company profile shc
TRANSCRIPT
Who We AreSomerset House is a Dubai-based Consultancy offering Human Capital-related solutions to a broad spectrum of organizations operating
throughout the Middle East and North Africa regions. We work with clients in the Manufacturing, FMCG, Construction, Real Estate
Development, Oil and Gas, Automotive and Healthcare sectors.
The company is a business built around the principles of providing the utmost levels of transparency and professionalism when both
representing and advising our clients, which are a blend of Multinational Companies, Government, Semi-government and Family
Conglomerates. We provide the following services:
Why Our Clients Use UsThe company’s goal is to offer an exceptional level of service to our clients whilst providing efficiency, effectiveness and commercial value
with the approach of never over promise and under deliver. We truly respect the trust that is placed in us and guarantee all parties the
most professional of representation coupled with the utmost transparency at all times.
Our Geographical CoverageRegionally based in Dubai, our research led approach enables us to work with clients located anywhere in the world. Our clients utilize our
service whether looking for talent located in the regional or international market place and often act us to search across the global talent
pool within their respective sectors. As we are providing a pro-active headhunting service, there are literally no boundaries to our reach.
Nationalization
Competitor Analysis
Executive Search and Selection
Formation of Large-scale Project Teams
Territorial Analysis
Executive Coaching and
Mentoring
Our Services
Executive Search and SelectionIdentifying, approach and introducing high performing talent to
our clients based on the individual specifications of each
assignment. Our research team will identify all relevant individuals
within a pre-determined target list of companies. Each individual
is then approached, suitability is assessed and informal references
taken prior to a shortlist being compiled. Our clients receive
weekly updates as to the progress of the assignment and are
presented with full documentation at the end of the process. This
enables our clients to view the depth of our work as well as to
learn invaluable business intelligence. Our standard time frame
for assignment execution is five weeks.
Formation of Large-scale Project TeamsThis is a service that is often utilized by clients in the Oil and Gas
and Construction sectors. Upon successfully securing a contract to
deliver a major project, our clients will need to very quickly
mobilize a project team, often in a traditionally challenging
location. The Somerset House team will agree a timescale of
delivery and will proactively source and select the required
number of skilled individuals who will be both highly capable and
highly motivated. Interviews will commence and Somerset house
will assist in the management of this process.
NationalizationWe have ongoing partnerships with government and semi-
government organizations and have successfully delivered a
number of project related to both nationalization. Example of a
recent Emiratization project was been the creation of a 100
person assessment centre designed to identify and secure future
leaders of this well - known organization. In addition to managing
the identification and attraction process, our team also oversaw
the assessment centre itself. Our client was subsequently able to
appoint the required numbers of individuals into the leadership
training programme.
This experience also extends to working with a government entity
in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on a large scale Saudization
mandate. In this instance our client was looking to appoint a large
number of individuals from a particular sector discipline into
leadership roles within this restructured organization. This was
successfully managed by our team and we are still working with
this organization to date.
Our Services
Competitor AnalysisUsed to understand the strengths and weaknesses of potential
competitors as well as to understand where our client sits within
its market place in terms of issues relating, for example, to staff
retention.Our Partners will meet with our client in order to
establish a full project brief. Our highly skilled research team will
then use a variety of techniques in order to compile an extremely
thorough report which is subsequently presented to our client.
Our client then takes ownership of this data. The timeframes
involved in such projects can vary however our standard time
frame for completion is four weeks.
Executive Coaching and MentoringPartnering with a well known UK based organization who are
market leaders in this field, we provide our clients with a broad
range of services designed to facilitate the personal and
professional development of its executives. This is used
particularly used with regard to long term succession planning as
any gaps in an individuals skill set are identified and worked with
in advance of an anticipated change in responsibility levels.
Territorial AnalysisA very similar offering to that of Competitor Analysis where
similar techniques are used to achieve the desired result. Our
clients use this service primarily, but not limited to, when
considering entering a geography currently unfamiliar to them.
Somerset House will then provide our client with high level
business intelligence which will enable our client to enter this
market in as informed a manner as possible.
