Roland Berger event introduces young Saudi's to strategy consulting

Over 60 young Saudi professionals participated in Roland Berger’s Hema Case Competition, with the event’s star performers now well lined up for landing a much sought-after contract at the global strategy consulting firm.

Held for the first time in Riyadh, the Hema Case Competition aimed to help young Saudi youth with catching a glimpse of life in the world of boardroom consulting. The event also helped participants grow their skills in areas such as business strategy, problem-solving, communication, teamwork, and presentation.

More than 280 young professionals from the public and private sector and students from universities in the Kingdom registered for the competition. Of these, around 60 were selected to attend the event in person.

During the first round, teams had to demonstrate their capabilities and solve a real-life business strategy problem, with the winning teams selected for a final round.

“During both rounds, the teams displayed an impressive mix of skills, creativity, professionalism, and enthusiasm,” said Hani Tohme, Managing Partner at Roland Berger. “The outcomes of the competition have genuinely surpassed our expectations. The event was remarkable, setting a high standard that we are pleased to witness.”

Operating worldwide, Roland Berger is one of the world’s leading strategic consulting firms. As such, the firm is every year overwhelmed by thousands of candidates aspiring a job at the firm. With competition for career entry roles intense, members of the winning team now enjoy a head start having bagged a nod from the firm’s top executive. “The winning team demonstrated exceptional skills and will hopefully become our future colleagues,” said Tohme.

The Hema Case Competition is part of Roland Berger's broader strategy to promote career development among Saudi youth in the consulting domain. That is in turn part of the firm’s ambition to grow in the Kingdom and objective to meet the country’s Saudisation target for the consulting sector.

The competition was named ‘Hema’ in reference to the Saudi expression “Hema” – which stands for determination. In November, Roland Berger is launching the next edition of its same-named internship program. The four to six months Hema program focuses on hands-on learning, actual case projects, and mentorship, preparing Saudi professionals for a career in the industry.