Hawkamah to Convene Experts to Examine Corporate Culture at 10th Annual Corporate Governance Conference

Conference held under the topic of ‘Corporate Culture: The Secret Ingredient for Good Governance’ 

Dubai, UAE, August 4, 2016:  Hawkamah, the Institute for Corporate Governance at the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and the first centre specialised in Governance in the GCC, is set to host its 10th Annual Corporate Governance Conference on 8 November at the Armani Hotel in Dubai. The company aims to help regional organisations develop globally recognised corporate governance frameworks.  

Established in 2006, Hawkamah works with companies, governments and regulators within the DIFC and beyond to help bridge the corporate governance gap in the region. The institute emerged to address a palpable and growing need for a regional entity working on the ground to convince stakeholders to buy into corporate governance. Since then, Hawkamah has led the growing call for best practices in corporate governance throughout the region.

As the region’s largest gathering of distinguished governance practitioners, prominent business leaders and high-level regional and international policy makers, the 10th annual conference will focus on Corporate Culture: The Secret Ingredient for Good Governance. Comprising panel sessions on corporate culture practices in the region, the conference will examine various reform and implementation methods that help governments and organisations alike achieve long-term sustainable value while also remaining accountable to owners and key stakeholders. 

Hosting the region’s leading corporate governance thought-leaders, this year’s event will highlight the critical role of CEOs, directors of the Board, regulators, and internal auditors among others in creating, monitoring and measuring corporate culture.

Speaking ahead of the conference, His Excellency Hamad Buamim, Chairman - Hawkamah, said: “We are pleased to host the 10th Annual Corporate Governance Conference and look forward to providing a transparent platform for the region’s leading corporate governance experts to debate. We aim to facilitate lively discussions of key trends pertaining to corporate culture that are set to become the new frontier in corporate governance.” 

His Excellency added: “With over a decade of experience in working with public and private sector entities in the region, Hawkamah has learned that for a corporate governance framework to be truly effective on the ground, the values and principles of the organisation’s leadership must resonate in day-to-day operations and in the behavior of its executives. As we witness global economic change and the development of emerging economies, diversification programmes, privatisation initiaitives and investment across the region, now is the key time to be discussing these issues.”

According to Hawkamah, while ‘corporate culture’ can be defined in a number of different ways, it emphasises the point that behavior and culture today is less about what an organisation does and much more about how it does it. Important drivers include the tenor or manner adopted by the top management, incentive structures and corporate codes of behavior, as well as recruitment policies and promotion practices. Corporate culture is closely linked with all aspects of a company - ranging from risk to strategy, and from compliance to sustainability.