Speakers

Raman Nathani, Director of Procurement, Purehealth | Horizon Enterprises

Raman has 20 years of procurement experience in the United Arab Emirates, a pragmatic profile with a versatile knowledge and expertise in the manufacturing industry, global distribution, Aviation, entertainment, Pharmaceutical & healthcare have made him a nonpareil leader in the procurement sector. His professional work has greatly contributed to the development of the country with innumerable iconic projects in the United Arab Emirates, He is currently a Chairman of CIPS Dubai branch and service the UAE committee for over one decade.

Natasha Schulz, Procurement Director, Evercare Group | Supply chain management expert | GreenLife

Natasha Schulz has two decades of diverse Procurement experience and is currently Head of Procurement for Evercare Group – wholly owned by the Evercare Health Fund, a US $ 1bn emerging markets healthcare fund managed by TPG. Prior to that Natasha was the Global Procurement Director for Kerzner International – a Dubai government owned leading international developer and operator of ultra-luxury hotels and residences across the globe. Natasha is focused on achieving financial performance stewardship across 5 countries within emerging markets through designing and implementing operational and capital efficiencies and contributing to “Impact” areas of stewardship such as ESG and Sustainability.

Adel Al Junalbi, Supply Chain Director, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi | Logistics expert | Arabian Oil

Adel is an ambitions transformational supply chain leader, who currently holds the position of Supply Chain Operations Director at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi; A Mubadala Health partner company and ranked #1 hospital in UAE and GCC.

Adel has held a number of management positions within healthcare, aviation, and nuclear energy, which have given him a wealth of leadership experience and a great exposure to procurement and supply chain from different industries. He started his career at STRATA manufacturing, a Mubadala Aerospace company that manufactures Aircraft parts as a Procurement Team Leader for Boeing programs. 

Savita Mace, Chief Procurement Officer | Procurement | SustainLife

Savita is an authentic, experienced and well-respected leader with over 20 years in Procurement and Supply Chain across oil and gas, consultancy, manufacturing, healthcare and pharma. Prior to joining NHS UHSussex, Savita was a Director at AstraZeneca in global Procurement and Operations.  Savita previously held senior roles in Roche and Sony.

As a Fellow of CIPS, Savita sits on CIPS Global committee for membership strategy and reports into the CIPS board (voluntary non-paid role). Savita also sits on the CIPS talent board supporting with the strategy for attracting younger more diverse talent in particular increasing female talent globally in procurement and Supply Chain. A champion of inclusion and diversity and lifelong learning, Savita has developed and continues to lecture Masters students during and after their CIPS or MSc qualification/s. Savita is a resident guest lecturer at the University of Sussex and on the industry expert panel at Durham University.

Savita has built high performing teams at blue chip with a focus on capability uplift, value based procurement and sustainability.

Brian Mangan, BMA

Brian has created a successful business providing consultancy to the NHS, as Value Based Procurement (VBP) Project Lead, and supports a number of large Medtech and Pharma companies to understand and apply VBP across sales, marketing and market access teams. He is internationally recognised as a subject matter expert in development and adoption of Value Based Procurement from both a buyers and sellers perspective and spoken at events in the United States, Europe and the Middle East.

Stephen Carter, Director of Product Marketing, Ivalua

As a strategic thought leader with a professional background in Invoicing and Payments technologies, Stephen is helping Ivalua deliver its market leading Accounts Payable solution. This is through a digital world approach to addressing the age-old problem of paying suppliers on time, whilst maximising DPO and making the most of a company’s working capital. This comes after working as a supplier, and with billing teams to reduce invoicing costs, but also by working with global Accounts Payable team to help them process Invoices.

Wael Satfat, Chair of the CIPS MENA Fellows

Procurement executive with more than 25 years of international experience across the globe. Wael had C-level responsibility and successfully delivered award winning procurement transformation, technology enablement, and cost optimization programs. He worked across various industries including; Oil & Gas, Construction, Utilities, Real Estate, Retail and CPG for some of the Fortune Global 500 Companies and major corporations in North America, Europe and MENA region. He’s the Chair of CIPS MENA Fellows and part of CIPS Global Membership Committee representing MENA region.

Dirk Karl, Chief Procurement Officer, MTN Group

Dirk is the Group Executive and CPO of the award winning Global Souring and Supply Chain at MTN Group. He’s also a board member of Global Souring company appointed to the executive role in nov 2017. He is overall responsible for sourcing and supply chain across the MTN Group. He oversees a multi million dollar annual spend across 19 operations serving over 280 million mobile subscribers. Dirk brings over 25 years experience in strategic sourcing supply chain and IT management across the telecom, automotive and the financial sectors, across numbers geographies.

