- Qiyada Emerging Leaders is a tailored leadership program aimed at empowering top Emirati talent
- Year-long national development program supports Emiratization efforts, to power future economic diversification
McKinsey & Company has announced the launch of a new leadership development program designed to unlock the leadership potential of top Emirati professionals in Abu Dhabi. The intensive one-year program is set to commence in January 2020.
McKinsey has a long and well-established presence in Abu Dhabi of working across public and private sector institutions to support the major economic transformation currently underway in the emirate. Recognizing that young leaders are critical to delivering and sustaining this transformation, the Qiyada Emerging Leaders program is committed to identifying and developing Emirati talent that can deliver on the UAE capital’s major ambitions.
Unlike traditional leadership development programs, Qiyada – which means “leadership” in Arabic – will offer an immersive learning experience of self-discovery, self-definition and self-shaping. It will be led by esteemed industry experts and will include a mix of learning forums, immersive discovery sessions and team-building activities over a 12-month period.
McKinsey will select 20 young, professional Emiratis currently leading strategic projects across the private and public sectors in the UAE capital. Selected candidates will currently hold managerial positions and must demonstrate a robust track record of achievement in their respective organizations. Candidates must also showcase a strong desire for self-improvement and be eager to lead and develop colleagues’ skill sets.
Rima Assi, Senior Partner, and Head of McKinsey’s Abu Dhabi office, said: “Abu Dhabi is going through an ambitious transformation, one that requires the support of young, driven leaders. To foster this important effort, we are excited to launch the Qiyada Emerging Leaders program for young Emirati professionals. Through a year-long development journey of self-discovery, we hope to unlock both the personal and professional potential that will better equip participants to not only contribute to this transformation, but also help drive it.”
Maitham Albaharna, Associate Partner at McKinsey Middle East added: “This is a unique program that focuses on elements that are uncommon in typical training programs. It brings together everything we know about leadership development, lays the foundations for the introspective work of self-discovery, self-definition and self-shaping. These elements of personal growth are key to enabling original leadership and are often decisive in times of transformation.”
Empowering and enabling local talent to develop their leadership capabilities are major national priorities in the UAE. However, according to the latest statistics from the UAE’s Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority (FCSA), less than 10 percent of the private sector workforce are Emiratis. As the nation intensifies its Emiratization efforts to bring more Emiratis into the private sectors and galvanize a non-oil dependent economy powered by local talent, McKinsey’s work – especially through the Qiyada Emerging Leaders program – will become invaluable in helping Abu Dhabi realize its national goals.
The Qiyada Emerging Leaders program involves the following:
- 360-degree leadership assessment to understand strengths and weaknesses
- One-on-one coaching sessions with professional coaches to shape a personal learning journey
- In-person leadership training forums delivered by distinguished experts to progress leadership capabilities
- Access to mobile-friendly digital learning modules to help reinforce learnings
- Guest speakers from leading private- and public-sector organizations to deliver keynotes
- Networking and team-building exercises to encourage long-term collaboration among participants
Application dates are now open and will close on 30 November. The year-long Qiyada Emerging Leaders program will commence in January 2020.
