Abdulraouf Mohammad A. Mannaa, CEO & MD of the Savola Group, A Saudi listed company in the stock exchange, operating in the food and retail sector, was presented with the Visionary Leadership Award at its annual awards ceremony of Asia Pacific HRM Congress held in Bangalore, India.

The Visionary Leadership Award, seen as the premier category at the ceremony, is a ringing endorsement for Mannaa’s consistent and steadfast commitment to the Savola Group during his tenure as CEO and MD.

Throughout Mannaa’s stewardship of Savola, the group has reported record financial performances, and achieved sustained and impressive growth. Coupled with this, the group’s progressive, forward thinking approach to CSR, steadfast commitment to corporate governance, and the development of an empowering and prosperous working environment for staff were cited as key success factors in the awarding of this accolade.

Mannaa commented: “It is always an honor to receive recognition from one’s peers, and to accept the Visionary Leadership Award is no different. During my tenure as CEO and managing director of the Savola Group, we have always sought to remain true to our roots and heritage as a proud Saudi company, but also to look forward.

During Mannaa’s tenure, the group has achieved unprecedented financial performance, as net profit from operations jumped from SR933 million in 2010 to SR1.57 billion in 2013, with an increase of 69 percent. Net operating profits have maintained this substantial growth during the last three years (SR933 million in 2010, SR1 billion in 2011, SR1.35 billion in 2012, and SR1.5 billion in 2013). Furthermore, analyst projections indicate that the operating net profit is expected to reach SR1.8 billion at the end of 2014.