GCF 2009 Global Competitiveness Forum Riyadh

Under the patronage of his majesty

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Ibn Abdul Azziz Al-Saud.

Chairman of the Supreme Economic Council

HRH Prince Sultan Ibn Abdul Azziz Al-Saud

The Crown Prince, Deputy Prime MinisterMinister of Defense and Aviation, and Inspector General

Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Economic Council

www.gcf.org.sa

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Competitiveness

Global Competitiveness Forum 2009 Table of Contents

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76

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Governor’s Foreword Note

GCF2009 Topics

Executive Summary

Sessions Highlights

Open Letter to G20 Leaders

SAGIA Initiatives

GCF2009 Speakers

GCF2009 Sponsors

Hosts

GCF2009 Gallery

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Governor’s Forward Note

Dear Readers!

The third annual Global Competitiveness Forum convened as the global economy appeared to veer off a precipice in January 2009.

The conference’s theme, Responsible Competitiveness, provided in many ways a summary of and a productive approach to the challenges ahead.

How could irresponsible management have led world markets—in credit, in housing, in energy, in crops—so badly astray, and how can responsibility be restored? How can governments and the private sector tackle multi-faceted economic problems without stalling the drive for competitiveness and shared prosperity?

To answer these questions, the world’s premier gathering on competitiveness challenges was joined by eminent leaders, executives, and intellectuals with visionary perspectives on how to link the competitiveness agenda with a far-reaching concern with sustainability and social responsibility. The insights that emerged were too powerful, and the problems addressed too urgent, to limit to the delegates to GCF 2009.

Instead, the proceedings of the Global Competitiveness Forum informed an open letter to the leaders of the G20 member nations calling for an aggressive, coordinated response to the economic downturn.

While the GCF is global in scope, it has special relevance for us here in Saudi Arabia. In defining the country’s development strategy, the Supreme Economic Council, through the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority, has committed to achieving world-class economic competitiveness as the platform for enhanced prosperity.

We call it the 10x10 mission: to transform Saudi Arabia into one of the world’s Top 10 most competitive economies by 2010.

As such, we have had much to learn from and contribute to the Global Competitiveness Forum.

H.E. Amr Al-Dabbagh,Governor, Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority

Chairman, National Competitiveness Center

Chairman, Global Competitiveness Forum

In the past year, Saudi Arabia has achieved impressive successes in its quest for competitiveness.

This year, the Kingdom stands among the Top 20 countries in the World Bank/IFC’s Doing Business report, which measures the quality of the regulatory environment.

Meanwhile, the opening of the economy to private and foreign investors has led to a surge in investment.

FDI inflows exceeded US$24 billion in 2007, making Saudi Arabia the largest FDI recipient in the Middle East and North Africa.

Aided by this improved business environment, new ventures are attracting growing investment, providing greater employment, and contributing to economic diversification.

The competitive economy we are creating today will enrich the lives of Saudi Arabia’s young, hopeful population tomorrow.

This is the vision of His Majesty King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, which guides our efforts.

Yet to deliver sustainable prosperity, capitalism must be attentive to the social, environmental, political, and financial systems with which it is intertwined.

This imperative is reinforced daily by the diverse stresses placed on the foundations of the world’s economic well-being.

Achieving responsible competitiveness has never been a more pressing challenge, for Saudi Arabia and other forward-looking nations.

For this reason I am proud to present the proceedings of the 2009 Global Competitiveness Forum, and invite you to join next year’s conversation.

King Abdullah Bin AbdulAziz,Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, which guides our efforts.

This isthe vision

of His MajestyThis year, the Kingdom stands among the Top 20 countriesin the World Bank/IFC’s Doing Business report, which measures the quality of the regulatory environment.




GCF2009 Topics

At a time when financial distress

has erased trillions of dollars in

asset value worldwide, the Global

Competitiveness Forum’s first

speech by Carlos Ghosn, Nissan’s

President and CEO, declared: SundayJan. 25th, 2009

For nations as for enterprises, competitiveness is about delivering world-class value to customers, to employees, and to investors.

Yet as the economic crisis unfolding in early 2009 makes clear, to be meaningful, competition must proceed on responsible footing. In areas ranging from carbon to credit, GCF

panelists agreed that apparently profitable global markets have often destroyed rather than created value, and explored ways of restoring their contribution to shared prosperity.

The Global Competitiveness Forum brings together politicians, business leaders, academics, and technical experts from many fields and from

many countries around the globe to discuss competitiveness.

During the Third Global Competitiveness Forum in Riyadh, participants probed for pathways to responsible competitiveness in areas ranging from markets to mindsets.

“value creation is what responsible competitiveness is all about.”

Announcement of King Khalid Award for Responsible Competitiveness

Speech: Carlos Ghosn President and CEO, Nissan Motors

Panel Discussion: Responsible Competitiveness

Panel Discussion: Energy Evolution

Panel Discussion: Thought for Food

Panel Discussion: Arts: Painting Crisis in a New Light

Speech: Mary Robinson 7th President of Ireland

Official Opening Ceremony, under the patronage of His Majesty, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz




GCF2009 Topics

TuesdayJan. 27th, 2009

MondayJan. 26th, 2009

Panel Discussion: Paradigm Realign: Changing Mindsets, Changing Attitudes

Panel Discussion: Real Estate: Building Competitive Communities

Panel Discussion: The Crisis: How Deep? How Long? How to Get Out?

Speech: Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad, 4th Prime Minister of Malaysia

Speech: Michael Porter University Professor, Harvard Business School

Panel Discussion: Talent: The DNA of 21st Century Leader

Speech: Shinzo Abe 90th Prime Minister of Japan

Panel Discussion: Reach for Gold: Competitveness at its Best

Announcement of Porter Prize & Saudi Fast Growth 100 Winners

Panel Discussion: Next Stop: Innovation Station

Panel Discussion: Recession Entrepreneurship: How to Thrive in an Economic Downturn

Panel Discussion: What Next!? Global Risks 2009

Gala Dinner at Royal Al-Atheriyah Farm, for an evening of Saudi Cultural Heritage and Cuisine

Speech: Jean Chrétien 20th Prime Minister of CanadaPanel Discussion: Governing Competitively

Panel Discussion: Infrastructure: Building Our Way OutPanel Discussion: Too Hot to Handle? Sustaining the Green Agenda

Presentation on Special Olympics:Timothy P. Shriver, Chairman Special Olympics Inc.




industry and internship programs for disadvantaged youth in the services industry are just two examples.

Programs like these bring companies’ core competencies to bear on social challenges.

They disproportionately strengthen company brands because of their close link to the companies’ activities.

Yet 2008 saw crises unfold across a stunning array of markets—real estate, credit, energy, food—with dramatic impacts on the environment, top financial institutions, and the world’s poor.

When markets failed, irresponsible public-sector responses have often

exacerbated the problems. In a panic over food securities, countries withheld fertilizer and crops from world markets, causing acute shortages among net importers.

