Access MENA Council by becoming an Advisor or registering as a Client
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By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy,
Once we understand your requirement we will provide you with relevant profiles of vetted industry experts from our network.
MENA Council Advisors can be accessed directly via teleconference, or utilised for panel discussions, meetings, surveys and projects.
Coordinate teleconference calls with Advisors “On Demand”, from your online account or contact us again to discuss new requirements.
Costs are based on the Advisors Rate per hour and there are no subscription fees or bulk credit purchase requirements.
Tarek Sultan, Vice Chairman & CEO of Agility
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Welcome to MENA Council On-Demand a web based platform that provides ‘On Demand’ access to industry experts, sector specialists and regional professionals across the Middle East and North Africa, and where members can access the insight and advice they need to make well informed decisions.
By using this site you agree that you are at least 18 years of age and that you are legally able to enter into a contract.
Please read these Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy very carefully as this is a legally binding document. They relate directly to those utilising the MENA Council On-Demand platform and they complement the specific terms of Service agreed to by Clients and Advisors
YOU ACCEPT AND AGREE THAT BY ACCESSING OR USING MENA COUNCIL SERVICES AND ITS SITE IN ANY MANNER, SUCH AS REGISTERING, DOWNLOADING, ACCESSING ADVISORS, SEARCHING, POSTING AND/OR ANY OTHER ACTIVITY ALLOWED, THAT YOU HAVE READ UNDERSTOOD AND AGREE TO BE BOUND BY ALL OF THESE TERMS. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO ANY OF THESE TERMS YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO USE OR ACCESS THE SERVICE OR SITE IN ANY MANNER, OR TO USE ITS CONTENT.
‘MENA Council’ – A network of industry leaders, sector specialists and regional professionals (Advisors) who can be accessed directly for insight and advice through associated services and platforms.
‘MENA Council On- Demand’ - MENA Council On Demand’ – A web platform located at www.menacouncil.com that facilitates interactions between Clients and Advisors. This contact may be in the form of teleconference calls, questions and answers, reports and analysis.
The ‘Site’ – The website at www.mencouncil.com and associated platform.
‘You and Your’ – Refers to members accessing services through MENA Counci.
‘We’, ‘Us or ‘Our’ - Refers to the MENA Council Team, but not to the members.
‘Advisor’ – A member of the MENA Council network who is authorised to create a searchable profile and is available to provide insight and advice to other members.
‘Client’ - A registered member of MENA Council who is not an Advisor, but is capable of accessing Advisors and paying for teleconference calls.
‘Premium Client’ - Any individual or commercial entity registered as a Premium Client and entitled to Premium Client services.
‘Member’ – A member of menacouncil.com who may be an Advisor or Client capable of searching Advisor profiles, sending Call Requests and utilising site services.
‘Advisor Profile’ – A searchable biography detailing expertise, relevant knowledge and verifications written by an Advisor and available to view by members.
'Client Profile’ – A non-searchable biography detailing a Client introduction and basic requirements.
‘Interaction’ – An engagement between an Advisor and a Member such as a teleconference calls.
‘MENA Council content’ – All content on the site created by the MENA Council team that is separate to the content created by Members.
‘Member Content’ – Any content created by site Members such as profiles, Topics, Questions and Answers.
MENA Council connects Members for short-term paid advisory interactions, whereby Advisors provide insight and advice to other members, based on their regional and sector specific knowledge. These interactions may take various forms such as teleconference calls, questions and answers, reports and surveys.
In all cases MENA Council acts as a facilitator by providing an introduction and coordinating the interaction via it’s website.
You therefore understood that Advisors are not employees or agents of MENA Council, but are providing their services as independent consultants. MENA Council at no point acts as an employer and remains an independent entity throughout.
To access site services Members are required to either register as a Client or apply to become an Advisor. This may be done by following the instructions on the landing page. All Members must read and agree to these terms and conditions.
Advisor Assessment
MENA Council is an exclusive network of subject matter experts and Advisors undergo a verification and assessment procedure prior to being invited to post a profile.
Potential Advisors agree to provide full accurate and complete information during the application process and accounts will be created based on the information that they provide. Advisors have the opportunity to update their information and create profiles once their application has been approved.
Verification and Assessment
MENA Council examines Bios during the application process and links to social networking sites prior to their inclusion on a profile. This verification only takes place once and does not indicate on-going monitoring of an Advisor’s social and professional status or media footprint. Advisors have sole responsibility for the content in their profiles and therefore, MENA Council does not accept liability for any inaccuracies or differences in the content of Advisor profiles at any time.
Advisors understand that MENA Council may contact referees and/or individuals detailed in supporting documentation during the verification process or at any time after. Advisors must ensure that should they undergo any change in circumstance that might affect their status that they will inform MENA Council immediately.
Change in circumstances that may affect status change include, but will not be limited to the following:
Should an Advisor:
Find themselves the subject of legal proceedings or engaged in litigation of any kind.
Find themselves the subject of disciplinary proceedings.
Find that their current employment is terminated or they resign.
Find themselves subject to insolvency proceedings and or financial difficulties.
Find themselves aware of information that might be used to solicit them against their will.
Client Registration
To access the MENA Council network and its platforms Clients are required to register online. The process of approval may take up to 24 hours.
