Dr. Joseph M. Gebara currently is the CEO of the C.A.T. Group since November 2019. The C.A.T. Group is a world leader in the contracting industry serving a wide spectrum of sectors such as the Oil & Gas, Energy, Utilities, Civil, Infrastructure and Buildings , and has many branches in the Gulf and Nigeria.

Dr. Gebara has earned a degree in Civil Engineering in 1987 from the American University of Beirut and was granted a master's degree in Civil Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University and a PhD in Civil Engineering from Purdue University.

Before joining C.A.T. Group, Dr. Gebara was the Senior Vice President – Project Delivery, Oil and Gas at SNC Lavalin.

During a career that spanned more than two decades, Dr. Gebara has held various positions including Director of Engineering Services at McDermott International Inc., General Manager Offshore at Bechtel Corporation, and Vice President – Floaters Operations for Technip USA.

Dr. Gebara has also held numerous roles on industry and advisory boards including as member of an Offshore Energy Safety Advisory Committee to the U.S. Secretary of Interior.

Dr. Gebara is married with two children. He currently lives with his wife in Beirut.

Ahmed Sayed is the Middle East Business Development Manager for ACCIONA Construction. Ahmed’s primary role is to develop the company’s ambitious plans in the GCC region.

With dynamic 15 years of experience in large scale projects and leading companies in the region within multidisciplinary teams and diverse background, Ahmed’s experience includes project management, lead generation, deal structuring, contract negotiation, and supply & demand analysis.

Ahmed holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Cairo University, Egypt and a master's of science degree (MSc) in project management from The University of Liverpool, UK.

Jesús Sancho holds a Master Degree of Aeronautical Engineering from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Spain) and an Executive MBA Diploma from IESE Business School (Madrid). He presently holds the position of Middle East Director General for Spain´s ACCIONA (www.acciona-me.com). He has been based in Dubai (UAE) since 2008.

ACCIONA is one of the foremost Spanish business corporations, leader in the development and management of sustainable solutions for infrastructure and renewable energy. Listed on the selective Ibex-35 Spanish stock exchange index, ACCIONA´s offer covers the whole value chain, from the development to the design & construction to operation maintenance of infrastructure. ACCIONA is in more than 40 countries with 33,000 employees. The Group develops its business activities based on the desire to contribute to the economic and social development of the communities in which it operates in line with the 17 SDGs from the UN.

Mr. Sancho started his career in the Aerospace field (The Boeing Co., Seattle, US and Daimler- Benz Aerospace, Germany) and in the Airport Infrastructure sector (Ferrovial, Spain). 11 years ago, he shifted to the General Infrastructure sector and focused in the Middle East. He has developed largescale water & wastewater treatment and seawater desalination projects in the Middle East, Africa and Australia. In 2014, he was appointed to take over the global business of the ACCIONA Group in the Middle East. This encompasses the different business units of Construcción (heavy civil works), Agua (water/wastewater treatment plants), Industrial (renewable power plants and WTE facilities), Ingeniería (engineering consultant), Concessions (equity investor), Service (Facility Management, Aircraft Ground Handling) and Cultural Engineering (events & museums) among other businesses.

He has contributed to ACCIONA´s growth in the Middle East and actively participated in the tendering and execution of several infrastructure projects in the GCC. Some of the most complex tenders Mr. Sancho has succeeded include PPP, IWPP, IWP, ISTP, EPC, O&M and DBOM+F for Public and Private Customers including Alliances in Australia.

Mr. Sancho has recently been included in the Forbes List ‘’Global Meets Local: Top 50 executives in the Middle East 2020’’ after being included for first time in 2018. He is also part of the Construction Week’s "2021 ME Power 100 List."

For over 25 years Carl has been leading large scale construction projects across seven countries, including 16 years in the UAE where he has led various projects for the Dubai and Abu Dhabi Government that have contributed to the transformation of the UAE’s tourism, social and transportation sectors. Carl is currently leading one of the highest sustainability projects in the UAE.

“As the world changes, peoples’ needs change and our population increases, our construction industry must change to deliver those needs……….”

Noor Ilias B Mohd Idris, 57, is the Vice President of Group Project Delivery, Project Delivery & Technology, PETRONAS. He has a degreein Mechanical Engineering from University of Wollongong. He is also an alumni of Advanced Management Programme from Boston’s Harvard Business School.

His career began in PETRONAS Gas Bhd (PGB) in 1991 as a Mechanical Engineer. He was then appointed as Project Engineer for Gas Processing Plant 5&6 project in 1996. He assumed this position until 2002 when he was promoted to a managerial post. He took on the role as Project Manager until he became Senior Manager for PGB’s Engineering Department in 2006.

