HLB Hamt - Insight Issue 14

Issue 14

insight 06

Technology helps DOCIB respond during COVID-19 crisis

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Customer-centricity and culture the key to success of FCM Travel

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Tax Updates in the UAE – What you need to know?

Insight | HLB HAMT

CONTENTS

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06 Technology helps DOCIB respond during COVID-19 crisis

08 Customer-centricity and culture the key to success of FCM Travel

12 Tax Updates in the UAE – What you need to know?

14 Client’s satisfaction the key to Naresco’s phenomenal success

Partner’s message

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Mr. Hisham Ali Mohamed Taher, Chairman & Partner – HLB HAMT

A BRIGHTER FUTURE

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and another minister was dedicated for foreign trade to oversee the development of non-oil sector and to enhance the investment climate in UAE. The introduction of vaccines has given the entire world a welcome and timely boost in its fight against this deadly virus – and the UAE is 2nd in the global ranking chart when it comes to vaccinations, which once again indicates the phenomenal leadership we have in this country.

There are other reasons to be excited about 2021 in the UAE. Firstly, it represents the 50th anniversary of the country and there will be a series of events to celebrate the incredible journey the UAE has undertaken over the last 50 years. The UAE is a symbol of what can be achieved when you

adopt a progressive mindset towards innovation and technological advancement.

In addition to this, the UAE will also host EXPO 2020 in October of this year, which will be the very first EXPO ever held in the Middle East.

The legacy element of the project promises to make it the greatest EXPO ever seen, with the EXPO site expected to be the most ‘connected’ place on earth.

One other important lesson we have learned during the pandemic has been the importance of human values such as tolerance, understanding and peace and we will hold those values closely as we continue economic relationships with new friends and neighbors.

2021 promises to be a truly historic year for the UAE.

HLB HAMT | Insight

he COVID-19 pandemic has fundamentally reshaped and changed the world that we live in forever. 2020 is a year that none of us will forget in a hurry, but 2021 has given us a renewed sense of hope and optimism for the year ahead, especially in the UAE. The UAE government illustrated tremendous foresight and vision to contain the virus and protect the most vulnerable in its society. It provided the necessary infrastructure and support to help companies maintain business continuity during the crisis and this was crucial in terms of stabilizing the local economy.

The government also restructured the Ministry of Economy for a more ‘agile and swift’ decision-making.

The Minister of state was assigned to look after entrepreneurs and SME

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News

New members

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44 66

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56 71 4152 34 32 33

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40

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Kazakhstan NUR-SULTAN - HLB Scope Kazakhstan

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Luxembourg BELVAUX - Aumea Partner

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73

31

47

45

USA HoustonBriggs & Veselka Co., LLP

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77 75

42

39

70

55

74

76 64

69

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50

61

58 49 60 53 65

68

77

67

43

48

59

38

46

63 72

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Chile SANTIAGO - HLB Surlatina Chile

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Thailand BANGKOK - HLB Thailand

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Tajikistan DUSHANBE - HLB Tajikistan

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Grenada ST GEORGE - HLB Grenada

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Bolivia LA PAZ - HLB Bolivia

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Mexico BAJA CALIFORNIA - HLB FFA Consultores, S.C.

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Jamaica KINGSTON - HLB Mair Russell

As one of the leading global accountancy networks. HLB International has continued its growth with the addition of these new member firms. They have allowed us to strengthen our position in developed economies, as well as expand our presence into emerging markets.

Latest News

Insight | HLB HAMT

HLB celebrates winning ‘Network of the Year’ LONDON – HLB, the global advisory and accounting network, is proud to announce that it has been named ‘Network of the Year’ at the 2020 Digital Accountancy Awards. The award was presented at the virtual ceremony which took place on 30 September.

Team HLB were also celebrating with Dr Frances Ellington of HLB USA who was awarded ‘Young Accountant of the Year’. Widely regarded as the industry’s premiere awards programme, the Digital Accountancy Awards celebrate excellence in the accounting profession.

