HERC – Health, Exercise & Research Center is the only company with a so-called ”full circle” approach based in Dubai, UAE.
HERC operates within’ three departments, HERC’s Research, HERC’s Education, and HERC’s Strength.
HERC’s Research Department
At the time of writing this report, this is the only entity having original sports and exercise science research in the United Arab Emirates. With original papers published in International peer-reviewed journals and comprehensive research reviews, they support local development of the Sporting and Health sector by supplying Institutions and organizations with a clear ‘what-to-do’ solution. At the moment, HERC’s Research Department has six research papers in the pre-publishing phase and one ongoing research project on the traits and characteristics of Personal Trainers in the UAE. You can learn more about this project and its research team using this link.
Within our Research Department, we achieved our initial goal of setting a baseline for Sports & Exercise science research in the UAE. In the second stage, we connect with the country’s leading institutions, universities, and organizations to raise research quality to improve the Emirates Sports sector. We benefit from our network of scientists from four continents in developing this department.”
Ivana Banićević, Ph.D.*
Head of HERC’s Research Department
HERC’s Education Department
This department provides world-class education, including sports and exercise sciences, fitness and sports clubs, institutions, and government entities. Their most distinguished programs are internationally recognized by UK’s OFQUAL and delivered through courses and seminars. Also, they successfully created and registered the newest; science-backed, evidence-based approaches on the National level in the UAE.
‘The last decade showcased turbulent changes in global education systems that affected sports & exercise science education. As a result, small to medium education centers gained an advantage compared to Universities and Colleges due to their ability to transform and adapt to the most relevant and appropriate curriculums to serve the Industry’s needs without compromising quality. I believe that we did a great job creating an interactive cloud-based learning management system that presents modern-day mentoring for fitness and sports coaches and organizations.”
Dragan Stankić, Ph.D.*
Head of HERC’s Education Department
HERC’s Strength Department
It provides various health and exercise-related services, from sports coaching, personal training, kinesiotherapy, and nutrition to gym fitness management solutions. Their highly educated and specialized team offers gold-standard services within the UAE, backed by our Education and Research Department.
”Science to Practice is the most challenging yet significant step in improving the practical domain. Our team believes that tracking trainers and coaches and their feedback from the field are valuable to establishing a robust, consumer-friendly environment where all crucial tasks can be accomplished with ease. The Strength Department is the final product of the other two Departments, where ideas and methods are tested, and feedback is returned to the loop for future improvement.”
Željko Banićević, Ph.D.*
Founder & CEO
Head of HERC’s Education Department
Our Target Clients
HERC’s clientele varies between departments. For example, HERC’s Strength Department has clients looking for personal training, sports coaching, physiotherapy, or nutrition management. Our team consists of trainers and therapists with different specializations, and we use our coaching platform ”HERC Fitness” App, to provide a second-to-none experience and results.
HERC’s Education Department has clients from various industries. Some of them are looking to become certified personal trainers; others are looking to get specialization in the field of strength and conditioning or add a new service to their offering with sports massage therapy courses. As a result, they host many seminars and classes for continuous professional development. On the 25th of June, we will introduce the first UAE-based certification for Blood Flow Restriction training. Aside from individuals, they have periodical requests to deliver customized courses for various companies and institutions within the private and public sectors of the UAE.
The Research Department aims to set standards within the sport and fitness industry based on original research and expert opinions. Their clients in the private sector are companies and sports and medical centers that recognize the importance of research and its advantages. On the other hand, they can support government entities by developing research projects on the National level. For example, HERC has room for functional diagnostics within its center with the gold-standard instruments needed for scientific research.
