2017 12 Entrepreneur Middle East

Powered by the people The Assembly: Dubai’s community-driven initiative to “make smart things”
The investor’s Pioneering

change
viewpoint Dubai’s blockchain
Investors are out advisor ConsenSys
with their forecasts is creating a community
for the MENA of experts in the next
entrepreneurial generation tech
ecosystem- and they
Venues of
are bullish, to say
the least
valuePaul Evans
and Freek Teusink
The F&B operators
behind Solutions Leisure
Group have fine-tuned
the formula of quality
concepts, key people, and
customer loyalty
9 77231 1 541 008 >
december 2017 | www.entrepreneur.com/me | UAE AED20

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december 2017
CONTENTS
28
Solutions Leisure Group
Managing Director
Paul Evans and Creative
Director Freek Teusink
28 50 36 72
INNOVATOR: INNOVATOR: THE RECAP: START IT UP:
Venues of value Pushing Indian Innovator ECOSYSTEM
Paul Evans and Freek Teusink boundaries Awards 2017 A roaring success
The F&B operators behind Andrew Lipman A look at the winners At its Entrepreneur Day
Solutions Leisure Group have Cadillac Global Commu- of the fourth edition of this year, Dubai Technology
fine-tuned the formula of nications Director on how Entrepreneur Middle East’s Entrepreneur Centre
quality concepts, key people, the brand is staying at the Indian Innovator Awards, (DTEC) showcased why
and customer loyalty. forefront of innovation. which recognized prominent it remains a hub for the
business leaders and region’s innovative startups
enterprises across various and entrepreneurs.
sectors.
62
84 ‘TREPONOMICS:
START IT UP PRO
ECOSYSTEM The future of hiring
Powered by the people LinkedIn’s newest
The Assembly is Dubai’s offerings look set to make a
community-driven initiative fundamental change in the
to “make smart things.” world of recruitment.
36 Wissam Younane, CEO, BNC Publishing, giving his welcome address

at the Indian Innovator Awards 2017
december 2017 Entrepreneur 3

60 YEARS OF ADVENTURE
AND DISCOVERY
681721
523966
LIVE IN THE LARGEST
TOWNHOUSES DUBAI
TOWNHOUSES IN DUBAI
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800 999 999 sobha.com
999 II sobha.com @sobhadubai
@sobhadubai
CONTENTS december 2017
72 DSOA Deputy CEO Shahla Abdul Razak at DTEC’s

Entrepreneur Day 2017
46 58
TECH: MONEY:
SHINY YOUR MONEY
#TamTalksTech Making sense of corpo-
Gadgets and doodads rate venture capital
that you might’ve missed Awad Capital CEO Ziad
out on, sourced by a tech Awad believes that MENA
aficionado. Yes, it’s okay corporates and family
to want them all… and no, businesses have a lot to
it’s not our fault. gain by entering the VC
landscape.
42
66 56 ‘TREPONOMICS: 48
MONEY: CULTURE: PRO CULTURE:
VC VIEWPOINT BUSINESS UNUSUAL Demonstrating value TRAPPINGS
Investors are out with Fighting the status quo Bayt.com’s Suhail Masri ‘Trep gear
their 2018 forecasts for Lina Khalifeh talks explains three hiring KPIs The executive selection
the MENA entrepreneurial about her mission to end every business –small or for the entrepreneur
ecosystem- and they are violence against women large- needs to master in on your list that has
bullish, to say the least. with SheFighter Academy. 2018. everything.
62
LinkedIn Talent
Intelligence Summit,
London,
November 2017
18 Entrepreneur december 2017

CONTENTS
82 86
START IT UP: START IT UP:
WHO’S GOT VC Q&A
We got funded! Farming for the future
The entrepreneurs behind Egypt-based Bustan
Eventtus and Malaeb reveal Aquaponics is taking a
what went into securing socially responsible route
their latest funding rounds. to help the country become
food secure.
52
CULTURE:
DESIGN 51 The Huawei Mate 10
Commercializing creativity
56 Lina Khalifeh, founder and owner, SheFighter Gallery One founder Gregg
Sedgwick asserts that in
the future, the best brands
will invest in creative
60 88 minds- and marry this with
‘TREPONOMICS: TECH: commercial thinkers.
SKILLSET THE FIX
Does your startup need Harnessing momentum 78
to hire a CTO? In the world of technology, START IT UP
Zach Ferres, CEO, Coplex, you’re only as good as your Q&A
offers entrepreneurs next innovation, writes Pioneering change
five alternatives to Gene Jiao, President, Dubai’s blockchain advisor
buying into the hype Huawei Consumer Business ConsenSys is creating a com-
surrounding CTOs in the Group, Middle East & munity of experts in the next
startup scene. Africa. generational technology.
26
78
Salem Rashid Al
Noaimi, MD founder
ConsenSys and CEO,
Waha Capital
Joseph Lubin at
ConsenSys Academy
graduation

MIDDLE EAST
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EDITOR’S NOTE
Kill your darlings

No, not all ideas are good ones
A
s a mentor at this year’s believed in what I had submitted,
edition of Startup and I’d passionately try to defend
Weekend Dubai in No- my words- you can probably now
vember, I got a chance see why I had a déjà vu moment of
to be around a bunch of sorts when I was the one dishing
entrepreneurial teams, all of whom out critiques at Startup Weekend.
were all working hard on building As a result, I decided to respond to
their respective versions of, well, my entrepreneurial mentees with
the next big thing. When I met the same advice I heard from my
them, these budding entrepreneurs professors back in the day, which darlings- your product or solution
were hard at work preparing for was: “Kill your darlings.” must always serve a particular
how they’d present their planned This phrase comes from a quote purpose for your intended cus-
projects or enterprises to a panel often attributed to American tomer, and if, at any point, you’re
of judges at the end of the 54-hour writer William Faulkner, which told that it is not doing that right,
event, and so, I went around listen- goes: “In writing, you must kill all then remember first to not dismiss
ing to their pitches, and then giving your darlings.” This is essentially such criticism blindly, and then
my two cents on how they could a piece of advice for writers, who take it upon yourself to consider it
probably make their case better. In sometimes fall in love with some of as dispassionately you can.
my notes for a few of them, I sug- their words so much so that they There’s a fine line between being
gested that they rethink their idea don’t realize or refuse to entertain resolute about the idea you have in
or model, since I felt they were not the idea that those beloved bits are your mind, and, well, changing or
particularly strong enough in their actually hampering the experience rethinking your idea in a manner
current formats, and so, reworking of the reader- which is, obviously, that it suits your intended clients
them would probably be a better not a good thing when it comes better- knowing the difference
course of action. to writing. This is why Faulkner between the two is key for entre-
Now, criticism is hard to take- I advises scribes to kill their dar- preneurial success.
know this from first-hand experi- lings- the love writers have for
ence back when I was a student what they have created often blinds
learning journalism, and my them to their faults, and this is a
professors, when editing the first feeling that entrepreneurs should
drafts of any of my write-ups, be able to easily identify with. You
wouldn’t think twice before telling are sometimes so enamored of the
me that the pieces I wrote were value that you believe you or your
hardly as amazing as I thought offering has to offer, that you fail
them to be, and that I needed to to look at it with an objective eye,
rewrite them pronto. Such situ- and thus overlook what are often Aby Sam Thomas
ations often had me shaking my rather obvious errors in your line Editor in Chief
fist in the air, especially in those of thinking. And that is why you, as @thisisaby
cases when I particularly loved and entrepreneurs, should also kill your aby@bncpublishing.net

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IN THE LOOP
Onwards and upwards!

GlamBox Middle East gets acquired by investors
consortium from Saudi Arabia
made sense from

many perspectives,
particularly, the
fact that they were
already involved in
GlamBox.”
The co-founders BeyondCapital
mention that the
buyer investors launches in Jordan
group has diversi- The new investment fund is
fied interests in a partnership between Endeavor Jordan
Glambox Middle East co-founders Christos Mastoras, Fares Akkad, media, retail and and Silicon Badia to help develop
and Shant Oknayan hospitality, and the local entrepreneurial ecosystem
aims to drive the
R
T
The MENA startup company’s next phase of growth in ecognizing a need to support all key com-
ecosystem has a new exit Saudi Arabia, the GCC, and beyond. ponents of Jordan’s startup ecosystem, be
that can help inspire the Without disclosing the transaction it entrepreneurs, institutional investors, or
region’s aspiring entrepre- specifics, GlamBox says the current angel investors, Endeavor Jordan and Silicon Badia
neurs to keep persevering shareholders including the founding have joined hands to launch a new investment en-
toward their goals. Glam- team, STC Ventures, MBC Ventures tity BeyondCapital. Launched at an event in Jordan
Box Middle East, a regional and R&R Ventures have sold their in November, gathering key decision makers of the
beauty subscription e-commerce stake to the new owners in a deal country’s entrepreneurial and investment ecosys-
entity, has announced that a Saudi process that is said to have “lasted tem, BeyondCapital is backed with a US$10 million
Arabia-based consortium of investors several months,” and was advised on fund from USAID (as part of its MENA Initiative
-whose details remain undisclosed- by Apostolos Binomakis of Iliad Part- II), and has a mission to provide comprehensive
has acquired the company. ners as an independent advisor. support to three beneficiaries of Jordan’s business
The Dubai-based startup, launched GlamBox’s services launched at a world: entrepreneurs, investors (fund managers),
in 2012 by co-founders Shant Oknay- time when the beauty industry was and angels.
an, Fares Akkad, Christos Mastoras large and fast-growing in the Middle “With BeyondCapital, we aim to closely tackle
and Marc Ghobriel, had previously East, but still had limited online most of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs be
raised over US$4 million in venture presence. “We saw a gap in subscrip- it through improved access to mentors, networks
capital funding from regional inves- tion e-commerce for women in the or capital,” notes Ali Al-Husry, Board Member,
tor bigwigs including STC Ventures, region, hence, GlamBox was born to BeyondCapital, in a statement. “BeyondCapital will
MBC Ventures, R&R Ventures, and service that need in the market,” the also be addressing the challenges faced by inves-
other KSA investors. co-founders recall. “Since then the tors stemming mainly from weak infrastructure
“We are proud to have success- e-commerce market has developed and lack of training targeted at fund managers
fully completed a full lifecycle of a significantly, with competitors enter- and angel investors.” In a note on its key objectives
startup in the Middle East- ideation, ing our space, but with GlamBox and strategies, BeyondCapital observes that while
seed funding with our own capital, being the player that emerged as the Jordanian startups face considerable challenges
building a team, market launch in the region’s leading beauty subscription in reaching an optimal operational position at the
UAE, VC funding over two rounds, e-commerce company with 200+ early stages, there are also infrastructural chal-
building a great product, scaling the brand partners, a large and growing lenges for the angel investors and large funds in
business, international expansion to subscriber base, and operations in the region.
KSA, and finally exit via acquisition the UAE and KSA, there is potential Aiming to address such sectoral gaps with a
within five years,” the co-founders to expand geographically across GCC three-pronged approach, the one-of-its-kind
say. “We feel that we succeeded and into new verticals.” company offers a two-year support program
despite tough challenges.” The exit may be sealed, but looks for entrepreneurs, provides fund establishment
images courtesy glambox middle east | beyondcapital
“The buyer is a KSA consortium of like it’s definitely not the end for support for investors, and will also support eager
investors that was an existing inves- GlamBox as an enterprise as CEO angel investors with training and co-investment
tor in GlamBox,” add the co-found- Matthieu Guinard says in a state- opportunities. While the support to startups in the
ers. “Seeing the significant growth in ment, “We will continue to delight form of mentorship and capital provision will be
the company, the investors expressed our customers and bringing them driven with the help of Endeavor’s network, Silicon
interest in acquiring the company. the best of the beauty world to their Badia, a MENA-centric VC firm based in Jordan,
While we have been approached by doorstep, while exploring expansion will run the investors guidance programs.
numerous potential buyers in the into new markets and verticals”. On- www.beyondcapital-jo.com
last few years, the current buyers wards and upwards! www.glambox.me
Hala Fadel

innovator
Venues
of value
Paul Evans and Freek Teusink
The F&B operators behind Solutions Leisure Group have fine-tuned
the formula of quality concepts, key people, and customer loyalty
By Aby Sam Thomas
W
hen you see the co-founders of Solutions Leisure Group together,
it’s hard to miss the camaraderie and comfort that the duo, Man-
aging Director Paul Evans and Creative Director Freek Teusink,
have with each other. There’s a certain ease, if you will, between
the two, and over the course of my hour-long conversation with
the F&B operators, it was interesting to note how they seemed to
be completing each other’s sentences, or rather, thoughts- one
of them would start talking on a particular topic, and the other would add on to it -and
even complete it- without missing a beat. Now, I suppose this shouldn’t come as a sur-
prise, given that Evans and Teusink have been known each other for more than 20 years
now- but I was taken aback on learning that the duo barely knew each other when they
started out on their journey as business partners, back in 2000, in Egypt. >>>

“We’re interested in
being the guys who
make a mark, the guys
who did it differently,
the guys who got
more customers
visiting their venues
than anybody else.
That shows that we’ve
landed right in the
sweet spot of the
customer demographic
we want, and [that]
we are the venue of
choice.”
Solutions Leisure Group Managing Director
Paul Evans and Creative Director Freek Teusink

innovator
country, and indeed, the wider prise, the experience they had
Middle East region as well. in Egypt proved to be criti-
For the uninitiated, Solutions cal in their long-term success
Leisure Group’s brands include game plan for the Solutions
Dubai hotspots like Q43, Lock, Leisure Group. “The interest-
Stock & Barrel, Asia Asia, STK, ing thing about Egypt is you
and others, and no, this list can most certainly cut your
of brands doesn’t include the teeth there,” Evans says. “We
business that the company had had a transient customer base.
in Egypt- before they moved They would come in, we’d get
to the UAE in 2011, Evans and probably 12 hours to capture
Teusink effectively controlled them, advertise the market
75% of the bar and restaurant to them, represent [to] them
business in the city of Hurgha- in the airport, get in front of
da, their center at the time. them, and then, we had seven
Did they have a goal, then, that days where they could visit
their business would be where our venue. If you treat them
it is today, which is essentially fantastically, they left us in
a hundred-million-dollar F&B seven days. If you made lots of
business? Both Evans and mistakes, and didn’t treat them
Teusink reply no. “I think that, as you intended to treat them,
back in the day, the aim was to they left in seven days. And in
have a good time, if I’m honest,” came a new set of customers,
Evans says. “The aim was not and you could learn again, and
to build a global F&B business, you could go again, and you
not even a regional [one], not could grow again. And it gave
even a town F&B business. We us a great footing to come into a
saw an opportunity to invest in city like Dubai, where you don’t
Freek Teusink,
Creative Director, a couple of projects together, get a second chance. We didn’t
Solution Leisures Group put our toe in the water, and realize it then, but Egypt was
see how that sort of partnership a great place to make the mis-
would be. I had a bit of a busi- takes that you’re going to make
“Freek is able to design some of ness acumen, and a background
in sales and marketing and
in this industry, and you can
learn quite quickly in a town
the funkiest stuff and cutting-edge F&B, financing, and Freek had a very like that. Because every week,
because we have a team that will fill it. large background in producing you get the chance to do it again
good F&B. So, there was no real with a new customer base. In
We have a team of operators that will masterplan, other than to build Dubai, you don’t have that. You
execute it absolutely to the letter.” one great venue. And then build can’t open with mistakes.”
another great venue. Then, But while Evans and Teusink
Evans was on holiday there at argument, not a single [heated] slowly over the next sort of 18 agree that they were, during
the time, and while he was in discussion, and [we’ve got] 32 months of being together, we their time in Egypt, considering
the country, he found himself in venues under our belt.” Evans started to realize that we had a move to Dubai, it needs to be
one of the nightlife venues Teu- pauses for a moment, before quite a good partnership, where noted here that their eventual
sink was operating then- and adding: “It was clearly one of all of the requirements to run migration to the UAE was es-
that was where the two made the best decisions I’ve ever a good F&B business were kind sentially due to circumstances
the fateful decision to become made at four o’clock in the of covered. And then a plan beyond their control- the
business partners. “At around morning!” started to get formulated: we country was in the throes of a
four o’clock in the morning, at Call it karma, fate, or simply then realized that there was a political revolution then, and
some point after a good evening, good fortune, this fortuitous good business opportunity here; the resulting turmoil was too
I agreed to lend Freek some agreement between Evans and we could become the leading much for their enterprise to
money to build a new venue,” Teusink in the dawn led to the nightlife providers in Egypt. We bear. “We had a lot of circum-
Evans remembers. “I woke establishment of the Solu- had some good brands under stances already, where Egypt
up the next morning, feeling tions Leisure Group, which, our belt, we had great customer was never a stable business,”
very worse for wear around 11 since its launch in Egypt, has loyalty, and we had a good team Teusink remembers. “It was
o’clock… I had no recollection today moved on to the UAE as of people that could execute it always ups and downs- we had
of the incident, but I received its home base, with a portfo- properly.” the bombings, we had 9/11, we
an SMS [from Teusink] asking lio that includes some of the While Evans and Teusnik may had a lot of things happening
when can he pick that money most popular (and yes, most have started out without any that really affected the busi-
up… 20 years on, not a single profitable) F&B concepts in the grand plan for their enter- ness. If we would have stayed,

innovator
Q43 restaurant,
bar and lounge
“We’re not building there [to Dubai] anyway. We’ve

got nothing to lose anymore.
any single venue We’re not walking away from
on a profit a 600-person business; we’re
walking away from a business
and loss (P&L) that is depleting by the hour,
statement. We are costing us money by the minute.
building every And we’re not sure if we’re
actually in a safe environment
single venue to any longer- so it was time for
say what can us to go.” Teusink adds, “Don’t
this bring to the forget, during [and] after the
revolution, we lost 85% of the
market, what can business in a week… When
we bring to our your business drops by 85%, since I’ve been here, everyone’s [we faced when starting up in
customers, and it’s time to move on.”
When Evans and Teusink thus
told me the F&B market is
oversaturated,” Evans says. “We
Dubai] was getting somebody to
say, okay guys, come and tell us
how can we make arrived in Dubai, they had a built a hundred-million-dollar who you are, and what you can
them feel.” good track record of establish- business in a massively over- do. We didn’t have any money.
ing successful F&B concepts in saturated market, because we’ve We had to raise capital; we had
we could have stayed, and we Egypt behind them, but that gone after an area that is not an investor that came with us
would have done maybe okay. didn’t exactly pan out into an oversaturated- we’ve gone after from Egypt, and then, we had
But we thought then that now, overwhelming welcome for the middle market. We’ve gone to find some investors that be-
it’s really time to do it some- them in Dubai. The entrepre- after proving that the four-star- lieved in our ability to execute
where else, and do it bigger and neurs remember having to plus [market] is actually the in Dubai. And 18 months into
better.” But given that Evans knock on a lot of doors just to most important sector there is. banging on every door and any-
and Teusink had been working get hotel managers in Dubai And [in terms of] brand loyalty one that would listen, we finally
in Egypt for more than a decade, to hear their pitch, but their and customer loyalty, [we go found that gentleman, and off
how did they ever get past los- experience did help ease up the about] treating our customers we went. Q43 was born, Karma
ing what was essentially their process- Evans and Teusink like, [for] every single dirham Kafé was acquired, Asia Asia
entire business in the country? point out by the time they got that they spend with us, we was designed and built, and
“I recovered with a shower,” to the Emirate, they were con- say thank you for that dirham. the momentum began. It’s very
Evans replies. “It was done.” fident about their skillsets and I think that was a huge sector different today- people try to
It may seem like a rather sim- offering, plus they had already that was missing, and still, it is knock on our door these days,
plistic response to a tortuous identified a gap in terms of the not, on any level, overly satu- so it’s been an amazing four and
time, but Evans and Teusink F&B sector at the time. “Ever rated. So, the biggest challenge a half years. It really has.” >>>
explain that much before the is-
sues that befell them, Dubai had
Paul Evans,
already been on their agenda for Managing Director,
quite a while- and so, the events Solution Leisures
leading to their move out of Group
Egypt allowed them to have no
regrets about their departure.
“If we’d had, still, the size of
scale of business that we had
in Egypt [without any of the
troubles], would I have actually
got on an airplane and come
to Dubai? We probably would
have,” Evans says. “So, when
it was taken away from us, we
actually lost nothing, because
it was gone. And then it gave us
q43 image courtesy solution leisures group
the [impetus], you know: if we

leave now, we’ve left nothing
behind. If we rebuild it again,
will we build it again to the
scale where we can’t leave it be-
hind? So, it was just a mindset
change- we always wanted to go

innovator
“The top priority statement,” Evans adds. “We

are building every single venue
for [us in] 2018 to say what can this bring to the
would be to take market, what can we bring to
our customers, and how can we
Lock, Stock & Barrel make them feel.”
international. So, This strategy essentially
in the middle of explains how Evans and Teusink
have gone about building up the
this year, we began Solutions Leisure Group port-
talking to key folio- and this was something
partners in London, they had decided on when they
first arrived in Dubai, much
New York, Miami, before Q43 was even built.
and Las Vegas.” “Our target was to come here,
and become the premium F&B
fun. And so, we then knew provider in the UAE,” Evans
already, yeah, we should be says. “And my terminology is
here.” In fact, this insistence not [about being] the biggest- I
on keeping their customers never want to be the biggest;
happy –and making sure they I’m not interested in being that.
are having a good time while We’re interested in being the
at their establishment- is what guys who make a mark, the guys
Evans and Teusink account for who did it differently, the guys
Q43’s success, or indeed, any of who got more customers visit-
their other brands that followed ing their venues than anybody
after. From Asia Asia’s welcom- else. That shows that we’ve
ing atmosphere as a fusion landed right in the sweet spot
dining destination, to the bois- of the customer demographic
Lock, Stock & Barrel terous party mood offered by we want, and [that] we are
bar in Dubai
Lock, Stock & Barrel, Evans and the venue of choice. That’s the
Teusink say that people who most important thing for us.” In
Q43, located on the top floors of that you buy. That’s the only walk into an establishment run order to do this, the company
the Media One Tower in Dubai way that you should show any- by Solutions Leisure Group are has gone in for a portfolio that
Media City, proved to be quite body that you’ve got any more guaranteed to both have a fun includes both homegrown
a hit when it launched in 2013, money than anybody else.” time, and be treated with the concepts (Lock, Stock & Barrel),
and both Evans and Teusink Teusink adds that before they best service possible. “If you and a select few franchises as
point toward their eagerness to started out in Dubai, the two were to ask what our venues well. “Primarily, we develop
cater to the middle market as entrepreneurs made it a point have in common, that would our own stuff,” Evans explains.
being key to the outlet’s suc- to visit other nightlife venues in be what it has in common: “We believe that we’ve got the
cess. “I think it offered extreme the city, and they soon found a we really look what our guest experience today, and the skill-
value for money, in a very, very common issue in almost all of wants, and we really treat you set within the group and within
nice setting, without charg- them. “People were not smiling like a superstar,” Teusink says. the team to design, develop, and
ing you the earth to be there,” [while in the venues],” Teusink “We’re not building any single execute homegrown stuff… But
Evans says. “What we tried to remembers. “They didn’t have venue on a profit and loss (P&L) there are occasions when cer-
do was create an environment tain landlords require a certain
lock, stock & barrel and asia asia images courtesy solution leisures group
where everybody felt welcome, concept or probably a certain

and nobody was so busy with brand, which would then put us
what type of shoes you had on, out into the marketplace fish-
what watch you wore, or what ing. And then, there are times
car you valet-ed. And we’ve when a great brand is available
always said that, whether you that you believe you should
drive a Lamborghini, or whether go and get, because it adds
you get out of bed every morn- to your portfolio, it brings a
ing and work hard for a small certain skillset, or concept that
amount of money, you’re all as you don’t have, and helps you
important as the rest. The only to market it.” That last point
thing that should decide the explains how the internation-
difference between the service Asia Asia ally renowned restaurant con-
restaurant and lounge
level you receive is the product cept STK landed in Solutions

