Carole Assaf
CEO, St Vincent de Paul Society
Carole Assaf, the founding partner of Creating Value Management CVM3, boasts a diverse background in consulting and training, spanning over three decades. She is recognised as a strategic expert in steering corporate growth, particularly during periods of change, risks, crises, and challenges. With a portfolio of more than 50 multinational corporations and NGOs, Carole has consistently prioritised sustainability and corporate social responsibility principles in her work. Her clients include prestigious organisations like the National Commission for Lebanese Women, the Lebanese Armed Forces, GIZ, USAID, EU ENI, EU CVPol, Polish Fund, WRF, and YMCA. Carole is certified by EBRD as a small business consultant and specialises in tailoring assessment solutions and bespoke training programmes for organisations.
Carole is passionate about equipping her students with marketing strategies, emphasising product identification, pricing, pitching, and channel selection to connect with clients or employers effectively. She encourages her students to promote themselves and their products using best-practice advertising techniques. For over 26 years, she has served as a senior lecturer at Notre Dame University, seamlessly blending academic knowledge with real-world applications in her hands-on workshops, catering to both basic and advanced levels.
Carole holds an MBA in Business Administration and Economics from Notre Dame University, Louaize.
Léa Cremesty
Business Director, KURVE Studios
Léa Cremesty, a seasoned marketer known for her strategic acumen, embarked on her advertising journey at Saatchi & Saatchi Beirut. She subsequently transitioned to the client’s side, venturing into diverse industries. Her career includes overseeing the marketing departments for Land Rover, Aston Martin, Honda, and Ford at Tewtel Group in Lebanon’s automotive sector. Later, she made her mark in the retail domain, assuming responsibility for marketing at City Centre Beirut within Majid Al Futtaim.
Currently, Léa is a partner at KURVE Studios, a creative production studio based in the UAE, catering to clients and agencies in the MENA region. She also serves as a part-time lecturer for MBA students at Antonine University, teaching Marketing Strategy.
Beyond her corporate roles, Léa also hosts a podcast on the “thisislebanonnews” platform, where she delves into the stories of businesses and individuals who have made significant impacts, both locally and internationally.
Her extensive expertise spans creative idea generation and development, market insight, strategy and tactical execution, media planning and oversight, strategic thinking, brand consulting, as well as managing new business proposals, PR relations, and media management.
Léa holds a Master’s degree in Marketing for Services from St Joseph University (USJ), in coordination with IAE de Tours, France. Her accolades include the 2011 Best Range Rover Evoque Launch and the prestigious Marketer of the Year award in 2012, bestowed by the Jaguar and Land Rover Regional Office in Dubai. Additionally, Léa was recognized as a Top Talent at Majid Al Futtaim Properties in both 2015 and 2016.
Gloria Kaba
Managing Partner, BrandTribe
Gloria has 30 years of experience in the MENA and American markets as a branding and communication specialist. She develops brand strategies, brand visual and verbal systems and touchpoints, and designs culture-induction workshops for large groups in the public and private sectors. Her clients include ZIEH, a huge Californian clean energy conglomerate, HyperPay, a regional Fintech, and a Saudi InsurTech conglomerate, as well as various NGOs and Ministries in the MENA region. She is also a university lecturer who feels that few institutions provide creative industries courses with up-to-date content and real-life scenarios that prepare students for careers. Gloria views brand building as an endless world of ideas and opportunities that provide paths to deeper engagement. She developed a customised Customer Experience (CX) training course for her clients in order to expand their brand universe and engage with their customers more effectively. As a result, she encourages her students to feel the drive, pressure, and competitiveness so that they learn to think outside the box and own the brand. Gloria has lectured at Notre Dame University for the past 23 years, as well as at the American University of Beirut and online for American and Canadian universities. Her classes blend theory with real-world application in an engaging package that motivates her students to fall in love with the subject.
Gloria holds an MA in Mass Communication/Media Studies from Notre Dame University, Louaize.