Those wishing to subscribe for Premium Client access should indicate their interest on the online form.
Once registered, Clients will be provided with a login and password and accounts will be created based on a first name and a surname.
MENA Council reserves the right to suspend any account at any time and without prior notice or reason. Particularly if any of the information provided, during registration or after, proves to be incorrect.
MENA Council
We will provide Members with access to Advisor profiles and expertise indicators, verifications, topics, questions and answers and will facilitate teleconference calls arranged using the call request system. All other services such as panel discussions, reports, projects and surveys are bespoke and will be coordinated directly for Premium Clients by a MENA Council account manager.
Although we undertake steps to vet and verify suitable Advisors for inclusion into the network it does not guarantee their ability or desire to provide suitable answers to questions or guarantee the safety, legality or adequacy of any solution, or validity, accuracy or completeness of information provided by them during calls, appointments, answers, or the provision of any other services that might occur as a consequence of introductions made or services accessed.
We do not refer, endorse, recommend, verify or evaluate the content or information contained within Advisor profiles except for those evaluations and verifications conducted during the application process, such as a comparison of bios with other social networks, CVs and postings. Ongoing verification is provided through expertise indicators, call reviews, topics posted and the ability to access Advisor’s web links through profiles.
We do not screen, monitor or evaluate site content, questions and answers or personal details outside the registration or application processes. Should you be suspicious regarding the validity of any information accessed or received you should immediately make your suspicions known to us at compliance@menacouncil.com.
Advisors
You agree that you are legally permitted to be an Advisor and part of the MENA Council network and that by doing so you are not contravening any contractual obligation or employment regulations or laws relating to your current or previous employment and/or the jurisdiction in which you reside/work.
Being in current employment does not prohibit advisory interactions through MENA Council and may in some cases be beneficial to current employers. If unsure of contractual obligations, it is recommended that permission be sought from an appropriate individual, but in any event it is the responsibility of the individual Advisor to determine whether they are eligible.
You agree to the following: That you have not been the subject of criminal proceedings both national or international and that you will inform MENA Council in the following circumstances:
Should you become concerned about the nature of any enquiry you should terminate your involvement with the Member concerned and inform MENA Council (compliance@menacouncil.com).
Aside from information that should not be discussed outside your daily activities, Advisors agree not to discuss the following;
As an Advisor you agree that you are providing insight based services independently of MENA Council and/or other companies with which you may be employed or associated and are that you are not entitled to employee benefits or identify yourself as an employee of MENA Council. In the event you are unsure of any of these Terms of Service, you must decline to join the network or use any MENA Council services.
Profiles and Listings
Advisors are required to create a profile that shows their background and expertise and that can be viewed by other Members. If you decline to make your profile publishable you understand that you will be only eligible for engagements with Premium Clients arranged through a MENA Council account manager and will not receive Call Requests directly from Members.
MENA Council allocates Expertise Indicators to each profile to highlight an Advisors’ areas of expertise. These can be viewed on Advisor profiles and are used to filter searches. Further expertise indicators may be allocated when topics are added to profiles and approved by MENA Council.
Advisors are permitted to attach links to their profile including social and professional networks and media footprint. This allows Members a more comprehensive view of an Advisor’s ability to provide insight and advice. Advisor relationships with the third party service providers and associated third party accounts are solely governed by their agreements with such third party service providers.
Advisors agree to provide an Hourly Rate for interactions arranged through MENA Council. This rate will be converted into a Rate per Minute, for teleconference calls and will will listed on your profile.
Advisors understand that Members will schedule calls through the site based on the rate quoted. They agree and understand that once a Member has made a call request based on an advertised rate, the price quoted under the listing cannot be changed with regards to that appointment.
Advisors agree that they are solely responsible for any information in their profile or in listings and any other agreements that they enter into with Members.
Advisors agree to comply with any tax requirements and regulations that may apply to them.
Should you become concerned about the nature of any enquiry you should terminate your involvement with the Member concerned and inform MENA Council (compliance@mencouncil.com)
Clients
Members understand that Advisors may be restricted in their interactions with them, by rules regarding their current employment and/or groups, organisations or projects to which they are affiliated, or to which they have already committed themselves.
Members agree not to market their own services or products to Advisors or act in a similar manner on behalf of third parties or entities to which they are affiliated. Members also agree not to attempt to influence Advisors opinion either positively or negatively with regards to the services or products of others and if they speak to Advisors about their own products it will only be to gain their insight, opinion and expertise.
Members agree not to access Advisors, who may be perceived to be in competition with them or their affiliates in a manner that would be deemed inappropriate, or in contravention of any Law in any Jurisdiction or any way contrary to what is deemed appropriate. Should it be possible that a particular interaction with any Advisor might be misconstrued it should be declined.
Members agree not to access Advisors for any reason prohibited by these terms and conditions or for the purpose of passing information within their profiles to third parties.
Members should be aware that any Advisors who are lawyers, accountants and doctors are not able to provide advice based on client attorney/client/patient privilege and have no responsibilities to them in such regard.
Members agree that Advisors shall have no liability resulting from their interactions with them and that Advisors are not liable in any way for the consequences that arise from the advice that they give, unless such liability occurs as a direct result of wilful misconduct.
