Management Team

Natra Abdulla is the Founder and CEO of Artan Holding. Natra has ~30 years of experience operating in the Education, Real Estate and Industrials sectors in Qatar. Natra established Qatar’s first Montessori nursery and school (formerly Doha Montessori) and now manages and operates Qatar’s first end-to-end private Education provider of K-12 schools, Higher Education, and Life long learning, as well as one of Qatar’s first private end-to-end real estate providers.

Natra is a Board Member of Qatar’s Business Women Association (QBWA) where she actively participates in the development of Qatar’s private sector through business opportunities, policy advocacy, and mentorship opportunities for young entrepreneurs and SMEs. Natra was ranked 76th in Forbes’ rankings of the Middle East’s most 100 powerful Arab women. In 2013, Natra won the “Businesswoman of the Year” award in Qatar.

Natra holds a BSc in Business Administration from the University of Sussex.

Machaille began her career as an attorney at Squire Patton Boggs. She later become Legal Counsel at ExxonMobil Qatar, advising on Qatar Energy’s joint-venture projects with RasGas, Laffan Refinery and Al Khaleej Gas. Machaille then became Deputy CEO of Artan Holding. Machaille was also the Chief Legal Counsel and Advisor to the President of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP) 18.

Machaille is a Board Member of the Qatar Olympic Academy. She was previously a Board Member of Amlak Holding, QST Holding, and Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar’s Joint Advisory Board.

Machaille is a qualified attorney certified by the New York Bar, and holds a MSc in International Business Management from the University of Surrey in the UK, a Masters (LLM) in International Business Economic Law from Georgetown University, and an LLB in English law and French law from the University of Surrey and Sorbonne University.

Nasser is the Deputy CEO of Artan Holding. Formerly, Nasser was the Chief of Investments and Research & Development of the Ministry of Defense (MoD) in Qatar where he focused on enabling the Qatar Armed Forces to acquire and develop innovative defense capabilities. Nasser was also the President and Executive Board Member of Barzan Holdings, the Investment and R&D arm of Qatar’s MoD, where he established joint-ventures with the likes of Beretta Holding, Rheinmetall, and Aspen Medical Australia, and led a portfolio of direct, indirect, and early-stage venture capital investments.

Previously, Nasser was a Board Member of Vodafone Qatar P.Q.S.C.

Nasser holds a MA in Strategic Management and a BSc in Business Management from the University of Plymouth.

Bashayer is the Managing Director of House of Architecture and Interiors (HAI), a Grade-A interdisciplinary architectural and interior design firm serving individuals and businesses in the Education and Real Estate sector. She has designed, built, project-managed and delivered turn-key designs and solutions for Qatar’s top international schools as well as prime residential and commercial real estate in Qatar’s first smart city: Lusail City. Prior to this, Bashayer also founded an events management company whereby she served clients in the luxury weddings industry.

Bashayer holds a BFA in Interior Design from Virginia Commonwealth University and a MSc in Strategic Business Management from HEC Paris.

Shayma is the Director of Operations at Artan Holding. Previously, Shayma was the Head of Strategic Initiatives at the Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation (QRDI) Council, where she devised R&D and Innovation funding and policy-advocacy programs for startups, SMEs, large enterprises, educational institutes, and government entities in Qatar.

Prior to joining the national innovation council, Shayma was a Management Consultant at McKinsey & Company where she advised on Corporate Strategy and Economic Development for institutional investors and public sector organizations. Before McKinsey & Co., Shayma worked for Artan Holding’s Education Division, as well as in Investment Banking with the two largest local investment banks in Qatar: QInvest and QNB Capital.

Shayma holds a BSc in International Politics from Georgetown University and is a candidate for an MSc in Strategic Business Management from HEC Paris.

Saif works in Qatar Development Banks’ Business Finance Directorate where he advises and supports SMEs with Financial products such as seed funding, equity finance, green finance, export finance, and co-investments, as well as advisory services such as business consultancy and mentoring.

