This is the top course of The Works Academy: an 18-module, board-grade program that teaches a founder, CEO, MD or director how to actually run a diversified holding company from the top. It is not a generic MBA rehash and not a motivational leadership course.
The CEO Mandate and the Executive Operating System
Vision, Strategy and the Long-Range Plan
Corporate Governance, the Board and Shareholder Relations
Group and Holding-Company Structure Across Multiple Entities
Capital Allocation and Reading the Group P&L and Balance Sheet
Fundraising, Debt, Investors and Valuation
Mergers, Acquisitions, JVs and Corporate Development
Culture, Values and Leading Leaders
and 13 more modules, listed below
Syllabus
21 modules, 189 lessons
Prefer to take it one module at a time? Each module below can be taken on its own at the price shown. Taking the full course saves you AED 1,250 against buying every module separately.
01The CEO Mandate and the Executive Operating SystemAED 600
Resets the top job to its four irreducible duties and builds a personal operating system so a founder-CEO of a diversified UAE group spends scarce hours only on decisions that are theirs to make.
1.1The four irreducible jobs of a CEOLocked
1.2Why founder-operators plateauLocked
1.3Building your executive calendar as a portfolioLocked
1.4The CEO's decision rights mapLocked
1.5Designing your top-team operating rhythmLocked
1.6Running a group with multiple MDsLocked
1.7The one-page CEO dashboard across all entitiesLocked
1.8Managing your own energy, focus and blind spotsLocked
1.9First-90-days and reset playbookLocked
02Vision, Strategy and the Long-Range PlanAED 550
A board-grade strategy module that moves a diversified UAE group from ambition to a quantified, defensible long-range plan: where to play across brokerage, CRM SaaS and ventures, how to win in each, and which bets earn real capital.
2.1Vision versus strategy versus plan: three different objects, three different jobsLocked
2.2Choosing where to play: define the arenas and say no to the restLocked
2.3How to win in each arena: a testable advantage, not a sloganLocked
2.4The long-range plan as a financial model, not a slideLocked
2.5Reading the UAE macro cycle into strategyLocked
2.6Diversification logic for a family group: risk reduction versus attention scatterLocked
2.7Hard strategic choices: the few big bets that get real capitalLocked
2.8Cascading strategy into entity-level objectivesLocked
2.9Stress-testing the strategy: pre-mortems, scenarios and the assumptions that could break the planLocked
03Corporate Governance, the Board and Shareholder RelationsAED 600
A board-grade governance module for a diversified UAE group: how to separate ownership, board and management; understand directors' legal duties and personal liability; build a board that adds value not theatre; run clean board mechanics; draft a shareholder agreement and group constitution; keep control while opening to challenge; add committees at the right time; ring-fence family dynamics; and manage owners who are not on the board.
3.1The three-legged stool: owners own, the board governs, management runsLocked
3.2Directors' duties and personal liability in the UAELocked
3.3Designing a board that works for a founder-controlled groupLocked
3.4Board mechanics done right: calendar, pack, agenda, minutes and reserved mattersLocked
3.5The shareholder agreement and the group constitutionLocked
3.6Keeping control while genuinely opening yourself to challengeLocked
3.7Board committees for a scaling group: audit, remuneration and riskLocked
3.8Family governance versus corporate governanceLocked
3.9Shareholder and owner relations: reporting to owners off the boardLocked
04Group and Holding-Company Structure Across Multiple EntitiesAED 600
A board-grade guide to deliberately architecting a diversified UAE group: why holdcos exist, where mainland, free-zone and offshore entities belong, how intercompany flows and Corporate Tax grouping actually work, and how to restructure without breaking a RERA licence, a tax position or a contract.
