UAE: From trainee to bank CEO, Emirati woman shares how she 'made the impossible possible'

Her personal journey has inspired her to take on the role of a mentor for other young women who are starting out in their careers

Published: Tue 27 Aug 2024, 1:31 PM

Updated: Tue 27 Aug 2024, 3:55 PM

By
Melanie Swan

KT photos: Kareem Dawaba

Emirati Shamsa Al Falasi was a fresh graduate when she joined a multinational bank's franchise in the UAE. She was once an intern there, too — now, she 's the CEO.

Breaking the glass ceiling in a typically male-dominated industry, Al Falasi has become a role model and inspiration for young Emirati women following in her footsteps.

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Her career growth over the past two decades, she said, was a testament to her commitment to nonstop learning.

"What I've realised is evaluating my skills every six months and usually holding myself accountable, took me a very long way,” said Al Falasi, CEO of Citibank N.A., UAE Onshore.

“We underestimate the fact that you do need to pause and actually assess yourself in terms of where you are in your career and where you would want to be, taking that moment to really think about whether I have the right skills or not. [Asking] what do I need to do to go to the next steps is extremely important," she said.

Before she became CEO, Al Falasi worked in various roles and rose through the ranks. She served senior business and relationship manager for the MENA and Turkey region based in the UAE and she also became head of the global subsidiaries group (GSG) for the UAE and Iraq.

The young CEO’s journey has taken her across the globe, with short- and long-term postings in different countries, including Brazil, Ireland and the UK.

“I think a key element is also to seek feedback,” she said. “We're very encouraged within the organisation to receive feedback on a regular basis whether formally through the process or ultimately by reaching out to colleagues and just seeking feedback in terms of what could I do better, what else should I be focusing on.”

Inspiring the youth

This personal journey has inspired her to take on the role of a mentor for other youngsters on their first steps in their career. She admitted that as an Emirati woman, the journey was “challenging”, but her success was also proof of how "the impossible can be made possible".

Al Falasi is part of a rapidly changing UAE where 77 per cent of graduates are women and 50 per cent of the government’s Federal National Council are female.

In business, these changes are happening, too. The UAE Security and Commodities Authority issued a mandate in 2021 that compelled listed companies to have at least one woman on their board of directors.

“We’re part of the success and, you know, the sky's the limit,” Al Falasi said.

In spite of her busy schedule, mentoring young women in the bank remains a key part of her life. “I very much enjoy it and gives me a lot of satisfaction when I see people actually reaching areas they would want to be in,” she said.

Summer internships helped

Travel has also played a role in shaping her success. “During my college years I was lucky to have time spent rotating with areas in internships, summer training, so I used that time to explore if it [banking] was a field I wanted to be in. I spent time in local banks as well as with Citibank which had an internship programme,” she said.

One of seven siblings, Al Falasi has had inspiration all around her from childhood. Two of her sisters used to work in the banking industry before changing paths to become teachers.

It was after graduation that she began to push her boundaries at Citibank. “I felt I wasn’t learning enough so I put my hand up for a mobility programme, four months in Brazil. I didn’t realise where they were taking me,” she said.

The fearless young woman in her 20s embraced the adventure. “I remember my manager at the time … was actually reluctant. He said, 'don't you need to run it by your parents?' I said, 'don’t worry, I'll take care of them'. I think the main area was for them to ensure that I have the required safety and security arrangements. My brothers and sisters also lived abroad but [I was the first to go to] a place as exotic as Brazil."

Now in the UAE, there has been "a lot of focus in terms of diversity, inclusion, as well as equality” — values that were rooted in the beliefs of the country’s Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed, Al Falasi said. In his philosophy, women are a cornerstone of society, she added.

“There are many people who hold important positions now in the country,” she said, from businesswomen to ambassadors, politicians to educators.

“What they could do to help develop the next generation is to be available for support. As a simple example, there's a lot of programmes to support young females, as well as young males, in terms of embarking on their careers,” she said, as more and more role models begin to shine from the UAE’s pool of graduates.

While the UAE ranked first for the Mena region in the World Economic Forum’s 2024 Global Gender Gap Report, the country must keep “opening the doors for the newer generations to actually be prepared to take on the lead as well," Al Falasi said.

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