Our 2025 Speakers

Marketing insights & strategy professional with 18+ years of diverse experience within the CPG domain, across Asia, Middle East, and African markets. Fortunate to have worked on some of the global iconic brands like Oreo, Cadbury, Tang, and Philadelphia. An avid storyteller with proven ability to provide a behavioral view for a very black and white data. As the regional strategy & insights lead, passionate about building a team of curious & agile thought leaders.

With over 20 years of experience, Amanda is a seasoned design leader with a proven track record of building high-performing teams and delivering impactful results for leading global brands. Currently Head of Design for Retail Banking at Mashreq, a leading bank in the Middle East, Amanda leads designers, researchers, and copywriters across the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt, Pakistan and India. Under her leadership, Mashreq has the top-rated banking apps in the UAE.

Strategic and results-oriented professional with 10+ years of experience in consumer insights, CRM, predictive analytics, and market research. Proven expertise in driving omnichannel, data-driven strategies that optimize customer engagement, brand performance, and revenue growth. Adept at leading cross-functional teams, managing complex, multi-market projects, and delivering actionable insights that shape digital transformation and brand strategy. Deep industry experience across luxury, beauty, and retail, with a strong track record of influencing senior stakeholders and fostering a consumer-centric, insight-led decision-making culture.

Ankesh has over 20 years of experience across India and the Middle East, and has led transformation through insight-driven strategy, real-time VoC platforms, and a passion for humanising experiences. His work has empowered organisations to grow, uplift team morale, and build meaningful customer relationships.
He was recognized in the Top 250 Global Insights Professional by Esomar, Top 100 Global CX Thought Leader, and ranked in top 10 CXMStars™️ in 2025.

Ashish currently serves as Global Director of Strategy and Consumer Insights at RBI for FireHouseSubs, Popeyes and TimHortons. He is a passionate & visionary insights entrepreneur with broad international experience and projects done in Europe and Asia, across multiple FMCG industries and client /agency/consultancy side. Credited with over one-and-a-half decade of rich, substantive and dynamic experience in the Analytics and Consumers Insights. During these years, he found innovative solutions to esoteric problems, thus creating a formidable impact in the industry. Widely travelled and learnt the ropes of consumer insights by working across geographies such as India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Switzerland where he was physically stationed.

Mohamed Soliman is a distinguished marketing leader with over 22 years of multi-market experience across flagship global and regional brands. He's driven growth for industry giants like PepsiCo and Coca-Cola, while shaping transformative strategies for Savola Foods and its powerhouse, Al-Kabeer Group. As Head of Marketing for Al-Kabeer in GCC, Mohamed recently spearheaded a comprehensive brand reimagining across six core frozen food categories (Meat, Chicken, Vegetables, Fruits, Dough, Seafood). This initiative significantly boosted Al-Kabeer's image, awareness, endorsement, and competitive positioning. His MRMW MENA presentation will explore the vital move towards extending brand collaborations beyond Limited Time Offers, focusing on building enduring regional partnerships

Jackie leads the Insight function for Nestle across the MENA region. Her passion is in bringing human centred design into commercial decision making, and she has been on this mission for the last 20 years driving Insight and Strategy for various organizations including Mondelez, Pernod Ricard, John Lewis Plc, Ferrero and Kantar Consulting across MENA, London and Singapore.

Deepti feeds her passion by turning emerging market complexity into clarity, strategy, and growth. Her journey spans about 18 years, largely in the Middle East. Working across multiple sectors that include FMCG, Technology and Financial Services has helped her develop a diverse view on consumers as well as organizations. She is currently engaged with Philip Morris International to champion Regional Insights for Asia, Middle East and Africa. Her latest drive focuses on blending global brand vision with local nuance. She is also an Executive MBA candidate at Kellogg School of Management (Batch of 2026).

Burcu Dolunay is an Insights & Analytics director in Global Business Services team within Strategy & Transformation function at Pepsico. She has 15 years of experience in crafting brands and portfolio strategies that resonate in the VUCA world as part of diverse teams and categories. For the last 2 years, as part of global teams, she focuses in driving strategic insights and analytics initiatives across global markets. Passionate about weaving meaningful stories from data, Burcu is committed to harnessing the power of insights to navigate the complexities of today's dynamic landscape.