His project involvement flourished and enabled him to steer Sabah Special Project for Upstream business in 2009 as General Manager. Noor Ilias took on a bigger portfolio when he was tasked to lead International Projects for Projects and Engineering Department for PETRONAS Carigali Sdn Bhd in 2014. In 2016, he was appointed as Head of Onshore Project Delivery for Group Project Delivery. He assumed his current position since April 2019 due to his rich and proven experience in project delivery excellence.

In addition to his responsibilities and achievements, he is currently the Chief Executive Office of PETRONAS Technical Services Sdn Bhd. He is also the Chairman of PETRONAS Global Technical Solutions Sdn Bhd and General Committee Members of Malaysian Petroleum Club.

Dr Salih is a Senior Director of Strategy, Projects, Knowledge Management and Operational Excellence at Khatib and Alami PTE, Singapore. He is also an Associate Professor of Leadership and Digital Strategy at Edinburgh Business School - Heriot-Watt University. His background of research includes Digital leadership, Cultural Intelligence, entrepreneurship, Digital Business Strategy, Digital Transformation and Aikido in large scale business.

As a cultural transformation architect, Dr Salih has led many transformation programs company-wide to achieve direct results in efficiency and profitability where he has been employing theory and practice to reach the best outcomes.

Dr Salih’s strategic leadership competencies and skills enabled him to multiple organizational transformations including digital business transformation, especially at the times that require agility and adaptability, to ensure business continuity.

As an experienced project manager and organizational entrepreneurship expert, Dr Salih established and led the project management unit within K&A in 2006 and planned to maintain it operational till today.

Tim is a Partner in Deloitte’s Consulting and is the CEO of our Middle East Consulting business. He also established and led Deloitte’s Capital Projects team globally for 10 years. He specializes in advising and supporting clients with complex transformation programs and largescale capital projects, focusing on supporting them to build their client and delivery organizations capabilities.

After many years in industry and consulting, leading and supporting major organizational transformations, Tim now specializes in supporting clients that develop, design and deliver major infrastructure investment programs and mega projects.

Tim is recognized as one of the leading experts in the challenges of building capabilities and designing organizations to deliver largescale programs and mega projects. He has published a book on Enterprise programme management and has written a number of thought pieces and jointly published with UK government on the topic of delivery of major public sector programs.

Tim has led work jointly with Oxford University to provide leadership development for senior program leaders across UK government. Tim was a faculty member of this innovative Major Project Leadership Academy.

A partner in Bechtel and amongst its senior most project execution-focused leaders, Jacob (Jake) Mumm is the Managing Director for Bechtel Infrastructure in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In this role, he is accountable for profit and loss, business development, and all project operations.

Prior to his current assignment, Jake led an international consortium contracted to deliver a key component of Riyadh city’s extensive and transformative metro project, the Riyadh Metro Project (RMP). He was accountable for delivering $11B of design and build scope comprising two metro lines, 39 new stations, and 63km of track—all within the confines of one of the world’s largest capital cities.

Jake’s widely acknowledged leadership skills and ability to bring diverse stakeholders together strengthened vital relationships and driven substantial progress on RMP and all projects he has led, including the Keeyask Hydroelectric Project. As Senior Project Director, Jake was responsible for a $3B expansion for Manitoba Hydro and the 4 Manitoba First Nations, providing 4,400 gigawatt hours of renewable energy per year.

Jake brings extensive experience in engineering, construction, contracts, and project management developed over his 20+ year career. His rail sector experience includes the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project, Desire Streetcar Line, and, most recently, RMP.

Jake’s commitment to his customers’ projects is also reflected in the numerous locations in which he has lived and worked, including several locations in North America, Canada, the UK, Romania, and the Middle East. He enjoys the challenges and rewards brought by varying project assignments.

Jake holds a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from Tulane University, where he has served on the Board of Advisors since 2015. He also holds a master’s degree in Middle East Studies from the American University of Beirut. He was elected principal vice president in 2015 and senior vice president in 2021.

Before joining Bechtel, he worked for Parsons Brinckerhoff. He maintains a home in Washington, DC and is married with three children.

With 24 years of professional experience across industry and consulting with deep expertise in major transformations across private and public companies, Carolos is passionate about sustainability from strategy to implementation. Industrial experience includes Oil and Gas, Power and Utilities, Energy, Petrochemicals, Cement, Steel, Mining, Advanced Industries, and Construction.

Carlos has spent most of his career driving operational excellence programs, focusing on performance optimization to support growth strategies. Carlos has been leading projects delivery since the early beginning of his career, from small projects’ diverse portfolios to some mega projects across the globe in a sustainable and effective manner.

Across the long-term value chain of these projects, there is always an opportunity to integrate the concepts of sustainability, from overall environmental footprint during construction and operations, to enhancing livelihoods of the communities where these projects are built and their long-term positive economical impact.

