By ASC Staff www.arabiansupplychain.com
Middle East aviation executives James Hogan and Samer Majali were amongst the winners at this year’s CEO Awards in Dubai.
The event, which took place at The Armani Hotel on 20th September, brought together over 240 senior figureheads to recognise the outstanding achievements of industry leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators in the region.
Etihad CEO James Hogan was handed a special “Visionary of the Year” trophy at the prestigious ceremony.
The judges remarked that “since taking the helm of Etihad Airways when it launched just seven years ago, the company’s CEO has excelled in all these fields. While the company has made headlines for the number of planes it has bought and new routes it has launched, the real work has been behind the scenes: in customer service, in staff conditions – right down to their housing and training.”
Meanwhile, Gulf Air boss Samer Majali – also in attendance – picked up the award for “Aviation CEO of the Year,” with the judges saying Majali “has probably had to make more difficult decisions than anyone else in this room tonight.”
Accepting the award, Mr. Majali commented, “This year has been challenging for the aviation industry and Gulf Air; harsh economic realities forced a comprehensive review of the airline. Tough decisions had to be made across the company leading to some radical changes to ensure its long-term sustainability. This has yielded positive results and I am very proud of our achievements.
“Today’s award is yet another testament to the progress of the airline and the commitment of its employees as we continue to work towards creating a commercially sustainable business while raising our product quality and service delivery standards ensuring greater consistency across the board.; the achievement is made more poignant this year as Gulf Air celebrates its 60th Anniversary.”
