The 20 best performing ceos to watch in 2020 october 2020; Insights Success has published magazine of The 20 best performing ceos to watch in 2020 october 2020.

1. Vol 10 | Issue 04 | 2020
+
Ponari
CEO
A Procient Business Leader with Extensive Work Experience
Best
Performing
CEOstoWatch, 2020
The
20
Incentives
Solutions
A True Partner
and Reliable
Strategic Advisor
Tech Insight
Haseeb Awan

4. An Aftermath of the
Unexpected
hengiz Khan, the Mongolian warlord who lorded over
Cthe biggest of massacres the world had ever seen
beside lording over the largest contiguous land mass
(from the Eastern Pacific to Bulgaria and Poland on the west)
had a simple way of identifying leaders from among his hordes
of warriors. Those that performed…despite odds. He identified
and promoted four who by their act of sheer brutality and
ferocity commanded the fear and respect the Khan so
demanded.
They might have been medieval, brutal and uncaring. But they
got the result that was demanded of them which goes to show
that it’s finally results that matter, and the best way to identify
the one who can bring about those results is to wait for the
right circumstances.
The Covid-19 pandemic and its fallout may in no way be
comparable with the Great Khan and his days. Where they do
match are in one’s responses to a situation, and the rise of
eventual leaders, including those in the field of corporate
governance.
Bringing industry almost to its knees in most parts of the
world, if not killing it outright, the Covid-19 has done the
following to leadership roles in today’s corporate world.
1. Zero hierarchies
Hierarchies beyond a point represent politics which itself is a
pursuit of peacetime when there’s some amount of leisure time
on hands to look down and see who is looking up. That doesn’t
happen when the ground below one’s feet is giving way, and
doing so FAST. In these times when there’s limited business
and people work from home, the concept of corporate ladder
all but breaks down with only a few rungs remaining with huge
gaps in between. For the tenacious and flexible, this gap
represents opportunity which they cover purely with
measurable performance. When the pandemic is blown away
with the wind which it will with time, some of the old ladders
just might come back, minus a few non-essential rungs which
existed purely due to circumstances and not necessarily due to
needs.
2. Only performers
Performers were always respected. But they could never match
the sheer craftiness of a politician most of whom hid behind
the veil of corporate governance. Bloated on a diet of “no-one
can touch me”, it appeared as though it was the politician who
became the magician who could get everything done…while in
reality doing precious little. And then came the Covid-19
pandemic where one had to perform, even from the safety and
Editor’s Desk
Today’s leadership
comprises support, vision
and constant learning of
tech and human behaviour

5. comfort of one’s home, if nothing else but to prove one’s
salary’s worth. Naturally, it was time for the performers to
perform given that the politicians were thrown by the
wayside. In fact, WFH has made it much easier for
performers to do their job in absolute silence without the
disturbance of a corporate setting! The WFH scenario can
be boring but without the worry of getting stuck in traffic
and with the backing of a stable cable, things can only get
better.
3. Take a cut and take variables
The pandemic has made “asking for a salary” an absolute
sin. You either perform and take what is given. Or you go
home empty handed. With growth all but crawling and
profits and reserves all but gone, industry is down to
“earn and disburse” mode when it’s about remuneration.
That has made things lean. And mean. With most places
downing shutters or doing it half way down, corporate
leaders who want to survive may have to take hefty pay
cuts for quite some time which could include a part of
income getting hitched to performance.
4. Quick learners- skilling and re-skilling
The days of rote-doing or repetitive working is all but
gone, be it for Corporate leaders or those way down. With
a sizable number asked to either take a cut or get cut-off
from employment, those taking the brunt have to upskill
or reskill. And do so fast. In this respect, the pandemic
only hastened the process that had started some years
back. With AI and Robotics likely to take away routine
jobs in a big way, the only way to survive is to relearn
things fast and get back to the corporate world- either as
employee or as consultant and specialists.
5. Open working with trust and transparency
The pandemic and the work from home have made things
so flat that one is left with no option but to work while
keeping the environment positive, fair and transparent. If
an organization has to remain cohesive and productive at
the same time even when things are tough, it means only
one thing. That the organization has to have trust in the
employee’s judgement and initiative and keep things
transparent so that feedback is taken instantly and course-
corrections implemented well in time.
So, in this edition, ‘The 20 Best Performing CEOs to
Watch 2020’ Insights Success has shortlisted various
business leaders who are visionary and taking important
steps to help others thrive and improve.
Also, while flipping the pages, don’t forget to go through
the articles and CXOs written by our in-house editorial
team and industry experts respectively.
rohit.chaturvedi@insightssuccess.com

6. An Ingenious Leader in
Digital Transformation and
Business Management
20
Leading A Charge In
Sap Solutions
ARTICLE
26
Tech InsightTech Insight
Haseeb Awan
36
A True Partner and Reliable
Strategic Advisor
COVER STORY08
A Proficient Business
Leader with Extensive
Work Experience
16
CHRISTOPHER
CARTER
CHRISTOPHER
CARTER
FERAS EL
HAJJAR
FERAS EL
HAJJAR
Incentives Solutions:Incentives Solutions:
Avni PonariAvni Ponari

7. A Renowned Name in
Telecom Industry
30
An Excellent Dedicated
Professional
40
Shanaz RamziShanaz Ramzi
Bringing Perfection in PR and
Event Management
48
Protecting People and Businesses Through
the Use of Artificial Intelligence.
24
Revolutionizing Education and
Communication through Simple
Accessible Resources
34
Rob LeslieRob Leslie
Advancing Business Practices
with Digital Identity
44
Ian Charles DenchIan Charles Dench
Karsten BoehrsKarsten Boehrs
Katherine ColombinoKatherine Colombino
Gary OlsonGary Olson

