Twenty years, built on trust

For Waleed, twenty years with one company have meant different countries, different projects, changing responsibilities and plenty of lessons along the way. The milestone is not simply the time he has spent there, but the variety of experience he has gained.

He joined BESIX in 2006, already with several years of construction experience in the UAE. Since then, his path has taken him from technical engineering and methods to design and technical leadership. But looking across that journey, there is one word that comes up again and again: trust.

Waleed’s early BESIX assignments covered both transport infrastructure and major buildings: shipyard facilities at Dubai Maritime City, the Shahama–Saadiyat highway, road crossings at Yas Island, the Presidential Flight terminal and the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s headquarters tower. His later work broadened that range further, from the renowned The Royal Atlantis hotel in Dubai to a jetty for liquefied natural gas in Mozambique. It also included a new central railway station in Latvia, and the port development at Oxagon, part of NEOM in Saudi Arabia. 

It is quite a list. But more important than the number of projects is what each one added to his experience. His responsibilities expanded from design coordination and methods into package management, area leadership and wider technical roles. With every step came something new to understand, a different problem to solve and more responsibility to carry. 

It has also changed the way Waleed looks at engineering. 

Experience has taught him that the technically correct answer is not always enough. It also needs to work in practice, balancing safety, buildability, cost, time, compliance and how an asset will perform long after the project team has moved on.  

His current work on the Khalifa University campuses PPP brings much of that experience together, connecting design decisions with procurement, contractual requirements and long-term performance.  

Of course, twenty years of projects also means twenty years of people. 

Colleagues who shared what they knew. People who challenged an idea or offered another perspective. Teams who had to find a way forward together when the pressure was on.  

For Waleed, those experiences matter just as much as the projects themselves: "Our projects leave visible traces in concrete and steel. What stays with you is how the work was done, what you learned and who stood beside you when the pressure was highest."

After more than two decades in construction, Waleed recently became a student again. 

He is pursuing an MBA in Business Administration and Management. It was something he had thought about before, but there was also a question many people will recognise: had he left it too late?  He hadn’t. 

In fact, returning to the classroom with years of experience behind him has given the subjects a different meaning. Finance, strategy and leadership are no longer simply theories. They connect back to projects, decisions, challenges and situations he has experienced himself.  

And while Waleed is still learning, he is also thinking about what he can give back. 

After twenty years, maybe that is what brings the story full circle: Waleed’s career grew because people trusted him with the next opportunity. Now, he wants to help others find theirs!