For HLB, the ‘Network of the Year’ award is in recognition of a milestone year.

Commenting on the win, Corney Versteden, HLB Global Chairman, said: “I am immensely proud that HLB has been recognised as ‘Network of the

HLB HAMT signs MOU with RERA Year’. 2019 was a monumental year for us and we looked forward to building on the fantastic achievements we had made. But we all know that 2020 has been an unprecedented year for everyone and I’ve been humbled to see how our network has come together to support not only each other but our clients during these extraordinary times. This award is truly a reflection of all the hard work and dedication of our people from all over the world and it shows the strength of our tagline ‘Together we make it happen’”.

HLB HAMT Chartered Accountants is proud to announce that it has signed an MOU with RERA (Real Estate Regulatory Authority) to act as auditors and advisors for Jointly Owned Properties under Jointly Owned Property Law in the Emirate of Dubai.

As per the new procedure auditors are appointed by RERA and based on their evaluation they re-empaneled the selected audit firms as their partners for audit, budget study reviews, legal notice related services & allocation study. Mr. Vijay Anand (CEO and Partner) and His Excellency Eng. Marwan Bin Ghalaita (representing RERA) had signed the MOU on Sep 10, 2020.

News

HLB volunteers 7,393 hours to aid local communities in their COVID-19 recovery

On Friday 9 October, HLB came together to support COVID-19 recovery in local communities for #HLBCommunities Day. The network’s global Corporate Social Responsibility initiative, #HLBCommunities Day, saw HLB collectively volunteer 7,393 hours through 1,111 participants across 31 community projects.

Marco Donzelli, HLB’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “In these unprecedented times, our communities need us now more than ever.

Which is why despite the various lockdown measures and safety precautions that needed to be followed, it was wonderful to see so many projects taking place.

That is because for HLB, giving back is deeply embedded within our culture, and days like #HLBCommunities Day remind us of that. It’s our chance to share in the impact we create as a global organisation.”

HLB USA’s Jim Bourke and Ed Mendlowitz Named in 100 Most Influential People in Public Accounting Withum is proud to recognize Team Members Jim Bourke and Ed Mendlowitz for ranking in Accounting Today’s Top 100 People in Public Accounting list.

Jim Bourke placed 12th on Accounting Today’s list—just two spots behind President-Elect Joe Biden. Jim is a Partner and the Managing Director of Withum’s Advisory Services practice.

He is a renowned public speaker known for his talks, podcasts and interviews on technology and business advisory.

Ed Mendlowitz is an Emeritus Partner and Lead of the Partners’ Network at Withum. With over 40 years of public accounting experience, Ed uses his platform to push out sound, relevant thought leadership through various channels to accountants around the globe. Between his role at the Firm, his blogs and commentary, and even over a decade of being an accounting professor, Ed’s wisdom continues to guide both new professionals and established CPAs.

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HLB launches Sustainability and CSR advisory services MALTA – As global organisations recognise the importance of sustainability and the benefits for growth, HLB launches its support for businesses through its sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) advisory services.

HLB Sustain CSR is led by Managing Director Manosij Ganguli, who will take on the role of Global Sustainability Leader for the network. Commenting on joining HLB, he says: “Together with the other Directors in the senior leadership team – Vijay L Narasimhan and Eddy Quah, we are delighted to join the HLB family and we look forward to working with all the HLB firms in providing these advisory services to clients globally.”

Marco Donzelli, HLB CEO says: “Not only is sustainability a key business imperative, but it’s been proven to help businesses not only sustain but evolve through uncertain economic times. That is why the launch of our new sustainability and CSR advisory services could not have come at a better time. Our collaborations with our clients will be deepened by the expertise that HLB Sustain CSR provides, as we work together to create a more sustainable future for us all.”