9. sales@insightssuccess.com
October, 2020
Editor-in-Chief
Senior Sales Manager Business Development Manager
Marketing Manager
Technical Head
Technical Specialist Digital Marketing Manager
Research Analyst
Database Management Technology Consultant
Sumita Sarkar
Managing Editor
Anish Miller
Executive Editor
Rohit Chaturvedi
Assistant Editors
Jenny Fernandes
Visualizer
David King
Art & Design Director
Asha Bange
Associate Designer
Kartik Balapurkar
Kshitij S Andy Mitter
John Matthew
Sales Executives
David, Martin, Sagar
Business Development Executives
Steve, Joe, Aidan, SanketJacob Smile
Aditya Marry D'Souza
SME-SMO Executive
Amol Wadekar Frank Adams
Circulation Manager
Robert Brown Stella Andrew David Stokes
Kushagra Gupta
Co-designer
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10. BriefCompany Name
Approyo
www.approyo.com
Feras El Hajjar
Founder & Chairman of
Infosysta | Founder & CEO
of App4Legal
Ooredoo Oman
www.ooredoo.om
Gary Olson
Founder & CEO
Katherine Colombino
CEO
Shanaz Ramzi
CEO
Simpleshow
simpleshow.com/us-en/r
Software & Services
Consulting SRL
ssc.com.py
GT Digital Ltd
gtdigitalltd.com
Avni Ponari, CEO
Ian Charles Dench
CEO
Karsten Boehrs
Co-investor & CEO
Christopher Carter
Founder & CEO
Rob Leslie
CEO & Founder
StarLinks
starlink.com
Infosysta & App4Legal
app4legal.com
SIGAL UNIQA Group Austria has been is composed of a group
of eight Life and Non-Life Insurance Companies, Re
Insurances and Pension Funds. Today SIGAL UNIQA Group
Austria is the only company that offers all classes of insurance
with a total of 42 products, counting around 1,500 employees
and agents where it operates and over 900 offices.
Approyo provides full SAP service technology with extensive
capabilities in consulting, solutions architecture, hosting and
managed services, in order to develop the right solution for its
customers.
Ooredoo is an award-winning international communications
company operating across the Middle East, North Africa and
Southeast Asia.
App4Legal is a comprehensive Legal Practice Management
Solution addressing the entire market of legal practitioners, in
law firms and in-house legal departments.
GT Digital Ltd. is founded with one driving goal: To Protect
People and Businesses Through the Use of Technology.
The simpleshow is an explainer video format which explains
complicated topics simply and coherently in just three minutes
– using only paper drawings, two hands, and a well-composed
mix of text, images, and sounds.
Software and Services Consulting SRL is positioned as the
number one partner in Paraguay of SAP Business One.
Confidence, Clarity and Constant Accompaniment are some of
the terms used by its clients to describe what SSC means to
them.
Sedicii
sedicii.com
Sedicii is creating a federated, global identity verification
network which enables real-time identity verification by
certified, trusted identity providers (governments, banks,
telco’s, utilities), ensuring that businesses can react quickly to
new government, regulatory and industry demands for real-
time identity verification, authentication and trust services.
Starlink is on the leading edge of on-orbit debris mitigation,
meeting or exceeding all regulatory and industry standards.
Sigal Uniqa
Group Austria
sigal.com.al
Featuring Name
Geoff Garrett,
CEO
Syspro
syspro.com
Starlink is on the leading edge of on-orbit debris mitigation,
meeting or exceeding all regulatory and industry standards.

11. BriefCompany Name
Greencarrier
greencarrier.com
Esther Poulsen,
Founder and CEO
Egypt Express
egyptexpress.com.eg
Vanessa Ogle
President & CEO
Shelley Sullivan
CEO
Dr Anil Pillai
CEO
Intact Financial
Corporation
intactfc.com
ModelCo
modelco.com
Enseo
enseo.com
Mohammad Shaheen
Chairman & CEO
Charles Brindamour
CEO
Johan Jemdahl
CEO
Moses Baiden
CEO
Airolink Group
airolinkgroup.com
Raare Solutions
raaresolutions.com
Greencarrier is a company of 950 dedicated employees
operating in 11 countries. Every day, it provides 15.000
customers worldwide with sustainable logistics solutions.
Egypt Express is an ISO 9001:2015 certified company which
thrives in providing and exceeding customers’ expectations,
with a network of courier bases all across Egypt.
Raare Solutions is an award-winning Operational CRM Agency
specializing in the design, execution and support of CRM and
Marketing Platforms, Campaign Orchestration, Email
Execution and Analytics.
Enseo, a privately-held, woman, Latina-owned business, is one
of the fastest growing technology companies in the U.S.
Intact Financial Corporation is the largest provider of property
and casualty (P&C) insurance in Canada and a leading provider
of specialty insurance in North America, with over CAD$11
billion in total annual premiums.
ModelCo is a Cosmetics company and became widely known
and loved for its on-trend colour cosmetics, simple-but-smart,
natural skin care, and award-winning self-tanning solutions.
Margins group
marginsgroup.com
Margins Group is a limited liability company and aims to be a
global leader in identification and documentation systems,
transactions and solutions.
Over last 20 years, Airolink International has carved a niche in
the industry as one of the leading provider and executer of
construction projects in Europe, Middle East and India.
Featuring Name
Eileen Kiernan
CEO
UM Worldwide
umww.com
UM is a strategic media planning and buying agency that
leverages Better Science to create Better Art that drives Better
Outcomes for its clients.
M. Imad BARRAKAD
Moroccan Agency for
Tourism Development

12. Avni Ponari
CEO
SIGAL UNIQA Group AUSTRIA

13. A Procient Business Leader with Extensive Work Experience
Ponari
Business is a special quality
of very special people“ “
Cover Story

14. It takes courage to envision and to decide embarking on
a journey and arriving at the desired destination. Only
a few people have this kind of courage and as such, as a
ship Captain by profession with long experience, I
envisioned and decided to take a long stormy journey,” says
Avni Ponari. He is the CEO of SIGAL UNIQA Group
Austria and Chairman of the Management Board of SIGAL
UGA LIFE Kosovo. He is considered as one of the most
successful entrepreneurs in the country and having extensive
experience in leading the most successful company in the
insurance market in Albania and the Region.
On becoming proficient business leader, Avni opines “to
reach at the destination must face several challenges and no
one better than a captain can know and understand what it
takes. Of course, every destination
has its own difficulties, because you
must face with different factors.”
According to Avni, a good Captain must have a
good ship and must know how to sail at open sea.
Prior to deciding on your journey, you need to know
where you are going, how will you go there and who your
companions will be. For Avni, the above-mentioned
components enabled him to choose the right direction.
Below are the highlights of the interview conducted between
Insights Success and Avni Ponari:
How do you diversify your organization’s offerings to
entice the target audience?
In order to reach at the destination that you have imposed on
yourself, you must have a professional and dedicated staff as
for each of you makes sure to do right his job in order to arrive
easier at the destination. And it is very important that the
people that are by your side to feel appreciated and be at the
samespeedandvectorasyou.
For a business challenge it is necessary to adequately asses
who your competitors are and what could be your factors of
obstacle,tofind therightpaths,toavoidstormsandstrong
“
Cover Story

