96 Sustainable Building Engineering Consultants in Saudi Arabia

Team 17 Poster

Team Reflection

We found the discussion with the CEO of Sustainable Building Engineering Consultants (SBEC) to be rich in information regarding sustainable construction practices as well as an emphasis on clean water. It was clear to us that the interview revolved around the CEO’s concerns regarding water availability and efficient use of resources. By using locally sourced green materials, the CEO feels they can slowly distance themselves and the industry from a heavy reliance on non-renewable resources. In addition, The SBEC also believes that rainwater harvesting can positively affect water efficiency as a whole in Saudi Arabia. They recognized their mantle of responsibility regarding tracking carbon footprints and understood the flaws of more traditional construction methods. This was particularly memorable to us because it felt like the company was taking a scarcely seen holistic approach to responsible production in urban environments.

This interview helped reinforce the group’s understanding of the triple bottom line which means to emphasize “economic, the social and the environmental or ‘people, planet and profit.’”(Milne & Gray, 2013, p. 25). To us, this meant regulating a business without a sole focus on monetary value or financial gains. The SBEC reinforces this idea due to its conscious efforts to not just tank their profits in favour of being environmentally sustainable, but instead to find a way for sustainability to help keep costs low to be economically viable at the same time. While a lot of our assumptions about what to expect for this business were met, the company surprised us with its willingness to expand out for issues like clean water supplies in certain areas even going as far as to explain what challenges they faced in doing so.

When reflecting through the eyes of a future businessperson, it feels more important now than ever to not think about profits and sustainability as two things that can’t be had at the same time. The CEO of Sustainable Building Engineering Consultants is proof to everyone in the group that the idea of the triple bottom line can work beyond its theory. Advocating for green practices in whatever field is chosen is an important way to think about the future. Some members of the group also felt collaboration was an essential part of a sustainable future because it would set a standard for the chosen industry, whatever that may be. Overall, SBEC’s innovation inspires us to think about the long-term benefits of sustainability as opposed to short-term monetary gratification.

Business Innovations for Sustainability

What:

Our cross-cultural experience in the AIM2Flourish project provided us with significant insights into the complexity of global collaboration for sustainability. Our classes stressed the importance of sustainable practices and ethical leadership, so we came into this project with a mindset centred on balancing economic, social, and environmental goals, sometimes known as the “triple bottom line” (Milne & Grey, 2013, para. 25) This understanding was essential when dealing with Sustainable Building Engineering Consultants (SBEC), whose commitment to environmental responsibility was consistent with what we learnt in class about creating shared value in business (Milne & Grey, 2013, para. 26). The company’s approach to sustainable building and resource efficiency emphasized the actual application of our course principles, demonstrating how firms may promote good change by prioritizing both profit and the planet.

How:

Our teamwork was carried out by assigning responsibilities based on each member’s strengths, with some focused-on research and interview preparation and others handling coordination and paperwork. This task-sharing model allowed us to successfully manage the workload and benefit on each individual’s particular skills, while negotiating time zones needed flexibility and patience. Scheduling in Canada, Saudi Arabia, and Spain was difficult, and we had communication delays because of clashing holidays and availability. Despite these challenges, our team responded by utilizing asynchronous tools and flexible meeting hours to ensure inclusivity and responsiveness.

Identify:

Several aspects of our partnership worked well, especially the free interchange of cultural ideas, which broadened our awareness of sustainability beyond our local contexts. However, time-zone differences and sometimes language misunderstandings required extra work to keep everyone on track. Overall, this project demonstrated that effective cross-cultural teamwork requires clear communication, adaptation, and a shared dedication to the project’s goals. The experience not only increased our awareness of sustainability in a global corporate setting, but it also provided us with critical abilities for working in diverse, virtual teams.

