Bahaa Issa: Walking the walk, not just talking the talk

Following an award-winning career promoting some of the biggest names in the IT business, Bahaa Issa returns to put his skills at the disposal of a company and a country he believes in.“I came back because of the flag,” he says, and you are immediately impressed by the complete sincerity in his voice. Of course, being somewhat cynical, you might prod a little, look for a crack in his resolve, but he remains adamant; Bahaa Issa truly loves this country.

This isn’t even the first time he tried to come back to Syria. After living a good part of his life with his family in the UK, Issa worked in Syria in 1997, for an internet development company, bringing website design to a country just getting started with this “new” technology. “I was a little surprised at the single-handedness of one company CEO,” he says. “We had to give him a presentation to sell him the idea of a website. He was the only one making this decision, and when we were done, he told us, ‘this all sounds very good, but what brand is your internet? IBM?’”
Soon after, he was offered a position in the UAE as a journalist and technical editor for “PC Magazine.” He quickly rose the ranks in the worlds of publishing and IT, launching “Internet Arab World” and “Shopper Middle East,” and finally his experience culminated in the launch of the Planet Arabia website during the height of the dotcom bubble.

“The dotcom bubble burst, and therefore my business went bust,” Issa explains in a matter-of-fact tone. “I decided it was time to go back to school and get my MBA.” Enrolling with Trinity College and University in the UK, he also accepted a position at BBDO international, the international advertising and communications agency, and was assigned the Emirates Airlines, Pepsi, HP, and Wrigley’s accounts.
“What I was really excited about in BBDO was setting up the media training courses,” Issa says. “Preparing heads of states and company executives for the pressures of the media was definitely something very new for the region, but also very necessary.”
In 2001, Issa was then recruited by Oracle as their corporate communications director for the Middle East and Africa. “I feel I’m rather lucky, at every place I’ve worked, I’ve learned something important,” he says. “I think Oracle was a good lesson in crisis management.”
An example of this was a frantic midnight call Issa received from his VP during the Iraq war. Al-Jazeera had announced on its ticker that Oracle Middle East and Israel was halting operations due to the instability in the region. Investigating the issue with Al-Jazeera, he found that Reuters Arabia had put on their site a translation of an article that claimed that Oracle operations was coming to a grinding halt. Further digging revealed that, in fact, the article should have said that Oracle sales were affected by the Iraq war, but the operation was still going strong. “A long overnight later, I was able to get the morning papers to print a retraction within 24 hours of the actual incident,” he says.
2003 saw him aggressively recruited by Microsoft Middle East and Africa. “I still call Microsoft ‘us’ and ‘we’ when I talk to people,” Issa says. He was strongly affected by the work ethic at Microsoft, and came to believe in the product so strongly, that he relishes the challenge of cynics who would try to knock down Microsoft products. “You have to apply the principle of 20-60-20,” Issa explains. “20% of people are willing to believe you, 20% will not believe you no matter what you say, and 60% are on the fence; you can only really accomplish anything with the 60%, and so that’s who your efforts have to focus on convincing.”
In 2006, Issa won the Gold World Wide Lister Wunderman Award for Creative Leadership. Microsoft was so impressed by his work ethic and belief in the company that at the end of 2007, he was awarded the “Microsoft Champion Award for Excellence in Execution,” and gave him an opportunity to work at the head office in Seattle. So why did he turn down that position to come to Syria instead? Cham Holding. “They really represent a turning point in the way Syrians do business,” says Issa. “I keep telling people, ‘Mark my words, Cham Holding will be the first Syrian company to go multinational.’”
When presented the opportunity to manage the reputation, image, and brand of this new company, he couldn’t refuse. “Cham Holding represents 1908 combined years experience from 70 different professionals covering every single industry imaginable,” Issa says. “They are business leaders, orchestrating the top six industries in the country, and have the right portfolio of international partnerships. They are also a responsible business, supporting employment creation, knowledge economy, community projects, and bringing expatriates back to the country.”
That is not to say that this position didn’t come without its challenges. “I moved to a new business culture in a country with an emerging economy that did not seem to follow any models, working for what is essentially a start-up company,” he says. “But rather than complain about it, I’m here making a difference. It annoys me when people abroad criticize this country and the lifestyle here without trying to come and improve it or change it. Stop just talking the talk, it’s time to walk the walk.”
With a growing acquaintance of friends, especially within his company, and his recent engagement to Racha Obeid, it seems that, beyond a doubt, Issa is here to stay. When asked if his engagement is a sign of his deepening commitment to his country, he dismisses that idea, and says, “it simply makes his staying in Syria that much sweeter.”