Dubai, United Arab Emirates: Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), the Emirate’s dedicated entity for culture, arts and heritage, hosted a customer service excellence course in cooperation with one of the leading agencies in this field. The course ran from 16th July until 3rd August, supporting the government’s directives for Dubai to become the world’s leading city for customer service.
Safiya Al Mehrizi, Manager of Training and Performance Department at Dubai Culture, commented: “This course reflects our commitment to continually enhancing our customer service, which is underpinned by our mandate to support the Dubai Plan 2021 vision of making this a city of happy, creative and empowered individuals who are proud of their cultural identities. By equipping our team members to handle any service situation with a high level of professionalism and positivity, we aim to improve our customers’ happiness and satisfaction on a day-to-day basis.”
The two weeks course included seven training sessions, including verbal and non-verbal communication skills using body language. Participants will also learn about a range of service strategies such as providing exceptional customer care in call centres, and sensitively handling customer complaints by understanding behavioural patterns and personalities.
Methods for time and priority management will also be covered, as well as how best to deal with work pressures, improve creative performance and harness the latest customer service practices – all complemented by sessions for individual training, mentoring and brainstorming.
The key objectives of the course are to offer the best staff training, to equip employees to be exceptional ambassadors for Dubai Culture, and to reflect Dubai’s positive image to customers. Dubai Culture chose 17 employees from a variety of its departments including museums, heritage sites and Dubai Public Library to participate in the course.
Dubai Culture aims to enhance Dubai’s cultural scene and draw attention to the Emirate’s rich heritage with a variety of initiatives that take place throughout the year. The Authority’s mandate is to build bridges of constructive dialogue between different civilisations and cultures through enriching initiatives that benefit the Emirate’s citizens, residents and visitors.
Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) was launched on 8th March 2008 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, in order to drive the growth of the city’s artistic and cultural landscape. The Authority has grown to play a major role in the realisation of the Dubai Plan 2021, highlighting Dubai as a thriving capital for creative industries and further embedding the Emirate’s credentials as a city of happy, creative and empowered people.
As part of its mandate, Dubai Culture has several initiatives that are focused on strengthening both the historic and modern cultural fabric of Dubai, including Dubai Art Season, the city’s premier umbrella arts initiative which kicks off with Emirates Airline Festival of Literature and encompasses Art Week including Art Dubai, Design Days Dubai, and SIKKA Art Fair – an annual event aimed at promoting Emirati and local artists in the UAE and the wider GCC region. The Authority also manages the Dubai International Arabic Calligraphy Exhibition, which showcases an evocative blend of artworks to celebrate the myriad facets of Arabic calligraphy; Dubai Festival for Youth Theatre, an annual festival that fosters the art of theatre in the UAE; and Dubai Next, a dynamic platform that aims to showcase the Emirate’s cultural ethos and vibrant creative scene on the global stage.
The Authority’s other key initiatives include Creatopia, which is the nation’s first government empowered virtual community for cultural and creative communities in Dubai, and was launched to encourage the exchange of ideas and the refinement of skills while ensuring ease of doing business within the creative industry.
Dubai Culture also plays a leading role in supporting the UAE National Strategy for Reading 2016-2026, in particular by undertaking a major refurbishment of all Dubai Public Library branches to transform them into state-of-art cultural and artistic hubs. Across all of its branches, Dubai Public Library provides children and young adults with a range of educational and entertaining activities that encourage the use of its facilities. The ‘Our Summer is Filled with Culture & Arts Programme’ is a Dubai Public Library initiative which complements the UAE National Reading Strategy with activities that are open to all age groups and revolve around four key themes: happiness, reading, family and the future.
In addition to its wide range of initiatives, the Authority manages over 17 heritage sites across the Emirate, and is a key government stakeholder in the development of the Dubai Historical District. As the custodian of Dubai’s museum sector, Dubai Culture officially launched Etihad Museum in December 2016. The museum serves as a platform that encourages cultural exchange and connects Emirati youth with their culture and history. As part of the Authority’s mandate to support Dubai’s vision of becoming the focal point for diverse cultural exchange, both regionally and globally, the museums play a vital role in preserving Emirati heritage.