Financial bailouts have violated norms of “national treatment” by denying aid to domestic subsidiaries of foreign

companies. As unemployment rises globally, protectionist pressures could overwhelm commitments to open trade. While cutthroat, beggar-thy-neighbor competition may satisfy the short-term ambitions of individual players, the Global Competitiveness Forum aspires to promote positive-sum competition:

what former Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohammed calls “prosper-thy-neighbor.” Responsible competitiveness must build shared prosperity; it must be sustainable; it must comprehensively serve relevant stakeholders; and it must create value.

It may seem odd to call for a renewed commitment to responsible

“Companies that are not responsible will not

remain competitive nationally or globally.”

Responsible Competitiveness

Unpacking the Concept“Responsible” should be a redundant modifier in discussions of competitiveness. Former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan has said that his biggest policy mistake was to presume that private companies are better equipped than government regulators to responsibly manage their businesses. “At the end of the day, value creation is what

responsible competitiveness is all about, even duringa season of crisis.”

competitiveness at a time when economic challenges strain corporate balance sheets and public budgets. Of course, every firm’s top concern will be to maintain free cash flow.

Yet responsible business practices will play an unavoidable role in overcoming the current crisis, and the havoc that irresponsibility has wrought demonstrates how wrong-headed it is to view “responsibility” as the luxury of firms flush with earnings.

One problem with this view is that it conflates responsibility with pleasing everyone.

All firms will have to make painful

cuts during economic downturns, but if these are made transparently and fairly, by a management team with a strong record of accountability, decisions can be implemented quickly with lower

impact on organizational cohesion and morale.

Too often corporate social responsibility (CSR) amounts to using company funds to finance chief executives’ favorite causes.

This narrow application misses important ways in which responsible competitiveness can generate sustainable social impacts and shareholder value.

Any firm will face numerous opportunities to align CSR initiatives

with its strategy: environmentally friendly packaging in the goods

Finally, unlike giveaways to unrelated causes, they repay a portion of their cost in operational enhancements.

The spectacle of companies around the world lining up for bailout funds powerfully illustrates how important societal good will is to firms’ survival. Companies that deliver mutual benefits to shareholders and society build valuable political capital, while irresponsible firms find themselves in a more precarious position.

GCF2009 Topics




Tomas Enders, CEO, Airbus SAS

William Amelio, CEO Lenovo

bureaucracy and a more effective welfare state can play in fostering the private sector. Most important among these,

new and relatively unregulated financial products gave investors and institutions huge exposure to risks they poorly understood.

The world’s largest banks gambled their survival in a bid for higher short-term profitability, starting a crippling chain reaction as counterparty risks spread through the financial system. The resulting dramatic declines in

employment, industrial production, and equity prices have placed policymakers and businesses alike in a bind: obliged to take bold actions to overcome the crisis while avoiding a costly overreaction.

One of the constraints facing governments is the sheer scale of anticipated stimulus requirements.

The amounts involved—nearly US$1 trillion in the United States alone—leave

“Governments need to send a clear signal that they want to stick to free markets. This

would give hope for recovery”

little budgetary room for additional government initiatives. As such, policymakers must link economic recovery with investments towards pressing longer-term objectives, including developing talent, innovation, and green infrastructure, or risk squandering a large opportunity and delaying these priorities indefinitely.

Yet such programs must also have immediate economic impact to head off further deterioration.

Companies, too, must balance short-term cash flow requirements with long-term strategic objectives.

While investments will be reduced, firms can find adaptive ways to push their research and development programs forward. For example, automobile manufactures can join technology partnerships to economize

on research funding. A structural feature of the world’s current economic problems is borrowing-fuelled overconsumption in the United States, matched by inadequate domestic demand

in the cash-rich economies of East Asia.

A far-sighted approach to managing the crisis must bridge short-term aggregate demand without simply perpetuating the dependence of global economic activity on the unsustainable appetites of the American consumer. Approaching the next generation of financial regulations will also involve a balancing act.

GCF2009 Topics

Overcoming the Crisis

Restoring National CompetitivenessRegulators must seek ways to preclude the possibility of another system-wide meltdown without handcuffing financial innovation.

Nations must manage more responsibly their exposure to global financial volatility without stepping down the destructive path of protectionism.

Even as we enter a brave new world of economic difficulty, the fundamental determinants of national competitiveness remain unchanged.

Asset values rise and fall, but the underlying drivers of prosperity continue to be: innovative technology, supportive infrastructure, efficient operations, and, above all, talented people.

Governments should not lose sight of their long-term development goals or in the role that a more efficient

Cheap credit and rising asset values are the basic ingredients of any investment bubble, but the housing bonanza that precipitated the current recession bore unprecedented features.




Thomas Russo, Lehman Brothers Saleh Kamel, Islamic Banks

Al Jaseer, SAMA Governor

Achieving a competitive agriculture sector through unsustainable water policies is similarly short-sighted: it exports precious water resources at below-market prices instead of conserving it for high-value industrial and domestic applications.

Recent crises related to energy markets, crop prices, and carbon emissions powerfully illustrate the need for policymakers to be more attentive to Earth’s limits when implementing resource management policy.

Ecological sustainability is increasingly recognized by the business community as a crucial pillar of responsible competitiveness.Straining national resources in pursuit of short-term economic gain is not only irresponsible, but also uncompetitive. The damage done to agriculture, tourism, and public health by unregulated industrial pollution exceeds by far the contribution to manufacturers’ bottom line.

Yet the current recession risks delivering a series of blows to the sustainability agenda:

As important as the challenge of conservation, business leaders and policymakers must also ensure the provision of valuable goods and services to consumers. Rural communities suffer as much from a lack of electricity as from the creeping effects of climate change.

Energy security is not just about developing green energy; it also requires stabilizing short-run pricing and encouraging adequate levels of investment in existing infrastructure. Periodic collapses in the price of food and energy starve these sectors of

capital, setting the stage for shortages and soaring prices when demand pressures and speculative forces emerge.

The world’s most basic resource sectors—water, energy, crops—can only operate in a rational pricing environment, where suppliers are given incentives to invest but also to conserve and enhance

efficiency. This is why pricing water withdrawals and carbon emissions are so important, and why volatility in consumer prices is so damaging to human welfare.

With proper price incentives, existing technology and infrastructure can be deployed to meet the challenges of scarcity and climate change while providing abundant supply.

However, additional research and development are required to transform the way transportation is fueled, homes are lit, and industry is powered, and switching costs continue to deter mass

commercialization of green technology. Governments thus have a major role to play in encouraging the emergence of a green resource infrastructure.

• Slackening demand for food and energy have softened pricing and hindered the attractiveness of new, sustainable investment in these sectors

• The collapse of corporate credit markets have forced firms to slash capital expenditures in an effort to preserve cash balances

• Severe short-term economic pain has overshadowed climate change and forced governments to prioritize massive, near-term economic stimulus over green investment programs

While governments must necessarily open cash and resource spigots to revive economic growth, leaders must not allow the sustainability agenda to languish indefinitely.Establishing a responsible foundation for economic competitiveness requires a comprehensive reconstruction of global infrastructure, extending from power generation to water management, and these investments will not take place without the full commitment of the world’s leaders.

In planning the infrastructure and the cities of the future, leaders should

also look beyond the environment and the goals of food and energy security, towards the sustainable betterment of the human condition.

The sprawling, congested megalopolis and energy-intensive transportation of the twentieth century will have to be replaced by more a more efficient architecture. This transformation holds as much promise for changing lives as it does for environmental sustainability.

GCF2009 Topics

Greening Competitiveness

Food, Energy, Climate Change

“We need not only acknowledge the

competitive advantage of going green, but also need to understand the

cost of not going green.”




Paulo Sacroni, CEO, Eni S.p.A.

Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, Nestlé SA Magatte Marchand, Adina for Life

supportive social structures.The “race to the bottom” so often cited as a characteristic of competition among labor markets must be turned upside-down.

In fact, countries break the poverty barrier only when labor rights, health standards, and other incentives enable employees to aspire to ownership,

Development economics teaches that capital accumulation faces diminishing returns:

it is only innovation which can sustain rapid increases in prosperity over the long run. Innovation is about using existing resources in new and valuable

Economic growth in the twentieth century will be driven by human capital. While the current scarcity of credit and strains on natural resources draw attention to their importance to world economic activity, it is human ingenuity which will allow national economies to cope with resource constraints.

ways, enabling innovative economies tomultiply their returns on investment. Often the promise of new technology is overstated, and bubbles can form around new product markets. Nevertheless, societies where investors believe in and extend credit to innovators thrive, even if individual investments go sour.

New frontiers in innovation today include nano- and bio-technology, artificial intelligence, and green energy. Fostering innovation involves managing

“We need to show younger generations

how to think and how to challenge the status quo

in a productive way.”

it responsibly, including rethinking how research is funded, shared, and commercialized. It involves ensuring that small, innovative companies can access capital to commercialize their ideas, an especially salient challenge in the current financial environment.Less developed economies are increasingly seen as potential

incubators of innovation. War-torn Asia was home to the world’s poorest economies in the middle of the twentieth century; today Tokyo, Taipei, and Bangalore play host to the world’s most innovative companies.Government support can go a long way towards kick-starting innovation in developing countries, but building

effective education systems is the most valuable, and most difficult, step.

Incubating workers and leaders equal to tomorrow’s challenges is a multi-faceted challenge. In addition to drilling students on science and mathematics, education systems must place renewed

emphasis on subjects less commonly acknowledged as contributors to human capital development. For example, advancing prosperity has brought with it a global epidemic of cardiovascular diseases that could be prevented through routine diet and athletics.

Physical education not only maintains a healthy workforce, it also builds the teamwork and leadership skills critical to effective citizenship and increasingly demanded by the world’s multinational corporations. Similarly, the arts have often been treated as a non-core discipline, yet they, too, are crucial to unlocking the creativity that gives the world’s leading companies and cities their competitive advantage.

However, mobilizing citizens for competitiveness requires more than developing skills.Individuals must be able to access opportunities, be rewarded for hard work and innovation, and enjoy

and students to become innovators and marketers. This is particularly the case for women, whose entry into the workforce in the twentieth century has done so much to advance prosperity, dignity, and human

development. Empowering human achievement remains a problem in developed as well as poorer societies. In North America, Canada’s relatively higher unemployment rate is matched by the United States’ extraordinary incarceration rate. Debates continue to rage about the proper scope of the modern welfare state, but it is undeniable that social structures play as much of a role as individual choices in driving socioeconomic outcomes.

The language of individual responsibility, appropriate to judicial procedures, should not be misconstrued as absolving corporations and the government of their own crucial responsibility for shaping competitive economies.

GCF2009 Topics

Michael Porter, Harvard University




Michael Phelps, 14x Olympic Gold Medalist & Carl Lewis, 9x Olympic Gold Medalist

Mobilizing Citizens

Humans as the Engineof Competitiveness

The first speech by Carlos Ghosn noted the scale of current global economic challenges. Drawing from his experience at Nissan, Mr. Ghosn advised businesses to expand free cash flow while seeking adaptive ways to maintain adequate investments in their core businesses. He emphasized the importance of visionary leadership to re-orient mindsets towards constructive action. He noted that economic difficulty highlights the importance of responsible business in delivering mutual benefits to companies and society, and in building the goodwill

“... the importance of responsible business in delivering mutual benefits

to companies and society”

Speech:

Summary of Proceedings: Day 1

January 25, 2009

Panel Discussion:

The first panel investigated the issue of responsibility in corporate leadership to as it pertains to the origins of and the recovery from the world’s current economic challenges. The panelists agreed that companies with consistently responsible practices face lower transaction costs and will navigate the slowdown more nimbly, and with a lower impact on morale.

The second panel addressed the challenge that companies and nations face in sustainably meeting their energy needs going forward.

The panelists agreed that volatility in energy prices is hurting suppliers and consumers alike, and interfering with needed investments.

Responsible Competitiveness

Panel Discussion:

The Energy Evolution

necessary to sustain a company through hardship. The automobile industry is a bellwether of global economic trends ranging from the health of consumer demand to the mass commercialization of green technology. As a result, Mr. Ghosn’s remarks and his engagement with the audience stepped beyond generalities to address the concrete challenges facing industries as they seek to overcome the economic crisis and embrace responsible competitiveness.

Carlos Ghosn

President and CEO, Nissan Motors

Therefore, irresponsibility is unsustainable and erodes competitiveness factors. A critical challenge is inculcating responsibility in the next generation of business leaders, and responsibility should play a proactive role in shaping corporate strategies. In response to audience members’ questions, the panelists acknowledged that trust is a crucial and underestimated driver of competitiveness, and enthusiastically noted ways in which business leaders could rebuild trust through ethical business practices in general and a focus on sustainability in particular.Speakers: Carlos Ghosn , Nissan Co.Angel Cabrera, Thunderbird SchoolMhd. Hassan Omran, Etisalat,William Amelio, Lenovo, Thomas Enders, Airbus SAS.Rajat Gupta, McKinsey & Company

They further concluded that an initial focus on efficiency on the consumption side would be critical given the time required to commercialize alternative energy sources. While technology will hold the key to the green economy of the future, achieving energy sustainability will also require a transformation of global energy use. During Q&A the panelists acknowledged that the energy industry had faced accentuated volatility as a result of irresponsible competition: in particular between oil and gas producers and oil and gas services firms.

The panel concluded with an unusually blunt assessment, for a group of energy industry leaders, of the eventual need to transition to renewable solar energy.

Executive Summary & Report




Mary Robinson’s speech urged businesses to overcome the notional tradeoff between competitiveness and social responsibility, particularly with respect to human rights.

She noted the risk that the economic slowdown would plunge millions more into poverty, and argued that governments can meet the challenge of expanding employment while protecting basic labor rights.

“... The risk that the economic slowdown would plunge millions

more into poverty.”