You agree not to engage in the following:
• Impersonate another or misrepresent yourself.
• Attempt to recruit or solicit an Advisor to join a competitor of MENA Council.
• Attempt to reverse engineer any of the software used to create MENA Council.
• Damage the site in any way.
• Attempt to access data held by MENA Council to which you have no entitlement.
Should you become concerned about the nature of any enquiry you should terminate your involvement with the Advisor concerned and inform MENA Council (compliance@mencouncil.com)
Non-Disclosure Agreement
The Non-Disclosure Agreement applies to Members who intend to disclose confidential information to Advisors for the purpose of receiving advice or opinion on it.
However, nothing will prevent the Recipient from making any disclosure of the Confidential Information required by law or by any competent authority.
Material
Advisors agree that any material that they provide to Members during advisory interactions arranged through MENA Council are either their own intellectual property or that they have obtained the necessary permissions or licenses to utilise them in such a manner.
Advisors agree that they are solely responsible for the material that they upload to the site and agree not to submit content that is untrue, defamatory, lewd, misleading or that otherwise violates these Terms of Service.
Advisors agree that any new material or intellectual property created during the course of an interaction such as advice, analysis a report or a survey is transferred to the Member paying for the call and may be used by them in any manner such as reproduction, inclusion, disclosure, publication and posting. This may include material that is created on the basis of an Advisors own intellectual property, but created during the interaction. Content created independently of any call, but discussed within the call remains the property of the Advisor.
MENA Council disclaims all warranties advertised by Advisors on the site. Should a Member rely on information obtained by an Advisor accessed through MENA Council or any of its services including it website menacouncil.com they should use a high standard of care. MENA Council will not be deemed to be the provider or recipient of any service or information acquired through advisory interactions.
By utilising menacouncil.com and its functionality you agree that you have read the Terms of Service for members and the associated Privacy Policy and agree to their contents.
Sanctioned Countries
Countries within the MENA region such as Iran and Sudan are currently the subject of OFAC and other international sanctions. As a company and service registered in the UAE, MENA Council is fully compliant with OFAC and does not facilitate direct trade with these countries in contradiction of sanctions. However, the MENA Council network includes Advisors who understand these countries and their business environments and have the knowledge and insight to assist with any question that may arise regarding them, particularly with regard to compliance and sanction regimes.
Should you become concerned at any time or during the course of an interaction please contact compliance@menacouncil.com.
Calls
The most common interaction coordinated through MENA Council are teleconference calls with Advisors. These are facilitated using an international teleconference provider with regional access.
Teleconference calls with Advisors are arranged by sending a Call Request directly to the Advisor from a Members online account.
Members who are not Premium Client account holders pay for calls using a MasterCard or Visa card. An initial payment is taken from the card that is equivalent to the time indicated on the the Call Request. Once the call is complete MENA Council works out the final cost of the call based on the actual time and either charges or refunds the amount outstanding.
Once a time and date has been agreed, MENA Council sends both parties a confirmation email with a unique pin number and both parties dial in to the call at the agreed time using the pin to access the teleconference. A full list of international dial in numbers is available from the website and any number listed may be used to access the teleconference including international toll free numbers. It is the responsibility of both parties to dial in at the agreed time, using the details provided.
A Call Request is valid for 24 hours and if it is not replied to within this time it will be cancelled automatically.
When joining MENA Council, it is necessary to provide contact details including an internationally available telephone number. These contact details will not be shared with other Members and will be used only for communication directly with MENA Council and it will be kept in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
Reports and Surveys
MENA COUNCIL may commission Advisors to write Reports or complete Survey forms on behalf of Premium Client Account holders. The scope, cost and extent of the Advisor’s involvement will be agreed prior to commencement, and will be based on the Advisors hourly rate.
Advisors will be consulted prior to discussing any potential involvement with Premium Clients with respect to reports and surveys and any report or survey commissioned directly will be subject to these Terms of Service.
MENA Council - On Demand
MENA Council On-Demand is an online platform that has been designed to facilitate teleconference calls between Clients and Advisors.
Clients are under no obligation to use the On-Demand platform to conduct interactions with MENA Council Advisors, neither are Advisors required to maintain an online profile.
The platform allows Clients to build a network of Advisor profiles by either searching from a list of online Advisors or accessing the profiles of Advisors previously matched to them by an account manager.
Clients use the platform to send Call Requests directly to their Advisors without having to use a MENA Council account manager to coordinate calls. The platform assists with scheduling, sends out teleconference details and coordinates payments.
Advisors who do not wish to be included in the online directory should inform the MENA Council Team on registration. The profiles will only be made available to select Clients, by an account manager and on a case by case basis.
Each Advisor advertises a unique hourly rate for interactions, commensurate with their knowledge and experience and which is converted to a rate per minute for the benefit of teleconference calls. This rate will be applied for all MENA Council interactions such as reports, projects, meetings and other engagements.
Prior to any interaction with an Advisor, Clients are required to either pay a deposit to confirm the engagement or purchase a Premium Client Account package.
MENA Council Service Charge
MENA Council charges a 25% fee on all interactions. This fee is for managing the platform and coordinating introductions, interactions and payments. This amount is already included in the Advisors rate advertised. The fee is automatically deducted prior to the transfer of earnings to Advisors.