• BSc Electrical Engineering (University Coimbra-Portugal)
• Senior Member of the Portuguese Board of Engineers
• WBCSD YMT program Alumni
• Oxford Leading Strategic Projects Program

David has over 20 years of experience working across Europe and the Middle East, with 13 of those spent working across programme management and economic, market, and M&A advisory in the Middle East. He has a strong knowledge of the regional economy and the drivers effecting it and has led many initiatives and projects in the programme management and economic space. This Includes advisor Ministry of Planning and Economy on the Vision 2030 law change regarding PMO implementation, mergers and acquisition advice to sovereign wealth funds (SWFs), and economic forecasting to SWFs, major multinationals, and regional governments.

Having worked across Europe, the Middle East and Africa in primarily client facing roles, he has been involved in the delivery of some of the most iconic schemes in the world. From Royal Atlantis to Riyadh Metro, Abu Dhabi Airport, Doha Metro, Muscat and Salalah Airports, and the development and deployment of PMOs for government sector clients in Saudi Arabia.

As an advisor to a suite of government and private sector clients, he has established a strong reputation and significant credibility in the area of programme management, economic forecasting and market analysis.

With over 25 years’ experience in technical, operations, engineering and senior business roles, Stuart has played an instrumental role in the delivery of facilities management and engineering services across a diverse range of projects and sectors, including critical environments, such as airports, hospitals and sensitive government sites.

In his role as chief executive officer of Emrill, he works with semi-government organisations and government authorities as well as private developers, property management and asset owners. He oversees the execution of contracts that cover a full range of total facilities management services, such as engineering, MEP, HVAC, energy performance management and soft services, including housekeeping.

Stuart has been successful in cementing Emrill’s position as a tier-one provider of facilities management services that delivers world-class services and standards through continuous improvement, innovation, the latest technology, strategic change, and pragmatism, which he encourages at every level of the business to ensure Emrill maintains its competitive advantage in the market.

In 2017, Stuart implemented the first Energy Performance Contract (EPC) pilot project in the UAE, which achieved average building energy savings of over 26 per cent. In the same year, Stuart developed the first NICEIC-accredited electrical training course in the UAE, introduced by Emrill to further raise electrical contracting standards in the Middle East.

He has been recognised as a leader among his peers, receiving a number of awards for his contributions to the facilities management sector and being called upon often as an expert speaker at conferences and industry events.

Stuart is a member of the Institute of Engineering and Technology (MIET) and a Chartered Management Institute (CMI) manager. He holds an MSc in management and is NEBOSH certified.

Bashar is Managing Director at Accenture based in Dubai and a member of the Growth Markets leadership team focusing on digital economy market making trends that accelerate growth, transform operations, and enable organizations to build their digital core.

A seasoned corporate executive & advisory board member with a track record of leadership positions in consulting and technology services, his international career spans the USA, Europe and the Middle East.

Dr. Mark Smith has provided construction and programme advisory services for over thirty years, serving in key management consulting positions around the globe. Mark has led capital project consulting practices across the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Africa. He currently leads Deloitte Middle East’s Infrastructure & Capital Projects team and is based in Dubai, UAE.

Mark is recognised as one of the leading experts in building capabilities and designing organisations to deliver mega projects and large-scale programmes. Mark has served clients across the entire project ecosystem, including global engineering & construction companies, emerging market governments, infrastructure fund investors and large multinational conglomerates. He brings his pioneering vision and approach to the delivery of some of the largest infrastructure projects in the world.

Dr. Alturki leads the efforts to develop and execute KSA National Transport & Logistics Strategy (NTLS) that aims to strengthen the position of Saudi Arabia as a global transportation and logistics hub, focusing on developing future of transport and logistics through its strategic partnerships with regional and international organizations, and to continue research, innovation, and application of the latest technology mechanism in the field of transport and logistics.

As the General Director of the Vision2030 Realization office, Dr. Alturki leads the efforts to realize the Kingdom’s Vision2030 through project management by enabling, supporting, and successfully implementing planned transportation and logistics initiatives.

Prior to his appointment as Deputy Minister, Dr. Alturki had worked as Director of Infrastructure and Portfolio Planning at the Saudi National Project Management Organization (NPMO) where he led the development of Saudi Arabia's 5-year Project Portfolio Plans performed by the biggest spending governmental entities in the infrastructure sector.

Additionally, he worked for Saudi Aramco, leading a multinational team to develop business cases and project proposals for a variety of projects, one of which is the Project Proposal of the infrastructure, and transportation mega program of the Maritime Yard Development at King Salman Port in Ras Al-Khair.

Ahmed Ramadan held several senior management positions in various business sectors throughout the MENA region over the past 25 years.

