Campaign’s Media Faces to Watch 2021 —Sara Fares, Planning Manager, PHD UAE

Campaign’s Media Faces to Watch 2021 —Sara Fares, Planning Manager, PHD UAE

Age: 28

Nominated by Stephanie Medlege, Director – Planning, PHD UAE

Sara is brilliant at executing strategies from start to finish, not only delivering on objectives but going beyond for PHD’s clients through her empathetic approach. Her dedication and unwavering passion to constantly upskill herself has established her as one of our valued people.

Bio

I joined the industry eight years ago in Lebanon and moved to Dubai as an Executive. Today I’m the Regional Planning Manager on a diverse client’s portfolio. During my time, I learned how to manage global FMCG clients across MENA markets, craft local integrated media strategies and grow brands in a constantly challenging environment. Some of my honoured achievements are the “Extra Mile” & “Client Satisfaction” awards part of the Omnicom Media Group Award ceremony that recognizes talent internally.

Guiding principles

There is no easy recipe to grow, you have to put in the time to get to where you want to go, developing relationships, challenging yourself and learning from others are key factors along with investing in the power of empathy and compassion to improve interpersonal relationships.

How has Covid changed your job?

It affected everything in my life, but the pandemic made my job easier to manage through working remotely as I was stuck in London for three months, it brought us closer as a company and made us more empathetic. My role became more meaningful to help others and clients with the challenges they were facing.

Side hustle

I engage in physical challenges for charity purposes (I took part in the 2019 OMG Mongolia cycling, hiking and horse-riding challenge and in the 2020 UAE Cycling Challenge) both to raise funds for NGOs and the Beirut Blast. I like to connect with nature and animals whenever I can and I long to visit places I’ve never been to.