Rasha Shehada () is a

Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...

Managing Director, who works for her family importation business, Diamond Line, in the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

Career

Rasha Shehada was born in

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

, as the middle child of three siblings. She moved to the

as a child with her family, initially living in

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

. Her father set up an importation business called Diamond Line. Shehada attended the

American University of Sharjah The American University of Sharjah (AUS; Arabic: الجامعة الأميركية في الشارقة) is a private university in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. It was founded in 1997 by Sultan bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi, Supreme Council Member a ...

, graduating in 2007. Initially she worked in international marketing after graduation. Shehada began working for the family business, and in 2011, travelled to

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

as part of a Middle Eastern–American exchange programme for small business owners. She said that she saw similarities between in the family-run businesses she saw while in the United States. She began working for the company in business development, and convinced her father to begin investing in training for existing staff rather than hiring consultants. Prior to her father's retirement, he split ownership of the company into equal parts between his three children. Shehada's brother and sister elected to have her become managing director in 2013. Her first task was to refocus the company into its chafing oil importation business, rather than also offering general hotel supplies. She was listed by ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' as one of the most influence women in the region in a family business, and was included in the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

's 100 Women programme in 2015 as part of the 30under30 group.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shehada, Rasha Living people 21st-century Palestinian women 21st-century businesswomen Palestinian emigrants to the United Arab Emirates 1980s births 21st-century Palestinian businesspeople