He joined Power Generation Engineering & Services Company (PGESCo) in April 2020 in the position of Chief Executive Officer. He is responsible for leading the planning, implementation and integration of the organization strategic direction through leading the company and establishing policies that reinforce the company’s mission, values and vision. Moreover; he oversees the company’s ongoing expansion efforts into emerging markets.

Prior joining PGESCo, Ahmed held numerous leadership positions within General Electric (GE) for nearly 14 years, he headed GE Gas Power in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia (MENASA) as the Vice President for Project Development as well as the Chief Executive Officer for North East Africa. His specific areas of experties include structuring complex deals, identifying funding opportunities and developing technical and financial solutions from the conceptual stage of a project through completion, in collaboration with key stakeholders such as engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) firms, investors, financiers, consultants and influencers.

Previously, he had held a number of senior positions in the banking sector, specializing in corporate and investment banking in organizations such as the Commercial International Bank, Citibank and Cisco Capital. Ahmed received his bachelor’s degree in Economics from the American University in Cairo.

Dr. Ibraheem Sheerah is the Chief Transformation Officer at the Saudi Arabian Airlines Holding leading the Group's Transformation and Strategy implementation. Saudi Airlines Group comprises Full Service Carrier airlines (Saudia Air Transport), Low Cost Carrier airlines (Flyadeel), MRO Company (SAEI), Saudia Cargo, Saudia Logistics SAL, Saudia Ground Services SGS, Prince Sultan Aviation Academy PSAA, Saudia Private Aviation SPA, Saudia Real Estate SARED and other companies.

He started his career in 1999 as an engineer then moved to the field of project management and strategy execution for more than 15 years in and outside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia working in the private sector for companies such as Advanced Electronics Company AEC, one of SAMI's subsidiaries, and Saudi Railways Company SAR, a PIF company.

After that, from 2016 to 2021 he had assumed a series of leadership positions in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Vision 2030 programs, such as the Privatization Program and the Quality of life Program. His last position before joining the airlines was the Chief Executive of Business at the Quality of Life Vision Realization Program. He is a subject matter expert in Public Private Partnership (PPP) and Privatization, emerging technologies and 4th industrial revolution, business development, commercial and financial modeling, and consultation in operations and governance. He has established many businesses and supported many entrepreneurs.

Dr. Sheerah holds four academic degrees and more than 46 professional certificates. He has more than 22 years of experience in many fields such as defense, security, healthcare, agriculture, transportation, technology, and retail. He is an active speaker in many conferences and forums.

Erik is a partner and the managing director at KONGSTEIN. Erik has an extensive expertise in management, operations and project support within the offshore wind and maritime sector. He gained years of operational experience as an Installation Logistics Package Manager for an offshore windfarm as well as managerial skills when building up and leading teams of maritime energy specialists.

Erik is a fully trained business economist, who began his career in the Corporate Development / M&A of a major utility and leading offshore wind farm developer and operator. He also holds a degree in Business Studies as well as in Wind Energy Technology and Management.

As PMI Interim President & CEO and Chief Operating Officer (COO), Michael (Mike) DePrisco provides executive leadership to the Global Operations Group, supporting more than 1.2M active certification holders, 650,000 members and 300 chapters from over 200 countries. He is responsible for the Product Portfolio, Lean Portfolio & Product Integration, Customer Care, and Digital Groups. His team's focus is on digital product delivery and management, and the successful execution of all major initiatives.

Mike joined PMI in 2013 and has held several roles within the organization including Vice President, Global Membership & Chapters, and Vice President, Academic and Educational Programs.

Prior to PMI, Mike served in executive positions in higher education. There, he executed university strategic plans to ensure integration and alignment of key initiatives and priorities. He provided executive oversight to campus development and growth, including student acquisition and retention, program development, financial management and stakeholder relationships.

He has a Bachelor and Master of Science degrees from West Chester University of Pennsylvania and holds a Certificate in Company Direction (International) from the Institute of Directors. Mike is active in youth and educational programs in his community.

Maryam has over 13 years’ expertise in sustainable strategy development, strategic communications, change management consulting and project management across the academic, land development, fashion and sustainability sectors.

She is the CSO of MBL and is carrying sustainability consulting for key organizations including MOC. She previously worked as the CSO of Al Dabbagh Group RSI.

She holds an EMBA from HULT International Business School alongside numerous sustainability certificates from ISSP Cambridge Judge Business School.

Dr. Diab holds a Bacolorate of Science in Architectural Engineering from Ain Shams University, a Master of Science in Civil Engineering, and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in addition to his PhD in Civil Engineering from North Dakota State University. He lived and worked in Asia, Africa, and North America.

His industry background and research includes construction, risk management, and project delivery methods. He worked in the vertical and horizontal construction industry for 35+ years in the Middle East and the United States of America.