Paul Evans, Managing
Director, and Freek
Teusink, Creative Director,
Solution Leisures Group
Leisure Group’s portfolio in short lifespan. Given these two plans are any indication, then
Dubai- it already has a location
“Every single F&B factors, it shouldn’t come as a the new year won’t be looking
open in Dubai’s Jumeirah Beach operator in Dubai surprise that Evans and Teusink any different. “2017 has been
Residence (JBR) neighborhood, wanted STK, and it’s are eager to further grow the an astronomical year,” Evans
with another one in Downtown extremely flattering brand. “I think we’re going to admits. “We have doubled the
Dubai in the works. “Three go with probably a Lock, Stock group in a six-month period.
years, we’ve hunted those guys
to myself, Freek, & Barrel down in Business Bay- That has left a few marks on
down; three years, we’ve devel- and the team who we’re already working on that a few of us- a few sleepless
oped our business to become have worked with us, deal,” Evans reveals. “The top weeks, months, and quarters. I
an operating partner that those priority for [us in] 2018 would said [to my team] at the begin-
guys were comfortable with,”
that they chose us- be to take Lock, Stock & Barrel ning of the year, that some of us
Evans says. “Every single F&B they could have gone international. So, in the middle will not make this year, some of
operator in Dubai wanted STK, anywhere.” of this year, we began talking us will fall by the wayside. [But]
and it’s extremely flattering to key partners in London, New the team hasn’t- they’ve stood
to myself, Freek, and the team Group team have invested heav- York, Miami, and Las Vegas… on, and they’ve done it with
who have worked with us, that ily in this establishment, but, We now have some bandwidth an incredible calmness, and
they chose us- they could have as Teusink points out, all of its to get on some airplanes and I’m super proud of what we’ve
gone anywhere. And the CEO features –be it the sound sys- go and reignite those conversa- achieved in 2017. I promised
was adamant, [telling us that] tems, or the funky lights- have tions, and give those guys the them we’d do nothing in 2018…
‘without the shadow of a doubt, been put there solely to add to attention that they deserve. So, but they also know me! So, they
you guys are the guys that we the customer experience. “It’s as soon as we get Christmas also knew that was a fake prom-
want to have.’” like a theater,” he says, noting and New Year’s out of the way, ise just to get them to do 2017.
In terms of its homegrown that Lock, Stock & Barrel aims January will [see us] on air- 2018, we go again.” Both Evans
concepts, it’s easy to see that to actively discourage visitors planes, and we’ll be getting two and Teusink are fiercely pas-
Evans and Teusink are espe- from leaving the establish- to three leases signed for Lock, sionate about the people they
cially proud of Lock, Stock & ment. It’s a strategy that has Stock & Barrel- probably two have on board, and say their
Barrel, which opened its first definitely worked- besides in America, and one in the Far employees are the ones that are
location at Barsha Heights in being one of the most popular East, will be the plan for 2018.” responsible for driving Solu-
2016, and recently had a second nightlife venues in Dubai at the As should be clear by now, So- tions Leisure Group forward. “I
one open up at JBR. A visit to moment, Lock, Stock & Barrel lutions Leisure Group has had believe today that the team that
any of the two venues makes it has also racked up a slew of a pretty busy year already, but we have working for us is, by a
clear that the Solutions Leisure industry awards in its relatively if Evans and Teusink’s future long way, the number one group >>>

innovator
of individuals ever put together and does… And we want the

to work in this spectacular best for each other as well. So,
industry,” Evans says. “I’m able I want Paul to shine, [and] he
to go out and be the crazy sales wants me to shine.” But given
guy that I am, because I’ve got the story of how Evans and
a team that will back you up. Teusink got to work with each
Freek is able to design some of other in the first place, one
the funkiest stuff and cutting- can’t help but want to believe
edge F&B, because we have a in the idea of fate’s role in de-
team that will fill it. We have a termining one’s success. “We’re
team of operators that will ex- just very, very lucky,” Evans
Karma Kafé
ecute it absolutely to the letter.” agrees. “We just got it right. restaurant
This is also a good indication of We’ve been there through the and lounge
the dynamic Evans and Teusink tough days. We’ve been through
use to work with each other- the mediocre days. We were
and why their partnership has together in the glory days, and to the business, they tend to tunities are unlimited… Where
been the success it is today. if tough times come again, we’ll plan in three-year intervals- I want [us] to be in three years:
“We complete each other,” be standing next to each other and so, that’s the timeline that we want to be the premium
Evans says, alluding to their just dealing with it. We’ll come they share with me now. “We F&B business operating out of
different skillsets and why they through it, and we’ll bounce set out to become the pre- Dubai, internationally. That’s
work so well together. Teusink back again.” mium F&B business in Dubai- I where we want to be next. So,
nods, and adds, “We respect So, what’s next for Solutions believe that we have achieved that’s the next sector- we want
each other, very, very much. We Leisure Group? Evans and Teu- that,” Evans says. “But I [also] to make sure that Lock, Stock &
respect what the other wants sink explain that when it comes believe that we’re only really Barrel gets the worldwide brand
getting started. I believe that, recognition that that project
still, the momentum is growing deserves, with three to five
“What we tried to do was create an by the hour. I mean, it is so venues opening in the next 18
environment where everybody felt welcome, fast paced at the moment; the to 24 months. We’d love to see
and nobody was so busy with what type of opportunities that are coming
our way, the contacts that are
Asia Asia go [international as
well]. We’d like to solidify our
shoes you had on, what watch you wore, or growing, the people are wanting position with a few further key
what car you valet-ed.” to talk to us today- the oppor- establishments, and possibly,
another successful brand devel-
opment in the UAE.”
As for Evans and Teusink
themselves, they are still enjoy-
ing what they do, and that
is essentially what is driving
them ahead as entrepreneurs
building up Solutions Leisure
Group as an enterprise. “This
is very important: one of the
other factors that is binding all
of our outlets together is the
fun we have building them,”
Teusink explains. “We go to
work- we work a lot, obviously.
But I wake up every morning,
and think, yes, I can go again.
For sure, Paul feels the same.”
Evans nods, and explains why:
karma kafé image courtesy solution leisures group
“Because we are doing cool

and funky stuff! We’ve got the
best job in the world- we make
120,000 people smile from
six o’clock [in the evening] till
three o’clock in the morning.
How cool is that? We’re just
Paul Evans, Managing (a bit) older versions of Justin
Director, and Freek
Teusink, Creative Director,
Bieber!”
Solution Leisures Group

INDIAN
INNOVATOR
AWARDS
2017
LUXURY PARTNER
A PRODUCTION BY platinum ally
gold ally
gold ally ecosystem partners

wish you continued success in
the years to come.”
Organized by Entrepreneur
MENA, the 2017 Indian
Innovator Awards honored
businesses and leaders who
have distinguished themselves
and made significant business
growth across a variety of
industries that are key drivers
of respective Middle East’s
economies. The winners were
presented with their awards
by H.E. Vipul, Consul General
of India in Dubai.
Entrepreneur Middle East’s
2017 Indian Innovator Awards,
Wissam Younane, CEO, BNC Publishing
Entrepreneur of the Year, was
a BNC Publishing production,
A
presented by du, with the
t the fourth edition Speaking on behalf of to the rest of us here in the support of Luxury Partner
of the annual Entrepreneur Middle East, region (and indeed, the world) Cadillac, Platinum Ally
Entrepreneur BNC Publishing CEO Wissam that success will come to those Malabar Gold & Diamonds,
Middle East’s Younane felicitated the who think differently, who Gold Allies, Thomson
Indian Innovator winners of the ceremony, work hard, and who stay true Reuters and Glenfiddich, and
Awards presented by du, BNC saying, “This is the fourth year to their ideals and principles- Ecosystem Partners, Dubai
Publishing, as part of the we at Entrepreneur Middle and for that, I applaud you, Technology Entrepreneur
Entrepreneur MENA franchise, East and BNC Publishing are ladies and gentlemen, and I Centre and ArabNet.
awarded prominent business hosting this event, and once
leaders and enterprises again, I am feeling extremely
across various sectors on humbled, and at the same
November 14, 2017 at The St. time, honored, to have some of
Regis Dubai, UAE. A total of the region’s most prominent
22 awards were presented at business men and women to
the ceremony, with all of the be with us here today, many of
winners having set themselves whom are my personal heroes
apart from their peers in as an entrepreneur.”
the region by showcasing a Commending the winners’
commitment to excellence, achievements, he added, “The
and thereby raising the bar of Indian business community in
their respective industries. the Middle East has showed
A scene from Indian Innovator Awards 2017
Winners of the Indian Innovator Awards 2017

indian innovator
awards 2017 Education
Innovation
Nitin Anand
Banking Innovation Dr. Adnan Chilwan

Construction Innovation Mohamed Jafer Musta
Communications Innovation Sunil John
Retail Innovation Nilesh Ved
Real Estate Innovation Rizwan Sajan
Education Innovation Nitin Anand
Logistics Innovation Madhav Kurup
Design Innovation Sneha Divias
Homegrown Brand of the Year Raza Beig
Market Specialization Riaz Khimani
Startup of the Year Wadi.com (Pratik Gupta, Ankit Wadhwa
and Kanwal Sarfraz)
Investments Innovation Shailesh Dash
Business
Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Development Ramesh Jagannathan Visionary of
F&B Entrepreneur of the Year Bhupender Nath the Year
Luxury Entrepreneur of the Year Meher Mirchandani P.N.C. Menon
(accepted on
Brand Penetration Deepinder Goyal
his behalf)
Diversified Portfolio Adeeb Ahamed
Responsible Leadership Tariq Chauhan
Thought Leadership Dawood Bin Ozair
Business Visionary of the Year P.N.C. Menon
Lifetime Achievement Dr. B.R. Shetty
Contribution to Business H.E. Vipul
H.E. Vipul,
Consul General of
India in Dubai
Market
Specialization
Riaz Khimani Lifetime
(accepted on his Achievement
behalf) Dr. B.R. Shetty

Banking Innovation Investments
Dr. Adnan Chilwan Innovation
Shailesh Dash
(accepted on
his behalf)
Startup of the Year

Wadi.com
Homegrown
Brand of the Year
Raza Beig
Ecosystem Influencer
P.K Gulati
Real Estate Innovation Responsible Leadership

Rizwan Sajan Tariq Chauhan

indian innovator
awards 2017 Entrepreneurial
Ecosystem
Development
Ramesh
Jagannathan
(accepted on his
behalf)
Logistics Innovation
Madhav Kurup
Thought Leadership
Retail Innovation Dawood Bin Ozair
Nilesh Ved
(accepted on his
behalf)
Contribution
to Business F&B Entrepreneur of the Year
H.E. Vipul Bhupender Nath

Construction
Innovation
Mohamed Jafer
Musthafa
Design Innovation
Sneha Divias
Luxury
Entrepreneur of
the Year
Meher Mirchandani
Diversified Portfolio
Adeeb Ahamed
Brand
Penetration
Deepinder Goyal Communication
(accepted on Innovation
his behalf) Sunil John

TREPONOMICS ETHICS | ESQUIRE GUY | SKILLSET | MARKETING | PRO
Demonstrating
value
Three hiring KPIs every business -small or large-
needs to master in 2018 By Suhail Al-Masri
For sourcing and hiring talent specifically,
KPIs are a method for managers and HR
professionals to see what’s working best for
them, and how they can constantly improve
the outcome of their hiring efforts.
So, what KPIs do you need to track to
ensure you start 2018 with a bigger success?
Here’s a list.
W
e live in an age where technology dictates nearly 1. YIELD RATIO
all aspects of life, at both the personal and profes- Yield ratio compares how many candidates
sional scales. With the proliferation of various tools pass through each hiring/screening funnel
and technologies that enable startups as well as throughout your recruitment and selection
process, relative to the total number of can-
established businesses to run their operations more didates you considered for a certain vacancy.
efficiently and smoothly, there are also new challenges relat- To demonstrate, take a look at this example:
ing to measurement and effectiveness that constantly arise. let’s say Z-Tek, an SME based in Dubai, is
hiring three web developers. They advertise
Today, data and analytics are widely avail- their job and begin sourcing candidates. Z-
able for businesses to make well-analyzed Bayt.com offers a Tek ends up receiving 90 applicants for this
decisions and build strategies. From sales Pay Scale Analysis position. Of these applicants, 65 CVs match
Report, which
and marketing to communications and is a customized the opening requirements, and are moved
backend, all teams and departments must and detailed onto the “phone interview stage.” Of those
be able to measure, assess, and make well- report including shortlisted candidates, 25 are sent assign-
a breakdown of
informed decisions using “science” that salaries for specific ments to complete as further screening, and
prove the desired results objectively. job titles, specific seven of those were called in for face-to-
Talent acquisition is not different in industries, and face interviews. Z-Tek ended up with five
specific locations.
this sense either. Hiring managers and HR applicants to choose from, and offered the
departments in any business should have By calculating position to two.
set expectations on what they’re meant to Here’s where yield ratio comes in: we can
achieve, such as lower hiring costs or in- your salary calculate it at each stage separately, choose
creasing relevancy of candidates. In order competitiveness which hiring stages we want to compare, or
to do so, they need to use what is known ratio, you we can even calculate the total ratio. The
as key performance indicators (KPIs). maintain your way to do so is by dividing the number of
A KPI is a measurable value that dem- candidates in one stage over the number of
onstrates how effectively a company is attractiveness applicants in the previous stage, and multi-
achieving its business objective. KPIs help to candidates plying the quotient by 100%.
clarify your business goals and objec- and your ability Yield ratio = Output/Input X 100%
tives, they show how effectively you are to retain But how do you interpret the number? The
achieving them, they help everyone in your higher your yield ratio, the better. This is
company stay on track and adjust their
your current because higher yield ratio means you have
efforts, and they keep a record of what’s employees. adopted more powerful and effective sourc-
working in your strategy and what’s not ing, screening, and shortlisting tools. It also
bringing much value. means that you are ending up only with the

ETHICS | ESQUIRE GUY | SKILLSET | MARKETING | PRO
TREPONOMICS
tribute and maintain their competive-

ness as employers.
Without surprise, the second KPI
that every organization needs to look
at is the salary competitiveness ratio.
This KPI evaluates the competitive-
ness of the salary a company offers for
employees and potential candidates,
in comparison to other companies in
the same industry and location.
Salary Competitiveness Ratio
= Avg. company salary/Avg. Competitors
salary * 100
By calculating your salary com-
petitiveness ratio, you maintain your
attractiveness to candidates and your
ability to retain your current employ-
ees. At the same time, you will ensure
a healthy compensation level that is
within your specific market standards.
Although acquiring information
about average salaries in an entire
industry, as well as the ones offered by
𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂𝑂 competitors specifically, is not an easy
𝑌𝑌𝑌𝑌𝑌𝑌𝑌𝑌𝑌𝑌 𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅𝑅 = × 100%
𝐼𝐼𝐼𝐼𝐼𝐼𝐼𝐼𝐼𝐼 task, there are also several tools avail-
able for this metric. Bayt.com offers
a Pay Scale Analysis Report, which
is a customized and detailed report
including a breakdown of salaries for
specific job titles, specific industries,
and specific locations.
By taking this KPI into consid-
eration, you’ll be able to maintain a
most relevant candidates at each stage in order to achieve healthy “average salary,” and you will
of the hiring process. build your own pay scale within the
Of course, in order to achieve a great a great yield ratio, parameters of the salaries offered by
yield ratio, you’ll need to optimize you’ll need to optimize your competition. This will surely
your recruitment process and there your recruitment increase your competitiveness as an
are many tools that help you get there. employer among top talent and will
For example, Bayt.com’s advanced
process and there are also help you retain your top achiev-
filtration, screen out box, and au- many tools that help ers.
tomated pre-screening tests, which you get there.
are available in both job postings 3. OFFER ACCEPTANCE RATE
and CV search, can help you improve ing candidate relevancy, lowering your Another KPI, which you should defi-
this metric easily. Advanced filtra- recruitment costs, lowering interview nitely track as an HR professional, is
tion gives you the option to search for time and costs, and –of course– im- your offer acceptance rate. This metric
candidates according to your specific proving your overall yield ratio. shows you a percentage of how many
criteria, screen out boxes automatical- of your offers were accepted compared
ly, filter out applicants who apply for 2. SALARY COMPETITIVENESS RATIO to the total number of offers you
your job but do not meet the specific Two-thirds (66%) of employees state extended.
criteria set by you, and prescreening that a low base salary is their main Offer acceptance rate
tests, give you 17
the ability to add an reason for leaving a job, according = Number of accepted offer/Number of
automatic screening questionnaire to the Bayt.com Job Satisfaction In extended offers * 100%
for every 14job you advertise in order to The MENA Region survey. Over the The higher the acceptance rate, the
remove underqualified candidates. years, employers have come to realize less effort and money you’ve wasted
By using these tools, you will this fact too. In fact, the same survey on recruiting candidates and the more
automatically eliminate candidates showed that 83% of employers find it effective your recruitment strategy has
who do not have the skillset you are important to research market salaries been. Because at the end of the day,
looking for, improving your qualified when offering jobs to candidates in you want to ensure your entire hiring
www.bayt.com
candidate per opening ratio, increas- order to ensure they master this at- process leads to job offers that are ac-

cepted by the best candidates out there. Indeed, these job attributes, among others,
For your offer acceptance rate, you need A key performance need to be addressed by your job offer to
indicator is a
to comprehensively measure the effective- measurable value that increase the acceptance rate. But in order
ness of your talent sourcing efforts for demonstrates how to make sure what you offer aligns well with
your business. Always look at the bigger effectively a company is what the candidate seeks, you need to utilize
achieving its business
picture. Do not limit your measurement objective. KPIs help a few tools.
to one or two openings. Look at five or 10 clarify your business One of the main techniques to improve
positions at least at a time. Alternatively, goals and objectives, this KPI is choosing the right candidates to
and they keep a record
you can look at how many job offers you of what’s working send offers to. Bayt.com tests, for instance,
extended in a month, a quarter, or even a in your strategy and helps you assess candidates based on various
year and how many of those were ac- what’s not bringing factors. By using categories such as job
much value.
cepted. knowledge, communication skills or even
Now, to improve your offer acceptance personality tests, you can ensure that the
rate, you’ll first need to look at the factors For your offer candidate is actually the perfect fit for the
that affect this KPI and these include: acceptance rate, job, and are much more likely to accept your
you need to offer.
1. Career growth opportuni- comprehensively Another tip is to include an “expectations”
ties Job seekers are not just concerned section when setting up your job application.
with getting a job, they also think ahead
measure the This way you will have a clear idea of what
in terms of where the job will take them effectiveness each candidate is looking for and whether or
and how it will help them advance in their of your talent not you are able to offer them that.
career. sourcing
efforts for your On a final note, and what the majority of
2. Job responsibilities If a job business. HR professionals consider to be the most
seeker doesn’t feel that their job respon- important, is the cost and time spent per
sibilities are what they expect, what they hire. These metrics are what hiring managers
are skilled at, or what will cater to their and HR have to keep track of and report on a
future needs and career growth aspira- regular basis. Why does this matter? Because
tions, they are most likely going to turn this is the sum of all of the above and it is
down the job offer. directly related to the success of all stages
of the recruitment process. At the end of
3. Salary The financial aspect is always the day, hiring new employees must be done
an important one, as mentioned above in within a given timeframe and a specified
the salary competitiveness ratio. There- budget.
fore, you’ll need to focus on your salary of- But keep in mind that improving the
fer and how it compares to the job seeker’s aforementioned KPIs will also bring down
expectation. your cost and time to hire, and prove the
effectiveness of your overall hiring strategy.
Yield ratio ensures you are not wasting time
or money on irrelevant candidates and that
you are screening very effectively. Salary
competitiveness ratio will ensure you do
not undercompensate or overcompensate
your employees and quickly attract top
talent. Offer acceptance rate will also ensure
alignment between you and the job seeker
and streamlining the final stages of hiring.
By using categories such as

job knowledge, communication
skills or even personality tests,
you can ensure that the candidate
is actually the perfect fit for
the job, and are much more likely
to accept your offer.
Suhail Al-Masri is the VP of Employer Solutions at Bayt.com, the #1 job site in the Middle East with more than 40,000 employers and over 29,900,000
www.bayt.com
registered job seekers from across the Middle East, North Africa and the globe, representing all industries, nationalities and career levels. Al-Masri has
more than 20 years of experience in sales leadership, consultative sales, account management, marketing management, and operations management.
His mission at Bayt.com goes in line with the company’s mission to empower people with the tools and knowledge to build their lifestyles of choice.

TECH SHINY | WEBSITE TO WATCH | GEEK | MOBILE TECH | ONLINE ‘TREP | THE FIX
Gadgets and doodads that you might have missed out on, sourced by a tech aficionado.
Yes, it’s okay to want them all… and no, it’s not our fault.
See the whole picture

Nokia 8
Nokia 8 allows you to share a button. Nokia 8 features video recording, and it’s
both sides of the story at the two 13 MP super-slim powered by the Qualcomm
same time! With the first ever cameras -one in the front, Snapdragon 835 Mobile
Bothie feature, you can use and one in the back- that are Platform to maximize
the front and rear cameras powered by ZEISS optics. performance. It runs
simultaneously to capture The dual image-fusion rear Android Nougat 7.1.1, and it’s
memories in way that’s never camera has both color and packaged to perfection with a
been done before. Sharing is monochrome sensors, while polished aluminum unibody,
easy too: you can live stream the front camera is outfitted and a bright 5.3-inch 2K
using integrated Facebook with a wide-angle autofocus polarized display, protected
Live and YouTube Live lens. The phone also features by sculpted Corning Gorilla
features, with just a press of OZO spatial 360 audio, 4K Glass 5.
Nokia 8
Nokia 8
IMAGES COURTESY nokia / sony

SHINY | WEBSITE TO WATCH | GEEK | MOBILE TECH | ONLINE ‘TREP | THE FIX
TECH
All around you

Sony HT-RT40
The Sony HT-RT40 is a bar and tallboy surround through and play music on
stylish 5.1 channel home speakers with dedicated center your smartphone using an
theatre system. With a total speakers to enhance clear app powered by the Smart
power output of 600W, you dialog. The sound system also Remote Commander concept.
can enjoy a true 5.1 surround comes with a Music Center, With additional specifications
sound experience, when which allows you to browse like HDMI out, optical input,
watching movies, or listening analogue input, and a USB
to music. The HT-RT40 is port, there are many ways to
easy to install, and connects play your music, and pump up
to television sets via HMDI the volume.
cables, or one touch wireless
connectivity via Bluetooth or Sony HT-RT40
NFC. So, what’s new? HT- home theatre system
RT40 boasts a thinner sound
Don’t stop the music Square up

Sony WF-1000X Sony RX0
Sony introduced three new how you want the headphones Sony has packed the superior mm x 40.5 mm x 29.8 mm
variations of wireless noise to adjust to your surroundings. image quality of its RX series (WxHxD), the RX0 can be used
cancelling headphones and WF-1000X is also outfitted into the RX0, an ultra-compact, as a standalone device, or as
the standout is WF-1000X with the world’s first activity square camera with advanced part of a multi-camera set-up
earphones, which are recognition Adaptive Sound photo and video capabilities. to create a series of images
completely free of wires and Control feature, which offers It features a 1.0-type stacked from different perspectives.
incorporates Wireless Noise Wireless Noise Cancelling 15.3 MP Exmor RSCMOS image The RX0 is waterproof at
Cancelling technology. The and ambient sound sensor, BIONZ X processor, depths of up to 10 meters,
minimal design lets you preferences to suit different and a wide-angle ZEISS Tessar shockproof when dropped from
place the buds in your ears environments. This smart T 24 mm F4 fixed lens to up to 2 meters, and crushproof
comfortably to tune in to your listening experience, coupled deliver high resolution and to 200kgf/2000N, making it
music, and tune out of the real with Sony’s integrated Sense less distortion. It has an Anti- durable enough to withstand
world. With a 6 mm driver, Engine technology, provides Distortion Shutter of up to shooting in difficult situations
this small device renders big a personalized experience 1/32000 of a second and can where traditional cameras
sound, and using them is for both music and ambient shoot at up to 16 fps, meaning simply cannot go. It’s ideal
hassle-free. As soon as you sounds. that even fast-moving objects in any shooting conditions
take them out of the case, are beautifully and accurately including rain, underwater,
the earphones automatically Sony WF-1000X captured. Weighing in at just or even in sandy or dusty
power on, and connect to the wireless noise 110 grams and measuring 59 environments. Get clickin’!
last device they were paired cancelling
headphones
with. Simply pop them in your
ears, and you are ready to
Sony RX0 series camera
go. WF-1000X comes with a
charging case that gives you
up to nine hours of usage, and
doubles up as a carrying case.
Using Sony’s new Headphones
Connect app, the new 1000X
headphone series allows for
more flexibility in customizing
#TAMTALKSTECH Tamara Clarke, a former software development professional, is the tech and lifestyle enthusiast behind The Global Gazette, one of
the most active blogs in the Middle East. The Global Gazette has been welcomed and lauded by some of the most influential tech brands in the region.
Clarke’s goal is to inform about technology and how it supports our lifestyles. See her work both in print regional publications and online on her blog
where she discusses everything from how a new gadget improves day-to-day life to how to coordinate your smartphone accessories.
Visit www.theglobalgazette.com and talk to her on Twitter @TamaraClarke.

CULTURE business unusual | LIFE | TRAVEL | DESIGN | TRAPPINGS
‘Trep trimmings
The executive
selection
The One for Men
by Dolce & Gabbana
From better goods to better wardrobe bests, every issue we choose

a few items that make the approved executive selection list.
In this issue, we present our selections for a worthy new chronograph
to add to your collection, a scent for the changing seasons, as well as
a beneficial addition to your skincare regime.
FIRE AND ICE

Dolce & Gabbana
With the final season of Game of Thrones for The One seems to have gone all out The One Eau de
Toilette by Dolce
not back until at least as late as summer to quench fans’ thirst. GoT actors Emilia & Gabbana
2019, Dolce & Gabbana’s s new campaign Clarke and Kit Harrington front as the
brand’s new faces for The One Eau de
Toilette and The One for Men promos,
both of which were shot in the streets of
the Italian city of Naples. A classic since Toilette, captured by perfumer Michel
2008, created by Olivier Polge, The One Girerad, it’s a floral fragrance with ma-
for Men is an oriental, spicy fragrance donna lily as its key note, alongside hints
at the heart, with refined base notes of of bergamot and vanilla.
cedar and amber. As for The One Eau de www.dolcegabbana.com
Emilia Clarke in Dolce & Gabbana’s
campaign for The One
images credit Dolce & Gabbana, montblanc, la prairie
Kit Harington in Dolce & Gabbana’s

campaign for The One

Montblanc’s TimeWalker
Automatic Chronograph
Editor’s pick
La Prairie
If you’re going to splurge on a skincare product,
treat yourself to this rich, silky and hydrating
moisturizer. The La Prairie Skin Caviar Absolute
Filler promises to plump up your skin, and enrich
it much like a filler, but without the needles. The
Swiss brand uses its caviar oil and protein for-
mulation to bring firmness and moisture to the
skin. For best results, apply at night, and wake
Montblanc’s TimeWalker up with supple and firm texture. www.laprairie.com
Chronograph runs on a
Caliber MB 25.07 movement
READY, SET, GO!

Montblanc
Taking in cues from vintage auto rac- details to relish in- we particularly like
ing, be it in terms of color schemes or the patterned rims on the crown and
design aesthetics, Montblanc’s Time- edge of the bezel, reminiscent of the
Walker chronograph runs on a Caliber interior lines on the body of a classic
MB 25.07 movement, with a vertically- car. Plus, check out the central red
aligned 30-minute counter at the top, hand that displays the second- its tip
a 12-hour counter at six o’clock, and is shaped in the form of a Minerva ar-
La Prairie Skin Caviar
a second counter at nine o’clock. Of row, a signature look for a Montblanc Absolute Filler
course, this watch has plenty of other timepiece. www.montblanc.com

over the last ten years or so, true hands-free driving

when the brand started out system for the freeway.” The
on its journey to rebuild and functionality -which makes
reinvent itself and its values. sure that the driver is com-
“One of the first things we pletely attentive while it’s
had to do was really deter- switched on- was tried out
mine what is Cadillac, what by journalists along free-
does it stand for,” Lipman ways in the United States,
remembers- this is what and the reports that came
led to the company’s “Dare afterward –with phrases like
Greatly” ethos, which today “the future of driving” and
informs not just its product “reinventing driving” being
portfolio, but also its com- freely thrown about– were
Andrew Lipman, munications and messag- essentially a validation of
Global Communications
Director, Cadillac ing- and this was essential, Cadillac’s prowess in the
Lipman says, for Cadillac to automotive field, even as it
remain relevant in today’s is in the throes of change.
Pushing
market. “We had to define “Certainly, autonomous
what Cadillac meant- what driving is the hot topic right
was [once] a traditional now,” Lipman says. “But a
boundaries
expression of luxury is now a lot of people don’t love to
more modern expression,” he dig into certain realities that
explains. “The booming real- while the technology might
ity is that every single person even be there, the legisla-
Cadillac Global Communications Director who sells any product real- tion, the liability that’s in-
Andrew Lipman on how the brand is staying izes is that, by 2020, four volved in that- [there’s still]
at the forefront of innovation out of five luxury car buyers so much work to be done,
T
will be from Generation X or before we even really get to
his year’s edition all, as Lipman points out, the Y.” And according to Lip- fully autonomous scenario…
of the Dubai In- 115-year-old brand’s tradi- man, Cadillac’s efforts in this Cadillac -and General Mo-
ternational Motor tion of industry firsts started regard are bearing fruit now.
Show (DIMS) saw out way back in 1912, when “We’re really starting to see
iconic automotive its Delco electrical system momentum build amongst Lauded for every-
brand Cadillac showcase its integrated self-starting, igni- all of our brand awareness thing from its cut-
Escala concept car for the tion, and lighting functions metrics with the younger ting-edge design to
first time in the Middle East, for the first time. “That was demographic,” he says. its futuristic tech,
with the sleek and sophis- Cadillac,” Lipman stresses. Cadillac’s positioning as the Escala is yet
ticated vehicle providing “We’ve always been at the being ahead of the pack was another indication
a peek into how the New forefront.” further bolstered earlier of how Cadillac is
York-headquartered brand Indeed, this has been the this the brand debuted its staying true to its
is anticipating, and indeed, message that Cadillac has Super Cruise technology, longstanding spirit
shaping the future of mobil- steadfastly tried to reinforce billed as “the world’s first of innovation.
ity as we know it. Cadillac
has declared the Escala to be
Cadillac Escala debuts
“both a driver’s car, and an
at Dubai International
indulgent flagship sedan,” Motor Show 2017
with Global Communications
Director Andrew Lipman,
who was here in Dubai for
DIMS 2017, noting in a
statement that the concept
images courtesy cadillac | www.cadillacarabia.com
car “lays the blueprint for

the future of the brand.”
Lauded for everything from
its cutting-edge design to its
futuristic tech, the Escala
is yet another indication
of how Cadillac is staying
true to its longstanding
spirit of innovation- after

Such achievements, which So, from a communications
essentially showcase how and messaging standpoint,
Cadillac is really walking the I think that is the behavior
talk when it comes to being that you’re seeing now.”
an innovative enterprise, is As an example, Lipman
also how Lipman approaches gestures toward Cadillac’s
his role as the brand’s Global presence at DIMS 2017:
Communications Director. “I “This looks like a company
would say that what drives that’s a leader.” And Cadillac
me, by way of messaging, is certainly making no apolo-
positioning, when I look at gies about it.
our strategic plan for next
year, it’s [all about] not
Cadillac Escala concept apologizing- Cadillac has “Super Cruise was
nothing to be sorry for. I the natural evolution,
feel like there was a period the natural next step,
tors, quite honestly- are re- was the natural evolution, when it was like, ‘Oh, try it, because the driver
ally putting the safety of the the natural next step, be- it’s actually a good car.’ But still has to be engaged
customers at the forefront of cause the driver still has to this is a company that [has] and aware- and the
everything- we’re never go- be engaged and aware- and built cars that are the finest driver really becomes
ing to beta test on a custom- the driver really becomes the in luxury automotive, and the supervisor of
er. That’s why Super Cruise supervisor of the car.” we need to act like a leader. the car.”
Standing out
The new Huawei Mate 10 series of
smartphones dazzles- and how
“Disruptive innovation often it as an “intelligent phone,”

begins with bold dreams.” with a number of features
This statement is how Huawei that back up this declaration.
has characterized the launch Consider, for instance, the
of its all new Mate 10 series Kirin 970 mobile processor-
of smartphones, and when it’s essentially a mobile AI
one takes a closer look at the computing platform that
devices –the Mate 10, the runs on a dedicated Neural
Mate 10 Pro, and the special Processing Unit (NPU) which
edition Porsche Design Mate allows the device to run 25
10- one cannot be faulted for times better than a standard
nodding in agreement with the CPU. Or check out the dual
company’s sentiment. With lens camera, which Huawei
the world’s first AI processor has engineered in partnership
powering it, the Mate 10 with Leica- you are almost
boasts of being more than guaranteed a perfect shot no
a smartphone- Huawei bills matter when (or where) you
snap it. And in case you are
The Kirin 970 not overtly concerned with
processor what’s going on in the inside
of the Mate 10 (which, by the
way, includes a whopping
4,000mAh battery): feast your
eyes on the aesthetics of the
device, with the 3D glass body of the features that the Mate smartphone space. It may be
images courtesy huawei
offering a visual experience 10 boasts of- but it should be a crowded market out there-
that will satisfy even the most clear now that Huawei has but with the Mate 10, Huawei
discerning of customers. Of clearly pushed its boundaries looks all set to rule over it all.
course, these are just a few with its latest offering in the www.huawei.com

derment. That I was “good

Unlike some traditional galleries,
at drawing and painting,” Gallery One is intentionally
but was given little or no accessible. I dislike the elitism
attention. Needless to say, I associated with the “gallery
world,” and have positioned
achieved no more than aca- Gallery One as a retail destination,
demic mediocrity at school– which is welcoming to all.
it was suggested I should
become a “quantity sur- Much of what we sell
veyor” or an “architectural is based on aesthetics–
technician.” As my children
end their journey through a
it looks beautiful,
school system with a British and will enhance a
curriculum, it’s sad to see customer’s home or
that the system of creative office. To further
suppression has changed lit- intellectualize an
tle. The priorities remain the
same, and failure to achieve
artwork is to mystify,
academic criteria can result and often magnify, its
in children being marginal- importance.
ized, or even removed from
the system. able to articulate the value of
I’ve made a career out of good design, and ultimately
commercializing creativity. I to justify the fees associated
built the largest creative and with creative solutions. I am
branding consultancy in the motivated by the intersection
Middle East and successfully of art/design with commer-
sold it to WPP, the largest cial outcome. That’s why
media company in the world. we named our head office,
I am now focused on build- ArtComm– here, we are im-
Gregg Sedgwick,
founder, Gallery One ing a creative retail business mersed in great design and
in which our mantra is “Art beautiful artwork in order
in Everything”– The Daily to convert such assets into
Commercializing Telegraph has described
Gallery One as one of the top
revenue streams.
This is allowing us to work
creativity three things to do in Dubai.
Recently, we secured funding
with external clients, who
perhaps have a strong brand
In the future, the best brands will from boutique private equity or an important event, and
group Kasamar from Abu seek to create innovative
invest in creative minds- and marry Dhabi– this is facilitating merchandise. At ArtComm,
this with commercial thinkers regional expansion, and will I can realize such an out-
By Gregg Sedgwick eventually lead to interna- come by combining design
tional growth. Headquartered skills with the talents of
W
e are prescribed, young people don’t realize in the Dubai Design District, my commercial, retail and
from a very their creative potential, or we are building a unique cul- financial teams. As CEO at
young age, a sys- even, in most cases, realize tural retail platform, which Gallery One, I lead a prod-
tem of learning they have a creative tal- takes its influence from uct development team and
which prioritizes ent. Not surprisingly, the regional and international art senior management group.
mathematics, languages and commercial potential in and design. Leveraging their skills, we
sciences. Creativity, within creativity is frequently unful- In reality, my strongest abil- are applying artworks, cal-
such a rigid structure, is filled– students uninformed ity is not as a designer or a ligraphy, patterns, and motifs
necessarily marginalized. as to the outlets for innate creative. Rather, it’s first and to assemble a unique suite
As children and as young abilities. foremost my ability to recog- of products that resonate
adults, the conventions of Some 40 years ago, I was nize, work with, and nurture within the region. Our prod-
the educational curriculum one such victim of the tradi- creative talent. I’ve been ucts are sold through over
teach us that creativity is tional educational system. I lucky enough to work with 100 retail channels, and, as a
at best a “nice to have,” and was dragged and distracted Syrian-born Ghaith Lah- consequence, we represent a
at worst, a distraction from through physics, algebra, and ham for some 15 years– his powerful route to market for
mainstream education. It’s biology lessons with a sense talent is a constant source of new talent, as well as estab-
no wonder then that so many of hopelessness and bewil- amazement. Secondly, I am lished artists. We constantly
Gregg Sedgwick is the founder and visionary behind the region’s leading cultural retailer, Gallery One. With the support of his talented team, Sedgwick is firmly
committed to developing the Middle East’s art and retail sector, with a diversity of projects and a distinctive style in branding that crosses cultures with panache.
www.g-1.com

seek new product ideas, galleries, Gallery One is
and new artistic contribu- intentionally accessible. I
tors– through licensing deals, dislike the elitism associated
we then remunerate these with the “gallery world,” and
partners with royalties. have positioned Gallery One
The term “struggling art- as a retail destination, which
ists” refers to creative people is welcoming to all. Much
with talent, who are failing of what we sell is based on
to commercialize their abil- aesthetics– it looks beautiful,
ity. In a sense, my wife and and will enhance a custom-
partner in Gallery One, Jane er’s home or office. To further
Attwell, was one such artist. intellectualize an artwork is Artwork from Gallery One
She was a super talented to mystify, and often magnify,
prop maker for theatre and its importance. countries. Achieving such companies put creativity and
television– it was enjoyable I am excited to think how an ambition will make us a superb design above all else
work, but not at all well paid. far we can take Gallery One; globally important outlet for –it’s no surprise that Apple
She took her talent for model I am confident that the creative talent, as well as is the most valuable company
making to a global market format can work in multiple a commercially significant in the world- their obses-
through Getty Images in geographies. Our vision is player. With Kasamar, our sion with design, aesthetics
Seattle– at the height of her to replicate the Gallery One funding partners, on board, and product integrity would
popularity, she was earn- format in major cities around we have been fortunate to inevitably lead to success.
ing well over US$100,000 the world. I am particularly find a group of brilliant indi- The best brands will, in the
in royalties per annum, for focused on airports, where viduals who share our vision future, invest in creative
around 10% of the effort she travelers are eager to take for expansion. If I am the minds, and marry this with
was committing to her previ- a slice of regional culture creative force behind Gallery commercial thinkers. It may
ous full-time job. I use Jane’s as a memento of a visit. I’m One, we now have sharehold- take a long time for educa-
story as an example of “art invariably disappointed ers who can, in the long- tional systems to shift their
into commerce”– it illus- with the range of gifts and term, realize share value. focus toward the develop-
trates neatly how well-struc- souvenirs at airports, and There is a strong sense at ment of creative minds, but
tured creativity can convert my mission is to establish Gallery One that we are at an I trust that companies large
into commercial outcome. cultural retail as an integral exciting crossroads. Creativ- and small are increasingly
It’s a source of frustration part of the airport terminal ity pervades all that we do recognizing and rewarding
for me that so many talented experience. Passengers will at Gallery One. We leverage creative talent. Young people
creatives do not realize their be offered stylish and con- ideas and opinions from all with creative minds should
potential. It’s an innate by- temporary gifts that exude segments of the business, feel quietly confident that
product of the creative mind regional arts and design– it’s and don’t limit input to those their future can be bright-
to self-doubt and question a format that will resonate in the “creative” department. even if they’re not so good at
the validity of our work. in all continents and most It’s my belief that the best physics and algebra.
My strong belief is that
all people are inherently
creative, and that we all have
valid artistic talent– our
system of education and the
elitism around art, perpetu-
ated by segments of “the art
world” reinforce this sense
of unworthiness. In Gal-
lery One, I would speculate
that we sell more artwork
than any other gallery in the
region. Our sister company,
The Gallery Workshop, is
currently producing over
five thousand artworks per
month. This suggests that
there is a hunger for cultural/
artistically inspired products
images courtesy gallery one
and an appetite for brilliant

