Following a day opened by Her Excellency Datin Paduka Seri Rosmah Mansor, Wife of the Prime Minister of Malaysia – and crammed with discussions and debates – the 2^nd Annual Women in Leadership Asia Awards ceremony took place at the famous Royale Chulan Hotel.

And in addition to receiving Asia’s Leading Woman in Charity Award, Her Excellency distributed eight awards to Asia’s most prominent and influential businesswomen.

The WIL Asia Award winners were:

• Shahnaz Husain – Asia’s Leading Business Woman of the Year
• Ming Ming Liu – Asia’s Most Innovative Woman Entrepreneur
• Datuk Dr Rebecca Fatima Sta Maria – Asia’s Leading Woman in Public Sector
• Khadijah Abdullah – Asia’s Leading Woman in Finance & Investment
• Tan Suet Guan – Asia’s Leading Woman in Healthcare
• Arunosha Bhanupan – Asia’s Leading Woman in Media
• Dr Jyotsna Suri – Asia’s Leading Woman in Hospitality
• PepsiCo Asia Pacific Region – Asia’s Most Women-Friendly Employer

The awards ceremony culminated with a gala dinner, where all winners and attendees celebrated the progress of businesswomen in Asia. Some of the traits identified as propelling them on their successful career paths are a unique determination and strategic goal-setting approach.

Today – the second day of the forum – began with Chairperson Laura Hwang, the President of Singapore Council of Women’s Organisations, welcoming all attendees and speakers.

Founder, Managing Director and Principal Fund Manager of Cortson-Smith Asset Management, Shireen Ann Zaharah Muhideen, explored the ever-changing role of women in today’s economy. She explained that a woman’s role in society is crucial, declaring: “When looking at share prices of companies, research has shown that [globally] those companies that have more women directors, management and/or CEOs all result in better performance.”

She continued by adding: “Columbia University did a study which found there is a three per cent increase in the market-to-book ratio for every one woman manager on the executive team.”

Supporting this point of view was Executive Vice Chairman of The Hour Glass, Dr Jannie Chan. She elaborated on the higher trend growth of organisations – confirming that there was an increase of “Senior female leaders at companies in Singapore during the last three to five years.”  She described the women’s role in training staff by declaring: “Women are being responsive to customers; they add a human touch.”

Day two of the forum left all delegates inspired to take action and be more determined and tenacious in their daily lives. The theme of the leading women’s platform, organised and hosted by French business information group naseba, was ‘Innovate, Inspire, Influence.’ Based on the content and interaction during the two days, it delivered on all three fronts.

“As a patron, it’s my pleasure to welcome you to the 2^nd WIL Forum Asia. I would like to congratulate the organisers for getting speakers for women progress in business. I would also like to congratulate the initiator of the Women in Leadership series and Chief Executive Officer of naseba group, Sophie Le Ray”. Her Excellency mainly focused on “game changers” by saying “we need to focus on game changers, who mainly change the way business is done, such as Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and the like. They transformed the business landscape. All the game changers are men, and I call for more women to become part of this group”.

The two-day forum is organised by French business information group naseba, and is hosting Asia’s most prominent leaders, key industry figures, and senior representatives from leading organisations. Attendees are discussing women’s advancement through education, specific initiatives, mentoring and support.

Creator of the Women in Leadership series and CEO of naseba, Sophie Le Ray remarked: “We are privileged to have Her Excellency Datin Paduka Seri Rosmah Mansor to open this year’s forum. This women’s platform holds three main goals; to inspire, influence and innovate. We are all present here because of a shared vision of the success of women and its impact in Asia.”

The day’s first panel discussion entitled ‘The making of a leader, a C level discussion’ examined how personality plays a crucial role in developing a desire to lead. The 60-minute debate was led by Eva Cheng, Chairman of Amway China.

She emphasised that: “never be shy to make new friends, you need to always be yourself, be your best mentor. When you make a mistake, don’t stop, just reflect on it and move on. Believe that the best gets better all the time”.

According to Eva Cheng, three main attributes contribute to leadership:” lead with passion and find joy, lead with respect for people around you, and lead with a vision for the future”.

The impact and importance of social circles and support groups in the success of individuals was also covered at length. Sung-Joo Kim, Chairperson and Chief Visionary Officer of Sung Joo D&D reasoned: “my main mission was: help women to excel, fight against corruption, and how to compete with giant companies while my company was still at its first steps”.

She advised the crowd to” stand up for your rights, be brave, follow your heart, and take responsibility for your actions”. She concluded her speech by stressing on the following points: “set a woman’s game, have emotional discipline, and time urgency”.

Umran Beba, President of Asia Pacific in Pepsico, concluded the morning session during a keynote that considered the effects of leading by example. The issue of having high-potential women over-mentored and under-sponsored is one that needs to be focused on in today’s business world she explained. “Women tend to create barriers for themselves, and not look for the next step, and this is why the role of a sponsor is very crucial”.

