Qasim Ahmed

Careem, an internet platform for the greater Middle East region, is on a mission to simplify and improve the lives of people while simultaneously building an inspirational organisation. Ride-hailing apps and services are becoming increasingly popular and part of everyday life. The market is expected to grow from USD$42.25bn in 2020 to USD$56.87bn in 2021 and as it grows, technology is supporting the industry and enabling its expansion through innovation and digitalisation.

Keen technologist Qasim Ahmedsupports  Careem as it looks to expand and utilise technology to improve its services. Passionate about creating complimentary IT teams for business, Ahmed explained his passion for his industry:

“What I love to do is align IT organisations within business organisations. I love to help businesses build the right IT function which can enable growth and show them how to use IT to solve business challenges.”

Having worked in technology and IT for most of his career, Ahmed explained his “background has predominantly been in the tech world in the areas of systems, networks and the security around it, IT governance and IT services.”

 Having studied Computer Science and Computer Engineering at University, Ahmed said that this was when he realised technology was a passion of his: “It was when I realised I wanted to go ahead and build a career in the world of technology.”

Beginning his career at a software house, Ahmed spoke of how his job has evolved and developed his skills throughout his career. He said: “my first role evolved into building big systems and infrastructures. Then, understanding what kind of governance needs to be built and finally, IT management came into the picture.”

After developing these essential skills and knowledge base, Ahmed joined Careem to support the company from its founding. “My previous learning in the technology world IT management, and how to align IT with the business gave me the right set of skills and exposure to come and help Careem to realise its vision,” said Ahmed.

As the Head of IT Infrastructure, Ahmed is responsible for his team and their work to support Careem and its expansion. Discussing his leadership style Ahmed said it has evolved, although his philosophy and vision has remained the same.

He said it is to: “Build the right group of people around you. You have your team designed so that they understand what they need to do and you need to empower your people so that they can run by themselves. You don't have to get involved in everything. Delegate, empower them, mentor them, train them and let them run it. And I think that's the best-case scenario for the people who work,  they learn and grow, and you can focus on important items.”

Enjoying the variety at Careem, Ahmed explained he gets to work in different areas with intelligent and interesting people. This is due to the fast-paced nature of the business, which is growing at a pace.

He added: “There’s a lot of excitement at Careem and a lot of madness and speed. I think it can be scary in a way, but also exciting. If you do things right, you achieve a lot.”

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