“Overcoming Regional & Economic Challenges When Starting A Business in UAE”

Entrepreneur Workshop Series, organized by Young Arab Leaders in strategic partnership with Mohammed Bin Rashid Est. for SME Development (Dubai SME) under its educational arm Dubai Entrepreneurship Academy & the Hamdan Innovation Incubator, held its 5th out of 10 sessions last December 4, 2016 at the Hamdan Innovation Incubator. This entrepreneur-focused series presents unique topics to the startup community with regional mentors & speakers aimed at educating & providing entrepreneurs with tools to launch or scale their businesses.

Key Points of Discussion:

• •  Always be solving a problem
  • Start with the “why”. Not the “what”
  • Define your values & live by them
  • Only hire great people
  • Don’t try. Decide

 

About the Speakers

JEAN-PIERRE MONDALEK Jean-Pierre (JP) Mondalek is the General Manager of Motors at dubizzle and, in this role, is responsible for overseeing dubizzle’s motors section and implementing data-driven strategies to drive growth and user engagement. Formerly General Manager, UAE, at Uber Technologies, JP launched Uber’s operations in Dubai in 2013 and led a team that grew the business by 50 times in under two years. Prior to Uber, JP worked in Boston and London with TA Associates, a growth-focused private equity firm with over $24 billion under management, and Credit Suisse’s Technology Mergers & Acquisitions Group in New York. During his career, JP closed over $1 billion worth of transactions involving leading global software and internet companies in the US and Europe. JP is also an active investor in and fundraiser for tech startups. He was an angel investor in London’s Boticca.com, a fast growing online fashion marketplace that raised over $8 million in venture capital and sold to Wolf & Badger in 2015. In 2013, JP assisted Boticca.com in raising its $4 million Series A round and has successfully raised over $2.5 million for startups based in Czech Republic (Lime&Tonic), South Africa (Yoco), Turkey (Annelutfen), and UAE (Autohaus Middle East).

ABDALLAH TOUQAN Abdallah Touqan is a charismatic strategic communicator, influencer, tech-savvy, digital enthusiast, creative writer, public speaker, detailed oriented, dynamic, proactive, curious, Jordanian of Saudi/Palestinian origin. His mixed background allowed him to understand Arab region’s cultures and views. Throughout his 9 years of experience, he developed a solid background in corporate communications and public affairs across the MENA & Europe regions. He has been fortunate enough to meet many local thought leaders and execute on-ground Public Relations & Communications campaigns in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan and Lebanon. He has also been heavily involved in campaigns for OLX globally and on the ground in countries like England, Bulgaria & Holland. His career portfolio includes a mix of international brands in the B2B, B2C and the C2C business models, with various communication objectives/KPIs, from a educating the public and brands’ re-positioning or reputation management to crises communication and monetization strategies. Abdallah is a member of the European Communication Directors Association since 2014.