ideas– well executed, and
nicely packaged.
Artwork from Gallery One
Unlike some traditional

models are deeply held beliefs

about how the world works.
For example, supply and de-
mand is a mental model that
helps you understand how the
economy works. Game theory
is a mental model that helps
you understand how relation-
ships and trust work. Entropy
is a mental model that helps
you understand how disorder
and decay work.
Mental models guide your
perception and behavior.
They are the thinking tools
that you use to understand
life, make decisions, and solve
problems. Learning a new
mental model gives you a new
way to see the world- like
Richard Feynman learning a
Mental models “The result was, when the

guys at MIT or Princeton
new math technique.
Mental models are imper-
fect, but useful. There is no
How to train your brain to think in new ways had trouble doing a certain single mental model from
by James Clear integral, it was because they physics or engineering, for
couldn’t do it with the stand- example, that provides a
Y
ou can train your “Feynman,” the teacher said, ard methods they had learned flawless explanation of the
brain to think bet- “you talk too much and you in school. If it was a contour entire universe, but the best
ter. One of the best make too much noise. I know integration, they would have mental models from those
ways to do this is why. You’re bored. So, I’m found it; if it was a simple disciplines have allowed us to
to expand the set going to give you a book. You series expansion, they would build bridges and roads, de-
of mental models go up there in the back, in the have found it. Then I come velop new technologies, and
you use to think. corner, and study this book, along and try differentiating even travel to outer space. As
Let me explain what I mean and when you know every- under the integral sign, and historian Yuval Noah Harari
by sharing a story about a thing that’s in this book, you often it worked. So, I got a puts it, “Scientists generally
world-class thinker. can talk again.” great reputation for doing in- agree that no theory is 100%
I first discovered what a So, each day, Feynman tegrals, only because my box correct. Thus, the real test of
mental model was and how would hide in the back of the of tools was different from knowledge is not truth, but
useful the right one could be classroom and study the book everybody else’s, and they utility.”
while I was reading a story -Advanced Calculus by Fred- had tried all their tools on it The best mental models are
about Richard Feynman, the erick Woods- while the rest before giving the problem to the ideas with the most util-
famous physicist. Feynman of the class continued with me.” ity. They are broadly useful
received his undergraduate their regular lessons. And it Every PhD student at in daily life. Understanding
degree from MIT and his PhD was while studying this old Princeton and MIT is bril-
from Princeton. During that calculus textbook that Feyn- liant. What separated Feyn-
time, he developed a reputa- man began to develop his own man from his peers wasn’t
tion for waltzing into the set of mental models. necessarily raw intelligence.
math department and solving “That book showed how It was the way he saw the
problems that the brilliant to differentiate parameters problem. He had a broader set
PhD students couldn’t solve. under the integral sign,” of mental models.
When people asked how he Feynman wrote. “It turns out
did it, Feynman claimed that that’s not taught very much What is a mental model?
his secret weapon was not in the universities; they don’t A mental model is an explana-
his intelligence, but rather a emphasize it. But I caught on tion of how something works.
strategy he learned in high how to use that method, and I It is a concept, framework,
richard feynman image the commons
school. According to Feyn- used that one damn tool again or worldview that you carry
man, his high school physics and again. So, because I was around in your mind to help
teacher asked him to stay self-taught using that book, I you interpret the world and
after class one day and gave had peculiar methods of doing understand the relation-
him a challenge. integrals.” ship between things. Mental Richard Feynman

these concepts will help you because they saw a potential should continuously upgrade Of all the mental models
make wiser choices and take mate on the other side.” and improve the quality of humankind has generated
better actions. This is why If you ask a kinesiologist, this picture. This means read- throughout history, there are
developing a broad base of they might say, “The chicken ing widely from good books, just a few dozen that you need
mental models is critical for crossed the road because the studying the fundamentals to learn to have a firm grasp
anyone interested in think- muscles in the leg contracted of seemingly unrelated fields, of how the world works.
ing clearly, rationally, and and pulled the leg bone for- and learning from people with Many of the most important
effectively. ward during each step.” wildly different life experimental models are the big
If you ask a neuroscientist, ences. ideas from disciplines like
The secret to great they might say, “The chicken The mind’s eye needs a vari- biology, chemistry, physics,
thinking crossed the road because the ety of mental models to piece economics, mathematics,
Expanding your set of mental neurons in the chicken’s brain together a complete picture psychology, philosophy. Each
models is something experts fired and triggered the move- of how the world works. The field has a few mental models
need to work on just as much ment.” more sources you have to that form the backbone of
as novices. We all have our Technically speaking, none draw upon, the clearer your the topic. For example, some
favorite mental models, the of these experts are wrong. thinking becomes. As the of the pillar mental models
ones we naturally default to But nobody is seeing the philosopher Alain de Bot- from economics include ideas
as an explanation for how or entire picture either. Each ton notes, “The chief enemy like incentives, scarcity, and
why something happened. As individual mental model is of good decisions is a lack of economies of scale.
you grow older and develop just one view of reality. The sufficient perspectives on a If you can master the fun-
expertise in a certain area, challenges and situations we problem.” damentals of each discipline,
you tend to favor the mental face in life cannot be entirely then you can develop a re-
models that are most familiar explained by one field or The pursuit of liquid markably accurate and useful
to you. industry. knowledge picture of life. To quote Char-
Here’s the problem: when a All perspectives hold some In school, we tend to sepa- lie Munger again, “80 or 90
certain worldview dominates truth. None of them contain rate knowledge into different important models will carry
your thinking, you’ll try to ex- the complete truth. silos: biology, economics, about 90% of the freight in
plain every problem you face Relying on a narrow set of history, physics, philosophy. making you a worldly-wise
through that worldview. This thinking tools is like wearing In the real world, informa- person. And, of those, only a
pitfall is particularly easy to a mental straight jacket. Your tion is rarely divided into mere handful really carry very
slip into when you’re smart or cognitive range of motion is neatly defined categories. In heavy freight.”
talented in a given area. limited. When your set of the words of Charlie Munger, I’ve made it a personal
The more you master a mental models is limited, so “All the wisdom of the world mission to uncover the big
single mental model, the more is your potential for finding a is not to be found in one little models that carry the heavy
likely it becomes that this solution. In order to unleash academic department.” freight in life. After research-
mental model will be your your full potential, you have World-class thinkers are ing more than 1,000 different
downfall because you’ll start to collect a range of mental often silo-free thinkers. They mental models, I gradually
applying it indiscriminately models. You have to build avoid looking at life through narrowed it down to a few
to every problem. What out your toolbox. Thus, the the lens of one subject. dozen that matter most. I’ve
looks like expertise is often secret to great thinking is to Instead, they develop “liquid written about some of them
a limitation. As the common learn and employ a variety of knowledge” that flows easily previously, like entropy and
proverb says: “If all you have mental models. from one topic to the next. inversion, and I’ll be covering
is a hammer, everything looks This is why it is important more of them in the future.
like a nail.” Expanding your set of to not only learn new mental If you’re interested, you can
When a certain worldview mental models models, but to consider how browse my slowly expand-
dominates your thinking, The process of accumulating they connect with one anoth- ing list of mental models at
you’ll try to explain every mental models is somewhat er. Creativity and innovation jamesclear.com.
problem you face through that like improving your vision. often arise at the intersection My hope is to create a list
worldview. Each eye can see something of ideas. By spotting the links of the most important mental
Consider this example from on its own. But if you cover between various mental mod- models from a wide range
biologist Robert Sapolsky. He one of them, you lose part els, you can identify solutions of disciplines and explain
asks, “Why did the chicken of the scene. It’s impossible that most people overlook. them in a way that is not only
cross the road?” Then, he to see the full picture when easy to understand, but also
provides answers from differ- you’re only looking through Tools for thinking better meaningful and practical to
ent experts. one eye. Here’s the good news: you the daily life of the average
If you ask an evolutionary Similarly, mental models don’t need to master every person. With any luck, we can
biologist, they might say, provide an internal picture detail of every subject to all learn how to think just a
“The chicken crossed the road of how the world works. We become a world-class thinker. little bit better.
James Clear writes at jamesclear.com, where he uses behavior science to share ideas for mastering your habits, improving your health, and
increasing your creativity. To get useful ideas on improving your mental and physical performance, join his free newsletter jamesclear.com/newsletter.
To have James speak at your entrepreneurial event contact him jamesclear.com/contact

Lina Khalifeh,
founder and owner,
SheFighter over various summers and Canada, Washington D.C.,
weekends. After two years in US, Turkey, Czech Republic,
development, which included Switzerland, France, Pakistan,
partnering with different Germany, UAE, Lebanon, Pal-
gyms and saving up “around estine, and 10 other countries
JOD4,000 (US$5,000 ap- across the world. It’s grown
prox.),” Khalifeh officially from a studio into an acad-
launched SheFighter in June emy, as SheFighter now con-
2012, which was the first ducts lectures and workshops
self-defense studio for women on self-defense, overcoming
in Jordan and Middle East. sexual assaults, understand-
“Nobody opens a self-defense ing body language, as well as
and martial arts studio women empowerment. It has
specifically for women; it’s even had lawyers discussing
usually for men, and you about laws in Jordan concern-
have women’s classes, or ing women, as well as building
Fighting you have mixed classes, but
there’s nothing specifically for
partnerships like its recent
one with the Hussein Council
the status quo women,” Khalifeh says, recall-

ing her hesitation as the idea
Foundation to give free breast
cancer tests. SheFighter has
Lina Khalifeh sets out to end violence against didn’t receive much interest now moved into a larger space
at first, having started with with around 20 employees
women with her SheFighter Academy just 10 students signing up at the studio, certified about
By Pamella de Leon for classes. Khalifeh created a 250 trainers, and in the
A
level system for SheFighter’s midst of all that, Khalifeh was
2016 World Health who, like many other abused trainees to enhance their also declared as a “leader of
Organization report women, felt they couldn’t do skills, starting from beginner social change” by former US
estimated that about anything to defend them- to intermediate, and all the President Barack Obama, at
one in three (35%) selves, that Khalifeh decided way to advanced and profes- an event focusing on emerging
women worldwide have to get started on a venture sional levels. In 2014, she global entrepreneurship at the
experienced either that would empower women developed Training of Trainers White House.
physical and/or sexual -both physically and psycho- (ToT) courses to diversify rev- As a social enterprise, Khal-
intimate partner violence, or logically- through self-defense enue streams. Training more ifeh says that SheFighter runs
non-partner sexual violence training. Khalifeh, who has than 15,000 women globally, on a hybrid business model,
in their lifetime. In Jordan, a more than 17 years of training they have given workshops balancing its social mission
2015 project on street harass- in martial arts, has received and certified ToT courses in and commercial profit. On the
ment from the SIT Digital several awards both nation- social impact side, SheFighter
Collections found that 72% ally and internationally for “I wanted women to has partnered with different
of women in the country her skills, and armed with NGOs in Jordan and Eu-
have experienced harassment that background, she started
stand up for themselves, rope for social development
by men in a public space, at conducting self-defense and not just to defend projects focusing on Syrian
least once during that year. classes from the basement of themselves, [but] refugees, orphans, women
At the same time, the 2012 her parents’ house to em- also to be financially with disabilities and rural
Jordan Population and Family power women. “I just wanted independent, and have areas. The academy has yearly
Health Survey found that over to solve a problem,” she says. better self-confidence.” projects with Syrian refugees,
one-third (34%) of Jordanian “I wanted women to stand up
women have experienced for themselves, and not just to
physical violence since the age defend themselves, [but] also
of 15, and nearly half (47%) of to be financially independent,
the women who have expe- and have better self-confi-
rienced physical or sexual dence.”
violence have never sought As Khalifeh’s students
images courtesy shefighter | www.shefighter.com
help, or told anyone, after grew in number, she initially

the assault. In 2004, while considered it as a part-time
at university, Lina Khalifeh job to her marketing role that
came across a friend who saw her lead communications
had bruises on her face after for a manufacturing business.
suffering physical abuse from Though she didn’t know a
her father and brother. It was lot about entrepreneurship
after seeing her friend’s state, then, Khalifeh took courses

having trained more than
2,000 Syrian refugees, with
more partnerships on the way.
As for its revenue-generating
front, besides its ToT courses,
gyms and martial arts centers
also pay a licensing fee to
utilize SheFighter’s equip-
ment, trainers, and anything
else they need. The company
has also started a franchise
system this year- with its first
branch in Ramallah, Palestine,
launched in June, and an up-
coming one in Hong Kong next
Lina Khalifeh,
year. Given its growth trajec- founder and owner,
tory, when asked whether SheFighter
she’s considered seeking ex-
ternal funding, Khalifeh says
that besides a “small funding” notes. “Some of the members “I always partner up with later on, start a venture of her
they’ve used for marketing, even lie to their parents about entities, but discussing own. But a friend gave Khal-
they haven’t considered it. “I training with us, they only tell it with the investors, ifeh a different perspective on
have met with many inves- them they’re going to the gym, things. “He told me, ‘If you
they must be open-
tors, but I didn’t really find but the truth is, they come to don’t start now, you will never
the right investor,” Khalifeh SheFighter.” When such cases
minded about the idea of start. And if you start later,
notes. “I don’t think we only arise, Khalifeh says that it’s women empowerment. will you have the energy for
need money to expand, we important to have an open Because, usually, they all of this? Start now in your
need knowledge and informa- mind, and whenever she’d are more concerned early 20s.’ And I told him, ‘I
tion as well… I always partner get involved in such mat- with technology, and don’t have enough knowledge,’
up with entities, but discuss- ters, she would often invite they’re looking for fast and he told me, ‘It’s okay,
ing it with the investors, they the male guardian to discuss, money- they don’t think start [and], you’ll get knowl-
must be open-minded about and get them to understand it’s more about spreading edge later on.’ I thought about
the idea of women empower- that SheFighter provides a awareness.” it, [and I realized], I don’t
ment. Because, usually, they safe atmosphere that allows have anything to risk, to lose.
are more concerned with women to empower them- positive feedback that makes And if I fail, it’s fine, I’ll learn.
technology, and they’re look- selves. According to Khalifeh, all the difference- especially So that’s how I usually look at
ing for fast money- they don’t SheFighter is still suffering when she’s at the lowest of things. You start; you’re not
think it’s more about spread- from the notion that self- moments, Khalifeh says. From perfect. You don’t even have
ing awareness. It takes time, defense classes aren’t meant hearing stories of how a sev- to have degrees in differ-
there are a lot of challenges, for women. At an event in Jor- en-year-old girl stood up to a ent fields; you just start and
and this is a women empow- dan some time ago, Khalifeh bully, to teenagers and adults learn through the process.”
erment business, so you have was told, “’you cannot solve who feel confident of knowing And this is the same phi-
to have the right partners.” violence with violence.’ And I what to do on situations that losophy Khalifeh uses to grow
As SheFighter continues to told them: ‘This is called self- may need them to use their SheFighter. “It’s a learning
scale, Khalifeh notes that the defense! We have hundreds of training, Khalifeh says, “I feel journey, and if you fail or face
company has also had its fair martial arts studios for boys; really happy that these little challenges, it’s actually also
share of challenges. One of the nobody ever told them that girls are being empowered. I’m a learning [instance] for you
obstacles Khalifeh has been this is violence. But when you always happy with the impact to solve that problem. There’s
facing are rising taxes for She- have one studio that is just that I’m giving to the society.” always problems, and there’s
Fighter, which are increasing specifically for girls, now you Looking back at her entre- always solutions. It’s just how
for fitness centers and educa- tell me, [we’re teaching] girls preneurial journey, Khalifeh to get to the right solution.”
tional centers in Jordan. Legal how to be violent?’” Khalifeh recalls her hesitation as she With a mission of getting
issues are also something she notes that it’s often in the considered the risks when SheFighter licensed in 5,000
and her team have to tackle, Middle East that she has to starting up SheFighter. She locations, and a minimum of a
most of which arise because face these kind of criticisms, was in her early 20s then, hundred SheFighter branches
as some of the girls and wom- which is starkly different to and at the time, she felt there per country, it’s clear that
en learn self-defense, their the feedback SheFighter gets wasn’t much support for Khalifeh has a grand vision for
husbands or fathers aren’t in other countries, like, say, young entrepreneurs, and that herself and her enterprise. “I
for it. “We’re still in a male- Hong Kong, Switzerland, and it was smarter to gain work want to train women globally,”
dominated society,” Khalifeh the Netherlands. And it’s the experience first, and then, she declares.

money ask the money guy | vc viewpoint | your money | ECON
2. Choose deals (smartly) investing, it may come as an

Careful target selection is actual surprise to many to
likewise critical to skew the realize that the returns for
probabilities in favor of the VC funds are often moderate,
investor. While the criteria since a smart diversification
for making such selections strategy automatically leads
are vast, a good advisor will to more averaged returns.
be able to provide you with Indeed, while one invest-
detailed analysis, supported ment can return many times
by reliable facts and figures, the initial expenditure, this
to help you make smart deci- disproportionate return
sions. needs to pay for the many
investments that fail, and the
3. Filter opportunities net result comes back closer
Just as having a very diversi- to the mean. This is particu-
fied portfolio of startups larly the case when you take
reduces your risk, so is filter- into account the length of
ing a substantial number of time it takes for a startup
targets increases your win- to be sold, and the fact that
ning chances. Such a strategy VC investors often need to
will serve to sharpen the participate in subsequent
Making sense
expertise and the instincts rounds (which leads to lower
of the investor or portfolio returns) to continue support-
of corporate
manager. It is routine to hear ing their companies, and en-
VC investors saying that they courage additional investors
venture capital
review three to five different to join the cap table.
opportunities per day, while However, not all players
they may only make one or in the VC game are bound
Corporates and family businesses have a lot two investments per month. by the same rules. While a
to gain by entering the VC landscape Just like in house hunting, financial VC investor can only
By Ziad Awad the more you see, the more bring cash to the company,
I
likely you are to recognize as well as some expertise in
n the last three years, tors, or venture capitalists. that rare gem. the sector (subject to the VC
25% of all venture But as every wise investor investors time availability to
capital (VC) investments knows, for every winning VC 4. Be efficient support the company), cor-
globally were made by investment, there can be as The activity of filtering porates or family groups with
corporates. This invest- many as 10 or 20 that offer targets and executing invest- diversified business interests
ment activity is known as little, if any, returns, as some ments must also be per- have much more to bring to
corporate VC (CVC), and companies get sold for no formed in a time and cost- the table.
in my opinion, may be one more than what the investors efficient manner for it not to Indeed, a corporate
of the smartest investment put into it, or fail completely. defy the purpose of having a investing in a startup in its
avenues today. In order to emerge as a portfolio of many (generally sector or a related sector
It is no secret that tech- winner in the face of such each of them small) invest- can make a fundamental
nology today is one of the challenging odds, investors ments. Doing so will help change to the business plan
most exciting asset classes. should consider applying the keep costs down, and any of the startup, and in turn,
Founders and investors in following strategies: returns firmly intact. significantly increase its
technology companies have chances of success, if not
generated some of the biggest 1. Spread risk 5. Structure deals guarantee them:
fortunes in the world. The Constructing a highly diver- Execution is, of course, key,
most significant capital ap- sified portfolio is key. If you and structuring can be very 1. The startup could be a
preciation is enjoyed by early have less than 10 invest- helpful here to reduce risks, supplier to the corporate
investors, while those who ments in your portfolio, the and increase returns for the In this scenario, the corpo-
invest after a company goes probabilities are stacked VC investors. After all, they rate can accompany its in-
public also stand the chance against you, and you could are often the only ones put- vestment with a commercial
of making attractive returns, own only losers. The larger ting actual cash into the com- agreement where the startup
as evidenced by the recent the number of investments, pany, while the founders are enjoys a guaranteed increase
performance of the world’s the better. One of the most keeping the majority of the in its revenues and profits.
top tech stocks. Depend- famous global VCs, 500 equity, in exchange for their The investing corporate,
ing on the stage they invest, Startups, has built itself up great ideas and hard efforts. in turn, reaps the benefits
early investors are known as on the basis of this invest- With all the excitement through an appreciation in
seed investors, angel inves- ment strategy. around technology and VC the valuation of the startup,