Speech:

The third panel investigated the origins of the recent food crisis, including changes in consumer demand, weak agricultural productivity, erosion of arable lands, and water scarcity. Many of these issues are durable, and have forced countries to seriously address food security. Two areas requiring creative action is food subsidies and

The fourth panel discussed the strong links between the arts and economic competitiveness, with special emphasis on the potential for development of the Arab world’s rich artistic heritage.

The panelists concluded that the arts deserve expanded support because they are a public good and because of their positive economic role in areas ranging from technical innovation to tourism.

Successful societies are characterized by attractive, thriving artistic cultures that drive creativity. Speakers: James Barrett, Redefining ProgressMichael Kaiser, JFK CenterJim Clifton, , The Gallup OrganizationSaeb Eigner, Lonworld

Panel Discussion: Panel Discussion:

Mary Robinson

7th President of Ireland

Thoughts For Food

Arts:Painting Crisis in a New Light

trade barriers, where governments frequently fail to contribute to the global food supply. Opportunities to increase the supply of food exist across the value chain, and include local responses such as better water management policies, to more efficient supply chains.

The discussion was punctuated by heated debate over the tradeoff between the quantity and quality of crops produced, focusing on the future relevance of the organic food industry in an environment of potential future scarcity.Speakers: Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, Nestlé SA.Magatte Wade-Marchand, Adina for LifeThorleif Enger, Yara InternationalAbdullah Zainal, Minister of Commerce and Industry Saudi Arabia

She celebrated the progress of women’s rights across the world and concluded that female participation in the workforce could deliver positive benefits to both women and to national economic development. Audience questions included an energetic discussion of the potential role of women in Arab economies, and also highlighted the difficult position of human rights enjoyed by immigrants.






January 26, 2009

The first speech by Jean Chrétien drew from his experience as former Prime Minister of Canada to emphasize the importance of confidence and hope in overcoming economic difficulty.

Mr. Chrétien suggested that, if managed effectively, the current recession may prove milder than expected. Crucial to economic recovery is responsible leadership: Mr. Chrétien emphasized the need to balance job

“... if managed effectively, the current recession may prove

milder than expected.”

Speech:

Jean Chrétien

20th Prime Minister of Canada

Panel Discussion:

The first panel produced a range of policy initiatives for strengthening competitiveness. Responding to the current economic crisis requires focused efforts to protect global financial infrastructure, but government should avoid overreacting in ways that hamper commercial activity, particularly small and medium enterprises. The panel pointed out the basic challenge that

Panel Discussion:

The panel on infrastructure left no doubt of its importance for economic competitiveness. Overcoming infrastructure bottlenecks is critical for basic development and formation of advanced clusters, even as human capital and other assets take on more prominence in discussions of competitiveness.

Ideally a set of “shovel-ready” projects should be readied to provide a platform for stimulus spending, with both general-purpose and specialized infrastructure to drive productivity-enhancing linkages. One of the panel’s most provocative insights related to the way that infrastructure could have unexpected spillovers into other sectors. For example, Frankfurt’s status as an air traffic hub lent it a competitive

Governing Competitively

Infrastructure: Building Our Way Out

creation and social goals with fiscal responsibility, and to carry out policies transparently and fairly.

Mr. Chrétien suggested that the ultimate solution to volatility in energy prices is to diversify the economy by investing in talent and innovation, and in particular to be more open to immigration.

governments face in keeping up with innovations in the marketplace. Both over-regulation and de-regulation result in a misalignment between the needs of the economy and the activities of bureaucracy.

In addition to calibrated short-term stimulus and regulation, the panel argued that governments should prioritize far-sighted investments in talent, innovation and infrastructure. Globally, maintaining open markets and international cooperation on issues such as are essential to avoiding a major step back.Speakers: Stéphane Garelli, World Competitiveness Center. Robert Huggins, Centre for International Competitiveness. Deborah L. Wince-Smith, Council on Competitiveness. Aron Cramer, Business for Social Responsibility

advantage in financial services. These linkages and spillover effects are difficult to anticipate but go to the heart of how infrastructure can enhance competitiveness.Speakers: Wilhelm Bender, Fraport AGTimothy P. Flynn, , KPMGMark Fuller, Monitor GroupWolfgang Lehmacher, Geopost International SAS





The presentation over lunch described the social impact of Special Olympics, and its organization’s successful strategy to brand itself and achieve global scale.

A Special Olympian from Lebanon addressed the gathering along with the Chairman.

More than any other event during the GCF, this presentation showed delegates how visionary organizations could make vast improvements to the human condition while thriving financially.

Timothy P. Shriver

Chairman, Special Olympics Inc.

The panel concluded that innovation is the core underlying driver of enhanced prosperity, even though innovative sectors (such as the “dot-coms” of the 1990s) can be prone to boom-bust cycles. New frontiers in innovation were discussed, including

Climate change, the panelists agreed, is a challenge “too hot not to handle.” Building a green economy requires action on a number of fronts. In the short-term, existing technologies, better management and additional R&D should be deployed to reduce

Too Hot to Handle? Sustaining the Green Agenda

Next Stop: Innovation Station

Lunch Program, Presentation: Panel Discussion: Panel Discussion:

energy waste. Longer-term, investments should seek to replace wasteful legacy technologies and adopt green electricity generation.

Regulations and incentives to reduce carbon emissions will be crucial to facilitating this transformation.

Audience members responded with particular enthusiasm to the insight that the bulk of energy savings could be found in unexpected places: such as improved parcel industry management, or reduced waste in concrete production. Speakers: Gary Winnick, Pacific Capital Group, Inc.Christine Whitman,EPA AdministratorJorgen Clausen, Danfoss A/S Jean-Pascal Tricoire, Schneider ElectricHerbert-Michael Zapf, International Post Corporation

nano- and bio-technology, artificial intelligence, and green energy. The panelists concluded that fostering innovation involves managing it responsibly, including rethinking how research is funded, shared, and commercialized.

One of the surprising conclusions of the panel was that innovation is possible even in poor countries, with government support. Panelists pointed out that many of today’s wealthiest and most inventive countries were among the world’s poorest just a few decades ago.Speakers: Dr. Michio Kaku, Professor. George Gruner, Unidym. Peer Schatz, Qiagen. Kap-Soo Suh, KTICPhilip Campbell, Nature Magazine. Nandan Nilekani, Infosys Technologies Ltd. Mohammed Al-Suwaiyel, King Abdulaziz City.





