Irfan Tansel

Chief Executive Officer

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Al Masaood Automobiles

With over 40 years of experience spanning across three continents, Irfan Tansel is recognized as one of the ‘Top 100 CEOs in the Middle East’ by Forbes Middle East, and he is driven to disrupt the automotive industry and to create a legacy. Under Irfan’s leadership, Al Masaood Automobiles has been conferred numerous accolades. In 2013, 2019, Al Masaood won the Nissan Global Dealer Award and in 2020, Al Masaood Automobiles won the coveted Global Nissan After-sales Awards, a global award that recognizes the accomplishment of remarkable after-sales performance, excellent customer service, and contribution to Nissan’s business. INFINITI presented Al Masaood with the ‘Outstanding Performance Award’ in 2020 for strengthening the market share in Abu Dhabi. Renault awarded Al Masaood with the prestigious Global Partners Award (P.A.R.I.S. Challenge) in 2020, being the highest accolade for car dealerships granted for exceptional performance in customer satisfaction, and in Sales and After-sales.

Mohamed Jaidah

Group Executive Director

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Jaidah Group

Mohamed Jaidah is the Group Executive Director (GED) of Jaidah Group, running his thought leadership in realizing the Group’s vision in creating economic opportunity for both local and global workforce in Qatar and the region. Established in 1898, Jaidah Group continues to lead the way among the most dynamic and successful family-owned business conglomerate, guided by its fundamental corporate values and driven by its commitment for quality, excellence, and future innovation. Prior to becoming Group Executive Director in June 2014, Mohamed was the Group Marketing and Business Development Manager, since 2005. In his 17-year tenure with Jaidah Group, his primarily focus is leading a senior management team and running a business with incremental revenue and growth strategies while inspiring and managing a team up to 1000 employees. Mohamed was also the catalyst behind transforming the Group’s existing business portfolio while working closely with key partners to explore future investment opportunities. In addition to his role at Jaidah Group, Mohamed is the Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer of sixty degrees, a new concept in communications and advertising agencies. Established in 2013 and founded as an unconventional, and non-bureaucratic organization, the young company successfully leads the market with agility and innovation. Mohamed do sit on the board of Qatar Insurance Company since 2019 and is an active Board Member of Maison de la France LLC in Qatar since its inception back in 2017. Thanks to the efforts of local French firms and groups as well as the French Embassy, its mission is to develop French-Qatari business cooperation. Respectively, Mohamed served in key leadership roles where he was a member of the Steering Committee of Qatar Media Industry Forum for two consecutive years from 2015 to 2016. He also resided as President of Entrepreneurs' Organization back in 2013. Mohamed holds a BA in International Management from ESSEC Business School, Paris, France.

Nuzhat Merchant

Digital and Customer Experience Manager

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Ford Middle East

Nuzhat Merchant is a seasoned digital and customer experience (CX) marketing veteran, having globally launched iconic products with integrated customer-first strategies across global markets in a range of sectors over two decades. She has conceptualized campaigns for brands as diverse as Panadol, Adidas, Mashreq Bank, and Range Rover, all based on data-driven, precision customer-centric strategies. Nuzhat is particularly proud of her campaign to launch the Range Rover Evoque in 2015, which took place in a first-ever digital film. The transformative Ardhi campaign, which dissolved the line between above-the-line and below-the-line marketing. Built on a theme of people celebrating their land. Among other activities, the team launched a website; collaborated with Sony Music to create a single made from the sounds and voices from this land; developed an app that took people to the far and wide areas of this land; and strung together stories of people who had brought pride to this land. She recently moved into the digital and CX side of Ford’s business from a marketing role in which she launched iconic nameplates such as the F-150, Raptor, Explorer, Expedition, and – most notably – the legendary Bronco. Nuzhat currently manages the digital ecosystem for both Ford and Lincoln, entailing platform maintenance and development, user experience based on data and HeatMap analysis, and benchmarking. The other aspect of her role involves developing a consistent CX strategy from the ground up to achieve Ford’s global goal of treating customers like family across all its markets. Nuzhat believes market dynamics require Ford to be nimble, cost-effective, and agile to respect and move with its partner distributors. Nuzhat holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the American University of Dubai. Outside of work, she’s kept quite busy as a single mom to Zurene, 15, and Zoya, 10. She’s also an actor, student of integrative nutrition, reiki healer, writer, and chef.

Sami Amin

Senior Director of Operations

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Careem

Sami Amin is the Senior Director of Operations at Careem since July 2019. Sami joined Careem after the tech company acquired his startup, Cyacle, to help create and execute the vision of the super app, with a core focus on mobility. Born in Germany, Sami grew up in the United Arab Emirates and spent his life between Germany and the United Kingdom. Sami earned a Master of Engineering from the University of Nottingham as well as a Master of Finance from the London School of Economics. Following his studies, Sami joined J.P Morgan as an algorithmic trader for four years before founding his company Cyacle, the first micro-mobility operator in their region, of which he took on the role of CEO and managing partner for three years. Cyacle proved to be one the most successful public bike share schemes in the Middle East and was acquired by Careem, an achievement Sami is notably proud of. Through his work, Sami aims to make a positive impact on society and support the vision of a more sustainable future through alternative transportation such as using bikes for daily commutes. Sami heads the operation team of over fifty employees and hopes to inspire them to achieve their maximum potential. Aligned with the company’s purpose, Sami embraces Careem’s culture and believes he is working alongside great leaders and inspiring talents. He envisions himself spearheading the micro-mobility agenda across the region and supporting the adoption of public transportation.

Moderator

Ramia Farrage

Senior Presenter / Producer

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Forbes Middle East

Ramia is a Senior Producer and Presenter at Forbes Middle East, as well as a Moderator with a long history of hosting a variety of public and private sector events. At Forbes, Ramia hosts the Daily Brief, an online twice daily show focusing on breaking business news. She also conducts interviews with international business and world leaders. From its launch in 2007 until 2021, Ramia led the Emirates News broadcast on Dubai One TV as the Presenter and News Bulletin Editor. Previous to her role at Emirates News, from 2002 to 2007, Ramia presented and produced the program Business Arabia, which aired internationally on CNBC. Ramia has interviewed several world leaders including General Pervez Musharraf, President of Pakistan, Mohammed Khatami, President of Iran, Gerhard Schroeder, Chancellor of Germany and Jimmy Carter, US President. She is a moderator at major events including the World Government Summit in Dubai, the Middle East Investment Forum, and the Forbes 30/50 Summit, to name a few. Ramia holds a MA in Global Diplomacy-International Relations from the University of London, SOAS, as well as a BA in Communications from the University of Winnipeg and an associate degree in Journalism from Red River College.