Individual Reflections

Moudi Almuqrin

As a member of the AIM2Flourish project team, I found the experience to be both rewarding and valuable, both academically and personally. This project allowed me to collaborate with colleagues from diverse cultural and educational backgrounds, significantly enhancing our discussions and broadening my perspective. I learned the importance of effective communication, as we had to navigate language and cultural barriers to share our ideas clearly. This experience not only improved my ability to express myself but also deepened my understanding of diverse perspectives. Working with team members from diverse countries provided me with the opportunity to acquire new skills. Each member had a unique style of discussing and presenting ideas, which greatly contributed to our creativity in the project. We faced challenges such as time zone differences and tight deadlines; however, we managed to overcome them through teamwork and effective coordination. I learned how to manage conflicts and develop solutions that satisfied everyone. When we completed the project, I felt a profound sense of pride in our collective achievements. This experience not only enhanced my teamwork skills but also inspired me to pursue future opportunities in international collaboration.

Leen Alshammri 

I have been working on research on sustainable companies and their impact on achieving sustainable development goals. There are many positives in working on this project, such as getting to know other cultures and looking at different methods and ideas from countries’ policies in environmental sustainability. There are some problems that I faced, such as choosing a right time for the meeting for each of the three countries, and the language was not a big obstacle for me, and we also faced some challenges such as different points of view on some matters. Working on such projects helps with patience and how to deal with many people of different nationalities. I would like to commend my colleagues for their spirit of cooperation, which played a leading role in doing this mission. In the end, I realized that working within a team from different countries is not just cooperation, but rather an opportunity to develop my personal skills, which enhances and opens horizons for me to work in multicultural environments in the future.

Iñigo Telleria

As a member of this Aim2flourish assingment I can tell that it was a tough proyect specially because of the difficulties of trying to match everyone’s schedules, apart from the abnormal occurrences of each one that cannot be controlled. Despiste that, I liked it since it was a proyect from which we can learn a lot, from the contents of the subject to experiences and ideas that can help us in our day to day or in our future professional career. As a conclusion, I can say that this project has been enriching at the same time complicated, and I am happy to have carried it out with the colleagues I have had.

Nicolás Cazón

I, as a team member, found this somewhat difficult but at the same time rewarding because this was a cross-cultural collaboration project. Initially, managing time zones and different perspectives was tricky, but it was easy enough to adopt flexible communication tools. Ventures with very different growth, risk and sustainability stories from our own will be the right way to go about this, so I have welcomed the opportunity to learn how different cultures look at sustainability and gain ones conclusions and perspective from there. Through this experience, I have reaffirmed my commitment to promoting sustainability in the business sphere and learned that flexibility and communication are key assets to working with others.

Henry Boyadjian

While I have participated in dozens of group projects throughout my student journey, being a member of team 17 for the Aim2Flourish movement gave me a unique perspective regarding managing and circulating a group initiative with people worldwide. My big takeaway experience from working with this team was the different cultural dynamics. The early weeks of the project fell on this year’s Thanksgiving weekend for Canadians which presented some communication challenges because normally when everyone would be active on a Sunday night, I would be out to dinner with my family. This required communication planning ahead of time to give notice as to when I would likely be unable to participate in the discussion. Having group members from all over the world gave me the chance to share my unique cultural perspectives on issues while also hearing new arguments that had yet to be initially considered. Overall, despite the time-zone challenges and different cultural dynamics both good and troublesome, I felt that the team’s ability to adapt and learn from each other ultimately deepened my appreciation for global collaboration.

Alessandro Cannataro 

Participating in the AIM2Flourish project with Team 17 was a worthwhile and eye-opening experience. As a team member, I loved the opportunity to investigate sustainability issues from a cross-cultural perspective and engage with colleagues from other backgrounds. However, working virtually presented obstacles, particularly in terms of coordinating across several time zones and managing communication styles. We faced some challenges in synchronizing schedules, but we learned to be adaptable and helpful, frequently devising inventive solutions to ensure that everyone felt heard. This experience enhanced my adaptability and showed me the importance of patience and open-mindedness when working in a global environment. Overall, it was rewarding to contribute to this project and get a deeper understanding of worldwide teamwork.