MIDDLETOWN, Pa. — Faiza Abbas, lecturer in management in Penn State Harrisburg’s School of Business Administration, recently served as a panel judge at the 11th Annual GCC GOV HR Summit and Awards.
The international summit, which was held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, brings together experts and key stakeholders in human resources to highlight best practices, offer networking opportunities, and help prepare organizations to respond to high priority business and human capital needs. The event is sponsored by the governments of the Gulf Cooperation Council and involves public and private sector organizations in the six Gulf countries: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman.
Abbas, who participated remotely, was invited to be a judge based on her extensive background in labor and employment relations, leadership, organizational behavior and human resources management. The only judge from a United States university, Abbas said the opportunity fit her passion for serving the profession and highlighted the impact Penn State has internationally.
“It was a wonderful opportunity to review the cutting-edge work organizations in the GCC area are doing in the field of HR,” Abbas said. “Studying the projects undertaken by many organizations, I was happy to see how employee contributions are being recognized by the management and how much effort is being made to develop employees and make the workplace better suited to their needs. These efforts resulted in achieving productivity and sustainability goals that were nothing short of spectacular. The summit was good exposure to how HR policies are implemented in other parts of the world and what other organizations can replicate to achieve similar results.”
Abbas joined the School of Business Administration in 2017. She holds a master of science in labor and employment relations, human resources, from Rutgers University and previously taught at Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations. She also previously worked with the Eagleton Institute of Politics, researching immigrant-led business organizations and their impact on society.
At Penn State Harrisburg, she is co-adviser of the Society for Human Resources Management student chapter and outreach coordinator for the School of Business Administration.