Marc Kodeih
Writer, Communicator, Showrunner
Marc Kodeih is a seasoned writer, communicator, and showrunner with over three decades of experience. Renowned for his comedic storytelling, he’s become one of Lebanon’s leading playwrights and a distinguished theatre and television director.
Marc’s journey is marked by laughter and applause. He’s authored and directed successful comedy series and plays, with ‘TV or Not TV’ achieving a remarkable 98% rating, a milestone in Lebanon’s entertainment history. His creative talent extends to writing a screenplay that made the Sundance Film Festival shortlist. His contributions span over 250 episodes of ‘Mounia Fi Loubnan’ and 100 episodes of ‘C.I.A (Comedy in Arabic).’ In the world of theatre, he’s scripted and directed 16 successful plays, including ‘The Middle Beast’ Off-Broadway. These productions have transcended borders, touring the US, Canada, Australia, Europe, Dubai, and Egypt.
Beyond the stage and screen, Marc has made a significant impact in the field of communication arts. He’s nurtured lateral thinking skills in students as an educator and excelled as a creative director in advertising. Many actors who started under his tutelage have risen to become major stars.
Today, Marc serves as the Senior Talent & Creative Consultant for the Bridge-the-Gap programme as well as teaching a module on theatre-based presentation techniques to the participants of the Career Blueprint for Graphic Designers course.
Marc’s wide-ranging interests in literature, music, comedy, and film form the bedrock of his work, infusing every creation with humour and an unwavering commitment to honesty.
Jihad S. Nehmé
Seasoned producer in the MENA region
As a seasoned producer in the MENA region, Jihad Nehmé’s career has spanned over three decades and several capital cities, including Beirut, Jeddah, Riyadh, Cairo, Casablanca, and, finally, Dubai, where he settled in 2013.
Succeeding in the field of production hinges on a profound grasp of the diverse cultures, markets, and business landscapes of the countries in which he operates. Jihad’s unique aptitude for immersing himself in these various cultures has afforded him opportunities to collaborate on advertising campaigns for notable brands such as P&G, Nissan, ABCD, FAB, McDonald’s, Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Henkel, Unilever, BMW, HSBC, L’Oréal, Etisalat, MTN, Mastercard, Dubai Holding, Porsche, Mercedes, Volvo, QNB, Vodafone, Samba, Ford, and more.
With over 2,000 TV commercials and music videos to his credit, and an equal number of regional and worldwide servicing campaigns produced under his leadership, Jihad Nehmé’s production expertise extends to creative input and adept problem-solving. Simply put, if there’s a solution, he will find it.
With big brands come big names. Jihad has had the privilege of producing numerous commercials with notable celebrities, including Roger Federer, Mohamed Salah, Mohamad Mounir, Lewis Hamilton, Hussain Jasmi, Paul Scholes, Hernan Crespo, David Trezeget, Gianluca Zambrotta, Hazem Emam, Hisham Abbas, and Myriam Fares.
While maintaining a busy schedule that often takes him between Beirut, Dubai, and various Middle Eastern countries, Jihad skillfully balances his career with his passion for photography. His work in the field of photography has earned recognition within the black-and-white photography community, and he achieved a significant milestone with his first exhibition held in Beirut in November 2022.
Jihad’s work has been recognised by the most prestigious awards in the advertising world, including the Dubai Lynx and the Cannes Lions. He holds a degree in Audio-Visual Studies from ALBA (Académie Libanaise des Beaux Arts).
Mouna Mounayer
Writer-Director, TV Executive Producer, Entrepreneur
Mouna Mounayer is a British-Lebanese filmmaker, content creator, and entrepreneur who is deeply passionate about crafting engaging narratives.
In 1999, she founded FIREHORSE, writing and directing factual entertainment programmes for Middle East broadcasters and corporate films for Arab governments, institutions, and corporations. FIREHORSE produced over 1500 hours of broadcast television. In 2010 and 2011 FIREHORSE was awarded the Harvard Business School, AllWorld Network Award.
