Etisalat Academy's 2009 HR Conference draws to a close

This event was organized by the Etisalat Academy and sponsored by Etisalat and the Abu Dhabi Police G.H.Q.

The conference brought together a diverse group of global thinkers in the field of Human Resources. Topics discussed included the most pertinent international issues such as retaining talent during economic uncertainty and global best practice. The conference highlighted the importance of training and developing national employees in order to develop an abundance of employment opportunities.

David Brennan, the Etisalat Academy's General Manager commented, "One of the key learnings out of the conference is that leaders are better able to motivate their teams if they focus beyond the quantifiable performance indicators and extend caring and humanity to their staff. This leads to higher levels of employee loyalty, better productivity and increased discretionary efforts."

Ayesha Salem Bin Suwira, both the Director of Training Services and the HR Conference Director from the Etisalat Academy declared, "we are delighted with the huge turnout at this year's HR conference. The seminars have covered some of the most important issues faced by Businesses and HR today. The discussions have highlighted the significance of the HR function in helping Businesses to achieve competitive advantage through improved talent management."

The second day followed with a discussion panel talking about the mechanisms companies should employ to better develop their business talent in order to achieve competitive advantage. The panel called for businesses to build organizational and national capacity by providing people with high quality training and development during these challenging times.

The panel was chaired by Barbara Annis, Chairperson of Harvard University's Women's Leadership Board, included Jon Ingham, Executive Consultant, Strategic Dynamics Consultancy Services, Richard Brady, CEO of Mentis Consulting Limited, UK, Naoshi Takatsu Editor in Chief, Works Magazine, Japan and Michael Bungay Stanier Founder of Box of Crayons, Canada.

The Etisalat Academy's 8th annual Human Resources Conference has achieved phenomenal success over the last eight years. This conference is a fantastic networking opportunity for all the delegates and attracts CEO's, senior managers, leading edge thinkers and decision makers, as well as HR specialists interested in regional performance and statistical indicators.