15. winds and to be at the right place, where you have everything
under control and to lead not only the company, but also the
market as a whole, to push and force the boundaries of your
competitors to follow you and to adequately follow and lead
andtoneverstopduringyourjourneyortoletitflow freely.
Have you drawn professional inspiration from other
business leader? Tell us about someone who has inspired
you.
The biggest business names are always an inspiration, but each
of us acts in different terrains and varying purchasing powers.
Small markets don’t provide the opportunity that big markets
do for which the risks and profits would be 100 times bigger
andhigher.
So, besides being on the fortunate side, in the right market and
with the right ideas, you become an inspirational model with
specialqualitiesfortheotherpartsandmembersofthemarket.
W h a t h a v e y o u l e a r n e d a b o u t l e a d e r s h i p ,
entrepreneurship and mentoringothers?
There are already several concepts that level all leaders as us
under tension. To follow or lead people, to always be an
ambitious initiator aiming higher and to not be pleased or
conformed with small achievements just for your own well-
being and that of your family, to take leadership steps and lead
not by imposition, but by new initiatives, ideas, innovations
and to lead your staff and keep them under continuous
coherence by creating and providing them with new ideas,
these are some of the main elements that a successful
business leadermusthave.
In business every day is a new beginning, a
new initiative, and the administration
and use of these ideas on the
business profit is of an outmost
importance.
How do you achieve
work-lifebalance?
Being a business
leader is a very
r e q u i r i n g
quality
and profile, it is challenging and many times it is difficult and
problematic for us to maintain a balance and it is our families
who suffer themore.
There are two sides of a coin: On one side, the family demands
a person who can guarantee his families prosperity and
incomes, but they also want you to be there, at home with
them.
On the other side, our job demands from us to be full-time in
the office, day and night, this conflicts with the other side of the
coin.As such it is challenging to keep an ideal balance, but we
always make our best efforts to find more time to dedicate to
our precious families, even though often this is not enough.
Therefore, a proportionate equilibrium is difficult and
challenging and more importantly when you are the founder
andleaderofacompanyformorethan21years.
How do you cope up with capricious technological trends
toboost yourpersonalgrowth?
Today, everywhere, the world is transformed into a vast
technological labyrinth. What is new today tomorrow is old.
Today the leaders, the entrepreneurs are facing huge advanced
disruptive technologies, but what is all this
technology?Whoknows!
The 20 Best Performing CEOs to Watch, 2020

16. Then the solution is: keep by your
side the right people who know this
technology, who have thorough researching
qualities, who take initiatives, who can trace and easily
adopt what the market wants, needs and expects and to take
the rights steps in adopting and adjusting this advanced
technology as for to not become old too soon, and to always be
onestepaheadofalltheothers.
What are your future endeavors/objectives and where do
you seeyourselfinthenearfuture?
Each investment and endeavor have its limitations, which
require due diligence and adaptation with the times and age.
Big ideas impose a bigger risk and threats to the future
management,especiallyforsmallmarkets.
This is the reason why we need to act with caution and
maturity, to take careful steps and paths that lead to success.
Experience is key and fundamental, and you also must
recognize, appreciate and control yourself through
confidence, self-control to do what you must do. There are
always spaces for big business ideas. It takes great
competencies and visionary leadership qualities to lead a large
andsuccessfulbusiness.
What advice would you like to give to the emerging
business leaders?
Take careful steps, walk in unexplored paths matching your
own strength and power. Even though the competition is huge,
walk as if you are the only one in the market, implementing
cautious strategies, always building new paths, making new
discoveries,recruitingnew,youngandprofessionalstaff.
Astormy sea, despite its wave’s magnitude and power, the ship
and the Captain must be experienced and have required
available advanced technology to reach at the destination, at
the final goal. Here, however, the captain’s role is crucial to
arriveatthatdestinationwell-equippedandcomplete.

18. Christopher Carter
Founder & CEO
Approyo
16 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

19. CHRISTOPHER
CARTERLeading a Charge in SAP Solutions
When the focus of attention is on the IT
sector, SAP is considered to be the
most important IT infrastructure that
has always been useful in coping with all the
changes. As technological advancements have
affected every sector effectively, SAP has seen
rapid growth and demand over the last few years.
With this ever-growing technology, it becomes
essential to possess a firm understanding of how it
can be applied adequately.
Meet Christopher Carter, Founder & CEO of
Approyo, who has over three decades of
experience working in the SAP industry. A
confident leader who has always led his company
towards success by creating a clear-sighted vision
and delivering ground-breaking results.
Below are the Highlights of the interview between
Christopher Carter and Insights Success.
Describe your background and, what did you
do before you started, or
came into this business?
I like to say I have always been a technologist. I
went to college with a Commodore Vic20 under
one arm and an Apple 2e under the other. They
were my first computers, and it’s what I learned to
code on. My first code was to make birds fly
across my screen, it was fun and exciting for me.
This is how I got started in computers, what got
me on the road to SAP, and what led me to
owning and creating businesses.
Describe your company and its cutting-edge
franchise services which address all the needs
of your customers.
Approyo is a part of the SAP PartnerEdge
Ecosystem. As a partner of SAP, we provide SAP
software as a service. We provide SAP
consultation, hosting, and managed services, as
well as implementations and migrations onto SAP
platform systems. Approyo is made up of a global
team of SAP experts, who currently manage over
200+ SAP landscapes and have done over 100
migrations for our customers around the globe.
Over the years, we have worked to bring firms
running R/3 up to S/4 1909.
What strategies do you undertake to make
your employees resourceful?
The easiest way to make sure your employees are
most resourceful in the SAP industry is to provide
them with the tools they need to do so. At
Approyo, we provide our employees with access
to any training they desire. If they want to learn a
new platform or get a new certification, who are
we to stop them? We will pay to allow our
employees to grow and succeed. The more
success they experience inside their job, the more
success we will experience as a team. The most
October 2020 | 17www.insightssuccess.com
The 20 Best Performing CEOs to Watch In 2020

20. important thing is to make sure that your team is ready to
go through an implementation or migration at all times.
What are some of the vital attributes, in your opinion,
that every leader should possess?
In my opinion, there are a few. First, be humble, but know
the buck stops with you, so make the decision and go on
with it. Do not second guess yourself. I fully believe that
once you make the decision, you must live with it.
Next, your staff is your lifeline always, you treat them like
gold, and they will treat your company, your clients, and
you, with the respect you show. You get what you give.
Lastly, learn your numbers. You are the leader, so you
should know your data on all customers on a day-to-day
basis, including the ROI, the spending, the revenues, etc.
It’s on you and no one else.
What is your greatest life achievement?
My greatest personal life achievement is the family I’ve
been blessed with, having my two incredible daughters with
my wife. Business-wise, it is that we created the first
virtualized SAP R/3 and S/4 environments for production
usage by real customers. Our team had customers ready for
launch pre-certification and then we held a certified launch
at the SAP Sapphire Now Event. My everyday achievement
I am proud of is that I am able to help and educate
customers around the globe with SAP landscapes.
Where do you see your industry in five years?
I see the industry growing. In five years, it will be 2025,
leaving just two years until the SAP S/4HANA deadline.
With such an important deadline in place, those who are
currently on SAP platforms will be forced to move to the
next biggest and brightest platform. With the success that
SAP has shared over the past year alone, I think that it will
attract more and more companies to join the SAP
community. Our world is run off of business, and successful
businesses have ERP systems in place. Those who have not
implemented one yet will soon realize that having one is
truly the only way to take them to the next level.
What one thing, more than anything else, do you want
to accomplish in your business before you get out?
I want to provide the SAP ecosystem with quality SAP
Managed service and support, allowing the clients to sleep
well at night. Our goal is to help in any way shape or form.
When I leave this planet, I want to have made an impact on
people, and I want them to say that I was able to help them
personally and professionally.
What advice would you like to give to the emerging
entrepreneurs?
Just do it. Find the details of a path you want to go down,
get the motivation, and do it. If you want to grow and, get
going then jump into it, but make sure that you are
passionate and dedicated to your mission. You can do
whatever you put your mind to if you believe that, in the
end, you will get the results you work for.
How do you sustain your entrepreneurial spirit in this
changing technological era?
I love technology, and it allows me and everyone to grow! I
meditate every morning at 6:00 a.m. to get my mind ready. I
spend a lot of time learning about new technology in the
marketplace. I love to learn and I love to share my
knowledge with the world. I’m constantly on the internet,
doing research and learning about new technology, whether
it be about SAP, Artificial Intelligence or Digital
Transformations.
“Take care of your staff
they take care of the
customers, you will
find success.”
&
18 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

