Forward Training & Consulting FZE (Forward Training) has been recognized with a 2026 Global Recognition Award for building measurable, science-backed systems that close the leadership gap in organizations across the GCC, demonstrating exceptional innovation in its category of Innovation, Leadership, and Service.

Forward Training & Consulting FZE is a leadership and organizational development firm grounded in behavioral science, operating across banking, retail, and corporate sectors throughout the GCC. Founded and led by Dr. Soha Chahine, the firm targets one of the most persistent challenges in modern business: the gap between leadership performance metrics and actual human behavior at the organizational level. Research from Gallup consistently shows that only a fraction of employees worldwide are actively engaged at work, and Forward Training’s programs are built specifically to close that gap, not through conventional training, but through redesigning how leadership is understood and practiced at its core.

What distinguishes Forward Training from standard consulting firms is its proprietary methodology, which deploys frameworks including the EQx experiential intelligence lab, the SHIFT model, and the Change Meter model. Each of these tools is designed to move organizations beyond surface-level interventions, focusing instead on the root drivers of behavior, culture, and sustained performance. Rather than delivering one-time training events, Forward Training engineers lasting behavioral change, supported by psychometric assessments such as the EQ-i 2.0, Leadership Circle Profile, and Resilience at Work instruments, ensuring that progress is both trackable and replicable across diverse organizational contexts.

A Science-Driven Approach to Leadership Development

Forward Training integrates experiential methodologies, including LEGO SERIOUS PLAY, alongside rigorous psychometric tools to ensure that self-awareness translates into practical leadership application, which is a combination that remains rare in the organizational development space. Most firms operating in this sector choose either experiential or analytical methods, yet Forward Training deliberately uses both, creating a feedback loop between individual insight and measurable leadership behavior that is consistent and repeatable across client engagements. Its work does not stop at skill optimization because it reshapes the broader organizational context in which leadership decisions are made, producing leaders who are more adaptive, accountable, and capable of navigating complex environments.

The firm’s approach is validated by sustained client engagement and repeat partnerships across multiple industries, reflecting a consistent ability to deliver outcomes that hold beyond the initial program period. Organizations return to Forward Training not because of novelty, but because leaders who complete its programs demonstrate improved emotional intelligence, stronger decision-making under pressure, and greater resilience in the face of organizational change. These outcomes are not abstract qualities, because they are tied directly to how organizations perform, retain talent, and build cultures that support long-term growth and stability.

Evaluation and Recognition

Global Recognition Awards evaluates nominations through a rigorous multi-stage process, where all applicants undergo initial screening based on criteria including innovation, leadership, service, sustainability, and social responsibility. Shortlisted applicants are then assessed using the Rasch model, which generates a linear measurement scale across categories, enabling precise and fair comparisons between nominees who may excel in different areas of contribution. Forward Training scored at the highest tier across its nominated categories, reflecting the depth, consistency, and real-world impact of its work within the leadership development sector.

The panel of industry experts that reviewed Forward Training’s submission noted the firm’s ability to address a global challenge with a structured, replicable methodology that goes well beyond what most consultancies offer in this space. Leadership development is a crowded field, yet few firms operate with the level of behavioral science integration that Forward Training brings to each client engagement. The GCC market, with its rapidly evolving corporate landscape and growing demand for adaptive leadership, represents an environment where Forward Training’s model has proven both timely and consistently effective across sectors.

Final Words

Forward Training & Consulting FZE has demonstrated that leadership development, when grounded in science and designed around human behavior, can produce real and lasting organizational change that extends well beyond individual skill improvement. Its proprietary frameworks, combined with a firm commitment to measurable outcomes, set a standard that few firms operating in its field have been able to match with the same level of consistency. The recognition it receives through this award reflects not just the quality of what it has built, but the tangible and documented results its clients continue to experience over time.

Alex Sterling, a spokesperson for Global Recognition Awards, highlighted the firm’s distinguishing qualities in commenting on this recognition. “Forward Training & Consulting FZE has done something that most leadership development firms only claim to do, because it has built systems that change how people lead, not just how they talk about leadership.” Sterling added that the combination of behavioral science, proprietary methodology, and measurable outcomes is precisely why Forward Training & Consulting FZE has earned a 2026 Global Recognition Award, standing as a clear example of what rigorous, human-centered innovation in leadership development looks like when applied with purpose and discipline.

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