Today, the world is Hill's playing field, with David Richter up at bat. Which is how two years ago Richter found himself standing and surveying a sight that he will never forget. On his first trip to Dubai, this lawyer/executive was stunned by a place that resembled a boomtown during the California Gold Rush — interesting in that, unlike its UAE neighbors, the emirate's economy is not built on oil revenue.

"In every direction as far as you could see, there were construction cranes on the horizon, and there was the feeling that you were witnessing the global future," Richter recalls. "People say that Dubai is the Hong Kong of the 21st century, and I saw that for myself."

Hill International's interest in Dubai came several years before the current rush. "We saw this coming some years ago," says Richter, "but our deepest involvement has been more recent."