"A bend in the road is not the end of the road... unless you fail to make the turn"
- Author Unknown

What sets apart the follower from the leader is mainly the fact that the leader dares to be different. The leader knows that he has to set the path, build foundations where none existed and when the time comes, be ready to throw out everything and start again. And it's only when times are bad, that a company's true mettle comes through. The companies that we have chosen to feature in our cover story this issue, are all characterised by one thing: all of them faced their individual issues head-on and took bold decisions that paid off in spades.

People have been talking about the difficulties of recruiting and retaining talent for the last couple of years and the current situation with the dollar heading inexorably southward, hasn't helped matters. We analyse the situation in our Economy section on pg 58. A recent survey conducted by the online recruitment firm GulfTalent.com clearly states that the percentage of expatriates saving is the highest in Oman at a huge 81 per cent as compared to the next highest (Saudi Arabia at 75 per cent). This obviously implies that the saving potential in Oman is one of the most important factors attracting expats to the country. Add spiralling rents to this equation, and the clearly stated intention that there will be no delinking or revaluation of currency at the moment, the situation is likely to get worse before it gets better. But then thatÕs what most of this monthÕs issue is about - showing the world what you are made of.

It's business as usual in the sultanate putting aside these niggling matters. As one very prominent banker of the city said to me few months ago, when I was late in reaching his office owing to the traffic: ÒWhenever people complain about the traffic, I ask them why. Look at the number of cars, the number of people on the roads Ð it means business is booming, the economy is growing and we will all benefit from it. Enjoy it! Going by his words and looking at the traffic these days, business is obviously pretty good.

Mohana Prabhakar
Managing editor