Arcadis, a leading design and consultancy firm for natural and built assets, has appointed Ian Williamson as the new regional director of program management and buildings global business leader for the Middle East.

In his new role, Williamson will work closely with the leadership team to strengthen its regional program management positioning and help service clients in utilising the firms' newly integrated capabilities to solve their business challenges in the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Williamson brings over 30 years of experience across many sectors including commercial, retail, health, aviation and infrastructure in both local and international markets.

Before joining Arcadis, he developed Aecom’s program and project management capability in Europe and moved to the Middle East in 2009 to lead several major projects and build the regional program management capability.

He also led a major program of investment covering new facilities and remodeling of a portfolio of 1,400 hyper markets, supermarkets and stores across the UK and US.

“Our key focus in 2015 and 2016 lies in strengthening our regional program management capabilities,” remarked Wael Allan, the Middle East CEO of Arcadis.

"The strength of Arcadis’ program management capabilities under the leadership of Williamson enables the business to deliver quality and sustainable program management solutions to clients in the region," stated Allan.

"He has a proven track record in winning work, delivering projects, managing key client accounts and recruiting, building and leading strong teams, and we look forward to seeing our Middle East business grow with his expertise across our core markets," he added.

Earlier in September, Arcadis announced its refreshed brand identity under one name, enabling the firm to bring its very best knowledge and technical expertise to clients wherever they need help. Arcadis’ program management team will bring together a wide range of professional expertise and management skills to help clients improve and sustain business performance.

“Attracting and retaining the best talent is at the heart of our strategy, stated Allan.

"To this end, we have undertaken a rigorous talent acquisition drive to identify highly capable movers and shakers who share our vision and can contribute to the success of our business, and in this case, in program management," he added.-TradeArabia News Service