UAE, and they are centred on business industry categories. “The key restriction of a free zone entity is that it is principally permitted to conduct business solely within its relevant free zone and is limited to performing solely those activities specified in its license. Unlike the UAE, the option of setting up within a free zone in Qatar is not readily available for foreign investors,” explains Ashford.

Another key difference is that in the UAE there is the option of setting up under a professional service license. Basically, professional business is defined as “work based on investing mental talents and acquired information.” A Professional Licence/Civil Company is a business for professionals in recognized fields such as doctors, lawyers, engineers and accountants. A Civil Company can only practice professional business, and is 100% owned by professional partners. “This option does not apply when starting a business in Qatar. Lastly, if you’re setting up an LLC in Qatar you’ll be required to deposit share capital of QR200,000- this is not a requirement in the UAE.”

Billions of dollars are flooding into Qatar as a result of the World Cup 2022 and the country’s National Vision 2030- many projects will be implemented within the next five years. The main sectors that PRO-Partnership has witnessed a huge increase of interest to invest in Doha include construction and infrastructure companies, security and safety organizations, and sporting and media companies. “Companies who undertake infrastructure- related projects are often strongly supported by the Qatari government,” adds Ashford.

In fact, as Qatar possesses one of the largest natural gas reserves in the world, and this coupled with recent legal liberalization, economic diversification, and a burgeoning economy simply means that there are ample opportunities for investment within many sectors. “Foreign investors can be reassured that Qatar not only offers economic stability but also a fast-growing and modern economy. Individuals can benefit from high personal wealth.”

Adding to how tiny the Emirate also offers a wide range of incentives to foreign investors such as attractive rental rates, exemptions on customs duties on imported machinery, equipment and spare parts for industrial projects, not to mention subsidized or nominal rates for gas, electricity and water. “In addition, the government may provide tax exemptions on corporate tax for pre-determined periods. Other personal benefits include tax free salaries, excellent medical and educational facilities and personal residency support.”

Source: PRO-Partnership

As previously mentioned, PRO-Partnership is 100% Qatari owned and is able to act as the local 51% shareholder to many foreign companies eager to set up within the state of Qatar. However, the management of the company is British with full power of attorney to manage the company on a day-to-day basis.

“This business model has been reflected in our Abu Dhabi and Dubai offices, whereby PRO-Partnership is 100% Emirati owned also allowing us to become the 51% shareholder for foreign entities in the UAE,” continues Ashford, “We, as the management team consider ourselves to be extremely lucky with our local PRO-Partnership shareholders in the UAE and Qatar. Without these amazing, influential partners we would not be able to run such a successful business.”

As a rule, QR200,000 is the requirement as a minimum share capital only in Qatar. In Abu Dhabi and Dubai it is not obligatory to deposit a share capital, unless if the establishment is a Foreign Branch or Representative Office in the UAE, then AED50,000 must be deposited. “In Qatar, the funds must be deposited in a bank of the foreign investor’s choice, and can be removed once the company is established. It is therefore only necessary to retain the full amount of QR200,000 in the bank for period of around two weeks or less,” explains Ashford.

Do newly established businesses in Qatar generate profit faster than in any other parts of the GCC? “It’s not easy to make a quick profit anywhere in the GCC, you have to work hard to establish the business, increase relationships within the community, and gain a good corporate reputation. However given time, with a strong market presence and growing client base, companies in the UAE and Qatar are rewarded with high profit margins.”

Ashford says that among the main factors which prevent a quick profit are the rising and already-expensive rents within Doha for both business and private residence, the high level of bureaucracy, the set up costs for any organization first coming to the country, and that price rather than quality, is often the most important factor in the buying decision. In addition to how the market is not well-regulated, especially regarding environmental matters. There are also often delays in payment, and the Qatari Riyal is tied to the U.S. dollar. In other words, when the dollar exchange rate is strong, Qatar becomes an expensive market for some countries.

Source: PRO-Partnership

Nonetheless, most of PRO-Partnership clients are already well-established companies seeking to expand globally. “We have, however, helped some small SMEs and startups. We are very proud to be able to help a wide range of companies and our start-ups are now running professional, profitable businesses.” She further reiterates how they like to assist their clients wherever possible in both the startup process as well as in an ongoing working relationship. “We can often help empower clients with information and trends in their specific industry as well as connect them with vital contacts for new business. We can also help to facilitate companies with their HR requirements. Obtaining visas for certain nationalities can often be a challenge.”

Although PRO-Partnership is witnessing more companies from all different parts of the world, most of their clients are from Europe, other GCC countries, and South Asia. “We also have a number of companies from Australia, America, South Africa, as well as an increasing number from Far East Asia. English is widely spoken and is the main business language. This, therefore, encourages English speaking nations to set up business in Qatar.”

Also, in order set up an organization in Qatar, the business is required to have a suitable office space prior to obtaining the trade license. “We have our own real estate team, PRO-Property, who offer our clients the best possible solution for their commercial property requirements. We are able to advise companies on the best option available to them depending on the size of the company, the company budget as well as the timeframe in which they wish to set up and start trading.”

Initially, many companies prefer to go into a fully-serviced business centre as they usually have a small team on the ground. Business centers offer a number of services that cater to startups in Qatar and the UAE, including administrative staff, meeting rooms and a dedicated P.O. Box number. “PRO-Property has the local knowledge on the availability of business centres in Qatar as well as which ones offer the best value for our clients’ needs. After full establishment, most companies move into bigger office space, assisted by our team of experts,” adds Ashford.

In reference to the time frame prior to establishing a business in Qatar, it’s approximately less than six months. According to PRO-Partnership, the exact time is much dependent on the client and the time taken for their company’s documents to be notarized, attested, and legalized.

In addition, it’s also dependent on the approval time for the articles of association and other agreements. “From the very beginning, generally speaking it will take a company one to two months to receive their commercial registration and another two to three months to complete all of the processes including obtaining an office for their trade license approval and for the general manager to have his/her residency permit,” says Ashford. On a positive note, in the UAE, such as in Abu Dhabi, the time frame is reduced on an average to two months from start to finish.

“PRO-Partnership has recently expanded into both Dubai and the UAE. We took the decision to move into the UAE market after some of our current clients in Qatar specifically requested the services of PRO-Partnership to assist them in starting up in the UAE. For many international companies, it is practical to have one local partner throughout the region,” and that one partner might as well be a pro. It certainly cuts through some of the red tape a lot quicker.

Source: PRO-Partnership
What is required to start a business in Qatar?

Guidelines by Pro-Partnership

Advantages of investing in Qatar over the UAE: Pro-Partnership Makes The Case