Mr. Holmes’ career spans over 30 years and six countries, where he has undertaken organisational consulting projects across a range of geographies and industries including: industrial, consumer and healthcare. 

In his current roles he is responsible for META, overseeing seven offices and the full spectrum of consulting services of Korn Ferry and leading the professional search & interim business across EMEA. Prior to his current position (from 2011) he was the Managing Director for Korn Ferry’s Korean business for 10 years.

Previously, Mr. Holmes was a consultant with Carre, Orban & Partners which merged with Korn Ferry in 1993 where he initially focused on the consumer goods and healthcare sectors. After the merger, he broadened his practice to cover transnational work across a range of industries in Northern Europe. Mr. Holmes has served as a resident consultant in India, Russia, Singapore and South Korea, where he was responsible for growing the Firm’s business.

During his four years as the Managing Director in Russia, Mr. Holmes successfully made Korn Ferry the leading executive search firm in the Russian market, while personally undertaking projects throughout Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States, principally in the Ukraine and Kazakhstan.

Subsequently, he managed the Firm’s offices in Mumbai and New Delhi for three years as Managing Director of India. After that, he led the ASEAN practice from Singapore before moving to Seoul.

A British citizen, Mr. Holmes holds a bachelor’s degree of science (with honours) in Geology.

Roberto Croci is currently the Director of Value Creation & Transformation at the Public Investment Fund (PIF) in Riyadh-KSA. Prior to this role, he was the Managing Director of Microsoft for Startups in the MEA region with a vision to drive innovation and develop market-defining ideas in the Middle East. He previously served as Regional Head, Google Marketing Platforms – EMEA Emerging Markets (Middle East, Turkey, Israel, Russia, Africa), having started in Google Milan & London (6 months each), then promoted and transferred to Paris & Singapore and then to Dubai. He has been Awarded and Nominated twice by Google for “Best Coaching Manager” and “Best Googler Inspiring Hero” in 2018 and 2016, respectively.

He is also an active conference speaker and panelist, especially around VC Investing and MENA Growth. He regularly speaks at prominent universities and within local school systems. Roberto is passionate about mentoring young people and helping them develop an entrepreneurial mindset to find solutions to problems they see in their community, country, or across the globe.

In his personal world, Roberto enjoys reading hardcover books, hiking, running, and spending time with his family, and he has summited K2, the second-highest mountain in the world. 

Roberto has earned his Industrial Engineering Degree from Politecnico di Milano. He also did his Master in Business and Management from Duke University in 3 locations (US, UK, Singapore). Along with this, he has earned EMBA from Harvard Business School as well focused on leadership, change, and innovation.

Hilal Al Jadidi is a distinguished professional with a wealth of expertise in Human Capital Management, specializing in consulting, business development, HR strategic planning, organizational development and design, project management, and Human Resources policies and rewards. He currently serves as the Chief People & Change officer at OMRAN Group, Oman’s leading tourism development company. In this role, Hilal is instrumental in steering the development and management of the organization’s human capital, executing a robust human resources strategy that aligns with OMRAN Group’s overall business plan and strategic direction.

With nearly 2 decades of extensive experience in the field, Hilal has held pivotal roles within the Human Capital function during his tenure at Takatuf Oman, where he significantly contributed to succession planning, talent management, change management, and organizational performance improvement initiatives. His career trajectory includes working with both local and global companies across diverse industries such as Oil & Gas, Telecom, and leadership roles in consulting businesses, providing him with valuable insights and a broad spectrum of expertise.

Hilal’s academic credentials are equally progressive. He holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration and a Bachelor’s degree in Management from Sultan Qaboos University. Further enhancing his academic prowess, he has attained a Postgraduate Certificate in Research Management from Edinburgh Business School. Hilal is a recognized authority in his field, holding prestigious certifications such as the Senior Certified Professional (SCP-SHRM) from the Society for Human Resource Management and the Senior Professional in Human Resources International (SPHRi) from the Human Resource Certification Institute. His commitment to the field is further demonstrated by his contributions as a global item writer for the SHRM certification program for two consecutive cycles.

Under Hilal’s leadership, OMRAN Group has launched significant initiatives like the “Leadership Development Academy,” aimed at developing leaders within the tourism sector and supporting competencies in the hospitality industry. His strategic vision has also been pivotal in the success of the #IAmTourism strategy, encompassing various training and development initiatives designed to bolster Omani talent in the tourism and hospitality industries.

Hilal’s professional journey is marked by his dedication to enhancing organizational performance through innovative HR practices and his ability to adapt and lead in diverse business environments. His contributions have not only elevated the HR standards at OMRAN Group

Susan is an internationally recognized Speaker, award-winning Talent Development Expert, and Author. In the last 20+ years Susan has spoken in over 40 countries on 6 continents, developed and trained over 500 workshops and helped over 150,000 people around the world transform their personal and professional lives.

Susan specializes in Training Architecture to improve the performance of people, custom designing programs in The Art of Persuasion, Leading with Emotional Intelligence, Managing Generations in the Workplace and, Resilience, to name a few. She has worked with such organizations as Johnson & Johnson, GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, Philips, Medronic, and SABIC to design global training programs that raise individual and organizational performance. Her experience ranges from Healthcare, Medical Devices, Banking, Mining, Pharma, Timber, Oil & Gas as well as training the Ministers of several foreign nations.

