The tech world is seeing a gradual yet promising shift in gender dynamics, with more women stepping into leadership roles and founding impactful ventures. Amid this evolving landscape, initiatives like TiE Women MENA 2025 are emerging as game-changers, fostering a stronger ecosystem for women entrepreneurs across the region. In this exclusive interaction with The Catalyst, Carlina Marani, Managing Director EMEA at Accenture and Co-Chair of TiE Women MENA 2025, shares her insights on the power of mentorship, funding, and cross-border collaboration in driving inclusive innovation. She also reflects on the unique strengths mothers bring to the entrepreneurial table and why the next generation of female founders should believe in their power to build and lead.
How do you perceive the evolution of women’s roles in the tech workforce over the past decade?
The number of women in tech is increasing slowly. I see more women reaching managerial positions across the technology and tech consultancy firms, as well as an increase in women in tech sales roles. There is still a lot to do, but I am very optimistic about the coming decade.
As a key voice in the region’s innovation ecosystem, how do you see initiatives like TiE Women MENA 2025 shifting the landscape for women entrepreneurs in the Middle East?
Initiatives like TiE Women MENA and other similar competitions are very important to have in an ecosystem, one that give a regional and global voice for women entrepreneurs from across the MENA. Equally important is to ensure we give the much-needed push and support to the ecosystem to grow the female angel investors which is a very very important piece too. We all know that the investment in female led companies is too low and these initiatives give female founders the confidence and exposure they need to continue to be successful.
From your vantage point in a global consulting firm, what are the most critical enablers for empowering women-led startups in MENA today?
Both funding and exposure but also education and mentorship are critical to support women-led startups in MENA. Running a business has so many components and getting support across the board is a very strong enabler.
How does TiE Women’s ecosystem of accelerators, VCs, and angel investors tangibly support these founders beyond funding?
The selected winner founders that go through the program are mapped with a mentor usually of high calibre and considerable industry experience to help fine tune their pitch and various aspects of their business to help them grow and scale successfully beyond the competition. They also get the opportunity to showcase their business at Expand North Star, GITEX while also competing via the TiE Women MENA finals (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jI7O7EaidJE) on one of the largest tech shows in the world.
TiE is highly networked and we to stay in touch with many of the alumni from the program and continue to open doors to opportunities across the years. We also curate various master classes that are helpful for founders in areas like financial acumen, Marketing & Brand Building, GTM etc. Furthermore, the community of like-minded female founders brings so much value to learn and grow amongst themselves.
In your view, how do the nurturing qualities and multitasking abilities of mothers empower them to lead, strategize, and drive innovation in the tech space?
If you can run a family, you can take on the world. As a mom you need to find solutions quick to challenging situations, constantly thinking out of the box. Like buying a popsicle en-route to help with a sprained ankle – such pivots are very common in business and motherhood one could say.
Nothing prepares you better as a leader, a strategist and innovator than carrying the responsibility of a kid or two. In many businesses, we see impact, be it social, economic or environmental, as an intrinsic line that most businesses apply and that could even be from their core nurture nature or even just solving for their own problems.
With regional tracks in place, how does the program foster cross-border collaboration and learning among women entrepreneurs from different parts of MENA?
This program brings together women who are Emirati, from Saudi, Egypt, UAE and Rest of MENA, all of them then go on to global tracks that bring together almost 50 women founders from across the globe, one of the largest platforms globally for women entrepreneurs. If you tap into this community every year, it can be one of the most powerful networks to cross collaborate and work together. This year we are adding an Open Mic Night element in the UAE to encourage and foster the community sentiment and to encourage more women entrepreneurs to share their founder story. All the winners from MENA coming together at Gitex is also a huge culmination with various partners, renowned jury present.
What does meaningful representation of women in leadership look like to you?
Women that stay authentic, that support other women and that don’t make it seem as if it was all easy and without challenges, are for me the most meaningful representatives.
I am all for female leaders supporting the younger generation and fostering female talent.
Female leaders that are approachable and friendly and are honest about the challenges encountered in their career, are the best role models.
What’s your Mother’s Day message to aspiring moms embracing the #builtbymothers spirit and launching startups in the region?
You are capable of a lot more than you think, and your network will be a lot more supporting than you think. Don’t be afraid to start and don’t shy away from asking for help when needed.
As the MENA region embraces a future defined by innovation and inclusion, initiatives that support women entrepreneurs are playing a transformative role in reshaping the business landscape. From access to funding and mentorship to global exposure and community-building, these platforms are equipping women with the tools they need to lead, scale, and thrive. As more mothers and aspiring founders step forward with bold ideas and resilient mindsets, the momentum behind women-led innovation continues to grow—proving that with the right ecosystem, meaningful progress isn’t just possible, it’s inevitable.
About the Contributor
Carlina Marani is a Managing Director EMEA at Accenture, and a recognised expert in digital transformation across freight, logistics, and supply chain innovation.
She also currently serves as Co-Chair of TiE Women MENA 2025, a flagship initiative supporting women entrepreneurs across the Middle East and North Africa. In this role, Carlina helps steer the TiE Women MENA 2025 initiative, which champions the next generation of women entrepreneurs across five regional tracks. She contributes to mentoring, strategic planning, and ecosystem building, supporting female-led startups through workshops, pitch competitions, and investor exposure, all designed to unlock long-term impact across the MENA region.
Her work combines business impact with purpose, and she is also an active advocate for inclusive leadership and mental wellness through her roles at Accenture.
This contribution is for the Mother’s Day Initiative #builtbymothers.
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