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Khaleej Times
24 minutes ago
- Khaleej Times
Siraj Finance: Driving human-centric growth through visionary leadership
In today's fast-paced financial world, real leadership is defined not just by numbers, but by the ability to drive transformation, inspire people, and stay ahead of change. Mohamed Rusan Fyroze, CEO of Siraj Finance PJSC, exemplifies this new era of leadership — one rooted in vision, innovation, and human-centric growth. At the helm of one of the UAE's leading non-banking Islamic financial institutions, Fyroze has reimagined how finance can empower lives and deliver lasting impact. With a focus on operational excellence, customer satisfaction, and a deeply collaborative culture, he is steering Siraj Finance into a future where agility and purpose go hand in hand. In this exclusive interview, he shares his philosophy, priorities, and bold outlook for the financial services industry. How do you balance driving business goals with supporting your team's growth? Balancing business goals with team development begins by setting clear targets and fostering a culture of trust and ownership. I believe in creating an environment where people feel motivated and valued. At Siraj Finance, we organise activities like sports events, Iftar gatherings, and recognition programs to strengthen our internal bonds and uplift morale. Regular performance reviews help identify skill gaps and unlock individual strengths. When personal growth aligns with organisational goals, people feel empowered to contribute more meaningfully. What core principles have shaped your approach to leading change in the financial services sector? Driving change in financial services starts with a deep understanding of customer needs. Whether it's simplifying financial journeys or personalising solutions, it all comes down to building lasting trust. I focus on using data and strategic foresight to anticipate shifts and stay ahead of the curve. Creating a culture of innovation, transparency, and continuous learning empowers teams to adapt confidently. We encourage collaboration and calculated risk-taking to bring new ideas to life. This people-centric, agile mindset supports sustainable transformation while delivering lasting value to customers, stakeholders, and the wider community. You emphasise innovation and operational excellence. How do you foster a culture that continuously drives both? To drive both innovation and operational excellence, there must be clarity in vision and alignment with strategic goals. At Siraj Finance, we empower our teams to take initiative, experiment, and learn from outcomes — this nurtures creativity and ownership. Innovation is not a separate event; it's embedded in our daily routines through open dialogue, training, and collaboration. We celebrate progress, value feedback, and use data to guide continuous improvement. A strong growth mindset, supported by investment in people and systems, ensures we remain efficient and competitive. This dual focus keeps the organisation future-ready while delivering tangible performance. In today's digital-first landscape, how is your team rethinking customer engagement? Customer engagement is being reimagined through a blend of data intelligence and human-centric values. We're focused on hyper-personalisation, proactive support, and creating a seamless customer experience across all touchpoints. By breaking down data silos and leveraging AI, we anticipate needs and deliver tailored experiences. That said, we never lose sight of the human element — each interaction is designed to be authentic and empathetic. We've also redefined KPIs to measure success in a more nuanced, automated landscape. Ultimately, it's about building trust, loyalty, and delivering meaningful value with every customer engagement. How do you foster cross-functional collaboration in a fast-paced environment? Collaboration starts with a unified purpose and shared vision. At Siraj Finance, we break down silos through open communication, mutual respect, and clear accountability. Agile teams with diverse skills work closely to solve challenges together. Regular check-ins, integrated tools, and active leadership help maintain alignment and momentum. We also celebrate collaborative wins and encourage knowledge-sharing across departments. What key trends will reshape financial services in the next 3–5 years, and how is your organisation preparing to lead? The financial services sector is on the cusp of rapid evolution. Key trends like artificial intelligence, advanced data analytics, cybersecurity, and shifting regulatory frameworks will significantly reshape the landscape. At Siraj Finance, we're integrating automation into our core processes to enhance decision-making, personalise offerings, and boost efficiency. Strengthening our cyber resilience and aligning innovation with long-term strategic goals is a top priority. We're also investing heavily in upskilling our teams, adopting agile methodologies, and fostering strong partnerships to stay ahead.
