9 out of 25 GCC family businesses based in Kingdom

Saudi Gazette report Riyadh — Family businesses are one of the most prominent operations in Saudi Arabia, according to a study. Out of the 25 largest family businesses in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), nine are based in Saudi Arabia alone, revealed the study by management consultants McKinsey. Family businesses in Saudi Arabia tend to be specialized in industry (24%) services (14%) and banking (11%), as per a recent article by Marcopolis.net. They are estimated to hold around SR250 billion in domestic investments, the same article mentioned, with 200 of them working across different sectors. In response to regional needs, and in its efforts to offer educational programs and academic courses that are American but also tailored to the GCC and the wider Arab region, American University of Sharjah (AUS) established the Sheikh Saoud Bin Khalid Bin Khalid Al Qassimi Chair in Family Business. Dr. Björn Kjerfve, Chancellor of AUS, met Sheikh Sultan Saoud Al Qassemi, Managing Director of Al Saud Company and Sheikh Saud Majid Al Qassimi, the Deputy Managing Director of Al Saud Company recently to discuss the program and how it will benefit the wider GCC community. Through the Chair, which is the first of its kind in the country, AUS aims to become a recognized family business knowledge hub in the national, regional and international context. Commenting on the program, Saudi student Saeed Al-Qarni, said: “At first, I did what any other student does during registration time, I was only looking for elective courses to fill my credit hours, and the name of the Family Business course grabbed my attention due to owning a family business myself. This course actually had a very different approach and even our midterm was a refreshing and fun experience rather than stressful one.”