Service for businesses
Negotiation support in Saudi Arabia
Not a translation agency. At the table with you is a negotiator with an engineering base: someone who understands the subject under discussion, reads the contract, and knows how a Saudi counterpart says no without using the word.
When you need a negotiator rather than an interpreter
An interpreter carries words across, and that is where the job ends. In construction and contract talks the cost of error sits not in the words but in the meaning: what exactly is inside the scope, who carries the delay risk, which FIDIC edition is on the table, what 'approved in principle' actually signals on the other side. Our job is to hold your position, not to relay lines.
- Meetings with a contractor, client or supplier on a construction or engineering subject
- Talks with government bodies, where protocol and the order of address matter
- Discussion of the contract, scope of works, programme and payment terms
- Site or factory visits where you need to understand what you are being shown
- A first visit to the Kingdom, when it is unclear who in the room makes the decision
What understanding the mindset actually means
This is not politeness, and it is not customs read off a guidebook. In a Saudi meeting a large share of the meaning travels without words, and an outsider simply does not see it — however flawless the interpreting.
- Yes rarely means agreement. 'We will study it', 'approved in principle', 'in shaa Allah' each carry a different weight, and that has to be read in the room, not inferred a month later from silence
- A refusal is almost never stated outright, because a direct no is considered rude. It arrives dressed as a delay, and plans get built on it that will never happen
- The decision is not made by whoever talks most. There is often someone who says nothing for the whole meeting, and everything depends on him
- Sequence matters more than any agenda: who is greeted first, who speaks first, when price can be raised and when raising it collapses the meeting
- The relationship precedes the deal. A first meeting is often not about the contract, and trying to close it there reads as disrespect
- Time works differently: prayers, Friday, Ramadan, the holiday season. Deadlines set without accounting for these slip, and nobody is acting in bad faith
None of this can be learned from a book and none of it translates. Arabic and Russian are native languages; working inside the Saudi environment since 2012, government bodies included. The full breakdown is in the guide how business negotiations work in Saudi Arabia.
What is included and what is not
The boundary is better drawn before the meeting than discovered during it.
Included
- Negotiating on your side of the table: holding your position and your limits on price and programme
- Preparation before the meeting: agenda, counterpart profiles, what to verify, what to leave unsaid
- Carrying engineering, contractual and financial meaning across three languages — Arabic, Russian, English
- Live guidance during the meeting: what was actually said, and what to ask next
- A short written summary afterwards: what was said, what was promised, what remains open
Not included
- Simultaneous booth interpreting and certified written translation of documents
- Legal opinions — that is the work of a lawyer licensed in the Kingdom
- Tax and audit opinions
- Acting on your behalf without a power of attorney and a separate agreement
We do not present ourselves as lawyers. Where a licence is required, a licensed professional does the work; our part is that you understand the subject and do not sign something you did not intend.
If you are not travelling
The meeting can happen without you. That is a separate format: we go to the counterparty on your company's behalf, and you have the outcome the same day.
- Only under a written power of attorney and an agreement — what we may say on your behalf is fixed before the meeting
- We hold no signature authority and do not request it: the commitments remain yours
- In the room we collect what you would have flown for: their real position, real timelines, who decides, where the price ceiling sits
- After the meeting: a written summary and a recommendation on the next step
- If your voice is needed, we bring you onto a call from the meeting itself
We do not promise negotiation outcomes and do not take decisions for you. Continuous presence on the ground is a separate service.
Who does the work
We do not publish team names or photographs — that is a deliberate decision. What we publish instead is a profile you can test on the first call.
- A negotiator with an engineering base: architect and civil engineer, educated in Germany
- What gets negotiated: scope, price, programme, payment terms, warranties, contractual claims
- Working in the Gulf since 2012
- Experience as a director of projects in private development, alongside private practice
- Arabic and Russian are native languages; English is professional
- Working context: FIDIC, scopes of works, budgets, technical supervision, handover
- Based in Riyadh, permanently
A CV is sent privately before any work begins. On the call you can ask any technical question and confirm the subject is understood.
How the work is structured
- 01
Brief
You describe the task: how many meetings, with whom, the subject and the objective. If the information is confidential, an NDA is signed before the brief.
- 02
Format confirmed
We state availability and the form of participation. Once you confirm, the slot is held for you.
- 03
Preparation
Agenda, counterpart profiles, what to verify and what is better left out of a first meeting. The earlier the brief arrives, the fuller the preparation.
- 04
Meeting and summary
Participation in the meeting, then a short written summary: what was said, what was promised, what to verify before the next step.
For in-person meetings we need the location in advance — travel time across Riyadh is real and is built into the slot.
What it costs
- A full day, a series of meetings and travel outside Riyadh are quoted separately
- Requests at under 24 hours' notice and weekend work are agreed separately
- Travel to the meeting within the city is part of the slot
- Travel expenses outside Riyadh are charged at cost, with no mark-up
The rate is published deliberately. This is not a translation-agency service, and the price states plainly what form of participation is on offer.
A managed business mission in Riyadh
If you are coming for a visit rather than a single meeting, sitting in the room is only part of the job. The rest is preparation, and verifying what you are shown.
- Visit preparation: the objective, who is worth meeting, and in what order
- Arranging and confirming meetings, agreeing the agenda with the host side
- Attendance at meetings with private companies and government bodies
- Site and factory visits, with a technical read on what is being presented
- Preliminary checks on contractors and suppliers through open sources and registries
- Visit logistics: route, travel time, protocol and the sequence of meetings
- A written summary for each day and a list of what to verify next
Scope and cost are built for the specific visit: they depend on the number of meetings, the geography and whether site visits are involved. The figure follows the brief rather than a price list.
Frequent questions
How is this different from hiring an interpreter?
An interpreter carries the words; we are accountable for the meaning. In construction and contract talks that difference decides outcomes: scope, risk allocation, the FIDIC edition and payment wording all sound alike and mean very different things. You also get a technical read on what you are being told, while the meeting is still running.
Why not simply hire an interpreter locally?
An interpreter carries the words. He will not tell you that a polite 'we will study it' was in fact a refusal, that the decision in this room belongs to the man who has said nothing, or that it is too early to raise price. Add the construction and contract subject matter — scope, risk, the FIDIC edition. The difference is those two things together: knowing the environment and knowing the subject.
Can it be booked for tomorrow?
If the slot is free, yes. The quality of preparation depends on when the brief arrives: agenda, counterpart profiles and the objective. Requests at under 24 hours' notice are agreed separately.
Do you attend meetings with government bodies?
Yes, meetings with government authorities and state-owned companies are covered. We do not influence their decisions and do not promise an outcome — our part is that you are understood correctly and that you understand correctly.
Will you sign an NDA?
Yes, before the brief, if the information is confidential. We do not name clients or their projects, in correspondence or in presentations.
Which languages do you work in?
Arabic and Russian are native; English is professional. Meetings in the Kingdom usually need all three: the host side may move between Arabic and English inside a single sentence.
Do you travel outside Riyadh?
Yes. Travel to another city or a remote site is agreed separately, and travel expenses are charged at cost with no mark-up.
What do you need in order to quote?
Dates, the number of meetings, who they are with and the subject. That is enough to confirm format and availability. Substantive detail can follow an NDA if it is confidential.
Describe the task and we will confirm format and availability
Dates, number of meetings, counterparts and subject. An answer on format and availability the same day. No call needed unless you want one.