Sarah Guirguis Yasmine Rashed
Marketing & Communication Senior Manager at e-finance
“Leadership by definition lies in the action of leading to reach a goal. For me, what defines a great leader is someone who leads by example, and successful leaders are known by the influence and impact they have on many, not on one. I also learned that communication isn’t merely a supporting component for businesses to succeed; it is the key factor for success for every leader, for every business and even in our personal lives. Unfortunately, the majority of our society defines a woman merely on the basis of her physical appearance, whereas a man has a more moral definition; when you call someone ‘a man’, you are referring to his sense of responsibility, his integrity, his ability to lead and his ability to succeed. I would encourage women to simply follow their dreams. There is no such thing as too early and it’s also never too late! There is no role too big or too small; every element is important as long as you have a defined goal. Remember that change is good and when you believe in something, become the change that you want to see. There is more than one formula to success, as long as you don’t lose your focus, stop believing or give up.”
Marwa Abu Leila
Founder and Managing Partner of Photopia
“I believe great female leaders bring the two worlds of professionalism and compassion together. As they take their work very seriously and truly care about their team and their spirits, subsequently they create great results. I learned the importance of ethics, especially at work; they build your reputation and work credibility. Delivering consistently what is promised is the only key to career growth. I have not faced many stereotypes because I am lucky to be surrounded by many strong women from all walks of life that have broken those stereotypes already. Sometimes I bring my kids to work and engage them in what I do. This is my way of spending time with them, whilst teaching them the value of work and its significance. Nothing comes easy and naturally. It may take some time to figure out how to balance your time but eventually, with time and experience, I believe we figure out what’s best for us. My advice is to be consistent and grow steadily, slowly but surely. I also believe in the value of specialization because it gives you an edge in what you do, be it for men or women. Family life, work and social life balance is very important but it is okay to work hard in the beginning and build your own dream. You have to trust in the effort and time you put in. Eventually, everything will fall into place.”
Reem Zaki
Marketing Communication Director at Schneider Electric – North East Africa & Levant
“To stand out as a great leader, you first have to believe in yourself! Then, make sure you convey your passion and opinions to cultivate an empowered work environment. Having social and emotional intelligence also really helps you get ahead. As for gender stereotyping, it was something I needed to break through but it was not difficult to overcome. For example, at the beginning of my career, there was still the concept of “How come a woman is staying late at work and being at site installations, sometimes overnight, while surrounded by male workers?” It was a bit frustrating when I heard things like “Let your male colleague go instead of you”, because I felt it was my responsibility to be there. But nowadays, things have changed in our culture and female acceptance has improved greatly. I am now working at an industrial firm which comprises 80% engineers, so when I first started, I thought there would be a challenge to prove that a female non-engineer can become a leader at a place like that. I found that, on the contrary, with support from peers and mentors, it was a smooth journey and it just required business acumen and knowledge. Schneider Electric has many programs about diversity and inclusion, in addition to women empowerment, which definitely sets the tone for everyone working there.”
Nadine Abdel Ghaffar
Founder of Art D’Egypte
“A great leader is someone that empowers their team, is able to delegate, possesses humility, integrity, a solid work ethic, an attitude defying obstacles and challenges, and most of all the capacity to mentor. My career taught me that adversity is something that you grow from; it is there to teach you a lesson and make you stronger, not break you. Without the many bumps in my journey, I don’t think I would have been able to get Art D’Egypte to the point that it’s at today. There is a stereotype that women are not as capable as men, and that men are generally more career-driven and equipped than women. Being a team of women and doing what we do, I found that we shattered stereotypes about the competence and resilience of women in the workforce. Working on art exhibitions in public spaces, we are often faced with different individuals who don’t believe that the field is a place for women. They don’t expect that a group of women is capable of completing such big projects on their own and dealing with all sects of society and the bureaucratic system. Once we complete the exhibition successfully, and the people involved witness the whole process and the development of our exhibition for twelve months, their minds visibly change. Many of them have verbally testified that we truly changed their perspective about working women.”
Menatalla Sadek
CEO, H.A Utilities at Hassan Allam Holding
“Being a mom of three, while being the CEO of a dynamic company, is a challenge that many still think has no sustainable solution. It is widely believed that female leaders would have to “drop one of the balls”, either by not being an effective leader because of family responsibilities, or by being a bad mom because of work requirements. This is the most prevalent stereotype that I feel we need to break through in our Middle Eastern culture. It is very easy for women to lead in a ‘manly’ way by adopting the same leadership traits, thinking that this is the only way it should be done. Traditionally, it was indeed so. Recently, however, more and more female leaders have developed their unique management style. It is this fearless drive and the ability not to lose yourself in a leadership role that really defines a great female leader. It is not easy, especially once you start climbing to top management positions. The main lesson I learned is that it is very important to pick the right team. We were always told that a good boss is more important than a good job but I learned that what lifts you up is your team. Another lesson is to be politically aware of all dynamics happening in the workplace. It is not simply about how hard you work; you also have to understand how to operate within your specific organizational culture.”
Reem Saleh
Head of Communications at Metito
“Indeed, there are a few stereotypes. The main ones for me were; 1: Women do not possess the required skills that men inherently possess for certain professions and job titles; 2: Women do not take their career or jobs as seriously as men, and thus, are not as dedicated to the work; 3: Working moms are more responsible for their children and hence will take more breaks from work and possibly put in less hours as compared to men; 4: To survive working in a male-dominated industry women must become ‘one of the guys’ and partake a more masculine attitude to be taken seriously. These are very common in our culture, but things are changing, and more women are breaking these stereotypes every day. There are many reasons why you may want to quit dreaming of becoming or wanting more from your life and career, be it related to culture, society or other more personal challenges. It’s your responsibility to fight through this noise and to stay focused, inspired and invested in your brand. It doesn’t matter what you do and what stage of life you are at… just keep doing the best you can and trust that things will fall into place sooner rather than later. It’s a challenging time for everyone but perseverance and inspiration will take you places. Have no doubts!”
Merette Elsayed
Chief Commercial Officer at Hassan Allam Holding
“I’d say the key to becoming a great leader is to be good at what you’re doing and knowing it yourself; this will give well-founded confidence. This confidence will be the driver not to get intimidated, trust your instinct, voice your opinion, and more importantly, ask for help, when needed, without worrying about other people’s perceptions. There is strong stereotyping for sure, especially in the industry I’m in, construction and engineering. It has a very masculine culture worldwide, not particular to Egypt. People instantly assume that you’re not an engineer and that you’re not in the business’s core functions. There’s also an automatic assumption that you wouldn’t fit on construction sites or can’t handle high pressure or rough environments. I believe hard work and simply pushing through is the only way to break this. Being a minority or the ‘unusual’ is not always a disadvantage; leverage on your scarcity in the business world, but at the same time it’s important not to make your gender a problematic topic in your own head. If women focus too much on the fact that they’re female, we’ll lose focus on what matters more, which is delivering a success story. That’s not to say that politics and stereotyping do not exist in business; they absolutely do but must come secondary to proving success.”
Malak El Baba
Visa Egypt Country Manager
“I believe there are several steps in becoming a great leader. Being empathetic is both a personal trait and a soft skill that is needed in one’s career development. Empathy promotes both cooperation and commitment in the workplace and offers employees and customers alike the opportunity to be and feel heard – which leads to happy employees, happy clients and good bottom-line results. Successful female leaders are persuasive, have genuine belief in their ideas, and present them with full conviction and passion. They also tend to show consistency and perseverance. Despite many positive changes in the modern family set up, there is still a general tendency for women to be primary family caretakers, so managing work, home, chores and the pressure that comes with it must mean we are natural flexible multitaskers. I have found many women I have interacted with to be naturally creative problem solvers. Women can make great leaders when they harness their innate ability to dream big, challenge assumptions and inspire teams, and more importantly, lead by example. Lastly, I would say, you should aim to listen and digest information before reacting and communicating openly with high emotional intelligence, since it is a valuable way to build trust with your networks.”
