RiseUp Summit is one of the most anticipated events of the year for all Egyptian business moguls out there. Year after year, this mammoth event has proven to be a great success with each year bringing in better and bigger ideas than the last. With #RiseUp18 only a few days away, we had the pleasure of visiting the RiseUp headquarters, located at The GrEEK Campus, where we talked to some of the members of the team and asked them about their jobs and what they’re excited about. Here is what they had to say.
Sarah El Nokrashy – Content Curator
Via RiseUp
“My job consists of two processes. The first process is that I have to do a ton of reading to try to understand and have an overview of the startup ecosystem. The second process is to identify what the attendees actually want to hear and what would be relevant to them. It needs to be something that they can relate to on some level.
It takes cartons of Redbull and gallons of coffee to organize such a big event. It also takes a lot of teamwork, patience, sleepless nights, hard work and compromises.
It sounds cliche, but I’m really excited to see everything coming together in harmony.”
Mohamed Ghoneim – Summit Operations Manager
Via RiseUp
“I’m the person who basically connects all the dots between all the departments. I communicate with all the departments of RiseUp from design to marketing to technology, moving on to partnerships and content. Moreover, I lead a team of six people who handle all the features of the Summit, from pitch competitions, satellite events, startup station and the HIPOs station, along with the production of the Summit and finally managing the budget of the event and the financial aspect of it.
To organize the Summit, it takes a team of highly specialized people in different fields and a couple of managers connecting all the dots. It takes explorers seeking knowledge about startups in general and it takes work from different directions, externally and internally.
I’m looking forward to the closing ceremony, especially the part where we play the video about RiseUp which wraps up everything that took place through out the three days. The video shows the impact we had on the people and the team gets to see everything they worked on, come to life.”
Nada Ezzeldin – Head of Design
Via RiseUp
“Other than leading the design team, my job includes researching the theme. It’s a philosophical process that takes a lot of research. I also have to make sure that the Summit’s theme reflects on the whole event. For example, with this year’s theme ‘Grounded Experience’ I have to make sure that it is reflected on the stage visual and the spaces. The whole design process starts theoretically and ends practically with the space we have created.
My favorite part of the job is seeing all the stuff that we designed actually get implemented in reality. I was present in #RiseUp17 and the moment I saw everything we worked on come to life, I thought that the sleepless nights I experienced were all worth it in the end. Also, seeing people experience what I have designed makes me really happy. My least favorite part of the job is the ‘production phase’ which is the week before the Summit.
I’m really excited to see how people will interact with our designs and how they experience the space. We put a lot of thought into every little detail, so I really want to see how people are going to perceive it.”
Arig Omar – Senior Deputy of Marketing and Communications
“I handle the partners for #RiseUp18: the outreach partners, the community partners and the media partnerst. There are partners we’ve worked with in the past who had a great impact on the attendees, so we usually love to have them again, but in most cases, anyone interested in a partnership must apply online for the kind of partnership they are looking for and then we start the filtration process by seeing who is relevant and who can be the most helpful. We usually want to have a variety of different partners to fill the gaps. So, in a nutshell, anything that has to do with marketing and communications, I handle.
Believe it or not, I actually love everything about my job. I love marketing, I’ve been doing it for eight years now. Coming here everyday in the morning, everyone has the same target, the same spirit, everyone is being super helpful and cheerful, even if you come in feeling moody one day, being around the team changes that. You also never feel like your managing someone or feel intimidated by managing someone or being managed by someone, everyone is responsible for a specific assignment and manages specific tasks instead of managing people. I think my least favorite part of the job is living far away from the office.
I’m looking forward to the activations happening around the campus during the summit because I worked really hard on that, alongside the company we partnered with. So, it’s like having a baby and you want to see it grow.”
Farida Thakeb – Pitch Competition Coordinator
“My job is all about communicating with the startups that are participating in the pitch competition. We do a filtration process, I view their applications and I communicate everything with them that has to do with the Summit. I also set up the prizes for the winners; me and the team pick the judges and we come up with the grading criteria. Moreover, I make sure that the startups participating are getting the right benefits and exposure.
To prepare for the Summit, I believe one has to be responsive to any changes happening, especially last minute changes. Also, one has to be responsive to the needs of all the participating startups to make sure they are receiving all the benefits the Summit has to offer.
I’m really looking forward to the pitch competition, I really want to see who is going to win first place. The prize this year is 50,000 dollars which is equivalent to one million Egyptian pounds. So, I’m looking forward to find out who will be deserving of the prize and how it’s going to change their lives.”
