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ـه1443 ىلوألا ىدامج ددـــــ ـــــعلا Forum 13
م2021 برمس�يد

Inspiring MBA Students:

GueSt & InduStry tAlk SeSSIonS Dr. Jolly Sahni
Associate Director, MBA Program
College of Business Administration

MBA (Master of Business Administration) Program at Prince Sultan enable market participants to use them to their benefits. The
University provides a unique learning experience with academic students took the floor to ask questions with the guest speaker
and professional engagement. Inviting guest speakers into the further elaborating on the subject matter.
seminars in an integral part of our MBA program that exposes
the students to the practical elements of their specializations. On the 15th of November 2021, Dr. Demah Alfakhri invited the
The majority of MBA courses incorporate guest sessions which guest speaker Ms. Hetaf Alromeh, the co-founder and director
provide invaluable insights to the topics. They provide real-life of Ghelaf marketing agency to the MKT 530 MBA class. The
learning by immersive discussion on the challenges, triumphs and session’s title was “How Marketing agencies work? The Benefits
lessons in their respective business fields, providing an alternative of Hiring Local Agencies”. Ms. Hetaf was very engaging and the
perspective on the issues. The MBA guest sessions have inspired session was very interactive. The focus was on the daily practices
our student communities with their presentations, discussion and and challenges of marketing agencies and the importance of
thoughtful words of advice. These interactions have proven to be localization and understanding the culture, especially with the
very fruitful and meaningful for the students as they discuss real noticeable growth of local marketing agencies. The speaker
cases and communicate directly with industry experts from local concluded the session with an open discussion about the new
and international companies. Below are the details of some of the trends and recommendations in the marketing field. Overall, it
sessions as organized by MBA instructors. was an inspiring and fun session. Students really enjoyed and
appreciated the session and the presenter.
Dr. Jolly Sahni, Associate Director (MBA Program) and Instructor
of ‘Managing Organizations and People’ course recently organized Yet another interesting session was organised by Dr. Nof Al-
a Webinar on "Leadership & Teamwork in the Post-Pandemic Sufyani on 8th of November 2021. The invited guest was Mr.
World" and invited Prof. Ramesh K Arora, Former Dean, University Waleed Al-Mohaimeed, Marketing and Sales Director at Domino’s
of Rajasthan (India) as the Guest Speaker (23rd of November KSA. He gave a session on “Domino’s Competitive Strategies and
2021). The webinar was structured to equip BUS570 students Decisions in the Saudi Market”. The guest introduced the latest
with the contemporary knowledge on Leadership & teamwork trends. The attendees were 25 MBA students from the “Strategic
in challenging times like COVID-19. Prof. Arora elaborated on Marketing” course.
the effective leadership styles & traits in a Post-COVID scenario.
With varied practical examples, students could learn ‘how to A Webinar was organized on “The Agrifood Sector in the Kingdom
be effective future leaders’ and manage teams in an efficient of Saudi Arabia” by Dr. Luisa Pinto for her Production and
& effective way even during disruptive times. The session was Operation Management course on 5th of October 2021. The
intense, participatory, interesting and engaging for all participants. guest speaker was Mr. Mark Webster, a former Partner at PwC.
It was attended by several MBA students who provided positive The webinar focused on how the different concepts studied
feedback about the session and expressed their appreciation to during the Production and Operations Management course are
the guest speaker and instructor. applied to a very specific sector, which in this case is the Agrifood
sector. The main goal of this webinar was to give an overview of
MBA Industry Talk Session: Financial Derivatives Seminar: the Agrifood sector in Saudi Arabia, the integration of multiple
organized by MBA instructor, Dr. Rhada Boujlil on 16th of activities across the value chain, how the Saudi government
November and invited Dr. Saad Alsunbul, an Assistant Professor establishes strategic reserves of critical commodities to achieve
and the Director of the E-MBA Program at Alyamamah University food security, which is the top priority of the Saudi government.
in Riyadh Dr. Alsunbul delivered an informative webinar on the And what are the private sector strategies in this area? It was
use of financial derivative instruments in financial markets both quite an interactive session and students asked several questions
internationally and locally. He discussed the nature of financial which were very well answered by the Guest speaker.
derivatives, their four different types and the main four goals they
serve, hedging, speculation, changing the nature of a liability, For the Legal & Ethical Environment of Business course, a seminar
and changing the nature of an investment. Each single type of on ‘Introduction to the Judicial System in Saudi Arabia’ was
derivative received special attention from our guest speaker, organized by Dr. Michelle Words on 16th of September 2021. The
highlighting the major differences in structure, size, platform and Guest Speaker was Ms. Ghaida Meaigel, Attorney at Khoshaim
their goals. Future contracts for instance, are agreements to buy and Associates. Ms. Ghaida began by providing an overview of
or sell an asset at a certain time in the future for a certain price the Saudi Arabian governmental structure, the process of the
known as the future price; while the spot contract deals with formation of laws and the governmental bodies and panels which
buying or selling the asset immediately. Next on the agenda were contribute to the formation of laws. Ms. Ghaida then explained
the forward contracts, OTC agreements to buy or sell an asset at the structure of the two legal branches in Saudi Arabia which
a certain time in the future for a certain price known as forward comprise of the judicial system and the responsibilities of each,
price. A detailed comparison between futures and forwards was along with the litigation process. The presentation included how
also covered where MBA students were able to grasp the major judges are appointed to their positions, their length of terms and
differences between the two highly similar derivative channels. the duties of leadership. Finally, Ms. Ghaida discussed alternative
Options were discussed next, highlighting the two different types, dispute resolution and the process within Saudi Arabia, along
puts versus calls, in addition to the American versus European with the enforcement of judgments. On each topic, Ms. Ghaida
designation. The platforms on which options are traded were also provided and explained actual case studies within Saudi Arabia
covered; organized exchanges and over-the counter markets as which further applied the concepts that she introduced. This
well. Finally, swaps were also explored. A plethora of numerical was a very interactive session which was very informative for the
examples for illustration purposes were also provided throughout students.
the webinar, where Dr. Alsunbul kept an interactive environment
by involving the students in solving the problems and answering These interactions have proven to be very fruitful and meaningful
the questions. The session was wrapped up by discussing the for the students as they discuss real cases and communicate
current situation of the derivatives market in Saudi Arabia and the directly with industry experts from local and international
future of derivatives in the kingdom. MBA students were exposed companies. We will be organizing more insightful, engaging and
to the novel field of financial derivatives and their rising popularity interactive guest sessions in the future as well.
as new promising financial mediums to hedge against risk and