Talal Abu-Ghazaleh

Talal Abu-Ghazaleh (Arabic: طلال أبوغزاله) is the chairman and founder of the international Jordan-based organisation, the Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization (TAGorg). Dubbed as the godfather of Arab accountingFact|date=June 2008, Abu-Ghazaleh has also been credited for promoting the significance of Intellectual Property in the Arab region.

Biography

Born on April 22, 1938 in Jaffa, Palestine, Abu-Ghazaleh moved to the Lebanese village of Ghazziyeh in 1948, two hours away from the port city of Sidon. After attending both elementary and secondary school(s) in Sidon, he later went on to pursue a higher learning at the American University of Beirut (AUB) after attaining a full scholarship.

Whilst still an undergraduate, he worked as a teacher and translator. His first job after graduating was in an audit firm.

In 1969, upon hearing a speech on intellectual property (IP) at a Time-Warner conference in San Francisco, USA, Abu-Ghazaleh decided to launch a career in the fields of intellectual property rights (IPRs) and accounting.

In 1972, two firms - Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Company (TAGCO) and Abu-Ghazaleh Intellectual Property (AGIP) - were set up, specializing in the fields of accounting and IP respectively. Since then, Abu-Ghazaleh founded a total of fourteen professional service firms specialized in various sector fields such as management, consulting, legal services, IT and much more.

Over the years, Abu-Ghazaleh managed to establish close partnerships with global organizations such as the UN and the WTO.

On April 4, 2007, UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon appointed Abu-Ghazaleh, as deputy chairman of the UN Global Compact during its second meeting held at the UN headquarters in New York. [http://www.jordan-business.net/magazine/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=57&Itemid=40]

On October 24, 2007, Abu-Ghazaleh was inducted to the IP Hall of Fame in Chicago, USA, to become the first expert from outside the G8 countries to join the world's most prominent figures in IP. [http://www.ameinfo.com/132266.html] [http://www.iphalloffame.com]

Selected Honours

* IP Hall of Fame Recipient, IP Hall of Fame Academy, Chicago, USA, 2007
* Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters, Canisius College, N.Y., USA, 1988.
* Decoration of the Republic of Tunisia, 1985.
* Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur, France, 1985.
* Coat of Arms of the Kuwaiti Association of Accountants and Auditors, 1983.
* Gold Mercury International Award, Bahrain, 1978.
* Decoration of Independence of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Jordan 1967. [http://www.cid.harvard.edu/cidbiotech/events/tagcv0403.pdf]

Selected Chairmanships

* Vice Chairman, Board of Directors, UN Global Compact, N.Y. (2007-present).
* Chair, Business Action to Support the Information Society (BASIS), International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Paris (2006-2008).
* Deputy Chair, Evian Group Governing Body, Geneva – Switzerland (2006-present).
* Chair, Evian Group-Arab Region (EGAR) (2006- present).
* Vice-Chair, Global Alliance for ICT and Development, N.Y. (2006-present).
* Board of Trustees, Perspective Europe, Paris (2005-2007).
* Chairman, Advisory Committee on Internet Governance, United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force (UN ICT TF), N.Y. (2003-2004).
* Chairman, The International Chamber of Commerce Task Force (ICC TF) on Internet Governance, Paris (2003-2004).
* Chair, Commission on E-Business, Information Technologies and Telecoms, International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Paris (2001-2007).
*Vice-Chair, United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force (UN ICT TF), N.Y. (2001-2004).
* Chairman, The Arab Regional Network of the United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force (UN ICT TF), N.Y. (2001-2004).
* Chairman, The Working Group on Human Resources and Capacity Building (HRCB) of the United Nations Information and Communications Technologies, (UN ICT TF), N.Y. (2001-2002)
* First chairman of the Arab Internet Names Consortium (AINC), Amman-Jordan, (2001)
* Chairman of the Founders Meeting of the Arab Internet Names Consortium (AINC), Amman-Jordan (2001)
* President, Licensing Executives Society-Arab Countries (LES), Amman-Jordan (1998-present).
* Chairman, UN Intergovernmental Working Group of Experts on International Standards of Accounting and Reporting (ISAR), N.Y. (1995-1996).
* Chairman, United Nations Committee of Experts on Professional Qualifications Standards, Geneva (1995-1998).
* Chairman of the Committee for the Newly Industrialized and Developing Countries Affairs, the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) 1989-1992
* President, Arab Knowledge Management Society (AKMS), N.Y. (1989-present).
* President, Arab Society for Intellectual Property (ASIP), Munich (1987-present);in consultative status to the World Intellectual Property Organization, (WIPO).
* President, Arab Society of Certified Accountants (ASCA), London (1985-present); in consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council, (ECOSOC).