MENA Council membership is currently free for Clients and Advisors. However, MENA Council reserves the right to implement a subscription fee with at least two months’ notice.
Standard Client Account
A Standard Client account provides full access to the MENA Council network of Advisors and a MENA Council account manager. Standard account holders are required to pay a fully refundable deposit equivalent to 50% of the cost of any interaction prior to the engagement being booked or, a deposit equivalent to the minimum call time for teleconference calls coordinated using the MENA Council On-Demand platform.
Premium Client Account
Clients may purchase a premium account package and in doing so, benefit from a discounted rate for all engagements arranged thereafter. Once a package has been used up a further package must be purchased in order to continue benefiting from the discounted rates, or the Client reverts automatically to a standard account. Any amount of money retained within the package will be refunded to the Client on the closing of a Premium Client account, but not earlier than 6 months from the date of initial payment.
Package Discount Cost ($)
(On Advisor rates)
Gold
12%
20,000
Silver
8%
10,000
Bronze
5%
5,000
Additional Costs
MENA Council adds the costs of the teleconferencing fees arranged using the MENA Council teleconferencing system including those of the Advisor. A copy of teleconference line pricing is available on request. Freephone dial in numbers are available in most countries, rates for paid lines vary depending on country and location of caller. Example – Bahrain has no Freephone dial-in number, but dial-in to the Bahrain paid line is $0.04 per minute/participant. Saudi Arabia has a Freephone dial-in number, but dial-in to the Saudi Arabia paid line is $0.56 per minute.
MENA Council processes payments for all engagements between Clients and Advisors.
Standard account holders
Online payments for teleconference calls arranged via the MENA council On-Demand platform are made by credit card using Stripe’s online payment gateway. A deposit equivalent to the cost of the call requested is required prior to the Call being confirmed. Should the Call be longer than expected a further charge will be made automatically to the credit card provided once the call is completed. Should the call be less than expected an amount will be refunded to the card. There is a minimum call charge of ten minutes when using MENA Council On-Demand.
A deposit equivalent to 50% of any other interaction arranged through an account manager is required to confirm the engagement. Completion payment is required within 7 days of the interaction.
Premium Account Holders
Premium account holder coordinate and conduct interactions as required using the MENA Council On-Demand or through their account manager without the need to pay deposits. Premium Account Holders will receive a monthly invoice detailing all of the engagement conducted in the previous month and the current balance of their account.
Payment
Calls are paid for online using Visa and MasterCard credit/debit card in dollars and refunds will be completed using the original mode of payment. The cardholder must retain a copy of transaction records and Merchant policies and rules.
Deposit payments may be made by credit card when using On Demand platform services and/or bank transfer in dollars when coordinating engagements through a Client Account Manager.
Earnings
Advisors will receive their earnings within two months of the interaction taking place and within one month, should the Client involved in the engagement concerned be a Premium account holder. Advisors can choose whether to receive their earnings by bank transfer or directly into a Paypal account. Advisors should inform MENA Council of their preferred method of payment and should provide account details in reasonable time to allow payment of earnings.
MENA Council will not accept responsibility for non final payment of Standard Client account holders.
MENA Council will not be liable for any damages sustained by Members acting upon information received by other Advisors or content made available on the site.
Members utilise MENA Council services at their own risk and you hereby release MENA Council, and its directors, shareholders, officers, managers, agents, consultants from claims of any nature and damages resulting from the advice of Advisors accessed through the site or as a result of content contained within the site.
MENA Council disclaims all warranties advertised by Advisors on the site and at any time during interactions. Should a Member rely on information obtained by any Advisor accessed through MENA Council or any of its services including it’s website menacouncil.com they should use a high standard of care.
Clients release MENA Council and any and all persons acting under its authority from any claim, liability or action in law, including any claims for defamation, copyright infringement or invasion of privacy arising in connection with your material. You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless MENA Council and its affiliates from and against any third party claim that your material or the use of your material infringes upon any patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret or other intellectual property right.
MENA Council, Aion Group or any of their affiliates shareholders Advisors, managers, employee’s contractors or agents will not be liable to any Member for any indirect, incidental punitive consequential or exemplary damages including loss of business revenues profits use data or other economic advantage, however it arises whether in contract action, negligence or other tortious action or arising from this agreement.
You acknowledge and agree that MENA Council, Aion Group and its affiliates disclaim any liability with respect to any claim suit, or action brought by a Member in connection with payment for services and agree to hold MENA Council harmless in connection with any claim.
Arbitration
Any dispute arising out of or in connection with this contract, including any question regarding its existence, validity or termination, shall be referred to and finally resolved by arbitration under the Arbitration Rules of the UK Financial Services Authority.
MENA Council connects individuals and companies (Clients) in need of a better understanding of the Middle East and North Africa’s business sectors to a network of verified subject matter experts (Advisors), capable of providing knowledgeable insight and advice.
Contact between Clients and Advisors may take the form of teleconference calls, panel discussions, surveys, meetings or other interactions. In all cases MENA Council acts as a facilitator by providing the introduction, coordinating the engagement and providing a web platform to facilitate knowledge-sharing activities.