The panel on entrepreneurship discussed a large variety of promising means by which start-ups can succeed in a depressed economy. One model with renewed validity is micro-finance, which creates social and economic value in poor countries while providing excellent returns. Lack of access to capital is a crucial obstacle to small businesses, and could be addressed through regulation. This panel enjoyed a particularly vigorous exchange with the audience, given the challenges faced by many GCF delegates in growing their businesses amid the worsening economic situation.Speakers: Lori Bonn, Bonnventures. Stanley Bergman, Henry Schein, Inc. Sulaiman Al–Hamdan, NAS Holding. Maria Otero, ACCION Intl. Adolfo Urso, Undersecretary of International Trade, Italy


The day’s final panel struck a gloomy note, elaborating numerous risks affecting the economy. Asset values continue to fall; continued tight liquidity is shuttering profitable businesses; consequent rising unemployment is driving social unrest; new government regulations and protectionism could hamper the recovery. The panelists noted that the speed and composition of stimulus packages are critical variables that could decisively affect the direction of economic developments. To complicate matters further, geopolitical risk factors abound, particularly in South Asia. While the entire panel agreed that the current economic crisis represents a turning point in many areas of economic activity, such as banking, a heated debate proceeded over whether it calls into

What Next!? Global Risks 2009

RecessionEntrepreneurship:

question the fundamental structure of world trade and finance, namely, continued debt-driven consumption in the United States. Speakers: Shumeet Banerji, Booz & CO.Peter Schwartz, Global Business NetworkPeter Schiff, Euro Pacific CapitalPeter Kurer, UBS AG James Quigley, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu






January 27, 2009

The first speech by Professor Michael Porter argued that the current economic crisis indicates the need to redouble

Michael Porter

University Professor, Harvard Business School

The panel on talent echoed Professor Porter’s conclusion that human capital is more important than physical assets to driving development.

Speech: Panel Discussion:

Talent: The DNA of 21st Century Leaders

Panel Discussion:

The panel on athletics noted the potential for sports to forge the human building blocks of economic competitiveness.

Reach for Gold? Competitiveness at its Best

efforts to build competitiveness through reform and investment.

Following a detailed assessment of Saudi Arabia’s improving economic competitiveness, Professor Porter urged further commitment to workforce development, reform of capital markets and corporate governance, improved legal processes, and cluster development.

Professor Porter noted in response to an audience members’ question that women are playing a prominent role in rising Saudi Arabian entrepreneurship, just as they have in other countries.


While acknowledging the crucial role of hard skills in talent development, the panelists noted the importance of “soft” leadership skills in driving organizational success.

Audience members challenged the panel to explain why educational institutions are failing to deliver talent in many countries with declining educational standards, and panelists debated how organizations, governments, and corporations could step in to fill their talent gaps.Speakers: John Drzik, Oliver Wyman Mohamed H. Al-Mady, (SABIC)Dr. Lalit Johri,Oxford Saïd Business School Hans-Paul Buerkner, BCG

Sports teach their participants how to set goals, maintain discipline, achieve victory and recover from setbacks, respect rules, and collaborate in teams; they also reduce preventable diseases through healthy physical activity.

Foreshadowing the themes of the next panel, the participants noted that participation in sports can transform the mindsets of impoverished and disabled individuals who might otherwise lose confidence in themselves and their futures.Speakers: Michael Phelps, 14x Olympic Gold MedalistCarl Lewis, 9x Olympic Gold MedalistJohann Koss,Right to PlayTimothy Shriver, Special Olympics Inc.




The panel discussed ways to build improved outlooks and ethics into organizational structures. The panel issued a provocative challenge to enterprises: corporate social responsibility should complement corporate strategies, rather than fund executive pet projects.

Meanwhile, the participants urged governments to build policy frameworks that address the environmental causes of anti-social behaviors, rather than exclusively individualizing responsibility. For example, while behaviors such as drug use and corruption are highly degrading to the social fabric, simply punishing offenders fails to address the root causes and may actually create additional sociological

sprawl, and the environmental impact of construction. Despite the crisis in real estate markets, panelists urged investors and policymakers to consider investing in the cities of the future to advance the green agenda, quality of life, and financial returns.

One of the most exciting messages of the panel was the need to radically rethink the way physical communities are built, and the impact these changes will have on ecological footprints and the nature of social life.Speakers: Geoff Cape, EvergreenBarry Sternlicht, Starwood Capital GroupFahd Al-Rasheed, EECDavid Rosenberg, Hycrete Inc.Tom Searle, CH2M Hill


Real Estate: Building Competitive Communities

Paradigm Realign:Changing Mindsets, Changing Attitudes

challenges by incarcerating functional citizens.Speakers: Bill Achtmeyer, the Parthenon GroupPhilippe Bourgois,University of PennsylvaniaMichael Powell, Powell’s BooksAndre Bergen,KBC GroupHuguette Labelle, Transparency International

The speech by former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe discussed how the impact of risky lending in the United States was transmitted through the global financial system, and called for a re-balancing of the relationship between industrial and financial capital.

Highlighting Japan’s own challenges and its commitment to global economic recovery efforts, he suggested that promoting innovation could position nations for future competitiveness while financial difficulties are overcome.

“... Promoting innovation could position nations for future

competitiveness while financial difficulties are overcome..”

Speech:

Shinzo Abe

90th Prime Minister of Japan


The panel on real estate emphasized the importance of sustainability to competitiveness, touching on the urbanization of poorer economies,




The panel on the economic crisis traced the origins of the financial meltdown and explored the role of stimulus and regulation in setting economies on sounder footing. Panelists suggested regulations could reduce irresponsible risk-taking, but feared that a policy overreaction could hamper financial innovation. They suggested that stimulus should be productivity-enhancing, but warned that the economy risked further downward spiral unless stimulus came decisively and quickly.

Among the most fascinating aspects of the panel was a debate over the extent to which the current economic crisis calls for a radical rethinking of the basic features of modern financial transactions.

The Crisis: How Deep? How Long? How to Get Out?

The final speech focused on Malaysia’s experience as a rapidly industrializing country. Tun Dr. Mahathir urged all nations to “prosper thy neighbor” by promoting shared prosperity—for example, by exchanging investment and knowhow worldwide while investing in domestic infrastructure tailored to a country’s economic development goals.

He also noted the important challenges of corruption and tapping the economic

“a strong note of humility, how Malaysian students were sent abroad to adopt international best practices.”

Panel Discussion: Speech:

Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohammed

4th Prime Minister of Malaysia

Speakers: Muhammad Al-Jasser,SAMAStephen Pagliuca, Bain Capital Partners LLCHenry Kravis, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.Sheikh Saleh Kamel, General Council for Islamic BanksThomas Russo, Lehman Brothers

potential of women. Tun Dr. Mahathir sounded a strong note of humility, describing how Malaysian students were sent abroad to adopt international best practices, and how Malaysia has sought to avoid a rigid socioeconomic ideology as it pursued prosperity for its people.





The Global Competitiveness Forum, the premier international platform for discussing competitiveness challenges, convened in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on January 25 – 27, 2009.

We represent business, academia, the public sector and civil society, and share an interest in economic competitiveness as a driver of sustainable prosperity worldwide. The GCF proceedings produced

sharp and compelling insights about the needs of the global economy at this crucial juncture. On this basis we submit collectively to the G20 leadership a set of recommendations to help guide discussion at its April meeting in London.

We believe that policies based on the principles of responsible competitiveness will restore confidence in our respective economies and pave the way to renewed growth.

Since the November meeting of the G20, the financial crisis that occupied its agenda has become a global economic crisis.

Advanced economies have contracted and growth in emerging markets has slowed precipitously.

Foreign direct investment flows tumbled 21% in 2008, with worse expected in 2009.

