Al Masaood Automobiles Wins Prestigious Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award on First Submission

Al Masaood Automobiles has won the Silver category of esteemed Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award (SKEA), which is part of Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ADCCI). Al Masaood Group was the first company to be registered in the Abu Dhabi Chamber. With a sophisticated and meticulous process, few organisations are successful on the first attempt when vying for this prestigious award.

Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, the Award ceremony, organised by the Abu Dhabi Chamber, was held on 4 May at the Emirates Palace Hotel, Abu Dhabi. During the ceremony, H.E. Masaood Ahmed Al Masaood, Chairman of Al Masaood Group, and H.E. Tarek Ahmed Al Masaood, Director of Al Masaood Group, received the award on behalf of Al Masaood Automobiles from His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council. 

“I want to express my deepest appreciation to the members of the Higher Committee of SKEA, whose support made this endeavour possible,” said H.E. Masaood Ahmed Al Masaood. “The SKEA team have worked diligently in elevating standards of business excellence, operational continuity, and investment into strengthening exemplary performance in various sectors across the UAE.”

“SKEA provided an illuminating X-ray of our entire company, top to bottom, uncovering areas of excellence and improvement. We are proud that we have surmounted this test with flying colours,” commented Irfan Tansel, Chief Executive Officer of Al Masaood Automobiles. “SKEA is an invaluable asset for businesses, offering a comprehensive self-assessment tool to determine progress towards excellence. It deeply analyses any deficiencies and provides actionable insights into potential areas of improvement. This is not only a win for Al Masaood Automobiles, but a win for the entire Al Masaood Group as it is a reflection of the entire organisation’s working ethos and focus on excellence and business continuity.”

Al Masaood Automobiles has been lauded by the Higher Committee of SKEA for unparalleled leadership and business excellence across a spectrum of core areas—from strategy, people and customers to partnerships and resources, products and community, processes and results, societal impact as well as business outcomes. Over the past five years, Al Masaood Automobiles has embraced transformation through Project Falcon—the company’s mid-term strategy forged with business excellence as a main pillar. This bold initiative resulted in attaining SKEA as well as other award-worthy accomplishments.

“Having achieved tremendous success with Project Falcon, Al Masaood Automobiles has now embarked on its next endeavour—Falcon 2.0, to continuously drive its business improvement. Our team is prepared and energised for a new journey that will revolutionise how change can be embraced and leveraged to our collective advantage and success,” Tansel added.

Al Masaood Automobiles adopts a continual improvement approach to Quality, Health, Safety, and Environment under its Integrated Management System (IMS) standards. One of the key pillars enabling the company to achieve operational excellence is its zero-waste goal. Embracing eco-friendly practices in line with Abu Dhabi Environment Vision 2030, Al Masaood Automobiles works towards reducing the amount of material it throws away in landfills, reincorporating it through recycling or upcycling as much as possible. 

On a Group level, Al Masaood has had a significant social impact since its inception, with initiatives focused on Emiratisation and supporting youth and sports as well as the broader community. Engaging with stakeholders at the local level, Al Masaood helps develop innovative social projects, create jobs, improve education, promote health and wellness, and increase public safety. With these efforts, the company hopes to be a beacon of how businesses can leverage their influence for the greater good.

The Group is also committed to expanding its leadership competencies through strengthening the leadership team with the goal of achieving business excellence. Through various opportunities for personal and professional growth, Al Masaood works with employees to build individual development schemes and succession planning across the organisation. 

“Al Masaood is steadfast in its commitment to upholding the highest standards of corporate governance. We believe that transparency and accountability are essential components of operational excellence, which in turn help us maintain an unwavering focus on ethical conduct across our entire organisation,” Irfan concluded.

The SKEA framework is based on the internationally recognized European Foundation of Quality Management (EFQM) framework. Regardless of the sector, size, structure or maturity, organisations need to establish an appropriate management framework to be successful. The EFQM Excellence Model is a practical, non-prescriptive framework that enables organisations to assess where they are on the path to excellence. The recognition was launched by the Abu Dhabi Chamber in 1999 as a blueprint, a roadmap and a methodology for continuous improvement aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of the business sector in Abu Dhabi and the UAE. Since its inception, the SKEA model of Excellence has been used by thousands of organisations in the UAE and the wider Gulf region.