Academic Associations

* Microsoft Academy for Business Solutions/ Talal Abu-Ghazaleh College of Business (TAGCB) in collaboration with the German-Jordanian University and Microsoft (2006).
* Talal Abu-Ghazaleh College of Business (TAGCB) at the German Jordanian University (2006).
* Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Graduate School of Business and Management at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon (1980).
* Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Research Center, Canisius College, Buffalo, USA (1988).
* Abu-Ghazaleh Cambridge IT Skills Center, Amman, Jordan(2001).

Music Patronages

* Patron, The Second Modernity: The Artistic Collaboration of Fairuz and Ziad Rahbani Conference, Anis Makdisi Program in Literature, American University in Beirut (AUB), Lebanon (2006).
* Patron, Walid Gholmieh Symphonies (2006).
* Patron, L’Association pour le Rayonnement de l’Opéra National de Paris (AROP) (2004-present).
* Patron, Lebanese National Symphony Orchestra (LNSO) (2003-present).
* Board of Trustees and Chair, National Music Conservatory (NMC), Amman, Jordan (2003-2005).
* Private Concert by Ramzy Yassa & Ghada Ghanem Concert, Cambridge, UK (2004).
* Patron, l'Opéra de Paris, France (2001-present).
* Private concert by the Mozarteum Orchestra of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria (2000).
* 28th General Assembly for the International Music Council, Petra, (Jordan) (September 1999).
* TAGO Golden Jubilee concert, London, UK (July 1997). [http://www.chamber.org.hk/wsc/speakers/TalalABUGHAZALEH.pdf]
* Private concert by Ramzi Yassa, Seattle, USA (1994).
* Patron, Freunde der Salzburger Festspâele, Salzburg, Austria (1976-present).

Selected Board Memberships

* Executive Board, International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Paris- France (2007-present).
* Board of Trustees, Arab Anti-Corruption Organization (2007- present).
* Board of Directors, UN Global Compact, New York, USA (2006-present).
* Advisory Board, Evian Group, Geneva, Switzerland (2005-present).
*Board of Directors, King Hussein Foundation, Washington, USA (2005-present).
* Board of Directors, World Links Worldwide, Washington, USA (2003-2004).
* Board of Directors, World Links Arab Countries Advisory Council (2004-2005).
* Board of Trustees, King Hussein Cancer Center (KHCC), Amman-Jordan (2003-2006).
* Board of Trustees, National Music Conservatory (NMC), Amman-Jordan (2003- 2005).
* Public Sector Consultative Group, International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), New York- USA (2003- 2006).
* Knowledge Economy Community, Development Gateway, World Bank, Washington- USA (2002- 2005), Advisor.
* Advisory Board, Industry Advisory Commission, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Geneva-Switzerland (1999-2000).
* Advisory Board, United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force (UN ICT TF), New York- USA (2001-2004).
* Board of Advisors, Middle East Council of the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS), Washington-USA (1995-1997).
* Member of the Board, International Federation of Accountants Council (IFAC), New York-USA (1992).
* Member of the Board, International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC), London-United Kingdom, 1988-1990.
* Member of the Board, International Auditing Practices Committee (IAPC) of IFAC, N.Y., 1987-1990.
* Board of Governors, Keck Center for International Strategic Studies, Claremont, California, 1985-1988.
* Board of Trustees, American University of Beirut, Beirut-Lebanon (1980-1982).

References

* [http://www.developmentgateway.org/knowledge/team/showTeam.do~groupId=1005368?groupId=1005368 Developmentgateway.org]
* [http://www.perspective-europe.eu/index.php?s=en_about_bot_abughazaleh Perspective-Europe.Eu]
* [http://www.chamber.org.hk/wsc/speakers/TalalABUGHAZALEH.pdf Chamber.Org.hk]

External links

* [http://www.talalabughazaleh.com Mr.Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Personal Website]
* [http://www.tagorg.com Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization Website]
* [http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2003/pi1490.doc.htm Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, Vice Chairman of the ICT Task Force] .
* [http://www.jordan-business.net/magazine/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=57&Itemid=40/ Jordan Business Magazine ] Interview with Mr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh (The Grass is Greener ... On Both sides).
* [http://www.goldmercury.org/index.php Gold Mercury Award Website]