About us

About CDS

Who We Are CSR Leadership Team

Who We Are

CDS (Consulting and Development Services) is an independent management consulting firm focused on the provision of high value-added advisory services.

Established in 1994 as a pioneer of management consulting in the Middle East, CDS has developed into one of the leading consultancies in the Middle East and North African region, with a primary focus on Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Lebanon.

Driven by passion and a genuine care for meeting its clients’ objectives, CDS has successfully completed assignments for organizations operating in a diverse range of industries: Oil & Gas, Retail & Distribution, Insurance, Financial Services, Contracting & Construction Materials, Industrial Manufacturing, Non-Profit, etc.

Building on its accumulated expertise of a quarter century and on the abilities of its consultants, CDS crafts customized solutions to suit the specific needs of clients in different sectors of the economy. Our practical approach and our focus on implementation from day one on the job have already helped many leading organizations rediscover and achieve their true goals.

CDS offers geographic and cultural proximity to its clients. While our consultants combine a wide array of expertise with broad international exposure, they all have as well a thorough understanding of the region’s business environment and cultural sensitivities.

CDS is also committed to be a model institution that provides a uniquely attractive and fulfilling work environment.

 

Each project delivery team at CDS is bound by agreement to respect client data confidentiality, and therefore does not share nor discuss - without the prior consent of the client - any data that is not publicly available, whether with external or internal parties including CDS shareholders, Board members, other CDS project teams, and third parties.

 Our Vision

CDS aims to be a reference in high value-adding professional services for clients in all sectors of the economy.

 Our Values

Underlying everything we do, is our core set of values:

  • Integrity
  • Excellence
  • Care
  • Commitment
  • Results driven

CSR

In everything we do, we thrive to positively impact our society and environment.

We ensure that all our activities and practices are aligned with applicable laws and regulations, and we remain up to date with any new legal practices.

We are committed to ethical workplace and business practices, and have no tolerance for corruption, unprofessional act, or unfair behavior. We always remain true to our integrity vis-à-vis our company, employees, clients, partners, and society as a whole.

We dedicate time and resources to contribute to the communities where we live and others around the world, primarily through our continuous support to the Happy Childhood Foundation (HCF): https://forahappychildhood.org.

We are constantly engaged in conservation efforts related to water use, pollution, recycling, and energy consumption.

Leadership Team

  • Georges Hatem | Chairman & CEO

    Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, and Founder of CDS, Georges Hatem has more than 30 years of management consulting experience. His work has covered a wide variety of industries in the private and public sectors, as well as non-profit organizations. He is also a shareholder at CDS Holding and a member of the Board of Managers of CDS Arabia.

    Prior to establishing CDS in 1994, Georges worked with prominent consulting firms in Europe, where he actively participated in vision engineering, strategy definition, reorganization, and operations improvement projects for companies in the United States, Europe, and the Middle East.
    As an expert with extensive consulting experience, Georges is often invited to speak about change management and family businesses in local, regional, and international forums. Georges holds a Master’s and a Post-Master’s degree in Civil Engineering from Stanford University, and an MBA from INSEAD.
    He is also the Founder and President of the Happy Childhood Foundation.

    Georges is constantly in search of discovery, be it during his travels, extensive reading, or by looking for unusual objects to collect; he enjoys walking and swimming, and has a special interest in nature and wildlife.

  • Joseph Hanania | Senior Vice President

    Joseph Hanania is a Senior Vice President at CDS. He is also the Managing Director of Global Business Services, LLC. that helps many clients in various industries, to increase their EBITDA and operational agility, through strategy alignment and digital transformation.
    Joseph also serves on several company Boards in the U.S. and abroad.
    As a senior executive for many years, Joseph established, lead and managed global organizations at HP, Microsoft, Oracle, and Xerox. He was also the CEO of Umniah Mobile Company, a startup that became a leading telecommunications operator in its region.
    Joseph has a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering with a minor in Computer Science from LSU, and an MBA in Finance from University of New Orleans. He enjoys travel, sports, supporting communities, and startups.

  • Sima Taha | Vice President & Partner

    Sima Taha joined CDS in August 2008. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Biology with a Minor in Business Administration from the American University of Beirut (AUB); she also holds a Master’s degree in Finance & Accounting from the London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE) in the UK, and a Management Acceleration Program Certificate from INSEAD.

    Since she joined CDS, Sima has worked on strategy, business process reengineering, and implementation assignments for companies in the automotive, private equity, banking, insurance, hospitality, oil & gas services, consumer goods, and retail industries.
    She currently holds the position of Vice President for Corporate Development, responsible among other things of Knowledge Management and Quality Control.

    Sima is passionate about traveling and exploring new destinations and cultures. She enjoys adventure activities and is fond of watching biographical documentaries and thrillers.