The afternoon session featured keynotes, group discussions and case studies and drew to a close with the WIL Asia Awards Ceremony and networking Gala Dinner.

visit the event website

This year’s 2nd WIL Forum Asia will take place on February 16th – 17th 2012 at The Royale Chulan Hotel. For the second year in a row it will enjoy the patronage of Her Excellency Datin Paduka Seri Rosmah Mansor, a true woman leader herself, who will be delivering a keynote address as well as present the Women In Leadership Asia Awards which recognize and reward influential Asian Women leaders and organisations for their outstanding achievements and initiatives.

“Following the positive feedback from the inaugural WIL Forum Asia in 2011, we are striving to take the debate to the next level and discuss current challenges and leadership issues faced by women whilst celebrating women’s emerging role in today’s competitive society and growing contribution to the economy”, explains Sophie Le Ray, Chief Executive Officer of leading French business information group, organiser of the Women In Leadership Series. “ Based on a survey by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), inequality and discrimination against women cost Asia Pacific economies almost US$80 billion a year due to restrictions in access to employment and education alone”, she added.

This year’s forum will once again present a stellar line-up of inspiring and influential speakers from across Asia. Some of the key speakers are Eva Cheng, Non-executive Chairperson of Amway (China), regarded by Forbes as one of the ‘World’s 100 Most Powerful Women’, Umran Beba, President Asia Pacific of PepsiCo, 23rd on the list of The Most Powerful Women in Business by Fortune, and Sung-Joo Kim, Chairperson and Chief Visionary Officer of Sung Joo D&D (South Korea), named as one of the ‘Top 50 Women to Watch’ by The Wall Street Journal. Other key speakers include Jaspal Bindra, Chief Executive Officer, Asia of Standard Chartered and Sanjay Modi, Managing Director, India, Middle East and Southeast Asia of Monster.com.

WIL Forum Asia gathers international leaders to discuss the three principals of leadership: Inspire, Influence and Innovate. This year’s forum moves beyond merely defining leaders to exploring how leaders can influence others, use innovation to propel meaningful change among women and inspire performance in people. WIL Forum Asia 2012 provides an ideal platform to inspire Asian women in public and private sectors and represent those that understand the urgency of working towards creating responsible, united, forward-thinking and successful environments that provide real value to every woman in Asia.

Since 2009, the WIL series has brought together over 2000 successful, international business leaders to network and conduct business. It is a business networking and knowledge-sharing platform that enables the participants to meet both men and women business leaders, from a diverse range of industries. Highlights of this year’s forum will be the WIL Forum Asia 2012 Awards, inspiring conference and panel session, and interactive roundtables discussion.

 The company has also confirmed its participation at the 3^rd Annual Concepts Middle East, organised by French business information group naseba and taking place on February 22^nd and 23^rd 2012 in Doha. This is considered to be a strategic move to further boost their expansion plans in the Middle East, particularly as they are creating regional operations in both Qatar and Oman.

Rajesh Anil Mathias, General Manager – Operations at Al Reyami Interiors explained: “We consider this as a good opportunity to interact with potential customers and showcase our internal capabilities in theinterior fit-out industry.”

The company confirmed it will soon be adding three new joinery and two glass and aluminumfactories.Mathiascontinued: “As a group we already represent more than 30 key brands from the European Union and USA, and these additional factories will help support our company’s focus on the interior fit-out business. We have identified an emerging opportunity in the growing healthcare segment and have extended marketing of medical furniture and associated products as well.”

 ”We welcome Al Reyami’s partnership for one of our most important initiatives under our Infrastructure Series. By participating, they havean opportunity to meet and do business with senior level decision makers from some of the leading architects, interior designers and constructions consultants from across the Middle East – and from Qatar in particular,”explained naseba Managing Director, Fabien Faure.

naseba seven

naseba corp

• Sell business development opportunities to a diverse global vendor market over the telephone
• Work within a dedicated sales team – managed and mentored by an experienced Sales Director
• Proactively sell sponsorship packages for our product portfolio to existing and potential partners
• Assess potential clients’ needs and match them to the benefits of our packages
• Undertake your own research of market and industry trends
• Collaborate with internal departments to maximise conversion of all leads and opportunities

 What you need:

• Exceptional communication and negotiation skills and thrive under pressure
• Strong telephone presence and confident with cold calling
• Adept in talking to senior level executives and key company decision makers
• To be inquisitive, assertive, influential and highly motivated
• Ambitious, positive and committed attitude
• Ability to work in a target driven environment with tight deadlines
• Consistent ability to close a potential customer

 What we offer:

• The ultimate corporate culture which will challenge and support you
• Competitive package – basic salary plus commission (we pay the most commission in the industry)
• One week’s training and on-going support from senior management
• Visa and health insurance
• 90-minute lunch break if you go to the gym
• Incentives including the Rolex Explorer II challenge, sky diving, and much more

About naseba:

naseba researches, produces and hosts B2B initiatives with the objective of facilitating business in emerging markets. Each platform is focused on re-education, networking and creating business for all participating organisations. Whether the ‘deal flow’ is raising capital, expanding into a new market, sales contracts or sourcing a strategic partner, we strengthen our clients’ business development strategies. Since 2003, naseba has organised over 400 events and hosted more than 58,000 executive delegates globally.

