The Al Habtoor Group hosted the Employee Excellence Awards at the Habtoor Grand Beach Resort & Spa on Tuesday, January 22. The purpose of the Awards is to recognise and reward high achievers within the Group.
The Chairman of Al Habtoor Group, Khalaf Al Habtoor, said, “I launched the Employee Excellence Awards in 2007 because I believe it is important to recognise employees who excel. Our employees are the company’s biggest asset.”
The Employee Excellence Awards were broken into six categories:
- The Individual Excellence Award
- The Distinction Award
- The Milestone Award
- The Departmental Award
- The Business Unit Award
- The Chairman’s Award
There were a total of 22 awards handed out by the Chairman. Each of the winners were given an engraved trophy and a certificate of appreciation and a monetary award. There were more than 70 nominations selected from hundreds of entries from around the Group. In the individual category there were three winners from Al Habtoor Motors, three from Diamondlease, two from Emirates International Schools, three from the hotels and one from the head office.
The Employee Excellence Awards groups together all the company’s units, including employees from the Al Habtoor Group Head Office, Habtoor Hotels (The Habtoor Grand Resort & Spa, The Metropolitan Palace, The Metropolitan Deira Hotel, Metropolitan Catering Services), Al Habtoor Motors, Diamondlease and Emirates International Schools (Jumeirah and Meadows).
The Distinction Award, which was hand-picked by the Chairman, went to Martyn Wild, Projects Director at the Al Habtoor Group.
There were two winners in the Milestone category; Krishnan Puthiyaveetil from Al Habtoor Motors and Maqbool Hussein Tapir from the Metropolitan Deira Hotel.
The Business Unit Awards were given for showcasing ‘Business Excellence’ and encouraging businesses to think positively while displaying an entrepreneurial spirit. The crystals went to the Metropolitan Palace Hotel headed by Sanjay Luthra, the General Manager of the hotel; and Al Habtoor Motors under the direction of Karl Hamer, the Managing Director. Al Habtoor Motors is today one of the leading automobile distributors in the UAE.
The final awards of the evening were the 'Chairman’s Award', which were selected by the Chairman, Khalaf Al Habtoor. This Award is the most prestigious accolade an employee can receive.
The winners were Noura Badawi, Director of Media and Communications and R. Venkataraman, Director of Corporate Governance and Risk Management.
The Chairman said, “This year’s winners were an easy choice”. Ms Badawi has been with the Group for 10 year and has proved to be an invaluable employee. She manages an extremely demanding job and gives more than 100 per cent effort. She is a great asset to the Group.”
He added, “Mr Venkataraman has developed a code of Best Practice within the Group and is always aiming for the top. He has implemented strong guidelines for corporate governance and transparency to ensure the Group can compete on a regional and global platform.”