Capital markets lost over US $30 trillion in value, and unemployment rates are rising around the globe. The challenges facing the world economy are now both broader and deeper than any witnessed in decades.

The severity of the global reaction to events originating in the United States proves irrevocably that we operate in a highly interdependent world.

It is therefore our view that cooperation is needed to create the

framework for healthy international competition. Innovation and economic development can only be built on a stable global system of balanced trade and finance.

As such, governments must act in a collaborative fashion to create a sustainable framework for economic recovery, including confidence-restoring measures, credit easing, fiscal coordination, open markets, and standards for sound financial regulation.

to be coninuied..


Open Letter from GCF2009

to the Leaders of G20 Member CountriesThe three-day conference produced a set of recommendations to the leaders of the G20 nations in order to guide their April 2009 meeting on restoring global economic health:




coninuied..

The G20 leaders must begin by restoring public confidence in the integrity of our markets and institutions. U.S. President Barack Obama’s inauguration provides an exciting opportunity to do so.

Decisive, collective action will demonstrate the unity of world governments in their commitment to overcoming the crisis.

G20 governments must act swiftly and convincingly to free up credit markets.

Recent announcements of further bank losses once again threaten the availability of credit to even the most stable and profitable firms.

Unless monetary easing and other measures translate into lower borrowing costs for companies and households, the broader economy will be unable to recover.

As governments provide unprecedented assistance to their financial sectors, that helping hand should be accompanied by vehicles that direct credit to the private sector, with emphasis on the small- and medium-sized businesses that generate the majority of the world’s jobs.

Furthermore, governments should agree to a coordinated fiscal stimulus policy, set at a target percentage of GDP. Stimulus measures should focus on initiatives that will enhance the long-term competitiveness of each country.

In addition to physical infrastructure, priority should be given to investments that foster vital human capital development, including education and healthcare.

Furthermore, there must be a renewed commitment to research and development budgets to fund future economic vitality.

Particular emphasis should be placed on areas that hold promise for addressing climate change by boosting energy efficiency and promoting alternative energy.

While speed is of the essence in this time of crisis, governments should give careful thought to ways in which spending can provide more than just short-term, domestic stimulus, and focus on investment and not consumption.

Due to the interdependent nature of this crisis, concerns about fiscal burden-sharing and the “leakage” of stimulus across borders are misplaced. Open markets and recognition of common interests are critical to restoring shared growth.

These initiatives will create new industries to power the economy’s future. Accompanying monetary easing in G20 economies should be a commitment to provide the IMF

with adequate resources and policy leverage to help the governments of emerging economies to do the same.

This direct assistance could be complemented by enhanced opportunities for emerging economies to help themselves.

For example, governments could offer African companies tariff-free market access similar to that allowed by the United States’ African Growth & Opportunity Act. It is imperative

that the Doha round of trade talks be speedily concluded. Finally, as these short-term measures are being enacted, the G20 should also begin the process of reforming oversight of global financial markets.

While it is natural that the G20 countries have taken the lead in this discussion, in order for a new regime to be effective, fair, and welcomed, the decision-making process that

produces it must be inclusive and reflect the interests of all countries. Greater involvement could be achieved

through the expansion of existing institutions, such as the Financial Stability Forum, or through the creation of new ones that have already been proposed.

This is a time to develop new platforms for cooperation that create engines of economic growth and foster innovation internationally.As G20 leaders consider their goals for the April meeting in London, we urge them to bear in mind these priorities.

While we have confidence that this crisis will pass, the manner in which it is handled provides unique opportunities to reposition the global economy for sustainable growth fueled by collaborative leadership and responsible competitiveness.

For the full report on our proceedings and detailed policy recommendations, please visit our website:www.gcf.org.sa


“ Priority should be given to investments

that foster vital human capital development,

including education and healthcare..”




Saudi RCISaudi Porter PrizSFG 100



As the world’s premier platform

for discussion of competitiveness

challenges, the Saudi Arabian General

Investment Authority’s

Global Competitiveness Forum

has a powerful role to play in

advancing national competitiveness

in Saudi Arabia and globally.

SAGIA Initiatives

initiated an unprecedented, comprehensive discussion of competitiveness issues encompassing the corporate sector, governments, and civil society.

Creating prosperous societies requires the engagement of all these elements across a broad array of challenges: not just unleashing competition, but also

sustaining human development, good governance, and the environment.

For global observers, the proceedings of the Global Competitiveness Forum chart a path forward to economic transformation and prosperity.

For Saudi Arabia, the Global Competitiveness Forum is a crucial

pillar of the 10x10 program: the drive to transform the Kingdom into one of the world’s Top 10 most competitive economies by 2010.

Where other gatherings produce recommendations, the GCF is taking a more ambitious role: direct initiatives to foster responsible competitiveness.

This year’s themeResponsibleCompetitiveness,




Initiative - 1

SaudiFastGrowthReal Companies, Real Growth, Real Success

Winners of similar US and UK lists developed by Harvard Business School Professor Michael Porter have cited new capital sources from meeting major investors, winning large contracts, and gaining enhanced credibility as a result of appearing on the lists. Now this opportunity is here in Saudi Arabia. Al-Watan is creating a special section of the newspaper to spotlight the important role these emerging companies and Nominating Partners are playing in the future of the Saudi economy.

Saudi Fast Growth 100Each year we rank the fastest growing emerging companies in the Kingdom. In addition, we recognize start-ups, women-owned companies and those owned by young entrepreneurs.

Winners of SFG 2009 Saudi Fast Growth 100 TOP 5:1. Secutronic2. Ola Almajd3. IT Security Training & Solutions - I(TS)24. Integrated Networks LLC (iNET)5. Al-Elm Security Information Company

2009 Saudi Fast Growth Start-Up List1. Phenomenal PR & Event2. 2P for IT and Telco Services3. ACWA Power International4. Mobile Innovative Solutions Company5. Innovative Business Solutions

SAGIA Initiatives

SFG FINDINGS:

Saudi Fast Growth applied companies were classified into three groups: 1- The Saudi Fast Growth 100 are

five years and older. There were 45 companies that made that list.

2- Start up companies: younger than five years (27 companies)

3- Companies to Watch (23 companies)

Highlights & findings:- The 45 companies in the Saudi Fast

Growth 100 have created 28,000 jobs since their founding. Of that total, 15,000 jobs were created in just the last five years. These are the dynamos creating new value-added jobs in the Kingdom.

- To make that happen, those 45 companies also grew at an impressive average 5-year compound annual growth rate of 40 percent. That means that -- on average -- they grew at 40% a year, every single year for the past five years. Many of them have grown much faster than that

- The 27 companies on the Start Up list grew at a stunning rate of 198 percent from 2006 to 2007.

- SFG list is a diverse one. The

companies are both small and large, ranging in size from 4 million SAR to over 1 billion SAR. They represent a wide range of industries, with the fastest growing segment by far in High-Tech and Telecommunications.