HLB HAMT signs MOU with Participating Entities In-Country Value (ICV) Certification

HLB HAMT | Insight

HLB HAMT Chartered Accountants is proud to announce that it has signed the MOU with Participating Entities of In-Country Value (ICV) Certification Program and now is one of the certifying bodies in UAE who can issue the ICV certificate in accordance with the guidelines of Abu Dhabi Local Content Program.

We are sure that this partnership with the ICV Participating Entities will strengthen our firm, continue our development in UAE and provide quality services to our clients.

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DOCIB Healthcare

Insight | HLB HAMT

TECHNOLOGY HELPS DOCIB RESPOND DURING COVID-19 CRISIS

Shinsi Ibrahim, CEO of DOCIB Healthcare, documents the challenges her company faced during the COVID-19 pandemic, how they leveraged technology to lead the fightback against the virus – and how ‘customer satisfaction’ remains the priority for DOCIB in 2021.

Can you outline to our readers how DOCIB was impacted by COVID-19 and what challenges did you face during lockdown?

Much like every other enterprise out there, DOCIB Healthcare felt the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic in its day-to-day operations. The entire workforce, constituting of over 250+ employees had to be well briefed and drilled to overcome these unprecedented days.

We had to navigate and evolve on daily basis as the challenges were from all sides. Ensuring safety of our staff at the frontend was our priority.

Times were as such that we had to extend our working hours to service the community.

Ensuring smooth operations, product availability, logistics, accessibility at odd hours and much more, all while maintaining high safety standards and customer satisfaction were a few of the top challenges we faced in 2020.

DOCIB Healthcare

Out of every crisis comes opportunity, and the healthcare industry has been transformed by technology. How important a role did technology play in terms of keeping you operational during the pandemic?

The world has inevitably been transformed by COVID-19 and the healthcare sector is one of the many that saw instantaneous changes.

People were concerned of how dependent we as a generation were on technology.

But this past year has shown us that we can rely on technology to carry us forward when humanity came to a standstill. Technology without doubt played an inevitable role in keeping us operational during this phase.

Being switched to an ERP was a blessing which facilitated remote operations by our backend staff. Also being made available in the digital platforms helped us to reach the customers at their comfort zone.

Technology played an integral role of business continuity and build loyalty

As we know regardless of industry, digital experiences are key. It is vital for businesses to deliver a seamless experience for their customers. How has DOCIB applied technology to help its customers avoid long queues and waiting times to make their retail experience a much better one?

Ever since DOCIB Healthcare was founded, our prime focal point has been “Customer Experience” and we ensured it carried on for our customers who were acquiring our services digitally. We deployed an entire fleet of delivery executives that delivered all essentials to our customers doorsteps.

Our retail force worked on a much swifter and smarter scale keeping time spent on each customer short and efficient.

2020 has been a difficult year for everybody. Are you optimistic about the next 12 months and what will be your strategy to continue your growth in 2021?

2020 has brought many positive

changes within the company.

Being in Healthcare industry we have seen a positive growth in our toplines, however with pressurised margins. Being able to adapt and change according to times is what matters after all.

DOCIB Healthcare’s strategies would not drift too far from our core principle which is to aim for optimal customer satisfaction.

We have plans to open new outlets in neighborhood areas and introduce natural and organic products in UAE market, thus ensuring to spread and inspire better health in years to come

“We leveraged technology to maintain business continuity and build further loyalty with our customers.”

Shinsi Ibrahim CEO of DOCIB Healthcare

HLB HAMT | Insight

We live in an on-demand digital economy, a world in which we can book a taxi, order food and shop online by simply clicking on an application on our smartphones. Do you think it’s inevitable that physical stores that resist digitalisation will go out of business?

The UAE’s business sector has

undoubtedly been the survival of the fittest for many years now. After all we have seen in 2020, if businesses are still reluctant to go digital, or at the very least have a digital presence it might prove to be terribly unsavory.

In this modern era, we see huge empires like Amazon, Uber and others being built up in the digital space. We must come to terms that digital is the inevitable future.