and the dividend flow result- technology is essential to tions, such as corporate VCs 3. Stifling innovation
ing from the profits. This the corporate’s success (or tend to be, these can be very (instead of encouraging it)
corporate support for the even survival), and choose to disparate teams with differ- There can also be the temp-
startup also has a multiplier acquire it completely, hence ent cultures, not to mention tation for the corporate to
effect on other clients, who completing the investing reporting lines. Getting these take control, or even fully
are encouraged by the corpo- cycle by fully integrating the various lines of business acquire the startup. While
rate VC’s endorsement, and startup’s team and innova- working together requires in some cases this has to
in turn become more com- tions into its structure. strong leadership, clear be done (for example if the
fortable in giving the young As you can see, in all these strategy, and a commonality startup becomes indispen-
startup more business. scenarios, the probability of vision that is found in the sable to the corporate), this
of success of the startup is best in class institutions. should only occur under
2. The startup could be a significantly increased by exceptional circumstances.
customer of the corporate receiving the investment 2. Red tape and Corporate culture can often
In this case, the corporate from the corporate VC. Not bureaucracy stifle innovation, and it may
can lock in attractive com- only does the relationship The size of the corporate be impossible for the found-
mercial terms with a high strengthen the predict- backing the corporate VC, ers and startup managers to
growth new customer, which ability of the startup’s cash while a strength can also be function efficiently in that
could become a significant flows, but it also reinforces a handicap. Getting a very context.
client relatively quickly. its reputation in the market large, often bureaucratic,
By supporting the startup, overall, resulting in a virtu- institution, to collaborate In conclusion, corporates
the corporate VC is helping ous win-win cycle. with a startup has many can generate disproportion-
create new outlets for its As such, it may be surpris- challenges. The startup man- ate benefits and returns
products and services, and ing that there are not more agers get frustrated with the by investing in technology
is getting embedded with corporate VC programs bureaucracy and slow pace startups via corporate VC
the customers of the future around the world. Of course, of the corporate, and the programs. In addition to
ahead of its competitors. there are several challenges corporate executives baulk at the strong returns resulting
Needless to say that the that need to be overcome to the chaos, disorganization, from a successful technology
influence that comes with ensure the success of a CVC and breakneck pace that are investment, the corporate
being a principal shareholder program: the hallmark of successful can generate additional
can be leveraged to maximize startups. returns on its balance sheet
the benefits of the relation- 1. Management and via increased revenues,
as every wise investor
ship, subject of course to reportage reduced costs, or accelerate
knows, for every winning VC
the appropriate corporate All the challenges faced by investment, there can be as
innovation and early access
governance rules. the traditional financial VCs many as 10 or 20 that offer to new technologies. This can
also apply to the corporate little, if any, returns, as some only be achieved via careful
3. The startup could be VC: good target selection, companies get sold for no execution and strong team
a potential competitor portfolio diversification, more than what the investors work between the corporate’s
of the corporate VC- or and efficient execution. But put into it, or fail completely. teams and their advisors.
even a massive disruptor there is an additional layer of
Indeed, many behemoths of execution risk that refers to
industry were taken down the corporate VC: the com-
by startups which grew very mercial relationship must
fast and made past business be managed appropriately to
models obsolete. Investing ensure its success. The ben-
in one’s disruptors could be efits envisaged at the time
an excellent hedge against of the investment need to be
such “Black Swan” events. taken forward into execution
The corporate could learn through the life of the invest-
from the startup, and include ment and potentially beyond,
some of its innovations to reap the expected returns.
into its business model. It Such implementation is not
can also remain a passive trivial as it requires a smooth
partner, and benefit from the coordination between the
startup’s success as merely investing teams, and the
an investor. Or, it could commercial and operational
decide that the startup’s teams. In large organiza-
Ziad Awad is the CEO of Awad Capital, an independent Dubai-based, DFSA-regulated financial services firm specializing in mergers and acquisitions
(M&A), corporate finance and capital markets advisory. Ziad has 23 years of investment banking experience, and has advised on around US$100
billion of M&A and half a trillion of capital markets transactions. Prior to founding Awad Capital in 2013, Awad held a number of senior positions
with Bank of America and Merrill Lynch in Dubai, and with Goldman Sachs in Dubai, London and Paris. His career spans M&A, with specializations in
technology, education, healthcare, logistics, industrials, energy and power, as well as the debt capital markets and trading businesses. Follow him on Twitter
@awad_ziad. www.awadcapital.com

needs of most startups, and needs equipment, insurance,

the differences become appar- benefits and a consistent
ent. CTOs of major companies paycheck- particularly the
aren’t churning out code, good ones. Recruiting and
and slamming energy drinks training are a significant
to hit launch dates. They’re investment, and developers
real executives who man- might be more common than
age “boring stuff,” such as CTOs, but they’re not bounti-
people, policies and budgets. ful. According to the World
They’re much more likely to Economic Forum, only 13%
sip sparkling water than chug of MENA graduates have IT
a Red Bull. (I’m going to guess skills. You’ll still have to do
your startup isn’t flush with some digging, but you should
Perrier.) manage to unearth some true
The need for someone to gems.
code a product is not the
same as the need for a CTO or
Does your
2. Negotiate a part-time
technical co-founder. Start- deal for equity
ups can build tech without a Negotiate a part-time con-
startup partner dedicated to oversee-

ing that side of the business.
tract with someone who has
the right skills, offering cash
need to hire
Instead of competing for lim- instead of equity. This will
ited high-level talent -likely allow your leadership team
paying a hefty price along the to maintain control over the
a CTO? way- founders should take a

minute to understand their
needs and options for solving
business and keep cash flow
strong.
That said, there is always
(Short answer: no.) any tech gap. the risk of part-time staffers
leaving at any moment for a
Instead of buying into the hype Five better ways to full-time gig. Most qualified
surrounding CTOs and the startup scene, meet your startup’s workers might also be reluc-
consider these five alternatives to tech needs tant to take on this part-time
adding a full-time executive partner Rather than waste your time position without significant
and money chasing down the compensation. In addi-
By Zach Ferres
mythical “work for equity” tion, part-timers definitely
technical co-founder, con- won’t be as invested in your
D
espite endless exists in the region. sider these five alternatives: company as a full-time staffer
reports that claim This talent gap has made it might be. If things start to
every business more difficult than ever for 1. Hire developers and pay head south, they won’t have
needs to hire a startups in the Middle East them any problem jumping ship.
Chief Technology to find qualified technical co- CTO-level talent might be Airbnb, one of the most
Officer, the reality founders. While the demand scarce, but developer-level successful startups in recent
is not so simple. dramatically outstrips the talent is much easier to find. times, has managed to get
Finding a qualified startup supply, this doesn’t neces- Hiring skilled developers along fine with a vacant CTO
Chief Technology Officer in sarily mean a skilled CTO is rather than adding a co- slot. Its former CTO, Nathan
the Middle East and North necessary for every company. founder allows startup teams Blecharczyk, now works as
Africa has become nearly For many startups, alternative to retain their equity and a Chief Security Officer, and
impossible. The startup world solutions can be better than build culture the way they only puts his CTO hat on
of the MENA region is blos- bringing on a full-time CTO. want to. In-house developers when necessary. In other
soming, according to a report also make communication words, it’s possible (even
by Bloomberg, with US$3 bil- The real job of easier, tightening feedback for late-stage startups) to
lion raised over the past year. startup CTOs loops, and keeping teams as succeed with part-time CTO
As more startups launch, It might surprise you, but lean as necessary to make help.
the demand for tech talent CTOs of startups are not the progress.
increases- but not the supply. same as CTOs at larger com- Like any option, hiring 3. Outsource the role
A skills report conducted by panies. In truth, they’re not developers does have its Contract labor isn’t just for
Bayt.com found that 65% of really CTOs at all. Compare drawbacks. Managing more coding duties- it can also
employers and 59% of job Monster.com’s sample job employees can eat up your work well for executive tasks.
seekers believe a skills gap description of a CTO with the time, and each new hire Contractors, especially those
Zach Ferres is the CEO of Coplex, a startup accelerator that works with non-coding subject matter expert founders to start software companies.
He is also a founding partner at Coplex Ventures. Follow Zach on Twitter @zcferres. www.coplex.com

outside the country, are typi- the final bill comes due, A launchpad for
cally far cheaper than hired
staff members. Outsourc-
Fueled found that startups
could spend up to $1.5 mil-
Saudi entrepreneurs
ing work allows founders to lion just to develop an app. Arabnet Riyadh will have four forums
keep their equity and most of housed within its event this year
their cash, all while accessing 5. Seek out a startup
larger teams to accomplish studio
For Saudi Arabia, the past tech, Innovation and Invest-
more in a short period of Startup studios provide
year has been all about a ment, and Digital Commerce.
time. Long before it reached one-stop shop services for en-
new direction, with focus on The Digital Transformation
a $3 billion valuation, Slack trepreneurs who have limited
the growth of non-oil sec- track delves into the impact
outsourced much of its design tech experience. These stu-
tors and a series of efforts of the NTP on the digital and
work, finishing important dios (the good ones, at least)
to stimulate the economy entrepreneurship ecosys-
pieces such as its website and understand the specific needs
under the National Trans- tems of the nation, and the
early product prototype in of software startups, offering
formation Program (NTP). Adtech forum tackles a me-
about six weeks. product and project manage-
In line with this objective, dium on everyone’s agen-
However, freelancers aren’t ment support and possibly
ArabNet Riyadh -one of the da- mobile video content.
always the perfect solution. even investment dollars. In
largest digital gatherings in Innovation and Investment
Most contractors are more addition to tech services, they
the Kingdom- is now bring- is set to be a dedicated track
transactional than visionary. provide resources for design,
ing together Saudi Arabia’s focusing on the invest-
They might help founders content and marketing- along
government, corporations, ment landscape, while the
build specific products, but with networking opportuni-
and over 1,600 regional and Digital Commerce track will
they likely won’t contribute ties.
global digital profession- highlight the latest trends
a lot to your overall product Typically, studios ask for
als and entrepreneurs, to in online commerce in the
strategy. They will take your some equity in return for
discuss the opportunities Kingdom and larger MENA.
orders and execute, but the their services. Founders
in the fast-evolving digital The delegates will also get
end product will represent sometimes get attached to
economy of the Kingdom. an opportunity to connect
the quality of your initial studio team members who
Set to take place on Decem- and learn from experts by
instructions. Factor in time aren’t their own, which makes
ber 11-13, 2017 at the Burj exhibiting their products
zone differences, and free- it difficult down the road
Rafal Hotel Kempinski in the at ArabNet TechFair, an
lancers can pose a risky when it’s time to leave the
Saudi capital, ArabNet Ri- accompanying exhibition to
proposition. Provided you’re nest. Some studios also out-
yadh is being hosted by King the event, which will feature
able to navigate this minefield source development, so keep
Abdulaziz City for Science over 60 regional and global
of potential problems, free- tabs on how you’re working
and Technology (KACST), companies.
lancers can be a tremendous together, as well as who is do-
with the support of Badir With ArabNet Riyadh dis-
asset. ing the work.
Program for Technology cussing the digital future of
MENA startups have more
Incubators, and sponsors the nation, over 80 speakers
4. Partner with a local options than ever when it
including Saudi Telecom will join the event this year,
agency or development comes to accelerators- some
Company, InspireU, Al Ahli which includes Amjad Ah-
shop of which resemble the startup
Bank, and others. mad, founder and Managing
As a middle ground between studio offering. More than 15
Going a notch higher from Partner, Precinct Partners,
hiring a freelancer and bring- new accelerators launched in
the previous editions, this Omar Almajdouie, Founding
ing on a full partner, consider 2016, according to Wamda,
year’s ArabNet Riyadh plans Partner, Raed Ventures, Am-
partnering with a strong local meaning the region now has
to host four forums within bareen Musa, founder and
agency or dev shop. These more than 52 accelerators for
the event on the themes of CEO, Souqalmal.com, among
companies provide high- founders to consider.
Digital Transformation, Ad- many others.
quality code from experienced Finding the sweet spot
workers, as well as pools of between business vision and
resources to accomplish jobs technical knowledge can be
quickly. difficult. Some co-founders
They also tend to be expen- ooze technical savvy but lack
sive and transactional, like business acumen- others have
freelancers, often showing the opposite problem. Instead
more interest in getting a of buying into the hype
predefined project from point surrounding CTOs and the
A to point B than seeing your startup scene, consider these
startup move to success. De- five alternatives to adding a
pending on the firm, smaller full-time executive partner.
image courtesy arabnet riyadh
teams might have bigger cli- You can save yourself from a
ents that push lower-paying lengthy search process and
people down the priority list. plenty of potential headaches
They’re also not cheap. When along the way. A scene from Arabnet Riyadh 2016

LinkedIn Talent Intelligence Summit, London, November 2017
The future of hiring key questions that businesses

need from them. Before, it was
LinkedIn’s newest offerings look set to make a fundamental change a conversation of opinions,
and we believe that we can
in the world of recruitment By Tamara Pupic move it to a conversation
L
of data. And, the holy grail
inkedIn CEO Jeff President Talent Solutions, talked with him on the side- of recruiting measurement
Weiner kicked off Careers and Learning, John lines of the event. “Until now, is being able to track which
the LinkedIn Talent Jersin, Head of Recruiter and there wasn’t a good tool to sources produce you your top
Intelligence Sum- Sourcing Products, and Eric understand the many different performers.” While LinkedIn’s
mit, held at London’s Owski, Head of Product, Tal- information about them- advanced technological solu-
Tobacco Dock in early ent Insights and Talent Brand, where they work, where they tions do offer scope for a fun-
November, stating LinkedIn, used the event to went to school, what they damental change in the world
that the three big trends unveil details of its new Talent expect to be paid, which com- of recruitment, do not fear
currently shaping the global Insights product. It is a self- panies are winning or losing that a robot will soon have a
workforce -AI and automa- service tool aimed at helping with them. We believe that say in our career trajectory.
tion, skills gaps and the rise of talent professionals in analyz- this [Talent Insights product] Indeed, the world’s largest
independent work- are about ing the activity of LinkedIn’s will be the first tool that al- professional network actually
to dramatically transform the more than 530 million global lows heads of HR and heads elevates the human element
way employers hire, develop, members by providing two of recruiting to answer the crucial to making good hires
and retain talent. And with types of insights: The Talent
that in mind, it should come Pool report, providing detailed LinkedIn Talent Intelligence Summit, London,
as no surprise that the world’s information on specific popu- November 2017
largest professional network lations of talent hiring manag-
on the internet, which has ers are interested in, and The
more than 530 million mem- Company report, showing how
bers in over 200 countries well a company is doing at at-
and territories (of which more tracting and retaining talent.
than 166 million are in the “We think that heads of
EMEA region), will be riding talent in companies will be
that wave. In the ensuing expected to have a deeper
images courtesy linkedin
series of presentations by the understanding of the market

company’s top executives, landscape of talent around
including Dan Shapero, Vice them,” Shapero says, as I

-human instincts- by provid- shortlist of people to the one date. All three of those things
ing recruiters with relevant hire, but we can use insights are very human skills, which How to land your
data on talent pool and com-
panies to help inform their
to bring the list down to a
small number, versus having
we can amplify, and make
someone more effective- but it next job on LinkedIn
both short- and long-term recruiters spend a lot of their is not something an algorithm Daniel Shapero,
talent decisions. LinkedIn says time on this.” is going to solve.” Vice President of Talent
that more than three million In an email interview, Ali Solutions, Careers and
talent professionals actively “on most occasions, Matar, Head of LinkedIn Learning, LinkedIn
use the network every day, recruiters focus on ‘what EMEA Emerging Markets,
and more than 200,000 use to look for,’ instead of Middle East and Africa, adds
its recruiting tools to discover ‘who to look for,’ and that it is important that re-
and hire talent. LinkedIn is happy to have cruiters show some emotions
Recruiters spend the major- and praise to the applicants,
ity of their time reviewing
changed this thinking as their outreach is perceived
applicants’ profiles- just on
with tools such as as a compliment, making them
LinkedIn, there are more than LinkedIn Recruiter that more likeable. He adds that
11 million active job listings, uses smart matching according to LinkedIn’s annual
while the number of job view- algorithms and talent talent survey Inside the Mind Daniel Shapero
ers has increased 70% year- pool matching that of Today’s Candidate, 94%
over-year, with more than 20 highlight best matching of candidates are open to new
million job seekers visiting candidates.” job opportunities and 61% 1. Have a great profile
LinkedIn Jobs every week. of them feel flattered when “You can start by looking at people
Of them, nearly 14 million do While such intelligent tech of- recruiters reach out. Further- that have the job you want and
submit their applications, a ferings are going to definitely more, 58% of people are more see what kinds of things they talk
30% increase year-over-year. help with the hiring process, likely to respond to a message about. You might want to talk
Little wonder then as to why a Shapero believes that recruit- if it’s coming directly from about the same things in order to
carefully selected and invited ers will still need to rely on the hiring manger, with the be found by the same recruiters.”
group of recruiters at the their instincts, which, suppos- report suggesting that this is
LinkedIn Talent Intelligence edly, should never lead them due to the increased authority 2. Use LinkedIn’s Open
Summit was eager to hear how astray, when making decisions and decision-making ability of Talent program
LinkedIn can make their tasks on talent. However, Shapero someone in that role. “While “There you can signal to the
less tedious. “In the recruiting points out that this is actually salary and higher compensa- recruiting community that you are
process, there are usually two a learning process, which is tion form key components of curious about new opportunities.
steps that happen,” Shapero enhanced with years of experi- a discussion with candidates, Ten million people around the
explains. “There is a part ence. “I think that there are recruiters shouldn’t over-rely world have opted in this program
where a person that is hiring three core areas,” he explains. on salary to hook the right and they get twice as many
or a recruiter has to find and “The first is being able to look candidate,” Matar explains. recruiting messages as the
sort through a long list of at someone’s background and “Finding an equilibrium average LinkedIn member. This
names to decide with whom see a wider range of options between a suitable paycheck, program allows you not only to
to spend time. They can have for that person, meaning opportunities for promo- signal that you are open to new
thousands of people, of whom recognizing a person who has tion and growth, and a great job opportunities, but also to
some will be applicants to the a deeper understanding of work-life balance is the key to talk about whether you are open
job while some will be other what it takes to be great at a keeping that talent. If you find to relocation, to a contract work
people they find on LinkedIn. certain job. Some people can that –and with it, give people or just full time, and so on. It is
Then, they need to determine look at talent and really see the chance to feel as though also great for recruiters because
which of those people they the potential in someone, and they are appreciated and feel these candidates who signal that
should really focus on. We some people don’t have that a sense of purpose– then both they are open respond twice the
think we can help automate experience. It does come from the candidate and the compa- rate. So, it is a win-win for both
and bring intelligence to that experience. The second thing ny will be able to grow harmo- candidates and employers.”
step of the process. Once you is how to convince a great per- niously together. Yet, on most
have 25 or 30 names of people son to join that company, how occasions, recruiters focus on 3. Use your network
who you think are a great to have an instinct on what ‘what to look for,’ instead of “Most people get jobs through
fit, we think there’s a lot of they care about, what they ‘who to look for,’ and LinkedIn either people that they know or
instinct required to figure out might be unhappy with, what is happy to have changed this the people they have met. We try
who is going to be the perfect their current situation is, how thinking with tools such as to make it easy for you to use your
person and how you are going to read someone’s desires and LinkedIn Recruiter that uses network by finding jobs where you
to persuade that person to passions. The third is how to smart matching algorithms know people and reaching out to
join your company. So, the in- relate to the hiring managers and talent pool matching them to get the best chance that
stincts that recruiters have to in the company to help them that highlight best matching you have to be found.”
figure out how to go from that see the potential in a candi- candidates.” >>>

Ali Matar, Head of LinkedIn Talent Solutions,

“Some companies and 63% of people follow
Emerging Markets, Middle East & North Africa
companies on social media to
we work with don’t stay aware of jobs.
have ATS, or the one Another product to be Three tips to make
they use does not launched in 2018 is Linked- your LinkedIn
integrate well with In’s hiring platform- an end- profile stand out
to-end hiring solution first
LinkedIn, so our presented at the company’s 1. Start with a
hiring platform will annual Talent Connect event professional photo
be a product for in Nashville, Tennessee, in “If you don’t have a
October. It is designed to professional headshot, add
them to do end-to- combine LinkedIn’s rich data that to your to-do list, and
end management of set, existing sourcing tools go with the cleanest, most
their hiring process.” and new candidate manage- professional looking snapshot
ment technology to bring you have- and upgrade as
In today’s economy, SMEs are sourcing, managing and hir- soon as possible. And smile!
considered to be one of the ing candidates to one place- Remember that a photo is
main employers as well as the an option particularly needed your first handshake with a Ali Matar
drivers of future economic by SMEs worldwide. “It’s not potential employer.”
growth. However, businesses a service, but a piece of soft-
of that size often find hiring ware, so we will not be doing 2. Make your headline 3. Fill out the
to be a stressful and time- the recruiting for companies stand out “By default, “summary” field with 5–6
consuming task. Ironically, as they will still be doing LinkedIn populates your of your biggest achievements
for these small, dynamic their own recruiting,” ex- headline with your job title “Use bullets to make this
companies, sourcing and hir- plains Shapero. “Many com- and current company, but easy to read. Think about
ing the right talent is crucial panies have Applicant Track- you don’t have to leave it your target reader and then
for further growth. Shapero ing Systems (ATS), which that way. Consider listing paint a picture of how you can
says, “SMEs are the fastest is where they keep track of your specialty and speaking make that person’s life easier.
growing segment of compa- all the different applicants directly to your audience. If You can also add media files,
nies with us. We have great that come from LinkedIn you want your profile to be including videos, so if you are
relationships with employers or other places where they searchable, include important a speaker or presenter, an
around the world, but we in- advertise. One of the ways we keywords. If that’s not as big introduction video could be a
creasingly find that recruiters are looking at helping those of a concern for you, consider great idea. You don’t need to
at SMEs and even SMEs that companies that have ATS is getting away from industry list every single job you have
don’t have full time recruit- through integration, so that if jargon to stand out. Try to ever had. Instead, only list the
ers use LinkedIn. One of the they are looking at a candi- keep your headline to about jobs that are relevant to your
reasons they do it is because date on their own system, 10 words.” current career goals.”
our products are built for they can find out more about
people that recruit all day, them on LinkedIn. And then
but also don’t recruit as their when they hire someone, that Four tips for marketing a new business
core job. If you don’t recruit data can go back on LinkedIn,
all the time, it is important where we will make sure that 1. Start with a strategy 3. Listen and take note
that you find a product that next time when they try to “Incorporate a marketing plan of what your competitors
can do a lot of hard work for hire someone that we can and strategy as you build your are doing “What is working
you, and because our product get them better candidates business, and know what your for them? What isn’t? What
is very automation-oriented, faster. Some companies we goals are before you begin do their customers complain
it will find the candidates for work with don’t have ATS, marketing.” about? What are their unmet
you and not require you to or the one they use does not needs? Look for ways to
search and reach out to one integrate well with LinkedIn, 2. Tell your story “Be well incorporate this into your
person at a time.” Matar adds so our hiring platform will be versed in telling the story of product or service.”
that companies, especially a product for them to do end- your business, your product,
SMEs need to keep in mind to-end management of their or your service in a compelling 4. Utilize social media
that a company website hiring process.” way. Too many startups talk “Social media can help you
is the top destination for In this manner, LinkedIn about who they are in terms to share your story along
first-line research, followed continues to help SMEs of features and specifications with other valuable content,
by LinkedIn, and the com- attract the right talent and of the product or service to generate awareness,
pany employees- 40% use a foster the right skills for they offer. The focus, rather, to build an audience and
company’s website to garner business growth, while should be on why your to engage with them is a
information before consid- changing the world of talent product/service matters.” strategy.”
ering or applying for a job, acquisition forever.

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THE INVESTOR’S
VIEWPOINT
Investors are out with their
forecasts for the MENA
entrepreneurial ecosystem
and they are bullish, to say the least
We picked the brains of investors looking at the Arab world for their
expectations of the MENA entrepreneurial landscape in 2018, and their
thoughts on sectors that we should keep an eye on next year.
Here’s what they told us.

Walid Mansour,
Partner and Chief
Investment Officer,
“Our MENA region is still
underfunded, with regards to
ALLEN TAYLOR
Middle East
Venture Partners
venture capital, and this represents Managing Director,
a good opportunity. There are
opportunities in all sectors Endeavor Catalyst
provided the businesses deliver
real solutions to this region given
its challenges in a complicated Allen Taylor, Managing Director,
market with local needs.” Endeavor Catalyst
“The timing to invest

in MENA is promising
due to two factors:
strong demand
for technology
related products
and services, and
relatively low
competition on the
funding side.”
however, many will require
to figure out viable business
models in order to take their
place under the sun.
Our MENA region is still “I think Egypt is still very
underfunded, with regards to
venture capital, and this repre-
much “underfunded”
sents a good opportunity. The based on the level of
timing to invest in MENA is entrepreneurial talent,
promising due to two factors: demographics, market
strong demand for technology
related products and services,
size, and so on. On the
and relatively low competition heels of the successful
on the funding side. There are consumer-focused
WALID MANSOUR opportunities in all sec-
tors provided the businesses
tech businesses,
Partner and Chief Investment Officer, deliver real solutions to this such as Souq.com,
Middle East Venture Partners region given its challenges in a Careem, Anghami
complicated market with local and Propertyfinder, I
“I believe that 2018 in MENA gistics-driven technologies and needs. MEVP’s fifth invest-
will be a good year for en- fintech businesses will be more ment fund, with a target size
believe that there will
trepreneurs– there are more fashionable across emerging of US$250 million, aims to very likely be a group
funding options available, and markets. We will still hear capture tech VC opportuni- of very big enterprise
a stronger demand for technol- about blockchain startups, ties which will help accelerate software, or ‘B2B’,
ogy products that will help the region’s tech innovation
innovative and dynamic com- ecosystem. We see a sig-
businesses built in
panies raise capital and grow.
“the global tech nificant gap in VC funding for the region. Education
In addition, the global tech industry will later stage and growth tech technology —and the
industry will develop fueled develop fueled by ventures– and our fund will be overall distribution of
by higher penetration rates for higher penetration an ideal fit to young entrepre-
online and software compa- neurs’ aspirations and help knowledge (e.g. books,
nies, and a generally low inter- rates for online and them become market leaders publishing, school
est rate landscape. I wouldn’t software companies, in the region. The fund will systems)— are other
be surprised if we hit new re- and a generally specifically target six verticals: areas that are ripe for
cord highs on global valuations content, fintech, marketplaces,
for tech companies. I also think low interest rate healthtech, e-education, and disruption.”
that e-commerce enablers, lo- landscape.” online travel.”

Dana Horska,
Associate Manager
- Investments, AMJAD AHMAD
twofour54, and Asma
Al Qaseer, Investment
Managing Partner,
Analyst, twofour54 Precinct Partners
“There will be more late
stage funding (Series B
and beyond) as several
strong startups mature
and investor appetite
improves. The quality of
startups will improve as
stronger entrepreneurs
enter the market with
DANA HORSKA ASMA AL QASEER higher early-stage fund-
ing and better support.
Associate Manager - Investments, twofour54 Investment Analyst, twofour54 Also, government initia-
tives across the region
“Our expectations for 2018 re- to dabble with. E-commerce in developed for it yet. We will will lead to a larger pool of
volve around four main trends the region has never been so start to see a rise in content early-stage companies.
that we predict will pick up in mature. With the exit of Souq development for VR and AR and I believe regional
the MENA region. This is based to Amazon and the large fund- believe that the initial entry to governments need to
on our analysis of the market ing rounds of other e-commerce market will be more on the B2B dramatically increase
and the type of startups that players, we believe that start- side than B2C. Our prediction R&D and education
are approaching us for funding ups will look at integrating with is that the initial industries investments in key sec-
at twofour54. Those are: them and building tools that that would adopt this technolo- tors such as technology,
will enable personalized and gy would be real estate develop- renewable energy, trans-
Video content engaging experiences. This also ers, education sector, training port/logistics and finan-
We are seeing more original applies to retailers that are still providers, entertainment and cial services. Significant
video content production that offline and are looking at means e-commerce. Consumer adop- government backing will
has an immersive and interac- of entering the digital space. tion will most likely catch up by lead to long-term sustain-
tive format. As people already It is a new marketing era that 2020 in the region. ability and leadership in
know, the video content con- helps brands drive more traffic,
these sectors, which will
sumption in the region is on the awareness, help with customer The current funding landscape
drive private sector devel-
rise, mainly on mobile vs linear conversions and eventu- has been supporting and fund-
opment and investment.”
TV. We predict broadcasters to ally increase online and offline ing industries, like marketplac-
partner with startups that will transactions. es, e-commerce and transporta-
co-produce content, have the tion, that does not necessarily
“regional governments
right tools and digital channels AI and machine learning have a content creation angle. need to dramatically
to help with distribution. Start- We at twofour54 this year The region lacks original increase R&D and
ups that will tap into this space invested in Narrativa, an AI content, specifically Arabic education investments
will try to focus on re-defining company that turns data into content. We will see interna- in key sectors such as
the long format content into content in several languages. tional companies attempting to technology, renewable
short and snackable videos. There are a few companies in enter this region to fulfil this energy, transport/
More niche verticals with spe- our pipeline that use AI tech- market gap. There is also a big logistics and financial
cialized and targeted content nology to enhance, curate or focus on investing into startups services.”
will emerge along with tools transform content into different that are originating from the
and tech that will eventually formats. However, there is one region, however, we are seeing Amjad Ahmad,
take out the middleman from thing to note here, we will see more and more startups that Managing
the supply chain and conse- several companies emerging on are based in the US, Asia and Partner, Precinct
Partners
quently make distribution more the market stating that they use Europe that cater to the MENA
efficient and streamlined. AI technology, but only a few market- having their client/user
actually develop this without base here and looking to expand
Conversational commerce using already existing AI tools with the right partners/inves-
Although we are not seeing from Google, IBM, Microsoft or tors, but are being overlooked.
any startups tapping into this others. There is huge potential for
space, our prediction is that knowledge transfer from in-
conversational commerce VR and AR ternational markets, attracting
will be a trend in 2018 that There is ample hardware on the top talent and opening doors to
several entrepreneurs will start market but not enough content potential M&As.”

ISSA AGHABI HEATHER HENYON

Investment Officer - Venture Capital, International Finance Corporation, Founder, WAIN,
World Bank Group and Investment Committee
“I believe 2018 will be a record year for relatively dormant for the past few years, member, Dubai Angel Investors
early-stage VC investment in the Middle being put on the tech map again. This
Heather Henyon,
East. This will be driven by a stronger specifically relates to entrepreneurs using founder, WAIN,
private sector funding landscape via the those markets to test and launch busi- and Investment
growth of the deployable capital within nesses -with novel/disruptive business Committee
member, Dubai
venture funds as well as the growing models/tech- that will quickly grow and
Angel Investors
involvement of family offices and gov- become regional relevant players, (2) the
ernmental funding initiatives. We should birth of the Saudi entrepreneurs, (3) the
expect a significant number of startups opening of the Moroccan and Tunisian
getting funded across the value chain. ecosystem leading to a strong influx of
There will also be a strong demand from entrepreneurial activity. Thirdly, the
international funds and tech players in need for tech talent will be on the rise,
the region- either through mega invest- and be the main challenge for all. I also
ments in regional leaders and/or acquisi- think that a large number of acquihires
tions. This alongside family offices join- will take place to help fuel regional
ing the bandwagon to help protect their startups growing need for talent. Lastly,
existing traditional businesses through strong competition amongst the various
an increase in direct investments and/or players that will lead to an unrealistic
acquisitions. increase in valuations. This increase will
Secondly, we will witness a more be short-lived, due to a push to a more
dynamic ecosystem characterized by scientific process (rather than herd men- “In terms of predictions, I would
(1) Jordan and Egypt, which have been tality) based on performance/results.
say expect to see the launch of
When it comes to sectors [that could be
more women-run venture capital
Issa Aghabi, challenging], I would say fintech’s overall
Investment legal infrastructure is not conducive for
funds globally, but especially in
Officer -
the growth of this space. There are a lot the US and Europe, a continued
Venture Capital,
International of positive efforts taking place, but it will interest and announcement of
Finance take time for this to change. Stronger investment funds by the UAE and
Corporation,
push by entrepreneurs to break out of Saudi governments in entrepre-
World Bank
Group the norm and find innovative solutions is neurship, an increase of compa-
needed. Then, relating to tech innovation, nies being funded by tokenized
there is no R&D support in the MENA re- offerings, as well as a few ICO
gion and therefore limited disruptive tech fraud cases, more fintech, mobil-
businesses. Support from governments ity, AI and renewable startups in
and educational institutions is needed to MENA, and last but not least- a
catalyze the R&D space.” Careem IPO?
“In terms of predictions,

NOOR SHAWWA I would say expect to
Managing Director, Endeavor UAE see the launch of more
“I expect more investment in certain mar- “wave” of scale-ups that get built after the women-run venture
kets in the MENA region, especially in the consumer plays. Lastly, some consolida- capital funds globally.”
UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt, as well as tion/exits in the consumer space, namely
the stabilization of consumer tech funding bigger players buying smaller ones and/or As for the landscape here, fintech
and an increase in funding in fintech and companies merging/partnering- I do expect and renewables companies in
healthtech. I see these as the two biggest more of this in 2018.” the MENA region aren’t receiving
trends, both globally and in the region. In the investment focus that they
addition, I expect to see the beginning of Noor Shawwa, deserve. Part of this is due to the
the MENA region’s investment into enter- Managing
complexity of fintech companies
Director,
prise software (B2B) companies, following Endeavor UAE and a deeper understanding of
the trend we have seen in the US, Europe,
current and planned regulation
and other emerging/growth markets. The
VC investments in the region are likely to
that is required. Also, women-led
start flowing more into enterprise software
startups face challenges ac-
models which always tend to be the second cessing capital, and it takes them
twice as long to raise funds.”

start it up ecosystem | who’s got VC | Q&A | STARTUP FINANCE
DSOA Deputy CEO Shahla Abdul Razak

at Entrepreneur Day 2017
A roaring success growing, and Entrepreneur

Day is growing along with it
by supporting and nurturing
At its Entrepreneur Day this year, Dubai Technology Entrepreneur Centre it. It is an event that packs
(DTEC) showcased why it remains a hub for the region’s innovative optimism and encourage-
startups and entrepreneurs By Tamara Pupic ment, and works to position
Dubai among the top 20 cit-
ies in the world that support
N
ovember was a vestment in MENA startups, MEVP, Sirish Kumar, co- startups and innovation.”
busy month for growing e-commerce trends, founder and CEO of Telr, As grandiose as this vision
Dubai Technol- design thinking, among Promoth Manghat, CEO of may seem, it surely looks
ogy Entrepreneur other relevant subjects. The UAE Exchange, Haytham El to be achievable given how
Centre (Dtec), a prominent stakeholders of Maayergi, Global Head of the Dtec team has put in
tech startup hub developed the country’s ecosystem Transaction Banking at Abu place a strategic plan of
by Dubai Silicon Oasis Au- also didn’t hesitate to show Dhabi Islamic Bank, Wissam action, and is making sure
thority (DSOA), the regula- their support- the event’s Younane, CEO of BNC Pub- to implement it every single
tory body for Dubai Silicon headline speakers included lishing, and others. To Hans day. Christensen joined
Oasis (DSO). Following its Walid Mansour, Partner and Henrik Christensen, Director DSOA more than five years
four-year-long tradition, Chief Investment Officer at of Dtec, however, the suc- ago, bringing to Dtec his
Dtec again hosted its annual cess of the fourth edition vast entrepreneurial experi-
Entrepreneur Day event, “Dtec has evolved of Dtec’s Entrepreneur ence- he founded and ran
bringing together over 400 Day came as no surprise. two technology companies
attendees and 80 exhibiting
into an organic hub “Our Entrepreneur Day has in South America for five
startups. The two-day event where companies emerged as the leading year- years, before serving as the
featured a packed agenda of engage and work in end regional entrepreneurial Director of the Siemens
thought sessions and panel event for technology start- Information Communica-
Images courtesy dtec
discussions that covered a synergy to achieve ups,” he says. “The technol- tions Networks’ incubator in
range of topics, including in- mutual goals.” ogy ecosystem [here] is Munich, Germany, and then

joining the team of Abdul “Entrepreneur Day is among the leading
Razak Bastaki, Deputy CEO regional events for
at DSOA, to structure and
the fertile ground startup technology
establish this DSOA initia- where businesses companies with
tive as a leading regional and individuals can ambitions to soar.”
incubator in the technol- exchange views Dtec itself,
ogy space. This familiarity and best practices, Christensen adds,
with the needs of startup has become more
founders has enabled him acquire new than just a co-
to understand that creat- knowledge, and keep working space. “It
ing valuable connections is themselves updated has emerged as an
crucial for young businesses. with the changes entrepreneurial
“We want to offer entre- ecosystem in its
preneurs and investors a sweeping the dynamic own right, a fertile
Hans Henrik
Christensen,
sandbox where they can in- tech landscape.” ground for tech- Director of Dubai
teract and drive innovation nology and digital Technology
Entrepreneur Centre
forward, and Entrepreneur a difference, we see endless Islamic Economy (Dtec)
Day is the fertile ground possibilities to expand this entrepreneurs
where businesses and indi- event. And, I believe I speak from around the
viduals can exchange views for all our members at Dtec, world to establish their grown to host over 800
and best practices, acquire when I say that the com- businesses and take them startups from 70 countries
new knowledge, and keep munity atmosphere that per- to the next level of growth,” around the world today,
themselves updated with vaded at this year’s recently- he says. “Dtec was concep- maintaining a consistent
the changes sweeping the concluded Entrepreneur tualized as part of DSOA’s upward growth trajectory.
dynamic tech landscape,” Day was a key highlight. mandate to foster innovation For example, this year, it
Christensen explains. “In We witnessed a significant and entrepreneurship. The recorded a significant
addition, we also hope, number of first-time interac- center’s rapid and sustain- 13% increase of startups
through hosting this annual tions and the participation able growth testifies to its finding their home at the
event, to allow promising of several newcomers at solid business model and center, when compared to
tech startups to find inves- the event, although several enabling strategy of provid- 2016 when it housed 650
tors ready to fund their ven- attendees and participants ing much-needed support startups. Yet, Christensen is
tures. It is about connecting, knew one another and did for technology startups and not keen on resting on these
mentally and literally, in business together already. entrepreneurs.” Under Abdul laurels. He explains that, as
the broadest sense. Given I think it is safe to say that Bastaki’s and Christensen’s demands and requirements
its great potential to make Entrepreneur Day is now watchful eyes, Dtec has alter in the ever-changing
tech landscape, the Dtec
team looks at adopting a
strategy of sustained innova-
tion and disruption to stay
relevant. “In the early days
of Dtec, as is often the case
with new entities, the focus
was on our competition and
how to be a unique value
proposition,” Christensen
explains. “Dtec has evolved
into an organic hub where
companies engage and work
in synergy to achieve mutual
goals. Due to these success-
ful business collaborations,
Dtec has developed an
ecosystem which is differen-
tiated for its special support
to technopreneurs through
The Entrepreneur launching special accelera-
Day event featured tors, such as Dubai Smart
a packed agenda of City Accelerator and Intelak
thought sessions and
panel discussions Accelerator that specializes
in aviation and travel tech.” >>>

The two-day
Entrepreneur Day
event brought together
over 400 attendees
and 80 exhibiting
startups
“The center’s rapid effortlessly playing a key role opportunities for venture ing, and entering the next
in positioning Dubai among capital funding. Our work is growth stage, as well as ex-
and sustainable the top 20 global cities that cut out for us quite clearly, panding internationally.” For
growth testifies to its foster entrepreneurship,” but we will take it step by the record, the realization of
solid business model Christensen says. “Hosting step. First, through focusing Dtec’s vision for the future
and enabling strategy startups focused on artificial on the entrepreneurs and is something we at Entrepre-
intelligence, machine- meeting their needs. We are neur Middle East are eagerly
of providing much- learning, blockchain and optimistic that our efforts looking forward to- and yes,
needed support for digital transformation, Dtec will lead to several of these it cannot come fast enough.
technology startups is instrumental in leading startup companies progress- Carpe diem, entrepreneurs!
the digitalization of Dubai’s
and entrepreneurs.” corporate and government
entities. The World Com-
He adds that the team is petitiveness Center report
committed to consistently 2017, compiled by Professor
enhancing the services Arturo Bris of IMD in Laus-
offered to entrepreneurs anne, notched up Dubai five
registered at Dtec. Towards places this year, partially
this priority, DSOA has due to the hundreds of tech-
dedicated a total area of nology companies driving
5,000 square meters for the digital transformation of
entrepreneurs. In addition, Dubai out of Dtec. However,
they have also set internal we can perfect what Dtec
goals to incorporate addi- does today, through boosting
tional accelerators and labs the scope and scale of its
Images courtesy dtec
that focus on different cor- offering. Realistically, there

porate innovations. “Dtec is are promising investment

Scenes from
Dtec’s
Entrepreneur
Day 2017

Elgamal, who comes from

a telecom, engineering and
financial sector background,
used to travel a lot in his
previous job, and that’s when
he noticed that while he was
out and about and not using
his car, his vehicle was still
costing him a lot, be it with
car loans, or insurance, or
maintenance, or even paying
someone to clean it. And
thus, the eureka moment
happened- he realized how
he could capitalize better
on his car by sharing it with
other people, and that’s how
Elgamal (who’s had previous
forays into entrepreneurship)
decided to launch Friendy-
Car. Elgamal sees the startup
as one of the solutions to
Abdelrahman Elgamal, founder, FriendyCar tackle transportation issues
in the future, by changing
Reimagining how people own cars for per-
sonal use to a more efficient
mobility time-subscription model,

where those requiring a ve-
The winner of this year’s Entrepreneur Day pitch hicle can access any desired
competition, FriendyCar, wants to make car sharing easy car whenever they need it,
generate income from sharing
(and efficient) By Pamella de Leon
his/her car, plus also sup-
F
port the community and the
rom electronic bin Rashid Al Maktoum, is in line with the vision for environment. As an example,
and autonomous Vice-President and Prime the future of mobility that Elgamal says, “[We see it as]
cars, to hyperloop Minister of the UAE and Abdelrahman Elgamal went where you will be offered
solutions, the UAE Ruler of Dubai, the Dubai about founding his startup, insurance based on your
(and the world) has Autonomous Transporta- FriendyCar. Launched earlier usage. It’s not a one-size fits
put a heavy emphasis on tion Strategy was launched this year, FriendyCar is a P2P all insurance- now, if you’re
public transport solutions with an aim to have “25% online marketplace for bor- a low-mileage driver, then we
and the future of mobility. of all journeys in Dubai to rowing and lending cars in will offer you a low-mileage
In 2016, mandated by His be transformed into driver- the Middle East. According insurance, based on pay-as-
Highness Sheikh Mohammed less journeys by 2030.” It to Elgamal and his team, the you-go insurance.” Essen-
notion of people using a car tially, using FriendyCar will
for only themselves is soon enable someone who doesn’t
going to be obsolete: “When own a car with an affordable
you think about the average option to find and use a car
utilization of a private car, of their choice whenever they
it’s only 5%, which means have a need for it.
it’s not efficient.” Elgamal Here’s how FriendyCar
believes that car sharing will works: people start by listing
greatly reduce the number their cars on the platform’s
of cars on the road, “One database. It then verifies and
car share can actually take screens car owners, renters,
six cars out of the road, as well as the cars them-
making for less pollution, selves, and ensures insurance
and reduce the investment is covered as well for these
on infrastructure and park- vehicles. Elgamal asserts
ing, and ultimately, a better the community aspect of
H.E. Dr. Mohammed Al Zarooni, Director General of the Dubai Airport Free Zone Authority
(DAFZA), and Vice Chairman and CEO of DSOA, presenting the award to the winner, economy- a win-win for the platform, emphasizing
Abdelrahman Elgamal, Founder of Friendycar. everyone.” how instead of renting, they