Rania El Adl
Group Senior Marketing Communication Manager at Elsewedy Electric
“I believe that you must enjoy what you do. We spend most of our life at work, so if you’re not happy in your role or work environment, you should move on to doing something more fulfilling. I believe in adopting a learning attitude. Not everything I do will be successful, so I shouldn’t stress over failures. Without the mistakes I’ve made along the way, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to learn what I know today. Everyone, at every step of their career, can learn, whether from peers, superiors or subordinates. This notion will help you to excel and become a more rounded, educated and fulfilled individual. Achieving a work-life balance is less about dividing the hours in your day evenly between work and personal life. Instead, it is more about being efficient at work to get things done while still having time and energy to enjoy my personal life. It is a relatively common perception that leadership traits fall in line with gender differences, but I believe the characteristics of a good leader are gender neutral; focusing on soft skills like humility, empathy, resilience, entrepreneurial spirit and persuasiveness is just as important as depending on hard skills, if not more. Be courageous, believe in yourself and steer away from any limiting beliefs. And lastly, lead by example; empowered women go on to empower others.”
Noha Saad
Public Relations Director at Vodafone Egypt
“The stereotype that I had to break was that “women cannot be successful at work and have a family life.” A great female leader is a mix of a lot of things. She has the ability to motivate and inspire others, take responsibility and isn’t afraid to step out of her comfort zone. She also trusts her instincts and is a good communicator who listens to others. She sets an example by being resilient and not giving up, as well as leading with passion and confidence in her team and herself. My career taught me a lot, but mainly it taught me to be a storyteller and have the eye for details that can craft a narrative. I also learned how to profile people and have a deeper understanding of different types of personalities. Last but not least, I learned to never judge a book by its cover and to see the different angles to every story. Work-life balance can be tricky nowadays; in order to balance between my work and my family, I use simple but effective strategies such as setting daily goals and priorities, making sure to plan for personal time, and taking vacations to spend time with my loved ones and recharge. I would encourage young women to be passionate about what they do in life and be themselves. You have a voice in this world so make sure it is heard.”
Nesma Abdel Monem
Public Relations Manager at Hyde Park Developments
“A great female leader could decide the path she wishes to cross at a young age and work towards fulfilling that journey, instead of allowing society to shape that path for her. This, I believe, is what defined many female leaders over the years – being diverse, following their chosen path, enhancing their capabilities in that field and succeeding in the end. Hard work and dedication usually result in better connections with like-minded bright people, who work towards building one another, reaching their goals together and encouraging each other to forge their own paths. I believe that an influential social life, driven by success, is much better than one that mostly results from leisure and lots of free time, which can usually end up being toxic. There is a stereotype that women should only be committed to starting a family and raising children after a certain age, but the thing is…women form approximately half of our society, so by following this bland stereotype, you are basically giving up half of the available workforce on an economic level and giving up half of potential expertise givers. If you feel like you are forced towards a certain path, change it and work towards your own. Whether you are ten years old or seventy, there is always room for growth and always room for a positive change.”
Dr. Abeer Mohamed Wafaey
Director of Marketing & Communication at Egyptian Cure Bank
Nutritionist & Founder of Abby’s Nutrition Hub
“Women leaders are persuasive, when they feel the sting of rejection. Women leaders learn from adversity and carry on with a challenging tone of, “I will show the world what women can do” attitude. They demonstrate an inclusive team, building a leadership style of problem solving and decision making. A very important lesson I learned in my career is how valuable connections with other people can be, whether it is with a professional colleague, community or friendship. Each relationship I build with another person adds another beam of support to what I am building for myself. I believe stereotypes are perpetuated when people are exposed to individuals with actions that confirm the appearance, values and behaviors associated with a particular stereotype; I feel we need to break the link between being a woman and being judged based on gender, appearance and economic status. When it comes to time management, I always like to set priorities and a timeframe so I split my time between my personal life and my profession and try to balance between them. With the support of my family members, I am able to reach my goals easily. I would encourage young women to think and act equally; dreamers can be leaders but they need to make a clear plan and transform their dreams into action and reality.”