4.1Why hold companies exist: ring-fencing risk, pooling profit and enabling clean saleLocked
4.2Mainland vs free zone vs offshore: what each is genuinely forLocked
4.3Designing the group tree: where IP, property and brand should legally liveLocked
4.4Intercompany flows done properly: fees, licences, loans and dividends at arm's lengthLocked
4.5Corporate Tax grouping and the 9% regime: how structure meets the FTALocked
4.6The RERA brokerage as a regulated entity: what you cannot casually restructureLocked
4.7Holding property and the vineyard: the right vehicles for real assetsLocked
4.8Substance, UBO and economic-substance expectations: make the structure realLocked
4.9Restructuring safely: moving entities, inserting a holdco and bringing in partners without breakageLocked
05Capital Allocation and Reading the Group P&L and Balance SheetAED 600
Capital allocation is the CEO's highest-leverage act. This module makes you fluent in the financial statements of every entity and of the consolidated group, so you direct every dirham of profit toward its best use on evidence rather than gut.
5.1The five uses of a dirhamLocked
5.2Reading a P&L like a CEOLocked
5.3Reading a balance sheet like a CEOLocked
5.4The consolidated group viewLocked
5.5Return on capital as the master metricLocked
5.6Unit economics per businessLocked
5.7Cash is the truthLocked
5.8Setting a capital-allocation policyLocked
5.9Killing and starvingLocked
06Fundraising, Debt, Investors and ValuationAED 550
A board-grade playbook for raising outside money across a diversified UAE group: choosing debt versus equity, understanding how UAE lenders and equity investors underwrite, valuing each business on its correct basis, running a raise without losing leverage, reading a term sheet, modelling dilution and control, and knowing when not to raise at all.
6.1Debt versus equity: matching the money to the assetLocked
6.2How UAE lenders think: covenants, security and guaranteesLocked
6.3How equity investors think: SaaS growth capital versus a cash-generative property groupLocked
6.4Valuation fundamentals: multiples versus DCF, and why your businesses are valued differentlyLocked
6.5Building the number: valuing each business and the group, and what moves it upLocked
6.6The raise process end to end: from teaser to close without losing momentumLocked
6.7Reading and negotiating a term sheet: the clauses that quietly transfer controlLocked
6.8Dilution and control mathematics: cap tables across multiple roundsLocked
6.9When not to raise: bootstrapping, revenue-based options and solving discipline problems yourselfLocked
07Mergers, Acquisitions, JVs and Corporate DevelopmentAED 650
A disciplined corporate-development playbook for a diversified UAE group: deciding when to buy, partner or build; valuing and structuring deals; running diligence that finds the landmines; constructing JVs that survive; and integrating so the value you paid for actually arrives.
7.1The strategic logic of a deal: buy, build or partnerLocked
7.2Sourcing and screening targets without eating your own calendarLocked
7.5Joint ventures and partnerships: design the exit before you enterLocked
7.6The letter of intent and holding leverage through to closeLocked
7.7Integration is where value is won or lostLocked
7.8Acquiring talent and technology, not just revenueLocked
7.9Post-deal review and the discipline to walk awayLocked
08Culture, Values and Leading LeadersAED 600
A board-grade operating manual for defining, embedding and defending culture across a diversified UAE group while leading a team of senior leaders who each carry their own gravity. It reframes culture as the worst behaviour you tolerate, gives you values that constrain real decisions, and equips you to lead leaders, hold peers to account, and keep one group identity intact across a commission brokerage, a product team and a hospitality venture.
8.1What culture actually is: the sum of what you reward, tolerate and punishLocked
8.2Defining values that constrain real decisionsLocked
8.3Leading leaders, not doersLocked
8.4Building a real leadership team, not a set of soloistsLocked
8.5Managing culture across very different sub-culturesLocked
8.6The CEO as culture carrier: what you praise, promote and fireLocked
8.7The brilliant jerk and the loyal underperformerLocked
8.8Difficult conversations at the topLocked
8.9Embedding culture as you scale across entities and geographiesLocked
09Organisational Design and ScalingAED 600
A board-grade playbook for architecting a diversified UAE group's organisation: designing structure from strategy, choosing an operating model between pure holding and integrated group, drawing decision rights explicitly, right-sizing shared services and the holdco centre, and re-organising through predictable growth breakpoints without becoming the bottleneck.
