When is Ascent established in Dubai?

The company was established in 2000.

What encouraged you to start your own company?

When I had my second child, in flexibility on part of my employer at the time where I worked as a training consultant, I started freelancing, as some of my clients only wanted to work with me. This gave me the opportunity to start my own company.

Some people, who own their company, usually step aside and let it be managed by someone else, in your case, what exactly is your role in Ascent?

My role in the company is to ensure the clients get quality programs as per their needs to run the business. Also to ensure my staff are well looked after so, in short from being the tea girl in the office to managing it as a business I play all roles.

What exactly is it your company does?

We provide development solutions for organisations be it government, public sector or the private sector. We cover areas like Leadership, management skills, organisational skills, sales and service skills. Over the years we have actively sought principals, globally, with sound and robust programs in various areas, such as:

The center for leadership studies – Situational Leadership

Hermann International – HBDI a profiling tool of thinking preferences

Businees today International – A business simulation company

Think on your feet – a program that target 90% of our communication in our daily lives

Team bonding

Are your services available only to organizations or individuals as well?

To organisations mainly, but every now and again we have a public course which is open to individuals.

In your observation -  why do organizations in the Middle East need training and development particularly in their human capital?

It's not just the Middle East, people need development opportunities across the world. The global education systems provide you with all the technical knowledge and the theoretical aspects of people interactions in some cases. The development of staff that we focus on, is helping people practically understand those theories and how to use their behaviour to have the maximum positive impact on people, be it  subordinates, customers, or colleagues and at the end of the day maximum positive impact on the bottom line.

In your perspective as someone who believes in training and development - what makes a great company or organization today?

Every company has problems. The problems can be in processes, between staff, logistics issues etc. the difference between a great company and ‘just another’ organisation is how those problems are handled. The critical thing in handling any problem is the behaviour of the persons providing solutions.

Customers are loyal to people serving them first and the brand second. Staff are loyal to leaders first and the company second.