Burgan Bank honors 7 leaders for finishing Harvard program

KUWAIT: Burgan Bank recently celebrated seven of its most promising talents for graduating from the “Strategic Leadership in the Age of Financial Sustainability” program, administered by Harvard Business School (HBS). The prestigious program falls under the umbrella of the Central Bank of Kuwait’s (CBK’s) Kafa’a initiative, launched in collaboration with Kuwaiti banks and the Kuwait Institute of Banking Studies (KIBS) to develop highly qualified national cadres in finance and banking.

The graduation ceremony was attended by senior Burgan managers alongside representatives from CBK and other participating banks. The bank’s nomination of and support for its graduating calibers comes as part of its dedicated human capital development strategy and commitment to advancing national talents in line with the national Kuwaitization program.

“On behalf of Burgan’s management, I would like to congratulate our seven visionary leaders for completing such an important program that equips banking professionals with the strategic leadership skills essential for driving financial sustainability, growth, and innovation in the financial sector. We are confident that our graduates will contribute to a highly skilled national workforce and play a pivotal role in shaping the future of banking in Kuwait,” said Bashar Al-Qattan, Executive Manager – Learning and Talent Development at Burgan Bank.

“As part of our overarching efforts to foster a culture of growth and continuous advancement, we are committed to offering our most driven talents valuable learning opportunities that propel them forward and equip them with the latest knowledge and tools needed for achieving success that benefits our institution and larger community.”

Bashar Al-Qattan

He added that Burgan’s ongoing partnership with Harvard Business School, under the Kafa’a initiative, reflects the institution’s unwavering commitment to empowering national talents with world-class knowledge and expertise, contributing to the success of the New Kuwait Vision 2035 goal of advancing national calibers to leadership and decision-making positions.

It is worth noting that the program graduates were nominated as part of their enrollment in the “Visionary Leaders” stream of Burgan’s flagship talent development program, Ro’ya, designed to prepare leaders across the employment hierarchy for driving sustainable growth, inspiring positive change, and instilling Burgan’s values across operations and daily interactions.

In its latest effort to develop the flagship program, Burgan introduced the six-month Mentorship Module for Visionary Leaders to prepare emerging senior leaders on the personal and professional fronts with the guidance of Burgan’s senior executives. Besides Visionary Leaders, Ro’ya also includes the Future Leaders, Rising Leaders, and Transformational Leaders streams for high-potential calibers at earlier stages of their professional careers, with each stream catering to the specific needs, aspirations, and recurring challenges of its enrolled cohort.

Owing to its robust talent development strategy and year-long human capital investment efforts, Burgan Bank was certified as a Great Place to Work, as well as awarded the Brandon Hall Group Human Capital Management (HCM) Gold Award of Excellence in the “Learning and Development” category for the “Best Use of Social/Collaborative Learning” – among other recognitions that reflect the bank’s successful mission to become an employer of choice.