9.1Structure Follows Strategy, Not PersonalitiesLocked
9.2Choosing Your Group Operating ModelLocked
9.3Shared Services Versus Entity AutonomyLocked
9.4Spans and Layers: Keeping Decisions FastLocked
9.5Designing Decision Rights ExplicitlyLocked
9.6Scaling Through the Predictable BreakpointsLocked
9.7Reorganising Without ChaosLocked
9.8Building a Lean, Value-Adding Holdco CentreLocked
9.9Org Design for the CRM Product Company Inside the GroupLocked
10Talent, Succession and Executive RewardAED 600
A board-grade playbook for treating your top 20 people as a portfolio the CEO actively manages: hiring executives for the next stage of the group, designing reward that ties senior leaders to owners, building a real succession bench, removing founder-dependency, and managing executive exits cleanly, all grounded in current UAE reward, visa and labour realities.
10.1The CEO as Chief Talent OfficerLocked
10.2Hiring Executives for the Next Stage, Not the Last OneLocked
10.3Executive Reward That Aligns With OwnershipLocked
10.4Designing Incentive Plans Per BusinessLocked
10.5Succession Planning as a DisciplineLocked
10.6The Founder-Dependency RiskLocked
10.7Developing Your Successors and Next-Generation LeadersLocked
10.8Retaining Key People in a Competitive Dubai MarketLocked
10.9Managing Executive ExitsLocked
11UAE Employment Law and the People Compliance BackboneAED 600
The board-level operating framework for UAE workforce compliance under Federal Decree-Law 33/2021 and Cabinet Resolution 1/2022: contracts, end-of-service, WPS, termination, restrictive covenants, free-zone regimes, contractor classification and recruitment-agency bonds, taught so a CEO can set policy and hold HR accountable with real knowledge.
11.1The governing regime: Decree-Law 33/2021 is the only law that countsLocked
11.2Contract types, work models and mandatory termsLocked
11.3End-of-service gratuity and the leave entitlement stackLocked
11.4WPS, wage payment and the deduction capsLocked
11.5Termination, notice and arbitrary dismissalLocked
11.6Non-compete, confidentiality and protecting the CRM code and client dataLocked
11.7Free-zone versus mainland employment: DIFC, ADGM and MOHRELocked
11.8Contractors, outsourcing and classification riskLocked
11.9The recruitment-agency angle: guarantees and financial bondsLocked
12Emiratisation, Nafis and Workforce Nationalisation StrategyAED 550
A board-grade treatment of Emiratisation as a strategic workforce-planning and capital problem across a diversified UAE group: the current MOHRE quota mechanics, the reach into 20-49-employee entities, how targets are counted, the recurring per-role fines, the Nafis economics that reset the true cost of an Emirati hire, the sham-hire crackdown, group-level sequencing, and turning genuine national leadership into competitive advantage.
12.1The Emiratisation mandate today: the 2% ratchet toward 10% by 2026Locked
12.2The expansion to 20-49-employee firms: your smaller entities are now in scopeLocked
12.3How targets are counted: skill classification and the group questionLocked
12.4The cost of non-compliance: pricing the recurring per-role fineLocked
12.5Nafis and the support ecosystem: the economics that change the hireLocked
12.6Building a genuine Emiratisation strategy: source, onboard, develop, retainLocked
12.7The fake-Emiratisation crackdown: sham hires are a board-level riskLocked
12.8Workforce planning across the group under the quotaLocked
12.9Turning Emiratisation into advantage: reputation, relationships and accessLocked
13Tax, VAT and Group Financial ComplianceAED 550
A board-grade command of the UAE tax regime for a diversified group: Corporate Tax at 9%, Small Business Relief, free-zone qualifying income, VAT across brokerage, SaaS and hospitality revenue, Peppol e-invoicing from 2026, tax grouping and transfer pricing, filing discipline, and the handful of exposures a CEO must personally track.
