Gulf Construction Online - Revamp bears fruits

Mohamed Hareb Al Otaiba

Hamed ... new corporate profile.

Revamp bears fruits

01 November 2005

Optimism is palpable as one enters Mohamed Hareb Al Otaiba (MHAO).

Board member Ashraf Hamed is highly satisfied with the early fruits borne by the restructuring of the group.
Citing the reason for the move, Hamed says: “The emergence of exacting customers, change in the market dimensions, fierce competition and expanding business has pushed Mohammad Hareb Al Otaiba to revamp its strategies and adopt the demerging approach, turning many of our divisions into separate entities and thus create result-oriented, customer-friendly establishments. The fully operational new companies and divisions within the MHAO fold are the final cosmetics in the plans which were put in motion in 2004 to give this pioneering trading concern a completely new corporate profile.”
“We have put in a lot of efforts in planning this corporate turnaround to match the pace of growth and change and I am happy to see that the results are better than we anticipated. The concept of delegating authority and making the divisions focused entities has already started paying off, judging by the exceptional response from the market. This way, the new companies can devise their own market plans, growth strategies and concentrate on client servicing which is the foundation stone of the whole concept,” he adds.
Hamed believes that the mere selling and after-sales services are no longer adequate to survive in the present market situation.
“Customer service is what makes an establishment flourish. We have gone the extra mile in taking care of our customers and that is why Al Otaiba for Service (AOS) has been established as a trendsetter. Attention to customers’ problems is of paramount importance to us and we have invested a great deal of resources into AOS to take care of this particular issue. When fully operational, AOS will be the region’s first dedicated multi-brand customer service company with a difference – AOS would have a solution for any imaginable business contingency a client could have.”
Every company has its share of ups and downs and what kept Al Otaiba afloat during the hard times was its export business, which has always been a major source of revenue for the company. Al Otaiba was the first Abu Dhabi family to start operations in Dubai, which at a later stage, became the re-export hub of the region.
“We were lucky to have an established operational base in Dubai. MHAO has benefited a lot through the growth of the export sector in the emirate and exports were the only way of survival during many of the recessions the company has faced in almost six decades. It has always been the backbone of revenue generation,” he points out.
Currently, MHAO is working on a phased expansion plan to penetrate the GCC, North African and Central Asian markets. “Our new companies have their own export strategies and the group has also entered in many joint ventures in Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman to secure a firm grip on those markets as well. Right now, the trading companies working under MHAO’s umbrella achieve 15 per cent of their revenue through exports,” he maintains.
While the markets of India and Pakistan are also being evaluated for their potential in trading and manufacturing opportunities, the company is seriously considering moving into Libya.
Despite the ambitious plans for overseas markets, the group considers the UAE as its primary market and believes it will keep on growing for the foreseeable future. “We are in a strong position in the domestic market and I believe that we will also secure a niche in many of the regional markets in the near future. There is a lot at the planning stage and five years down the road, MHAO will be in a stronger position not only in the UAE but Gulf-wide,” he asserts.
Attributing the economic boom in the UAE to the unprecedented growth of the construction sector, Hamed says that construction precedes and underpins the growth and development of every business sector – even those which are not related to it. “This is a complete development cycle which has worked in favour of Al Otaiba. As a company we have seen many booms like the ones of the 80s and late 90s and have capitalised on the opportunities,’’ he says.
“We have seen good days and bad, through six decades of our operational history, which have been full of ups and downs and countless challenges. Business prudence, patience and right strategy is what has steered us through the troubled waters. Even now, the sailing is not easy, as markets have expanded beyond imagination, which has given rise to competition. However, we have nothing to complain as this is a healthy sign and gives us the motivation to surge ahead of others,” he concludes.