MENA Council at no point act as employers and remains an independent entity throughout.
MENA Council operates MENA Council On Demand a web-based platform that facilitates interactions between Advisors and Clients that includes the coordination of teleconference calls. For those accessing site services, these Terms of Service should be read in conjunction with those found on menacouncil.com and should in no way supersede or contradict them. MENA Council is owned by Aion Group Ltd a company registered in the United Kingdom.
Please read these Terms of Service and Privacy Policy very carefully as this is a legally binding document. Once you have read and understood the contents please sign as indicated and return a scanned copy to registrations@menacouncil.com.
As a MENA Council Advisor and user of menacouncil.com you also agree to the site Terms of Service and the Privacy Policy, a copy of which is included below.
‘You and Your’ – Refers to Advisors accessing MENA Council services and its associated website menacouncil.com. ‘We’, ‘Us or ‘Our’ refer to the team that runs MENA Council, but not to our network of Advisors or Clients.
‘Advisor – A member of the MENA Council network, subject to reciprocal Terms of Service, who is available to provide insight and advice to registered Clients.
‘User’ – A user of the site menacouncil.com who may be either a Client or an Advisor.
‘Client’ – Any individual or commercial entity registered as a Client who pays for any service made available through MENA Council and its associated platform.
‘Profile’ – A searchable web based biography created by an Advisor detailing their relevant expertise and knowledge and created for the benefit of Clients to view.
‘Engagement’ – A consultancy based interaction between Clients and Advisors or between Advisors, facilitated by MENA Council and covered by these Terms of Service.
MENA Council On Demand’ – A web platform located at www.menacouncil.com that facilitates interactions between Clients and Advisors. This contact may be in the form of teleconference calls, questions and answers, reports and analysis.
MENA Council connects Clients to Advisors for short-term engagements, whereby Advisors provide insight and advice to Clients and other Advisors who wish to better understand the MENA region and its business sectors. These engagements may take various forms such as meetings, panel discussions, 1 to 1 teleconference calls, open forum questions, written reports and projects. Most of these engagements require payment.
You understand that as a MENA Council Advisor that you are not an employee or agents of MENA Council, but are providing your insight and advice as an independent consultant who use the MENA Council and its associated platform to allow Clients and other Advisors to access your knowledge and expertise.
MENA Council is an exclusive network of industry leaders, subject matter experts and strategic advisors and potential Advisors are required to undergo a period of verification and vetting prior to being asked to join the network. This process commences once an Advisor application is received. An application can be made by clicking become an Advisor on the home page of the MENA Council website or by contacting MENA Council directly.
MENA Council undertakes steps to verify the identity of potential Advisors and authenticity of documentation that they provide. During this period Advisors agree to provide any assistance required including access to documentation, on request, that can facilitate an accurate verification process. Potential Advisors understand that MENA Council may contact referees and/or individuals detailed in supporting documentation during this vetting process or at any time after. Members must ensure that should they undergo any change in circumstance that might affect their vetted status that they will inform MENA Council immediately. Change in circumstances that may affect status change include, but will not be limited to the following:
1.Find themselves the subject of legal proceedings or engaged in litigation of any kind.
2.Find themselves the subject of disciplinary proceedings.
3.Find that their current employment is terminated or they resign.
4.Find themselves subject to insolvency proceedings and or financial difficulties.
5.Find themselves aware of information that might be used to solicit them against their will.
MENA Council may verify details listed on applicant’s CVs, professional and social networking sites or make other enquiries. MENA Council may indicate that these verifications have taken place on the Member’s profile. This verification only takes place once and does not indicate on-going monitoring of the Members social and professional status or media footprint. MENA Council verification ensures that the details initially provided are similar to those available. Members have sole responsibility for the content of their profiles and therefore MENA Council does not accept liability for any inaccuracies or differences in the content of Advisor’s profiles at any time.
You agree to provide full accurate and complete information during the registration and application process. Advisor accounts will be created based on the provision of information during this process and Advisors will have the opportunity to update their information once they have successfully completed registration. Advisor’s should keep all of their information up to date, accurate and complete.
Advisors are able to list their previous experience and link their MENA Council profile to other sites such as social networks, blogs, reports and or articles. Advisors’ relationships with the third party service providers and associated third party accounts are solely governed by their agreements with such third party service providers.
You must take all steps to keep your password safeguarded and you agree not to disclose it to any third parties. You accept responsibility for all actions resulting from access to your account whether it is authorised by you or not. If you suspect any unauthorised access to have taken place you will notify MENA Council immediately at compliance@menacouncil.com.
MENA Council reserves the right to suspend any account at any time and without prior notice or reason. Particularly if any of the information that you provide, during registration or after, proves to be incorrect.
To access Advisor profiles and utilise MENA Council services, Clients are vetted by MENA Council and required to agree to a reciprocal Terms of Service, a copy of which is available on request. All MENA Council Clients are allocated a MENA Council account manager and have an online account created for them. Clients use their first name and surname and an online Client profile when accessing site services.
Us
We will provide Advisors with introductions to Clients and other Advisors and will facilitate consultancy type engagements with them including teleconference calls, panel discussions, reports, projects and/or other interactions. Where suitable Advisors do not exist within the MENA Council network, we undertake to identify and source new Advisors to provide the required insight or advice.
