CEO and Founder, 786 Investments Ltd., Interacts with LUMS Community in Latest Leaders at LUMS session

The latest session of 'Leaders at LUMS' featured Ms. Tara Uzra Dawood, CEO and Founder, 786 Investments Ltd., Pakistan’s pioneer asset management company. During the session held on July 15, Ms. Dawood shared insights from her personal and professional achievements and outlined the lessons she has learnt along the way. Moderated by Adeel Hashmi, the conversation also covered Ms. Dawood’s vision towards promoting women education in Pakistan.

Ms. Dawood holds a Doctorate in Judicial Science from Harvard Law School, where she specialised in Shariah law and finance, as well as mergers and acquisitions. After working with several law firms abroad she launched 786 Investments Ltd. Ms. Dawood currently also sits on the boards of several organisations, including Pakistan State Oil, Pakistan Refinery Ltd., and Mutual Funds Association of Pakistan. She also serves on the Energy sub-committee of the Advisory Committee of the Planning Commission under Asad Umar, Federal Minister for Planning, Development, Reforms and Special Initiatives. She is certified in Corporate Governance by both Pakistan Institute of Corporate Governance and Harvard Business School.

Taking the audience through the concept of Shariah law, Ms. Dawood explained the reliability of Shariah compliance for consumers compared to conventional law as it focuses on safeguarding the rights of the consumers. She also highlighted the values that have brought her success in the industry and how she deals with failure. "You need to have super thick skin. Not everything works out so you have to accept that you're going to fail before you succeed."

However, for Ms. Dawood, her passion and dedication is truly reflected in the philanthropic initiatives she has undertaken in the areas of women empowerment. She has been involved in various projects including the ‘Educate a Girl’ initiative, in partnership with Facebook’s Internet.org Foundation and World Bank. Furthermore, she co-founded LADIES FUND, which has trained over 12,000 women and youth in entrepreneurship and annually holds national awards for women that are presented by the Sindh Governor. Most recently, she launched The Buraq Centre by LADIESFUND, Pakistan’s first all-female incubation centre and co-working space, in partnership with the German Consulate and the National Incubation Centre Lahore at LUMS. She explains, “The LADIESFUND initiative was launched to recognise women’s contribution to the economy of Pakistan as well as to give women access to equal opportunities and the money that it brings.”

Ms. Dawood also spoke about the endless number of extraordinary women role models we have in Pakistan and considered Benazir Bhutto as one of her biggest inspiration. She advised the youth to work towards everything with a sense of empathy, “We should work towards building everyone up rather than tearing each other down and the LADIESFUND is there to support that cause.“

Towards the end of the session, the Vice Chancellor LUMS, Dr. Arshad Ahmad thanked Ms. Dawood for her time and lauded the work she’s doing for Pakistan and its people. “You believe in Pakistan, you believe in its people, and you walk the talk. These are the qualities of a role model we all aspire for and you are a great example to be inspired by.”

To watch the complete session, click here.