Manar Hannawi: Shaping Powerful Brand Experiences Through Strategic Marketing and Executive Engagement

A great event is never only about what happens on the day.

A great event is never only about what happens on the day.

Behind a polished experience is a much larger story of strategy, positioning, relationships and careful decisions about where an organisation should place its attention. For Manar Hannawi, this understanding has become central to a career spanning marketing, corporate communications, CSR, strategic partnerships and event operations.

Today, as Event Management and Operations Manager at Soudah Development, she is helping shape initiatives that connect brand positioning with commercial readiness, executive engagement and meaningful stakeholder relationships.

Her work reveals something important about modern marketing: the strongest brands are not simply seen. They are experienced, understood and remembered.

When Events Become Strategic

At Soudah Development, Manar’s role extends far beyond organising events.

She has taken a strategic approach to the company’s 2026 events portfolio, evaluating planned participation, challenging existing priorities and recommending a more focused calendar aligned with business objectives, brand strategy and budget optimisation.

She has also restructured the events budget around that portfolio, directing investment towards initiatives intended to strengthen brand visibility and support future commercial goals.

This is where event management becomes something more consequential. Each event becomes a decision about relevance, investment and the experience an organisation wants its stakeholders to have.

“The most memorable experiences begin with a clear sense of purpose.”

Building a Brand Before the Spotlight

Manar’s current work also includes leading the production of premium sales films for Soudah Development’s Sales Center.

The responsibility involves coordinating cross-functional teams to deliver visual assets designed to enhance customer engagement and support the sales journey.

It is a natural extension of her broader approach to brand experience. Whether the audience is a customer, executive, government entity, partner or member of the media, every touchpoint contributes to how an organisation is understood.

Her work brings these touchpoints together, creating greater consistency between strategy, communication and experience.

The Architecture Behind Better Decisions

One of Manar’s contributions at Soudah Development has been the establishment of a structured event evaluation framework.

Through executive reports and strategic recommendations prepared for the CEO Office, she has created a clearer basis for decisions around future participation and investment.

This detail reveals an important quality in her approach: creativity is supported by structure.

Marketing can create attention, but strategic marketing asks a harder question: what should that attention achieve?

By bringing evaluation and business objectives into the events conversation, Manar connects brand activity with the wider priorities of the organisation.

Connecting People Across the Organisation

The scale of modern brand-building requires collaboration across functions.

At Soudah Development, Manar works with Marketing, Public Relations, Sales, Visitors Experience, Human Resources, Development and Delivery, as well as Executive Leadership.

She also collaborates with PIF portfolio companies, government entities, strategic partners, media representatives and external agencies.

This ability to work across different groups is particularly relevant to her style of leadership. Her contribution is not confined to one department. It sits between functions, helping different stakeholders move towards a shared outcome.

“Strong brands are built where strategy, people and experience meet.”

Giving Jeel a Clearer Story

Before joining Soudah Development, Manar took on another demanding challenge at Jeel, the technology and digital subsidiary of Riyad Bank.

Joining as Marketing and Public Relations Manager, she was responsible for establishing the company’s marketing and PR function, strengthening brand awareness and positioning Jeel as Riyad Bank’s technology and digital arm driving digital banking innovation.

One of the defining pieces of this work was the launch of Jeel Sandbox. Manar led its go-to-market strategy, website launch, communication plan and stakeholder engagement.

She also helped redefine the brand narrative, positioning Jeel as Riyad Bank’s technology arm rather than as a standalone fintech company.

The work demonstrates the importance of a clear story in building a business identity. When an organisation understands how it should be positioned, its communication becomes more purposeful.

From Communication to Commercial Purpose

Manar’s experience has progressively moved from digital marketing and communications towards broader strategic responsibility.

At Jeel, she developed annual marketing, PR and event plans aligned with business priorities while working within a limited budget. She also managed integrated campaigns, executive communications and corporate events supporting product launches, brand visibility and business growth.

Earlier, at Dallah Albaraka, she worked across marketing, corporate communications and CSR. As Marketing Manager, she led marketing and communication initiatives, developed CSR and community engagement programmes, supported executive communication and managed integrated initiatives across digital, corporate and on-ground channels.

The common thread is clear: communication is most valuable when it strengthens relationships and serves a wider organisational purpose.

Where Brand and Responsibility Come Together

Her work in CSR adds another dimension to her understanding of corporate reputation.

At Dallah Albaraka, Manar led CSR and stakeholder engagement programmes designed to reinforce corporate reputation and community impact. She also helped connect marketing, CSR and corporate communications through cross-functional initiatives.

Earlier, at Al Borg Medical Laboratories, she contributed to branding and repositioning efforts during a significant phase of organisational and brand transformation. Her responsibilities included strategic messaging, communication consistency and strengthening external positioning within the healthcare landscape.

These experiences show a professional understanding that reputation is not created by a single campaign. It is shaped over time through the consistency of an organisation’s actions, communication and relationships.

A Foundation in Digital Thinking

Long before event strategy became a central part of her role, Manar developed her capabilities in digital marketing.

At Al Borg Medical Laboratories, she planned and executed more than 16 integrated digital marketing campaigns, supporting audience engagement, digital visibility and brand awareness across multiple channels.

Her earlier role as a Sales Representative at Keylink IT Solutions also gave her exposure to the commercial side of business.

Academically, she holds a Bachelor’s degree in Information Science from King AbdulAziz University and a Master of Science in Cyber Security and Information Assurance from Robert Morris University. Her education also includes digital marketing and graphic design studies.

That combination of information science, technology, digital marketing and communications provides an interesting foundation for the work she does today.

Creating Experiences That Move Business Forward

What distinguishes Manar’s journey is the gradual expansion of the role marketing can play.

It began with digital campaigns and communication. It grew into corporate positioning, CSR, stakeholder engagement and strategic partnerships. It then developed further into building marketing functions, shaping brand narratives, launching initiatives and managing executive-level engagement.

Today, at Soudah Development, those capabilities converge through event strategy and operations, where brand experience, commercial readiness and stakeholder relationships meet.

Her work illustrates a broader lesson for modern organisations: meaningful experiences do not happen by accident. They are designed through thoughtful strategy, disciplined investment and an understanding of the people an organisation seeks to engage.

Recognition by The CEO Network

Manar Hannawi deserves recognition for the way she has expanded the role of marketing and communications into a broader discipline of strategic engagement.

Her journey reflects an ability to move between brand management, corporate communications, CSR, digital marketing and event operations while keeping the focus on relationships, positioning and organisational objectives. At Soudah Development, that perspective is now being applied to strategic events, executive engagement, premium brand experiences and preparations for the organisation’s upcoming sales phase.

Her story is compelling because it demonstrates that powerful communication is not simply about having something to say. It is about knowing why it matters, who needs to hear it and how the experience surrounding it can strengthen the connection.

In an increasingly experience-led business world, that ability has real value.

Manar’s work sits precisely at that intersection, where strategy becomes experience, experience becomes connection, and connection helps organisations move forward.

Manar Hannawi | LinkedIn