People running these companies:1- Are mostly young. On average, our

Saudi Fast Growth 100 and Start Up company CEOs were 32 years old when they launched their businesses.

2- They also include many serial entrepreneurs. Among the Saudi Fast Growth 100, 42 percent of CEO’s had started other businesses ... and for the Start Ups that figure was even higher -- 95 percent. That’s what we call a «constant opportunity seeking” CEO. This intense level of business creation actually exceeds that of the entrepreneurs on the US Inc. 500 – considered to be the platinum standard of entrepreneurship

3- Not only are they creating many businesses, but their rate of survival is truly impressive.

4- Of the other companies formed in addition to the Saudi Fast Growth 100, 90 percent are still in business.

5- You won’t be surprised to learn that

these are CEOs with big plans. 75 percent of the Saudi Fast Growth 100 and 90 percent of the Start Up CEOs are planning to start another business within the next two years.

6- Additionally, 33 percent of the Saudi Fast Growth 100 and 15 percent of the Start Ups are planning an IPO within that same two year period.

7- A number of them had plans to expand their businesses throughout the Middle East and beyond. And while many of them may be small now, they have a strategy to become the leading companies in the Kingdom in their industries.

Greatest barrier for SFG to continue to growth: The number-one answer: human

capital. Shortage of qualified and able people who are ready to join their workforce and help drive their growth. The second most frequently-cited impediment to growth? Government red tape. SAGIA and other government ministries have made consistent efforts to improve the interface between companies and government ... but there is still work to be done. The third challenge

companies face is obtaining start-up capital. That’s an obstacle we can hope to see overcome as the entrepreneurial economy expands. The more the financial community knows about successful entrepreneurship in the Kingdom, the more eager they will be to support emerging companies and emerging industries. This country -- like any

other country -- needs a vibrant local capital market for entrepreneurial companies.SAGIA and AlWatan are playing a transformative role by bringing to light examples of entrepreneurial success. The more these companies become known, the more an entrepreneurial culture will take hold in the Kingdom

“ In its very first year, the Saudi Fast Growth 100 has either

met or exceeded international benchmarks of US and

European company growth lists such as the Inc. 500 and

the Euro 500 ..”




The Saudi Porter Prize, awarded by Harvard Business School Professor Michael Porter, is given to a Saudi company with a distinctive competitive strategy.

The Saudi Porter Prize is announced in January at the Global Competitiveness Forum in Riyadh and will be featured in national and international media.

The Saudi Porter Prize was established to recognize outstanding Saudi companies and to enhance the competitiveness of the Kingdom’s industries.

The winning company will have a distinctive strategy that results in an innovative national or global competitive positioning. The Porter Prize has only been offered in Japan and now it is awarded in Saudi Arabia, the economic center of the Middle East.

Initiative - 2

The winning company will have a distinctive strategy that results in an innovative national or global competitive positioning.

SAGIA Initiatives

Winner of Saudi Porter Prize:Secutronic (Number 1 in SFG100 list)

Saudi Porter Prize




Initiative - 3

To achieve sustainable social development that encourages the national competitiveness agenda in Saudi Arabia,

RCI focuses on helping individual companies integrate responsible business practices into their core business operations and to improve their performance in a number of key environmental, social and governance (ESG) areas, through a process of company-by-company analysis, benchmarking, and shared learning; and that through 3 special programs:

1. Saudi Responsible Competitiveness Index (RCI)RCI is an annual assessment of leading businesses in Saudi Arabia conducted based on international benchmarks and local development needs. The assessment looks into the strength of a company’s strategy, management, engagement processes and performance systems.

2. King Khalid Award for Responsible CompetitivenessAn annual award to recognize the

Saudi Responsible Competitveness Indextop 3 performers in the Responsible Competitiveness Index (RCI)

3. Responsible Competitiveness Leadership DialoguesA series of dialogues bringing together Saudi and International companies, academics, and experts to exchange knowledge of CSR and Competitiveness best practices, in the aim of exploring solutions for main national development & competitiveness challenges..

The Saudi Responsible Competitiveness Index (RCI) helps responsible businesses improve their performance and build economic competitiveness, social progress and sustainability. This helps build competitiveness at sector, city, region and national levels. It helps build a critical mass of business-level activities that cumulatively build a responsible competitive climate. The Index is a core part of the process of building medium-

term growth potential through social and environmental performance. The core of the RCI is an annual assessment of leading businesses in Saudi Arabia.

The assessment looks into the strength of a company’s strategy, management, engagement processes and performance systems.

Participating businesses will have a confidential briefing on this performance against sectoral, national and global benchmarks. The process of engaging in the index, we believe, offers learning opportunities for senior managers using the benchmarking tools. The framework has been developed to take account of competitive pressures and opportunities in the Kingdom.

Winners of the RCI are:First Place: NCB. Second Place: Al-Zamil Group. Third Place: Al-Fanar

King Khaled Awardfor Responsible Competitiveness

KKF Award

Rewarding the top ranking companies, King Khalid Foundation presents the King Khalid Responsible Award.

The annual award is offered to the best 3 performing companies as per the RCI assessment and ranking; the winners were announced in January 2009 during the Global Competitiveness Forum (GCF).

This step crowns RCI and supports the efforts to encourage local companies to build a prosperous society and honor the private sector institutions that have fulfilled their responsibilities to the Saudi society and helped achieving sustainable social development.

Rewarding the top ranking companies, King Khalid Foundation presents the King Khalid Responsible Award.

NCB, 1st. Winner

Al-Fanar, 3rd WinnerAl-Zamil Grp, 2nd Winner




Day 1 Speakers Day 2 Speakers Day 3 Speakers



A - BShinzo Abe90th Prime Minister of Japan

AchtmeyerChairman and Managing Partner, Parthenon Group

Sulaiman Abdullah Al–HamdanCEO, National Air Services(NAS Holding)

Al Jasser

Mohamed H. Al-Mady Vice-Chairman and CEO,Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC)

Fahd Al-RasheedCEO and Board Member of Emaar the Economic City (EEC)

H.E. Dr. Mohammed Al-SuwaiyelPresident,King Abdulaziz Cityfor Science and Technology

William J. AmelioPresident and CEO,Lenovo

Dr. Wilhelm Bender Chairman of the Executive Board, Fraport AG

Jørgen Clausen President and CEO,Danfoss A/S

Dr. Hans-Paul Buerkner President and CEO,BCG

Stanley M. BergmanCEO,Henry Schein, Inc.

Dr. Shumeet Banerji CEO,Booz and Company

“GCF2009 Speakers”

Speakers




Andre BergenCEO, KBC Group

James BarrettExecutive Director, Redefining Progress

C - E F - KAron CramerPresident and CEO,Business for Social Responsibility

Geoff Cape Founder and CEO,Evergreen

Dr. Philip CampbellEditor in Chief,Nature Magazine

Timothy FlynnChairman,KPMG International

Carlos GhosnPresident and CEO,Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.

