Fatma Faisal Al-Hashemi H00232951 06B60BU51

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Work Experience Journals


Student name: Fatma Faisal Al-Hashemi

Student ID: H00232951 Section: 02

Company: Dubai International Financial Centre DIFC



JOURNAL 1



Company Information


Company name: Dubai International Financial Centre Authority

Company location: Behind Sheikh Zayed Road, near Emirates Towers - The Gate
Building, Level 14

Company working hours: The companys working hours are 9 hours per day however, the
timings are flexible they could start either from 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM,
8:30 AM to 5:30 PM or 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM

However as an internship student my working hours are from 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM

Give the name, location and website of the company:

Name: Dubai International Financial Centre Authority

Location: Behind Sheikh Zayed Road, near Emirates Towers - The Gate Building,
Level 14

Website: http://www.difc.ae/



Is it the head office or a branch? It is the Head Office









Fatma Faisal Al-Hashemi H00232951 06B60BU51
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Name the departments in the company. Include an organization chart if possible.

o The Departments of DIFC Authority are:

1. Human Resources
Insurance
Forms
Manuals and Procedures

2. Business Development
Financial Services
Non-Financial Services

3. Audit and Risk
Insurance

4. Operations
Protocol Services
Procurement
IT
Corporate Development

5. Legal Affairs, Data Protection, and Registrar of Securities
Legal Affairs
Registrar of Companies
Registrar of Securities

6. Marketing and Corporate Communication
Branding and Communications

7. Government and Registry Services

8. Strategy, Business Relations, and Hawkamah and IOD Mudara

9. Finance
















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o The organization chart of DIFC: (from the 3
rd
edition of Setting Up in the DIFC)


How many employees are there in the company? They have nearly 200 employees.

What products / services does the company provide? (from the 3
rd
edition of Setting Up
in the DIFC)

DIFC offers a variety of financial activities which are:

1. Banking Services
2. Capital Markets
3. Asset Management and Fund Registration
4. Insurance and Re-insurance
5. Islamic Finance
6. Business Processing Operations
7. Ancillary Services

The DIFC also offers financial institutions and other companies operating within it a number of
important benefits which include:

Access to regional wealth and investment opportunities
100 percent foreign ownership
A 0% tax rate on income or profits (guaranteed for a period of 50 years)
A wide network of double taxation treaties available to UAE incorporated entities
A dollar denominated environment
No exchange controls (free capital convertibility)
A transparent operating environment with high standards of rules and regulations
Strickt supervision and enforcement of money laundering laws
An international stock exchange with primary and secondary listings of both equity and
debt instruments
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Ultra modern office accommodation, business continuity facilities, state-of-the-art
technical support and data protection facilities
A one-stop shop service for visas, work permits and other related requirements
An international legal system based on the Common Law of England & Wales and an
independent common law judicial system
Capital structuring flexibility
The availability of a skilled labour force and highly trained professionals
Exemptions from parts of the UAEs or Dubais Financial and banking legislation, (except
for the UAE central Banks anti-money laundering regulations and the federal Penal
Code imposed within the UAE, which also extends to the DIFC)

If you are a working student are you currently doing your work placement?

I am not a working student

In the same company in your current position? I am not a working student

In the same company but in a different position? I am not a working student

In a different company? I am not a working student



The first week

Are you happy with the work experience so far? Give details.

Even though I didnt get enough work or tasks to do as I expected to get or that I should
have got to accomplish throughout my first week but I am totally happy of my work placement
so far for various reasons. First of all, I had the opportunity to understand all the tasks and the
work that are done in the department that I am in which is Audit and Risk department. I have
got a very adequate background about the department and its members. Secondly, I have got
the enough knowledge about the importance and the benefits of the department to the global
organizations and the DIFC in particular. Finally and most importantly, I have got some tasks to
perform during this first week that have allowed to me to build my knowledge about the
department much more. However, I have been informed that my tasks will increase and get
much harder and advanced as the time passes.


Are you doing useful work? Give details.

I have done a lot of reading regarding the department and I have also attended, listened
and understood some presentations regarding the department work, importance and benefits
that the department members have made to me in order to have the right and sufficient
background about the department role in DIFC. Moreover, I have done some useful work to the
department as I helped some of the members to accomplish their tasks successfully for
example here are some of the useful work that I have performed:


Fatma Faisal Al-Hashemi H00232951 06B60BU51
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1. Task 1: I had checked from the accounting statements whether a group of clients had paid
the right amount of their quarterly invoices regarding the real estate and the community
projects in which they owe to DIFC as the DIFC is responsible of the maintenance of those
things. I have also checked how much is left on those clients to pay compared to the bills
and contracts that the DIFC is keeping. Below is a print screen of what I did as I am not
allowed to take the file.