  • Noaf AlTurki | Member of the Board of Managers of CDS Arabia

    Noaf AlTurki is a Board Director and Vice President for Corporate Affairs at Rawabi Holding. She oversees the Group’s shared corporate services as well as its corporate social responsibility activities.
    She also sits on several Boards of the Group’s subsidiaries and partners.

    Noaf is a Board Member of Asharqia Chamber of Commerce in its 19th session, a member of the Board’s Executive Committee, and a member of the Chamber’s Executive Council of Businesswomen.

    She is a member of the Nationalization Committee at the Emirate of the Eastern Province, a member of the Nomination and Renumeration Committee at the Sharqia Development Authority, and a member of Afaaq Advisory Committee at Aseer Development Authority.

    She is a Board of Trustees Member of the Saudi Arabian Drilling Academy (SADA) and of the Leading National Academy (LNA). She is a Co-Founder and a Board of Trustees Member of Zadk Culinary Arts Academy and a Board of Trustees Member of the Eastern Province Council for Social Responsibility.
    Noaf also supports several non-profit organizations.

    Noaf holds a Bachelor’s degree in Special Education and Sociology from Simmons University, Boston, USA and an MSc in International Management for the MENA Region from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, UK. She attended several leadership and executive development programs.

  • Bader S. AlReziza | Member of the Board of Managers of CDS Arabia

    Bader S. AlReziza is the Chief Executive Officer and Board Director of AlReziza Trading and Contracting Company, a 2nd generation family business operating in various industries.

    Bader is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Asharqia Chamber of Commerce in its 19th session and a member of its Board’s Executive Committee. He is also a member of the Investment Committee of Sharqia Development Authority (SDA) and a member of the Board of Trustees and Chairman of the Board (Sharqia Chapter) of Oqal (Angel Investors Network). Bader is a founding partner and a member of the Board of Directors and head of the Executive Committee of Zadk Culinary Institute, a not-for-profit organization focused on developing young Saudi Chefs.

    Bader is a member of the Executive Committee of the Saudi-British Business Council, a member of the Executive Committee of the Saudi-Russian Business Council, the former Vice Chairman of the Young Businessmen National Committee, and a former Board Member of Dammam College of Technology.

    Bader holds a Bachelor of Science, Business Administration, Management Information System (MIS) and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from California State University, CSULB. He has received executive training from top tier business schools including IMD Business School in Switzerland and Stanford University in the USA.

  • Khaled Bachir | Member of the Board of Managers of CDS Arabia

    Khaled Bachir is a Senior Managing Consultant at Mastercard, in charge of Data & Services Business Development activities for the Levant/Bahrain region and is currently based in Dubai.
    Prior to joining Mastercard, Khaled worked at CDS for 13 years. During this time, he managed strategy and management consulting assignments for companies operating in the construction, manufacturing, oil & gas, industrial services, hospitality, and banking sectors.

    Before that, Khaled held several positions in the Middle East and Europe. He acted as a management consultant with prominent consulting firms in Dubai, France, and as Operations Manager with a global marketing and communications consulting firm based in Cyprus.

    Khaled is a graduate of the American University of Beirut (AUB) with a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering, ESSEC’s MBA, and Harvard Business School’s Leadership Development Program.

  • Nicolas Chammas | Shareholder at CDS Holding

    Nicolas Chammas is Member of the Board of Trustees of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Past President of the MIT Alumni Association worldwide, General Secretary of the Lebanese Economic Organizations, Chairman of the Beirut Traders Association (BTA) since 2010, and Managing Partner at Elie D. Chammas & Co.

    He graduated with distinction from the American University of Beirut (Bachelor of Engineering), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Master of Science in Civil Engineering), and Harvard Business School (Master of Business Administration with a focus on the international economy).

    Nicolas’ research and publications include:
    -    Social and economic advisory missions to various ministries, public institutions, and international organizations, focusing on employment, trade, development, investment, finance, and competitiveness
    -    “The knowledge-based economy and its impact on the Lebanese society and economy”
    -    “The socio-economic future of Lebanon in questions”
    -    “Construction industry and its role in the Lebanese economy”

  • Riad Obegi | Shareholder at CDS Holding

    Riad Obegi is currently the Chairman of Banque BEMO SAL Lebanon, member of the Board of Banque BEMO Saudi Fransi SA Syria and the Non-Executive Chairman of BEMO Europe Luxembourg.

    In addition to his responsibilities in the banking sector, Riad is the Chairman of Unifert Holding SAL and Chairman of Obegi Group SA in Luxembourg.

    He holds a PhD in Economics from Lyon Lumière University, a Diploma in Economy & Finance from IEP Paris, and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Paris IX Dauphine.