Web Release
27 minutes ago
- Web Release
Yango Group introduces the bilingual AI assistant Yasmina in Oman, supporting national digital transformation goals
Yango Group, a global tech company, has introduced Yasmina – the bilingual human-like AI assistant, in Oman. Yasmina, fluent in Arabic and English, is built into the smart speakers — Midi, Mini, and Lite, and is designed to meet the needs of users in the region through natural, intelligent voice interactions. Behind the assistant's ability to understand context and engage in natural conversations is an upgraded large language model, one of the core components of YangoAI — a suite of advanced AI technologies tailored to the GCC. Yasmina goes beyond standard functions such as music streaming and smart home control. It offers localized features, including prayer times for Muscat, traditional recipe suggestions like Omani Shuwa, and assists with planning family trips to popular destinations such as Wadi Shab. Additionally, the assistant supports faith-based activities by playing Surahs, setting Adhans, and providing accurate dates according to the Hijri calendar, helping users maintain a strong connection to their cultural and religious practices. The AI assistant encourages curiosity across all age groups by simplifying complex topics, supporting language development, and offering interactive storytelling, making it equally useful at home, in classrooms, and on the go. It has the ability to translate between Arabic and English, making it particularly useful for bilingual users and language learners, educators, and content creators. 'AI technology is transforming how people live, learn, and connect, and we believe it should be accessible to everyone, everywhere. The Sultanate of Oman has shown strong momentum in embracing AI as a key part of its national digital strategy. We are proud that our ecosystem is expanding with increasingly advanced services designed to enhance the lives of Omani citizens. Through Yasmina and our broader portfolio, we remain committed to delivering innovative solutions that support Oman's vision for technological sovereignty,' said Islam Abdul Karim, Regional Head, Yango Group Middle East. 'ITHCA Group, being the technology investment arm of the OIA, actively supports initiatives within its portfolio companies that aim to adapt advanced technologies to the unique needs of users. Therefore, we highly value Yango Group's contributions to enhancing Oman's digital ecosystem. The Yasmina smart speakers will help families, students, and individuals discover the capabilities of AI in ways that feel familiar and practical. We believe that such innovations are well aligned with the objectives of Oman Vision 2040,' ITHCA Group stated. The expansion reflects Yango Group's ongoing commitment to digital innovation across the region. With the launch of Yasmina in Oman, Yango Group continues its mission of bridging the gap between innovative technologies and local communities. The Yasmina smart speakers are now available for purchase through various retail and online outlets across Oman. To fully enjoy everything the Yasmina smart speakers have to offer, users need to have an active Yango Play subscription, which may be subject to applicable fees and terms. Yango Play is an AI-powered entertainment super app available across multiple countries in the GCC.
Zawya
41 minutes ago
- Zawya
Google to invest $6bln in southern India data centre, sources say
SINGAPORE: Google will invest $6 billion to develop a 1-gigawatt data centre and its power infrastructure in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh in the Alphabet unit's first such investment in India, government sources said on Wednesday. Due to be built in the port city of Visakhapatnam, the data centre investment includes $2 billion in renewable energy capacity that will be used to power the facility, two Andhra Pradesh government sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The search giant's data centre will be the largest in capacity and investment size in Asia and is part a multi-billion-dollar expansion of its data centre portfolio across the region in countries including Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. In April, Alphabet said it was still committed to spending some $75 billion this year to build data centre capacity despite the economic uncertainty resulting from U.S. President Donald Trump's global tariff offensive. Alphabet did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment. Andhra Pradesh's information technology minister Nara Lokesh, who is in Singapore to discuss investments with thegovernment and business leaders there, did not comment on the Google investment. "We've made certain announcements like Sify, which are public," he said, referring to a 550-MW data centre Sify Technologies plans to build in the state. "There are certain announcements which are not yet public. In October, we will make those announcements." STATE'S POST-SPLIT INVESTMENT DRIVE Andhra Pradesh, a state run by a leading ally of India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was split into two in 2014, losing its former capital Hyderabad and a major revenue source to the newly created Telangana state. Andhra Pradesh has since been looking to attract investments to ease the financial strains of high debt and social spending. Lokesh said Andhra Pradesh has already been able to finalise investments in data centres with total capacity of 1.6 GW, adding that it aims to build 6 GW of data centres over the next five years from nearly zero currently. He expects the initial 1.6 GW of already agreed data centres to be operational in the next 24 months. That would be more than the 1.4 GW currently in operation in the entire country, according to real estate consultancy Anarock. "We're also working on getting three cable landing stations in Visakhapatnam. We want to create enough of cable network, which will be two times what Mumbai has today," Lokesh said. Cable landing stations - typically located close to data centres requiring fast and reliable connections to global networks - are used to store equipment which receives and relays data from undersea cables. Lokesh also said the state was looking to build up energy infrastructure to meet sustainability requirements of data centres. He said he anticipated power generation capacity requirements of as much as 10 GW from the electricity-intensive industry over the next five years. "Majority will end up being actually green energy, and that's the unique value proposition that we bring to the table," he said. Some of the additional capacity will be coal-fired, however, as data centres require reliable, high volume power throughout the day, he added. (Reporting by Sudarshan Varadhan; Editing by Joe Bavier)
