Archives: Session Speakers

Dolly has been in the forefront of the agency production world for decades before founding MINTMENA to become the leading production consultant in the MENAP region.

The wealth of knowledge she brings to the business is immense, and best seen through her thought leadership on the work she does through MINTMENA, partnering with multinational clients out of the GCC, Pakistan, Singapore as well as Nigeria, on many brands including Coca-Cola, Danone and Nissan to name a few, to help them and their partner agencies elevate production quality while optimizing production costs.

Dolly is also a veteran for responsible production and is always thriving to ensure responsible production guidelines are followed not just on the projects she leads but across the industry.

Mark’s entrepreneurial odyssey began with a stupidly audacious venture: helping a new generation of A-list celebrities to build their brand in the first wave of the internet. He soon became the ‘go to brand guy’ for hundreds of icons… from Lady Gaga and Usher to Barack Obama and Buckingham Palace.

After Hollywood Mark shifted to Silicon Valley founding multiple tech ventures and learning the ropes in the strange and wonderful world of Venture Capital. Along the way Mark has picked up a cabinet of awards including Cannes Lions, Emmys and even an Oscar Nomination. The Guardian named him “Star of Tech City” describing him as “An Entrepreneur, Investor & Board Advisor who’s changing our world by boosting economic growth.” He went on to be named in the “Silicon 60 Global Tech Entrepreneurs,” “The Most Influential Londoners” “The Sunday Times Top people in Britain,” “The Drum’s Digerati List,” “The Debrett’s Top 10 Digital List,” and was invited to do a TED talk which quickly reached millions of views.

As a speaker, Mark Adams is celebrated for his insightful and thought-provoking presentations. Twice honoured as “Speaker of the Year” in 2023, he captivates audiences with his unique perspective on digital innovation and leadership. Mark is also the author of the anticipated 2024 publication, “The Community Driven Economy,” which promises to delve into the intricate relationship between technology, community, and economic growth.

Amir Paracha serves as the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer at Unilever Pakistan Limited. Amir began his journey with Unilever in 2000 as an Assistant Brand Manager, advancing through various Marketing and Sales leadership roles in Pakistan and globally.

Amir spearheads the company’s “Unilever for Pakistan” vision, a purpose-driven movement aimed at strengthening Unilever Pakistan’s impact on the lives of Pakistanis through equitable opportunities and meaningful livelihoods. He has been recognized by the Government as a “Corona War Hero” and was awarded the Shan-e-Pakistan Award by the President of Pakistan for Unilever’s COVID relief work.

Amir served as the President at the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce & Industry (OICCI). He is on the boards of Shell Pakistan Limited, KVTC, Habib University Foundation and National Management Foundation. He also leads the Centre of Excellence for Responsible Business under the Pakistan Business Council and is a Male Champion of Change under Australia (MCC)’s Pakistan Coalition.

He obtained his MBA from the Institute of Business Administration. His professional journey began at The Royal Dutch Shell Oil Company in 1996. He has attended executive courses at Harvard, INSEAD, and London Business School.

Farheen Salman Amir has been associated with Unilever since 1999, leading a diverse range of categories throughout her career, including Personal Care, Ice Cream, Food, and Beverages. Her career trajectory saw her rise to the position of Ice Cream Brand Development Director for the North Africa & Middle East cluster, based out of Turkey, before she was confirmed on the board of Unilever Pakistan in 2016.

Since returning to Pakistan, Farheen has been instrumental in leading the Foods & Refreshment division as a board member for Unilever Foods Pakistan Limited, where she successfully revamped the portfolios of Lipton & Brooke Bond Tea, Knorr Foods, and Wall’s Ice Cream.

Currently, Farheen holds the position of President of Lipton Teas & Infusions, BSPAN (Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan), making her one of the youngest female CEOs in the industry. Under her leadership, Lipton Teas & Infusions stands as the largest tea business globally, with renowned purpose-driven brands such as PG tips, Pukka, Lipton, T2, and Tazo. The company operates 11 production factories across four continents and maintains tea gardens in three countries.

In her role as President BSPAN & General Manager Pakistan for Lipton Teas & Infusions, Farheen oversees a business worth over €200 million and employs more than 300 people across the region.

Adding to her accomplishments, Farheen was recently elected as the Chairperson of the Pakistan Advertisers Society (PAS) during its 26th Annual General Body Meeting held in December 2023. This position further solidifies her influence and leadership within the advertising and marketing industry in Pakistan.

Farheen is an alumna of the Institute of Business Administration (IBA), where she completed her BBA and MBA. She is a strong advocate for women’s leadership in the corporate world, emphasizing that it is possible to achieve corporate success while maintaining a balanced family life.