22. An Ingenious Leader in Digital Transformation and Business Management
FERAS EL HAJJAR
Feras El Hajjar
Founder & Chairman of Infosysta,
Founder & CEO of App4Legal
20 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

23. Enjoy what you
are doing every
day. Focus on the
positive side.
Digital transformation is vital/crucial for any
business. It has become mandatory for business
leaders to rethink old operating models with the
new one, to become more experimental, and more agile in
the ability to respond to customers and competitors.
Feras El Hajjar, Founder & Chairman of Infosysta, and
Founder & CEO of App4Legal is an exceptional leader
who has managed to make his mark in the business world
with his outstanding performance in IT as well as
management sector.
Usually, the integration of digital technology into all areas
of business results in fundamental changes regarding
business tactics. If done correctly, this can prove much
more beneficial for the company. Infosysta is one of the
leading companies to provide digital transformation
solutions for your business by challenging the status quo
with market-proven strategies.
Moreover, Legal technology is quite essential, as it
particularly provides and aids legal services. Currently,
most of the companies struggle to acclimatize their
practices and are falling behind hence, the rise of legal tech
has considerably influenced the concurrent legal markets.
App4Legal is a provider of best-of-breed Legal Practice
Management Software that provides solutions to keep your
Legal Teams ahead of time with a detailed and organized
approach.
Into the Shoes of Leader
Meet Feras El Hajjar, the Founder & Chairman of Infosysta,
a company specialized in the Digital Transformation in
EMEA and the Founder & CEO of App4Legal a company
specialized in Legal Technology. With more than 18 years
of multi-national experience in the Software industry
including CRM, ERP & HRMS solutions, Feras proved
himself as an expert in Information Systems. Being a
Software Engineer with solid Management and leadership
skills, graduated from Ecole ParisTech in 2002 & Paris
Dauphine (Paris IX) in 2003, has earned years of
experience in multi-national companies in Paris, Singapore,
Dublin, Beirut, Riyadh, Cairo, & Dubai. This solid
experience in the domain of Information Technology, with
the most known solutions in the market, is the success key
to building a sustainable two mature multi-national
companies.
Moreover, he is a permanent speaker at Agile Summits in
the Middle East and a board member of different
organizations including Heriot-Watt University in Dubai,
Industry Advisory Board and also at Atlassian Partners
Board Member in San Francisco.
“Nowadays, it is crucial to align the business with
technology. Follow the right processes and, using the right
tools can be a game-changer when it comes to reaching
objectives, on-time,” adds Feras.
Appreciating the Talent
Feras states that with a clear strategy and communication
plan, employees of his company are involved at the early
stage of strategic decisions and company’s yearly
objectives. Employees are becoming partners of decisions
instead of Task Achievers. Talents are compensated and
accelerating their careers by giving them all the needed
sponsorship to excel.
Overcoming the Volatility in the Markets
Feras states that, he and his team firmly focuses on the on-
going as well as upcoming technology and the market needs
to swiftly overcome any dilemmas. The company helps
people to be agile and how to be more flexible in order to
adapt to changes. It also build quarterly objectives at the
management level and cascade them down to all teams and
employees. He also addresses that the objective may or can
The 20 Best Performing CEOs to Watch In 2020
October 2020 | 21www.insightssuccess.com

24. change from a quarter to another and the dynamics of the
market are the main drivers of the company’s objectives.
Eye-opener for Better Life Appraoch
In 2012, Feras resigned from his job as an IT Director in a
multi-national company in Paris to exercise his
entrepreneurship skills and build his first company,
Infosysta from Beirut to become in less than 6 years the
leader in the Middle East in the Agile & Digital
Transformation. Later, he launched a unique solution called
App4Legal, helping lawyers and legal practitioners to
resolve their daily issues with one complete solution to
innovate their legal practice. In 2019, App4Legal became a
leader in GCC and a major player worldwide recognized by
Gartner as a Legal Technology leader.
Advice to Rely On
Feras believes in the word Focus. He advice that, one must
move by small iterations to close milestone by milestone
until one reach its goal. Also suggesting that one must
accept the fact that every individual need to sacrifice some
‘less important’ activities while focusing on the ‘critical and
high’ ones.
He also emphasizes on some of the attributes that every
leader must posses. By quoting, “the Skill to stay macro and
to go micro when needed are the ingredient of a successful
CEO”, he states that Genuine Leadership is showing the
way to others. An excellent communicator who can by a
simple email or a meeting pitch gets actions into efficient
executions.
He also put some light, on why is it necessary to be an
organized person driven by objectives. As he states, an
objective-driven organized person knows where to stop
putting efforts and where to focus.
22 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

26. Gary Olson
Protecting People and Businesses Through
the Use of Artificial Intelligence.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming almost
everything connected to human life, including
employment, economy, communication, public
safety, privacy, security, healthcare, etc.. To make the world
a better place to live and save lives using AI, GT Digital
Ltd., uses Cognitive Intelligence technology that connects
the dots from accessible and available digital information to
help identify potential threats and intention to prevent
events that will protect lives and property.
GT Digital Ltd. is led by Gary Olson, Founder & CEO, a
thought leader, technology designer and strategist in the
media technology industry. Gary designed GT Digital’s
flagship Artificial Intelligence solution MediaMaestro, the
first technology that connects the dots by correlating video
and data to uncover and prevent physical threats.
Firm Foundation
As a serial entrepreneur, Gary started and operated several
successful businesses. Each of these businesses focused on
designing new technology solutions for the media
production industry merging video with data. Gary has been
on the forefront as the broadcast and production industry
transitions to computer-based technology from proprietary
technology.
Gary is one of the industry leaders and has been an
evangelist in the convergence of video and data as media
production and distribution moved to file based and IP
technology. The 2nd Edition of his book "Planning and
Designing the IP Broadcast Facility" was just released after
the success of the First Edition.
The problem our first responders and public safety services
face is preventing horrific and violent attacks on society. To
address this challenge, Gary developed the concept to use
artificial intelligence connecting the dots by correlating
video and data from all available and accessible open
sources. This idea was a natural outgrowth that brought
together all his areas of knowledge and expertise.
Cutting-Edge Services
According to the company, organizations in every industry
are drowning in video and data. These organizations are all
challenged by the overwhelming amount of data collected
that appears in many formats and types coming from
multiple sources. AI tools can help analyze this data and
quickly provide information that allows analysts to discover
solutions.
Gary states, no human can manage or process the
overwhelming amount of digital information, including
video, social media, online, sensors, and other sources
being collected for research and security. There is a need
for artificial intelligence technology to help identify strange
behavior or announced intentions to commit crimes. GT
Digital is the first AI technology that can analyze and
correlate all this data to help professionals prevent violence
and criminal intent. Using Artificial Intelligence to save
lives and protect property is essential today.
What the Future Holds?
Gary knows that AI continues to evolve, and as the tools
and technology improve, AI will be beneficial in all aspects
of society and business services. As science continues to
progress on quantum computing solutions, this will vastly
improve the ability of AI technologies and expand some of
the exact capabilities.
Giving Back to the World
Gary states statistics show that over 75% of mass shootings
are committed by people who spend a lot of energy
announcing their intent long before they commit the act. It
is time to save lives from these mass shootings and acts of
domestic terrorism. He would like to see his technology
help predict to prevent as many of these as possible.
Different Perspective on Technological Advancements
Gary is fortunate that he was raised with an innate sense of
curiosity and wonder. Continually excited about the
24 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

