Khalid Waleed Al Khudair is the founder of Glowork, the first organization in the Gulf Cooperation Council dedicated to the recruitment and empowerment of women. Having created thousands of jobs for women via its online platform for female job seekers, the organization aims to increase gender diversity in the Saudi Arabian workforce. Glowork has been recognized for its job creation efforts by the United Nations, the International Labor Organization, and the World Bank.
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1983
Born (Saudi Arabia)
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2007
Graduates from Saint Mary's University in Canada
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2011
Forms Glowork job-seeking platform to increase diversity in the Saudi workforce and empower women
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2012
Glowork becomes a private-public partnership with the Saudi Ministry of Labor
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2014
Elected a Young Global Leader at the World Economic Forum
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2021
Appointed Secretary-General of the media and banking awareness committee for Saudi Banks
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2023
Inducted into the Global Business Hall of Fame
Khalid’s previous role as COO–Markets at KPMG in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Jordan built his expertise of strategic and successful marketing and business operations. Khalid’s leadership enabled the firms he worked with to win over 30 key awards that aligned to KPMG’s overall corporate goals and strategy. With this experience under his belt, Khalid led Glowork to an investment of over US$16 million in 2013, enabling the organization to expand operations. An active writer, Khalid has contributed to international publications, such as Huffington Post, and he is the author of the book Communicating Effectively in the Workplace.
Khalid is a proud Ashoka Fellow and a part of the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers Community. In March 2014, he was elected to the Forum of Young Global Leaders for his work in social entrepreneurship. The recipient of the Excellence in Entrepreneurship award from the Global Thinkers Forum, Khalid was also named Best Head of Marketing in the Middle East and Saint Mary’s University Young Alumni of the Year. He was selected as one of Endeavor KSA’s High- Impact Entrepreneurs and as an Amends Fellow at Stanford University. Gulf Business Magazine ranked Khalid third in its 30 under 30 list, and Arabian Business magazine ranked him in the top 500 list of most powerful Arabs.
Khalid sits on a number of advisory boards around the world, including the CMO Council Advisory Board and the Country Officer for Women Campaign International. He serves as a steering committee member for the Ministry of Labor in Saudi Arabia, a steering committee member for talent mobility at the World Economic Forum, an advisory member at Saudi Broadcasting, a judge for the Hult Prize, an Employment Committee member at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce, a board member at DAF Consulting Firm, and a mentor at the Founders Institute in California.
“You see women who are educated and women who are able to give back, so why not? Why can’t they? I knew the opportunity was there; I knew women wanted to work and there were jobs for them, so it was a matter of closing up the gap. It just made perfect sense.
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A Global Force for Good
Khalid was inspired to start Glowork when he saw his sister and female cousins struggle to find work after university. Glowork’s mission to empower women and increase diversity in the Saudi workforce has led thousands of women to jobs in Saudi Arabia. The online platform connects women jobseekers with employment opportunities in customer service, sales, research, and digital marketing. To address the gap between the education sector and the labor market, Glowork’s board members hold weekly workshops for women attending university to explore post-graduation opportunities and receive guidance on choosing a career path.
As of 2012, Saudi Arabian women aged 15–34 represented only 16% of the labor force, and unemployment among women was at 26.9%, compared to 6.8% in men. Of the Saudis receiving unemployment benefits, 86% were women, and 40% of those women had college degrees. Although these numbers have improved today. Over 1 million women now work in the private sector thanks to the reforms in the Kingdom and organizations such as Glowork. In addition to job opportunities, Glowork lists mentorship opportunities for users, hosting career fairs, and connects users to career counselors, head hunters, and more. Because many companies do not employ women in office environments, Glowork has also made technology available so that women can work from home.
The organization has received the Women Gala Campaign Award, the Forbes Middle East award for Rising Start Up, and the King Salman Award for Business Leaders. It was named the Best Educational Project at the Arab Summit Investment and recognized as a best practice for gender equality at the World Economic Forum.