Hilal Itani re-joins HKA in Saudi Arabia as director

HKA continues to grow its Saudi Arabia business, with Hilal Itani the latest to join the firm’s senior ranks in the kingdom.

Hilal Itani re-joins HKA as a Director, having spent the past seven years running his own consultancy specialised in forensic claims. Prior to that, he spent three years at HKA, providing claims consulting services to large capital infrastructure projects across the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia.

“I am excited to return to HKA,” he said about his move. “I am looking forward to playing a meaningful and impactful role in the firm's continued growth journey in the region and to consistently provide clients with a best-in-class service.”

Itani returns to company that is of different shape than when he left. Over the past three years, HKA booked strong growth and launched new offices worldwide to crack the barrier of 1,000 employees, and brought in a private equity firm to drive its “next chapter” of growth.

Meanwhile, in the region, the global consultancy integrated its operations across EMEA to form a more internationally integrated EMEA division (the firm completed a similar move in Asia Pacific), and last year launched its second office in Saudi Arabia, adding a hub in Riyadh to its longstanding Jeddah locale.

“I am looking forward to playing a meaningful and impactful role in the firm's continued growth journey in the region and to consistently provide clients with a best-in-class service,” said Itani, who is of Lebanese origin.

Itani has during his career amassed over 23 years of experience in forensic delay analysis, claims preparation and management, with alternative dispute resolution experience. Alongside a long tenure in consulting, he also served construction group Entreprises A.R. Hourie.

“We are delighted to welcome Hilal back to HKA. His demonstrable track record in construction and engineering and his knowledge, insights and expertise from working on major projects in the region will add significant value to our team,” said Husam Gawish, Partner and Head of KSA Operations.

According to recent analysis by Knight Frank, over $1 trillion worth of development and mega projects have commenced or been announced since the unveiling of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 agenda. Notably, that number constitutes just a third of the total planned investment.

With the Middle East notorious for delays in construction and infrastructure projects, HKA – which ranks as one of the region’s leading consultants for forensic and claims work – is anticipating strong demand for its services. “We expect to continue to grow our presence and enhance our service offering in Saudi Arabia,” concluded Gawish.