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FCM Travel

CUSTOMER-CENTRICITY AND CULTURE THE KEY TO SUCCESS OF FCM TRAVEL

Insight | HLB HAMT

Ciarán Kelly, Managing Director, UAE, and Middle East & Africa Regional Leader at FCM Travel, outlines how its customer-centric approach and strong culture has been a real differentiator for the company in terms of overcoming the challenges they faced during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kelly has enjoyed a decorated and distinguished career at FCM Travel and has spent 19 years at the travel management company.

In a candid interview for the latest edition of the HLB HAMT Insight supplement, Kelly explains in detail how their continued investment in emerging technologies in recent years helped them streamline operational efficiency, their strategic plans for 2021 - and how their personalised business model ultimately helped them survive the economic crisis of the pandemic.

FCM Travel is a travel management company that has a market presence in 95 countries worldwide. However, the COVID-19 pandemic practically shutdown the aviation industry, and almost all corporate travel was suspended. How did you survive these unprecedented challenges?

Several reasons have contributed to FCM surviving the pandemic challenges thus far.

We prepared in advance as much as possible before city lockdowns happened. Our contingency plan of working from home was set up 3

weeks in advance for example before the UAE shut down.

This allowed us to equip staff with systems to continue servicing customers in the event that our office building was potentially shut down overnight if COVID-19 broke out in our office or elsewhere in the office/ hotel building.

Communication with staff was regular via various forums, daily alerts, weekly zoom calls, small department team communication messages to ensure staff knew what was expected from them internally

FCM Travel

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Ciarán Kelly Managing Director, UAE, and Middle East & Africa Regional Leader at FCM Travel

“A groundbreaking and innovative part of our global travel management company is the FCM Lab.”

Sumesh Kunnath, Partner, HLB HAMT

HLB HAMT | Insight

and what their customers may expect from us as a service business.

Accurate information was essential to ensure staff could assist customers with information that was changing minute-by-minute from airlines and hotels partners and obviously from foreign governments on border closures was essential. Our global travel information news hub ensured we knew the correct information to be sharing with clients which was being updated daily by colleagues around the FCM world.

FCM has a diverse range of existing customers that also needed to continue travelling where possible during the pandemic and thus sectors such as Energy clients, Media, Consumer and Pharma and NGO’s amongst a few others has ensured sales continued.

In addition, while servicing and the retention of the existing customers has been crucial, we have been really fortunate to continue to win new clients in FCM during the pandemic that seen gaps in their existing travel agency partnerships and service offering thus shifted their business to FCM to take advantage of our full suite of products and global network.

One of those advantages many customers benefited from was our own in-house Air Charter division, AVMIN. We have been able to repatriate customers to and from

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FCM Travel

Insight | HLB HAMT

various locations when airlines had cancelled their routes, were full by using our teams of resources, contacts and private jets to get people from A to Z. Our investors believe in the FCM business and over the last 12 months we have secured over $1.2bn from existing and new investors. In addition, cash flow has been crucial for everyone during the pandemic.

By reacting quickly at the start of the pandemic and because of the close partnerships formed over the years, the vast majority of our customers appreciated our industry was being hit hard and paid outstanding invoices on time and in advance.

Finally, our culture at FCM is solid and strong! The people really do take customer care to a level of superiority within our industry.

Despite the uncertainty the industry and our business were facing each day, the commitment, ownership and responsibility has been a main factor in our resilience during the pandemic.

We live in a data-driven digital era in which consumer expectations are constantly evolving. However, FCM Travel has carved out a reputation for being able to deliver a very personalised experience for your customers. Is this customer-centricity approach what differentiates you from your market rivals?

Personally, the level of customer focus at FCM is one of the numerous reasons why people such as myself have stayed in the company for so long, as I approach 19 years of service in 2021.

Our culture is built upon giving our people ownership, accountability and responsibility. We want them to feel part of the FCM business, not a cog and when you create such a model, they love to own that relationship with their customers.

