15 Lebanese Executives on Forbes Newest List

Forbes’ Global Meets Local list showcases 104 executives representing 40 nationalities, spotlighting the regional heads of top international companies in the MENA region. And Lebanon is in the lead with 15 Lebanese executives on the list for 2024!

Here’s a list of the 15 Lebanese executives on the Global Meets Local 2024 list.

1. Elda Choucair

Company: Omnicom Media Group

Choucair helped launch TRKKN, a Google-focused agency, in the Middle East in 2023. She is vice chair of the Advertising Business Group, serves on the boards of Endeavor and IAB MENA, and is a founding member of the Unstereotype Alliance by UN Women.

2. Thierry Sabbagh

Company: Nissan Motor Corporation

Sabbagh is a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization and has previously held leadership roles at Nissan Saudi Arabia, INFINITI Middle East, and Nissan Middle East.

3. Olfat Sami Berro

Company: Roche

Berro has overseen key initiatives, including in June 2023 with the American University of Beirut and in May 2024 Abu Dhabi’s Department of Health. Berro is on the executive committee of PhRMA Middle East & Africa and the Middle East Inclusion & Diversity Council of the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association.

4. Samir Cherfan

Company: Stellantis

Cherfan has led Stellantis since January 2021, following the merger of Groupe PSA and Fiat Chrysler. In July 2024, Stellantis began a two-phase acquisition of Moroccan Sopriam. Cherfan also heads Stellantis’ MEA Industrial and Electro Micro Mobility divisions and is vice chairman of Tofaş Türk Otomobil Fabrikası.

5. Khaled El Dabag

Company: Barclays

El Dabag joined Barclays in 2014 and became its current leader in 2021. Since 2022, he has overseen Barclays’ expansion in the Middle East, serving major clients. Before Barclays, he worked at Goldman Sachs in Dubai and Merrill Lynch in New York.

6. Hussein Freijeh

Company: Snap Inc.

Freijeh, who joined Snap in 2016 and became its leader in 2024, oversaw the October 2023 launch of TASAWAR, an AR project with Saudi’s Ministry of Culture. He was previously managing director at Yahoo Middle East, Africa, and Türkiye and is on the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy advisory council.

7. Joe Naoum

Company: Stryker

Naoum joined Stryker in 2018 and became General Manager in January 2022. In March 2024, Stryker opened its regional headquarters in Saudi Arabia. He previously held leadership roles at Carestream, Wolters Kluwer, and Kodak.

8. Ronald Boueri

Company: Olympus MEA

Boueri joined Olympus MEA in January 2022 and was appointed Regional Managing Director later that year. In 2022, he secured a tender with the Egyptian UPA, the Ministry of Health’s purchasing arm. Previously, he was General Manager for the Middle East at Zimmer Biomet.

9. Ahmad Nasser

Company: The Hershey Company

Nasser, General Manager at Hershey as of 2023, has been with the company since 2014. In 2023, Hershey’s global sales reached $11.16 billion, up 7.8%, and the company donated e-waste to Enviroserve.org in Dubai. He previously worked at General Mills and Unilever.

10. Naji Skaf

Company: Xylem

Skaf, President at Xylem since September 2021, led the company in its September 2023 collaboration with iot squared in Saudi Arabia to enhance water sustainability through smart metering. He was previously president of Air Products Middle East and Türkiye, CEO of Gulf Cryo, and held senior roles at Air Liquide in Houston, Paris, and Cairo.

11. Aziz Koleilat

Company: GE Aerospace

Koleilat, Vice President at GE Aerospace since April 2017, led GE’s efforts in Iraq and the Levant before then. In 2023, Riyadh Air and Emirates secured significant engine deals, and Koleilat established regional employee resource groups at GE Aerospace.

12. Yasser Abdul Malak

Company: Nestlé Middle East

Abdul Malak, Chairman and CEO (MENA) at Nestlé since January 2022, has been with the company since 1999. In 2023, Nestlé Middle East, with 13,000 employees and 24 factories, achieved nearly $2.7 billion in sales.

13. Samer Abu-Ltaif

Company: Microsoft

Samer Abu-Ltaif, Corporate Vice President & President (Central & Eastern Europe and MEA) at Microsoft since 2023, oversaw a $1.5 billion investment in U.A.E.-based G42 in April 2024. The partnership will help create a $1 billion fund to enhance AI skills in the U.A.E. He also serves on the board of the Abdulla Al Ghurair Hub for Digital Teaching and Learning.

14. Nadim Najjar

Company: London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG)

Najjar, Managing Director at LSEG since 2021, has 30 years of experience and led the $27 billion acquisition of Refinitiv. He manages strategies across 91 countries and oversees over 1,000 people. Najjar is also an advisory board member of Reach for LSEG and previously held senior roles at Thomson Reuters and Refinitiv.

15. Rawad Sarieddine

Company: CrowdStrike

Sarieddine, Vice President (META) at CrowdStrike since 2020, joined the company in 2017 as Senior Director. CrowdStrike, a Nasdaq-listed firm, secures endpoints, cloud workloads, identity, and data, managing up to 10,000 incidents monthly through 3,500 endpoints. He previously held regional sales roles at Attivo Networks and FireEye.

Did you enjoy reading about these amazing Lebanese executives? How about browsing the #Lebanese Proud section on our website?