CEO Today Middle East Awards

35 www.ceotodaymagazine.com CEO Today Middle East Awards 2018 OMAN AREEJ MOHSIN HAIDER DARWISH Chairperson of Mohsin Haider Darwish LLC Areej Mohsin Haider Darwish is the Chairperson of Mohsin Haider Darwish LLC. She is widely recognized for her role in shaping MHD LLC as a leading business house in Sultanate of Oman. She has been part of the core team to streamline the operations of MHD LLC. MHD Group today proudly acclaims to be a renowned group with diverse businesses. Its various Business Divisions / Associate Companies are associated with some of the most reputed and well known international brands from across the world, making them available to the ever growing customer base in Oman. MHD boasts today of a large number of products / services in its flagship. Land Rover, Jaguar, Volvo, Dell, Nokia, Michelin Tyres, Pioneer, Onida, KDK, Konica Minolta, Ford, Daikin are some of the key agencies. Besides products and services, MHD LLC has forayed in the manufacture of industrial gases. Areej Darwish is a role model and her success is an inspiration for all Omani women. She began her career with MHD LLC in 1994 and was elevated as Deputy Chairperson. During her earlier years in MHD LLC, she headed the Automotive Division and Internal Audit & Computer Systems divisions. Under Areej’s leadership, the company achieved ISO 9001:2000 compliance for Quality Management System, ISO 27001 compliance for Information Security Management System. She played a key role in successful implementation of Business Continuity Plan and Disaster Recovery Plan for the centralized datacenter. Her strategic directions to the Automotive Division and regular guidance has been commendable as the Division witnessed tremendous growth. She also implemented customer-centric operating model and executed brand reinforcement strategies to sustain MHD’s competitive edge in the luxury car segment. Besides she has focused largely, in restructuring Automotive Operations to improve efficiency and customer satisfaction. The strategies implemented by her helped the Automotive Division increase their customer base In her new role as the Chairperson of MHD LLC, she is responsible for the company’s diverse operations in Oman and overseas and looks at exploring opportunities for growth. Undoubtedly, Areej’s biggest asset lies in her strategic planning skills which has reaped benefits as she has been successful in achieving considerable operational and financial improvements which has driven the top line growth and bottom line profits. In her current role, she commits to work with MHD’s talented team and all its stakeholders to leverage MHD Group’s strengths and capitalize on its opportunities. As a leader, she is determined to walk that extra mile and make MHD business manifold. Her biggest inspiration and guiding force has been her father, Mohsin Haider Darwish, who laid the foundation of MHD LLC and empowered her in all her endeavors. She represents boards of many private organizations in Oman namely a) Chairperson – Areej Vegetable Oils & Derivatives SAOG b) Chairperson – Duqm United Logistics c) Board Member – Muscat University She has also been a Board member of the following organizations: • Board of Directors - Areej Vegetable Oils & Derivatives SAOG during the year 2001 • Vice chairperson - Areej Vegetable Oils & Derivatives SAOG during the year 2000-2001 • Board of Directors – Armour Insurance from 2005 : 2008 • Member of the Board of Capital Market Authority (CMA) from 2008 : 2014 She was listed in the International Who’s Who for professionals. She has a host of enviable achievements to her credit and is a recipient of many prestigious awards mentioned below: 1.Forbes Most Influential Arab Woman 2013 2.Forbes 200 Most Powerful Woman 2014. 3.Awarded “Oman Web Award for Best Corporate website” 4.Al Mara Excellence Award 2014 – Entrepreneurship & Innovation 5.Al Mara Excellence Award 2015 – Most promising Woman of the year 6.Al Mara Special Commendation – Corporate Leadership Her entrepreneurial lead from her father motivated her to establish her own business venture under the name of “Areej Mohsin Haider Darwish LLC” in 2014. She launched and spearheaded two well- known brands – “BLESSINGChocolates &Gifts” and “First Impression Artwork”. Areej believes that Entrepreneurship is often challenging as many new businesses fail to understand the market dynamics and fold up within a short period of time. She encourages the Omani youth to step forward with a cohesive plan and join the growing field of entrepreneurs who are scripting success stories. Her mantra to success is “Learn to dream and pursue your dreams with single minded dedication and commitment. There will be tough times and challenges, but with focus, determination and consistent efforts one can definitely achieve their goals”. Areej is an outstanding example of successful Women’s empowerment and stands out as an inspiration to all industry peers. ABOUT AREEJ MOHSIN HAIDER DARWISH