Salem Bafaraj, Vice President, In-Country Value In-Country Value Division, ADNOC

Salem Bafaraj is the Vice President, In-Country Value at Commercial & In-Country Value Directorate in ADNOC with responsibility for Leading the Market development and Execution of In-Country Value (ICV) Strategy in ADNOC and Driving the delivery of ICV initiatives and opportunities.

With over 20 years of experience in Oil & Gas industry, Salem started his career journey in ADNOC Drilling Company. Over the years, he has held multifaceted responsibilities in the area of Supply Chain Strategic Planning, Stakeholders’ management, budgeting and financial planning, engineering, Contracts Management, Performance Management, Information Technology, Projects management, and Transformation programs. He particularly focused in driving efficiency, improving business excellence & agility thus making it fit for future.

Hani Al Saigh, Vice President Supply Chain & Contract Management, Tahakom

Hani AlSaigh, an accomplished and award-winning senior executive with over 24 years of experience in Procurement and Supply Chain. Hani is the Vice President of Supply Chain at TAHAKOM, a billions dollar Public Investment Fund (PIF) company, where he leads a strategic transformation program to move the company to a world-class supply chain.

Hani is a Fellow at the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS), a significant achievement that reflects his outstanding contribution to the industry. He is passionate about driving the maturity of Procurement, Supply Chain and Sustainability across the region and supports Saudi Vision 2030 with digitalization and building local content in the Kingdom.

Waleed Saeed Salem Al Saeedi, Director, Procurement and Supply Management (Acting) Procurement and Supply Management Department, ECouncil

Waleed Al Saeedi is a procurement powerhouse, currently serving as a Procurement Director leading a significant transformation at a confidential organization in Abu Dhabi, while also holding the position of Supply Management Director at DCT. His strategic approach and vision have spearheaded multiple initiatives, including developing digital tools and implementing sustainable practices that have reduced costs and boosted efficiency. His achievements have earned him numerous accolades, including the Procurement Leader Award 2020 from Future Procurement Leaders.

Waleed is a true visionary, who has passionately advocated for the procurement profession, positioning it as a key function in developing future strategies for any organization. His outstanding contributions and impressive track record make him an invaluable asset to the procurement industry.

Anna Konoplianikova, Group Head of Procurement and Finance, Chalhoub Group

Anna Konoplianikova is a Group Head of Procurement and Finance at Chalhoub Group.  Anna has 20+ years of procurement and finance experience. Prior to Chalhoub, Anna was a part of and subsequently led procurement teams in Coca-Cola Hellenic and Amazon. She is an alumni of the London School of Economics with MCIPS and Fellow Chartered Accountant qualifications.

Anna is very passionate about elevating procurement beyond operations, driving procurement automation and data analytics to deliver 10x + ROI, working in cross-functional and international environment, growing relationship and building trust with stakeholders. She is a pioneer in the regional ESG efforts and leading on sustainability and diversity of Supply Chain for FMCG and retail across MENA.

Abeer Abu Saada, Senior Procurement Manager, Massader for Natural Resources

Abeer is a Senior Procurement Manager at Massader for Natural Resources and Infrastructure Development that is a fully owned subsidiary of the Palestine Investment Fund (PIF), which is the Palestinian sovereign fund that invests in strategic development projects for vital sectors. Abeer established procurement department at Massader. 

This mainly includes creating internal systems, policies & procedures, category management, strategic sourcing, business process re-engineering, contracts management, financial management, developing procurement manuals and templates, and provision of on-job training for PIF’s team and its subsidiaries. Abeer has succeeded in streamlining supply chain at Massader towards maximizing value.

Abdulla Al Osaimi, Senior Vice President of Procurement and Business Support, Maaden

AlOsaimi joined MA’ADEN in June 2021 as the Vice President of Shared Services. He has experience in corporate-wide organizational transformation programs. Prior to joining MA’ADEN, AlOsaimi spent over 23 years at SABIC and Aramco, in global leadership positions overseeing shared services development and operations, corporate strategies and performance management, joint venture development and governance, M&As, global procurement services and project management. Also worked as board member of several international and national companies.

