Chief Governance Officer
Al Rajhi Bank (ARB), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Total years of experience :39 years, 0 Months
• Leads the Governance, Legal, investors relations and Board Secretariat departments
• Develop a clear operating model for the Governance function
• Worked with world-class experts in developing a leading Governance Framework covering International best practices and local regulatory requirements
• Works with the Board Governance Committee to define the required corporate governance standards for Al Rajhi Bank
• Setup all governance departments’ objectives and monitor departments’ achievements
• Ensures the adherence to corporate governance practices across the Bank
• Oversees the regular review of corporate governance practices across the Bank
• Oversees all corporate governance related communication with external parties including publication of corporate governance activities in the Annual Report
• Manages all communication with the Board of Directors including the timely distribution of meeting agendas, Board materials, meeting minutes
• Lead and oversee the management and execution of all of Al Rajhi Bank's legal affairs
• Ensures all corporate governance related policies and procedures are up to date
• Supervising the legal department and the quality of its outcomes to ensure the solid legal position of ARB.
• Improve ARB awareness through organizing awareness campaigns and learning exercises.
• Ensures that accurate minutes of meetings are recorded and approved in line with regulatory requirements, and maintained within the Bank's corporate records
• Maintain ongoing dialogue with all regulators to remain abreast of legislative/statutory
requirements.
• Accomplishments:
Establishment of Corporate Governance function and department.
Developed governance framework and Guidance covering International best practices
Improved quality of corporate governance practice.
Enhanced the quality of the work.
• Lead and direct Governance departments(Legal, Risk, and Sharia)
• Oversee the Compliance and Audit department
• Setup all governance departments’ objectives and monitor departments’ achievements
• Prepare the annual Governance departments inspection plan, and supervise the implementation.
• Improve the overall Risk management and compliance culture and practice
• Supervising the legal department and the quality of its outcomes to ensure the solid legal position
of ARC.
• Oversee the Sharia department to ensure the ARC products and services are fully Sharia complied.
• Supervise and monitor all Governance departments projects.
• Improve ARC awareness through organizing awareness campaigns and learning exercises.
• Budget preparation for governance departments and manage resource with cost constraint
• Ensure that all governance departments’ policies and procedures are up to date and maintained.
• Maintain ongoing dialogue with all regulators to remain abreast of legislative/statutory
requirements.
• Attending compliance committee, Risk committee and New business committee
•Accomplishments
Manage the governance department for excellent performance and developing the overall corporate governance guiding principles.
Implement the holistic governance framework that proved successful in creating ideal equilibrium between compliance and management in alignment with the company's objectives.
• Direct all aspects and functions of departments.
• Oversee complete administration and planning aspects of departments to achieve the CMA’s objectives.
• Develop objective performance standards targeted to the unique operations, including regularly meeting with managers to review quality and quantity of output.
• Identify appropriate training programs to enhance skills of department staff members
• Maintain close relationship with external parties and other departments in the CMA
• Promote growth and participate in Saudi Capital Market by enhancing investor safeguards.
• Monitor the integrity of market activities.
• Examine a broad range of market information to detect potential serious trading violations.
• Investigate suspicious trading activities.
• Analyze breach trends to respond proactively to issues guidance to protect market.
• Administer compliance by issuer with annual and periodic timely disclosure requirement, corporate news, and corporate governance rules.
• Define responsibilities of market supervision between the CMA and Tadawul.
• Inform Board of Directors of the CMA of any major developments regarding the market, including preparation of periodical progress reports.
• Accomplishments:
Established and developed all aspects of the Market Supervision department, including: recruitment, training of the employees, and creating all policies and procedures.
Enhanced quality of the department’s reports by implementing guidance and instructions.
Decreased required time for analyzing breaches, investigating and disclosing information by preparing performance indicators against responsibilities for the main objectives and sub-objectives.
Improved company’s disclosure for corporate governance by providing guidance and designing tables.
Increased communications with members and listed companies by emphasizing a Supportive relationship instead of supervising one.
Managed surveillance system by defining the requirements for new system that became one of the best systems around the world.
Organized disclosure workshops for listing companies.
Helped Board of CMA make a decision that led to the reduction of trading days from six days to five days by preparing comparative study of international market.
Proposed to the CMA Board, with supporting analysis, to move from the total value to the free float index.
• Ensured all issuers comply with financial reports timelines.
• Systematized and assigned work to achieve efficient and timely completion
• Reviewed trading activities to confirm trade transparency and made certain no violation of trading rules took place.
• Prepared and implemented departmental budget
• Designed examination that must be passed by traders who worked in the financial institution.
• Observed progression of work and balancing workload by reviewing logs
• Accomplishments:
Drafted operation manuals and ethics standards for securities trading.
Prepared service level agreements with banks for new trading system.
Defined market conduct rules and set the parameters for surveillance system.
Customized guidance for logging-in assignments, documenting work performed, and producing structured reports to close out reviews/investigations.
Led the sub-project of Market Supervision with McKinsey Consultants as Project Manager; prepared establishment of the CMA organization and functions.
• Set up comprehensive trading rules guidelines and processes in-house, saving $200, 000.
• saved over $600, 000 by taking an organization structure project tabbed for a consulting firm.
• Outlined Saudi corporate profile company requirements for Tadawul, working with KPMG on first outline of membership rules.
• Surveyed equity trading behavior trends; introduced new procedures for settlement of trade to banks.
• Classified enhancement requirements of surveillance system, working closely with EFA company
• Arranged campaign study for new enhancements on trading and settlements; submitted campaign to investors, resulting in the increase of Isharrat trading from 20% to 80%.
• Implemented and designed credit system with manager and submitted to IT for integration.
• Produced weekly and monthly reports on departmental activities for supervisory review.
TRAINING AND CONFERENCES Leadership, Innovation, and Enterprise Skills, AZTECH, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2009 Managing Emotions and Thriving Under Pressure, EUROMATECH, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2008 Strategy and Strategic Planning, Oxford Management Centre, Marbella, Spain, 2008 Leading High Performing Teams, Oxford Management Centre, London, England, 2008 Supervision/Oversight, National Association Securities Dealers, London, 2007 Global Financial Markets, International Faculty of Finance (IFF), London, England, 2006 Leadership, Communication, and Interpersonal Skills, Intech International, Geneva, Switzerland, 2006 Strategic Planning & Goal Setting, Intech international, Kuala Lumpur, 2005 Enforcement & Market Supervision Courses, National Association Securities Dealers, USA, 2005 Prudential Reporting Course, National Association Securities Dealers, London, 2004 Leadership Program, Toronto Centre, Toronto, Canada, 2004 London School of Investment Banking, Institute for International Research, London, England, 2003 Strategic Management of Information System Program, Arthur D. Little, Cambridge USA, 1995 Marketing & Investment Services, AIB Bank, Dublin Ireland, 1994 The International Capital Market Association Annual General Conference, Montreux, Switzerland, 2009 Emerging Market Conference, International Financing Review, London, England, 2008 Arrow Risk Based Regulation Conference for international regulators, FSA, UK, 2006 International Organization of Securities Commission Conference, in many countries for several years.