Professor Diab is a Project Management Professional (PMP) certification holder and holds different leadership positions with the Project Management Institute in Minnesota PMI, MN. He was a chief operating officer elected as a board member in 2017-2019 and PMI MN Chapter president in 2018. He is currently a Director-at-large and board member in 2022.

Elsaeed leads the team of project development for Knowledge Economic City Company who are developing a mega mixed-use development across 6.8 M SQM in Al Madinah Al Munawara City with an aggregate investment of SAR 94 billion.

Throughout his 33 years career span, Elsaeed's experience covered all aspects and due diligence of real estate development, successful record of forming, and leading teams in developing and managing world class real estate developments in KSA. Elsaeed has diversified experience in multiple engineering disciplines and working for different sectors (Master Developers, Project Management, International Consultants, and Governmental entities).

Before joining the Knowledge Economic City Company, Elsaeed served in senior management roles at CIMS Management Consulting Company, Limitless LLC UAE, Akwaan Properties, Dar Al-Hadassah Consultants, Riyadh Water Authority & Urban Studies and Design Center. Elsaeed holds B.Sc. in Civil Engineering, Mansoura University, Egypt, 1989 and a number of professional courses & accreditations.

Shehab started his career in Top 10 ENR contracting firms such as Vinci Grand Projects and CCC. He then moved to project management role in Turner (Builders of Burj Khalifa & Louvre Abu Dhabi).

Through more than 20 years of dedication, he completed iconic projects such as Vodafone Corporate Headquarters, Nagaa Hammadi Barrage, Aramco gas plant, Louvre Abu Dhabi and EXPO 2020.

Shehab collaborated with Pritzker award winning architects such as Jean Nouvel, Sir Norman Foster and Frank Gehry and Oscar winning Designers WETA. Completing Louvre Abu Dhabi was the pinnacle of his career, as the eagerly awaited project gained multiple awards and worldwide recognition not only for the art works but the complex building itself.

Shehab was chosen for his efforts by Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority to appear in two major TV documentaries: The CNN Documentary Inside the Louvre Abu Dhabi and National Geographic Mega Structures. He was also keynote speaker in Narrative Summits Arab Sustainability Development Week.

Mr. Pyle, President, International, leads Enerflex’s operations in Australia, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe/CIS. Drawing on his more than 35 years of international industry experience, and as a member of the Executive Management Team, Mr. Pyle guides the development of Enerflex’s international business to meet the demands of the oil and gas industry. He has been based in the GCC for the last ten years.

Prior to joining Enerflex, Mr. Pyle held numerous senior positions over an eight-year career with Fluor, serving most recently as their Regional Director for the Middle East and Asia where he was responsible for developing and maintaining joint venture companies with local partners for long-term, site-oriented, service, engineering, and projects contracts in Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Qatar, Saudi, and Indonesia. In addition to his years at Fluor, Mr. Pyle gained extensive industrial leadership experience at companies like BHP Billiton and the Water Corporation of Western Australia.

Mr. Pyle holds an MBA from the University of New England in Australia and a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from the University of Western Australia.

Dr. Marwan Abu Ebeid is the Digital Transformation Lead for Turner Construction International - Middle East. He has 20 years of experience in Construction Project Management and Building Information Modeling, where he has worked in a variety of notable landmark projects of various kinds and use.

He is a co-author of UAE’s Smart Construction Guidelines, a founding member of Center of Excellence in Smart Construction - CESC, a Board member of Digital Engineering Chapter in Society of Engineers - UAE, a member of the Advisory Board for the American University of Sharjah, and an expert industrial advisor and specialist speaker in various international exhibitions and conferences.

Dr. Marwan has a PhD from Heriot-Watt University - UK, a certificate in Driving Digital Strategies from Harvard University, and a certificate in Digital transformation from MIT.

As president of Mastodon Consulting, Jennifer Tharp works closely with boards, counsel and the executive leadership of large, public companies and startup technology firms to increase fiduciary oversight, transparency and accountability. She has built a reputation for operational excellence, innovative strategic thinking, working with the highest level of integrity and a deep and passionate commitment to customer needs.

She partners with companies worldwide to drive organizational transformation and leverages technology to meet the needs of communities and society. She has developed strategic plans for public companies, municipalities and the state of California.

Ms. Tharp is a long-time PMI volunteer, having served as president of the PMI San Francisco Bay Area Chapter, and is a 2008 Leadership Institute Master Class (LIMC) graduate. She served on the PMI Board of Directors from 2014–2020 as the Audit Committee chair and vice chair, helping guide PMI through global expansion and acquisitions, diversity efforts, rebranding and organizational transformation. She has also served on the boards of a financial institution and strategy organization.