Zoe Brooks, Procurement Director, Atlantis Dubai

Zoe Brooks, Director of Procurement, is responsible for leading a team of 40 for Atlantis Dubai, directly accountable for all food and non-food procurement activity across operational procurement, strategic procurement, supply chain administration, and project procurement, managing an exciting and diverse range of categories from linens and terry to services, medical supplies and fish for our Dolphins. Zoe joined Atlantis in 2019 and has led the shared service procurement transformation.

Holding MCIPS, she has extensive knowledge of over 15 years across the UAE and UK. Zoe is a highly versatile procurement professional delivering significant improvements, system implementations, and driving best practices across numerous industries. She has also held senior procurement positions at Emirates Flight Catering and Audi Volkswagen in Dubai.

Fazeela Gopalani, Head of ACCA Middle East

As Head of the Middle East for the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Fazeela Gopalani is responsible for delivering ACCA’s strategic vision and representing the interests of 20,000 Members and Future Members across the region. 

Fazeela is an FCCA member with more than two decades of experience in accounting and finance.  She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Birmingham and an MBA from the University of Strathclyde.  Before moving to the UAE, Fazeela owned and ran an accounting practice in the UK.  Fazeela is committed to developing the global accountancy profession and passionately advocates the benefits it brings to both individuals and society as a whole.  

Asma Alotaibi, CIPS KSA Vice Chair

Vidya Malkani, Procurement Director, AUS

Vidya Malkani is a highly experienced Procurement & Supply Chain Director with a wealth of experience across various industries. With over 15 years of experience in procurement and supply management, Vidya has a track record of delivering results and driving transformational change. Throughout her career, she has managed procurement and supply chain for companies in diverse industries including higher education, broadcasting media, and oil.

Paul Evans, Vice President, Category Management, ADNOC

Paul is a seasoned procurement leader committed to creating enduring business value through world-class supply chain relationships. With more than three decades of experience across Europe, Middle East and the Americas, he is a proven and versatile leader of large, globally dispersed teams and has a track-record of leading innovation and change in diverse, multi-cultural environments. Currently, Paul is leading the delivery of Category Management across the ADNOC Group, one of the World’s leading energy producers and a primary catalyst for Abu Dhabi’s growth and diversification.

Partha Dash, Managing Director, Moglix

Partha Dash is the Managing Director, New Business and Growth at Moglix. A recognized leader with a proven track record in shaping businesses in emerging markets, Partha Dash brings over more than 17+ years of invaluable leadership and insights to Moglix. His expertise lies in business development, P and L management, international marketing, emerging market business strategy, sales and distribution supply chain management. 

Kobus van der Wath, Founder & CEO, Axis Group International

Kobus is the Founder and CEO of Axis Group International. Based in Dubai and Shanghai, he has been working in Asia for over 25 years. Before founding Axis Group and The Beijing Axis, he was Head of Investment Strategy and Global Market Research for Asia Pacific for Standard Chartered Bank Plc. Prior to that, he was a Senior Strategy Consultant with the Boston Consulting Group in Asia. In his early career, he was an Emerging Market Investment Strategist in London; a Treasury Economist with Standard Merchant Bank in Johannesburg; and an Economist with the South African Reserve Bank in Pretoria.

Kashif Khan, Manager, GEP

Kashif is a seasoned professional with over 11 years of experience in the procurement and supply chain industry. He is currently serving as the Solution Design Manager for GEP in the Middle East region. In this role, Kashif is responsible for overseeing Solution design, digital procurement transformation, bid management, solutioning, and mapping of customers’ requirements on GEP SMART. Kashif is a highly skilled communicator, with a passion for driving business transformation and growth. He holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering and is a CPSM-certified professional.

Raina Saxena, Senior Director, GEP

Raina is a seasoned supply chain professional with extensive experience in leading and managing large, global, cross-functional teams to achieve savings objectives and lead transformational change. Over the past 10 years, she has played a key role in several strategic sourcing initiatives and has experience across a range of geographies, including the US, Europe, and the Middle East. Raina is currently a Senior Director at GEP and has deep expertise in indirect sourcing, with a particular focus on Capital, MRO, Professional Services, HR verticals and spanning across multiple industries.

H.E Ambassador Dr Mohammed Bahzad

Muna Zoubaa

Muna Zoubaa is a highly qualified Emirati Chartered Fellow with over 21 years of experience specialized in procurement & supply chain management.  She has served different industries in Semi-Government & Government such as (Oil & Gas, Hospitality & leisure, Motorsports & Entertainment, Military & Defense, Education & Abu Dhabi Government)  with a solid track of record & success in startup & building up procurement function.