5 Madhav Kurup
CEO Middle East, Hellmann World Wide Logistics
Year of establishment: 1871 and in UAE 2000
Location of head office: Osnabrueck and Hamburg, Germany and MENASA Regional HQ, Dubai
Total employees: 20,000 worldwide and 3,000 in MENASA
Years in the company: 8 years
CEO of MENA and South Asia since 1 January, 2016, Madhav Kurup has been responsible for business operations for the last seven years, but now manages 3,000 employees across his region.
With an eye on its Intra Asia capability, Kurup is focussed on the development of India and healthcare in the UAE, with expanded operations in Saudi Arabia in addition to establishing operations for Henkel, Pfizer and SIG.
In the last financial year YoY growth continued with UAE operations up 25% and Saudi Arabia up three fold.
While continuing to maintain its leading market position in the automotive and healthcare sectors, Hellmann is also working to create specialised solutions for the fashion and chemicals industries, as well as working the launch of its own complete e-fulfilment platform for e-commerce and market place; a unique solution in the market.
Reflecting on his greatest career achievement to date, Kurup comments: I have always focused on creating difference by thinking out of the box. I feel fortunate to work with great colleagues who have always supported me in my thinking and strategies. I have turned around companies in the past however, taking Hellmann from small sized transactional forwarder in UAE to one of the largest and innovative service providers in the region is by far the highlight of my career.