Yasmin El Batal
Miss L’ by L’azurde Marketing Manager for Egypt and GCC
“For starters, I think a female leader should believe in herself and her capacity to lead. And just like her male counterparts, she should have the vision, the commitment, the confidence and the passion. A great female leader inspires her team and is capable of creating an empowered workplace for both men and women. At the same time, she is expected to balance between her personal and professional leadership skills. Unfortunately, stereotypes, especially those based on gender, play a major role in our culture, and one that affected me personally was that women are always regarded as emotional and too fragile to lead. This is not true; being emotional is not a sign of weakness, and I think, on the contrary, this can be seen as an advantage that can help women leaders promote harmony inside their workspace. I also learned that it is never too late to go after your dreams. Do what you love, focus on what you do and success will be within your reach. In a nutshell, if you believe, you will achieve. Setting priorities is of paramount importance. I try to give each aspect its own time and space by planning in advance and building rituals. I set my work hours and stick to them and this can always work, except in exceptional circumstances or peak times. The same applies to my personal life. I set time for my family and do not forget my ‘me time’ that allows me to relax and unwind.”
Menna Onsi
Signify MarCom & Digital Manager, Egypt & NEA
“For me, a great leader is someone who empowers others, creates room for potential to exist and paves the way for people to be comfortable with their own pace. A leader is someone who is kind and understanding and believes in capitalizing on human emotions, rather than dismissing them. A leader is a person who creates a safe space for people to come forward with their ideas and concerns. The list is endless, but a leader is an approachable individual who people look up to for inspiration and mentoring. Along the years I have learned a lot of virtues that helped shape me into the woman that I am today. The main lesson I would like to share with other fellow professionals is courage. Everything is yours for the taking; you need to have the courage to ask and work for it. For women especially, we tend to undersell ourselves and that’s a narrative I’m working towards changing. Never feel that you aren’t good enough for that project or that promotion. Always have the courage to ask for what you want, because most of the time, it will not be handed to you, unless you ask for it. Remind yourself that we are no longer in a position that we have to prove ourselves worthy. Whenever presented with an opportunity to speak your mind, take it and make your voice heard. If not for you, for younger and upcoming generations.”
Lamiaa El Sadat
Human Resource Director at DHL Express Egypt
“I believe female leaders are becoming immensely transformational role models in their domains; they bring different perspectives, passion and perseverance. I learned that you succeed when you show profound care to people because we are all collaborating in one boat. And by people, I’m referring to direct managers, subordinates, colleagues and clients. Sincere efforts never go in vain. When you work hard, you will definitely reach your goals. Never wait for recognition. Just excel by doing your best because this will give you the most rewarding feeling, which is internal peace. Being genuine is your greatest power because people feel your true vibes and you will land in their hearts and minds. Moreover, always aspire to be agile. I believe any woman can achieve all what she wants in life with good planning and an understanding family. Social life is also as important as family and work because it refreshes us, keeps us connected to life and allows us to give more and more. Our culture tends to force women to put others ahead of their needs and to neglect their careers, but you should never be obligated to sacrifice your passion and dreams because of culture. Women can excel in the domain of their choice and keep nourishing their families as long as they have a good support system.”