She is an author and editor of the book Sustainability Integration for Effective Project Management, which examines how projects can be executed more sustainably. She is also a popular keynote speaker on six continents on topics including project leadership, privacy and security, diversity, strategy and risk. Ms. Tharp holds a BSBA from Indiana Wesleyan University, and has taught leadership and project management at University of California, Berkeley. She is an Institute of Directors (IoD) Chartered Director, National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) Board Leadership Fellow and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) qualified financial expert.

Grace Najjar serves as the Managing Director of PMI’s Middle East/North Africa (MENA) region and also leads PMI’s Energy Working Group for greater reach and focus globally.

Grace’s global experience has been serving in advisory and executive roles for strategy reform, execution and policy modernization, digital transformation solutions, driving individual and organizational excellence and efficiency improvement, business processes and technology solutions, fostering innovation, and empowering lean-governance for implementation and transformation, utilizing the most recognized standards and best practices.

For the last 20 years, Grace has been utilized as an expert on international funding programs, establishing advocacy, and building strategic relations with government, ministries, authorities and organizations in digital and agile transformation, education, individual and organizational efficiency improvement, project management, benefits realization and governance. She founded her own company in 2010, Align Management Solutions.

She is a certified Program Management Professional (PgMP)^® and Project Management Professional (PMP)^®, certified in Agile DA, certified in the industry 4.0 and in the Artificial Intelligence. She holds a master’s in engineering and in information systems from ESIB - USJ and a master's in network and telecommunications from Telecom Paris, and is a graduate of the PMI Leadership Institute Master Class.

Abdo Kardous is Regional President (Middle East) with Hill International. Mr. Kardous has 40 years of experience in the design, procurement, construction and delivery of major projects, covering a wide spectrum of building, infrastructure and marine projects in several countries, many involving multi-cultural environments.

Mr. Kardous joined Hill International in 1997 and was instrumental in growing the operations of the firm across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). He was subsequently transferred to set-up and grow the project management operations in the Asia/Pacific region where he led many hospitality, leisure, real estate and infrastructure projects in Greater China as well as various South-East and Southern Asian countries.

Prior to joining Hill, Mr. Kardous was the Real Estate Development Manager for the $2 Billion property company responsible for the reconstruction of the historical Beirut City Centre. Mr. Kardous started his professional career in 1982 with a leading architectural/engineering practice in the Middle East and led a large project portfolio covering countries in Asia and Africa.

Mr. Kardous earned a BS, Magna Cum Laude, in Civil Engineering from the University of Maryland and an MS in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. Mr. Kardous was awarded Hill International’s first Project Manager of the Year award in 2001 and served on the Advisory Board of the Chicago-based Council of Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.

Ian Williamson is the Group Chief Project Delivery Officer for The Red Sea Development Company (TRSDC), a closed joint stock company wholly owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. Ian leads the delivery of the planning, design and construction of The Red Sea and AMAALA projects – two of the world’s most ambitious luxury tourism.

As an executive and Board director for over 20 years, Ian has undertaken both strategic and operational roles across several industries and led the delivery of multi-billion-dollar capital expenditure programs and projects internationally. Prior to joining TRSDC, Ian served as Managing Director, Program Management, at Arcadis across the Middle East where he led the growth of program management and buildings design of the company across the Middle East.

Prior to joining TRSDC, Ian served as Managing Director, Program Management, at Arcadis across the Middle East where he led the growth of program management and buildings design of the company across the Middle East. Prior to joining Arcadis, Ian served as led AECOM’s Construction Services in the UAE where he led major projects such as the Midfield Terminal, Advanced Military Maintenance Repair Overhaul Center (AMMROC), Yas Mall and Cleveland Clinic. Ian has also previously worked for Sainsbury's, Glaxo, Wellcome Foundation, BDP and Courtaulds.

Ian holds a Bachelor of Science (Hons) degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering with Mathematics from the University of Reading and a Master of Business Administration degree from the Bayes (formely CASS) Business School in the United Kingdom.

Hamed has 40 years’ management experience gained at several of the Middle East’s leading engineering and consulting firms.

As Chief Executive of the Middle East and Africa, Hamed is focused on advancing a culture of technical excellence and innovation with an emphasis on quality and responsiveness to client needs. His extensive industry knowledge and strong client insight ensure that AECOM delivers solutions that solve its clients’ most complex challenges.

Hamed has played a key role in the successful delivery of major infrastructure programs in the highways, rail, ports and aviation sectors across the Middle East and North America. He remains engaged in the technical delivery of projects by serving as a project executive sponsor for major programs across the region. Notable high-profile projects in which Hamed is involved include:

• Hamad International Airport, Qatar
• Midfield Terminal Complex, Abu Dhabi, UAE
• Saudi Customs PMO
• The Line, NEOM, Saudi Arabia
• NEOM Bay, Saudi Arabia

Hamed holds a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Cairo University and a master’s degree in Structural Engineering from the University of Cincinnati, USA. 

