Building A Value-Driven
Learning Culture
Brought to you by ATD, the world’s largest talent development association and Promedia International institute, the ATD Kuwait Summit brings the learning and talent development community together to learn, network, and innovate.
The world of learning and talent development is being revolutionised by new innovations and technologies—this along with many major forces are reshaping the way HR and training creates and delivers value. L&D must innovate and look for new ways to align its forces with changing business strategies.
The ability to shift gears with business objectives and being agile is now the new norm. Similarly, identifying measurable ROI, digital learning, workforce planning and retention, and managing a hybrid workplace are no longer just niceties, but business mandates that HR directors must monitor.
Featuring international and regional keynotes, case studies, panel discussions and boot camps, the ATD Kuwait Summit promises best practises and insights on building a value-driven learning culture that enables a diverse, hybrid workforce.
We are bringing together eight education and networking sessions and 15 expert speakers to explore topics such as calculating training ROI, well-being and wellness, retaining and selecting the right talent, artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual reality (VR) in learning. Take an active role in translating training into strategy and techniques applicable to the virtual and in-person business landscape forever changed by technology.
Network with talent development, training, and HR peers; interact with exhibitors; and add value to your career development and organisation.

About ATD

About Promedia International institute
Summit Day 1 – Monday 24 October 2022
- 08:00
- 09:00
- 09:15
The power of workplace curiosity for leaders: Driving employee productivity & engagement
The shadow a manager casts on the team is one of the biggest drivers of productivity, engagement, and the feeling of well-being of the team. Those managers who do this well, uplift the team. Those who don’t stifle it. The key to effective task management and people leadership is curiosity. Curious leaders are good at operationalizing the present as well as securing the future. They create psychological safety for the team to thrive. Curious leaders represent a high level of cognitive, empathic, and self-reflective curiosity. They are curious about the world around them, the people they work with, and their own internal conscious and unconscious drivers. They go out of their way to engage with their team, also in times of crisis. They stretch their teams to excel in the present and embrace the future. In this interactive session, we explore what we know about curiosity, why it is important for leaders, professionals, and teams, what the barriers are and what leaders can do to get better at intentional curiosity for themselves and the people in their care.
Stefaan van Hooydonk, Best-Selling Author and Founder of Global Curiosity Institute; Former Lead Advisor for Saudi Aramco’s Corporate University, ex-CLO at Philips, Nokia, Cognizant and AFGA Healthcare, Belgium

- 10:15
PANEL DISCUSSION : Outsourcing vs in-house training: What works better for your organization?
There are many factors HR and training professionals take into consideration when allocating and maximizing their training budgets. At the top of that list is whether to develop and utilize in-house trainers or outsource. Featuring top industry experts, this session will address the following debateable questions:
- Is it better to provide training in-house or through an external education partner?
- What are the disadvantages and advantages of the two different approaches?
- What are the requirements and business costs to developing an in-house training team?
• Will partnering with global education institutions appeal to employees and in-turn improve retention & recruitment, and if so, is it worth the investment?
Dr. Ahmad Al-Hunaiyyan, Dean of the College of Business Studies, The Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAEET), Kuwait
Imad Ghazzawi, AVP, People Experience, noon, Saudi Arabia


- 11:00
- 11:30
Creating a value-driven learning culture in a fast changing, digital world
Without a doubt, the world of learning and talent development is being revolutionised by technology and innovation as many of the roles people perform evolve and change. This along with many major forces are re-shaping the way L&D and training creates and delivers value. What are the trends shaping HR and training in 2022 and beyond? This session will demonstrate the role of HR in successful organizational transformations, as well as how to build a resilient and agile workforce through a strong culture of learning.
- 12:15
Leading a self-care revolution: a case study for improving employee well-being
In the last 2 years, the world has taken a drastic turn with the COVID Pandemic: change has become “the new normal’, WFH is now a reality, and employees became more self-aware of their strengths, skills and limits. We have entered by storm the era of “emotional awakening and transparency” where sharing with our manager and colleagues about our mental state, our limits, sharing to evolve and get better is increasingly more accepted. Leading with compassion and emotional intelligence have raised at the top of ‘must have’ Management skills. We also observed an expectation for employees’ accountability in sharing, being self-aware and speaking up. The adage “it takes two to tango” couldn’t be truer.
Not too long ago, Wellness and Wellbeing were on the top of organization’s nice to have. The approach was more of a top down one, an offering to the employees, hopefully gathering as many participants as possible. The Pandemic has fast tracked the concept, reinforced the employees’ inputs and participation as well as the organization responsibility in fostering/facilitating work life balance; why? With the employees working in the isolation of their home – it provided them with a lot of time to self-reflect and re-align their priorities. It only makes sense that employees have more say on their organization’ wellness and wellbeing offerings and how it should be implemented. Taking care of ourselves should be driven by employees and well-integrated within the organization’ work environment and policies. Successful organizations will be the ones with agile approach and flexible requirements on their working environment, schedules and expectations. So where do we go from here? How do we move towards this Self-Care Era?
- Self-care is not selfish, but a necessary lifestyle practice for good health
- It is preventive and proactive approach to good overall health
- There are generous wellness policies and programs in place – that only a handful of employees feel they can really use
- The World Health Organization defines self-care as: “the ability of individuals, families, and communities to promote health, prevent disease, maintain health, and to cope with illness and disability with or without the support of a healthcare provider.”
- SC focus on tuning in to one’s needs and meeting those needs. “Self-care is anything that you do for yourself that feels nourishing,”
- There are eight dimensions of wellness: physical, emotional, spiritual, social, intellectual, financial, environmental, and occupational.
- Temporary and Enduring Self-Care
Christine Belanger,
Senior Director, Rewards, Performance & Workforce Planning, Mubadala Health, UAE