Ayushman is an Insights & Data Analytics Strategy professional with over 13 years of experience in market & business performance analysis, shopper and consumer insights and data analytics. He possesses an in-depth knowledge of the Middle East region by virtue of working in Dubai for more than 10 years now. Currently he is working as a Regional Head of Market and Shopper Insights / Analytics MENA Region for ARLA Foods. Ayushman has also set up the Market & Shopper Insights / Analytics department in ARLA MENA and created a modern, trusted insights framework outlining the “Accurate Objective Truth” and excelled in faster conversion from Data to Insights to Action. He has also put in new ways of working through new business planning processes to ensure organization makes data driven day to day decision

Priyanka Bhargav has over 20 years of experience in Brand Strategy, Brand Marketing, UXR and Insights, Corporate Communications, & CX across an array of industries that includes E-commerce, Grocery, Telecom, FMCG and Retail. She is a passionate evangelist of Customer Centricity and has played an instrumental role in GTM strategy for new business and Product innovations. She is an extremely well rewarded and globally recognised business leader. She holds a Limca Book of World Record for CSR driven Marketing Campaign. She is recipient of the Young Business Leader Award by BTVI (Business Television India), Femina World Women Leadership Award, By ET Now and leadership awards by Forbes and World Marketing Congress.

Ganesh Sharma is a seasoned marketing and consumer insights leader with 16+ years of experience across the Middle East and India. As the Consumer Insights, Analytics, and Media Lead at Dabur International, he has driven strategic brand growth across diverse FMCG categories. Ganesh brings deep expertise in market research, Consumer understanding,  data analytics, actionable insights that drive brand development, and media strategy. He’s led multi-million dollar campaigns, steered award-winning launches, and delivered actionable insights that fuel commercial success. A Google-certified digital marketer and a firm believer in insight-led innovation, Ganesh combines analytical acumen with storytelling to inspire impact. He holds a master’s in Marketing from JBIMS, Mumbai.

Rowan Salama is an influential user researcher and ethnographer shaping the future of tech in emerging markets, particularly across MENA. She has led transformative research initiatives for the KSA and UAE governments and is now leading research for Careem Rides across nine markets. Rowan’s work goes beyond traditional research, leveraging cultural insights and behavioral science to craft user-centered products that deeply resonate. Blending expertise in behavioral and cognitive psychology, sociolinguistics, and discourse analysis, Rowan bridges cultural insights with cutting-edge methodologies to inform strategic decisions for governments, startups, and leading companies in the MENA region. An engaging public speaker, Rowan has delivered impactful keynotes at local and regional conferences, led innovative workshops featuring social experiments, and presented groundbreaking research on methodologies that redefine user research.

Kausar Jahan is Lead UX, UI and Product Design in Roads & Transport Authority in Dubai. He specializes in creating UX strategies, customer research and designing best in class digital customer experiences throughout multiple smart channels like web, desktop, mobile apps, and kiosks. Kausar has a real passion for user experience and always tries to practice it in everything she designs. She has a keen sense of what users are looking for, and she can back it up with experience in both usability and visual design. Her educational background is in Computer Science, in which she holds both a Bachelor's (BCS) and a Master's (MCS) degree. Along with the degrees, she has completed multiple UX certifications and digital marketing certifications, as she believes that the learning engine should never stop.

I have 18 years of brand strategy and innovation experience across Unilever, Nestle, Americana and Reckitt. I've built, revived and reimagined brands from Dove to Dettol. I've led global teams, launched innovations across 20 markets and navigated matrix structures without losing my sanity (or sense of humour). I currently Head Marketing at Al Ghurair Foods. I've just wrapped a full brand overhaul, 14 brand extensions and 4 mega campaigns in the last 18 months. I'm obsessed with insights, impact and great packaging. I believe great brands solve real problems - and look great doing it.

Rania Wahdan is Head of Research and Insights at Expo City Dubai, the legacy site of Expo 2020 and a pioneering model for sustainable, future-ready cities. She leads brand tracking, audience understanding, and destination research to drive data-informed decisions and amplify the visitor voice across the organization. With nearly two decades of experience in marketing research, Rania is passionate about turning insights into action and shaping purpose-led destinations that truly resonate and deliver a lasting impact.

