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Discuss this article (0 Comments)Man with a plan
by ArabianBusiness.com staff writer on Saturday, 03 November 2007
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While some private firms may have struggled due to a lack of thorough preparation, Javidi believes that the Gulf's governments have exemplified the notion of ‘business intelligence' as they bid to boost their growing economies: "At a governmental level, I think the vision has been right on the money," he enthuses. "They have put a lot of strategies in place, and the speed at which they have accomplished some of that strategy has been unbelievable."
Javidi is keen to work alongside some of these governmental organisations, and admits that his own personal "dream" is to work with the UAE Government. "I would love to be able to align somehow at a strategic level and to be part of this vision, so by the time I'm 70 or 80 years old, I can look back and say that we had a very small role in the success of Dubai or the UAE," he says. "That would be a very rewarding experience for me, and for the company."
The bottom line is that if we tell our clients that they need to be strategic, then we need to be strategic ourselves.
A glance at Javidi's CV reveals that such work would not be his first with a government organisation. In recognition, the US Department of Defence has inducted Javidi as an honorary member to recognize the importance of his business strategy and business deployment programmes, to the unit's ongoing restructuring and development.
He is modest when asked about the achievement - "I tend not to put it on my business card" - but as a civilian, he is clearly proud of his work in that specialised capacity.
Moreover, it means that Javidi is certainly qualified to compare the experience of working alongside a governmental organisation, with that of working alongside a private business.
"There are more processes, there are expensive disciplines when you work with governmental agencies, and there is more red tape to get through," he says. "Businesses, I think, have less bureaucracy and less red tape, but then they deal with other challenges.
"We have governmental clients, we have for-profit clients, and we have non-profit clients," he continues. "However, my personal ambition is not about money. We are in the business of being successful by impacting society positively, our clients positively, and so in turn their customers positively."
The business world's increased focus on corporate citizenship is an encouraging sign, Javidi argues. Indeed, he actively solicits as clients those companies that best follow the CSR path.
"It doesn't matter if you are in the automotive business, or the healthcare business - you are in the business of trying to positively impact the world," he insists. "Those are the type of clients I prefer to work with."
If Javidi has his way, he will soon be sourcing those clients from all over the region. There are plans on the drawing board to open offices in Jordan, Lebanon, India and Africa. More immediately, the group is close to an agreement that will take it to Kuwait and so strengthen the Catevo brand's foothold in the region.
"These emerging markets are important - everyone is looking at them, and I think the Gulf region is one of the biggest," says Javidi. "It's always been a player, but now more so than ever. When you look at Dubai and the UAE, it's almost as though they've been pulling themselves up alongside China, India and Singapore."
Saudi Arabia is on the schedule too, although Javidi is employing the same considered methodology he did when approaching the UAE. There is strong demand from Catevo's international clients for the group to move into the region's largest economy, but Javidi will not be rushed.
"Saudi is a strong market and we're just trying to work out what the opportunities are," he explains. "The bottom line is that if we tell our clients that they need to be strategic, then we need to be strategic ourselves, so we're looking at our options, gathering our data, and carefully evaluating our step-by-step progress."
It is an approach that can only benefit the group's wide range of clients. In a world where PR and marketing is becoming ever more important - and the internet ensures that a local publicity crisis can swiftly become a global one - the rapport between counsel and client will prove crucial.
"Most important is that in our relationship with our clients, together, we are smarter," Dr Javidi reiterates, smiling. "We sit across the table from our clients, we listen to them and we talk to them. We learn from them, rather than preach to them, and then we develop our strategies together, and implement them. That's one of the biggest lessons I learned from Sam Walton."
And this generation's PhD students could do a lot worse than to listen to Dr Javidi. After all, the best thing to do with good advice is pass it on.
Worldcom a global presence
Worldcom Public Relations Group is an international consortium of independently owned public relations and integrated communications firms, and Catevo (under a previous name) was one of the group's co-founders in 1998. The network consists of more than 100 partner offices in 39 countries and six continents, making it the largest public relations organisation for number of participating agencies.
"We bring independent PR and communications companies together to work as a network to give access to those regions," says Javidi. "At the present time there are 110 members, and this allows us to coordinate worldwide operations."
Worldcom was formed so that independent firms could serve national, international and multinational clients while maintaining the flexibility and client-service focus that characterises independent agencies. The group allows clients to have on-demand access to in-depth communications expertise from professionals who understand the language, culture and customs of the geographic arenas in which they operate.
"We are able to pool our partners from different regions, where they can define their strategy and basically operate as an extension of us, as an extension of the intellectual capital," he continues.
Worldcom requires its partner members to maintain industry quality standards, and provides international experience, community resources and a collaborative information and best-practice-sharing environment that gives them a local advantage in servicing a wide variety of clients in their respective markets. Worldcom has divisions in North America, Latin America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Asia.
"We are the only Worldcom full members here in Dubai, which gives us the opportunity to open it to our network," explains Javidi. "So if our partners in China or the UK want access to this market to serve their clients better, we have people on the ground here that can help."
The network conducts continuing education for its members, produces a monthly newsletter and holds bi-annual conferences. Worldcom is governed by an elected board of directors and three regional boards with support from a chief operating officer. Worldcom's 2006 annual global conference was held in Bangkok, Thailand and featured a panel of public relations executives that addressed the topic of ‘How New Media is Impacting Traditional Marketing in Countries Around the World.' The forum featured more than 100 Worldcom members.
Worldcom Public Relations Group is an international consortium of independently owned public relations and integrated communications firms, and Catevo (under a previous name) was one of the group's co-founders in 1998. The network consists of more than 100 partner offices in 39 countries and six continents, making it the largest public relations organisation for number of participating agencies.
"We bring independent PR and communications companies together to work as a network to give access to those regions," says Javidi. "At the present time there are 110 members, and this allows us to coordinate worldwide operations."
Worldcom was formed so that independent firms could serve national, international and multinational clients while maintaining the flexibility and client-service focus that characterises independent agencies. The group allows clients to have on-demand access to in-depth communications expertise from professionals who understand the language, culture and customs of the geographic arenas in which they operate.
"We are able to pool our partners from different regions, where they can define their strategy and basically operate as an extension of us, as an extension of the intellectual capital," he continues.
Worldcom requires its partner members to maintain industry quality standards, and provides international experience, community resources and a collaborative information and best-practice-sharing environment that gives them a local advantage in servicing a wide variety of clients in their respective markets. Worldcom has divisions in North America, Latin America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and Asia.
"We are the only Worldcom full members here in Dubai, which gives us the opportunity to open it to our network," explains Javidi. "So if our partners in China or the UK want access to this market to serve their clients better, we have people on the ground here that can help."
The network conducts continuing education for its members, produces a monthly newsletter and holds bi-annual conferences. Worldcom is governed by an elected board of directors and three regional boards with support from a chief operating officer. Worldcom's 2006 annual global conference was held in Bangkok, Thailand and featured a panel of public relations executives that addressed the topic of ‘How New Media is Impacting Traditional Marketing in Countries Around the World.' The forum featured more than 100 Worldcom members.
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