Our aim is to make as much of the travel experience with FCM as simple as possible and as much of that travel journey centralised via a dedicated consultant. We have also signed a

partnership with a medical supplier in the region to also offer PCR testing at home or in-clinic for our travellers that may require the certificate when booking the flight with FCM. Coupled with this customercentricity approach we have also ensured our people and the customer is evolving together and weave technology into this partnership. FCM technology is tailored for the various stakeholders in the relationship to enhance the experience for the booker, traveller and manager.

We are constantly monitoring, through the help of technology, the level client satisfaction throughout the contract period to ensure we are exceeding expectations. In turn, this also helps to ensure the wellbeing of our people, that they are not being too stretched and have the necessary resources to service their clients and have a balanced lifestyle.

There are numerous other differentiators we enjoy from our rivals such as our global footprint, negotiating strength, can do attitude and our business philosophies but our

personalised business model certainly does help us to enjoy a high retention rate of customers.

For a travel company being prevented from flying is obviously a severe challenge to their business model, but what other obstacles did you have to contend with during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis?

Simplifying information for operational staff and clients was crucial, as this was changing minute by minute and also by the hour during the crisis.

From airlines, hotels and car suppliers to country borders being open or closed, all this needed to be monitored to ensure we could help instantly and also assist clients forecast necessary changes and implement actions to safeguard their travellers.

Data for our customers was crucial.

Clients wanted to know which countries their travellers had visited two to three weeks previously that were high risk markets for example, which employees they had travelling currently and those going within 24

FCM Travel

hours and beyond.

Alongside this, the importance and value of the FCM Account Manager has surged, the ability to re-negotiate industry supplier contracts and consult on travel policies has been valued as a key role in cost saving strategies.

Communication with our own people during the pandemic has been vital.

They have seen the industry crumble over the last several months and witness colleagues in travel agencies, their customers, airlines, hotels and others face redundancy.

Thus, the reassurance and appreciation of our people during this pandemic faced with the uncertainty of the future has been an ongoing contention.

“Our investors believe in the FCM business and over the last 12 months we have secured over $1.2bn from existing and new investors.”

In November 2020 we launched our Travel Policy Benchmarking tool and again 2021 will bring more enhancements to this fantastic intel that customers can benefit from.

2020 has been a terrible year for many industries, and global economies have taken a battering.

However, can you tell us what FCM’s strategy will be for 2021 and what does you think the next 12 months will look like from a business and economic perspective?

FCM’s focus in 2021 will be one of a consultative approach with our existing customers. It will be essential to keep them informed on uptodate information that’s relevant to their travel program and at the same time enhance cost saving opportunities that may not have been a priority preCOVID-19.

We’ve also ended 2020 on securing over $1bn in contracts with new customers across various sectors.

We will continue to position FCM as a solution focussed alternative travel management company and shake up the industry in 2021.

While all businesses are being impacted by the same pandemic, the fallout across different industry groups and geographic locations is varied. It is clear that uncertainty will remain for some time, however companies that can adapt more quickly to the new business models post COVID-19 will be well positioned to get back to business sooner.

Business models will be made up of a combination of the virtual world, more companies extending working from home policies, WFH, a reduction in spending on office space, coupled with the traditional face to face world we have all been accustomed to prepandemic.

Our industry however also has an important role to play itself to boost the confidence of our clients and their travellers. We need to be able to reassure them that face-to-face meetings are safe, equip them with the necessary support, information, technology and protocols which will instil trust and stability.

HLB HAMT | Insight

FCM Travel has always been a company that has embraced new technologies in order to enhance experiences and make business travel management simpler, faster and more efficient. What new technologies are your excited by and which ones do you think

will really enhance your overall business operations?

Over the last five years FCM’s investment in technology has been consistent for not only people working within the business but also for our customers. By continuing to focus on streamlining the operational process and automating as much as possible we can enhance the FCM consultants service to the client.