Our Selection ProcessAt Somerset House, our main objective is not to generate short term solutions but to bridge the demand-supply gap whilst creating long
term relationships with our clients. Our selection processes are designed to make sure we're delivering the best talent to your organization.
The precise details of each stage will vary according to the nature of work, but the focus throughout will be on maintaining a stringent
process at all times.
Our process can be summarized as follows:
Research
Initial approaches
First stage interviewing
Second interview of long listed candidates (competency and character based)
Informal references and background checks
Short-listing
Submittal
Arranging Interviews
Offer management and negotiation (where required)
Screening out of unsuccessful interviewees
Our Team
Having relocated to Dubai from the United Kingdom in 2006 where he held senior positions across several
industry leading companies, Matthew has worked successfully for international executive search
organizations prior to forming Somerset House Consulting in 2014.
Since 2006, Matthew has successfully partnered with many of the most high profile and recognizable brands
in the region whether Multi – National, Government, Semi Government, Family Groups as well as a large
number of emerging organizations.
His sector experience is significant, having worked within the Construction, Real Estate Development,
Automotive, Manufacturing, Retail, Oil and Gas and Energy sectors throughout the Middle East and North
Africa.
Our partners and consultants possess a combination of 20 years of experience in the MENA region and during this time have gained a
thorough understanding of the intricacies of working within this region as well as establishing enviable track record of successfully providing
consultancy services to many of the regions’ leading organizations, both public and private sector.
As well as being responsible for growing Somerset House Consulting into a trusted and market leading brand, Matthew will continue to
closely manage a range of assignments as well as to work closely with clients in order to build and maintain long lasting partnerships.
Matthew Potts
Partner
Our Team
Shameem Baghdadi
Principal – Construction
Hanka Karwinski
Principal – Industrial / ChemicalShameem leads the Oil & Gas and Construction practices. He has
previously held both consulting and management roles with a
leading Oil & Gas company in Saudi Arabia, a leading Construction
company in UAE & KSA and with a top tier Executive Search firm
in the USA.
He has a successful track record consisting
of eight years managing complex and
often confidential Executive Search and
Selection assignments for organizations
both within the US and internationally.
Having relocated to the Middle East in
2008, Shameem has developed an extremely thorough
understanding of his chosen sectors as well as rare regional
insight. This, coupled with his client-side and consulting
experience, is something which has added significant value to
numerous organizations throughout the Middle East.
Shameem is a qualified Engineer and currently studying to achieve
his Master’s degree in Management from the University of
Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Hanka has seven years of international
experience, having worked on high level
Executive Search assignments across the
GCC, Africa, Asia and Europe.
As Principal for Somerset House Consulting, Hanka leads the
Industrial and Chemical practices. Prior to Somerset House
Consulting, Hanka held various positions within Executive Search
in Dubai and London across multiple sectors, including the
Industrial, Oil & Gas, Chemical, Telecom, Financial Services and
Manufacturing industries.
Having relocated to Dubai in 2012 she has established a proven
track record with large multinational organizations, semi-
governmental organizations, family groups & start-ups across the
region.
Hanka holds a BA in International Affairs from the American
University of Paris and is fluent in French, English, Polish and
Norwegian.
Our TeamRiad Mekouar
Principal – Energy, Environment & Renewables
Katinka Fekete
AssociateHaving relocated to Dubai from Morocco in 1999, Riad spent the
last 14 years based in UAE working for large Multinationals,
Government organizations and Executive Search Firms, across
multiple sectors, including Education, Healthcare, Oil & Gas,
Energy, Media, Venture Capital & Investment Banking, Real Estate
and Construction, prior to Joining Somerset House in 2014.
His expertise includes HR Management, Talent Acquisition,
Manpower Planning, Employee Relations,
Training and Career Development,
Compensation and Benefits, Succession
Planning, Emiratization, Organizational
development, Performance management,
Psychometrics, Employment and Labor Law.
Riad completed his studies in Experimental
Sciences, Marketing & International Commerce and is a Qualified
Recruitment Professional from REC, Employment & Recruitment
Confederation the Institute of Recruitment Professionals in the
UK. He is also a Certified Psychometric Assessor and is Fluent in
French, Arabic and English.