Laila Salem
Member of Baheya Foundation Board of Trustees
“I learned to never stop doing my best, for sooner or later, all the efforts I have invested will eventually pay off and it will all be worth it. In your career, you should not pass on judgements too soon; time will always tell. Always be self-driven. A stereotype I have noticed in culture is that “Women need someone to rely on, or otherwise, they will break,” but I believe we all depend on each other and need a support system, regardless of our gender. I have to tell you, between my work, family, social commitments and my social responsibility role, I would be lying if I said I can give each a 100%. This is when you have to be street smart and learn how to juggle; I choose to do the things that matter more and that will have the biggest influence. On the other hand, it requires a lot of understanding from family, as well. I would encourage you to define yourself in whichever way you feel. Do what inspires you and don’t undermine that no matter what. If you want to be a stay-at-home mom, that is a noble role and it doesn’t make you an airhead. If you want to pursue your career, you can still be an amazing mom. As long as you have persistence, compassion, resilience, sincere dedication and responsibility, you can be what you want to be and be amazing at it.”
Enas Kadri
Head of Communications & Sustainable Development at Crédit Agricole Egypt
“If an average leader is defined as an influential visionary, communicator and decision maker, a female leader is far beyond that. She is strong but gentle, fearless but vigilant, a fighter but not a tyrant, a boss but also a team builder. If she’s a dream catcher who is objective-oriented, a female leader can be full of optimism, and she has an unstoppable power and proven ability to take down any barriers. In my personal life, I have two golden rules; firstly, that with commitment day-in and day-out, you will surely achieve what you want. Secondly, there is no such thing as failure in life because whatever you experience is actually helping you become better prepared for success. I am totally repelled by the thought that women are helpless. On the contrary, regardless of their status, women are very resourceful, and in so many cases, they are the main pillar of support to their families. Most women keep juggling to achieve a work-life balance that is becoming really hard to attain with the inevitable professional life pressure. But no worries, because we have this God-given ability to multitask! My advice is, “ladies, trust in your abilities because women can move mountains.”
Marie Fouad Zarif
Head of Marketing at Mercedes-Benz Egypt
“In the past, the main stereotype that I had to break through was the way everyone thought that the automotive field was just for men. It might have taken a while, yet recently, women have started taking on leading roles in the automotive business and many other business fields successfully. A leader, whether male or female, is someone who has the passion to inspire and motivate others, chooses to be honest and straightforward and has an inner compass for integrity at all times and in all situations. You also have to be able to coach and transfer knowledge to others, while keeping an eye on the end goal to deliver results. It is also so important to never stop learning because you have to be up-to-date with all the happenings in your field and able to keep finding new ideas and inspirations. Be agile and see challenges as opportunities. Achieving work-life balance everyday is not easy, but it’s not impossible either. Sometimes, it works organically, and other times, I plan for weekend getaways to escape from stress and from having to use my phone and look at emails. Success is not measured on a day-to-day basis but rather the accumulation of each step in your career. While you’re at it, make sure you have fun and make friends along the way.”
Marwa Moneer
Senior PR Manager at OPPO Egypt
“In my opinion, a leader should be someone who has a clear vision of what she wants to achieve. She has true passion for whatever she does and is a remarkable team member, who doesn’t necessarily manage other team members but rather mentors them. I also believe she should be someone who believes deeply in humanity and rejects the strict concept of ‘business is business’; everything should be handled in a humane way, since we are not robots after all. Competition is hard, yet it is what makes us excel in our career. However, if there is one thing that I truly learned, it is never to harm someone you think you compete with and have real passion for what you do. This is what will distinguish your work at the end of the day. I can’t remember how many times I heard, “You’re a woman, you can’t do it” throughout my whole life. But this never stopped me at any point, and I’ve always had my family’s full support. My parents taught me that as long as it doesn’t affect my self-respect, then I should do it and this is the legacy I’m passing on to my daughters as well. When it comes to work-life balance, honestly speaking, it is the hardest mission I have in my life but I try my best to apply the ‘family comes first’ slogan in my daily routine and spend as much quality time as possible with them.”