13.1Corporate Tax at 9%: the regime that reshapes how you structure and plan profitLocked
13.2Small Business Relief: a real tool for your smaller ventures, with a sunset you must watchLocked
13.3Free-zone Corporate Tax: the 0% is real but narrow, and status is easy to loseLocked
13.4VAT at 5%: registration, input recovery, and the property treatments that trip people upLocked
13.5VAT across three revenue models: brokerage, SaaS subscriptions and vineyard salesLocked
13.6Peppol e-invoicing from 2026: a plumbing change you must fund and sequence nowLocked
13.7Tax grouping and transfer pricing: keeping intercompany flows arm's-length and defensibleLocked
13.8Filing, records and penalties: the deadlines that turn small errors into avoidable finesLocked
13.9The CEO's tax dashboard: the handful of exposures you personally trackLocked
14Risk, Legal, Compliance and Enterprise Risk ManagementAED 550
A board-grade enterprise-risk operating system for a diversified UAE group: a live risk register with real owners, the AML/UBO/sanctions/PDPL regimes that carry personal liability in a property-led business, contract and litigation strategy, risk-transfer through insurance, and a compliance function the board oversees without running.
14.1Enterprise Risk Management for a Group: The Live RegisterLocked
14.2AML and the Real-Estate Sector: Why You Are a DNFBPLocked
14.3AML in Practice: CDD, Source of Funds and the goAML ReportLocked
14.4Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO): Filing and Keeping It CurrentLocked
14.5Sanctions and PEP Screening in High-Value Property DealsLocked
14.6Data Protection Under the UAE PDPLLocked
14.7Contract and Litigation Risk: Clauses and Forum ChoiceLocked
14.8Insurance and Risk Transfer: What a Group Actually NeedsLocked
14.9Building the Compliance Function the Board OverseesLocked
15RERA, Trakheesi and Running the Regulated BrokerageAED 550
The brokerage licence is a board-grade asset that can be suspended or revoked. This module gives the group CEO command of the Dubai real-estate regulatory regime - RERA/DLD, Trakheesi permits, BRN discipline, listing and portal compliance, escrow and transaction forms, off-plan rules, the penalty ladder, and how the group's own CRM turns compliance into a defensible advantage.
15.1The RERA and DLD framework: what your licence actually obliges the group to doLocked
15.2Broker and agent registration: only registered agents may transactLocked
15.3Trakheesi advertising permits: no permit, no advertisementLocked
15.4The BRN on every advertisement: building the permit and registration number into marketingLocked
15.5Listing and portal compliance: verified listings and the crackdown on fakesLocked
15.6Commission, the transaction forms and protecting client moneyLocked
15.7Off-plan and developer rules: escrow, Oqood and confirming the project is realLocked
15.8RERA penalties and licence risk: defend the licence as a strategic assetLocked
15.9Integrating compliance with the CRM: turning the regulator into a product advantageLocked
16Leading Through the Market Cycle and CrisisAED 600
A board-grade playbook for running a property-led UAE group counter-cyclically and leading it through acute crisis: reading the Dubai cycle, building balance-sheet anti-fragility and dry powder, stress-testing a 30% volume drop, commanding the first 24 hours, staged crisis communications, liquidity triage, regulatory and reputational events, and the honest post-crisis review that turns near-death into institutional strength.
16.1Reading the Real-Estate Cycle and Positioning Against the HerdLocked
16.2Building Anti-Fragility: Balance Sheet, Cash Reserves and Diversified IncomeLocked
16.3Counter-Cyclical Capital Allocation: Buying and Hiring in the DownturnLocked
16.4Scenario and Stress Planning Before the Shock ArrivesLocked
16.5Crisis Leadership Fundamentals: Commanding the First 24 HoursLocked
16.6Crisis Communications: Who to Tell, in What Order, and Why Honesty WinsLocked
16.7Liquidity Crisis Management: Cash-Runway Triage and Working the LendersLocked
16.8Regulatory and Reputational Crises: Handling a RERA Action, AML Finding or Data BreachLocked
16.9Post-Crisis Learning: Turning Near-Death Into Institutional StrengthLocked
17Digital, Technology and AI Strategy for the GroupAED 600
A board-grade operating guide to setting technology and AI strategy for a diversified UAE group that both runs on software and sells it, covering non-technical CEO governance, SaaS P&L economics, build-buy-partner, dogfooding, real AI adoption, defensible product AI, data as an asset within the PDPL, board-level cyber risk, and disciplined technology capital allocation.
