The 11 women you see here are from different countries, different industries and vastly diverse professional backgrounds. Some run large consulting firms. Some started training institutes from the ground up. One insures cultural artifacts using technology. Another empowers women to speak up in corporate rooms. What links them is straightforward: they deliver results, and they lead clearly.
This article profiles each of them, what they do, how they reached that point and what sets their work apart.
1. Komal Jajoo — Building Organizations That Work Across Borders
Co-founder, AJMS Group | CEO, Hayford Integrated Training Institute | Founder, Fanar | Dubai, UAE
Komal Jajoo runs three businesses simultaneously and each one solves a different problem for a different audience.
She leads over 100 professionals at AJMS Group, which manages operations across Dubai and Jaipur. The group operates within governance, business strategy and operational consulting. During her time at the organization, it has strengthened internal systems and expanded its footprint across countries.
Her second venture, Hayford Integrated Training Institute, was built around one observation: most professional training programs teach theory, but working professionals need practical skills they can apply on Monday morning. Hayford has then expanded into Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait, with Abu Dhabi next on the list. It holds key accreditations and employs technology-based learning to reach executives in all the Gulf.
Fanar, her third platform, is designed to assist entrepreneurs and businesses in establishing themselves legally and efficiently within the UAE. From incorporation to regulatory compliance to market entry planning, Fanar does the legwork so founders can focus on building real businesses.
Komal has been honored as the Outstanding Woman Entrepreneur (Education) at The Economic Times Education Excellence Awards, shortlisted in the Power 100 List at Global Business Conclave hosted by the UK House of Lords and awarded Exemplary Woman Leader of the Year. She graduated from Harvard Kennedy School’s executive program in Crisis Leadership in Higher Education.
Her view of leadership: “Leadership is not authority. It is about helping others tap into their potential. When people have the right knowledge, values and support transformation is inevitable.”
2. Aruna Vaz — Making Risk Management a Human Responsibility
CEO, Tsaaro Consulting | Co-Chair, UAE Data Protection Officers Club | Dubai, UAE
Aruna Vaz, who has been providing services in risk management and ESG strategy for over 20 years in the UK, Southeast Asia and Middle East. She is now the head of Tsaaro Consulting in Dubai, which consults companies on data privacy, A.I. governance, cybersecurity and compliance.
Prior to Tsaaro, she headed operational risk at M2, a digital asset exchange with regulatory oversight. Before that, she was in charge of risk and loss prevention for Aster DM Healthcare’s more than 350 hospitals, clinics and pharmacies. She previously worked at M&G plc for more than 10 years, coming directly into Boards and Risk Committees to discuss internal controls and compliance and established the firm’s Diversity & Inclusion chapter.
Aruna does risk differently than the traditional compliance-heavy model. Organisations are “steel cages” of resilience, but resilient leadership goes beyond systems and frameworks; it’s about building cultures where people can be trusted and held to clear ethical standards. She is a trained mental health first aider, as well, which informs how she views accountability in the workplace.
She was recognized as one of Asia’s Top 100 Women Power Leaders, and she is a juror for the UAE Privacy Awards. She serves as co-chair of the UAE Data Protection Officers Club, a group for legal, compliance and cybersecurity professionals from across the region.
On governance: "Leadership in risk and governance is not about avoiding uncertainty, it is about having the courage to confront it with clarity, integrity, and purpose. When women lead with confidence and accountability, organizations become stronger, more resilient, and more human."
3. Elizabeth Marston — Using Technology to Protect Art and Cultural History
Founder, Sotera | Proprietor, Marston Family Vineyard | London, UK
Elizabeth Marston created a technology company within Lloyd’s of London that specializes in something most insurtech companies overlook: the insurance of fine art, rare collections and cultural assets.
Sotera applies data modeling and risk analytics to improve the understanding of the real value and risk profile of high-value items for insurers, private collectors and institutions. This is not a normal underwriting, it’s an item-level analysis of assets that are often irreplaceable.
On the nonprofit side, Elizabeth is building out capacity within Sotera to support museums and cultural institutions to intelligently manage their collections. Her work has resonated with heritage projects at the British Museum and in Cairo.
Her academic background is atypical for a tech founder: she has a BA in Classical Studies, an MA in Classical Archaeology and an MPhil in Egyptology from Cambridge. That background is not a distraction from her current work, it is part of the bedrock of it. She knows what cultural objects cost because she has long studied what they signify.
She also owns and operates Marston Family Vineyard in Napa Valley, a multi-generational estate she has managed for more than 20 years. That experience managing a legacy business focused on the long-term is one that informs how she approaches both Soptera and her work as a mentor to next-generation founders.
Her core belief: preservation and innovation are not in conflict. Good stewardship is what makes good innovation possible.
