Part of World Finance’s internationally recognized awards program
KIB crowned in 2021 as the "Best Islamic Bank for Employee Development and Empowerment in Kuwait"
Kuwait - __ October 2021: In a testament to the Bank’s dedicated and robust human capital development program, Kuwait International Bank (KIB) was recently honored with the “Best Islamic Bank for Employee Development and Empowerment in Kuwait” award for the year 2021 by UK-based World Finance (WF) magazine. Coming as part of the magazine’s annual global awards program to honor the best Islamic financial institutions, WF presented KIB with the award in recognitions of its methodology of developing its human capital as an integral part of its business model.
For about 14 years now, World Finance Magazine has been organizing the Islamic Finance Awards program annually to host and honor the largest Islamic banks and financial institutions from all over the globe, including KIB. The bank has been chosen over other candidates to win the title for its excellence in the field of human capital development in Kuwait, having met the set of criteria which included investing in apprenticeships and development programmes, the innovative development programme and strategy, the organization’s culture of employee trust and empowerment, the impact of staff’s skills development on bank overall performance, in addition to the staff training approaches taken to control covid-related conditions.
According to WF, throughout the years, KIB has developed a culture of employee learning, trust and empowerment that enhances its involvement, engagement, and commitment in working towards the bank success. This learning and empowering culture, which became part of KIB values, has not only taken the bank’s needs into consideration, but also the employee experience - by encouraging feedback, improving performance, and more importantly making the bank a place where people feel respected and offered opportunities for development and where they can contribute to the best of their ability. Moreover, WF noted that KIB took proactive measures to protect its people and contain the spread of COVID-19 including restricting travel, emphasizing workplace hygiene, offering alternative ways of working, and initiating healthcare guidance communication.
Speaking on the occasion of receiving this award, KIB Vice Chairman and CEO, Raed Jawad Bukhamseen, said: “First of all, we would like to thank the World Finance jury for this award, which is a new and important addition to our long list of awards and accolades. It also places more responsibility on us to maintain our performance when it comes to our strategic, multi-layered human capital development program, as we continuously seek to expand the scope of its activities to include more training and upskilling initiatives and internal activities across various fields. We also remain dedicated to developing our policy to restructure the work team periodically with the aim of always ensuring the right person is in the right position at the right time."
On his part, Deputy General Manager of the Human Resources Department at KIB, Feras Al-Darmi, pointed to the bank’s commitment to investing first and foremost in its human capital. “Our goal is to fully enable, empower and equip our teams to provide a comprehensive and next-level suite of services in a way that reflects the identity, vision, caliber and position of KIB. Moreover, we are always looking to ensure our team is receptive to new ways of working in order to keep pace with the latest developments and changes in the financial and banking sector, as well as preparing our employees to be able to deal with any challenges and work under any circumstances,” noted Al-Darmi. Adding: “This is how KIB is able to maintain its competitive capabilities in the market; by ensuring that the KIB team is always at the highest degree of expertise and agility, with top-level professionalism and industry know-how, in line with the industry’s top international best practice standards.”
On the other hand, Al-Darmi underscored KIB’s eagerness to provide all means of support and care to its team members of all segments, pointing out that this win does not only honor the Bank’s efforts in honing the skills and capabilities of its employees, but also for its constant efforts to safeguard their safety and well-being on personal levels. Here Al-Darmi pointed to KIB’s adoption of internal activities and initiatives that aim to enhance its staff’s physical and mental health.
In conclusion, both Bukhamseen and Al Darmi reaffirmed KIB’s belief in fostering a strong, collaborative and healthy internal culture as a key component of its success. Therefore, KIB strives to place its human cadres, and national ones in particular, at the forefront of its priorities, in order to improve their performance, which contributes significantly to providing an exceptional and efficient experience for a more satisfied and happier customer.
It serves to note that the World Finance magazine, based in the capital city of London, is one of the leading and most prominent global media platforms specializing in financial and economic news coverage. Its esteemed awards program continues to represent a standard of success and set a benchmark for best practices in the world of finance and business on an international level.
About KIB
Kuwait International Bank (KIB) is a bank that operates according to the Islamic Shari’ah, based in the State of Kuwait. Incorporated in 1973, and originally known as Kuwait Real Estate Bank, KIB made the transition to its current Islamic operating model in 2007. In 2018, KIB embarked on a new phase of its journey full of innovation and development. As part of its new strategic direction, the Bank focuses on offering a next-level customer experience under the slogan: “Bank for Life”.
Through a network of branches spread across the State of Kuwait, KIB offers a broad range of banking products and services, as well as innovative digital banking solutions in line with international best standards. As part of its duty towards the community, the Bank also encompasses a leading social responsibility program that aims at positively impacting all members of the community through a wide range of impactful initiatives and activities.
Today, KIB has taken concrete steps in implementing its new strategic objectives. The Bank has cemented its role as a key player in the local banking industry and has continued to maintain its strong financial performance; enabling it to be globally recognized for its strong credit rating and financial position.