Although we undertake steps to vet and verify suitable Advisors prior to their inclusion into the network it does not guarantee their ability or desire to provide suitable answers to questions or guarantee the safety, legality or adequacy of any solution, or validity, accuracy or completeness of information provided by them during calls, appointments, site questions and answers, briefings or the provision of any other services that might occur as a consequence of introductions made or services accessed.
Outside the applications process, we do not refer, endorse, recommend, verify or evaluate the content or information contained within Advisor profiles.
We do not screen, monitor or evaluate site content, site answers or personal details outside the application process. Should you be suspicious regarding the validity of any information accessed or received you should immediately make your suspicions known to us at compliance@menacouncil.com.
You should be aware that Clients might be restricted in their interactions with you due to their Terms of Service. Terms that include the following prohibitions:
• Clients agree not to market their own services or products to you or act in a similar manner on behalf of third parties or entities to which they are affiliated. They also agree not to attempt to influence your opinion either positively or negatively with regards to the services or products of others and when they speak to you about their products it is only to gain your insight, opinion and advice.
• Clients agree not to access Advisors, who may be perceived to be in competition with them or their affiliates in a manner that would be deemed inappropriate or in contravention of any Law in any Jurisdiction. Should it be possible that a particular interaction with a Advisor might be misconstrued they must avoid it.
• Clients agree not to access Advisors for any reason prohibited by these terms and conditions.
• Clients agree that you shall have no liability resulting from their interactions with you and that you are not liable in any way for the consequences that arise from the advice that you give, unless such liability occurs as a direct result of your deliberate misconduct.
• Clients agree to be responsible for any third parties that are not employees, direct agents or affiliates of them or their company, which they invite to interactions with you. They agree that to the best of your ability that they will ensure that such 3rd parties abide by these Terms of Service.
• Clients agree not to arrange an interaction with you on behalf of a third party who is not a signatory to these Terms of Service without a legally responsible representative of theirs (MENA Council Client) and bound by these Terms of Service, being present.
You
You agree that you are legally permitted to be member of the MENA Council network and that by doing so you are not contravening any contractual obligation or employment regulations or laws relating to your current or previous employment and/or the jurisdiction in which you reside/work.
Being in current employment does not prohibit engagements through MENA Council and may in some cases be beneficial to current employers. If unsure of contractual obligations, it is recommended that permission be sought from an appropriate individual, but in any event it is your responsibility to determine whether you are eligible to be an Advisor.
You agree to the following:
-That you have not been the subject of criminal proceedings both national or international and that you will inform MENA Council in the following circumstances: You become concerned about the nature of any enquiry by either a Client or fellow Member.
-You are sued for any reason including breach of confidentiality or violations of securities laws.
-You are convicted or plead guilty to any crime.
You become a Government employee or are elected to a Government position.
Should you become concerned about the nature of any enquiry you should terminate your involvement with the Client or Advisor concerned and inform MENA Council immediately at compliance@menacouncil.com.
Aside from information that should not be discussed outside your daily activities, You agree not to discuss the following.
-Non-public information or material regarding a public company.
-Confidential information obtained from previous or present employment or individuals who would expect it to be kept confidential.
-Trade secrets.
-Consultations with competitors of your current employer or peers.
-Provide investment advice regarding securities.
-Breach any regulatory or professional standard.
-Any information that you are prohibited from discussing by law.
-Organisations for which you have worked as an auditor or accountant within the last year.
-Information regarding an initial public offering if you have been an employee of a company in the process of issuing securities, until the commencement of the offering or tender.
-If you are lawyer or doctor will not give legal/medical advice that establishes an attorney/client relationship subject to legal/patient privilege and have no responsibilities to MENA Council Clients in such regard.
Advisors may be required to undergo a compliance training module prior to any given interaction. This module will provide detailed instruction on their responsibilities regarding confidential material provided to them during the course of interactions and the nature of information that could be deemed to be prohibited or to contravene securities legislation.
As an Advisor you agree that you are providing insight based services independently of MENA Council and or other companies with which you may be employed or associated and are that you are not entitled to employee benefits or identify yourself as an employee of METIS or MENA Council. In the event you are unsure of any of these Terms of Service, you must decline to join the network or use any MENA Council Services.
Advisors are required to create a profile that highlights their background and areas of expertise. This profile may be viewed by Clients or by other Advisors utilizing the web platform and is viewable by all site users unless specifically requested otherwise.
Should you decline to publish your profile on the platform you understand that you will be only be eligible for engagements arranged through a MENA Council Client account managers and with subscribed Clients. This may limit your engagements with non-subscribed Clients and other Advisors.
You agree to provide an Hourly Rate for interactions arranged through MENA Council. This rate may be converted into a Rate per Minute for teleconference calls and that can be included on your profile. METIS charges a 19% service fee for introductions and coordination and processing of engagements and payments, site costs and teleconferencing charges. This amount will be automatically deducted from any engagements and should be considered when setting your hourly rate.
You understand that site Users will schedule an appointment through the site based on rates quoted. You agree and understand that once a User has made a Call Request based on an advertised rate, the price quoted under your listing cannot be changed with regards to that appointment.