4. Karishma Mirchandani Sawlani — Turning Around Educational Institutions
International Education Strategist | Governance and Enrollment Advisor
Karishma Mirchandani Sawlani is an education professional with 20 years of experience working in schools, universities and with EdTech companies across the US, UK, Caribbean and Spain. Her specialty is the operational and strategic issues that hinder educational institutions: sluggish enrollment, misaligned governance, weak stakeholder relations, culture that resists change.
She ran the Startup Lab at IE Business School in Spain, incubating over 100 ventures. At Gamelearn, an EdTech platform, she spearheaded global business development across three continents — adding 30-plus channel partnerships with institutions and enabling the company to increase its education sector revenue by 40 percent.
She is currently completing Harvard University’s Certificate in School Management and Leadership and has an Executive Master’s in Positive Leadership, Strategy and Transformation received from IE University. She was featured in the WITH Guide of Women Leaders in Business Ecoystem.
Her work sits at the point where strategy meets execution and she is clear that both matter equally. Many institutions have strong visions that never reach their potential because the operational discipline to carry them out is missing. Her job is to fix that gap.
On what leadership really requires: "Leadership is not only about representation. It is about influence in governance, capital allocation, and long-term institutional design. Sustainable impact requires both empathy and disciplined execution."
5. Helga Dalla — Practical Health Science for Women Over 40
Founder, Advancing Health Naturally | Neuro Transformation Practitioner | Australia
Advancing Health Naturally is led by Helga Dalla, which she founded after experiencing a health crisis herself. She was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis in menopause and accrued years of research on topics such as autoimmune science, cellular health, oxidative stress and the nervous system. What she learned, she converted into a structured program.
Helga was a successful photojournalist and author before starting her wellness business. Her documentary project A World of Twins, which followed rare twin and triplet stories around Australia, won national awards. The skills she cultivated in that work, including how to translate complex human experiences into ways that resonate with people, come through in the way she now communicates about health science.
Her CALM Framework integrates fasting protocols, cellular activation principles, and Neuro Transformation Therapy. It is specifically tuned to gently guide women over 40 who are experiencing autoimmune conditions, hormonal changes, and metabolic slowdown. She accomplishes this through digital programs and a global mentoring community.
Her message is consistent: most women in midlife are managing symptoms rather than addressing root causes. She wants to change that, through science-backed tools and a practical, no-nonsense approach to long-term health.
6. Yeşim Taşöz — A Travel Business Built on Trust, Not Transactions
Travel Entrepreneur | TUI ReiseCenter Franchise Owner | Germany
Yeşim Taşöz has been working in the travel industry since 1997. She opened the franchise in a TUI travel center in 2011 and operated it as a traditional office-based shop for nearly a decade. Then came 2020, which turned everything upside down.
Instead of case cutting and waiting for the storm to pass, she took an unexpected step that shocked many people: She closed her spacious downtown office altogether and restructured the business around a smaller physical footprint and fully remote team. Now her team members work from home offices, airports and destinations they’ve visited in person.
That last part matters. Her consultants cannot recommend hotels or destinations that they haven’t tested themselves. Clients have one-on-one access to Yeşim before, during and after a trip. The agency specializes in travelers of all nationalities, and the emphasis is always on personalized planning rather than a hard sell of generic packages.
She has a business administration background as well as qualifying as a certified business economist, so has got the financials to run it tight. So why do clients stick around? The answer is more straightforward: They trust her, and she’s built that trust over a number of years by doing exactly what she says she will do.
Her view is that in a world full of online booking tools and automated recommendations, genuine human connection in travel planning is not a weakness, it is the product.
7. Dawlat H. Tarifi — Connecting the Dots in the Middle East Mobility Sector
Business Development Leader | Advanced Aerial Mobility | Abu Dhabi, UAE
Dawlat Tarifi is working in advanced aerial mobility, one of the most dynamic sectors in the Middle East at the moment. Her role is to introduce international technology firms to the regional governments, infrastructure builders and investors who can help them run in this part of the world.
Her earlier career passed through legal, media and pharmaceutical environments, all highly regulated, all requiring careful navigation of complex stakeholder relationships. That experience is precisely what her current work calls for. There is more to bringing a new transport technology in another country from good product. It needs the right partnerships, regulatory approvals and long-term institutional support.
She advises American, Canadian, European, Chinese, Indian, South Korean and Hong Kong companies on entering Middle East markets. She guides them through the regulatory landscape, helping them find the right local partners and build commercialization plans that reflect how decisions get made in this part of the world.
Her MBA from Regent's University London focused on International Business with a Green Energy specialization. She also holds a double BA from the American University of Beirut in Public Policy and Governance alongside English Creative Writing.
On building industries: "Transactions generate momentum. Trust builds industries. Ecosystems create legacy."
8. Erica Antonietti — Bringing Real Italian Food to the Middle East
Managing Director, FGC Food Industries LLC | Dubai, UAE
Erica Antonietti, who first visited GULFOOD in Dubai in 2007. She saw an obvious gap: the region’s hotels and airlines were seeking good-quality authentic Italian food, but there was no producer in the area that could provide it at scale and to consistent standards.