Tomas EndersCEO,Airbus SAS

Saeb EignerChairman,Lonworld

Thorleif EngerFormer President and CEO,Yara International ASA

Mark FullerChairman,Monitor Group

Stéphane GarelliProfessor atIMD and the University of Lausanne;Director,World Competitiveness Center

George GrunerFounder and CSO,Unidym

Rajat K. GuptaSenior Partner Emeritus,McKinsey & Company

Dr. Robert Huggins Director,Centre for International Competitiveness

Sheikh Saleh KamelChairman,General Council for Islamic Banks

Riz KhanInternational Journalist,Al Jazeera English

Michael KaiserPresident,John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

Henry R. KravisFounding Partner,Kohlberg Kravis Roberts Co.

Peter KurerChairman,UBS AG

Jean Chrétien20th Prime Minister of Canada

Jim CliftonChairman and CEO,The Gallup Organization

Speakers

Angel CabreraPresident,Thunderbird School ofGlobal Management

John Drzik President and CEO,Oliver Wyman Group




Dr. Lalit JohriDirector,Advanced Management Programme, Oxford Saïd Business School

Johann KossPresident and CEO,Right to Play and 4x Olympic Gold Medalist

Dr. Michio KakuTheoretical Physicist,Professor,and Best Selling Author

Markus BrehlerCEO and Founder, Enocean

Philippe BourgoisRichard Perry University Professor of Anthropology and Family and Community Medicine, University of Pennsylvania

Lori BonnFounder and CEO, Bonnventures

Enocean

Carl Lewis9x Olympic Gold Medallist

Wolfgang LehmacherMember of the Board,GeoPost S.A.;Paris Group CEO,Pasona Group Inc.

L - P Q - T

Michael Phelps14x Olympic Gold Medalist

Michael PorterUniversity Professor,Harvard Business School

Magatte Wade-MarchandCo-Founder and President,Adina for Life

Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad 4th Prime Minister of Malaysia

Nandan NilekaniExecutive Co-Chairman,Infosys Technologies Ltd

Maria OteroPresident and CEO,ACCION International

H. E. Mohammad Hassan OmranChairman,Emirates Telecommunications Corporation,Etisalat

Peter Brabeck-Letmathe Chairman,Nestlé SA

Gertjan LankhorstCEO,GasTerra

Huguette LabelleChair of the Board,Transparency International

James H. QuigleyCEO,Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu

Thomas RussoFormer Vice Chairman,Lehman Brothers

Mary Robinson7th President of Ireland

David G. RosenbergCEO and Founder,Hycrete Inc.

Tom Searle President andGroup Chief Executive,CH2M Hill International

Peter SchwartzCEO,Global Business Network

Kap-Soo, SuhChairman and Founder,KTIC

Deborah L. Wince-SmithPresident,Council on Competitiveness

Original

Find from Best brand recreate PMS

Paolo ScaroniCEO,Eni S.p.A.

Barry SternlichtChairman and CEO,Starwood Capital Group

Timothy P. ShriverChairman,Special Olympics Inc.

Peter SchiffPresident andChief Global Strategist,Euro Pacific Capital

Björn StigsonPresident,World Business Council for Sustainable Development

Peer SchatzCEO,Qiagen

Jean-Pascal TricoireCEO,Schneider Electric

Speakers

Michael PowellFounder,Powell’s Books

Stephen G. PagliucaManaging Director,Bain Capital Partners LLC

John QuelchLincoln Filene Professor ofBusiness Administration,Harvard Business School

Laura TysonProfessor, Haas Business School and Former Chair, US President’s Council of Economic Advisors

Adolfo Urso Undersecretary ofInternational Trade,Italy




T - ZGary WinnickChairman of the Board,Pacific Capital Group Inc.

Christine Whitman50th Governor of New Jersey and 9th Administrator of the Environmental Protection agency

Herbert-Michael ZapfPresident and CEO,International Post Corporation

Speakers




Competitiveness SponsorsStrategic PartnersCompetitiveness Partners



Ultimate / IT Partner

Sponsors & Media Partners




Competitiveness Partners Strategic Partners

Competitiveness Sponsors





Principal Media Partners Media Partners





NCCSAGIA



The NCC is currently supporting the creation of Advisory Councils that bring together stakeholders from the private and public sectors in key clusters to identify and collaborate on competitiveness improvement initiatives.

Finally, it acts as a communicator for change, sharing the results of the Kingdom’s ongoing competitiveness efforts though such channels as its Competitiveness Review.

Established in 2000, the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) is committed to enhancing the experience of investing and operating in the Kingdom by serving as an information clearinghouse and by providing comprehensive licensing and support services toinvestors.

Its mission is the fulfillment of 10X10 Program:the plan to position Saudi Arabia among the top ten most competitive economies by 2010 through the creation of a business-friendly environment.Marrying local knowledge with world-class business expertise, SAGIA believes strongly in promoting entrepreneurship and the relentless pursuit of data-driven results.

GCF2009 Hosts

• Identifies investment opportunities that are linked to the Kingdom’s competitive advantages and matches them to interested and qualified investors.

• Provides value-added business services and solutions to investors and business owners, such as the One-Step Shops (OSS) offices centralizing the critical services necessary to invest in or to set up and operate a business in Saudi Arabia

• Serves as the main point of contact between investors and other national and regional agencies within the Kingdom as well as private-sector organizations to develop and refine business laws and policies.

NCC Mission:

To support the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s competitiveness agenda through objective, data-driven advice on regulatory reform and sector improvement opportunities that will contribute to increasing, sustainable prosperity for the people ofSaudi Arabia.

• Represents the Kingdom abroad through nine international o Represents the Kingdom abroad through nine international offices on four continents to market Saudi Arabia’s business climate and to offer on-the-ground advice on all aspects of doing business in Saudi Arabia.

• Offices on four continents to market Saudi Arabia’s business climate and to offer on-the-ground advice on all aspects of doing business in Saudi Arabia.

The National Competitiveness Center (NCC) was established by SAGIA in 2006 as a body to monitor, assess, and support competitiveness enhancement in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The NCC fulfills this role in three ways:It serves as a think tank for change by conducting and developing

competitive assessments and monitoring the implementation and results of change programs.

These programs focus on two main areas: improving the ease of doing business in the Kingdom, through spurring modernization of the general business environment;

and improving the microeconomic fundamentals of competitiveness, through mobilizing development of world-class clusters.

During 2008, the NCC played a key role in advocating for a range of improvements to Saudi Arabia’s business environment, including rules strengthening protection of shareholders and a reduction in commercial registration fees.

It works as a facilitator of change by creating forums for discussion between the public and private sector.

As the “gardian angel” of business in Saudi Arabia, SAGIA:




Day - 1 Day - 2 Day - 3



GCF2009 Photo Gallery - Day1




See you at GCF201024-26 January 2010

- 97 -www.gcf.org.sa



www.gcf.org.sa

Global

Competitiveness Forum, Responsible Competitiveness, Proceedings

Global Competitiveness Forum, Responsible Competitiveness, Proceedings

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GCF 2009 Global Competitiveness Forum Riyadh

Business

Transcript of GCF 2009 Global Competitiveness Forum Riyadh