Pathway to leadership series: Women in leadership in the Middle East
The APM UAE Network held their first webinar on the Pathway to Leadership series on 27 May 2025.
True to the overarching theme, this stream explored what leadership means for women in the project profession in the Middle East. You heard inspiring stories from women who have reached positions of leadership, gained an understanding of creating your own pathway to leadership, and received valuable advice and guidance on negotiating work plans and growing your network. Additionally, you learned about the challenges faced by women in leadership roles.
The speakers very kindly allowed their presented material to be made available for viewing. The webinar recording on Vimeo is now available in our APM resources area for reference.
Speakers:
Sophie has over twenty years of experience as an International Property & Construction expert with an emphasis on complex project management and high-level, strategic business development. A confident and dynamic professional, she has secured and managed numerous multi-billion, large scale development contracts both in the UK and the UAE. Having been in the UAE since 2006, she has had the opportunity to work with prolific Clients such as DP World, Jafza, Dubai Holding, Sobha and Emaar for consultants such as Mace, Turner & Townsend and EC Harris, with iconic figures such as the late Dame Zaha Hadid DBE.
In her role as Director of Business Development - Middle East, Sophie is instrumental in driving the Colliers growth strategy, expanding market presence and fostering new business opportunities across the Region. With a Global network of UHNW Clients and family offices investing in the Region, her focus is on creating and executing strategies that lead to meaningful and long term partnerships, ensuring Colliers continued success and market expansion in the UAE and beyond.
Rachael Keeble, Founder & Director, Builtwell Project Management - Linkedin
Rachael teaches Project Managers how to excel. Her company, BuiltWell Project Management, provides high impact training programmes that teach how to lead with authenticity, make complex tasks simple and enhance autonomy & efficiency. Her courses combine technical tools, soft skills & wellbeing techniques to help set those running projects up for long term confidence & career success.
In addition to 12+ years industry experience, Rachael is a Trustee of the Chartered Institute of Buildings (MCIOB), A Fellow of the Association for Project Management (FAPM), has an MSc in Construction Management & is certified in the Science of Wellbeing at Yale University. She is also a Non-Executive Director, a published writer & inspirational speaker
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Rachael writes about how we can tackle Project Management challenges in her blog ‘Project Success with our Stress’ and mentors women navigating their early careers in the projects profession.
Heba AlShehhi is the Head of Project Management Office (PMO) at Dubai Municipality and was named World PMO Leader of the Year 2023. With nearly two decades of experience, she has focused on enhancing project management practices, leading the establishment of the Enterprise PMO, and significantly improving the organization’s maturity in project delivery, which earned Dubai Municipality the World PMO of the Year awards in 2021 and 2022.
Heba is a certified PMO Consultant and PMI-PMO-Certified Practitioner, PMP, ACP, and a Certified Business Agility Assessor. She is also a public speaker, book author of the book Elements of Leadership, and expert in PMO setup, operations, portfolio management, and strategy execution.
In addition, she actively volunteers as the PMOGA MENA Hub Lead, a community initiative by PMO Global Alliance under the umbrella of Project Management Institute (PMI).
Azza Gabr is an Associate Director at Turner & Townsend, with over 12 years of experience in cost and project management across a diverse range of sectors including commercial, hospitality, residential, and mixed-use developments. She is known for her strategic leadership, sharp commercial insight, and ability to manage high-profile, multi-stakeholder projects from inception to delivery.
Azza is passionate about driving operational excellence, championing sustainable development, and mentoring the next generation of industry professionals. As a woman in a senior leadership position in the construction and real estate sector, she is committed to breaking barriers, inspiring confidence, and fostering inclusion within the industry.
Host: Miriam Al-Alawi, Associate Director, Turner & Townsend and APM UAE Regional Network Deputy Lead - Linkedin
Miriam, an Associate Director at Turner & Townsend has over 10 years of experience in project management across infrastructure and real estate in the UK and UAE. She specializes in project management and PMO across major projects and programmes with a focus on stakeholder management and governance. She is recognized for her work ethic, leadership, and collaborative approach to project delivery.
Miriam volunteers as the Deputy Lead of the APM UAE Regional Network and is passionate about growth and development. She has been actively involved with the APM in both the UK and UAE.
Miriam has a keen interest in digital innovation and technology, particularly in how emerging digital and AI driven tools are shaping the future of the project profession.
Pathway to leadership series: Career Development Tools & Techniques
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