Our People

Qtel Group's diverse and dedicated management team is composed of top talent from around the world. Our people are forward-thinking individuals with a passion for driving dynamic change. We combine international experience with local strengths and know-how to put us in the best position to lead a rapidly evolving group of companies. Just as operations across the Qtel group of companies reflect an impressive panorama of cultures, consumer profiles and regulatory and market environments, Qtel Group reflects this strength of diversity in the people we recruit. To date, there are over 20 nationalities represented in the Qtel Group team of about 150 professionals.

The Doha based team is a lean unit. We are looking to expand our team with professionals in each functional area: Commercial, Finance, Human Resources, Legal, New Businesses, Strategy and Transformation. Our goal is to build an industry leading management company capable of supporting a world-class telecommunications company.

 

Dr. Nasser Marafih - Group CEO

Dr. Nasser Marafih

Group CEO
Qtel Group

At Qtel Group

Group CEO, 2002 to Present

  • Played key role in developing Qtel’s Group Strategy
  • Played key roles in the introduction of GSM services in the Middle East (1994) and Internet in Qatar (1996), privatization of Qtel in 1998, and spearheaded Qtel’s global growth

Qtel Divisional Manager of Strategic Planning and Development, 1998

Qtel Strategic Planning and Development Manager, 1994

Expert Advisor to Qtel from University of Qatar, 1992

  • Involved in several strategic initiatives including, transformation program and restructuring of business units and acquisition of Wataniya and deal with AT&T for acquiring an equity stake in NavLink

Other Roles

  • Member of the Board of Directors at GSMA
  • Member of the Board of Directors at SAMENA
  • Chairman of board for Nedjma
  • Vice Chairman of board for Wataniya Palestine
  • Member of the Board of Directors for several Qtel companies including Kuwait, Tunisia and Iraq
  • Commissioner of Board for Indosat
  • Member of the Board of Directors for Asia Mobile Holdings, Strahub, and Shenington Investments
  • Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
  • Participated in several high-level government committees

 

Ajay Bahri - Group Chief Financial Officer

Ajay Bahri

Group Chief Financial Officer
Qtel Group

At Qtel Group

Group Chief Financial Officer, 2007-Present

  • Actively involved in all Qtel acquisitions, including setting up of financing strategy and group finance functions: investment management, treasury, investor relations, group accounting and financial systems

Chief Financial Officer (Qatar operations) and Executive Director of General Services, 2005–Nov 2007

  • Managing the finance function of Qatar operations, which eventually evolved into a group role
  • Managing shared services such as IT, supply chain, and accounting

Head of Internal Audit, 2003–2004

  • Providing assurance to Audit Committee regarding the internal control, risk management, and governance processes

Present Board Directorships

  • Member of the Board of Directors at Asiacell, Tunisiana, Wataniya Telecom Maldives, and wi-tribe

 

Jeremy Sell - Group Chief Strategy Officer

Jeremy Sell

Group Chief Strategy Officer
Qtel Group

At Qtel Group

Group Chief Strategy Officer, 2008 - Present

  • Played a key role in developing Qtel Group’s new Strategy

Head of M&A, 2006-2008

  • Played a key role in acquiring stakes in Asiacell, Wataniya, and Indosat

At Virgin

Director of Business Development, 2004-2006

  • Launched MVNOs in France, South Africa and China and brought mobile to Nigeria

At Orange

Senior VP, Business Development, Orange Group, 2003–2004

CEO, Orange Sweden, 2000–2002

  • Involved in the world’s first network sharing deal in 2000

Head of Business Development, Orange PLC, 1998–2000

  • Rebranded 10 France Telecom Operations

At US West

Director of Business Development, 1995–1998

  • Pioneers in mobile in Eastern and Central Europe
  • Started 23 operations in 6 years

 

Michael Hancock - Group General Counsel

Michael Hancock

Group General Counsel
Qtel Group

At Qtel Group

Group General Counsel,  2007 to Present

  • Extensive experience in new technologies (especially telecom, project financing, and providing legal support for M&As and JVs

At VistaLaw - Principal and Co-Founder

At Salans Law Firm - Partner, Jan 2001–Dec 2006

At Alcatel CIT

General Counsel

  • Involved in several telecom ventures and financing transactions
  • Responsible for leading several new JVs in APAC and Africa, and legal management of earlier JVs in Europe and North Africa

At White & Case

Counsel

  • Provided advisory services for international M&As and other transactions

At Schlumberger Group

  • Held regional counsel positions and played a key role in   negotiating several deals in China, Malaysia, Indonesia, and India

Other Roles

  • Director in several Qtel OpCos
  • Co-chair of ICC’s (International Chamber of Commerce) Task Force on Global Sourcing