A groundbreaking and innovative part of our global travel management company is the FCM Lab. FCM Lab is powered by an extensive global team of in-house progressive tech developers, UX and UI specialists and travel experts who are given the time and space to identify the gaps where technology can make a tangible difference to our customers.

We’re excited about our AI journey at FCM and this year we enhanced our reporting capabilities. Designed to provide a more robust and customer-centric experience for travel managers, the FCM AI Reporting Tool offers a unique way to visualise data simply by posing a question using natural language.

With FCM’s new AI Reporting Tool, clients can easily search, sort and visualise their data to identify savings opportunities, establish informed sourcing strategies, or quickly find statistics needed to respond to a critical incident.

As a result of COVID-19, more and more companies are keen to review their travel policies, or introduce a policy and even benchmark what other customers best practises are to address duty of care and maximise their budgets.

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VAT updates

TAX UPDATES IN THE UAE – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW?

Insight | HLB HAMT

HLB HAMT Partner Jay Krishnan, has detailed some important updates on VAT applicability for real estate, medical equipment, ESR and excise tax in our latest edition of our Insight supplement.

TAX UPDATES: Since the COVID-19 pandemic there has been a huge surge and growth in E-commerce, with more and more consumers spending online and we now live in an on-demand digital economy.

However, there have been some important changes made in relation to VAT when it comes to E-commerce.

The VAT Guide on E-commerce was issued by the FTA in August 2020, and some of the changes include: • Goods purchased online that are to be exported are eligible for zero rate VAT if certain conditions are fulfilled.

• Supply made by a non-resident to a non-registered person in UAE, the non-resident supplier is required to register for VAT and to account for VAT on supplies.

Real Estate – Owners Association & Management Entity: The Real Estate market is a key component and cornerstone of the UAE economy - and there have been very important updates made in this industry in relation to VAT. Pursuant to the change in law concerning ownership of jointly owned properties in Dubai: • All rights and obligations of OA will shift to Management Entity • All OA should deregister from UAE VAT • Non-compliance by OA will attract penalty of AED 10,000 • Management entities must ensure compliance with UAE VAT regulations or else hefty penalties will be imposed.

exponential increase in the need for PPE, face masks and other medical equipment. However, from February 28th, 2021 there will now be a 5% VAT on some medical imports.

• Supply or import of certain medical equipment during September 01, 2020 to February 28, 2021 will be zero rated.

• Any supply or import outside the aforesaid period will be subject to 5% VAT. • Medical face masks, Half-filtered face mask, Non-medical textile face mask, Single use gloves, Certain categories of chemical disinfectants and antiseptics intended for use on human body is qualified for the above exemption.

Zero Rating of Certain Medical Equipment: The COVID-19 pandemic triggered an

FTA Administrative Update: • FTA updated the VAT refund template.

VAT updates

• Refund claim for multiple tax periods can now be applied by VAT registrants through single VAT refund template.

EXCISE: Excise Tax Obligations for Warehouse: • Excise Taxpayers operating in a Designated Zone (DZ) must appoint a certified external auditor to audit opening stock on January 01, 2021.

• The taxpayer must fill Opening Stock Declaration (EX024) and submit the same with the auditor report no later than January 31, 2021.

• Non-compliance will set the stock held in DZ to zero and restrict the taxpayer from moving the stock out of DZ. • If Warehouse keepers holds stock for owners who are not registered for Excise Tax with the FTA, they (the Warehouse Keepers) will need to complete the NonRegistered Excise Stock Movement Declaration form (EX204A).

• This is a one-off exercise to be completed during January 2021.

Economic Substance Regulation: As per the Economic Substance Regulations (ESR), all Licensees are required to notify the Regulatory Authority (typically the license issuing authority) annually on the following aspects: • Whether or not the Licensee is carrying on a Relevant Activity • If the Licensee is carrying on a Relevant Activity, whether all or any part of the Licensee’s gross income in relation to the Relevant Activity is subject to tax in a jurisdiction outside the United Arab Emirates (UAE) • The date of the end of the Licensee’s Financial Year (Accounting Reference Period) • In August 2020, the UAE Cabinet issued updated economic substance regulations which revoked and replaced the previous economic substance regulations introduced in 2019.