Susan is an Instructional Designer and Master Trainer. Global Training Transformation’s programs have won the CSTD Gold Award for Excellence in Training (Vendor Category) as well as having a Leadership Program custom designed for a Central Asian client named as one of the top 5 Leadership programs in the world by HR.com

Oshba Mubarak is the Head of Training & Development and People Performance Management at Abu Dhabi Housing Authority., In her capacity, she is responsible for leading Digital learning, Talent Development agenda and succession planning activities across the company.

her background experience 23+ years comes from different industries in UAE from Banking and finance, Real estate and Government sector.

Oshba started her career in 2001, as a Professional banker through her hard work and dedication in 2006, she became one of the first younger UAE Female Bank Manager leading the team more than 50 employees across the regional branches. In 2012, she has lifted her career concentrating in managing the Human Capital and worked closely with different strategic partners such as McKinsey, Deloitte, Korn ferry and Tower Watson in designing accelerate Talent programs for high potentials. Over her time, she played many key roles in developing and strengthening the company’s position as an employer of choice in the UAE with ENBD, NBAD (FAB), ALDAR properties the real estate sector in general. And continues to push ahead on its transformational growth journey.

Oshba is a graduate of Master degree – Business Administration from Canadian University focusing in Finance. and is a certified professional from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). In addition, she has attended a number of other Executive education programs including Harvard, INSEAD and IMD have all welcomed her hungry mind . last of all, close to her heart she advocates for a greener and more conscious world which led her to became one of an active member of sustainability ambassador at Robert swan mission 2041.

Vivek Arora is the Director – Regional Sales & Business Operations for SHRM-MENA and is based out of Dubai office. In his 20 plus years of rich experience Vivek has spearheaded various people & HR related businesses across geographies in Asia Pacific, Middle East, Eastern Europe and South East Asia.  Vivek has been instrumental in building organizations from conceptualization to maturity stages and has a strong business acumen while ensuring employee well-being and their career progression. Vivek has managed organizations with over 35,000 employees across various diversities and cultures. In his previous assignment, Vivek was instrumental in getting his organization awarded as the Best place to work in Singapore. He is a MBA from GMU Italy and PGDBM from Cambridge International Qualifications and has been a recipient of various awards and accolades

Emma has more than twenty-five years experience as a media professional. Originally from the UK, she came to the UAE in 2003 and hosted the breakfast show on Radio 1, solo for three years. She also had her own show on Radio 2, Channel 4, Coast FM and worked for Dubai Eye.

Emma has been a news reader for the ARN News Centre, writing, producing and delivering news across five radio stations including, Virgin Radio, Dubai 92, Dubai Eye, City and Tag.

Emma has her own YouTube channel called ‘EmzUnfiltered’, which features interviews with people on topics of interest.

Emma’s television work includes producing and presenting shows for Gulf News TV, and she had her own show ‘On the Couch with Emz’ on the Vuuzle network.

Hosting events and moderating panels are also another skill in Emma’s arsenal and she interviews celebrity guests at the Middle East Film and Comic Con every year, as well as working on other events such as CityScape, InterSec, The Harvard Business Council Awards, Seamless and many more. In July 2023 she travelled to Islamabad to host the PPMA summit which was attended by the Prime Minister, who took the time to recognise her on stage capabilities.

Emma is also an established professional voiceover and has clients that include: Emirates, Mashreq Bank, Hershey’s, Garnier, Sixt. She also voices series promos for the OSN network.

Since 2022, Emma started using her many years of experience to coach others in how to be more confident in using their voice, public speaking, and presentation skills. She travel with GSK to Panama, Bangkok and Istanbul to deliver soft skills training to medical professionals at the top of the field. She has also coached some keynote speakers and presenters to aid them in brushing up and adding to their skillset.

Acting credits where Emma appeared as an extra include 6 Underground, Manhattan King and she also had recurring roles for shows in the UK on the S4C channel. In the UAE she has featured in many commercials, locally produced independent films and is due to appear in three episodes of a new series on Disney Hotstars.

Emma had a featured bilingual (English / Arabic) role in a Ramadan series for Abu Dhabi TV, and has a supporting role in an Emirati film on Netflix.

Notable interviews:

Sir Richard Attenborough

Michael Rooker

Brandon Routh

Mariah Carey

Tiesto

Enrique Iglasias

Bryan Adams

Ross Marquand

Driven by grit and gumption and her lifelong motto to “leave things better than you find them,” Leanne Caret is globally renowned for breathing new life into businesses, creating growth, and transforming how industries invest in technology for a successful future. A true aerospace pioneer, Caret is the first woman to serve as President and CEO of Boeing Defense, Space and Security. Decisive, courageous, and inspiring particularly in times of crisis, Caret led Boeing’s Defense, Space and Security (BDS) unit for six years, overseeing 30,000 employees across four continents and driving growth in annual revenue ($34 billion) and profits amidst tumultuous market conditions.

Following a 34-year career at Boeing, Caret is now a Senior Advisor to Blackstone and MyNextSeason and serves as a Director of Deere & Company and RTX. A champion of STEM education, Caret also serves on the boards of FIRST Robotics, Kansas State University Foundation, and USO Inc. She is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

Dynamic, candid, and always authentic, Caret is a popular speaker on managing tech disruption and leading global teams with grit, gumption, grace, and gratitude—her so-called GCubed. She earned a BS in Business Administration from Kansas State University and an MBA from Wichita State University. She lives in the DFW metroplex with her husband, Steve.