Our Leadership
Stewards of Our Vision
A dedicated team of alumni leaders committed to building a legacy of trust, impact, and growth.
Join Founding Group
Karim Fayed
Founder & Incubator • Advisory Board Member
Class of 1993, B.A. in Mass Communication. An accomplished entrepreneurial leader with over 30 years of success building and operating ventures across tourism, F&B, and digital communities. He founded and managed Sea Queen Fleet in the Red Sea (1993-2021) and pioneered cloud kitchen operations in Egypt with Kitchen Three. In November 2022, Karim founded the AUC Alumni Benefit Community, transforming a networking idea into a thriving ecosystem of over 6,000 members across 50+ specialized groups. He developed the community's brand identity, governance model, and strategic vision, leading the transition toward a formal Alumni Benefit Community. His leadership has facilitated over EGP 3 billion in intra-member economic value.
Ahkam El-Zawahry
Advisory Board Member
Class of [MBA], B.A. in Economics. Ahkam El-Zawahry brings over 20 years of energy sector experience across senior business development, commercial management, M&A, finance, and market access roles with Shell Gas, LNG and Power, covering Egypt, Levant, the East Med, and UK/Ireland. Prior to energy, she served as Assistant to the Minister of Industry & Foreign Trade and Project Director, where she co-developed national strategic mega projects, grew industrial SMEs, and successfully negotiated reform programs with the European Commission and World Bank. Throughout her career with leading multinationals including Shell, InterGen, Xerox, and Chase National Bank, Ahkam has demonstrated mastery in stakeholder engagement and aligning joint venture interests. She served as Acting Board Director for Shell's midstream subsidiary in Egypt for three years. Currently, Ahkam is Regional Director – MENA at Triton, at the forefront of the energy transition movement, monetizing innovative offshore wind energy technologies. She serves as an independent non-executive board director for Tanmeyah Micro Finance and previously for EFG Hermes Corporate Solutions. Her mission is to contribute to Egypt's 2030 Vision by growing renewable energy footprint and decarbonizing the energy and industrial sectors.
Akram E. Farag
Advisory Board Member
A serial entrepreneur and a regionally recognized leading figure in the fields of Telecom, Media & Technology (TMT) in the MENA & Southern Europe regions. His expertise covers Internet, Telecom, ICT as well as Media & Content. He is also a regional expert on multi-screen and Over the Top (OTT) services.
Dina Ali Ismail
Advisory Board Member
Founder & CEO of InsPira for Corporate Events Management & Training. A Master Trainer in Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) with over 25 years of specialized experience in leadership development, strategic transformation, and business coaching. Former Director at Egyptian Banking Institute leading national programs including Future Leaders, Emerging Leaders, and Watany 2030. Previously Sales & Marketing Director at Oriflame Sweden, achieving 40% sales growth and 'Best Marketing Director Global' award. Early career at Johnson & Johnson, Americana, Xerox, and Sekem.
May Gad
Advisory Board Member
Class of 1995, MBA. May Gad is a transformational business leader and certified board member recognized for delivering growth, market expansion, and organizational change across FMCG, Telco, Real Estate, and startups. She combines strategic vision with operational rigor to drive measurable business impact—from double-digit category growth to large-scale process transformations that unlock efficiency and profitability. Her leadership spans building high-performing teams, implementing commercial systems across diverse markets, and steering organizations through complex transformations. With over 100 hours of C-suite and Director-level executive coaching, May accelerates leadership effectiveness and organizational resilience. As an Enneagram expert, she equips leaders with deeper self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and clarity to thrive under pressure. May has mentored 300+ startups globally, helping founders sharpen execution, clarify their purpose, and scale with impact. She serves on the Board of ICF Egypt, where she focuses on embedding coaching as a lever for business performance and fostering strategic partnerships.
To Our Unsung Heroes
The journey of the Alumni Benefit Community has been paved by the tireless dedication of countless volunteers. From the early days of informal gatherings to the structured organization we are today, every milestone was achieved through the passion and hard work of alumni who gave their time without expectation of reward.
"To the fallen soldiers and the silent guardians of our community — your efforts are the foundation upon which we stand. Though names may be too many to list, your impact is etched into the DNA of this community."