UBO: Unless exempt under Beneficial Owner Procedures (the Regulations) companies licensed to carry on business in the UAE must maintain a register of partners or shareholders and a register of Ultimate Beneficial Owners (UBO) and submit UBO information to the relevant registrar or licensing authority (Registrar).

Deadline for filing of register is October 27, 2020.

Any changes to the information contained in the registers must be updated and notified to the Registrar within 15 days of such change.

Regarding companies that are under dissolution or liquidation, the appointed liquidator has an obligation to provide a true copy of the updated UBO register to the Registrar within 30 days of the liquidator’s appointment.

Author: Jay Krishnan, HLB HAMT E-Mail: jk@hlbhamt.com

UBO are: • Owns or controls 25% equity shares or voting right of at least 25% or • The natural person who exercises control over the entity or • The natural person who is responsible for the senior management of the entity.

“Management entities must ensure compliance with UAE VAT regulations or else hefty penalties will be imposed.”

Jay Krishnan HLB HAMT Partner

HLB HAMT | Insight

KEY CHANGES: • Appointment of FTA as the authority for assessment of compliances by licensees, imposing penalties for non-compliance, hear on appeals filed by licensees.

• Licensees excludes natural persons,

sole proprietors, trusts and foundations.

• The deadline for filing an ESR report for a Licensee with a financial year commencing on or after January 01, 2019 and ending on or before December 31, 2019 is December 31, 2020.

• This deadline is extended to January 31, 2021.

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Naresco

Abdulkarim Abdulla Al Arif, Managing Director of Naresco Contracting LLC

CLIENT’S SATISFACTION THE KEY TO NARESCO’S PHENOMENAL SUCCESS

Insight | HLB HAMT

Abdulkarim Abdulla Al Arif, Managing Director of Naresco Contracting LLC, outlines in detail how the company overcame the issues they encountered during the global COVID-19 crisis, how Naresco has managed to sustain its success over the last four decades – and some of the projects they have in the pipeline over the next 12 months.

Naresco has firmly established itself as one of the most diversified construction companies in the Middle East. However, can you inform our readers what challenges you faced as a direct consequence of the global COVID-19 pandemic?

Thanks for the compliment. 2020 had been a challenging year globally due to the COVID-19 pandemic and still reeling the adverse impacts, which were significant all over the world.

The initial challenge was to protect our valued workforce from the fear and stress they were going through due

to pandemic and hence, we created a protective environment by conducting the Covid Tests for all our workforce, installed sanitisation tunnel, arranged quarantine facilities for any suspected cases with all provisions, etc.

In addition, for all the efforts put in by the UAE Government and their relevant authorities especially DHA, we lend our support by constructing the isolation wards, extension for hospitals, temporary facilities for tests, etc in various locations in Dubai, UAE. Moreover, the direct consequences which we faced and impacted us due

to the pandemic were namely: a.) Freezing of major tender projects by our valuable Clients which were anticipated to tender and commence in the year 2020. b.) Suspension of projects which were in the final stages of award. c.) Huge negotiations on prospective tender projects with reduction on our margins. d.) Work productivity in projects were severely impacted due to all required precautions maintained at project sites and offices to minimise the COVID-19 virus spread as well as

Naresco

reduced work timings considering the health of our staff & workers which consequently impacted the project progress and revenue collection. e.) Delayed material delivery from our suppliers (Local & Imported) for major materials due to suspension of activities in factories & manufacturing units worldwide thereby severely hampering the progress in projects. f.) Additional burden of overheads to comply with the precautionary measures of COVID-19 i.e. Regular sanitising of all our facilities along with temperature monitoring, construction and complete setup of quarantine centre in our camp facilities for suspected Covid cases, Increased fleet for transfer of staff/ workers due to seating limitations, etc However, the global recession in 2008 played a major role for us to overcome such situations.

