Strategy Director
Strategy and Innovation | Destination Development |
Tourism | Government and Advisory Expertise
About
Seasoned strategy leader with 10+ years of experience driving innovation in tourism, destination development, and government advisory across the Middle East.
Trusted by ministries, authorities, and private developers to shape high-impact strategies aligned with national agendas and long-term visions across Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar.
Skilled at building strategy functions from the ground up, leading cross-functional teams, and translating complex challenges into actionable, creative solutions. Proven track record guiding public sector transformation, cultural policy, and mega/giga-projects across tourism, creative innovation, and economic development.
Expertise
Strategic Planning and Advisory
Destination Marketing and Development
Innovation Management
Creative Strategy
Government Advisory and Economic Development
Cross-Functional Leadership and Stakeholder Engagement
Experience Design & Integrated Campaign Strategy
New Business Growth
Workshop Facilitation and Thought Leadership
Selected Roles
Associate Strategy Director - Imagination Middle East (2021 - present)
First regional strategy hire, growing Advisory and Destinations offer to triple its size - from 5% of the region’s revenue to +30%.
Led multidisciplinary consortia across major developments in the GCC region, outperforming globally renowned firms and conglomerates.
Developed and delivered tourism and cultural strategies for key national agenda initiatives, working closely with government stakeholders (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar).
Drove new business growth in the region across new clients, accounts and several agency of record appointments (provided upon request).
Senior Creative Associate - Jack Morton Dubai (2017 - 2021)
Creative Strategy across industry-leading global and regional brands, such as Uber, Ericsson, LaLiga, ADGM, Netflix, Porsche, Expo 2020 Dubai, ADIA and adidas.
Design Consultant - CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) (2016 - 2017)
Development of CERN’s publishing platform.
Challenge-Based Innovation @ Mediterranean programme alongside ESADE Business School, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia and Politecnico di Milano.
Art Director - McCann Barcelona (2015 - 2016)
ALDI and Vueling seasonal campaigns and weekly creative campaigns.
Involved in the development and growth of several GCC homegrown brands, such as Acquisit, Revibe and several other start-ups (provided upon request).
Client selection:
Thought Leadership and Accolades
Speaker at Athar Festival (Saudi Arabia’s premier creativity festival)
Campaign Middle East features:
Extending brand lifestyle with meaningful brand experiences (read)
Pros and cons of taking a fast-fashion approach to creativity (read)
Grandma breaks all demographics (read)
Subverting expectations of a Middle Eastern country (read)
Going beyond: Learning from fictional worlds (read)
Harnessing user patience (read)
CEO Middle East feature - What African flip phones, cryptocurrency and your bank have in common (pages 40 - 42)
Little Black Book feature - A Brave New Artificial World: Why Human Imagination Still Matters (read)
Named to Campaign’s Creative Faces to Watch 2022 (feature here)
Dubai Lynx’s Young Lynx Selection 2022 (feature here)
#1 ranking in El Mundo’s Top 10 Innovation in Sónar+D (Spain) (publication here)