Aref is Disrupting the Largest Construction Company in the Middle East so that others don’t Disrupt them

He is the top person for Digital Initiatives at CCC, a company of 100,000+ employees — the largest construction company in the Middle East, he is the CEO of CCC Startup, and he is a Strategy Officer at the World Economic Forum.

Aref Boualwan was born and raised during the Civil War of Lebanon and left shortly after for Greece, where he became an early IT employee of the company. With a smile on his face and a laser-focus on his mission to digitize the construction industry, Aref is very strategic and deliberate in his moves when faced with obstacles.

For our podcast, Building Leaders, Aref shared his passions, stories and insights in a rarely witnessed open manner.

You can see it as a problem, I can see it as a challenge

Aref is the first person to admit that contractors are too traditional for their own good. As much as he wants it however, he also sees the gaps that are inherent with startups, such as the lack of domain knowledge. He is not deterred, discouraged, or frustrated, instead, he looks for ways to bridge this gap, and by the looks of it, he genuinely seems to be enjoying the hustle that comes with it.

There are three major KPIs

Anyone can claim success in their digitization approach, but success means different things to different people. Aref argues there are three major KPIs for defining the success of innovation:

• Your people: An improved safety record
• Your planet: An improved sustainability approach
• Your customers: Improved customer satisfaction

He stressed the importance of values throughout the podcast, and did not shy away from warning against a potential trap of the recent Coronavirus crisis. Worry too much about your margins, and you may end up doing more harm than good, he says.

Involve the government but don’t depend on it to innovate

Controversial indeed, but the sooner we admit it, the faster we will find the right solutions and work towards resolving them. The construction industry is such that people’s lives are at stake, from those working, to those enjoying the end result. The future of our planet is also at stake. Projects are also often so massive that they are impossible to be realized without government funds. That being said, it’s the people, the planet and the governments themselves that end up paying for the shortfalls of the industry as Aref points out.

Admitting that we need each other, as long as we don’t entirely depend on each other, is the first step for a better and more stable future for all ahead.

If you want to make a change start from the path of least resistance

The easy path is not always catchy to the busy people at the top, but the numbers are there to make a compelling case for it. Aref spoke about the mission of CCC to hire more women in construction. A failure at first, the leadership of his company chose the path of least resistance by keeping an open approach to hiring women (versus anticipating what roles women should be hired at). Today, as Aref explains, more than 90% of their BIM team is made up of women, and more to it, this leads to an organic growth of women numbers even in more traditionally male dominated positions, such as site engineers, for instance.

This is just the beginning Aref says, and there is a long way to go, but their strategy is proving to be a great start.

Look outside your industry and put things in perspective

It’s not a secret that Aref is a bit of a celebrity in Construction. A top role at a top company, speeches at the United Nations, a say in the World Economic Forum, and meetings with world leaders. Aref has a powerful voice and the attention of some pretty powerful people. What has this helped him achieve? Putting things in perspective. Friction with external disciplines makes him realize the sad state of improvement of our industry, it inspires him, and fuels his passion for the relentless pursuit for change.

Listen to Aref’s insights here: