CPI Media Group and tahawultech.com hosted the 2nd edition of the Women in Technology Forum and Awards at The Sofitel Hotels & Resort, Downtown Dubai.
Amidst all the glitz and glamour, some of the most powerful and prominent female voices from the ICT ecosystem gathered to discuss what needs to be done to address the glaring inequalities, challenges, and outdated stereotypes that still exist for women in STEM-related fields.
Anita Joseph and Mark Forker moderated two fantastic panel discussions, that were really broad in terms of the insights and perspectives shared, but some recurring themes shone through, such as the need for greater education, the implementation of KPIs to really hold businesses to account, the need for some women to overcome imposter syndrome, and how women need to empower other women and support each other instead of competing against each other.
Outside of the panel, female leaders from across the industry were celebrated for the roles they play in helping their companies transform.
Kausar Syed, Group Publishing Director at CPI Media Group, said it was critically important to shine a light on the female leaders that are driving real change in the IT industry through their fearless leadership.
“We know that the IT industry still has a long way to go in terms of being a level playing field. However, we have to highlight the incredible women that serve as an inspiration to the next-generation of female leaders in the industry across the region, to show that it is possible to get to the top. There is more to be done, but as we heard on the panel if we stick together and support each other then we can change the status quo. This is the 2nd edition of our Women in Technology Forum, and it was another incredible success. It is an event like no other in the industry, the energy, and enthusiasm was electric – and on behalf of CPI Media Group and tahawultech.com , we want to sincerely thank everybody who made the event possible, and a big congratulations to ALL our winners”.
The full list of winners were:
- Nigina Bender from Jabra won the Influential Sales Personality of the Year Award.
- Selina Bieber from GoDaddy won the Trailblazer of the Year Award.
- Haidi Nossair from Dell Technologies won the Technology Executive Leader of the Year Award.
- Loubna Imenchal from Logitech won the Technology Visionary of the Year Award.
- Sheeba Hasnain from Sharjah Document Department won the Technology Business Leader of the Year – Government Award.
- Mary Kokaia from du Business won the Marketing Innovation Leader of the Year Award.
- Ekta Puthran from BARCO won the Channel Chief of the Year Award.
- Soussane Chartouny from Palo Alto Networks won a Marketing Executive of the Year Award.
- Rania Hannoush from Dell Technologies won a Marketing Executive of the Year Award.
- Yasmin Khaliq from Equinix won a Marketing Executive of the Year Award.
- Manal Abi Rafeh from Fortinet won a Marketing Executive of the Year Award.
- Rasha Islim from Emitac Enterprise Solutions won a Brand Strategist of the Year Award.
- Shaed Khader from Logicom Distribution won a Brand Strategist of the Year Award.
- Noura Shihabi from Trend Micro won a Brand Strategist of the Year Award.
- Usha Goolappa from IFS won a Brand Strategist of the Year Award.
- Amrita Ghanty from Gulf IT Network Distribution won a Brand Strategist of the Year Award.
- Maya Zakhour from NetApp won the Woman Executive of the Year Award.
- Nagham Halabi from Veeam Software won the Marketing Transformation Pioneer of the Year Award.
- Tarannum Saqib from Ingram Micro won the Channel Marketing Strategist of the Year Award.
- Konica Khandelwal Dhawan won the Strategic Sales Leader of the Year Award.
- Anam Iqbal from Seidor MENA won the Best Technical Consultant Personality of the Year Award.
- Asha Prakash from Malco Technologies won a Marketing Rising Star of the Year Award.
- Ghadah Humadi from Alteryx won a Marketing Rising Star of the Year Award.
- Sirin Akrouk from Pure Storage won a Marketing Rising Star of the Year Award.
- Sandy Issa from Intelligent Security Systems won the Influential Marketing Personality of the Year Award.
- Lena Halbourian from Commvault won the Marketing Pioneer of the Year Award.
- Sherifa Hady from HPE Aruba Networking won the Technology Businesswoman of the Year Award.
- Chantelle Tavid from NVIDIA won a Senior Marketing Leader of the Year Award.
- Raji Joy John from StarLink won a Senior Marketing Leader of the Year Award.
- Nilu Kamkarfar from Rackspace Technology won a Senior Marketing Leader of the Year Award.
- Varuna Shah from Mindware won a Senior Marketing Leader of the Year Award.
- Mallika Sharma from HPE Aruba Networking won a Senior Marketing Leader of the Year Award.
- Seema Wadhwa from Exclusive Networks won the Channel Sales Leader of the Year Award.
- Reena Alex John from Finesse won the Technology Innovator of the Year Award.
- Nichola Banerjee from Barracuda Networks won a Marketing Personality of the Year Award.
- Rania Al Khatib from Juniper Networks won a Marketing Personality of the Year Award.
- Rashmi Purswani from BenQ won a Marketing Personality of the Year Award.
- Widad Abdalhadi from Cisco won a Marketing Personality of the Year Award.
- Simran Bagga from Omnix International won the Technology Business Leader of the Year Award.
- Anita Quadros from Anixter won the Senior Sales Leader of the Year Award.
- Yara Milbes from CEQUENS won the Innovative Technology Marketing Personality of the Year Award.
- Zahra Hanif from Thales Group won a Brand Awareness Marketeer of the Year Award.
- Kiara Israni from Secureworks won a Brand Awareness Marketeer of the Year Award.
- Sanchari Roy from BARCO won a Brand Awareness Marketeer of the Year Award.
- Shafiya Samreen from Raqmiyat won a Brand Awareness Marketeer of the Year Award.
- Gunika Arora from Quest won a Brand Awareness Marketeer of the Year Award.
- Bindhya Ramadasa from Forescout Technologies won a Marketing Trendsetter of the Year Award.
- Aparna Chaturvedi from Newcom Computer Systems LLC won a Marketing Trendsetter of the Year Award.
- Riddhi Anilkumar from Acronis won a Marketing Trendsetter of the Year Award.
- Sumaiya Muhammad from Mitel won a Marketing Trendsetter of the Year Award.
- Ankita Javeri from GBM won a Marketing Trendsetter of the Year Award.
- Fazeela Gopalani won an Inspirational Woman Leader 2023 Award.
- Mareva Koulamallah won an Inspirational Woman Leader 2023 Award.
- Nadine Chammas won an Inspirational Woman Leader 2023 Award.
- Fatima Al Qubaisi won an Inspirational Woman Leader 2023 Award.
- Leila Serhan won an Inspirational Woman Leader 2023 Award.
- Mariam S. Mubarak from Abu Dhabi Ports Group won the Government Personality of the Year – Strategy and Growth Award.