Cadillac to sponsor MEED Family Business Conference 2004

The two-day conference will review key issues facing family businesses in the Gulf and examine effective solutions for sustainable business growth. Mohammed Al-Fahim, honorary chairman of the Al-Fahim Group of Abu Dhabi and author of the best selling autobiography 'From Rags to Riches: A Story of Abu Dhabi' will review his experiences as the leader of a major family business in the Gulf, setting the scene for more than 20 experts who will speak about trends and prospects for family businesses in the region.

"Around 95% of businesses in the Middle East are family-run - they form the backbone of the regional private sector," said Fadi Ghosn, Regional Marketing Manager for Premium Brands, General Motors. "Cadillac has been an iconic symbol of prosperity and leadership in the Gulf for over 40 years now. Given our long association with the leading families and businesses of the region, we feel that it is very important to be involved this forum."

"We are very pleased to take part in this conference - coming from a family business background myself, I feel this is especially relevant," said Khalid Mannai, Chairman of Mannai Corporation and Cadillac retailer. "The conference will endeavour to examine the best practices for developing an effective business strategy and dealing with internal and external pressures affecting everyday family-run business."

This year's programme will provide family leaders with proven solutions and deliver applicable tactics for successfully navigating the difficulties encountered when combining family with business.

Attendees of the two day conference will learn from the experiences of Khalid Mannai, Abdullah Almajdouie, president of the Almajdouie Group of Saudi Arabia, Osama Al-Zamil, general manager for business development at the Zamil Group, Tony Jashanmal, managing partner of Jashanmal National Company and Mohammed Galadari, chairman of Galadari Brothers.

MEED's 2nd Middle East Family Business conference is also sponsored by HSBC Private Bank and Global Investment House. The MEED 2nd Middle East Conference on Family Business is being held on 7th & 8th December, 2004 at Mina A'Salam in Dubai, UAE.