Saudi Arabia
What lies ahead for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will be directly shaped by the next generation of leaders. We aim to expand employment opportunities by equipping students and professionals with the tools needed to thrive in the workplace. We also provide a chance for talented young people to learn from the region’s top executives and build their own networks of mentors and career advisers.
Discover how we are empowering youth so they can thrive in the future and enable sustainable and inclusive growth in the Kingdom.
Developing future leaders
Qimam Fellowship Program: Empowering the next generation of Saudi students
Launched in 2018, the Qimam Fellowship program aims to identify, develop, and empower the most promising university students in Saudi Arabia. The program is supported by a coalition of 40 leading national and international companies, and offers fellows one-on-one mentorship from senior public and private sector leaders, leadership training by industry experts and professionals, and visits to the Saudi Arabian headquarters of top national and international companies.
Qimam has been a one-of-a-kind experience that I will truly cherish and carry with me.
Maqdira Fellowship program: CO-OP internship for Saudi undergraduates
Over the course of seven months, Saudi undergraduates develop their problem-solving skills, gain firsthand exposure to McKinsey internal operations and client engagements, and enhance their business-management skills. This internship program was established to create a pipeline of talent that is ready to step into the workforce.
This internship helped me apply the theoretical concepts I learned in university to real-time client situations. I also created a network of mentors … across the vast global network of McKinsey, which I will hold onto for the rest of my life.
Explore more about Maqdira
I was fortunate to be a part of Maqdira. I had an exponential learning experience, fascinating colleagues who coached me and pinpointed development areas, and the opportunity to expand my knowledge by working on various topics.
Creating a capable workforce
Capability-building for NGOs
We offer training sessions to several NGO employees on how to better serve different communities in Saudi Arabia: Bunyan supports underprivileged women, Arees Foundation runs an orphanage, and Alnahda runs an information hub that supports female empowerment.
Nurturing a burgeoning ecosystem
In Saudi Arabia, we are supporting a burgeoning start-up ecosystem, working alongside local start-ups to help assess business plans, problem solve key challenges, and think about scaling their impact. As one example, our colleagues in Riyadh helped work with a gig-economy start-up to refine its operating model, completely rethinking a customer-centric approach that puts clients on both the supply and demand sides of their model and experience.