Saif holds a BSBA in Finance from the University of Colorado Denver.

Natra Abdulla is the Founder and CEO of Artan Holding. Natra has ~30 years of experience operating in the Education, Real Estate and Industrials sectors in Qatar. Natra established Qatar’s first Montessori nursery and school (formerly Doha Montessori) and now manages and operates Qatar’s first end-to-end private Education provider of K-12 schools, Higher Education, and Life long learning, as well as one of Qatar’s first private end-to-end real estate providers.

Natra is a Board Member of Qatar’s Business Women Association (QBWA) where she actively participates in the development of Qatar’s private sector through business opportunities, policy advocacy, and mentorship opportunities for young entrepreneurs and SMEs. Natra was ranked 76th in Forbes’ rankings of the Middle East’s most 100 powerful Arab women. In 2013, Natra won the “Businesswoman of the Year” award in Qatar.

Natra holds a BSc in Business Administration from the University of Sussex.

Nasser is the Deputy CEO of Artan Holding. Formerly, Nasser was the Chief of Investments and Research & Development of the Ministry of Defense (MoD) in Qatar where he focused on enabling the Qatar Armed Forces to acquire and develop innovative defense capabilities. Nasser was also the President and Executive Board Member of Barzan Holdings, the Investment and R&D arm of Qatar’s MoD, where he established joint-ventures with the likes of Beretta Holding, Rheinmetall, and Aspen Medical Australia, and led a portfolio of direct, indirect, and early-stage venture capital investments.

Previously, Nasser was a Board Member of Vodafone Qatar P.Q.S.C.

Nasser holds a MA in Strategic Management and a BSc in Business Management from the University of Plymouth.

Shayma is the Director of Operations at Artan Holding. Previously, Shayma was the Head of Strategic Initiatives at the Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation (QRDI) Council, where she devised R&D and Innovation funding and policy-advocacy programs for startups, SMEs, large enterprises, educational institutes, and government entities in Qatar.

Prior to joining the national innovation council, Shayma was a Management Consultant at McKinsey & Company where she advised on Corporate Strategy and Economic Development for institutional investors and public sector organizations. Before McKinsey & Co., Shayma worked for Artan Holding’s Education Division, as well as in Investment Banking with the two largest local investment banks in Qatar: QInvest and QNB Capital.

Shayma holds a BSc in International Politics from Georgetown University and is a candidate for an MSc in Strategic Business Management from HEC Paris.

Tristan is the Director of Strategy at Artan Holding. Formerly Tristan worked as Portfolio Manager for a start-up hedge fund based in Berlin focused on making investments in European equity markets. Before then he worked in London for Advent International’s crossover hedge fund where he was an Investment Professional focused on both public equities as well as venture capital investments.

Tristan has also previously worked as a Management Consultant for McKinsey & Company in Amsterdam, advising clients on strategy and corporate finance topics, and as an Investment Professional for asset manager Allianz Global Investors in their London office, investing client funds across global equity markets.

Tristan holds a MSc in Finance from The London School of Economics and Political Science and a BSc in Business Economics from Tilburg University. He has also successfully completed the CFA curriculum.

Lamese Abrahams is the Director of Education at Artan Consulting and Education Services (ACES). Lamese has over 26 years of professional experience in Education, both in K-12 schools and Higher Education. As Director of Education, Lamese is responsible for setting and executing Artan’s strategy in K-12 Education, Higher Education, and lifelong learning. Lamese delivers Management, Corporate Advisory, and Training and Development services to Artan group’s Education companies as well as national Education providers and regulators.

Prior to joining Artan, Lamese served as the Deputy Director of Wits Business School in South Africa. Lamese also previously held a number of Education-related roles including, Deputy and Acting Dean of Students, as well as several positions in Student Affairs, Registrar of Faculty, and Student Admissions.

Lamese holds a MA in Education from the University of Witwatersrand and is currently completing a PhD specializing in Education Management.