call it borrowing. “It’s more as finance advisory sessions FRIENDYCAR
intimate,” says Elgamal. with The Scalable CFO, a HOW IT WORKS
“We are people dealing network of consultants pro-
with each other. It’s not viding finance management OWNER
a financial transaction, and CFO services for SMEs. Car owners will fill out de-
it’s more [about] that we Commenting on his win, scriptions of the car, upload
[are] helping each other Elgamal said in a statement: pictures and choose when
by sharing our cars.” And “I greatly appreciate the it’s available to be rented.
it seems to resonate with opportunity to participate in Once a verified and screened
people- though it only this stimulating competition
borrower requests a car, the
launched recently, as of by DSOA that allowed me to
car owner will be notified to
October, Elgamal notes that gain valuable insights from
access the borrower’s profile
‘TREP TALK they have more than 1,000 renowned industry experts.
Abdelrahman Elgamal, registrations, and around My team and I came in with and rating, before accepting
founder and CEO, FriendyCar 100 cars listed on their immense enthusiasm, and or denying the request. You’ll
network. They’ve gained were determined to make then coordinate with the bor-
What are your recognition in the ecosystem the most of our win through rowers to meet up, wherein
top three tips to too- Elgamal delivered strategically adjusting our car owners will give them the
starting a business digital trends and insights in business plan based on the car keys, and generate extra
in the Middle East? the automotive industry at feedback received from the income. After they use the car,
this year’s GITEX Technol- judging panel. I am confident car owners will meet up with
1. Product, product, product ogy Week, and the startup that the enhancements will the borrower to pick up the
and user experience are all has won first place at the go a long way in driving our car and rate the experience.
what matters. Smartpreneur Competition, expansion and helping our
organized by Dubai Chamber fledgling company achieve BORROWER
2. Never stop raising of Commerce and Smart its full potential.” Interested borrowers can
money, you are raising Dubai Office at ArabNet As for the future, Elgabal sign up, upload documents
money at all times, when Digital Summit 2017, win- says they’re looking at and wait for the FriendyCar
you need and when you ning AED75,000 in cash. At partners to further grow team to verify their bor-
don’t need it, as it takes a Dtec’s Entrepreneur Day, and build up FriendyCar. rower’s account. Once ap-
long time. the startup was declared The startup is eager to work proved, borrowers can enter
the winner of the pitch with government bodies to
which dates they’ll require a
3. Your team is your main competition at the event, help its offering get a wider
car and choose a car within
asset, choose and retain organized by Dubai Silicon reach, and at the same time,
people who have ownership Oasis Authority (DSOA). it is also raising funds for
FriendyCar’s database. Once
towards their tasks. Even It won a prize worth over its seed round. In the midst a car has been requested, the
if they don’t have enough AED125,000, which includes of all that, Elgalmal is also borrower will wait for the car
skills now, they will be AED36,000 in cash, com- hopeful that his platform owner’s approval for request,
learning them. Encourage pany setup within Dtec, the will attract more users- and coordinate to meet and pick
speed and mistakes over use of an all-new Volkswa- we at Entrepreneur wish up the car keys, and after-
perfection. gen Arteon for a year and him all the best in this wards upon returning the car,
free service license, as well endeavor! rate the experience.
www.friendycar.com

ConsenSys founder
Joseph Lubin at
ConsenSys Academy ous uses, and that led to the
graduation
birth of Consensys in 2014.
Growing exponentially since
then, ConsenSys is today a
leading name in the block-
chain space, with around
450 employees across the
globe. Acting as a “hub” that
nurtures various blockchain
applications, the company
and its founder are betting
on ethereum’s potential to
reshape global economic
transactions.
While all this may seem
like an indulgence of the
developed world with
emerging markets merely on
the sidelines, the Arab world
should be glad to know
that ConsenSys was in fact
lured to set up a presence
right here in Dubai, a city
Pioneering change that’s fast turning into a

key global center to realize
blockchain’s mainstream
Dubai’s blockchain advisor ConsenSys is creating a community of experts applications. ConsenSys is,
in the next generation tech By Sindhu Hariharan in fact, the Blockchain City
J
Advisor of Dubai under the
P Morgan CEO Jamie being copied. Take a look Among the few startups that Dubai Blockchain Strategy
Dimon thinks bitcoin at ethereum, for instance, are working on ethereum- announced by H.H. Sheikh
is a “fraud,” business which is an open-source focused blockchain systems Hamdan bin Mohammed bin
magnate Warren Buf- blockchain-based comput- is ConsenSys, a New York- Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown
fett remains skeptical ing platform. Invented by headquartered venture Prince of Dubai and Chair-
of cryptocurrency (He has programmer Vitalik Buterin, studio that offers tools man of the Dubai Executive
reportedly said: “You can’t ethereum is a decentralized for developers to build Council, in October 2016.
value bitcoin because it’s platform with capabilities decentralized applications “Early on, we were happy
not a value-producing as- to run smart contracts- in -otherwise called as Dapps to speak about blockchain
set.”), and Credit Suisse CEO essence, contracts that (pronounced “dee-apps”)- to anybody interested to
Tidjane Thiam says bitcoin can be executed exactly as on ethereum. The company listen,” Lubin remembers.
is “the very definition of a programmed without possi- was founded by Joseph Lu- “Now, we are quite over-
bubble.” If these statements bility of fraud or third-party bin, who today functions as whelmed with all the people
are any indication, there is a interference. its CEO- it’s interesting to who want to hear about
lot of skepticism in the world note here that Lubin was blockchain. When you are
today about bitcoin, but it’s one of the seven co-founders building a company in an
interesting to note that the who helped Buterin write up ecosystem that doesn’t exist
technology behind it –i.e. the code for the ethereum yet, you have to do a lot of
blockchain- has been marked platform. With years of different things. You have
out as the next big thing in experience in the corporate to do education, a lot of
the digital landscape. After world (including Goldman hand holding in the form of
A graduate displaying
all, blockchain is much more his graduation certificate
Sachs), and stints at a few consulting. So, we started
than just a platform hosting delivered digitally high-tech startups after getting calls pretty early on
the polarizing cryptocur- graduating from Princeton, from companies and other
rency. As an incorruptible Lubin got enamored by the entities, who wanted to
digital ledger of economic “we basically take blockchain concept, and learn about the technology.”
transactions, blockchain very strong software thus became a banker who This was over a year ago,
is emerging as a new type engineers and turn defected to “the other side.”
Images courtesy consensys
when ConsenSys was invited

of internet innovation that After getting the ethereum to be a part of the Dubai
enables distribution of them into blockchain project off the ground, Lubin Future Accelerators (DFA),
digital information without engineers.” experimented with its vari- given their status as global

blockchain experts, and the “Our thesis is ago, specifying the Emir-
company has now estab- ate’s intentions to bring
lished itself firmly in the that this trusted all governmental trans-
city and the wider region as infrastructure, which actions on the block-
well. “A significant amount enables cooperating chain platform by 2020,”
of our work has been done and competing actors Lubin notes. While
with Smart Dubai Office, setting tangible goals is a
where we have been helping
like companies to great starting point, I ask
a number of government share non-redundant Lubin his opinion on the
entities understand how infrastructure, UAE’s progress in this
blockchain can help create enables governments regard. “We are working
exponential change making to provide much more with the Smart Dubai
government services more Office for different
effective and efficient, and fluid, efficient, and agencies- writing RFPs,
enabling them to provide transparent services.” responding to RFPs, etc.
Nasser Alnuaimi, Information Security Officer,
Smart Dubai Government, one of the first UAE
highest-quality services to There’s a blockchain in- nationals to graduate from this program
citizens,” Lubin says. “We it’s easy to see the Consen- frastructure that’s being
have also completed a proof Sys founder truly believes built for the nation, which knowledge gap. “There is
of concept for a land regis- that blockchain is going will involve an ethereum a tremendous shortage of
try, and are highly engaged to change the world as we platform, and an IBM hy- blockchain developers on
with the startup community know it. “Our thesis is that perledger platform. So, yes, the planet, and we figured
here. We are excited to see this trusted infrastructure, it [Dubai’s 2020 blockchain why not grow our own pool.
that in the region, there are which enables cooperating target] is definitely happen- So, we basically take very
a lot of people passionate and competing actors like ing,” he replies. strong software engineers
about cryptocurrency and companies to share non- This steers our conversa- and turn them into block-
blockchain technology.” redundant infrastructure, tion to ConsenSys’ role in chain engineers,” says Lubin.
The relationship has led to enables governments to creating a global blockchain Having launched quietly,
ConsenSys working on other provide much more fluid, ecosystem, which, Lubin without much fanfare, the
projects with the Emirate, efficient, and transparent says, remains the company’s program still managed to
many of which aren’t public services.” He notes that key focus. “It is challenging receive over 1,300 applica-
information yet, says Lubin. “very few states around the to scale our business fast tions for its first batch. This
“We are [in the process of] world are moving their in- enough to keep up with the list was narrowed down to
building out our new d3- frastructure from frictional demand, which is why we 133 applicants; and around
based office in Dubai, in two technologies (essentially are so focused on training 120 of these engineers
months or so. We’ve main- pieces of paper and rubber the next generation of lead- graduated in October. And
tained a presence of around stamps and ink), to native ers in the blockchain space,” what’s worth highlighting
15 to 20 people [in Dubai], digital constructs,” and one he says. Besides undertaking is that around 25 of the
and our roadmap is to get to such nation with a head this through their consult- inaugural graduating class
around 40 people, within, start is the UAE. “[UAE] is ing arm, ConsenSys also were UAE-based. Indeed, the
say, nine months.” at the forefront because of a launched the ConsenSys graduation ceremony for the
A few minutes into my con- royal edict, delivered in the Academy, an initiative inaugural batch took place in
versation with Lubin, and form of a tweet over a year to bridge the ethereum Dubai with the presence of
delegates including H.E. Dr.
Aisha Bint Butti Bin Bishr,
The graduates of ConsenSys Academy’s Director General of Smart
inaugral program Dubai Office, Wesam Lootah,
CEO of Smart Dubai Govern-
ment Establishment, and
other executives.
“We were very interested
[to have Middle East and
UAE participation] in this
first cohort,” Lubin says.
“We’ve got a lot of projects
going on here [in the UAE],
and are doing our best
to spin up technologists
here- both local and na-
tive- and also bring people
here.” But the Academy is >>>

is the supply of experts in growing tech, urging them to

blockchain compared to reach out to ConsenSys for
the much higher demand, “developer tools, resources,
in all parts of our business, and funding [you] need to
which is why we started the build decentralized applica-
educational hub ConsenSys tions that will transform the
Academy.” world’s economic, social and
As ConsenSys strives to political systems.” In fact,
promote the potential of de- ethereum advocates envision
centralizing technologies by the creation of an Internet
Joseph Lubin with Wesam Lootah, CEO, Smart Dubai Government at ConsenSys building developer tools and 2.0 that hosts “decentralized
Academy graduation solutions for governments app stores,” where anyone
and enterprises, it’s likely can publish their Dapps that
not ConsenSys’ only way such a way,” says Lubin. that Dubai, as a city with connect users and providers
of strengthening the eco- “As blockchain developers access to tap this knowledge, directly. And given Lubin’s
system. While nurturing in legacy organizations, it will also inch closer to its sentiment, it does make one
the ideas of blockchain can get a bit frustrating, blockchain goals. Lubin feel that the day is not far
developers through their so we are getting access to shares the sentiment. “From when we move on from say-
own studio, ConsenSys real- such people, as we started what we’ve seen, it’s a very ing “there’s an app for that”
ized that there were projects recruiting recently,” he says. exciting time for a technolo- to “there’s a DApp for that”
“implementing adjacent and According to a recent Quartz gist to be here. It’s kind of for all that we need to do-
complementary tech,” that report, three executives, astonishing how focused it’s only a matter of time.
did not fit entirely into their (from BNY Mellon, Deutsche [UAE is], compared to the
scheme, but still needed Bank, and PWC) undertaking rest of the world on being “A significant amount
to be enabled. Thus was blockchain work at their cutting-edge, and [how it]
born ConsenSys Ventures, respective firms, are now has a strong focus on creat-
of our work has been
a US$50 million venture either directly employed ing a context in which the done with Smart Dubai
capital fund from ConsenSys at ConsenSys, or will work population can be better Office, where we have
that aims to provide pre- on their own projects with served and happier,” he been helping a number
seed and seed capital to ConsenSys funding. “As says. “For a [blockchain] of government entities
blockchain tech startups. we scale, we are hiring entrepreneur, especially understand how
ConsenSys Ventures backs the best and the brightest developers, it’s going to be a blockchain can help
startups that both “do and experts in entrepreneurship, once-in-a-lifetime situation,
don’t plan to eventually offer finance, enterprise delivery,
create exponential
where the kind of growth
digital tokens,” and Lubin cryptography, blockchain we’d see is going to create a change making
adds that Kavita Gupta (the development, game theory, shocking amount of value,” government services
Founding Managing Partner) and more from all over the he says, to entrepreneurs more effective and
has looked at a “shocking world. Our only bottleneck fascinated by the mysterious efficient.”
number of projects” since
launch three months ago.
“We’ve just made our first
investment, and owing to
conflict issues, I wouldn’t
like to say anything publicly
about that yet,” he adds.
Whether it’s the techni-
cal prowess of the team,
or Lubin’s own formidable
experience in the world of
ethereum, it’s safe to say
that ConsenSys has now
become a magnet of sorts
when it comes to attracting
talent, and this is despite
the fact that they didn’t
recruit for a long time. “We
literally had people show
up in our office and say they
www.consensys.net
loved what we are doing;

lot of people joined us in

”We got funded!”

The entrepreneurs behind Eventtus and Malaeb
reveal what went into securing their latest funding rounds
By Pamella de Leon and Sindhu Hariharan
EVENTTUS quarters are in Dubai, and

an operations office in Cairo,
www.eventtus.com
Egypt. As an events app
With the Middle East grow- provider, Eventtus has served
ing as a hub for global and 9,000 events in 15 countries,
regional conferences, Event- with clients including Dubai
tus, an events management Expo 2020, Informa, DMG
platform, has managed to Events, STEP Conference, Eventtus CEO and co-founder Mai Medhat and CPO and co-founder Nihal Fares
successfully leverage this Emirates Foundation and
momentum. It recently an- ArabNet, among others. Medhat also shares that with
nounced a successful raise of Of late, the startup has been their new live Q&A feature, ‘TREP TALK
US$2 million in a Series A working hard on improving first rolled out at the 2017 Mai Medhat, co-founder and
round from Algebra Ventures its offering, with new features Arab Conference at Harvard, CEO, Eventtus
and 500 Startups. like social media integration a pan-Arab conference in
Founded in 2012 in Egypt and personalization or real- US, they’ve made asking According to you, what
by Mai Medhat and Nihal time intelligence seeing an questions during conferences are the key elements
Fares, Eventtus has grown its impact on the engagement of simpler and more effective. that investors in the
web and mobile apps into an attendees who use Eventtus. While a panel discussion is MENA region look for in
all-in-one platform for events Features, such as the custom- ongoing, attendees can ask a startup that they are
ticketing, event management ized event agenda, event questions through the app, considering to fund?
and networking. Its head- sharing feed, and real-time see what others have asked “First and foremost, the
polls, have boosted engage- or commented, and vote up team. The team is the pillar
ment rate of attendees up to questions they’re curious to that gives investors the
91% in the past 18 months. know the answers to. confidence that the product
Co-founder and CEO Mai Eventtus had previously can be rolled out and
Medhat notes that one of the raised $175,000 in November developed efficiently and
platform’s attributes that 2013 from Cairo Angels and effectively. Complementary
attendees often miss making Vodafone Ventures, followed to the team’s abilities, for
use of is the networking and by a $450,000 from Raed investors in the MENA
in-app messaging feature, Ventures and MEVP in 2016, region- it matters a lot how
through which attendees can raising a total of $2.65 mil- big the market is, and how
explore the guest list, and lion. With the newly acquired scalable the product is.”
further contact them for a investment, the Eventtus
THE INVESTOR’S scheduled meeting directly on team plans to accelerate its
VIEWPOINT the app. expansion across the region The investment also marks as
Ziad Mokhtar, Managing “Attendees of ecosystem and introduce new products one of the biggest investment
Partner, Algebra Ventures events are using this feature, to compete on a global scale. done by Algebra Ventures, a
but I believe they should In the works are features to VC fund backed by CISCO,
From a financial stand- leverage it more,” says offer an efficient process for EBRD and IFC in the Middle
point, what excites Alge- Medhat, noting how during lead generation for exhibitors, East, to date. Ziad Mokhtar,
bra Ventures about this STEP Conference 2016 and as well as revenue genera- Managing Partner of Algebra
investment into Eventtus? 2017, Eventtus have received tion options for organizers. Ventures, says it was the
“Eventtus has the potential 4,000 messages sent between Eventtus is also gearing up to team’s “innovative product”
to change the $5 billion plus attendees. “The feedback we launch its new AI module to and tenacity of expanding
meetings, incentives, conven- received from a series of at- enable attendees to identify into regional markets with
tions, and events industry in tendees and startup founders, relevant people to connect minimal resources, that
the Arab world. They can im- who met investors or poten- with during events. It is caused him and his team
IMAGE courtesy eventtus / malaeb
pact the way tens of millions tial customers has confirmed based on a machine learning to sit up and take notice of
of event attendees interact to us that this was an aspect algorithm, which takes in and Eventtus. And with this new
every year. While doing so, that technology truly enabled understands an attendee’s investment, the company
they can create and capture and enhanced in comparison business goals better with is all set to take itself up a
substantial value. to the offline experience.” each interaction. notch- all the best, Eventtus!

MALAEB adding other kinds of sports
soon as well.
Yasser
Abdulaziz,
Hasan Haider, who is also
one of the startup’s mentors
www. malaebapp.com co-founder
In its endeavor to promote and COO, and an early investor through
If you are one of those football football (and other sports) in Malaeb app Tenmou. Speaking about
fans who often has an itch to the region, Malaeb recently Malaeb and its team, Haider
play a quality game, but just got a shot in the arm by rais- says, “Malaeb is a unique app
can’t seem to find enough ing an undisclosed amount in the way it’s been executed
people to get a match started of seed funds from investors in the region, and has tremen-
or a good enough space in including Raed Ventures, 500 dous potential to disrupt an
your city, help is at hand. Startups, Vision Ventures, In- industry that still uses paper
Bahrain-based Malaeb, an spire Ventures, and other an- and pens to make bookings
app that helps you find and gels. This is Malaeb’s second and keep track of them. This
book football fields and also external fundraising round offline-to-online model has
join matches in your area, is after a small pre-seed round been successful in several
keen to solve challenges the (also of undisclosed value) industries in the past, and
region’s football enthusiasts the app raised from Bahrain’s we look forward to it working
face. Positioning itself as sort business angels network Ten- well to generate a community
of an Airbnb for sporting ven- mou last year. While Malaeb in four countries across 500 to connect like-minded foot-
ues, the app enables users to is active in Bahrain, Kuwait, locations. “A social metric we ball and sports enthusiasts
search for and book venues/ and a few areas of Saudi have is the number of calories around the world.” He com-
stadiums near their location, Arabia, the startup expects we’ve helped our community mends the team’s focus on
create teams, challenge other to launch in four more coun- burn, and that to date, is wellexecution and growth since
users, and more. While the tries by the end of the year. over 100 million calories,” he the launch, and adds: “We
app only deals with football “Expansion in Saudi market is adds. like founders with a bias to
currently, the Malaeb team our main focus,” says Ahmed Given the fairly novel con- action, as Ahmed and Yasser
claim to be open to the idea of AlRawi, CEO, Malaeb. “We cept associated with the app, have demonstrated over and
are working on adding as AlRawi considers the fund- over again.”
many sport venues as pos- raising to be “quite challeng-
Ahmed
AlRawi, sible for our users to choose ing,” in the absence of local “Malaeb is a unique
from, as well as continuing or global benchmark entities.
co-founder
and CEO, work on the main social part “We had our numbers to back
app in the way it’s been
Malaeb app
of the app, where players can us, but that wasn’t enough executed in the region,
join matches happening in for some investors. We’re ex- and has tremendous
their area, organized by sport tremely happy with the group potential to disrupt
enthusiasts like them.” of investors who believed in an industry that still
Of course, it shouldn’t come us, and the concept, and now
as a surprise that Malaeb it’s time for us to work hard
uses paper and pens to
co-founders AlRawi and and prove our hypotheses make bookings and keep
Yasser Abdulaziz are football with 100X stronger numbers,” track of them.”
aficionados themselves, and he says. It’s an advice he
after connecting through offers to other aspiring
Hasan Haider,
common friends, they decided entrepreneurs as well: Partner,
to launch Malaeb together. “Your main priorities 500 Startups
“Imagine waking up one day starting out should be
and wanting to play tennis, a product-market fit,
then opening Malaeb, booking and right after that a
the venue, and finding your solid business model.
tennis partner,” AlRawi says. It might not be the first
“We want to set an uncon- thing you think of (it
ventional social experience usually isn’t), but you
to the way sports are played.” need to experiment and
And the app helps create this iterate until you reach
kind of an experience with its there, and you keep get-
gamification features- each ting a step closer to it
user/player has a profile every day.”
giving details of activity, The co-founders also
stats, and reviews, by which acknowledge that they
players get to know each were introduced to the
other better. AlRawi says, till KSA-based VC firm
date, Malaeb has helped over Raed Ventures through
100,000 people play football 500 Startups’ Partner