- 13:00
Learning transfer: sustainable learning practices to maximise business performance
We as Learning & Development professionals are faced with a daily challenge to prove that the training programs we provide are essential to the business continuity and employee retention. Thus, how what we see and perceive as valuable training is different from what management expects. For example, they care about quick performance change in the workplace and employees’ feedback about the training session, while we care about the long term, sustainable desirable behavior change measured by the amount of knowledge comprehended and the percentage of knowledge transfer to the workplace. The ideal way to earn management support and build alignment between what management desires and what L&D aspires for is through building a learning organization.
Key Learning’s & Take-Aways:
- Describe the difference between training and learning
- Explain the concept of a learning organization
- Why it is important to adapt a learning culture
- How to implement a learning organization philosophy within your organization
- Gaining buy-in from stakeholders to ensure successful implementation of the new concept and culture
Abdulaziz Al-Roomi, Head of Learning & Talent, Boubyan Bank, Kuwait

- 13:45
- 14:45
Summit Day 2 – Tuesday 25 October 2022
- 08:00
- 09:00
- 09:05
PANEL DISCUSSION: A vision for the future: Strategic workforce planning and talent pipeline for 2023
Acknowledging the need for workforce planning is the first step to ensuring business success, recognising it as a pillar of the business strategic plan that delivers real RoI and not just another HR process. This panel discussion will share insight on:
- Redesigning and modernising your workfare planning and succession strategy
- Identifying top talent and creating effective and long-term development programmes to leverage in-house talent
- Exploring alternative strategies other than promotion for increased employee engagement and retention
- Future proofing your business in an increasingly VUCA world
Stefaan van Hooydonk,
Best-Selling Author and Founder of Global Curiosity Institute; Former Lead Advisor for Saudi Aramco’s Corporate University, ex-CLO at Philips, Nokia, Cognizant and AFGA Healthcare, Belgium
Dr. Randa Diab-Bahman,
Faculty Member, Lecturer, Author, Kuwait College of Science and Technology, Kuwait
Dr. Ammar Alhusaini,
Deputy Director General, Central Agency for Information Technology, Kuwait



- 09:55
- 10:30
The Power of People Analytics: Optimizing Organizational Development Strategies
People analytics is rapidly gaining a solid foothold in organizational development strategies. Understanding the value and potential of analyzing people data is a key ingredient in the formation of any successful organizational training and development strategy. Today, businesses need to do more with less. This means training and development strategies must be effective, targeted, and efficient. People analytics can help you achieve all of this by accurately measuring the effectiveness of your training strategy. Many organizations are often unsure of where to start when it comes to measuring training effectiveness. The challenge of measuring your training strategy’s effectiveness is understanding your data to help you drive organizational training and development strategy. In this session, you’ll find out:
- How to get the most from your data and analytics to drive organizational training and development decisions
- How to leverage data to measure the effectiveness of your training strategy and improve employee engagement
- How to understand your data to help drive organizational training and development change
Enad Abu Naser,
Total Rewards Manager & People Analytics, Toyota, Faculty Member, WorldatWork, Qatar

- 11:00
WORKSHOP: Measuring the business impact and RoI for your training and L&D programs
Today, more than ever, there is a need to ensure that virtual learning works to improve organizational outcomes. Because of the work-at-home and travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 crisis, most learning programs have shifted to a virtual format. This requires program owners to design and implement virtual learning with desired outcomes in mind and demonstrate that the virtual format works. During this workshop-style session, Nader will share practical tool-kits on how to measure the business impact and RoI of your training budget. Key learning’s & take-aways include:
- Identify the five levels of outcomes from Virtual Training
- Describe why virtual learning fails to deliver application and impact
- Explain the need to deliver impact and ROI for selected virtual learning programs
- Design virtual learning to deliver application, impact, and ROI, using design-thinking principles
Nader Bechini,
Master Trainer, Association for Talent Development (ATD); Regional Director, MENA, ROI Institute, Saudi Arabia