27. “Connecting the
Dots - Predict to
Prevent to
Protect!”
changes in technology he is also a bit of a pragmatist in its application.
He thrives on new challenges and loves figuring out new technology
solutions or "inventing," a solution using components from typically
disassociated sources or industries.
Pave Your Own Way
Gary believes leadership is team building. It’s crucial to any successful
business to have full participation and support from your team. Find
the right people and trust them. It’s more important to have smart
people on your team than have them think you are the most intelligent
person in the room. Another essential rule to remember is everyone
has their style and way of doing things. Different is not wrong, just
because it is not the way you would do it, as long as it gets the same
result. Do not impose your way of doing things on others.
Being an entrepreneur doesn’t mean doing everything or knowing
everything. It means surrounding yourself with a team that has the
knowledge and skills that are not your strength. Not everyone is strong
in business or is a financial expert, and sometimes a great technologist
is a horrible manager. Hire others with the skills you lack and allow
them to excel and trust them. Gary says, “If you can’t trust your team,
you brought in the wrong people!”
The 20 Best Performing CEOs to Watch In 2020
Gary Olson
Founder & CEO
October 2020 | 25www.insightssuccess.com

28. Haseeb Awan
he days are long gone where the security threat
Tsurrounded our computer only. Modern problems
have expanded to our personal devices. The broad
classification of these threats would fall into four
categories:
1. Application-based threats;
2. Web-based threats;
3. Physical threats;
4. Network-based threats
Application-based threats: Privacy, information security,
and data security are inseparable, dependent on each other,
as well as, complimentary.
Web-application threats occur when the application
resembles an authentic application, but it is a disguise and
has the ability to skim your precious information.
The prime examples include malware and spyware where
your personal information is at stake.
Web-based threats: As subtle in nature, these web-based
threats remain unnoticed because visitors visit malicious
websites that are better from their front-end but in reality,
they are skimming your information by downloading
malicious content on your device.
Physical threats: This occurs when you lose your mobile
phone or if it has been stolen. This is a strong case for
hackers to loop into your personal information via your
device (as they have direct access to the hardware where all
your personal information is resting).
Network-based threats: This is where cybercriminals are
actively looking to encrypt your data with the use of public
Wi-Fi networks.
The advanced mobile threats comprises of:
a. Phishing attacks;
b. Data leakage;
c. Unsecure Wi-Fi (particularly public Wi-Fi) connection;
d. Sim Swap
Phishing attacks: A phishing attack is an online theft attack
that gains your personal information such as username,
password, and even your financial information. Phishing
education is mandatory to mitigate the risk of this threat to
an acceptable level. It is incumbent to learn that phishing is
different from conventional scams. The thwarting ways
would differ depending on the level of fraud committed and
who is the victim (corporation or individuals).
26 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

29. Tech Insight
Haseeb Awan
October 2020 | 27www.insightssuccess.com

30. For corporations it would be:
1. Design policies in place and the communication should
be strong,
2. There should be a control designed to ensure the
legitimacy of an email and it should be communicated to
loyal customers (as well as others),
3. Scan the internet for likely phishing sites,
4. Implement a quality anti-virus, anti-spam, and content
filtering at the gateway.
For individuals it is simple:
1. Block malicious or fraudulent email promptly,
2. Detect and delete malicious software immediately,
3. Block the sensitive information delivery to third parties
automatically,
4. Apply skepticism wherever necessary.
Data Leakage: Data leakage occurs where there is a
compromise in the (information) confidentiality breach.
This refers to an unauthorized leakage or possible data
transmission within an organization to a third party. The lost
data is either private, sensitive, or confidential in nature.
The data could be lost due to a system crash or even a
deliberate deletion.
Ÿ Safeguards-
1. Quarantine your outgoing information (which is private,
sensitive, or either confidential in nature) from your
organization network.
2. Archive suspicious files.
3. Quarantine sensitive files to be copied into USB or
smartphones.
4. Block print jobs that contain private information.
5. Discover confidential information that is stored on
databases, organizational laptops, and workstations.
Unsecured Public Wi-Fi: Public Wi-Fi networks offer
potential privacy risks and invite security issues. People are
tempted to pursue public WiFi which is controlled by a
hacker. It invigorates the MITM attack.
Ÿ Safeguards –
1. The network should be verified. Hackers are smart but
users are smarter, it is better to play smart.
2. Using a VPN (Virtual Private Network) which is the most
secure surfing option on public networks.
3. Use Antivirus and keep the Firewall Enabled.
Sim Swap: A fraudster beautifully impersonates you and
manages to get victims Sim deactivated. There is a
replacement activation without the knowledge of the victim
(Marimuthu, V., 2019).
This is a surplus for hackers where they can reset victims'
online accounts. EFANI was designed to mitigate such
happenings with a 100% money-back guarantee for 60-
days.
Ÿ Safeguards –
1. Beware of phishing - as it penetrates sim swapping
incidents. These sketchy emails and bogus logins can get
the hacker the required information and these key data can
spawn a sim swap occurrence.
2. People should rely less on online space, they should
reduce the personal information to be stored online. Social
engineering is an initial sim swapping stage, where the
hacker collects as much information as they want. Keep
compromising information low-key such as your digits,
date of birth, mailing address off your account.
3. Protect your accounts or crypto space using Yubikey,
frequently changing the PIN, multi-factor authentication.
Please do not trust SMS-based 2FA.
28 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

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32. 30 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