In 2016, she co-founded TRIARC, the first global footage-licensing and sales distribution platform specialising in Middle East video content. Mouna is known for fostering strong, long-term creative relationships with her clients and teams, successfully managing large-scale projects. As a native English writer and structural editor, she also helps her clients develop manuscripts, screenplays, and craft web-content tailored to European and Middle Eastern audiences.
Mouna’s filmmaking adventures have taken her to remarkable places around the world, from ancient Eridu, first city on Earth, in Iraq to the serene surroundings of Dharmsala in the Himalayas. Along the way, she has conducted insightful interviews with a diverse range of individuals, from ordinary folk to world leaders like the Dalai Lama. Her multicultural background provides her clients with a unique perspective and a wealth of valuable experiences to draw upon.
Mouna has been a jury member of the International Emmy Awards since 2011, and holds a BA in the Archaeology of Western Asia from University College London.
Matt Rajeh
Media Professional
Matt Rajeh, is a Media Professional with a proven track record in marketing and advertising. His expertise extends across crafting effective digital strategies, content development, and monetization. His success story spans start-ups, B2B firms, and creative agencies in various industries, from financial IT to media, mobile apps, education, and blockchain. Matt’s blend of creativity and strategic acumen has consistently delivered cost-effective solutions in today’s digital landscape.
As the instructor for the “Leveraging Social Media and AI” module in the Career Blueprint for Graphic Designers course, Matt is ready to share his insights. In a rapidly evolving job market, proficiency in platforms like LinkedIn, Behance, and cutting-edge AI tools is essential.
Matt’s guidance will equip participants to navigate these digital landscapes effectively, giving them a competitive edge and advancing their graphic design careers.
Yussef C. Zgheib, PhD
Associate Professor of Leadership, Strategic Management and Negotiation
Yussef Zgheib is a certified executive trainer and consultant in negotiation skills, leadership, and strategic management. He shapes and refines conflict resolution and cross-cultural management skills for multinational executives working in the Middle East, either directly or through his affiliation with leading international training institutions such as Scotwork M.E. (as Vice President Consultant), Business Monitor, Phi Management, and GRID International. Over the last two decades, Yussef has consulted with and trained a wide range of multinational corporations from various industries. His client list includes such prestigious firms as Etisalat, Zain, Huawei, Siemens, Saudi Electricity, C.A.T. Group, Indevco, Holcim, Cimenterie Nationale, Michelin, NBK, NBK Capital, Byblos Bank, Bank of Beirut, Arab Bank, Société Générale de Banque SGBL, Murex, Danone, Mars, Debbane Group, L’Oréal, Khalil Fattal et Fils, Azadea, Chalhoub Group, Starcom MediaVest, and Halliburton.
Yussef holds a PhD in International Hospitality Management from the University of Strathclyde in Scotland. He is an Associate Professor of Leadership, Strategic Management, and Negotiation at Lebanon’s Notre Dame University Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, where he has held deanship and extended chairmanship posts. He is a certified negotiator and holds specialised diplomas in mediation and coaching. Until recently, he served as a visiting professor of leadership and team building at the Bordeaux Graduate School of Management, now KEDGE, in France.
Joe Chawhan
Career Coach and Skill Development Trainer
Joe is a seasoned Certified Career Coach and Skill Development Trainer, with 14+ years of diverse experience across retail, food and beverage, banking, consultancy, and humanitarian sectors. Specialising in personal development, performance, and career coaching, Joe supports clients from career initiation through transitions, partnering with them to achieve their goals. Joe holds an Executive Master’s in Human Resources Management from the Lebanese Canadian University and IPAC Business School, he also carries a PHR-i credential from HRCI-USA. His extensive certifications include Strong® Certified Practitioner, Agile HR, NLP, Business Analysis, and Employing Abilities.
Joe is currently pursuing his Doctorate in Management from UCAM University, Spain.