GOING STRONG

Hassan Allam Holding’s third-generation leaders, Hassan Allam and Amr Allam, the Co-CEOs of the group, have been overseeing their family business since 2009 and 2010, respectively. They are now focused on expanding the company’s operations, leveraging hitting 5.5 billion in backlog in 2022.

- HAGAR OMRAN

While being lucky enough to be born into a thriving family business may seem like a guaranteed path to success, the truth is that there are no guarantees. According to Deloitte, more than 70% of family businesses fail before reaching the third generation. That is not the case for Hassam Allam Holding, an Egyptian construction, engineering, and utilities company. Now under the leadership of two of the founder’s grandchildren, it has been growing at a rapid rate for over 87 years. The group’s backlog has grown over tenfold in the last 13 years alone, from $500 million in 2009 to $5.5 billion in 2022.

Hassan Allam and Amr Allam, the group’s Co-CEOs, attribute the success of the family business to institutionalization and sound governance. “Any family business that isn’t institutionalized will be restricted in terms of growth and success,” explains Hassan. “The right governance and organizational structure help businesses succeed and operate as an institution rather than a family affair.”

The group’s founder, Hassan Allam, started the family enterprise as Hassan Mohammed Allam & Co. in 1936 after quitting school to join his father’s small shop selling construction materials. The construction of El Kassaseen Hospital on the Cairo-to-Ismailia agricultural road was Hassan Allam’s first major contract. In 1964, the company was fully nationalized and became Nasr General Contracting. However, in 1975, the investment and legislative climate in Egypt changed, allowing the private sector to re-emerge, and the founder established a new entity, which is what is known today as Hassan Allam Holding.