33. October 2020 | 31www.insightssuccess.com

34. 32 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

36. Technological innovations take time to enter the
growing market. For an entrepreneur, monitoring
and providing the best user experience is a quest
that can’t be achieved over night. Open conservations about
setting goals and defining timelines for the product
development, paves a creative way towards success.
Besides, learning, adapting, and improving are the keys for
becoming a successful CEO of an organization.
One such agile personality, having a focused vision to
achieve his goals is Karsten Boehrs. While helping his
children in studies, Karsten realized that education and
learning processes are continually witnessing changes. His
son’s passion for gaining knowledge through online videos
inspired Karsten tremendously. This advent of technology
in the education sector and its rapid digital transformation
motivated him to become a Co-investor and CEO of
simpleshow.
Karsten started his career working in the logistics and sales
industry. He has an excellent experience of working at
management positions with various multinationals
including Axel Springer and Otto Group for over two
decades. Now, in his role at simpleshow his focus is on the
strategic expansion of the company’s market position
through internationalization and focused technology
development.
About simpleshow
simpleshow is the leading professional explainer video
production with several thousands of videos produced in the
global market. The company with its production team
delivers services essential in creating videos and interactive
eLearning courses for corporate customers in a variety of
different styles and formats. With the mission to provide
simple and effective explanations for everyone and
anytime, the company is developing intelligent solutions for
wide target groups, such as the online DIY video maker
mysimpleshow.com
mysimpleshow.com offers business and enterprise plans
with premium features directed across all small-scale and
large-scale companies. The intelligence behind the
application includes text inputs running through a semantic
analysis, a natural language processing stack, and an
integrated world knowledge database to produce iconic
Revolutionizing Education and
Communication through Simple
Accessible Resources
Karsten Boehrs
CEO & Co-investor
Revolutionizing Education and
Communication through Simple
Accessible Resources
Karsten
Boehrs
Karsten
Boehrs
34 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

37. visuals. These are then arranged and animated by an
intelligent layout algorithm resulting in a video, which the
user can individualize, download, and share.
With over offices in ten countries, the company builds on a
universal and scientifically proven methodology that blends
simple messages with visuals that stay in mind. Under
Karsten’s guidance all of the company’s offerings follow
this approach, focusing on five fundamental elements:
Context— An effective explanation ,looks at the topic from
the target group’s perspective, providing a context the
audience can refer to.
Simplification— An effective explanation focuses on the
essentials. This entails reducing the topic to its core
messages and simplifying the language.
Storytelling— An effective explanation is embedded in a
story, as stories help to create identification and are easy to
remember.
Visualization— An effective explanation uses the power of
visuals.
Multisensory— An effective explanation stimulated several
senses.
A Visionary Leader
Karsten’s love for the sports made him an enthusiastic
cyclist as it combines all the qualities and values mandatory
for understanding the roles of a CEO. He believes, the key
enablers for his achievements are passion, perseverance,
strategic thinking, smartly adapting with changes, constant
learning and improvement. With the vision that the people
are the most valuable resources of a company he states “I
always try and develop my corporate family to be the best
they can be”.
An example of his leadership style that focuses on
empowering others, Karsten recalled a meeting in New
York, where he was really impressed meeting a young
freelance creative writer. He kept supporting him
throughout the years that made the writer a confident and a
trusted decision-maker. Today the former concept writer co-
leads the company’s 50 people operations in the US.
Besides, leading and nurturing a smart and loyal team, he
states “We have so much potential to seize opportunities,
tackle challenges, and grow our business”.
Under the leadership of Karsten, his team has created an
online browser-based tool ‘mysimpleshow’. This tool allows
its users to create their own simple explainer videos,
transforming the way people communicate. The company
has integrated AI into this tool, which is referred to as its
‘Explainer Engine’.
Karsten’s entrepreneurial vision is to change the world for
the better. With simpleshow his idea is to revolutionize
communication and learning through simple and accessible
resources.
Catalyzing the Market Change
Karsten’s idea of creating learning and communication
resources is changing day-by-day with the growing
digitalization. simpleshow is investing time and resources
into creating amazing tools, products, and content resources
to catalyze to this evolving change. They are constantly
improving mysimpleshow.com as a software product and
establishing brand awareness to be the go-to DIY explainer
video creation tool.
Advice for Budding Entrepreneurs
Karsten’s advice to new-age entrepreneurs is to stay
focused. Defining the goals with agility will help them to
achieve milestones. In addition to produce a business
model, he adds, “Decide how your product and
methodology will stand out from your competitors and
make those distinctions your unique selling points”.
As simple as
possible, but
as complex
as necessary.
The 20 Best Performing CEOs to Watch In 2020
October 2020 | 35www.insightssuccess.com

38. Rewards &
Recognition
A Boon to Employee Achievement
36 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

39. ewards and recognition at the workplace keep the
Remployees going. They need to know that they are
valued and appreciated for their work. The
employers will be the highly benefited party by doing so. It
is important for companies to keep pace with the current
trends in Human Resource to keep the employees satisfied.
Keeping the employees engaged is a task that every
company should consider.
It is crucial for business growth that the employees remain
engaged. According to a report by the Harvard Business
Review, recognition for high performers was the key driver
for employee engagement. Apart from the rewards to the
business, the individuals also feel respected when they are
recognized. They feel they are important to the company,
and to keep that impression they perform even better than
before. There are several benefits that a solid recognition
program can bring to a business.
Top Driver for Engagement
Companies that have a recognition program in place tend to
keep their employees engaged. Employee recognition
overwhelmingly shows positive effects on the overall
employee experience. This keeps the employees motivated
and the urge to do more is active. The old traditional ways
of recognition like giving out watches, coffee mugs, etc. is
still in picture but in a smaller quantity. The modern ways
of recognition are seen as appreciation mails or letters,
token of appreciation, bonus, etc.
Increase in Productivity
The employees feel valued when their work is recognized.
This leads to increase in productivity. When they are
unhappy about their workplace or working conditions, they
tend to waste time and not work whole-heartedly.
Workplace recognition also curbs the wastage of resources
and increases the productivity of the business. The feeling
of being noticed and supported is a driving factor for
everyone.
A Merry Workplace
Happy employees make a happy workplace, and a happy
workplace brings out happier results. Appreciating the small
things that employees do brings a smile on their face and
can make their day. The big things as well, bring them a
great sense of pride, not only for themselves but for
working with the company. A significant reward for a
particular employee can bring more happiness than one can
imagine.
Efforts Matter too
There are times when employees work hard day and night
to complete their tasks or targets. Their tasks might not be
big or might not lead to the end to a project, but their efforts
need to be appreciated. Without hard work and efforts from
each member of the team, a project cannot be completed. At
times, even after so many efforts by everyone, the project
can end up in drains. Success should not be the only
eligibility criteria for rewards and recognition. By
rewarding the efforts of employees it might even improve
the company culture.
Recognition from Peers
Every project or work needs more than one person to be
complete. The employees work in teams and get things
done. These people are the ones who work together on a
daily basis and are the best judges. The peers should be
given an opportunity to nominate each other for rewards.
This way there is always a healthy competition going on,
and this keeps them on their feet all the time. Peer
recognitions mean a lot more than direct employer
recognitions as there are emotions attached here.
From all of this we can only conclude that all companies,
small, medium and big, should have rewards and
recognition program. Such things not only motivate them to
perform well and give their best, it also gives them an
objective to reach. The culture and environment of the
workplace proves to be healthy with such schemes in place.
Business Achievers
October 2020 | 37www.insightssuccess.com