As Associate, Katinka is involved in all aspects of the business from
meeting new & existing clients to providing research support on
current mandates through to conducting due diligence exercises
prior to Somerset House Consulting entering new markets.
To date Katinka has successfully completed mandates in the
Manufacturing, Automotive, Construction and Oil and Gas
sectors.
Born and raised in Romania, Katinka completed her studies in
Hungary as Philologist in Eastern Languages and Cultures. The
majority of her qualification was based on Arabian Studies which
included gaining a strong understanding of written and some
spoken Arabic as well a broad knowledge from a cultural
perspective.
Prior to relocating to Dubai in 2014 Katinka
was based in Hungary and had forged a
successful career working with global
leaders within the Telecommunications
sector. These roles provided Katinka with
the opportunity to deliver assignments on
behalf of clients located in North America,
South America and Asia.
Our TeamPrachi Nanda
Associate
Andrae Owuh
AssociateAs Associate, Andrae is responsible for all aspects of supporting
the Construction and Real Estate Development practice.
Andrae relocated to Dubai in 2013 to pursue a Masters degree at
Hult International Business School. During these studies, she was
able to further develop her business acumen and complete
extensive client relations projects with leading entrepreneurs
from around the world via Startup Grind powered by Google for
Entrepreneurs, and via Hult Prize, the world’s largest multi-million
dollar seed accelerator for social good.
With a current focus on the GCC Construction and Real Estate
market, Andrae brings a wealth of talent, expertise and global
business knowledge to the Somerset House Consulting team.
Possessing several years’ experience in
executive search, Andrae is experienced in
delivering a wide range of search solutions
from Chief-level hiring through to large-
scale government nationalization projects.
As Associate, Prachi is responsible for all aspects of supporting the
Energy division within Somerset House Consulting.
Possessing several years of experience in talent acquisition,
Prachi's expertise lies in executive search and selection across
multiple verticals. She has also been instrumental in managing the
entire resourcing function for large scale nationalization projects
as well as graduate training schemes on behalf of clients across
the MENA region.
Prachi relocated to Dubai in 2010 to
pursue her Master’s degree in Human
Resource Management from Institute of
Management Technology. During her
master's program she participated in an
exchange program to Burgundy School of
Business which further broadened her
In addition to being an integral part of the SHC team, Prachiis also currently pursuing her Masters in Human ResourceManagement - CIPD accredited from Middlesex University.
knowledge and understanding within Human Resources across
both Middle East and European markets.
Our TeamGregory Wright
Principal – Manufacturing
Leong Cheah
AssociateAs Principal for Somerset House Consulting Gregory leads the
Manufacturing Practice.
Gregory has built sound technical knowledge and a strong global
network in the Manufacturing space having partnered with
leading organizations in the FMCG, Food, Beverage, Dairy,
Automotive and Paper Industries both regionally and
internationally.
Gregory has experience in MENA, Australia
/ New Zealand and European markets and
his expertise extends across include Plant,
Maintenance, Quality, Operational
Excellence, Technical and Engineering
within his clients’ businesses. In addition,
Gregory has acted as a key strategic advisor
to clients looking to develop greenfield site
as well as providing executive search support in the sourcing of
business leaders. Gregory’s expertise lies in executive search and
selection, workforce planning, organizational structuring,
recruitment of large-scale project teams, on-site talent
management, salary benchmarking and competitor analysis.
As Associate for Somerset House Consulting, Leong is responsible
for all aspects of supporting the Energy, Environment and
Renewable Practices.
Prior to moving to Dubai in 2008, Leong
was based in Australia and had forged a
successful career working with global
leaders within the Banking and Finance
sector, as well as the Health and Fitness
sector.
Since being in Dubai, Leong has been employed by a large MiddleEastern Airline – Emirates.
Leongs’ employment to date has provided him with the
opportunity to deliver assignments on behalf of clients in
management, leadership training & development as well as the
creation of talent acquisition strategies. This has given him a wide
range of skills suited to helping clients attract, retain and develop
its executive talent.
Leong brings a wealth of drive, expertise and global business
knowledge to the Somerset House Consulting team.
For additional information, please visit www.somersethouse.aeAlternatively, you can call us: +971 (0) 4 399 5653
Or email: [email protected]