Mr. Samar Hayat is the Chief Executive Officer of Tapal Tea (Pvt.) Ltd. and is leading Pakistan’s largest Tea company to consecutive years of extraordinary growth despite Pakistan’s tough macro environment. Prior to joining Tapal, Mr. Samar spent 20 years with Procter & Gamble based in Saudi, Switzerland & Dubai leading giant global brands such as Pampers, Gillette, Head & Shoulders & Pantene for Middle East, Africa, India, Pakistan region.

Faizan is an experienced entrepreneur and founder with two successful businesses in growing sectors – digital media and consumer lifestyle. Faizan has a demonstrated history of working across functions and industries and is skilled in Analysis, Management, Leadership, Team Building, Collaboration, Finance and Marketing.

Prior to being a founder, Faizan spent time in investment banking with Lehman Brothers / BarCap in the Industrials Group. He also gained operations and marketing experience early in his career with General Motors. Faizan has an undergrad degree from the University of Virginia and an MBA in Finance from Cornell University.

He is also a global entrepreneur with experience in digital marketing, digital marketplaces, health & lifestyle publishing, finance and audit, manufacturing, marketing and business development. Strategized and financially supported by a variety of industries from healthcare and beauty to technology, beverage, real estate and finance. An Emerging Global Leader recognized by the US State Department, and Effie award winner for their full service digital marketing agency.

Sudhir Sitapati is the Managing Director and CEO of Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL). GCPL is one of India’s largest consumer goods multinationals with a presence in over 85 countries, and serving 1.2 billion consumers. Sudhir is responsible for guiding the purpose and ambition of the company; to bring the goodness of health and beauty to consumers in emerging markets.

Prior to this, Sudhir worked at Unilever for 22 years where he led teams across several categories and functions in India, Europe, South East Asia, and Africa. His last job was as an Executive Director – Foods and Refreshments at Hindustan Unilever

He is current Co-chair of the CII FMCG Committee and a past Co-chair of the CII National Committee of Food Processing. Sudhir was awarded the ‘Young Alumni Achiever’ by his alma mater, the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, in 2017. He is also the author of the best-selling book ‘The CEO Factory: Management lessons from Hindustan Unilever’.

Sudhir has an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad and a B.Sc. in Math with Economics Honors from St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai. Sudhir is married to Ketki and spends his free time trying to get his children, Sahaana and Kabir, interested in his own hobbies — tennis, Hindustani music, farming and scrabble. So far to not much avail.

In a versatile career of over 20 years, Aziz has led large scale FMCG organizations, built business models for iconic brands, established a successful start-up company and produced a blockbuster animated feature film.

His experiences are spread over 3 continents (Asia, Africa, North America), 5 countries (USA, Singapore, Kenya, Dubai and Pakistan) and two world class FMCG companies (P&G and Colgate Palmolive) where Aziz worked at positions of increasing responsibility across General Management, Marketing and Sales functions.

In between, while on sabbatical, he founded a start-up animation company and co-produced Pakistan’s highest grossing animated feature film ‘The Donkey King’. Subsequently, the animation studio has turned into a sustainable business venture with dedicated, professional management at its helm as he serves in a non-executive capacity on the BoD, allowing him the freedom to do what he is most passionate about – building brands and organizations in FMCG industry

Ahsan Sheikh is a media industry expert and CEO of Kinetic Pakistan. Under his leadership, Kinetic has spearheaded numerous industry-first innovations including introduction of Digital Out of Home and Programmatic DOOH in Pakistan. Renowned for his thought leadership, Ahsan’s various articles have contributed significantly in redefining OOH’s role in overall media strategy while advocating for technology integration in media and smart city development. He is a LUMS and College of Wooster alumnus and a Phi Beta Kappa Society member.

As the President of the LUMS SDSB Alumni Association, Ahsan also remains deeply connected with academia.

He began Synergy in 1999 after working for numerous agencies and brands for several years. Today, his humble beginnings with Synergy have spread into the largest IMC of Pakistan comprising of 7 leading agencies. Synergy Advertising is the local partner of the DENTSU network in Pakistan.

Ahmed is known for his bold thinking and initiatives to unite the industry:

• In 2003 launched Synergyzer, A Marketing Advertising Media and PR Industry magazine by an agency
• In 2006 launched Brandsynario.com, Pakistan’s first marketing and news portal
• In 2024 published Executive Doodles, Pakistan’s first in-depth book on Advertising and Marketing
• In 2024, received the first-ever RED Dragon, Dragon Master Pakistan award

Apart from his time spent on the Creativity and Advertising Management process, he is known for his keen interest in sports and philanthropy. He runs a medical aid trust in memory of his father, LKMWT.