42. An Excellent Dedicated Professional
ith more than 80 successful implementations and
Wa highly qualified team with more than 20 years
of experience leading the most challenging
projects in the country, Software and Services Consulting
SRL is positioned as the number one partner in Paraguay of
SAP Business One. Confidence, Clarity and Constant
Accompaniment are some of the terms used by its clients to
describe what SSC means to them because in each step the
company takes together, as a team, it looks for ways to help
its clients strengthen their projects and evolve sustainably,
what today makes it differentiate the company from the
competition. One such highly qualified team member is
Katherine Colombino – Chief Executive Officer with a
very clear objective to pull all its energies towards a single
focus: Customer satisfaction.
Strong Knowledge of Business
Katherine completed her education from Asuncion
Polytechnic Faculty and the National University of
Asuncion. She joined Consulmatica SRL as Systems
Development Manager. After 5 years in that position and
having put the system on the market with great success,
Katherine held the position of Support Manager for more
than 6 years, so her orientation was customer satisfaction.
She has incorporated more than 50% of clients as Sales
Manager at Infocenter S.A. actively, she had collaborated
with marketing campaigns and events for SAP
development, conflict resolution, in addition, to support
tasks of definition and development of solutions to specific
problems of the client, always having as focus, excellence
in attention to the customer.
Teaching how to work, how to confront difficulties, skills
that one was learning in her career through the years and
the example itself are her strategies that she tries to make
everyone imitate to the best of their ability. The company
also participated continuously in training courses and
interpersonal skills.
A Glimpse into Katherine’s Journey
Currently, Katherine Colombino is the CEO of SSC -
Software & Services Consulting SRL. She is a specialized
consultant in Sales, Implementation, Development,
Training, and Support of SAP systems, also holds a Degree
in Systems Analysis, Post-degrees in University Didactics
and English Teaching Staff. With extensive experience in
the area of management of Work Teams, Katherine holds
various positions of Headquarters for more than two
decades. Before the opening of SSC SRL, for 4 years, she
was in charge of the Business Unit of SAP Business One in
Infocenter S.A., a Paraguayan partner of SAP and an IT
company with an exemplary track record in the national
market and with more than 20 consultants in different areas.
It is also an SAP Certified Consultant “FI” and “MM”. She
has developed from Market plans, sales, personal
motivation policies among others within the unit and
contributed progress towards the project goal.
Millennial Paradigm
Being informed is essential, and knowledge is necessary to
understand the great changes that are already there and
which SSC faces. Just as it happened with the millennial
paradigm, telework, etc. that break into the lives without
asking permission. The company has to be in constant
change to adapt easily. It works nowadays exclusively with
SAP BUSINESS ONE Systems, and everything that
involves development, deploying, licenses sales, support.
40 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

43. Katherine Colombino
Chief Executive Officer
The 20 Best Performing CEOs to Watch In 2020
October 2020 | 41www.insightssuccess.com

44. Any company must-have technology, without technology,
the company is going to die. We are in the era of
Technology. You can choose, you are in, or you are out. But
that decision will mark the future of your business.
Strength and Commitment
Katherine Colombino had a car accident, with her father, at
the age of 8 years. The diagnosis was a paralysis in her legs
due to a spinal injury. Although she has to move with
wheelchairs, she had all the same capabilities as any person.
That incident made her stronger, and with a great capacity
to adapt to difficult situations, she also developed her best
in several areas. They have to be strong because leadership
must be something that others have to feel about you. Many
times all is not given by knowledge, but the strength of your
heart and your commitment is transmitted by your voice,
your gestures, your life.
“Inspire the ordinary to become extraordinary. Be resilient.
Set goals and motivate continuously to achieve. Encourage
feedback without judgment. Hire people who align with
your culture and aligned with the goals of the company. Put
the right person in the right role. Get to know your team.
Empower employees to unlock their ‘zone of genius.
‘Remember that leading is an inside job”, says Katherine.
Optimizing Processes in Time
Software and Services Consulting wants its clients to
recognize them as strategic partners to accompany them in
their growth and expansion processes. The company is
highly competent professionals, motivated and aligned with
an internal knowledge management policy and the
development of human capital. It provides commercially
attractive solutions that respond to the real needs of the
customers. Collaborate with the country, generating highly
qualified professionals. Reach the sources (universities,
colleges, companies) and provide their training services.
Education does the country well, produces citizens aware of
their duties and obligations. And above all, first-rate
professionals, without discrimination, “exportable” to any
first world country.
SSC’s greatest value is customer satisfaction, honesty, the
obligation to be the best in the area it chooses, the
company’s commitment to the present and the future of
keeping up to date with the technological areas and
providing first-level knowledge and services.
The limitations in life are
not given by your
physical or situation itself,
they are given by you, if
your mind changes, your
world too.
42 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

46. The 20 Best Performing CEOs to Watch In 2020
44 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

47. Advancing Business Practices with
Digital Identity
riven, persistent, optimistic, a multi-tasker while at
Dthe same time listening to and being unafraid to ask
for help” says Rob Leslie. For Rob, these are the
vital attributes of a leader. He adds being a leader can be a
very lonely place. However, he opines “the benefits far
outweigh everything else. There is no better feeling in the
world than taking an idea and seeing it blossom into a
successful, vibrant, profitable business.”
Rob is the CEO and founder of Sedicii, a federated, global
identity verification network which enables real-time
identity verification. In 2018, Sedicii won the BBVA Open
Talent / Fintech Award and it was commented that “Sedicii
has the greatest possibility of transforming the financial
sector in the next 10 years”. As a visionary leader, Rob
wants to see this become a reality together with having
enriched the lives of all his company's employees by
leaving a healthy, profitable company before moving onto
his next challenge!!
Below are the highlights of the interview conducted
between Insights Success and Rob Leslie:
Describe your background and what did you do before
you started, or came into this business?
I am an Electronic Engineer by profession having graduated
from Dublin City University (DCU) in Ireland in the
1980's. I'm a serial entrepreneur – Sedicii being my seventh
(7th) start-up company. Prior to Sedicii I was co-founder of
Kyckr which was floated on the Australian Stock Exchange
in 2016. In my earlier professional life I worked in Japan
for 20 years before returning to Ireland where I am
currently based. While in Japan I was part of the initial
management team in Dell Japan that established and grew
the business there to almost 300 employees and $300M
turnover in its first four years. It is now a billion-dollar
business. I was also a partner in a Japanese computer
services company called PTS which was acquired in 2000
by a Singaporean firm as part of their entry into the
Japanese market.
Describe your company and its cutting-edge services
which address all the needs of your customers.
Sedicii is developing a platform to manage digital identity.
We develop software as a service for KYC, AML and for
the identification and authentication of people, vehicles,
products and other physical and virtual goods using our
unique, patented ZKP (Zero Knowledge Proof) protocol.
Sedicii is creating a federated, global identity verification
network which enables real-time identity verification by
certified, trusted identity providers (governments, banks,
telco's, utilities), ensuring that businesses can react quickly
to new government, regulatory and industry demands for
real-time identity verification, authentication and trust
services. Included in our identity network are products
including authentication software, a KYC and Customer
Onboarding solution and a Collaborative AML Monitoring
Platform which we believe is unique in the world as it
assesses both sides of a payment for AML risk compliance.
What strategies do you undertake to make your
employees resourceful?
Sedicii is currently a small team of 15. We have an all-
inclusive strategy holding weekly meetings with the team
which are multi-locational in Belgium, United Kingdom,
the Canary Island of Tenerife and our headquarters in
Waterford in the south-east of Ireland. This is a high-level
meeting where everyone is encouraged, and dare I say,
October 2020 | 45www.insightssuccess.com

