Dubai - MENA Herald: His Highness Sheikh Mansoor Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai International Marine Club (DIMC), has unveiled the first ‘Smart Lounge’ by the Dubai Department of Economic Development (DED) to strengthen customer service standards and to ensure round-the-clock access to DED’s business registration and licensing services.
The ‘Smart Lounge’ is in line with DED’s commitment to ensuring the highest standards of excellence in its operations, strengthen investor and customer confidence, and contribute to the competitiveness of Dubai. Dedicated user-friendly and interactive kiosks and smart devices are set up in the Smart Lounge, the first of its kind in the region, which will guide customers through each step of their service.
The Smart Lounge is located on the ground floor of DED’s main office in the Business Village and integrates state-of-the-art technology to offer 24/7 access to business registration and licensing in a unique, paperless environment. Licensing and registration transactions can be completed through the user-friendly interactive kiosks.
His Excellency Sami Al Qamzi, Director General of the Dubai Department of Economic Development in Dubai, said: “We thank His Highness Sheikh Mansoor Bin Mohammed for gracing us with his presence and formally unveiling the Smart Lounge, which complements the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, to transform Dubai into a smart city by 2017. Through the launch of the Smart Lounge, we are breaking new frontiers in our level of service excellence and contributing to the enhanced competitiveness of our economy internationally. It is also a testament to our commitment to following the directives of our leadership in leveraging the latest technology tools innovatively and creatively to provide advanced services that add to the happiness of our customers.”
The services and facilities will also support visually challenged people through keyboards in Braille as well as black and white screens. This comes in line with Dubai aiming to be the world’s most disabled-friendly cities by 2020, through services that are tailored for all segments of the community, especially persons with disability.
Al Qamzi added: “We strive to implement the latest and best technologies in the Smart Lounge to meet the needs of our customers as per best practices and in ensuring that the facilities cater to the needs of persons with disabilities. A voice call facility is also available for customers. This unique initiative is the result of the tireless efforts of the Business Registration and Licensing team in providing the most efficient and least time consuming services for licence holders and investors.”
Omar Bushahab, CEO of the Business Registration and Licensing (BRL) sector in Dubai, added “The Smart Lounge will elevate DED’s smart services to a five-star level. It is conceived as a one-stop shop for registration and licensing services, supported by the required knowledge resources available online as well as call centre support. It aims to add significant value to the fast-growing business and investor community in the city as well as in finishing their transactions in record time.”
Bushahab said that DED is coordinating the private sector on the initiative with Al Shaya Group having trained Starbucks employees in the Smart Lounge to provide assistance to customers.
Bushahab added: “The BRL team is constantly working towards creating an environment of excellence and serving our customers is a top level priority, as the government of Dubai has provided the latest technologies and best human resources in achieving this goal.”
Abdullah Hassan, CEO the Shared Services sector in DED, said the IT team spent months benchmarking the services and operations of the Smart Lounge against the best in the world. “We studied best practices in customer services and took the private sector into confidence to see their requirements and preferences in completing registration and licensing transactions. The team will guide the logistics of the Smart Lounge according to international best practices in quality, in an environment defined by elegant and contemporary design,” he added.