 

Mohanna Nasser Al Nuaimi - Group Cheif Human Resource Officer

Mohanna Nasser Al Nuaimi

Group Chief Human Resource Officer
Qtel Group

At Qtel Group

Group Chief Human Resource Officer,  Dec 2008 to present

  • Played a role in developing Qtel’s Group new strategy
  • Played key role in developing Group HR strategy and Operating model

Executive Director of Group HR at Qtel Qatar, Jan 2008 – Nov 2008

  • Played key role in the integration of Qtel’s acquisition of Wataniya

Senior Manager, HR Services of Group HR at Qtel, Jul 2005- Dec 2007

At Kahramaa

Head of Administration, and Training & Development , Jan 2004 -Jun 2005

Senior Engineer, 2002 - 2004

Operations Engineer, 1999 - 2002

Supervisor and Specialist role, 1992 – 1999

Other Roles

  • Board of Director for several Qtel companies (Nedjma, Nawras and Bravo)

 

Nick Dent - Group Cheif Officer

Nick Dent

Group Chief Officer
New Businesses  Qtel Group

At Qtel Group

Group Chief Officer  – New Businesses, Jul 2011 to present

  • Chief Operating Officer, Qtel Qatar, Jul 2008–Jun 2011
  • Executive Director, Group Strategy, 2005–2008
  • Joined as advisor to the CEO, Qtel International in 2003
  • Handled the acquisition and subsequent integration of Wataniya, and the investment in Asia Pacific
  • Played a major role in the development of Qtel’s ‘20:20 strategy’

At McKinsey

Strategy Consultant, 2003

  • Established McKinsey’s telecom practice in the Middle East
  • Worked with top management of companies on issues related to strategic planning, performance management, M&A and regulation

Other Roles

  • Served as Director in wi-tribe, Navlink, Nedjma, and Wataniya International

 

Paul Salmon - Group Cheif Technology Officer

Paul Salmon

Group Chief Technology Officer
Qtel Group

At Qtel Group

Group Chief Technology Officer, 2009 – Present

  • Formulation of technology strategy and driving efficiency and performance

At Maxis

Head of Technology Development, 2006–2008

  • Drove technology strategy and advisory initiatives
  • Contributed to mobile broadband launch in 2006
  • Participated in acquisitions of Sri Lanka Telecom and Aircel India
  • Ensuring technology synergies across the group’s OpCos in Malaysia, India, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka

GM, Technology Development, 2003–2006

  • Restructured network architectures for resiliency and established network business continuity plan
  • Built the core network modernization plan for IP transformation

At Wataniya

Manager, Network Planning and Development, 2001–2003

  • Tripled GSM network capacity in the first 12 months, rolled out prepaid SMS and GPRS

At Telstra

Network planning and off-shore projects, 1996–2001

  • Introduced GSM1800 to Indonesia and built a Jakarta start-up network plan
  • Introduced DAMPS to Sri Lanka for roll-out in Mobitel
  • Bid on India GSM licenses and planning support for Calcutta rollout

 

Sohail Qadri - Group Cheif Transformation Officer

Sohail Qadri

Group Chief Transformation Officer
Qtel Group

At Qtel Group

Group Chief Transformation officer, 2012 to Present

At wi-tribe

Group CEO, Wi-tribe,  2010 -2011

  • Grew customer base by 125% and revenues by 77% between Q2 2010 and Q2 2011
  • Refreshed wi-tribe group strategy to overcome technological and commercial challenges and initiated strategic dialogue in Philippines and Jordan

At Qadri Consulting

Owner and Advisor, 2009-2010

  • Provided advisory services to CEO/chairman level executives of telcos and technology firms, across areas such as value creation, product development, convergence strategy, and incorporating internet services in the telco value chain, IPO management, brand, and customer experience.
  • Worked with VC and PE firms on identifying targets, due diligence, and providing continuous portfolio support

At Telefonica Group

Group Director, Strategy, Business Development and Innovation, 2007–2008

  • Responsible for formulation of corporate strategy, business development, and innovation
  • Drove projects on integration of business, brand, new growth areas, internet opportunities, customer experience, and digital home

At O2 plc

Group Director, Strategy and Business Development, 2001–2007

  • Played a key role as founding Member of o2 Board and Executive Committee
  • Lead the transformation and development of the o2 brand, the review of its inorganic options and managed the alignment programme with Telefónica

At BT

Group Director, Mobility, 1997–2001

  • Played a lead role in acquisition of equity stakes and licenses in markets in Europe, Americas, and Asia
  • Served as Non-Executive Board Director at Maxis, SFR, Rogers AT&T