Startup of the Week: Skil Studio; Perfecting the art of marketing, designing

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Updated 04 August 2021
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Startup of the Week: Skil Studio; Perfecting the art of marketing, designing

JEDDAH: Zakaria Ahmad owns a digital design agency called Skil Studios focused on identity building, graphic designing, and social media content building.

“We were working with another company but recently started our own business,” said Ahmad.

The entrepreneur is grateful for the customers who trust them with the design and layout.

Their services start with designing the identity that represents their clients, then services such as digital marketing, e-commerce, and social media content development are also offered. Sometimes the business also offers videography and photography services.

The company’s founder said that most companies here focus more on quantity rather than quality. He said his company’s goal is to start an agency that cares about its clients and has their best interest in mind.

“We appreciate art in everything,” Ahmad said. He believes marketing and identity building is an art and his company seeks to achieve the target with perfection.

He said that they want to offer something new. Ahmad said his team does not believe in “copying and modifying already existing designs,” instead they want to introduce the latest global trends in the Middle East without compromising on their uniqueness.

He admitted that the business faced quite a few challenges along the way, which is usual for a startup.

“We were looking for talented people with a passion for designing and art to help us achieve our goals,” Ahmad said.

Ahmad is most proud of his company’s identity and the trust that his team has built with clients due to their sincere efforts.

He said members of the creative team ensure they understand the requirement of clients and deliver them whatever their demands are.


Egypt-born Dina Powell McCormick appointed Meta president and vice chairman

Updated 13 January 2026
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Egypt-born Dina Powell McCormick appointed Meta president and vice chairman

  • The former Goldman Sachs partner and White House official previously served on Meta’s board of directors
  • Powell McCormick, who was born in Cairo and moved to the US as a child, joins the management team and will help guide overall strategy and execution

LONDON: Meta has appointed Egypt-born Dina Powell McCormick as its new president and vice chairman.

The company said on Monday that the former Goldman Sachs partner and White House official, who previously served on Meta’s board of directors, is stepping up into a senior leadership role as the company accelerates its push into artificial intelligence and global infrastructure.

Powell McCormick, who was born in Cairo and moved to the US as a young girl, will join the management team and help guide its overall strategy and execution. She will work closely with Meta’s Compute and infrastructure teams, the company said, overseeing multi-billion-dollar investments in data centers, energy systems and global connectivity, while building new strategic capital partnerships.

“Dina’s experience at the highest levels of global finance, combined with her deep relationships around the world, makes her uniquely suited to help Meta manage this next phase of growth as the company’s president and vice chairman,” Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said.

Powell McCormick has more than 25 years of experience in finance, national security and economic development. She spent 16 years as a partner at Goldman Sachs in senior leadership roles, and served two US presidents, including stints as deputy national security adviser to Donald Trump, and a senior State Department official under George W. Bush.

Most recently, she was vice chair and president of global client services at merchant bank BDT & MSD Partners.