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SOUTH AFRICA is a work in progress although the ‘rainbow nation’, inspired by its late, great leader Nelson Mandela, has made incredible strides into conflict resolution since the Apartheid system of ‘white-only’ rule was abolished.
In recent weeks the publicity hasn’t been kind with migrants from other parts of Africa being targeted, attacked and blamed for taking jobs from locals.
Despite its problems Bahraini businessman Suhail Algosaibi believes his recent visit to the country to learn from the South African reconciliation process will prove helpful.
“The trip was probably the most impactful and inspiring trip I’ve ever had,” he said. “My fellow Bahrain Foundation for Reconciliation and Civil Discourse (BFRCD) board members and I met with some truly inspirational people.
“Meetings included a fascinating cross-section of South African society, from politicians and senior African National Congress members, to academics, activists and business people. We actually met people who wrote parts of the South African Constitution.”
Suhail says some of the major ‘takeaways’ from the experience were:
* Change can happen even in the most repressive regimes, but it takes time and requires a long-term perspective … and lots of patience.
* Dialogue is always the best option.
* No action is too small when wanting to make positive change.
* Reconciliation is better than revenge.
* Democracy is an on-going process, not en event. South Africa still has many challenges, but they are certainly better off than they were during Apartheid.
Meetings in Cape Town, Johannesburg and Pretoria have not been the only international stop-overs for the peace ambassador.
He was also invited by the British government as part of its Future International Leaders Programme created by former UK Foreign Secretary William Hague, who currently holds the position of First Secretary of State, Leader of the House of Commons as well as being Prime Minister David Cameron’s Special Representative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict.
The programme aims to promote lasting partnerships with a new generation of talented people from countries that have increasing economic and political power.
Participants included Mexican politicians, an Egyptian Salafi activist, an Iraqi oil executive, the Qatari head of a cyber-crime unit, a Chinese activist and a Japanese politician.
During the visit they met with politicians, members of the House of Lords, entrepreneurs, a think tank, the former president of the Supreme Court, a female chief constable, and, of course, had lunch with Mr Hague, who Suhail described as ‘very impressive’.
They also visited the national newspaper offices of the Telegraph, Windsor Castle and the F1 and car-makers McLaren, a company which has links with Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, Mumlatakat.
“This was probably one of the most educational trips I’ve ever had, and I will forever be grateful to the British government for inviting me,” said Suhail.
His interest in diplomacy and community runs deep through his veins, which is not surprising, perhaps, as his late father Dr Ghazi bin Abdul Rahaman Algosaibi was a poet, author, novelist, minister and ambassador, who served in the Saudi government for around four decades, under the late Kings Faisal, Khalid, Fahd and Abdullah.
He died of cancer on August 15, 2010 and last month the family marked what would have been his 75th birthday by launching a memorial website to commemorate his achievements.
Suhail, the second child, and oldest son of four children, explained: “The idea of the website came in response to posthumous requests by my later father’s fans in Saudi Arabia and across the Arabian Gulf to publish information, pictures and videos about his remarkable life.
“My father was a huge influence in my life and five years after his passing I still miss him greatly. I think of him almost every day.
“He was very loving growing up, but also stern and would not hesitate to punish me with a whipping from the bamboo stick if he thought it warranted it. He believed strongly in serving his country and lived by his principles.
“He was a man of deep faith and must have read hundreds – if not thousands – of books on Islam and Islamic jurisprudence. He was very religious yet very liberal. To me he embodied what real Islam is about.
“It’s hard to really describe how much of an influence he had on me. I guess that even today, at the age of 41, I’m still trying to be worthy of his name. It’s both a great blessing and a great burden.”
Like many entrepreneurs Suhail likes to be involved in many things, apart from running the BFRCD organisation.
The seasoned martial artist, for example, opened the Dream Body Centre (DBC) in December, 2007, as the kingdom’s first ‘23-minute weight loss and body transformation centre’. There’s also Falak Consulting and the family business Ghazi bin Abdulrahman Algosaibi Holding, a company created after his father passed away.
He said: “The way I manage it all is by being very disciplined, having good time-management and an outstanding and reliable team around me. I don’t teach martial arts any more, but I hit the punching bag at home every now and then as part of my exercise programme.”
He has a unique way of running businesses too, even shutting up shop to help keep his staff members motivated, or, as he describes them, ‘team members’.
The DBC based at Bahrain Mall was recently closed for three days for its annual Big Bang event, a move some business leaders might consider commercial suicide.
“The Big Bang is all about bonding, training and having lots of fun,” he said. “We held our first Big Bang in 2009 and since then it’s been the highlight of our Team Member Calendar.
“This year it started – as it does every year – with a talk given by me where I do a review of the last 12 months. I also gave a talk about the importance of innovation and constant and never-ending improvement.
