Dr. Hamad Abdullah Al Shehhi, the first Emirati expert in train operations, affirms that the strong support provided by the UAE to its national workforce is the primary reason he rose from working as a ticket seller in the private sector to his current position as Senior Controller and Acting Duty Manager at Dubai Metro\u2019s Operations Control Center.<\/p>\n
He emphasizes that his professional journey started from a very simple point \u2014 but with persistence, education, and the leadership\u2019s trust in Emirati talent, he was able to move forward step by step.<\/p>\n
A Career Built on Education and Dedication<\/strong><\/p>\n Al Shehhi holds a PhD in Innovative Public Transport Solutions, a Master\u2019s and Bachelor\u2019s degree in Government Foresight and Innovation, in addition to a Bachelor\u2019s in Public Relations. He is also the recipient of several honors, including second place in the Nafis Award 2024, and first place in the 2025 edition in the Specialized Jobs category. He is currently a member of the Nafis Youth Council.<\/p>\n He points out that one of the most significant challenges he faced at the beginning of his journey was traveling daily from Ras Al Khaimah to Dubai, in addition to working in a multicultural environment with people of various nationalities \u2014 yet he considers these challenges as fuel for success.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are a people raised to be in first place \u2014 that phrase has always stayed with me. And as the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, peace be upon him, said: Life is work, and the value of a person is in their work.\u201d<\/p>\n A Vision Shaped by Leadership and Nafis<\/strong><\/p>\n He also highlights how the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, may God protect him, are a constant source of motivation to pursue learning and excellence.<\/p>\n \u201cProgress only comes through knowledge and qualified national talent,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Al Shehhi believes the Nafis program played a vital role in his professional growth. Before joining Nafis, he worked in the private sector and faced the same concerns and challenges as many young Emiratis. But today, thanks to the program, everything has changed \u2014 opportunities for training, education, career development, guidance, and even media support have become readily available.<\/p>\n \u201cBefore Nafis, I was uncertain, like many others. But now Nafis develops, highlights, and empowers talent. Everything is available to the youth \u2014 from courses and mentoring to visibility and encouragement.\u201d<\/p>\n A Turning Point: The Nafis Award<\/strong><\/p>\n Participating in the Nafis Award was a pivotal moment in his journey. From the initial application process to interviews with top industry professionals, the experience gave him the chance to prove himself.<\/p>\n \u201cWinning the Nafis Award in 2024 brought significant media attention. That\u2019s when people began to learn about my story.\u201d<\/p>\n From this experience, Al Shehhi learned a valuable lesson: the importance of documenting accomplishments.<\/p>\n \u201cI used to work hard without keeping any record. But today, I document everything, because it supports you throughout your career. That\u2019s my advice to every young person entering the workforce \u2014 document your achievements.\u201d<\/p>\n A Message of Hope to the Youth<\/strong><\/p>\n Al Shehhi concludes by emphasizing that life is full of challenges, but reaching one\u2019s goals is always possible at the right time.<\/p>\n \u201cOpportunities exist. Support exists. All we need is a clear goal and the determination to pursue it. I believe Emirati youth are fully capable of shaping the future and drawing its features according to the sustainable vision set by our wise leadership.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Hamad Al Shehhi\u2019s inspiring journey from selling tickets to becoming the UAE\u2019s first expert in train operations shows how ambition, education, and national support can shape the future of Emirati youth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":13940,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[254,236],"class_list":["post-13939","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english-stories","tag-advice","tag-dubai-rta"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uaehumanjourney.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13939","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uaehumanjourney.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uaehumanjourney.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uaehumanjourney.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uaehumanjourney.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13939"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uaehumanjourney.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13939\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13943,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uaehumanjourney.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13939\/revisions\/13943"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uaehumanjourney.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13940"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.uaehumanjourney.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13939"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uaehumanjourney.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13939"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.uaehumanjourney.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13939"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}