Why naseba?

naseba is not for everyone. If you think building a successful career involves bouncing from job to job, naseba is not for you. If you want to make your life and career happen, naseba is for you. Working with us gives you the opportunity to get the most out of yourself. Where do you want to be in one month, one year… five years? 250 people, 30 nationalities, one common goal – strive for nothing less but the best.

All staff at naseba possess the following qualities:

• Make it happen attitude
• Dynamic
• Bold
• Committed
• Focuses on the solution – not the problem

Please visit:

• Links.naseba.com/1 – Ode to the old school
• Links.naseba.com/2 – MBA’s do not teach loyalty and drive
• Links.naseba.com/4 – importance of core values: making sure the team has the same core values

This will give you a clearer picture of what we are looking for in our employees.   Anyone who has not visited the above links will not be interviewed.

 Follow us on:

Apply now

By email to dubai (at) naseba.com or by using the form [contact-form-7]

The company also announced an aggressive expansion in its Middle East strategy, with participation in four key regional events being organised by French business information group naseba in 2012, namely:

3rd Annual Concepts Middle East -February22nd-23rd 2012,Doha, Qatar 4th Annual Kingdom Hotel Expansion Summit -May 26th-27th 2012, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia 6th Annual Middle East Hospitality Expansion Congress -October 2012, Doha, Qatar 3rd Annual Modern Makkah Summit and Awards – December 2012, Makkah Province, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Michael Riley, CEO and Managing Director for OWH said: “The Chairman of Oriental Weavers Group, Mr Mohamed Farid Khamis has agreed to double our production capabilities within three years and expects to be manufacturing Axminster carpets on three continents by 2015.”

The company confirmed it will soon be adding printed carpet to its offering. Riley stated: “Owning the largest Chromojet printing facility in the world (Mac Carpets) gives us a great competitive edge when we add a full line of printed carpets to our global hospitality product offering.”

One of the key products OWH is launching this year is its spectacular RoyalAx™ quality. This has unmatched quality in the industry and received a spectacular reception by the clients who previewed it at the Domotex Fair in Germany last week.

“We welcome OW Hospitality’s partnership with naseba over the course of four key initiatives during 2012. Given our proven track record of facilitating deal flow platforms throughout the Middle East, OWH have an opportunity to meet and do business with clientele they may have never previously had the opportunity to meet,” explained naseba Managing Director, Fabien Faure.

“In order to utilise global assets and take advantage of the organisation’s (OWH) worldwide corporate structure and management team, we have decided to fully integrate the hospitality operation under the key management structure currently in place for all other flooring related businesses,” said Egyptian Industrialist Mohamed Farid Khamis, the company’s Chairman.

He continued by adding: “The assets and synergies of our many other floor covering operations will be fully utilised to provide the best possible offerings and service to the worldwide hospitality market.”

• Identifying and thoroughly understanding key market segments relevant to assigned products
• Producing a comprehensive marketing plan and strategy clearly defining a timeline, resource utilisation, and market segmentation for each event
• Forging strategic partnerships with associations, media and research organisations
• Working closely with all departments to achieve project success
• Detailed response analysis
• Writing commercially attractive copy to generate relevant leads
• Managing project deliverables in a timely fashion while communicating interactively with the team

What we require:

• University graduate with a Bachelor’s degree (minimum)
• Maximum one year’s experience
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Good combination of creative and analytical skills
• Sound time management – capable of meeting tight deadlines
• Enthusiasm, drive and determination
• Keen interest in a career in marketing and communications
• Thorough attention to detail

What we offer:

• The ultimate corporate culture which will challenge and support you
• Competitive package – basic salary plus commission (we pay the most commission in the industry)
• One week’s training and on-going support from senior management
• Visa and health insurance
• 90-minute lunch break so you can go to the gym
• Incentives including the Rolex Explorer II challenge, sky diving, and much more

About naseba:

naseba researches, produces and hosts B2B initiatives with the objective of facilitating business in emerging markets.Each platform is focused on re-education, networking and creating business for all participating organisations. Whether the ‘deal flow’ is raising capital, expanding into a new market, sales contracts or sourcing a strategic partner, we strengthen our clients’ business development strategies. Since 2003, naseba has organised over 400 events and hosted more than 58,000 executive delegates globally.

Why naseba?

naseba is not for everyone. If you think building a successful career involves bouncing from job to job, naseba is not for you. If you want to make your life and career happen, naseba is for you. Working with us gives you the opportunity to get the most out of yourself. Where do you want to be in one month, one year… five years? 250 people, 30 nationalities, one common goal – strive for nothing less but the best.

All staff at naseba possess the following qualities:

• Make it happen attitude
• Dynamic
• Bold
• Committed
• Focuses on the solution – not the problem

Please visit:

• Links.naseba.com/1 – Ode to the old school
• Links.naseba.com/2 – MBA’s do not teach loyalty and drive
• Links.naseba.com/4 – importance of core values: making sure the team has the same core values

This will give you a clearer picture of what we are looking for in our employees. Anyone who has not visited the above links will not be interviewed.    

 Follow us on:

Apply now

By email to dubai (at) naseba.com or by using the form [contact-form-7]