Title: Group CEO & Partner, Adpro& Group and Adpro& OMD
Years in the role: 10 years
Years in the industry: 36 years
Years in the middle east region: 36 years
Other roles / board memberships: UN Women signatory for equality and inclusion, Injaz mentor and previously board member, Delta Insurance board member, consultant for the Economic Modernization Vision of Jordan.
Power Essay: “What’s the idea worth?”
Once upon a time, that was the only question agencies needed to answer. Awards, cultural resonance, and brand growth were the benchmarks of success. Fast forward to today, and the most important question becomes: “What’s the hourly rate?”.
Procurement today frames relationships in terms of rate cards, scope efficiency, and standardised outputs. The result? Creativity often feels commoditised and measured less for originality and more for how it stacks up against competing bids.
Agencies argue this undervalues the intangible magic of creativity: the leaps of insight, intuition and cultural resonance that can’t be captured in a spreadsheet. Yet, procurement has also driven important progress. By emphasising accountability and measurable outcomes, it has forged clearer links between creative work and business performance.
Performance-based compensation models are now common, tying agency contributions to brand lift, engagement, sales growth, or long-term equity. Agencies that can translate creativity into measurable impact gain credibility not only with marketers but also with the C-suite. Procurement’s ROI focus, while sometimes rigid, has nudged the industry to speak the language of business more fluently.
And that is actually a core belief at BBDO: “Work that works is the only work that matters”. It’s a reminder that creativity and effectiveness aren’t opposing forces. The best ideas are both imaginative and measurable. To thrive in this environment, agencies must master a new hybrid skillset: proving cost efficiency without sacrificing originality. Procurement may ask how many hours an idea took to make, but culture will only remember if the idea mattered.
The healthiest relationships form when procurement acts as a partner, not a barrier – bringing structure without stifling creativity. When financial stewardship is balanced with respect for the creative process, everyone wins: agencies innovate confidently; clients enjoy transparency and measurable value; and procurement fulfils its role as guardian of efficiency and fairness.
In my experience, the strongest partnerships arise when procurement embraces this balance, acting not as the in-law dictating terms, but as the steady hand that safeguards the bond when needed, ultimately allowing the client-agency relationship to thrive. And perhaps the best metric of all is this: procurement can measure how long an idea took to make, but culture will measure how long people keep talking about it.
Highlight of the last year
Made history with Jordan’s first Campaign Agency of the Year title and Jordan’s first-ever Cannes Lions Silver. Advanced women into leadership roles. Most proudly, reignited our AOR with Umniah Telecom, a brand we launched and led from 2005-2017, coming full circle just in time to shape their 20th anniversary transformation.
Rapid fire
What word / phrase do people remember you for using the most?
مو عادي
What the industry needs to talk more about:
Reinventing for relevance.
What the industry needs to talk less about:
Less obituary writing about the industry.
If you could change one thing in the blink of an eye, you would:
Eliminate “otherness”.
What’s one thing about you that would surprise your team?
I can mimic them.
What mobile application can you not live without?
WhatsApp.
What’s one local / regional tradition that you love the most?
Akeed Mansaf.
If you could choose any two people, currently alive, in the world to share a meal with you, who would it be?
Javier and Penelope Bardem.
What’s your top word of advice for Gen Z and Gen Alpha?
Anchor yourself in empathy, creativity and integrity, and always protect your ability to wonder.
What’s your go-to comfort food?
Popcorn.
What’s your favourite ad from the past 12 months?
RAK’s ‘Summer Unscripted’ campaign.