In 2022, Construction Week Middle East magazine ranked Hamed as the leading figure among the region’s consultants in their annual Power 100 feature.

Maged is currently CIO of ASGC Group. He started his career as Site Engineer, Technical office then Planning & Monitoring Engineer in The Arab Contractors Company in Egypt, and then continued as a Planning Engineer with ASTCC UAE, Planning Manager at PMDC, Controls director of ASGC. Later on, Maged held several managerial positions in key international companies and was managing major projects in Residential & Commercial, Oil & Gas, and Industrial sectors. He also worked on a consultancy basis with the major consultants and developers, such as Hill International, Turner, ECG, DAMAC, DAEP, Al Futtaim, Emaar and others.  

Being a Guest Lecturer& Dissertation Supervisor at Heriot-Watt University, Member of Industry Advisory Board IAB in AUD - Dubai and Past President of AACEI, UAE- section enriched his experience and exposure. A professional speaker and panelist in many international conferences, such as Big5 construct in Dubai, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Morocco, AACEI international conferences, Project Management congress& construction summit lecturer in topics ranging from project management, project controls, leadership, technology and innovation .  

Maged has received the following international awards: Charles Kean for distinguished service award – AACE International; 2014; Team Leader of the Year – 1st UAE PM Conference – SOE - 2015; Award of Excellence – CPR UAE – Outstanding Project Control Manager of the Year Award - 2018; Project Controls Award- Controls expo- London-UK-2018; H.H. Hamdan Bin Mohamed award-Innovative PMO Manager-DIPMF 2019; and Male Construction Leader of the Year 2021 – Big5 Egypt – 2021.

Maged holds following degrees: BSc in Civil Engineering - Cairo University- Egypt; Diploma in Project Management from Cairo University – Egypt' MSc. Degree in Construction Project Management from Heriot Watt University-UK; Member of The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors– MRICS- 2020; and AFHEA – Associated Fellowship of Higher Education Academy –UK 2021.

Maged is a Certified Consultant in Construction Management (Egyptian Syndicate of Engineers), Certified Project Management Professional (PMP -PMI/USA), Certified Cost Professional (CCP-AACEI/USA), Planning & Scheduling Professional (PSP- AACEI/USA), Earned Value Professional (EVP - AACEI/USA), Registered Expert in CRCICA (Egypt) and Associate Member of Chartered institute of Arbitrators– ACIARB.

Sierra Hampton-Simmons has over two decades of experience as an expert in digital product development and management with a track record for transforming and developing lucrative brands to include relevant performance-based testing and training. She joined PMI in the fall of 2013 to manage PMI’s Certification programs and currently serves as the VP, Products. At PMI Sierra is responsible for the entire portfolio of products including certifications, online learning, events, standards and publications and Brightline. Immediately prior to joining PMI, she was a leader for Global Certifications at Cisco Systems, Inc. where she directed daily operations for a global development team creating leading IT certification programs including the world-class CCNA and CCNP. Sierra began her career working at Citrix Education where she managed a team in design and development of the most advanced curricula and certifications for their global programs. Sierra also served as the President of the Performance Testing Council for three years after being an active member of their Board of Directors. Sierra is a graduate of Georgetown University with a Bachelor of Science in Japanese and International Business. She also attended University of Florida’s MBA program.

With a passion for developing delightful products that are distinct, Sierra is most proud of her work transforming established products with digital innovations including simulations, emulations and animations. At PMI she led innovations that included the evolving the PMP, PMI Study Hall, and the addition of the new Construction Professional in Built Environment Projects (CPBEP) certification program.

Turab is an accomplished and meticulous professional with over 20 years of proven success in the hospitality industry including strategy, management, development and operations. His consulting experience includes over 60 projects with a value of approximately USD 4.2 billion.

He possesses extensive global industry knowledge by working across the world including Europe, North America, USA, and the Middle East, and held senior Hotel and F&B management positions. He has been instrumental in delivering key efforts for recognized hospitality operations in Paris, Miami, New York, London, Hong Kong, Jakarta and Bangkok, particularly with InterContinental and the Shangri-La Group.

As a strategic, results oriented thinker with unparalleled experience across a multitude of disciplines, he is frequently consulted as a trusted partner to advise and direct a wide variety of new concepts and turnarounds for governments, corporations and families.

Le is a Partner at PwC Middle East, specialising in capital projects, infrastructure and real estate.

Le has ~25 years’ experience in leading businesses; leading major capital projects/programs; building digital and tech ventures; and providing strategic, organizational and operational advice to private and public sector clients.

Le brings a unique blend of top-tier management consulting and industry experience. Prior to PwC, Le spent 6 years at McKinsey & Co as a leader in their Capital, Real Estate and infra/con tech practice, and 18 years in the infrastructure and capital projects industry globally, with companies such as Atkins and Hyder, where he led large P&Ls and mega infrastructure & real estate projects.

