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A people’s man
Meet Eric McLean, Chief Development Officer, The Zubair
Corporation, who believes in living life to the fullest, both at
work and after work
 Eric McLean, is a human resources person, who has not only majored
in psychology but is also in fact a trained hypnotherapist. You only
relax when he discloses that he has not practised hypnotherapy for
quite some time now. As Chief Development Officer of The Zubair
Corporation, McLean confesses that he is a hardcore workaholic
working on a mean 7-7 shift and would not be bothered by a ‘trivial
thing’ like taking lunch breaks. “I am one of those persons who eat
to live. Even for my dinner, I would be satisfied with popcorn and a
nice jug of tomato juice,” he says.
He believes in doing things differently and wants to be the change
agent in every aspect of life. He also feels that having come to
this country, he needs to contribute something not only for the
company, but also for the country, even if it is just a tiny bit.
McLean has been instrumental in one of the brilliant human resources
development programme undertaken by any corporate in Oman – the GOLD
programme – for identifying future managers for The Zubair
Corporation.
Love for nature
 However, his hectic work-schedule does not come in between his
passion for scuba diving, which he does off the Al Sawadi coastline.
He also has two powerful jet skis in which he zooms away to be among
the dolphins every now and then. Yes, McLean loves nature very much.
As a diver he encounters many turtles in the Omani waters and in
order to see how they look on the land, he visits Ras Al Haad turtle
beach often. In two years he has been there nearly five times now.
McLean is a person who wouldn’t have a second thought about holding
the door open for even his junior-most subordinate and would be
genuinely interested in knowing about your weekend plans. His
sense of humour is tremendous which he displayed as he described
his own life in the most laughable way. Having lived in the highlands
of Scotland, McLean started working at the age of 17. While working,
he also found time to continue his studies. He worked for IBM,
Altavista, Oracle and other IT companies before he came to Oman.
Creative mindset
Since childhood, McLean was a creative person and his main aim
was to become a journalist and worked hard towards it. But as fate
would have it, on the day of the final interview as a reporter for a
weekly magazine, he could not find time to read the latest issue of
the weekly and when they asked him questions on that, he failed.
McLean throws up many surprises. For example, he won RO100,000 from
BankMuscat savings scheme draw within one year of arriving in the
country. He also believes that there must be life in another planet
and is a gadget freak and has done lot of ‘crazy’ things in life
like bungee jumping etc. He has written several books but did not
publish even one. He believes in doing good things to people because
whatever you do comes back to you.
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November - 2008 |
| Cover
Story |
WILL IT HIT HOME?
The worst financial crisis in the world since the Great Depression is
having a visible impact on the countries in the GCC region. Mayank Singh
and Akshay Bhatnagar report |
| Other
Headlines |
Mission
with a vision
Usama Barwani has worked up the ranks in the multinational MB Holding
Company, even though it is family owned, and believes that Omani companies
have what it takes to become global brands |
New
operators dial in
Five basic resellers of mobile
services, two existing operators and an obliging TRA. There could not
be a better recipe to whip up customer appetite for an exciting ‘SIM
war’ ahead, writes Visvas Paul D Karra |
A
blueprint for the future
Malcolm
Brinded, Executive Director, Exploration & Production and a Member
of the Board of Royal Dutch Shell |
A
lifetime purchase
Peter P Schoppmann sees Oman
as an important long term market in the region writes Mayank Singh |
For
a better tomorrow
Microsoft is charting a novel course in the region with its business
initiatives and social endeavours. Mayank Singh reports |
Making a difference
Soltex has been adding value for its clients
through its dynamic and innovative approach to solutions in oil field
services, writes Visvas Paul D Karra |
Performance management systems
There
are various tools for the successful implementation of an effective
PMS |
The changing face of audit
The
role of an internal auditor has changed from doing a post-facto analysis
to being pro-actively involved in business processes |
Oman
Steels Itself for the Future
Oman’s
move to invest $5bn in building up its steel industry is a wise move |
Creating
an iconic identity
Oman
Brand Management Unit is in the final stages of launching a branding
campaign |
Home
Coming
A number
of Omanis, who were either born and brought up abroad or who studied
and worked abroad have come back |
Aesthetic yet functional
Ferrari launched the long awaited
Ferrari California at the Mondial De L’Automobile 2008, Paris. Mayank
Singh reports from the Paris Motor Show |
Ducab – Wired to grow
As UAE’s top cable manufacturer,
Ducab is ready to meet the ever-growing demand across the region. An
OER report |
Taking
cover
High oil prices and improvements
in the performance of non-oil activities in 2007 has helped the cause
of the insurance industry in Oman |
GLOBAL
PAIN AND ASIAN EQUIITES
The multiple shocks on Wall
Street have sent Asia into the most traumatic bear market since the
collapse of the Silicon Valley tech bubble in 2000 |
Back to the planning process
Kuwait’s plans to revive its five year plans will help in making its
economy more logical. Hopefully this would also lead to the government
encouraging investors rather than being an investor itself |
Promoting
inclusive growth
Rajat Gupta a keynote speaker at the 2008 Leaders in Dubai Business
Forums speaks to OER about world economics, global currency and corporate
social responsibility |
A people’s man
Meet Eric McLean, Chief Development Officer, The Zubair Corporation,
who believes in living life to the fullest, both at work and after work |
|
Should
governments intervene in a financial crisis to bail out the corporate
sector? |
| Regulars |
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