“This was followed by our new group exercise class dubbed Hardcore23!, followed by lunch at a traditional Bahraini restaurant, followed by laser tag and a bike ride in Amwaj. We ended the day with an outdoor movie screening at the Ritz-Carlton.
“Day Two started with a presentation by our sister company Falak Consulting, where they gave the team an introduction to management consulting. This was followed by lunch at another traditional Bahraini restaurant, followed by a Gunpla workshop (making Japanese fighting robots), then we had our annual talent competition and awards ceremonies. The day ended as it does every year with a karaoke dinner.
“By the end everyone was exhausted, yet on a high and very fired up. The high stays for weeks afterwards! The reactions are impossible to describe. They love the Big Bang and truly appreciate it.
“We measure our team member satisfaction twice a year using the Net Promoter Survey (NPS) and the last time we did it about a month ago the score was +85/100, which is an incredibly high score. Team members love working here and they love the Big Bang!”
There are 27 team members including circuit advisors and those working in accounts, franchising and management.
“We’ve been doing it for seven years and we’re not dead yet,” he said. “Besides, no one can ever accuse me of having traditional business thinking. Moreover, having happy, motivated and loyal team members is good for business.
“I’m blessed to have some extraordinary team members that love what they do and are very loyal. Many of them have been offered jobs at other places with much higher salaries but they’ve refused to leave. Is this business suicide? Quite the opposite.”
“Most of our members are used to it. Some do complain and others say they wish they could be included. Of course we compensate them for the three days we close. By and large I’d say members are supportive.”
His methods are paying dividends in other ways too. In the recently-held eGovernment Excellence Awards, Suhail was presented with the prestigious eEntrepreneur Award (Multi Sectors) for his innovative use of ICT and Social Media to effectively manage and market the DBC.
“I was very happy about it!” he said. “It felt like a validation for my hard work over the last decade or so. But to be honest, the credit for the award goes to the whole DBC team, we collectively make the DBC the success that it is today.”
Suhail had plans to open up in several locations in Bahrain, but when the financial crisis hit all local expansion plans were put on hold. He now sees growth outside of Bahrain through franchising.
“We are hugely ambitious and we like to think big, and our BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) is to have 529 locations around the world by the year 2024. The vast majority will be franchises. We plan to expand in the Middle East, Asia, South America and Africa,” he said.
“We’re also planning to launch a free health-book as part of our Healthier and Happier Initiative which I hope to have written in the next couple of months.
“When someone joins the DBC, we set aside a certain amount to our Healthier and Happier Initiative Fund, which we use exclusively to help the community. Specifically, we want to help combat child obesity.
“Tens of millions of children are suffering from obesity around the world. This can lead to serious problems like diabetes, heart disease and even cancer, not to mention low self-esteem.
“You just have to go to a mall here in Bahrain to see that this is true – children are so much fatter than they used to be. We want to make a difference with the Healthier and Happier Initiative, and our first project is building a playground for the Batelco Child Care Home (orphanage) to help promote physical activity.”
He has a large following on the internet and his blogging has got him into hot water on occasions. “I’ve stopped worrying about what people think a very long time ago,” he said. “Of course I don’t mean to be controversial, it just happens sometimes.
“I’m a bit more cautious of what I write these days though, as some online groups have taken my comments out of context and republished them. So I’m a bit more careful when I write something political.”
Family also helps keep him grounded and his mother lives next door to the family home. “We have family lunch there every Saturday. I also make sure to see her or speak to her once or twice during the week.
“My siblings Yara, Faris and Nijad and their families also live nearby. It’s wonderful that we are all living within two minutes of each other.”
His wife, GulfWeekly columnist Alia Almoayed is not short of an opinion either as regular readers of our health weekly section will testify. Suhail said: “Being married to a nutritionist certainly has its advantages, but more importantly Alia is my soul mate and after 17 years of marriage we are more in love than when we first got married.”
They have three children, Selma, 13, Laith, 11, and Tameem, six. Selma loves acting and she and Laith take piano lessons. Selma is also a book worm and never leaves the house without her Kindle.
Laith loves football, enjoys Thai boxing twice-a-week and is an all-round athlete. Tameem tackles Thai boxing as well and loves playing board games. He is currently into drawing flags from around the world and ‘expects his mother’ to laminate each one he draws and colours!
“The children are the centre of our lives and we are blessed by the Almighty to be a happy and close-knit family. I count my blessings every day,” said Suhail.
So what’s next on the agenda? “As far as entrepreneurship is concerned, I’m on a strict no-new-business diet, as I have my hands full,” he said. “I’m not planning on starting a new business in the short-to-medium-term. These days I very much enjoy mentoring start-up entrepreneurs and doing some angel investing through the family holding company. I just love entrepreneurship.
“I also plan to continue helping Bahrain in any way that I can, and who knows, one day I might even get into politics! Of course, I’ll always be reading and writing as well.”
