Pakistan’s Top CEOs & Their Educational Degrees

Who says you need bachelors or masters degree to be one of Pakistan’s Top C-Level Executive Officer?

The Law of averages does!

While exceptions exist everywhere, having a formal education is a standard requirement for the top tier business positions. The path to becoming one of Pakistan’s top CEO can include a few stops at colleges or universities.

From Undergrad & Graduate degrees to short courses & specific programs, there is no single major or degree that they share all except business management, leadership and strategy related education.

Keep reading to discover the educational background of some of the country’s top CEOs.

Waqar Ahmed Malik

Position: CEO, Fauji Fertilizer Company Ltd.

Education: B.S. Business Administration, University of Arkansas, MBA, University of Tulsa

Mr Waqar Malik’s corporate & business experience spans over 30 years across three continents. A specialist in Strategy, Corporate / Business leadership and Board Governance, his professional experience includes managing and leading businesses in the petrochemicals, consumer and the life sciences industry.

He had a career spanning over 27 years with Fortune 500 companies. His career with the ICI Plc group based in the UK and then Akzo Nobel in the Netherlands provided him opportunity to work in Europe and the Americas. In Pakistan, he was the Country Head of ICI Plc’s operations, the largest foreign investment in the chemical sector at the time. For over 10 years, he served as the Chief Executive Officer of ICI Pakistan Limited and also the CEO and Chairman of Lotte Pakistan limited (formerly Pakistan PTA Limited). He moved on from ICI Pakistan Limited in December 2012 post divestment of majority shareholding of the foreign sponsor in ICI Pakistan Limited to a local group. He has vast experience in managing functional teams as well as leading large and complex manufacturing-based operations as well as M & A activities.

Mr. Raheel Asghar

Position: CEO, Al-Ghazi Tractors Ltd.

Education: Engineering, University of Cambridge, UK, Advanced Management Program, Wharton Business School, USA.

He has over 25 years of experience in the automotive industry in UK and in Pakistan. Mr. Raheel Asghar started his career in 1994 with Honda UK Manufacturing in Swindon, UK where he gained experience in production management, project management and production engineering. Raheel headed various departments at Honda before moving to Pakistan in 2007 where he joined Indus Motor Company, which is the sole manufacturer of Toyota products in Pakistan. Whilst at Toyota, he headed many functions and performed various roles including Director Sales & Marketing and most recently Senior Director Plant Operations.

Mr. Raheel Asghar holds a degree in Engineering from the University of Cambridge, UK and has attended various management programmes including the Advanced Management Program at Wharton Business School, USA.

Mr Mujtaba Rahim

Company: CEO, Archroma Pakistan Ltd.

Education: Applied Chemistry – the University of Karachi, leadership and Strategic Management Programs – Pakistan Institute of Management Sciences, INSEAD Business School Fountainbleau, France and Ashridge College of Management, UK.

Mr Mujtaba Rahim holds a Master degree in applied chemistry from the University of Karachi. He had attended various national & international courses on leadership and strategic management programs being conducted by Pakistan Institute of Management Sciences, INSEAD Business School Fountainbleau, France and Ashridge College of Management UK. He is having over 30 years of experience in the dyes & Chemicals industry. In 2004 he earned the position of Divisional Head Textile, Leather& Paper, one of the largest business units of Clariant in Pakistan. Since 2006, he is working as Chief Executive Officer of the Company. He believes in core values that inspire work ethics at Archroma. Mr Rahim is also president of Swiss Business Council, a premier platform of Swiss Companies in Pakistan.

Dr Mohammad Ashraf Butt

Company: CEO, Security Papers Private Ltd.

Education: PhD Mechanical Engineering, University of Manchester, United Kingdom. BS & MS Mehran University of Engineering and Technology.

Dr Mohammad Ashraf Butt spent 26 years with the Heavy Mechanical Complex and Pakistan Machine Tool Factory. He served as Managing Director of Heavy Mechanical Complex, Taxila and Pakistan Machine Tool Factory, Karachi. Dr Butt has significant experience in the manufacturing and handling of complex mechanical systems, production planning & control, design and engineering, project management and integrated management system with large companies/corporations. He has served as Director Operations since 2015 at SPL. Dr Butt has served as a Professor in Industrial and Mechanical Engineering at UET, Taxila, and Mirpur University Science and Technology.

Mohammad Ali Tabba

Company: CEO, Lucky Cement Ltd.

Education:

Mr. Muhammad Ali Tabba is the Chief Executive of Lucky Cement Limited.

succeeding his late father in 2005. He also serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Yunus Textile Mills Ltd (YTM), a state-of-the-art home textile mill with subsidiaries in North America and Europe. Simultaneously spearheading both these organizations, he also plays a pivotal role in providing strategic vision to ICI Pakistan Limited as its Vice-Chairman.

He started his career with Yunus Brothers Group (YBG) – a family conglomerate in 1991. YBG is one of the premier business houses in Pakistan with diversified interests in Building Materials, Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, Energy, Textiles, Automotive and Real Estate Development. Muhammad Ali Tabba was the past Chairman of Pakistan Business Council (PBC), a business advocacy forum comprising of leading private sector businesses. He is the Chairman of KIA Lucky Motors and Lucky Electric Power Company Limited.

In recognition of his outstanding services and contributions in the social development sector of Pakistan, World Economic Forum (WEF) in 2010 bestowed the title of Young Global Leader (YGL) to Muhammad Ali Tabba. He is also the recipient of Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry “Businessman of the Year” Gold Medal Award for 2012- 2013.

In recognition of his outstanding services and contribution to the business as well as the social development sector of Pakistan, Government of Pakistan has awarded him with Sitara-E-Imtiaz in 2018.