UAE women leaders invited to join six-month C-suite programme

Senior female marketing and communications professionals in the UAE are being invited to apply for the second edition of The Leadership Accelerator by Think Equal, a six-month programme aimed at preparing women for future C-suite roles.

The programme, launched by The Marketing Society UAE in partnership with Weber Shandwick MENAT, will select 15 women for its next cohort, which will run from January to June 2027.

Applications are open until September 25, 2026.

Preparing women for senior leadership

The programme focuses on three areas, Community, Capability and Clarity, and aims to help participants strengthen their leadership skills, confidence and professional networks.

Selected participants will have access to senior CEOs and chief marketing officers across the GCC, alongside workshops, mentoring, in-person events and virtual sessions.

Think Equal was established to help improve gender equality at senior management levels within the GCC’s marketing and communications industry.

Amina Taher, Chair of The Marketing Society UAE, said the programme aims to create more opportunities for women to move into senior leadership positions.

“Our mission remains to break down barriers and create more opportunities for women to step into senior leadership roles across marketing and communications,” she said.

“The incredible talent we saw in the first cohort showed just how important The Leadership Accelerator by Think Equal is in helping build a more equitable future for our profession.”

27% report near-equal representation

Data from the 2025 Think Equal Survey by The Marketing Society and Weber Shandwick found that only 27% of GCC marketing and communications professionals reported equal or near-equal representation of men and women within their management teams.

The first edition of the programme attracted more than 90 applications, from which 15 women were selected.

Participants said the programme helped them develop their networks, improve their leadership skills and gain greater confidence in preparing for more senior positions.

Anismita Ghosh, Marketing Manager at Abu Dhabi Biobank, M42, said one of her main takeaways was understanding “the power of network, executive visibility, growth mindset and intuitiveness about what makes female leaders different”.

Roxana Nicolescu, VP Brand Marketing, Social Media and PR at Wego.com, described the programme as “one of the best contributions to my personal and professional growth”.

The second cohort will again combine leadership workshops, mentoring and networking opportunities to help participants prepare for senior roles.

Applications are open to female marketing and communications professionals based in the UAE, with submissions accepted until September 25.