You agree that you are solely responsible for any information in your profile or in your listings and any other agreements that you enter into with clients.
You agree to provide MENA Council with the details of all MENA Council engagements conducted in a calendar month and you understand that payment of earnings is dependent on MENA Council receiving your confirmation of these engagements. Confirmations should be emailed to manager1@menacouncil.com.
You agree that you will comply with any tax requirements and regulations that may apply to you.
You agree that Clients registered with MENA Council and other Advisors are automatic beneficiaries of these Terms of Service and that any engagement, report or call will be carried out with this express knowledge in mind.
You agree not to disclose any confidential information made available to you by MENA Council or by Clients and other Advisors during the course of MENA Council engagements. You agree not to seek to personal financial benefit from the confidential or restricted information that you may receive. You also understand that Clients and other Advisors may make clear other terms and or conditions separate to those stipulated here, but that these will not release you from your requirements as laid down in these Terms of Service.
You agree to keep the identities of Advisors confidential and not to attribute documents, advice or opinion to them when distributing such advice or opinion to third parties, unless you have obtained specific permission from MENA Council.
You agree not to employ Advisors, to whom you are introduced through MENA Council and its website directory, in a consultancy capacity similar to the one provided by MENA Council. Including advisory calls, reports, meetings, projects and surveys for a period of one year after the initial introduction to the Advisor or most recent engagement (Introductory Period), whichever is the later. You agree that any engagement conducted with an Advisor during this introductory period will be covered by these terms of service and subject to a MENA Council fee of 25% of the engagement fee whether MENA Council coordinates the engagement or not.
You also agree not to purchase any license or content from Advisors without the permission of MENA Council.
Non Disclosure
1.Non- Disclosure applies to Clients and Advisors who intend to disclose confidential information to Advisors for the purpose of receiving advice or opinion on it.
2.The Advisor receiving the information is referred to as ‘the Recipient’ when they receive or use the Confidential Information disclosed by a Client or another Advisor.
3.You as the Recipient undertake not to use the Confidential Information disclosed to you by a Client or Advisor for any purpose except the “Purpose” discussed, without first obtaining the written agreement of the Client or Advisor who provides it.
4.The Recipient undertakes to keep the Confidential Information disclosed by the Client secure and not to disclose it to any third party, except to its employees and professional advisors who need to know the same for the Purpose, who know they owe a duty of confidence to the other party and who are bound by obligations equivalent to those in clause 3 above.
Any new material or intellectual property created during the course of engagements with Advisors such as advice, analysis, reports or surveys is transferred to the Client and may be used by them in any manner such as reproduction, inclusion, disclosure, publication and posting.
Intellectual Property, owned by the Advisor prior to the interaction, or that is publicly available and discussed during an engagement, is not owned by the Client.
Client content created independently of any engagement, but discussed with an Advisor remains property of the Client.
Many of the advisory interactions arranged between Advisors and Clients take the form of teleconference calls. Such calls are facilitated using Level 3 Communications an international teleconference provider with regional access.
MENA Council can arrange teleconference calls with Clients and other Advisors on your behalf, or you may arrange them yourself by sending and receiving Call Requests directly from your online account. Engagements that are conducted outside of these two methods remain subject to these Terms of Service and must be recorded by both parties.
Once a time and date have been agreed for a call, MENA Council sends both parties a confirmation email. This email contains Call Details with the date and time of the call in your time zone, a dial-in number and a unique pin with which to access the call.
A full list of international dial-in numbers is available from menacouncil.com and any of them can be used to access the call. The pin number provided is unique for each call and it is the responsibility of both parties to dial in at the agreed time using the details provided.
You agree to forward the timings and details of any interactions arranged using methods not previously mentioned here, such as by using a Client’s own teleconference facilities and they should be forwarded to info@menacouncil.com on completion of the interaction to facilitate accurate billing and invoicing.
MENA Council On Demand is an online platform that has been designed to facilitate teleconference calls between Clients and Advisors.
Clients are not obliged to use the platform to conduct interactions with MENA Council Advisors, neither are Advisors required to maintain an online profile.
Reports, Surveys and Projects
Reports and Surveys may be commissioned through MENA Council. MENA Council will contact you directly to discuss your availability. The scope, cost and individual Advisor’s involvement will be agreed prior to commencement of work.
Reports Surveys or Projects commissioned directly with Advisors are subject to these Terms of Service but costs will be quoted for on a project-by-project basis.
You agree to notify Us of any consultancy work subsequently agreed during teleconference calls or meetings, such as reports, surveys, further calls, projects or any other temporary engagement not discussed here and that this work will be subject to these Terms of Service within the Introductory period.
Fees
Advisors set their own hourly rate using their online account. This rate will be applied for all MENA Council interactions such as teleconference calls, reports, projects and meetings. This Rate may be altered at any time by you through the edit profile page of an Advisors web account. However, once a rate has been agreed for a specific interaction it cannot be changed
Service Charge
MENA Council deducts a service fee on all interactions equivalent to 25% of the hourly rate you set. This fee is deducted before earnings are transferred to your payment facility.
There is currently no joining or subscription fee for Advisors.