2. Task 2: I have checked the records and forms that were given to our department regarding
the monthly, quarterly and yearly maintenance of the equipment, systems, and tools of the
company. I have checked the maintenance records of the month of February with the
records and the data kept in the department regarding those equipment. I have also
checked if those records that were brought to the department were missing some of the
important details or data such as the asset number, the frequency and the location etc...
From which the department will be able to report back to them in order to fill those required
details. Example of the equipment; Storm Water Pump and Chilling Water Pump. These
records where confidential and I had no chance to have a proof for it.


3. Task 3: I was testing the registrar with Hend, we checked a couple of files from the registrar
section. We made sure that they kept in record some of the important papers including the
signature of the authorized people in order to make sure that everything is legal and going in
the right way. These records were confidential and I couldnt have a proof on them.




Are you using skills and knowledge related to your major? Give details.

Yes, I am using some certain skills and knowledge that are related to my major
(accounting); because throughout the week I had to check the invoices and the risks that are
related to the money or the revenue collected in order to be able to audit the ways that those
risks should be controlled to not face any problems or obstacles in the future.


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Communication (CLO 2)


Who do you communicate with most at work? (Colleagues, manager, customers,
others)

At work I mostly communicate with my colleagues and specially while doing the work as the
work is not done by me only but it requires a group of people to complete each others work.
Thats why I communicate with them and explain the results and the work that I have done.
However, during the first week I have also interacted a lot with my manager as he always paid
attention to me and had an eye on me in order to make sure that I am having the good
experience to benefit myself and them at the same time.



How do you communicate most often? (Face-to face, by phone, by email?)

My communication at work is mostly face-to-face, as our desks in the department are very
close to each other we tend to communicate and interact face-to-face without having the need
of the email except in the situations where we send each other some files.



What language(s) do you use most in the workplace?

In the workplace at DIFC, there are many different nationalities; thats why the most used
language is the English language. And as there are a lot of Arabs also in the workplace you can
find a little bit the Arabic language used in some certain situations. However, the work is totally
in English you may find a very few amount of work in Arabic such as the letters send to the
government services or department.



What language skills do you use? (Listening, speaking, reading, writing). What
language do you use for each task? (For example, speaking English to customers on
the phone, writing a letter or report in Arabic.)


I have used all of the 4 language skills which are the listening, speaking, reading and writing
skills in English. As I had to listen to the presentations which were in English about the
department carefully in order to understand well (face-to-face), I used my English speaking skills
to communicate with my colleagues (face-to-face), I also read a lot of manuals and materials
about the department in English, and I used my writing skills to email others and to write some
comments regarding the work in English as it was required from me. However, I have also used
the Arabic language a little bit to listen to some colleagues and to speak and reply on them
(face-to-face).



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Give one example of a challenge you had this week related to communication. How
did you deal with it? Were you able to handle the situation yourself or did you need
advice or help?

I had a challenge during the communication with a lady in the reception. She wasnt able to
understand what I specifically need or what I specifically was asking for. Even though, I was
speaking English. However, I changed the way I was asking in order to make her understand
and she understood after that and gave me what I needed. This taught me to have different
skills and ways of communication to be able to let the people understand me.


Complete the work plan table for week 1.

Work Plan
Week/s Department Activities (at least 4 tasks) Supervisor, Job Title,
Telephone, e-mail

1



Audit and Risk

1) Read manuals and
procedures of the
department

2) Brief on Audit roles and the
internal Audit plan 2014

3) Checked the payments of
several clients regarding the
community area

4) Checked the planned and
actual maintenance
equipment, systems, and
tools.

5) Tested the registrar


Direct Supervisor: Hend
Khoori
Job Title: Assistant Manager -
Audit
Telephone: 04 3622437
e-mail: hend.khoori@difc.ae



Head of Department : Nizar Bashaireh
Job Title: Director Audit and Risk
Telephone: 04 3622365
Email: nizar.bashaireh@difc.ae


Were you late or absent this week? No, I wasnt late or absent during this week.
If yes, give reasons

Days late - reason

Days absent reason