Qatar Business Incubation Center's speaker series attracts more than 10 aspiring entrepreneurs

Doha, Qatar 20 April: Qatar Business Incubation Center (QBIC) successfully concluded yet another insightful Speaker Series session, this time with Mr. Rabea Ataya, founder and CEO of Bayt.com - the leading job site in the Middle East, which saw a turnout of more than 100 attendees at Shangri-La Hotel, Doha.

With a mission to develop the next QAR 100 million companies in Qatar, QBIC's Speaker Series is one the programs and activities provided by the incubator to encourage and support aspiring entrepreneurs to overcome their external obstacles, and dedicate themselves to their startup ideas full-time.

The Speaker Series sessions bridge the gap between budding entrepreneurs, and successful professionals with valuable eexperience and knowledge on overcoming the challenging road to successful entrepreneurship. Visiting speakers also provide one-to-one coaching sessions for QBIC's incubatees, and depending on their business field, provide them with specialized advice. 

Qatar Development Bank CEO and QBIC Chairman, Abdulaziz Bin Nasser Al Khalifa said: "The Speaker Series sessions are designed to connect our entrepreneurs with key professional figures and successful entrepreneurs who can provide insightful knowledge and added value to our entrepreneurs and visitors, in addition to achieving the goals that we always strive to execute and that is creating a mechanism for exchanging experiences and transferring knowledge."

QBIC hosted several Speaker Series where renowned professionals and high profile entrepreneurs, such as Louis Foremen, founder of Edison Nation, Elmar Mock, co-inventor of SWATCH, Dr. Kai Ruggeri, Researcher and Lecturer at University of Cambridge, Mohammed Jaffar, former CEO of Talabat.com, and Christopher Free, GM of UBER for Qatar and the UAE.

The Speaker Series sessions are being held periodically, and are designed to appeal to a broad spectrum of aspiring entrepreneurs, SME owners and anyone interested in business. Selected speakers are chosen on the basis of their personal achievements as entrepreneurs, especially those who achieved success after leaving their full-time jobs to pursue their business ideas. 

Aysha Al Mudahka, QBIC CEO said: "At QBIC, we highly value experience and hard work very of fellow entrepreneurs, and are always seeking way to connect our incubatees and other aspiring entrepreneurs with real success stories, to grant them access to the best insider knowledge and advice."

She added: "The Speaker Series is an increasingly popular event, and has generated a lot of interest around it, with the number of attendees increasing more than 15% each time.  We're delighted to host renowned individuals such as Rabea, and looking forward to the year ahead with plenty of globally recognized and influential speakers taking part in future sessions."

Rabea Ataya's talk zeroed-in on his journey over the past 15 years of managing companies amidst the rapidly changing regional landscape. During the talk, Rabea shared some of his valuable advice, and helpful hints on being a leader, managing a team, and learning how to cope in a time of crisis. Bayt.com is a leading job site in the Middle East, and serves over 24,000,500 professionals and 40,000 employers from its 12 regional offices.

Being an ambitious entrepreneur, Rabea also co-founded GoNabit.com, the region's first group purchasing site; InfoFort, a leading regional records company; and he serves on the board of several Middle Eastern companies. He is on the board of the Queen Rania Foundation, which is focused on empowering youth through education.

Rabea Ataya, founder and CEO of Bayt.com commented on his experience with QBIC: "It was an honor to speak to such an engaged audience of entrepreneurs and would-be entrepreneurs regarding an issue so vital. Entrepreneurship is a topic very close to my heart and the heart of my organization, Bayt.com. At about 25%, the youth unemployment rate in the MENA exceeds that of any other region in the world. As an organization that deals with employment and helping people find job, the unemployment problem manifests itself in very real ways: for example, the average job vacancy advertised at Bayt.com gets many hundreds of applicants. This compares to the tens of applicants that most leading jobs sites globally boast. Entrepreneurship is the engine of growth for our economy and an invaluable tool for job creation: it must fuel the next generation of jobs in the region, and in turn, empower young people today to create a chance for a better life for themselves and those around them.  Today's event showcased Qatar's strong and growing entrepreneurial community."

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About QBIC:
Qatar Business Incubation Center (QBIC) is one of the largest specialized mixed-use business incubators in the MENA region. QBIC empowers committed entrepreneurs to start and grow companies by incubating, developing, connecting and investing, and QBIC is dedicated to the long-term success of entrepreneurs.

QBIC is founded by two of the leading entrepreneurship institutes in Qatar: Qatar Development Bank (QDB), and the Social Development Center (SDC). With a mission to develop the next QAR 100 million companies in Qatar, QBIC is working to unify efforts with key entities in Qatar to develop SMEs and enhance the private sector.

One of QBIC's flagship initiatives is LeanStartup, turning innovative ideas into startup businesses. LeanStartup is a ten-week entrepreneurial program that provides real world, hands-on learning experience on how to successfully start a company.

Find out more at: www.qbic.qa  

© Press Release 2016