MENA Council processes payments for all MENA Council interactions.
Advisors will receive earnings within 30 days of the end of the calendar month within which the interaction took place. This is to allow time for invoicing Clients and subsequent payment.
MENA Council will not be held liable for non-payment of invoices by Clients. However, MENA Council will attempt all reasonable means to ensure Client payments.
Subscriptions
There are currently no subscription fees for Advisors.
Advisors can choose whether to receive their earnings by bank transfer or directly into a Paypal account. Advisors should inform MENA Council which method they prefer and should provide account details in reasonable time to allow payment of earnings.
On Demand Payments
An Advisor wishing to arrange a call with another Advisor using the MENA Council On Demand web platform does so using a Visa, MasterCard or credit/debit card in dollars. A deposit is taken equivalent to the requested length of call and you agree that all refunds or further payments based on the actual time of the call may be completed using your original payment facility. As the cardholder, you must retain a copy of transaction records and merchant policies/rules.
Damages
MENA Council will not be liable for any damages sustained by Clients or Advisors acting upon information received by Advisors or content made available on the site.
Advisors utilise MENA Council services at their own risk and you hereby release Aion Group Ltd, MENA Council and its directors, shareholders, officers, members, managers, agents, advisors, consultants from claims of any nature and damages resulting from advice or insight obtained from Advisors or as a result of content contained within the site.
MENA Council disclaims all warranties advertised by Advisors on the site and at any time during interactions. Should you rely on information obtained by an Advisor accessed through MENA Council or any of its services including it’s website menacouncil.com you should use a high standard of care.
You release Aion Group and MENA Council and any or all persons acting under its authority from any claim, liability or action in law, including any claims for defamation, copyright infringement or invasion of privacy arising in connection with your material. You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless MENA Council and its affiliates from and against any third party claim that your material or the use of your material infringes upon any patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret or other intellectual property right.
Aion Group, MENA Council or any of their affiliates shareholders, members, managers, employees, contractors or agents will not be liable to any Advisor for any indirect, incidental punitive consequential or exemplary damages including loss of business revenues profits use data or other economic advantage, however it arises whether in contract action, negligence or other tortious action or arising from this agreement.
Aion Group, MENA Council its affiliates their respective officers, directors, shareholders, members, managers, employees, subcontractors and agents aggregate liability for direct damages arising out of this contract will not exceed the total amount of money paid to an Advisor in the 3-month period prior to the date that the claim arose.
Advisors acknowledge and agree that MENA Council and its affiliates disclaims any liability with respect to any claim suit or action brought by a Client in connection with payment for services and agree to hold MENA Council harmless in connection with any claim.
MENA Council will undertake to protect your information at all times.
In order to provide services that include a web platform where Clients can access Advisors for advice, it is necessary for you us to retain some information about you.
MENA Council is designed to allow Users access to sufficient information to find the right Advisor. This information is made available in the form of a searchable profile. All other information is retained and protected by us so that you can coordinate your calls and make/receive payments without making your personal and financial information available to third parties.
You agree that MENA Council may collect and retain information about you including but not limited to your registration information and contact you by email telephone or otherwise to administer your involvement in the MENA Council network.
You agree that MENA Council may use your information as required to support, market and improve MENA Council and MENA Council services.
MENA Council will not sell or market your registered information including credit/debit card detailsand personally identifiable information will NOT be stored, sold, shared, rented or leased to any third parties.
Confidentiality
You will agree to keep confidential the identity of Advisors and details of engagements except as required by law or with the express permission of MENA Council.
Web Security
MENA Council servers are located in the United States and are protected by Secure Socket Links. This means that every time you connect to the site the information that is transmitted is encrypted using SSL technology. However, no Internet connection is 100% secure and should you suspect that any of your information has been accessed by a third party you should contact our privacy officer directly.
You must take all steps to keep your password safeguarded and you agree not to disclose it to any third parties. You accept responsibility for all actions resulting from access to your account whether you have authorised them or not. If you suspect unauthorised access to your account you will notify MENA Council immediately at privacy@menacouncil.com
MENA Council does not monitor or record the content of any calls unless specifically requested by both parties.
Contact numbers provided by Clients to MENA Council will not be shared with Advisors at any time during the teleconference process and all information will be kept strictly in accordance with our Privacy Policy. Contact numbers will only be used by MENA Council to account manage the client relationship and facilitate interactions with Advisors.
One of the services soon to be offered by MENA Council is for Users to log in using Linked In. In order to use this service, you must allow MENA Council access to information retained in your LinkedIn profile. The amount of information made available to us can be controlled from the settings in your LinkedIn account and you are strongly recommended to check your settings before utilising this service for the first time.
In the event that you terminate and delete your account we will not retain any information unless required to do so by law.
MENA Council does not permit third party marketing or advertising on the site.
The Website Policies and Terms of Services may be changed or updated occasionally to meet the requirements and standards. Therefore, Users are encouraged to frequently visit these sections in order to be updated about the changes on the website. Modifications will be effective on the day they are posted”.
Should you have any questions or concerns regarding our Privacy Policy please contact us at:
MENA Council C/O METIS FZ LLE
Creative Tower
Fujeirah
PO Box 4422
UAE
privacy@menacouncil.com