The last day of company visits started with overcast weather, as we met at 08:15 in the lobby to commence the day’s program. With visits to ABB and Silatech, as well as a tour of the Museum of Islamic Art, an interesting day was upon us.
ABB – Swiss powerhouse in the Middle East
We were welcomed to ABB’s offices by Erika, the HR Manager of the Qatari branch. After a thorough security briefing in case of an emergency, we all felt safe and ready for the presentation. Erika started by giving us an extensive introduction to Qatar, it’s religion, culture, traditions, and economy. ABB, a global leader in power and automation technologies, particularly stresses the importance of having a high turnaround of innovation in order to be successful in their industry. The Qatari branch currently employs roughly 180 people from 27 different nationalities, which mainly functions as a service centre. They supply to various contractors of large infrastructure projects as well as the oil & gas industry. Lastly, the company places great importance on their company culture and business ethics, which is regulated by their code of conduct.
Once the presentation came to an end, the group was kindly presented with gifts and a lunch box, which was so generously filled that in some cases it couldn’t withstand the heavy load. Thanks to the great organization of the group in charge, everybody had plenty of time to have lunch and explore the Gate Mall. At 12:50, the program continued with a visit to Silatech, which has its offices situated inside the mall’s towers.
Silatech – Connecting youth with job opportunities
The mission of the 2008 founded NGO is to help connect the Arab youth with job opportunities. The company operates out of Doha to serve the Arab world and is present in 16 different countries. Through partnerships they create various programs with the aim of assisting young people in finding a job most suitable to their capabilities. Thanks to Silatech, more than 300’000 young people have found work so far. After a very interesting Q&A session and some tasty snacks and refreshments, we were honored to meet the company’s CEO, Ms. Sabah Ismail Al Haidoos, who presented the group with a token of appreciation in the form of a beautiful trophy.
After our last trip back to Mövenpick Hotel with our designated buses, we celebrated and thanked our very friendly and reliable bus drivers one last time, which was an emotional moment for all. Before the evening program, the time off was used to either work out, recover, or enjoy the spa facilities.
Voluntary activity – Museum of Islamic Art
Due to bad weather conditions, the group was forced to go to the museum by bus rather than taking the boat across the bay. Apart from hosting various interesting exhibitions on Islamic art, the museum itself is worth seeing for its unique architecture and surroundings. What made the visit even more worthwhile, was that Mr. Dia-Eddine offered to share his extensive knowledge and guide the group through the museum. To round off the tour, the museum has a popular terrace which allowed us to take great pictures of Doha’s Skyline.
To complete an eventful day, the majority of the group celebrated the beginning of the weekend by attending a local full-moon beach party at the Hilton Hotel.
Written by:
Fabio Vettiger
Carlo Ammann
Joshua Turnbull
Timothée Grunder