CEO Today Middle East Awards

Hisham Itani Chairman and CEO of Resource Group Hisham Itani is the Chairman and CEO of Resource Group, a technology investment group with a portfolio of diversified businesses that capitalize on technology and human talent for value creation. Itani was born in 1972 and holds a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the American University of Beirut (AUB). He started his professional career in his family printing business at an early age. From the onset, he ventured into new technologies ahead of demand and invested in R&D to create leading- edge solutions that compete on the international scene. In a short matter of time, Itani took the security printing business to another level and expanded into different technology verticals including digital security, smart card manufacturing, mobile value- added solutions, cybersecurity and secure communication solutions, telecom infrastructure and managed services, elections supply chain services, lottery systems and operations, mobile and virtual reality games, among others. Itani’s adoption of technology has had a constructive and tangible impact on government automation and citizen experience in Lebanon. His career path brings a fresh perspective to the entrepreneurship ecosystem. Today, the portfolio of companies he has established is serving over 50 countries in more than ten industries. Tell us a bit about your career path. I joined Inkript, our family’s security printing business in 1992 while still at university. I was immediately drawn into this industry and saw untapped opportunities for Lebanon and the region. I had a clear vision of what was lying ahead. I started expanding the business by introducing new technologies to our market. In 1995, the company was already pioneering automated personalization solutions. In 2003, we expanded into the region through smartcard manufacturing. As a result, Inkript became one of the leading smartcard exporters in the Middle East and Africa. The potential of digital technologies was growing, sowe started investing in Research and Development (R&D) as of 2005. This strategy CEO TODAY MIDDLE EAST AWARDS 2020 Technology 8