The company’s solid foundation to withstand such situations were the accumulation of various valuable assets which were self-owned e.g. Residential properties, Lands, numerous labour camps, Vehicles & Machineries as required for construction purpose, etc In addition, due to slowdown in construction industry and being a diversified group catering to construction related business, management took significant decisions to explore other business opportunities and as such, we ventured into sports facilities and established World Padel Academy engaged in Padel Sports and allied business activities which now has a great demand.

Can you tell us about some of the exciting projects that you have in the pipeline for 2021?

Even though it was a tough year (2020) for the construction business, we were able to secure some good projects from our existing and new clients which are in the initial stages of construction in 2021 and includes a.) Hospital building in Umm Suqeim b.) 2 buildings in Al Warsan c.) Residential building in Nadd Al Hamar

“We tend to innovate our business with all the latest technology available in the market.” d.) Residential building in Al Mankhool fe) Tower (mixed used) in Business Bay Also, we are in the final stages of completing the huge and notable project of constructing 27 buildings as a package.

2020 has been an extremely difficult year for all industries on a global scale.

However, there is renewed optimism.

What are your predictions from a construction perspective for 2021, and what will be your strategy to ensure you maintain growth and success?

With the introduction of Covid-19 vaccinations around the world to curb the Covid-19 virus, we are very much optimistic that, 2021 will be a recovery phase for all the industries globally and especially UAE as we have great faith in the Rulers of UAE and their robust leadership which has put in great efforts to commence the vaccination on a large scale to cover the entire UAE population within the shortest period.

We are monitoring the market situation which we anticipate to remain subdued till the 2nd quarter of 2021 and subsequently anticipate the demand to increase especially in construction business.

With the number of projects in hand currently, we are confident to maintain a satisfactory growth in 2021 and are putting our best efforts to secure high end projects with our competitive pricing to maintain and sustain the growth and success of our company. In addition, apart from the construction business, we are venturing in various other businesses which are now trending and have a great demand in UAE. In your opinion, many industries have embraced new technologies which has been labelled as ‘digital transformation’. What role do you see technology playing in the construction industry in an era known as Industry 4.0?

As earlier said, we tend to innovate our construction business with all the updated and latest technology available in the market. Our specialised team keeps a keen eye on the market developments in terms of technology and after a thorough review on its elements and its benefit, we include the same in our business line.

Currently, we are dealing with various advanced applications/ softwares which has greatly facilitated us in minimising the cost as well as to take keen business decisions and includes: Oracle Fusion (complete module)Forecasting and budgeting the project cost and various management dashboards providing a useful tool for the management to review the overall group status and to identify any lags.

DMS- Scanning of all documentations especially related to projects and centrally stored which can be accessed by all authorised representatives thereby reducing the paper wastage and contribute to the Environment preservation.

Hilti- Accurate tracking and status of all our available inventories to reduce the unwanted procurements and overheads.

Location Solutions- Accurate monitoring on movement of vehicles with consumption details to reduce the unwanted cost and maximise the utilisation of fleets.

HLB HAMT | Insight

Since your inception in 1986, you have always purused projects with innovation and excellence at the heart of everything you do. Is the customer centric model that you have adopted one of the reasons you have enjoyed so much success over the last four decades?

Client’s satisfaction has always been our first priority and due to which, we have numerous valuable clients who has conferred their faith in our management and company by awarding their next projects with preference to us.

Also, we have succeeded in building a good relationship with local

authorities as a main contractor for their valuable projects which were completed in line with their guidelines and expectations.

Moreover, we tend to innovate our construction business with all the updated and latest technology available in the market which benefited us to improve our production to meet the deadlines as well as to reduce our construction cost.

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Mr. Sathish M • Sathish@leedssolution.com • +971 55 979 4374 Mr. Sathish M • Sathish@leedssolution.com • +971 55 979 4374