Press release:

DED drives excellence in business with ‘Share Best Practice 2010’ conference & exhibition

Dubai, 12 October, 2010: Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman - Dubai Airports, President – Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Chairman and CEO – Emirates Group, the Department of Economic Development (DED) organized the “Share Best Practice 2010” Conference & Exhibition in co-operation with Dubai Quality Group (DQG). The event is envisaged as an annual initiative to further promote the practical concepts of quality and excellence amongst the business community.

The event included four sessions during which the 2009 winners of Dubai Quality Award (DQA), Dubai Human Development Award (DHDA), Dubai Service Excellence Scheme (DSES), and the Dubai Government Excellence Program (DGEP) presented a selected best practice to the audience.

Mr Ali Ibrahim, Deputy Director General for Planning and Development Affairs at DED, said the Dubai Government is committed to actively collaborate with the private sector in boosting quality and excellence across all sectors of the economy. He said: “Our Government organisations follow the same European Foundation for Quality Management ( EFQM) model as that of the private sector, thus ensuring that all stakeholders can have a standardized approach towards quality. By basing our quality approach on a common platform and framework, we can together achieve excellence and take the economy to the next level of growth”.

“Effective sharing of best practices will help the organisations to identify and replace poor practices, raise the performance of poor performers, minimize re-work caused by use of poor methodology, save costs through better productivity and efficiency, and improve the services offered to clients and customers,” added Mr Ali.

Dr. Khalid Mohammed Al Zahed, Director of Marine Transport Department, Public Transport Agency - Roads & Transport Authority, was the first keynote speaker. He presented a paper titled, "My Journey to Excellence", which highlights the factors that enabled him to be the Distinguished Government Employee of DGEP. It included his vision, educational accomplishments, professional and leadership development, achievements in public service, involvement in society activities official and non-official, participation in sport events, creativity and innovation.

In her presentation entitled “Marketplace Differentiation Through Quality Leadership", Ms Deepti Arora, Head of Global Quality, Wireless Networks, Motorola, USA, shared how Six Sigma was created to revitalize Motorola’s manufacturing quality, how quality best practices are part of the company’s DNA, and how quality has evolved as a strategic driver for its market differentiation.

Sunil Thawani, the author of Business Excellence Awards – Strategies for winning, also presented a paper on EFQM 2010 – The key changes and its implications for organizations.

Presentations were made by the 2009 winners of DQA including Madinat Jumeirah, Union National Bank and UAE Exchange Centre; and winners of Dubai Quality Appreciation Programme (DQAP) including IDAMA Facilities Services and Apparel Group, which is also a winner of Dubai Service Excellence Scheme Best Outlet.

Participants from DHDA appreciation programme included Dubai Municipality, also a DGEP winner in technical project category. Dubai Statistics Centre, DGEP winner in excellence appreciation category, and General Directorate of Residency & Foreigners Affairs, DGEP winner in customer satisfaction, also participated in the event. More than xx people from the business community attended the workshop.

The Business Excellence Centre at DED distributed a book outlining the best practices sourced from the winners of DQA, DHDA, DSES and DGEP in 2009. The book included detailed entries by each of the award winners, thus enabling potential applicants to get an insight into the benefits of applying for the awards. A specialised exhibition, which included booths for all the winners, was organised alongside the ‘Share Best Practice 2010’ Conference.