17.1Technology strategy for a non-technical CEO: governing without pretending to be the CTOLocked
17.2Running the CRM as a product company: SaaS economics that behave nothing like a brokerageLocked
17.3Build, buy or partner: deciding what the group makes itself across every entityLocked
17.4The dual role of the CRM: dogfooding internally while selling externallyLocked
17.5AI strategy for the group: separating real value from hype and sequencing adoptionLocked
17.6AI inside the CRM product: building defensible features on your own transaction dataLocked
17.7Data as a group asset: governance, ownership and monetisation within the PDPLLocked
17.8Cybersecurity and technology risk at board level: the controls you must insist onLocked
17.9Technology capital allocation: funding product and systems without runaway build costsLocked
18ESG, Sustainability and Leading Diversified Ventures (the Vineyard)AED 600
A board-grade playbook for governing businesses outside your core expertise, testing whether a passion venture earns its capital, managing long-horizon and seasonal cash flows, treating ESG as strategy rather than compliance, and knowing when to exit a beloved venture.
18.1Governing a Business You Do Not Natively UnderstandLocked
18.2The Venture Test: Strategic Diversification or Vanity ProjectLocked
18.3Long-Horizon and Cyclical Businesses Inside a Fast GroupLocked
18.4ESG and Sustainability as Strategy, Not a ReportLocked
18.5Sustainability in Practice: The Ventures and the Property BusinessLocked
18.6The Brand and Reputation Halo of a Prestige VentureLocked
18.7Governing a Distant or Foreign VentureLocked
18.8Portfolio Discipline Across Very Different BusinessesLocked
18.9Knowing When to Exit a Venture You LoveLocked
19Stakeholder Power, Negotiation and Executive CommunicationAED 600
A board-grade playbook for the CEO of a diversified UAE group on mapping stakeholder power, negotiating high-stakes deals, and communicating with the authority that regulators, lenders, boards and partners respond to.
19.1Mapping stakeholder power: who can help or block the groupLocked
19.2Executive negotiation: interests, BATNA and anchoringLocked
19.3Negotiating the deals that matter: term sheets, contracts, JVs, facilitiesLocked
19.4Relationship capital in the UAE: trust, government and the long gameLocked
19.5Executive communication and presence: concision, calm and authorityLocked
19.6Communicating to the board and owners: pack, pre-read, decisionLocked
19.7Media, public profile and thought leadership without unforced errorsLocked
19.8Difficult stakeholder situations, handled with composureLocked
19.9Persuading the organisation: aligning thousands of downstream decisionsLocked
20Investor, Lender and Board ReportingAED 600
A board-grade reporting operating system for a diversified UAE group: how to report to owners, banks, equity investors and the board in a way that keeps capital cheap, catches covenant risk early, tells bad news well, and builds a multi-year reputation for reliability.
20.1Reporting as a trust and cost-of-capital machine, not a choreLocked
20.2The board pack that makes directors decideLocked
20.3Lender and covenant reporting: never surprise the bankLocked
20.4Investor reporting for the CRM and the venturesLocked
20.5KPIs that matter versus vanity metricsLocked
20.6Reporting bad news wellLocked
20.7The reporting backbone: management accounts, close discipline and data qualityLocked
20.8Consolidated group reporting without losing entity truthLocked
20.9The annual cycle and a reputation for reliable reportingLocked
21The Founder-to-CEO Transition, Exit and LegacyAED 650
The capstone module: how to build a group that no longer needs you, choose an exit or succession deliberately, and pass a diversified UAE group to the next generation cleanly, grounded in DIFC wills, Golden Visa and 2025-26 realities.
21.1Founder to institutional CEO: the identity shiftLocked
21.2Building a group that does not need youLocked
21.3The exit options: choosing deliberatelyLocked
21.4Preparing the group for sale or handoverLocked
21.5Succession and inheritance in the UAELocked
21.6Golden Visa and residency in succession planningLocked
21.7The family-business handoverLocked
21.8Defining legacy: what the group stands for after youLocked