48. expected to participate. Ideas are bounced and expanded
upon and the team feel empowered and an integral part of
Sedicii. I believe that the success of a company is
dependent upon its people and I encourage everyone to
share their ideas which in turn drive them to be resourceful.
There's nothing like a feeling of being valued and listened
to, no matter your role in a company, to spur you on to do
better and go the extra mile in my opinion.
What is your greatest life achievement?
The pinnacle of my professional life to date would certainly
be the accolade of being named a World Economic Forum
(WEF) Technology Pioneer and speaking at Davos; the only
software company in Ireland to be afforded this accolade
makes the achievement all the more rewarding. Add to this
the fact that Sedicii has consistently won – year on year –
varying technology awards which now number over 20.
What advice would you like to give to the emerging
entrepreneurs?
Be prepared to listen to advice. Don't be afraid to ask for
help. Refine your thoughts and have good sounding boards
from trusted advisors. Be prepared for good times and
challenging times before you succeed – never give up on
your vision and believe in yourself. Be realistic in terms of
what one person can achieve. Persist. Persevere.
How do you sustain your entrepreneurial spirit in this
changing technological era?
A person's sustainability is a positive attribute rather than
something to be tolerated. Technology is an integral part of
our day-to-day lives, like it or not, it's here to stay. I've been
described as a glass half-full person and believe in
technology and embracing it for the betterment (rather than
the detriment) of everyone. I see our technology as a way
and means to preserve a person's fundamental right to
privacy whilst, at the same time, the absolute need to ensure
that fraud and criminality can be tackled through better
compliance and always up-to-date identity records. This is
for the benefit of the world economy and the protection of
all of us.
“Never lose your
vision and always
believe in yourself.
46 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

50. Shanaz Ramzi
Chief Executive Officer
48 | October 2020 www.insightssuccess.com

51. Shanaz Ramzi
Bringing Perfection in PR and Event Management
In an interview with Insights Success, Shanaz
Ramzi—Chief Executive Officer of StarLinks
emphasizes on her impeccable journey of gaining a
successful stature in current hectic markets. Her unique
ideologies and methods assisted in achieving many
milestones in her pathway.
Shanaz started her career as a freelance journalist in
1994 and wrote prolifically for various publications, both
local and international, including for their leading
English newspaper Dawn. In 2004, she was hired as
Head of PR and Publications by an upcoming television
network, HUM, and while continuing her writing, she
joined the organization as one of the founding team
members. She stood with them for eleven years, finally
resigning in November 2015 from her position as GM
PR and Publications to start her own PR and event
management company called StarLinks.
A brief on StarLinks
StarLinks PR and Events is basically a PR and event
management company that has a strong CSR component
as well. While the company offers pro bono services for
various charitable institutions, she and her team also try
to involve the company’s clients in CSR activities to
enable them to give back to their country. They believe
in going the extra mile for all their clients and have fast
developed the reputation of under-committing and over-
delivering. Company’s small team of 12 people works
dedicatedly through its head office in Karachi, while it
has linkages in other cities of Pakistan as well, as in
different parts of the world, which have helped StarLinks
to do PR for events in Dubai, London, Houston, Toronto
and Colombo.
Increasing Efficiency
Shanaz and her team holds daily meetings to discuss the
progress of projects/clients on hand and to brainstorm for
future endeavors. She states that daily targets are set by
the entire team and end of the day reports is to be
submitted so there is clarity in how much each has
succeeded in meeting their targets. An increment system
has also been put in place based on the employee’s
productivity, pro-activeness, resourcefulness and
creativity which works wonders to motivate the team to
put in their best. Further she adds that a fixed
commission is also given to those employees that bring
in new clients or projects.
Her traits led Impeccable Achievements
Shanaz strongly feels that every leader, and particularly
one in the PR business, should and must have a cool
head, tons of patience, and the ability to listen, as well as
delegate. Through quoting, “A good leader is one who is
accessible at all times, and who inspires confidence and
respect,” Shanaz implies that the leader should be hands-
on and know their work thoroughly, so that they can’t be
hoodwinked.
Moreover, she also mentions some of her achievements,
yet she often wondered what she considered as her
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October 2020 | 49www.insightssuccess.com

52. greatest life achievement – her marriage of forty years to
her childhood sweetheart; her two beautiful children; her
book, Food Prints published by OUP, the first of its kind
in Pakistan; or her two international awards received
soon after establishing her company for Start-up of the
Year, and Best CEO of the World. She states, perhaps, in
retrospect, in a post Covid-19 world it is simply staying
healthy and being in touch with her childhood friends all
across the globe digitally.
Having said that, she would like to add here that there
are two projects that she considers her greatest work
achievement to date, which she would like to specifically
mention. The first is the launch of the biggest mall in
South Asia, LuckyOne Mall, which she and her team
were entrusted with in the very first year of her
company’s existence. It was humbling enough that the
company landed the mammoth project in the face of stiff,
and far more experienced competition, but what was
even more over-whelming was that it landed up
extending its launch activities from three days to thirteen
full days, with her team staying at the mall day and
night, in order to ensure footfall, for most important
shops had not opened up on time.
She also states that the second project was a three-day
international conference for INTBAU Pakistan—
International Network for Traditional Building,
Architecture and Urbanism – that she and her team
carried out last November. With 30 foreign delegates,
five foreign students, and over 250 local participants
taking part in the conference, which provided boarding
and lodging to all the foreigners, as well as to over 60
local delegates in the interior of Sindh – in custom-made,
eco-friendly resorts – as well as in Karachi, the most
challenging part of the event was not the logistics or the
conference itself, but the fact that the president of
Pakistan and his entourage attended the opening day. The
nightmare of meeting the protocol requirements and
security measures made everything else pale into
insignificance, but the fact that the company managed to
pull it off to rave reviews by one and all, was a feat they
are all very proud of.
An advice for Triumph in Tech-oriented World
Shanaz finds her work extremely challenging and the
times we live in constantly evolving, and feels one must
be grateful to this ever-changing technological era. She
states that she is learning something new from her young
colleagues daily, and while there is the occasional time
when she misses the way it used to be, by and large she
is grateful for the changes for it does make connectivity,
gathering information, keeping records and so much
more, a lot easier and quicker. One has to learn to move
with the times, and rather than being daunted by the
head-spinning technology, she find it exhilarating and
exciting.
She also states the fact that there are many emerging
entrepreneurs in their industry as it has been growing
rapidly this past decade, but many of them are one-
person shows with no overheads, no legal standing, and
are not registered as taxpayers. Her advice to all these
youngsters is that there are no short cuts in life – if they
want to truly succeed and make their mark, they need to
go about it the right away, even if it means making a
substantial investment into their business.
“My parting words -- Never fear
competition; help others to
succeed, forge partnerships, and
success will be yours.”
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