04 Al Shamel International
Staff: 350 Offices: 8 Managing director: Khaled Al Ghanim

With over 350 employees, Al Shamel serves its clients from eight fully-owned offices in Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. As regional partner of Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT) and CWTSatoTravel [travel provider to the US government] the combined network reaches over 150 countries globally. In 2010 Al Shamel International reported annual sales of more than US $480 million, and predicts an increase on this in 2011.

This year saw Al Shamel undergo a major restructuring initiative to improve efficiency and customer service, creating specialised departments such as Alshamel Energy Service — focused on servicing corporates engaged in marine and offshore activities such as Halliburton, Exxon, BP and Shell.

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The latest technology and systems have also been introduced to improve its data analytical capabilities and reservation systems; and Alshamel’s Military and Government Division (M&G) has been proactive in assisting the US Government in moving to an electronic platform.

In its mission to attain international-level standards in corporate travel management, Al Shamel is running ‘Operation Excellence’ in coordination with CWT to enhance the quality of its services — the project is set to be complete by mid-2012.
At the holding’s level, the company’s third quarter financial results reported record growth of 27% in net profit across the region, which reinstated the company position as one of the leading TMCs in the region.