Founders Story
HERC’s founder, Željko Banićević, came to Dubai in 2014. Back then, there were just a few education providers in the early stage of development. No Institutions or Universities had Sports & Exercise Science programs; hence, he couldn’t continue with his further personal growth within academia. The idea of forming the first such institution was born. After managing hundreds of athletes and clients within the sport and fitness domain and lecturing on various health & exercise courses, the idea was realized four years later. HERC got officially registered as a mainland company with its headquarters in Dubai. In its first year of work, the company faced many challenges, and the fact that it was self-sponsored in its entirety didn’t help, neither the fact that 90% of start-ups fail. In its first year, the company based its income entirely form services such as personal training, sports coaching, kinesiotherapy, nutrition, and periodical guest lecturing on various courses. In 2019, Education and Research Department’s development plan was realized, and the company started developing in all three directions simultaneously. Forming an executive team and recruiting the heads of departments was a milestone that set us on the trajectory of success. As a result of Dragan and Ivana joining the HERC team, they developed their departments in just six months, and HERC became the first sports and exercise science research center in the UAE.
The magnificent trio presents HERC’s executive team, and it is not by luck that they have succeeded in their endeavor. All three have a diploma in physiotherapy and a bachelor’s as a Sports and Physical Education professor.
Ivana is a holder of two master’s degrees, in Sports Science specializing in youth development and motor control and Sports Medicine as Sports Medicine and physiotherapy specialist. She is currently enrolled in a full-time Ph.D. program in Sport Sciences.
Dragan has a master’s degree in Sports Science specializing in Kinezitherapy and is a Ph.D. student.
Željko has a master’s degree in Sports Science specializing in Strength and Conditioning and is enrolled in Ph.D. studies in the Faculty of Sport and Psychology.
Aside from the above-mentioned, Ivana and Dragan are internationally qualified Internal Quality Assurers, and Željko is the Lead IQA for education.
Opportunities for the Industry
The 2030 UAE Development trajectory has an excellent plan for improving health standards and physical activity among UAE residents. Knowing that, many world-class Universities see their opportunity to open local campuses and bring the needed expertise to the UAE. HERC looks forward to supporting the private and public sectors for common goals and developing a long-term strategy.
The Sports & Fitness Industry is constantly growing in the UAE, and a well-rounded, robust system that would bring the private and public sectors under the same roof is necessary. Therefore, we believe that creating sports legislation and a nationwide sports system should be the country’s priority.
In the past four years, aside from accommodating many professional and semi-professional athletes, they have been educating hundreds of sports and exercise professionals. In addition, they worked with government entities such as the Ministry of Interior, Hemaya International Center, KHDA (Knowledge and Human Development Authority), Emirates Schools Establishment, Dubai Police, and Dubai Police Academy.
They presented several projects within EXPO 2020. The most notable ones were:
- The Ministry of Interiors celebrations the 50th year of the UAE with the ”Tactical Strength and Conditioning Drill” organized for 200 hundred students of Dubai Police Academy,
- The LTAD program was organized for 300 kids from local Emirates school
- During the three-day-long project, the YPDM model was presented to more than 700 students from various primary schools
They supported various government projects such as Dubai 30×30 and Positive Spirit Initiative.
Advice to Other Entrepreneurs
We have been interviewed, featured, and mentioned in more than twenty local and international newspapers and media platforms, ranging from independent to government outlets, such as Arab News, DXB BARQ, and Emirates News Agency.
Creating a company from scratch with little to no support is like Elon Musk’s saying ”chewing glass and staring into the abyss. After a while, you stop staring, but the glass chewing never ends”. It takes courage, patience, and hard work. Not to discourage the readers or future entrepreneurs but be ready for constant ups and downs and pain. Ultimately, if you are willing to give 110 %, accept the failure and ride with it, it is possible to succeed. There will be no one to support initially, but everyone will be willing to jump into the lagoon of success later.
Connecting with like-minded people, forming a trusted team, and differentiating good from bad intentions are maybe more important than the whole company idea, as many have these as their braking points.
Staying on track and not taking a faster route is also essential. After initial success, those opportunities often present themselves and lead you to a dead-end if not cautious. Not every great opportunity is suitable for your company’s future. Choose wisely and ask for other opinions.
To find out more about HERC or to get in touch, you can find them on the HERC website, Instagram, Facebook, and google maps.
- Eye Spy: Worldwide Eye Color Percentages - April 19, 2024
- Elevate Energy, Soothe Stress, And Peak Performance with The New UNBEETABREW Coffee Sensation - September 21, 2023
- Chef Bob’s Coffee: A Journey Fueled by Passion - July 29, 2023