- 13:15
- 13:30
- 14:45

Abdulaziz Al-Roomi
Head of Learning & Talent, Boubyan Bank, Kuwait
Abdulaziz Al-Roomi
A visionary HR Leader and Executive Coach with 17+ years of professional cross-industry experience covering retail, petrochemical, engineering, oil and gas, logistics, IT, F&B , banking and other sectors. Has a demonstrated history in managing HR departments for global organisations, developing leaders of the future, supervising multi-million Dollars financial budgets for strategic business transformation initiatives and adding efficiency to complex organisational processes. Signature areas of expertise include Talent Management, HR excellence, business transformation programs, budget and finance management and coaching and mentoring.
Abdulaziz’s last professional venture entails working as the CHRO for ABYAT Megastore, a leading finishing and retail company. In this role, Abdulaziz managed HR for 2000+ employees. Has progressed on an upwards trajectory through his career, other roles Abdulaziz has undertaken include Sr HR Specialist in Leadership and Organisational Development, HR Supervisor, IT Trainer and entrepreneur.
Abdulaziz has also worked for EQUATE for over 9 years, where he has left a strong legacy of his success entailing significant efficiency improvements within HR and financial processes. Academically holds a prestigious Master’s degree, awarded by a leading European academic institution, as well as world class certifications in leadership and HR.
Takes pride in professional development and coaching professionals, Abdulaziz has also featured in national TV and radio shows, university lectures and international training programs to provide insights on professional development concepts to audiences from various backgrounds. Prevail, Amazon’s #1 bestseller book, was written by Abdulaziz based on his professional experiences in leadership. This book is the guide to becoming a successful and memorable leader in your career.
Dr. Ahmed Al-Hunaiyyan is the Dean of the College of Business Studies, and a faculty member in the Department of Computer and Information Systems at the College of Business Studies, PAAET, Kuwait. He earned his Ph.D. in the field of Computer Science, specializing in multimedia interface design, from Hertfordshire University, UK. He participated in various academic institutions, Al-Ain University, U.A.E., Waubonsie College, USA, Hertfordshire University, UK, Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET), Kuwait, Gulf University for Science and Technology (GUST), and Kuwait University. Dr. Al-Hunaiyyan’s research interests include multimedia in education; mobile learning; eLearning platforms; human-computer interaction; software design; usability; cultural issues related to information technology.

Dr. Ahmad Al Hunaiyyan
Dean of the College of Business Studies, The Public
Dr. Ahmad Al Hunaiyyan

Christine Belanger
Senior Director, Rewards, Performance & Workforce Planning, Mubadala Health, UAE
Christine Belanger

Dr. Ammar Alhusaini
Deputy Director General, Central Agency for Information Technology, Kuwait
Dr. Ammar Alhusaini

Dr. Randa Diab-Bahman
Faculty Member, Lecturer, Author, Kuwait College of Science and Technology, Kuwait
Dr. Randa Diab-Bahman

Enad Abu Naser
Total Rewards Manager & People Analytics, Toyota, Faculty Member, WorldatWork, Qatar
Enad Abu Naser

Nader Bechini
Master Trainer, Association for Talent Development (ATD); Regional Director, MENA, ROI Institute, Saudi Arabia
Nader Bechini

Stefaan van Hooydonk
Best-Selling Author and Founder of Global Curiosity Institute; Former Lead Advisor for Saudi Aramco’s Corporate University, ex-CLO at Philips, Nokia, Cognizant and AFGA Healthcare, Belgium
Stefaan van Hooydonk

Imad Ghazzawi
AVP, People Experience, noon, Saudi Arabia
Imad Ghazzawi
Imad works closely with leadership teams to provide a Business Partner Service model. Imad also provided valuable support for rapidly evolving businesses during significant growth, transformation, and start-up periods. Imad is a Chartered Fellow of the CIPD and has over 15 years of experience in different HR management and talent development roles. He held different roles with global companies in the sectors of e-commerce, fintech, oil & gas, aerospace, manufacturing, project management, engineering, and consulting services.
Who Should
Attend?
ATD Kuwait Summit unites the entire training, HR, learning and talent development community, including:
Talent / Career Development / Leadership / Coaching / Employee Development / Learning / Learning and Development / Organisational Development / People Development / Training Programme / E-Learning / Talent Development / Technical Training / Trainer / Training / Capability / Competency / Skills / Change Management / Assessment / Nationalisation / Learning Technology / HR / Facilitator / Gamification / VR & AR
CLO / Director / Heads / Senior Manager / Manager / Executive / Coordinator / Administrator / Officer
Government and Public Sector / Healthcare / Education / Oil and Gas / Banking / Financial Services / Petrochemicals / Pharmaceuticals / Retail / FMCG / Professional Services / Technology
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