A consumer insights & analytics professional, with 18+ years of experience in transforming consumer data into meaningful & actionable insights. Having worked on different sides of the business (research agencies, media agencies & consumer insights), have a strong understanding of how insights lead to actions across different domains of the business.
In her current role manages Consumer & Market Insights for Bakery, Biscuit & Beverages for Mondelēz  MENAP region, with the key role of delivering Insight Led Category growth strategies across all domains.

Sonia is a seasoned Brand & Digital Marketing leader with 15 years of experience driving growth for billion-dollar brands across FMCG and pharma. She has led transformative work across brand building, digital acceleration, in-house content creation, and influencer marketing. Sonia is known for bridging strategy and execution, seamlessly connecting fragmented narratives into unified brand experiences. Her superpower lies in collaboration and connecting disjointed narratives to unlock value in an evolving marketing and tech landscape. Passionate about purposeful storytelling and customer engagement, she brings both strategic clarity and creative energy to every challenge she takes on.

Andrew Seinfeld is Chief Growth Officer at BoltChatAI, where he leads global growth and strategy. With a strong background in the insights industry, he works closely with teams to drive innovation and turn consumer understanding into real business results.

A dynamic Consumer Insights expert with a proven track record across the MENA region, I specialize in transforming complex data into clear strategic direction. With leadership roles at AlSafi Danone, Almarai, Halwani, Mondelēz, and Nestlé, I’ve driven innovation, market expansion, and brand growth through deep consumer understanding. I excel at building insights functions from the ground up, leading multi-method research, and partnering cross-functionally to embed a consumer-first mindset. Passionate about shaping business decisions through data, I bring over 15 years of experience in FMCG to every challenge—delivering impact, foresight, and competitive advantage in fast-paced, evolving markets.

Sonal Dawda is Head of Marketing & Corporate Communications at Dubai National Insurance (DNI). As a prominent figure in the corporate world, she has been recognized as a ‘Middle East Woman Leader’, actively mentoring women across various domains and collaborating with women-focused entrepreneurial organizations. Sonal has also earned 'Best Marketing Leader' & ‘Top CMO in Middle East’ Titles & has received ‘Award for Excellence’ & ‘Best Performer Award’.

She remains steadfast in her conviction that collaboration is the key to business success; therefore, she is committed to building long-term relationships with Internal & External Stakeholders to realize strategic business goals.

Faran Niaz is the Director of Customer Experience at HALA, based in Riyadh and Dubai. Recognized among the Top 100 Global CX Thought Leaders and recipient of the Lifetime Excellence in Customer Experience Award, he brings over 25 years of CX, employee engagement, and change management expertise, having led major initiatives at Citibank, Mashreq, and ADIB. He co-authored the Amazon bestsellers Customer Experience 4 and 5, and is known for transforming a UAE bank’s CX ranking from 23rd to 1st, maintaining it for 7 consecutive years. As CEO & Founder of CX Future, Faran helps organizations build customer-centric cultures that drive loyalty and ROI. He’s also a global keynote speaker, a top-rated CX judge, and an award-winning photographer with international exhibitions.

Marwen is a growth and marketing leader with 17+ years of experience across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. He currently leads SAMEA Growth at Spotify, driving strategy, monetization, and paid user acquisition across 66 markets. Previously, he held senior roles at Ooredoo Group, leading digital strategy and award-winning brand campaigns. Marwen has built regional teams, launched global initiatives, and delivered measurable impact in diverse, fast-changing markets. He is also a mentor and an active member of professional networks. Outside work, he’s a proud husband and dad who finds joy in music, video-games, and pop culture.

Richa Gupta Behera is a design leader who blends research, strategy, and empathy to reimagine customer experience. At myZoi, a Standard Chartered venture in Dubai, she drives financial literacy and inclusion for blue collar migrant workers, shaping products that change lives. With over a decade of global experience in fintech, banking, and public services, Richa believes businesses flourish through empathy and therefore, she brings voices from labor camps to boardrooms influencing business decisions through the power of customer insight.