Rafiah Ibrahim is the President and Head of Market Area Middle East & Africa and a member of Ericsson’s Executive Team. Ibrahim assumed this role on April 01, 2017. Prior to that, she served as the President and Head of Ericsson Region Middle East since July 01, 2014.
Ibrahim is a passionate leader in technologies and services that deliver value to customers and enable positive change on people and society. She thrives on building high performance teams and delivering strong execution.
Ibrahim has more than 36 years of experience in the telecommunications industry particularly in networks & digital services and in many areas such as sales, industry transformation and customer relations.
She has held various leadership positions within the Ericsson Group since 1996. Throughout her career, she has worked in many countries across different continents (Malaysia, Bangladesh, UK, Middle East and Africa). Ibrahim started her career in 1981 with Telekom Malaysia where she spent 16 years in several areas such as technology, sales and marketing, and international acquisitions.
She joined Ericsson in Malaysia in 1996, where she held several positions within Ericsson Academy and heading up the Enterprise Division. In 2004 she was named Head of Ericsson in Bangladesh.
In 2006, she moved to Abu Dhabi to run the Global Customer Unit for Warid, with business in Asia and Africa. In 2008 she was appointed Head of Market Unit North Africa, where she was responsible for Ericsson’s business in 11 countries, maintaining a strong market share for Ericsson.
From 2010 to 2013, Rafiah was responsible for the Global Customer Unit Etisalat located in Abu Dhabi and during 2013 Ibrahim lead the Marketing function for Business Line Broadcast Services from London and was the Head of Sales Excellence, with the integration of Red Bee Media.
Ibrahim graduated from the Imperial College of Science and Technology, University of London, United Kingdom, with a master’s degree in Digital Communication Engineering.
In the paragraphs below Ibrahim used herself to shared experience about life give advice.
“When I look at my younger self, I see a dreamer! I loved to dream and be adventurous. Though I started my adventures late in life, I never let that feeling of wonder that something great can happen next, ever slip away.
I wasn’t afraid to try new things and explore new experiences. These are the building blocks to take anyone even higher. I dared to leap, as these jumps pushed me to new and exciting places and experiences. Having lived that; I can say some of the most important things in my life were non-material, but rather moments that added colour to my life.
I always listened to advice from others and picked out the pieces that I felt will make my life better. And today, if I have the opportunity to give advice to my younger self at different stages of my life,this is what I would say:”
- Start your adventures early in life and continue to follow your dreams. Stay committed, take chances and be the best person that your life allows you to be.Dare to dream – it won’t be easy, but it’ll be worth it.
- You are gifted with languages, sports and many other hobbies. Carry on with these activities regardless of where you are in your career. Never stop pursuing your personal interests and passions, as it will add so much more color to your life.Invest in yourself.
- You are brave and significant, even when it doesn’t seem like it. You are absolutely, positivelyperfect in every way. Don’t forget how capable you are of doing amazing things. You are blessed.
- Take time for yourself and have fun! Keep on being adventurous and making memories along the way. Collect stories to tell, not stuff to show.Treat yourself.
- When you find yourself a little lost, remember to keep moving forward and continue along the road ahead. It’s your path.Face challenges head on.
- If you fail, learn from it and move on. Some of your mistakes can become the most important lessons you learn along your career path andlife.Make mistakes.
- Nobody said it would be so easy, so even when it seems like there is no solution or positive outcome, keep going. You are stronger than you will ever know. Never give up.