He focuses on helping clients: 1) extract improved value from their capital spend from capital allocation strategy through to execution, 2) transform the way CapEx is planned, designed and delivered through innovation and decarbonization and 3) build their capability and improve performance.

Le is a Chartered Engineer (CEng) with the Engineering Council, UK. He holds a BEng (Hons) – Civil Engineering from the University of Leeds, UK, as well as a MSC from The Built Environment, University of Leeds, UK.

A seasoned leader with over twenty years of multiple industry experience held at major groups across the region and in the USA, Samer is experienced in the investment, real estate, construction, consumer goods and service industries. He is skilled in strategy, restructuring and streamlining finance and operations and is currently the CFO for Nesma United Industries.

Samer holds an MBA in finance from Eastern Michigan University; he is a CPA and a CMA. He completed his undergraduate studies at the American University of Beirut.

Prof. Dr. Sabih has extensive experience in the design and construction of civil and heavy civil infrastructure projects such as Heathrow Terminal 5 in London, Khalifa Port and Khalifa Industrial Zone in Abu Dhabi, Vasco da Gama Bridge in Lisbon, A13 DBFO Project in London, Metro operation, London Underground (Tube Lines, London). Program management for the development of multi-mode transit systems (e.g. Abu Dhabi’s US$ 32-billion Integrated Public Transport Program), as the Civil Infrastructure Design Manager, Metro Design, Doha Metro and currently, Infrastructure Design Lead MENA Region with Hyperloop Transportation Technologies.

Prof. Dr. Sabih is well known in the GCC for his contribution to the construction industry within the region, he is a regular contributor to the regional industry events as a Keynote Speaker, Presenter or as Conference Host.

Prof. Dr. Sabih is a EUR ING Chartered Civil Engineer, Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers, Fellow of the Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation and Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute (UK).

He is Institution of Civil Engineers Trustee Board Member VP International and Chairman of the ICE’s UAE Committee.

He sits on several Universities Industry Advisory Boards advising and supporting the universities in their education activities. He is an Honorary Professor at Heriot-Watt University and is a Non-executive Board member of the university’s Centre of Excellence in Smart Construction.

Bassam Samman, PMP, PSP, EVP, GPM, is a Senior Project Management Consultant with more than 35-year service record providing project management and control services to over 100 projects with a total value of over US $5 Billion. Those projects included Commercial, Residential, Education, and Healthcare Buildings and Infrastructure, Entertainment and Shopping-Malls, Oil and Gas Plants and Refineries, and Telecommunication and Information Technology projects. He is thoroughly experienced in complete project management including project management control systems, computerized project control software, claims analysis/prevention, risk analysis/management (contingency planning), design, supervision, training, and business development.

Bassam is a frequent speaker on topics relating to Project Management, Strategic Project Management, and Project Management Personal Skills. Over the past 35 years, he has lectured at more than 350 events and courses at different locations in the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, and South America. He is a co-founder of the Project Management Institute- Arabian Gulf Chapter (PMI-AGC) and has served on its board of directors for more than 6 years. He is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) from the Project Management Institute (PMI), a certified Planning and Scheduling Professional (PSP), and Earned Value Professional (EVP) from the American Association of Cost Engineers (AACE) and Green Project Management (GPM).

Bassam is the author of Let’s Transform: Enabling Digital Transformation of Construction Projects Using the PMWeb Project Management Information System and Project Control System (PCS) 4.0. In addition, He has written more than 700 articles on project management and project management information systems that were featured in international and regional magazines and newspapers.

Bassam holds a Masters in Engineering Administration (Construction Management) with Faculty Commendation, George Washington University, Washington, D.C., USA, Bachelor in Civil Engineering – Kuwait University, Kuwait and has attended many executive management programs at Harvard Business School, Boston, USA and London Business School, London, UK.

Niall is the MEP lead for Miral Asset Management’s Technical Design and Engineering Department and principal for Abu Dhabi mega projects such as SeaWorld Abu Dhabi, Etihad Arena, Yas Bay Hilton Hotel, Abrahamic Family House & Qsar Al Watan (UAE Presidential Palace).

Niall is the Sustainability Lead in Miral, pushing for Sustainable Design & Construction; his efforts and innovations have included the WBW 7MW PV project and Ice Storage back up at Etihad Arena.

Prior to working in the UAE, Niall worked in Kazakhstan and also in Russia. Whilst in Russia, he was the Commissioning Lead on one of the first developments in Moscow to merit the prestigious BREEAM environmental certification. Whist running his own Independent Commissioning Company within the UK, he completed work with highly respectable clients such as Network Rail and The Grange Hotel Group London.