A scene from one

of The Assembly’s
workshops
technology, enabling them
to use it as a launch pad
for the next big innovation.
To date, The Assembly has
self-hosted over 100 work-
shops, which are held every
Saturday, and attracted
more than 1,000 members.
The workshops have covered
a range of topics, from the
Internet of Things to cloud
computing, robotics, 3D
printing, artificial intel-
ligence, augmented real-
ity, virtual reality, drones,
Powered
among others. It aims to cre-
ate engagement and mobility
around technology, with the
by the people ultimate goal of enhancing

the quality of life, and finally
creating happy citizens.
The Assembly: Dubai’s community-driven initiative “I’m the founder of this,
to “make smart things” By Tamara Pupic and in5 has been one of my
biggest supporters,” Gulati
says. “That’s how we became
F
ounded in 2015 by a consumer economy. We “We have people The Assembly. We also have
Prashant K. Gulati talked about Smart Cities, from 16 to 66 coming corporate and institutional
(who is perhaps and becoming a leading-edge and sharing their membership for the people
better known in city, but there was no way of who actually pay for this-
the MENA startup becoming that, if the city’s
knowledge. The ideas
they are sponsors, they give
ecosystem as PK), community was not in sync for the workshops us technology, and direc-
The Assembly is with it. With that in mind, come from the tions, at times. We also work
described as the we realized that there was community itself.” with other parties, such as
first smart lab, maker space, no place where we could government departments,
innovation training center go to build smart things. If who give us challenges.
and collaborative workspace I wanted something to be For example, with the UAE
of its kind in Dubai. Hosted made for Dubai, I had to Ministry of Climate Change
at in5 Innovation Hub in wait forever for somebody in and Environment and the
Dubai Internet City, The the US to make it. The whole Mohammed Bin Rashid
Assembly is open to all idea of this [The Assembly] Centre of Government Inno-
members of the city’s tech is that the city’s smartness vation, we ran the challenge
community, without any is now defined by this com- of air quality management.
restriction based on their munity. Before, somebody In the Happiness City Index,
age, nationality, skills, or had to build something for air quality is a very big part,
educational background, and you, now you can build it for but there were very few air
that there’s no cost involved yourself. That is the differ- quality measurement sta-
to participate in its vari- ence. Also, not everybody Prashant K. Gulati, founder, The Assembly tions here. So, two to three
ous offerings, it has today has to learn from scratch. student teams were hosted
become an enterprise that Even today’s best coding member of in5 Innovation by The Assembly to develop
is driven (and run) by the companies don’t do coding Hub, the secretary general at their ideas, and build the
people in it. from scratch, everybody the Indian Business & Pro- products.”
“First of all, we built a uses modules and so on. fessional Council Dubai, a “It is possible to learn
community,” Gulati says, as The same is happening here. board member of Dubai En- software from software
he remembers the origins New intelligence is made out terprise Centre, a trustee on itself, but if you want to
of The Assembly. “Before of the bricks of old intel- the Global Board of TiE, and learn hardware or the things
that, there was an idea ligence.” the founder of SmartStart that are smarter, you need
Images courtesy The Assembly
that building smart things According to Gulati (who Fund, among many other to have all the pieces to
was not what Dubai or this is also a senior advisor at roles), The Assembly has put together, and you don’t
region was known for. We the Dubai Future Founda- been built to increase the even know where to start,”
had always been seen as tion, a steering committee engagement of citizens with Gulati adds. “Over the last

two years, we have been garage,” he says. “What The
able to find more than 1,000 Assembly is doing is that it
people who regularly come is enabling that grassroots
to learn together. When we innovation. If you have an
started, we set ourselves to idea and you need access to
do one new workshop every technology that you don’t
Saturday, and people didn’t have at home, you can get
believe we could make it it here. It allows an indi-
happen. Even large compa- vidual with an idea to create
nies are scared of doing that. something from scratch.
Yet, we have done it and If we want to become a
we don’t charge for these knowledge-based economy
workshops. The reason is and be the country that is
that we don’t want friction. leading the GCC for tech
The great thing is that we innovation, that has to start A scene from one of The Assembly’s workshops
have people from 16 to 66 with supporting grassroots
coming and sharing their movements. These guys have a knowledge base that is
knowledge. The ideas for the fine-tuned it, and have done “We have completely shareable, scalable, and
workshops come from the it for free. That is quite rare documented replicable- has enabled it to
community itself. We also for Dubai and the whole and packaged grow further. “Our agenda
have an internship program, region.” the content and is a strategic one, not a prac-
and those who have com- Another member of this knowledge that we tical one, meaning that we
pleted it, still continue to community, Kamal, explains have accumulated tend to be a part of every-
come.” that The Assembly aids thing from The UAE Drones
One of the workshop unbiased collaboration of
over these few for Good Award, to taking
leaders is Sheban Naim, talent and resources, leading years. Our idea is to part in different challenges,
founder of Airspectiv Media, to life changing innovation open source it, to to running tech hack-
a Dubai-based professional and economic impact. “The make it available to athons,” Gulati says. “Our
aerial photography and most powerful thing in an other people.” success is measured by that.
video production company. innovation ecosystem is Just creating 1,000 makers
“There has been a great having people clustered to people building more in Dubai is an achievement.
push towards entrepreneur- in one place who come things. You can’t have this if We have also created a great
ship, but in most cases, together and exchange ideas, you stay at your house, but knowledge base which we
all grassroots innovations not knowing each other pre- if you have a place like this can teach others and create
have started in somebody’s viously,” he says. “Another to come to, it can happen.” other similar communities
thing is that when According to Gulati, the around the world, such as
somebody sees that notion that Dubai is lack- starting this in Africa and
a community mem- ing in technical talent, as India. We have completely
ber has built an app, often stated in the media, documented and packaged
for example, they is not true. “I personally the content and knowledge
immediately think believe that we have always that we have accumulated
that they could do had tech talent, but it is over these few years. Our
that too. I am 44 disbursed and very narrow,” idea is to open source it, to
years old, and here, he says. “Secondly, since make it available to other
I often see a child we don’t have a very old people, maybe in a franchise
who builds an app education system here, there model or something similar,
from start to finish is no historical perspective. I don’t know that yet. The
in just two weeks. I They are still building it. point is that I am sure that
immediately think These initiatives [like The there are another thousand
that I could do that Assembly] bring people to- people in Abu Dhabi or
as well. So, there gether, and by creating this Sharjah who would attend
is an element of community we have actually these workshops. So, the
competition on a increased the chances for replication of this in other
very subconscious them to get that knowledge cities and/or countries will
level. So, when quickly. We use their talent be our next step.” And if its
people discover and by enabling them to share popularity in Dubai is any
motivate each other, it, and with that, we are indication, then it’s easy to
A scene from one they end up creating increasing the talent pool.” see people lining up for new
of The Assembly’s
workshops
more things togeth- Achieving one of the branches of The Assembly in
er which then leads initiative’s aims -building the future- here’s hoping.

A scene from the Bustan Aquaponics farm
produce. With sales chan-

nels that are both B2B
and B2C in nature, Bustan
counts many of the top
gourmet restaurants and
supermarkets in the country
as customers, owing to its
reputation in the market.
“Our major customer groups
are high quality restaurants
and supermarkets, while
also expanding in the home
fruit and vegetable package
Greenhouse at the Bustan delivery business, through
Aquaponics farm
a partnership with another
high-quality producer,” says
Farrag. While Cairo brings
Farming Rico as a good example)
have a natural need for these
in most of the revenue for
Bustan, the company’s prod-
for the future types of systems as one of
many different approaches to
ucts, which are pesticide-
free and grown using 90%
Egypt-based Bustan Aquaponics is taking a socially reduce their dependence on less water than traditional
imported food without doing farming practices, are also
responsible route to help the country become food secure significant damage to the available in Alexandria,
By Sindhu Hariharan very finite resource of clean Hurghada, and the North
E
water.” Having launched Coast of Egypt through their
ntrepreneurship is entrepreneur Faris Farrag officially in 2014 (although it retail partners.
often considered to be decided to ease the pressure had already been operating As an MBA from UK’s
a means to personal on the country’s already- since late 2011 as a pilot), Warwick University, having
wealth creation, but stressed natural resources Bustan, which currently worked in investment bank-
then again, every once by setting up his enterprise, only serves Egypt market, is ing, private banking, and
in a while, you also Bustan Aquaponics. exploring various avenues having also been involved in
come across business In simple terms, aquapon- of partnerships and private two architecture and design
propositions that have the ics is a farming methodology equity funding for expansion startups, Farrag’s entrepre-
potential to be considered combining the systems of into other export markets. neurial move to Bustan was
national assets. Consider producing aquatic creatures Farrag claims that Bustan largely fueled by a strong
Egypt as an example. While (aquaculture), and plants is today the largest bayleaf passion to feed Egypt’s grow-
it has been historically without soil (hydroponics). salad producer in Egypt, ing population sustainably.
hailed as the “gift of the In aquaponics, plants are fed and the company’s farm, Besides being an area that’s
Nile,” the country is today the aquatic animals’ waste, which is located just outside quite alien to his back-
facing a severe water crisis, and in turn, the plants clean Cairo, grows a number of ground, Bustan is also part
even as it tackles a rising the water that goes back to other products on a seasonal of a highly capital intensive
population. According to the fish. Additionally, micro- basis- basil during the sum- and niche industry, which is
a Guardian analysis back bial organisms also provide mer, kale, and other leafy often not the easiest starting
in 2015, Egypt is said to be nutrition for the plants- ef- greens during the cooler point for an entrepreneur.
“below the United Nations’ fectively ensuring a sustain- winter months, herbs such Farrag agrees with this
(UN) water poverty thresh- able, quality and healthy as rosemary, thyme, mint notion, and lists a few key
old,” with the UN predicting crop production. While it etc., among other kinds of hurdles that he had to cross
that by 2025, the country may sound like an experi- (and still faces)
may approach a state of mental concept, its potential in running the
“absolute water crisis.” Now, in terms of commercial use venture. “Some of
if all this is too drastic and cannot be understated. “It is the key challenges
negative for you to handle, my strong belief that there we face are very
here’s a ray of hope. With a is massive potential for the tight financial
strong conviction that Egypt expansion of aquaponics, management, cost
images courtesy bustan aquaponics
is in dire need of modern both regionally and in other control, logistics

forms of agriculture that locations that have issues management,
help in water conservation, with food security and employee training
food security, and produc- water,” Farrag says. “Many and retention,
tion of clean healthy food, island nations (Puerto A scene from the Bustan Aquaponics farm and staying cur-

‘TREP TALK
Bustan Aquaponics founder
Faris Farrag
rent with new technologies and are constantly updating
that can help reduce costs
“Often investors our designs and operating
and/or increase productiv- are very interested know-how.” As for specific
ity,” he says. But it’s not in the idea of responses from investors he’s
just his business’ scale that pitched to, Farrag says they
keeps Farrag awake at night.
aquaponics, but vary from “deep interest, to
The agri-entrepreneur is [they] have a limited a fear of the unknown. We
also keen to take the concept understanding of constantly stress that at this
of a healthier, qualitative, stage we are innovative but
and more sustainable food the complexity and not experimental as we have
production (which is how need for intimate operated the business for
he believes food consump- knowledge of the some time now, and built Based on your experi-
tion everywhere should be) a significant brand that is ence, how would you
to a wider audience. For design, build, and trusted and demanded by our describe the availability
this purpose, Bustan also operate parts clients.” And Farrag is right of resources and support
started providing aquaponic of the business. when he says that there are for entrepreneurs and
farming consulting services just few direct competitors startups in Egypt and the
throughout the Middle East. These are our core to Bustan’s offerings, as the Middle East?
“We specialize in desert competencies that growth of aquaponics, with “[I would say it is] improving,
farming solutions to help puts us ahead.” the current state of things, with lots of room for more
build environmentally sus- tends to be centered around development of the ecosys-
tainable communities and vestors is inevitable, whether local markets rather than tem as whole, particularly in
work closely with non-profit regionally or globally,” he exports. the agricultural sector. Both a
organizations and culinary says. “Many of these inves- At this point, I ask him if challenge and an opportunity
institutions to strengthen tors are looking for the next his almost impulsive decision is to convince more people
our local food movement. We big thing at the expense of to start Bustan has served to invest in the sector. More
have also made a significant taking a longer-term view of him well. “Though one can investors need to understand
push into the sustainable the benefits that agriculture say that all startups are the sector in more detail, and
urban development market investments provide, both challenging regardless of this is specifically where we
with a new partnership that financially and socially. Even- geographic location, some of can be a resource to those in-
is currently in the works,” tually, our time will come. the particular challenges we vestors who are interested or
says Farrag. Having said that, there has have faced in Egypt have been are looking at the sector. We
Today, there is quite a bit been a significant increase [in] finding competent and have a deep knowledge of
of action that MENA’s agri- in interest in our sector al- professional staff, and a very the pitfalls and opportunities
cultural sector is seeing with though usually in traditional unstable market,” he replies, in the sector, and can sig-
both the government and en- agricultural investment.” Of adding that the company has nificantly contribute to due
trepreneurs working towards course, the entrepreneur has managed to convert these diligence and understanding
identifying new systems to come to this opinion after challenges to opportunities of where and whether certain
impact the food security con- quite a bit of experience of over the years. Having a small projects are an opportunity.
cerns of the region. While it his own. While currently and efficient team has been a Having a granular knowledge
would be a tough ask for the self-funded -both through great advantage to Bustan, he of the risks and rewards
region to produce majority an initial investment and says. “Our team is relatively is critical, when assessing
of its food needs due to the thereafter through retained small in view of our produc- investment opportunities and
environment and resource earnings- Bustan has been tion. We are a total of 15-18 we have that capacity.”
constraints, backing innova- on the look out for external employees across all aspects
tion in agriculture is one way investment, he says. Speak- of the business. The strength What are the biggest
to help mitigate vulnerability ing about how fundraising of a small team is our ability business management
to a large extent. However, has been treating him, he to move and react quickly to lessons you have learned
the difference between the says, “Often investors are changing market conditions.” from your entrepreneurial
entrepreneurial action in very interested in the idea of With a wealth of professional endeavors?
this sector relative to others, aquaponics, but [they] have a experience on his side, I “Remain flexible in your ap-
is clearly the lack of buzz limited understanding of the reckon his words of advice proach to the direction of the
around it, and consequently, complexity and need for in- for the region’s aspiring en- business while maintaining
this affects the investor timate knowledge of the de- trepreneurs may be a useful your core values. Persevere
interest that it attracts com- sign, build, and operate parts one to emulate: “Believe, and and keep an open mind to
pared to tech counterparts. of the business. These are our be passionate about what you changes around you. Know
But Farrag isn’t bogged down core competencies that puts are doing, don’t take no for all aspects of your business
with this less-glamorous us ahead of many other start- an answer, and work harder well, even if you are not per-
state of agri-innovation. “The ups, as we have been in the than you’ve ever worked sonally an expert in them all.”
tech-focused interest of in- business for some time now, before.”

TECH SHINY | WEBSITE TO WATCH | GEEK | MOBILE TECH | ONLINE ‘TREP | THE FIX
Huawei Happiness Meter Huawei Happiness Meter

concerns such as traffic
accidents, chronic diseases
and energy consumption.
Meanwhile, a robot named
Sophia made global headlines
in October after Saudi Arabia
granted her citizenship at a
summit in Riyadh, signaling
the Kingdom’s vision to in-
clude robots in its workforce.
But this is just the start.
These initiatives set the stage
for more investment, more
research, more develop-
ment, and more innovation Huawei Mate 10– a series of
in 2018. Such commitment smartphones powered by AI.
resonates well with leading We at Huawei believe 2018
technology companies like will set these plans in mo-
Huawei that are dedicated to tion and just as the internet
Harnessing momentum creating innovative devices
that help make the lives of
revolution saw businesses
innovate to develop solutions
their consumers easier, and that improve lives, compa-
In the world of technology, you’re only as good therefore ultimately happier. nies across the region and
as your next innovation By Gene Jiao The political will for techno- globally will now venture
logical advancement will also into the fields of AI, robotics
W
e live in a time centers globally. Huawei has continue to forge valuable and autonomous vehicles, to
when the pace of put more than US$45 billion partnerships between tech create a whole new wave of
technological ad- in R&D in total over the last leaders and government. For possibilities and experiences.
vances is increas- 10 years. example, Huawei has estab- With the launch of Hua-
ing exponentially As we look back on 2017 lished a partnership with wei’s newest chipset Kirin
and overwhelmingly. Never and look forward to 2018, Dubai Smart Government to 970 -a mobile artificial intel-
mind today’s groundbreak- we predict that the rate of implement the Happiness ligence computing platform
ing product launches- even innovation will accelerate Meter in our service cent- that runs on a Neural Pro-
tomorrow’s innovations are rapidly in this pursuit of ers in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, cessing Unit- it goes without
always en route to being happiness, especially in the making it the first consumer saying that AI is an area
classed as soon-to-be obso- Middle East. Over the past technology brand globally to close to our heart. Huawei is
lete, because the day after, year, we’ve seen the region measure customer happiness already the fastest growing
those inventions are already take three tremendous leaps in real time. smartphone brand in the
in research and development. towards building a happier As a multinational tech region, and we will continue
Why? Because problems future with technology in the company, we are also to invest in research and
that need solving are evolving field of autonomous vehicles, especially excited that we development efforts to create
faster than the solutions to robots and artificial intelli- share the same vision as the devices that understand our
address them. Successful gence (AI). region- to continuously in- customers need; that are
technology, at its heart, has In April, the Dubai gov- novate. Much like the UAE’s more human, transparent
always been purposed to ernment announced that forward-thinking agenda, we and rapid.
solve problems, whether of 25% of vehicles in the city at Huawei are leaders in in- After all, in the world of
time, space, energy, commu- will be driverless by 2030. novation. This past October, technology, you’re only as
nication or ability, and even Flying taxis have already we have launched our most good as your next innova-
of the mind. Innovation has taken to the skies, as part of innovative device yet –the tion.
the power to positively im- test flights being run by the
pact economies and societies, Emirate’s Roads and Trans- The Huawei Mate 10
all in pursuit of one ultimate port Authority. In October,
common goal: happiness. the United Arab Emirates
At Huawei, we understand appointed the world’s first
this velocity all too well. It’s Minister for Artificial Intel-
why we are one of the top 10 ligence. The country has also
brands in global R&D invest- launched a new AI strategy to
ment in the world, and we improve government perfor-
have established 15 research mance and address national
images © huawei
Gene Jiao is President, Huawei Consumer Business Group,

Middle East & Africa.

2017 12 Entrepreneur Middle East

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Powered by the people The Assembly: Dubai’s community-driven initiative to “make smart things”

The investor’s Pioneering

9 77231 1 541 008 >

december 2017 | www.entrepreneur.com/me | UAE AED20

36 Wissam Younane, CEO, BNC Publishing, giving his welcome address

december 2017 Entrepreneur 3

72 DSOA Deputy CEO Shahla Abdul Razak at DTEC’s

18 Entrepreneur december 2017

20 Entrepreneur december 2017

In addition to our print edition, we’re bringing EntMagazineME

22 Entrepreneur december 2017

Kill your darlings

24 Entrepreneur december 2017

DISCOVER HOW TO ACCELERATE YOUR BUSINESS

FIND OUT MORE AT ACCELERATESME.COM

Onwards and upwards!

made sense from

26 Entrepreneur december 2017

28 Entrepreneur december 2017

december 2017 Entrepreneur 29

30 Entrepreneur december 2017

“We’re not building there [to Dubai] anyway. We’ve

the [impetus], you know: if we

december 2017 Entrepreneur 31

“The top priority statement,” Evans adds. “We

where everybody felt welcome, concept or probably a certain

32 Entrepreneur december 2017

december 2017 Entrepreneur 33

of individuals ever put together and does… And we want the

“Because we are doing cool

34 Entrepreneur december 2017

gold ally ecosystem partners

36 Entrepreneur december 2017

Winners of the Indian Innovator Awards 2017

december 2017 Entrepreneur 37

Banking Innovation Dr. Adnan Chilwan

38 Entrepreneur december 2017

Startup of the Year

Real Estate Innovation Responsible Leadership

december 2017 Entrepreneur 39

40 Entrepreneur december 2017

december 2017 Entrepreneur 41

42 Entrepreneur december 2017

tribute and maintain their competive-

december 2017 Entrepreneur 43

By using categories such as

44 Entrepreneur december 2017

See the whole picture

IMAGES COURTESY nokia / sony

46 Entrepreneur december 2017

All around you

Don’t stop the music Square up

december 2017 Entrepreneur 47

From better goods to better wardrobe bests, every issue we choose

FIRE AND ICE

images credit Dolce & Gabbana, montblanc, la prairie

Kit Harington in Dolce & Gabbana’s

48 Entrepreneur december 2017

READY, SET, GO!

december 2017 Entrepreneur 49

over the last ten years or so, true hands-free driving

car “lays the blueprint for

50 Entrepreneur december 2017

“Disruptive innovation often it as an “intelligent phone,”