She founded FGC Food Industries to plug that hole. The company manufactures fresh pasta, sauces, and artisanal pizzas for the hospitality and aviation industries throughout the Middle East. The recipes are influenced by both her Italian heritage, featuring traditional family techniques learned from her grandmother as well as current food production practices.
Coming from an Italian family of business owners, Erica learned early on that quality isn’t a tagline, it’s practice inspired by daily discipline and unwavering standards. That background comes through in the way she leads her team and how she speaks about the brand.
For Erica, leadership in a production business means creating a workplace where every person understands what they are making, why it matters, and what standard they are accountable to. That kind of culture is what makes it possible to deliver consistent quality to hundreds of hotel and airline clients across a competitive and demanding market.
9. Farah Al Hamra — Strategy and Precision in Pharmaceutical Operations
Pharmaceutical Operations Leader | Doctor of Pharmacy | MBA | PMP
Farah Al Hamra: Doctor of Pharmacy, MBA and Project Management Professional That combination, clinical knowledge, business strategy and structured execution of projects, is precisely what senior pharmaceutical operations roles need, and it’s found in only a few people.
Her experience encompasses operational management, regulatory alignment, market entry strategy and cross-border partnership development. She has successfully guided cross-functional teams in complex compliance landscapes, enhanced market penetration and driven tangible revenue growth across various regions.
Pharmaceutical markets move at a glacial pace, and underpinning them are strict regulations. Doing so is about resistance, accuracy, and ensuring this immense compliance operation does not slip in favour of commercial priorities. Farah’s record suggest she is capable of doing that.
Her PMP background informs how she approaches projects: with clear methodology, defined milestones and a focus on risk mitigation at every stage. She is also unequivocal about what good leadership looks like over the long haul, it means creating systems and teams that deliver results consistently, not just one time.
10. Ange Bakeba — Teaching High-Performing Women How to Own Their Position
Founder, FIRE Leadership Institute | Author | Faith-Based Leadership Coach
Ange Bakeba’s professional background is in satellite telecommunications — a global, technical, male-dominated sector where performance expectations are high and attention to detail is not up for negotiation. As she worked in that environment, she began to notice the same thing with organizations around her.
Women with deep expertise, great track records and distinct results were being skipped over. They were under-promoted and under-recognized. It was not a question of their ability. It was that no one had taught them how to position themselves, how to negotiate or speak with authority in high-stakes rooms.
That observation was the genesis of the FIRE Leadership Institute. The program unfolds over four modules: Find Your Value, Ignite Your Faith, Reclaim Your Voice and Expand Your Influence. Each level works on a key aspect of professional positioning and executive presence, combining a faith-rooted way for women who desire to align their identity with their leadership.
She’s also the author of Victory: A Daily Choice, which applies those ideas to the personal mindset space, helping women see and push back against the internal narratives that keep them from acting on what they already know.
Her core message: "Many women have mastered performance, but few have been trained in positioning. When a woman understands her value, aligns her faith, and speaks with authority, her leadership becomes undeniable."
11. Rita Singh — Executive Coaching Rooted in 35 Years of Real Experience
CFO & COO, S&A Consulting Group | Founder, Elite Women Around The World | Author | Cleveland, USA
Rita Singh has over 35 years of management experience in manufacturing, healthcare, automotive, construction and food service. That range matters because it means the frameworks she employs in her coaching and advisory work have been field-tested across a very diverse set of business environments, not limited to one industry at one time.
She is Chief Financial and Operations Officer for S&A Consulting Group, a global resource management consulting firm. She provides executive coaching, workshops and leadership forums to senior executives, entrepreneurs and nonprofit leaders through her Entrepreneurship and Leadership Institute.
She argues in her book, “Be a Warrior in Business” (co-authored with Nipendra Singh), that the mindset and disciplines of a warrior, preparation, resilience, strategic clarity and the willingness to fight through difficult circumstances, translate directly to business leadership. It provides actionable tools to create teams and organizational cultures that endure under duress.
Her nonprofit,Elite Women Around The World,is dedicated to the economic empowerment of women worldwide. We provide mentorship, resources and leadership development opportunities to help women expand their professional reach and entrepreneurial confidence.
On what leadership demands: "Leadership is defined by the courage to stand firm in the face of challenges, the wisdom to guide others forward, and the resilience to keep building even when the path is uncertain. When leaders embrace this mindset, they create organizations and communities that are stronger, more inclusive, and prepared for the future."
What These Women Share in Common
Eleven leaders. Eleven different industries. Eleven different paths.
Some built companies from scratch. Others entered broken institutions and repaired them. Some saw a hole in their sector and spent years plugging it. Each one of them is doing some work that actually matters to actual people, such as their teams, their clients, their communities.
Women in business leadership is not a trend, nor a category. They are senior executives doing hard work and doing it well. These leaders are evidence of that and their stories are worth reading closely, no matter what area you work in.
Related Article: 5 Inspiring Female Business Leaders of 2026
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