CEO to YLAB: ‘In the minds of the young is the future of Aramco’

Aramco president and CEO Amin Nasser, encouraged 60 finalists in the selection process for next year’s cohort of the Young Leaders’ Advisory Board (YLAB) Academy to blaze a trail for the company and lead it to a bright future.

Nasser offered words of encouragement to the young employees hoping to make it into the eighth 16-strong cohort of the academy.

“In the minds of the young is the future of Aramco,” the president and CEO said.

A rigorous and intense selection process involving 1,000 initial applicants had brought the 60 to the final phase of the process at Dhahran’s Upstream Professional Development Center (UPDC), and featured three days of testing corporate challenges.

Nasser addressed the YLAB Academy hopefuls on the academy’s opening day, and spoke to them at length about what’s expected of them, new realities facing major corporations and the evolving global landscape. 

Investment strategy

He explained that the company’s investment strategy would continue to globally grow at pace, declaring, “We are counting on you.”

“It shows your potential, to have reached this stage. The YLAB helps us, and guides us to the future of the company — and the future of the company is with you. Ultimately, you will be the leaders. Among you will be vice presidents, senior management, and CEOs. Over the past five years, we have witnessed a significant transformation and the future will be very different, more than what the company has done over the past 85 to 90 years.

Opportunities and challenges

You know very well what’s ahead of you in terms of opportunities, and the challenges that the company will be facing.
— Amin Nasser

With Aramco announcing its ambition to reach net-zero in Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2050, Nasser said that getting to net-zero and achieving parallel growth in the company’s business, would require the bright minds of the future leaders participating in the YLAB Academy.

“Can you deliver? Considering the challenges and the opportunities ahead of us, we need to do it locally, but also globally,” he said. “It will be a significant undertaking and we are confident that we have the talent to deliver, to grow our investments and businesses. There are huge expectations, but more importantly in all of you, we have the energy and capabilities to deliver.”

Technologies and partnerships

The CEO went on to say that new and emerging technologies and partnerships would play an increasingly big part in the company’s future and would be key in further boosting competitiveness and sustainable growth.

Nasser added that the quality of Aramco’s youthful workforce made them highly sought-after employees. 

It is estimated that over two-thirds of the company’s workforce is now aged 35 or under.