2023 - 2025 MEPRA EXECUTIVE BOARD NOMINEES

MEPRA Board members are invited to meet the 2023-2025 nominees for the Executive Board in an exclusive board members only meeting on Thursday 10th November. In this meeting the Executive Board Elections will take place and votes will be cast online for the candidates they would like to stand on the Executive Board for the next two years. Results will be announced during the meeting.

Once elected, the new Executive Board members will immediately assume their roles and work closely with MEPRA staff to drive key initiatives for the communications industry in our region for the next two years.

By committing themselves as MEPRA Board Members, they will also work towards an industry collective goal to:

Raise awareness and build understanding of public relations in the Middle East, both as a profession and as a driver of organisational reputation. We do so by promoting industry standards, sharing knowledge and building the capabilities of professionals in the region.

For the role of Chair

Rashid Al Awadhi, CEO at New Media Academy

Rashid has over 24 years of Marketing and Communications experience, including various senior-level positions in Middle East based multi-national companies, as well as UAE government entities.

He was named CEO of the New Media Academy on June 17th 2020, leading its 3 divisions: Education, Talent and Content. Prior to that, Rashid was the Senior Vice-President for Marketing and Communications at the Dubai International Financial Center, leading the transition of the organization into Digital Media and Content Marketing.

Prior to that, he founded and managed Barza New Media, a digitally driven boutique-style consultancy that specialized in the production of social media driven reality content, with particular focus on Arabic-centric topics.

Before that, he was the co-founder of “Qabeela.tv” with his brother Mohamed. Together they produced, directed and hosted the award-winning social travel show “Peeta Planet”, which was the first ever blended Social TV show in the world. The show was powered by Google and supported by twofour54.

In 2009, Rashid became the first Emirati Government Employee to win the prestigious “Communicator Of The Year” Award from the Middle East PR Association, and in February 2020 he was voted in it’s Executive Board.

He was chosen as one of “The 40 Most Influential Emiratis Under 40” during the UAE’s 40th National Day celebrations, and was featured on the Forbes Middle East list of “50 Impactful Marketing and Communications Professionals In The Middle East” in 2020.

Rashid graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Marketing, from the University of Houston, in Texas (USA).

Kate Midttun, CEO at Acorn Strategy

Kate Midttun is CEO at Acorn Strategy. She has a Bachelors Degree in Business (Marketing and Public Relations) from Queensland University of Technology, Australia and has just completed her Masters in Business Administration (Marketing and International Business Strategy).

Kate has over 13 years experience in Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, and United Arab Emirates; demonstrated success in creating impactful strategies and programmes. Other applications include strategic marketing consulting, establishing processes and achieving quantiﬁable business results for a wide variety of boutique brands through to major international destinations. With a specialisation in destination marketing, Kate has deep sector knowledge across the real estate, leisure, hospitality and sports industries.

She has consulted and worked for a number of global brands both abroad and in the UAE, including: Mubadala, Miral Asset Management for Yas Island (Executive Affairs Authority, Abu Dhabi), Oman Arab Bank, Hilton Worldwide, Viceroy Hotel Group, Business In Sport and Leisure, amongst others.

For the role of Vice Chair

Jon Barber, VP MARCOM at TECOM Group

Jon Barber is a senior communications specialist with experience in Government and Private industry throughout the Middle East.

Mr. Barber has over 20 years’ experience in the Middle East and Western Europe. A Broadcast Journalist graduate of Nottingham Trent University, he spent more than 10 years with the BBC as a news and sport journalist.

For the past decade he has worked in Dubai and Abu Dhabi as a leading communicator for many of the UAE’s most notable brands including Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, DAMAC Properties, Dubai World Trade Centre and most recently ACWA Power – a private developer, owner and operator of power generation and desalinated water production plants, ADNOC Distribution. He is now the VP MARCOM at TECOM Group.

For the Role of Executive board:

Samir Hammad, CEO at Four MENA

Over the past 20 years, Samir has immersed himself in the worlds of journalism, in-house communications and agency consultancy, developing a strong mix of capabilities, skills and knowledge.

Samir’s experience is diversified in strategic communications, public relations, crisis comms, marketing, and event management. He worked for reputable organisations such as Mashreq Bank, Emirates Identity Authority, Al Ittihad and Al Bayan Newspapers.

Since his joining Four Communications Group in 2015, Samir possesses proficiency in driving business excellence in communications, leadership and providing high profile consultancy for the Agency’s portfolio.

Samir holds B.A. degree in Journalism and Mass Communications, since 2002

Mazar Masud, Head of Edelman Abu Dhabi at Edelman

Mazar has worked in financial and corporate communications for fifteen years and has extensive experience in capital markets, reputation management, communications strategy and creating and delivering integrated corporate communications campaigns across a range of sectors.

He has advised a number of companies on their critical communications challenges, ranging from large multinationals to startups earning the reputation for being a trusted advisor to the C-suite of FTSE100, FTSE250 and private companies globally.

Prior to Edelman, Mazar was a Director at Kekst CNC spearheading the firm’s growth in the Middle East. He was lead advisor on Dr Sulaiman Al Habib’s $700m IPO, the region’s largest listing in 2020, supported on multiple workstreams at Saudi Aramco, and launched Kekst CNC RISE, a dedicate communications platform for the region’s disruptive startups. Before Kekst CNC, Mazar was a Director at Powerscourt, one of the UK’s leading strategic communications consultancy, where he built the firm’s integrated communications business, and also worked at Brunswick for over five years on global mandates.

Mazar has advised on various capital markets transactions and corporate campaigns during his career across the Middle East, Africa, Europe and the UK.

Prior to a career in communications, Mazar worked as an auditor at PwC. He graduated with a First in BA (Hons) English from the University of Cambridge.

Maragaret Flanagan, Co-Founder at Tales & Heads

Margaret has spent the last two decades working with brands, businesses, governments and individuals to build and protect their reputations and strengthen bonds with their audiences.

Before launching Tales & Heads, she was Executive Vice President of Strategy & Client Experience at a major WPP communications agency working across the Middle East. Here she developed communications strategies and provided counsel and thought leadership for global blue-chip companies including Ford, Nestlé and Lufthansa; government ministries and agencies; and some of the region’s most successful businesses including Jumeriah Group, Art Dubai and Alshaya.

Prior to this, Margaret worked with one of the UK’s leading independent agencies from launch at its London and UAE offices on consumer, corporate and public affairs briefs.Originally trained as a journalist, Margaret has developed messaging, media trained and written speeches for leaders in government and industry, from CEOs to Crown Princes. In 2019, she was awarded a Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA) Fellowship for her contribution to the industry and now sits on the association’s strategy board. She was listed in the PRWeek Middle East Power Book in 2019 and 2020.

Jon Barber, VP MARCOM at TECOM Group

Jon Barber is a senior communications specialist with experience in Government and Private industry throughout the Middle East.