Interviewer: Mahmoud Mansi
“I am going around and discovering and jumping from one field to another, to be able to get to see the road I should take. Curiosity shouldn’t lead the cat to her death, it should lead her home!“
Mahmoud Sami Ramadan
ABOUT THE INTERVIEWEE
Mahmoud Sami is a thoughtful digital media specialist who has studied information systems and digital media for bachelor’s and pursued a cinematography master. Soaked into arts and creation for a hobby; having his films screened at international festivals, his stories blog-published all over the internet and his photography exhibitions held worldwide, Sami has developed a distinctive perception for his career. Sami started his life in the cosmopolitan Alexandria, moved to the Orthodox south east of Europe and now he resides the hot industrial gulf. Currently; he has started a YouTube channel named The Midnight Talk with Sami where he shares most of his ideas and experiences.
THE INTERVIEW
1-HR Revolution Middle East Magazine: Advertising is a very interesting industry that is full of innovation. Can you describe to us the meaning and responsibilities of your role as a “Digital Advertising Specialist”?
Mahmoud Sami Ramadan: We are in a digital era where everything happens online. All the banner ads you used to see on streets are replaced with banners on the websites you visit. The ads you watch on TV and you couldn’t skip, are now replaced with skippable ads on YouTube.
Now, instead of calling the local phone directory, you just Google everything and advertisers bid on appearing first for the specific keywords you are searching for.
A digital advertising specialist is the one who is responsible for devising and coordinating advertising campaigns which encourage consumers to purchase particular goods or services. It’s a complete omnichannel cycle of market research, channels distribution and media buying.
2-HR Revolution Middle East Magazine: The marketing environment can differ from one region to the other, do you believe this is true or not? How do you see the marketing environment in GCC region?
Mahmoud Sami Ramadan: Definitely. For example; I had a talk before with an Emirati businessman and he explained to me about his experience back in the United Kingdom and how it was hard for him to understand the ads on TV. He said: “They were so complex!”
Living in an environment of expats like the United States or the United Arab Emirates, leads you directly to choose the easy way so that you get understood by too many target audiences. So, you become more direct and straight to the point. Unlike countries that have unified cultures, usually they are most likely have more complex ideas that gets the habits and traditions involved, consider English, Egyptian and Indian ads for instances.
3-HR Revolution Middle East Magazine: As a marketing leader, with the current situations related to Corona Virus, is this a “threat” or an “opportunity” in your SWOT analysis?
Mahmoud Sami Ramadan: It depends on the industry you’re in but there are main directions, for example, the E-commerce platforms have witnessed a major increase in their conversions rates. Google searches for digital marketing courses saw three-digit growth during lockdown.
Many small businesses are now considering turning online. I believe it’s an opportunity and it let many businesses start thinking wise about the future of trading.
4-HR Revolution Middle East Magazine: For every job there are some basic competencies needed to make the person well qualified for it. However, there are also unique competencies that make the job performed distinctively. From your perspective, what could be the unique competencies of an Advertising Leader?
Mahmoud Sami Ramadan: In a market like Dubai, and an industry like the digital marketing, the competition is quite high. The industry is rapidly growing and to be able to become an advertising leader, you will need to be very well informed and educated and always up to date with the different trends and emerging technologies. You will need to be on a high level of responsibility as well; researchers say that there is massive growth in how digital marketing budgets have grown over the years and are expected to take the lion’s share of marketing budgets in 2020.
5-HR Revolution Middle East Magazine: From your experience working with different teams across your career, what is the management style you recommend to others who are dealing with “innovative people” and who are working on “innovative projects”?
Mahmoud Sami Ramadan: I believe in using Participative/Cooperative style when it comes to working on innovative projects; to get all team members involved in the direction of projects and the brainstorming sessions. Creative people need space to create, so; keeping them motivated by not interrupting their flow of ideas is one of the ways to get the best out of them, of course within the context of the project itself. I also believe that we need to consider coaching and engagement, they can turn an under-performing employee into a Rockstar.
6-HR Revolution Middle East Magazine: Mahmoud, one of the things that is unique about you is that you can start all over, in a place where no one knows about you, and yet create a new success story. You have done that in several projects in Egypt, then in North Macedonia, and now in the United Arab Emirates. Every country of those might have different standards of success. Can you tell us about your favorite success story in each of those countries?
Mahmoud Sami Ramadan: I can’t call them success stories to be honest, it’s been a discovery journey and it’s still ongoing. It’s a journey of chasing successes and embracing failures. The way I learned to swim in deep waters was through my father who took me once to the sea and asked me to swim in the deep waters of Alexandria, and he said: “If you drown, I will pick you up” and I didn’t drown! It just happened!
Going on new adventures and starting over every time is actually exhausting, but if I don’t do it now, when will I do it? It’s the time for me to get to know myself better and to live my life to the fullest.
Regarding your question about success; I like the idea of me moving from the quiet North Macedonia, to the crowded capital of Africa, Cairo then hitting the biggest business hub in the region, Dubai, afterwards, all within a year. I was on a passion-shopping journey to choose my next destination and I like where I got landed in the end. The success is not to be afraid to get out of your comfort zone, and manage not to settle down for less. This is why I like the fact that since I was 13 years old and up till now, I am going around and discovering and jumping from one field to another, to be able to get to see the road I should take. Curiosity shouldn’t lead the cat to her death, it should lead her home!
P.S. the father in the previous story stands for the backbone, your family, your history, where you come from and your roots. Once we are aware of our roots, we are able to conquer the world!
7-HR Revolution Middle East Magazine: From your experience in creating a successful path no matter which region you are working in, can you share with us a “success recipe”, approach or mindset?
Mahmoud Sami Ramadan: For me, I believe I only develop when I decide to let perfectionism aside and get things done, even if I am not in the mood for working or being creatively blocked. I also try to be happy with whatever I get, be grateful and keep on moving.
THANK YOU
