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The Arab Bank, as a result, became the pioneer
in offering such services in most Arab countries.
Khalid Shoman's propensity for keeping up with the new developments
in the world and his ability to foretell their future impact on
the banking industry, as well as his constant preoccupation with
the need to provide the best and most modern services and products
to the Bank's customers, were all in the forefront of his objectives
for development and progress.
He also championed the use of the most modern techniques in the
financial planning. He started preparing, in the seventies, the
financial budgeting for the Arab Bank in its different regions.
He also established a research and financial department. He used
to personally supervise the preparations for the budget meetings.
He would make it a point to attend all meetings listening to the
Bank's managers and viewing, firsthand, the problems they faced
in their respective markets. They would benefit from his knowledge
of the latest developments in the banking sector worldwide and
with the developments of the Arab Bank in other regions. He would
discuss and approve their budgets and action plans and ensure
their needs for the coming years.
Khalid Shoman's relationship with the Bank's personnel was very
special. It derived from his unique personality, his kind nature
and his unparalleled ability to trigger the best in each of them.
To his staff, he was as much an affectionate father and a warm
friend as a fair and solicitous superior. He had a remarkable
ability for encouraging those around him to think critically and
creatively in search of new solutions. He would then support their
ideas and provide for their implementation, allowing them to learn
from their experiences and to continue with their constructive
thinking, serving the interests of the Bank. He was also attentive
to the welfare of the personnel, reviewing, whenever the need
arose, the salary scales in the different regions where the Bank
was operating, and implementing modern approaches in that respect
whereby the Bank would match market realities without being unnecessarily
burdened.
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