Shaima graduated from the Dubai Leaders Programme in the Mohammed Bin Rashid Center for Leadership Development in November 2021. She also obtained two certificates from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT): business process design for strategic management, and accelerating corporate innovation, as well as a certificate on ‘Business Strategy’ from Harvard Business School. In 2023, she also completed the ‘Women on International Boards’ Program that was held in collaboration between Dubai Women Establishment and the Institute of Directors in London. She also pursed her MSc in Big Data, Business Analytics, and Artificial Intelligence at ESCP Business School.
During her tenure at Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, Shaima stepped up as Acting CEO of the Arts & Literature Sector as well as the International Relations Office in 2021 on top of her role as the Director of Marketing and Corporate Communication. She oversaw an additional four departments with a team of 15 employees, 20 strategic art projects and the creation and review of the Authority’s key strategies and policies.
Earlier in her career, Shaima was the Marketing and Corporate Communications Manager and Deputy Chairman of wasl’s CSR Committee at wasl Asset Management Group from 2007 – 2013; she was also the Head of Marketing at the Community Development Authority in Dubai from 2013 – 2014. Within one year at CDA, Shaima ‘s leadership skills were validated when she was promoted to Director of Marketing and Corporate Communication, where she headed the team until joining Dubai Culture and Arts Authority.
Shaima is a member of the Dubai Media Diplomacy and Communication Network in the Government of Dubai Media Office and a member of the General Network of Government Communication in The Executive Council of Dubai. She also completed the leadership programme in Cambridge Leadership Middle East Associates in November 2017 and the International Media Diplomacy Programme in the Protocol School of Washington, Washington DC, in November 2017. Shaima was also a jury member of the 2024 Campaign Agency of the Year Middle East Awards. In 2025, she was also appointed as a board member of PRCA MENA.
Through her efforts in leading the Marketing and Corporate Communication Department at Dubai Culture, the Authority has won several awards, including six awards at the 2021 Transform MENA Awards for the visual and brand identity, which include three gold awards in the Best Implementation of a Brand Development Project,’ ‘Best Use of a Visual Property,’ and ‘Best Visual Identity from the Public Sector’ categories. The Authority also won the silver award for the ‘Best Creative Strategy’ category and the bronze award for the ‘Best Brand Development Project to Reflect a Change of Mission, Values or Positioning’ category as well as the grand gold award for the ‘Best Overall Visual Identity.’
She also led several campaigns that secured several awards, including the best CSR campaign in the 2022 PRCA MENA Regional Awards for Dubai Culture’s Ramadan Heroes initiative, as well as two awards at the 2025 GovMedia Conference & Awards in Singapore, namely the ‘UAE Public Sector Initiative of the Year Award for World Cities Culture Summit 2024’, and the ‘UAE Public-Private Partnership of the Year Award for Dubai Culture & Google: Digitising Heritage & Empowering Creatives,’ both in the Culture and the Arts category; as well as at the 2024 GovMedia Conference & Awards in Singapore, namely the ‘Digital Initiative of the Year’ award for the Ramadan Heroes initiative and the ‘Campaign of the Year’ award for the Dubai Calligraphy Biennale, both in the Culture and the Arts category. Her efforts also contributed to winning 4 accolades at the 2025 MENA Stevie Awards, namely the Gold award for the Most Innovative Marketing or Advertising Professional of the Year; Gold award for Innovative Achievement in Corporate Social Responsibility for the Ramadan Heroes Initiative; Gold for Most Innovative Instagram Feed for the Creative Dubai account; and Bronze for Most Innovative Instagram Feed for the Sikka Platform account.