CEO Insights Magazine

Baker Hughes is an international businessorganization with business conducted in more than 120 countries. The company works in partnership with their customers, wherever they are, to deliver better outcomes. This has allowed Baker Hughes to be one of the leading names in the oilfield services & equipment industry. Apart from that, they are also well established in the industrial & energy technology market. Even though Baker Hughes is a global business organization, the company offers customer-centric services after fully understanding their requirements. This has helped them to not just create but also maintain an impressive clientele. Nawaf Saeed, the Country Director OFSE, Iraq of Baker Hughes is a pioneering business leader who has been able to guide the company to reach to greater heights. Under his leadership, Baker Hughes has been able to streamline their business operations while consistently improving the quality of their offerings. In an exclusive interview with CEO Insights ASIA, Nawaf Saeed talks more about his professional journey and the unique operations of Baker Hughes.

Could you give a brief account of your educational and professional background? What is the motivation that fuels your daily routines?

I graduated from Basra University as Chemical Engineer after which I started working with Bechtel Corporation as an Operations engineer. In my professional journey, I have worked with multiple other reputed organizations including Washington Black & eatch, Cihan Petroleum, including others. I joined Baker Hughes in 2010 as a General Field engineer. Over the years, I have taken up various roles at the company including the position of Account manager, Operation manager, and Sub-region manager. Now, I am currently holding the office of Country Director OFSE, Iraq. The diverse roles I had in the company has helped me to have a holistic view on our operations. When it comes to what motivates me, the appreciation that I receive from the company drives me to constantly improve myself, and help the company reach its objectives. I also have a strong and supportive family who gives me strength to move forward even while facing challenges. Other than that, the passion I have for the work I do helps me to pursue and achieve my career objectives. I love challenges, and having faced multiple of them, I have been able to solve a plethora of challenges throughout my career. This has not only allowed me to be a better & quicker decision maker, but now, I manage around 300 employees at the company.

Tell us about your flagship offerings and what are the value additions that customers can expect from your products and solutions?

When it comes to our services, we are supporting our customers to get the correct transactions, offer them long term solutions, provide high tech equipment and technologies, and support them on the ground with the challenges they are facing. Aside from this, supporting the oil & gas sector in Iraq in its quest to reach an independent position is also a top priority for us.

Tell us about your leadership approach. What are the guidelines you follow as a leader?

I am a qualified Technical engineer, and a strong decision maker. I have experience of communicating with a myriad of clients. This experience allows me to not only understand their requirements, but also help them get the right solutions. I believe I am an experienced problem solver too and over the years, I have been able to lead &manage people from different

Going forward, what are the changes in market behavior that you anticipate and what are the opportunities that you foresee?

Part of our commitment as a company in the renewable and green energy sector is to offer innovative solutions to the world in order to decrease the emissions. We aim to develop a new model of technology and energy in the world in order to help the next generation. We also want to come up with unique solutions that can become game changer in the renewable energy sector, while at the same time grow & expand our global presence even more.

In light of your strong experience within the industry, what advice would you give to the budding industry leaders?

My advice to new business leaders would be to set high standards when it comes to technology and the quality of your offerings. Prioritizing and allocating enough resources for research & development is also important as it will allow companies to increase the quality of their operations. Give major emphasis on developing long term plans and solutions as it will help the company to achieve sustained success in the industry.

Nawaf Saeed, Country Director OFSE, Baker Hughes

He is a capable business leader who has the skills and knowledge to lead& manage people from different countries and bring them together to meet the organizational objectives. This passionate learner also aspires to constantly improve himself so that he can produce better results for the company.