Rula El Kaliouby, the CEO and Founder of Intuition Collectives, is a perceptive and thoughtful strategist who explores the motivations behind human behavior and constructs strategic networks while keeping abreast of new developments and technologies that influence communication, competitiveness, and future preparedness in both the public and private sectors. She envisions driving meaningful change and generating value by comprehending the inner workings of governmental and non-governmental entities, along with their procedures, policies, and influential individuals, across various industries.
Below are highlights of the interview conducted between World’s Leaders and Rula El Kaliouby:
Describe who you are as a person, inside and outside of the workplace.
I’m a passionate and thoughtful problem-solver who loves connecting with people. With a passion for discovering creative solutions, my drive is fueled by listening to people’s stories.
Describe your background and what did you do before you started/joined the company?
I’ve always been captivated by the creative power of commercials, something that was with me from a young age. This curiosity led to my education in business administration and mass communications at the American University of Cairo, followed by a 14-year career at BBDO across Cairo and Dubai. However, it wasn’t until I reached J Walter Thompson, working as an Executive Director, that life took an interesting turn after meeting Egypt’s new Minister for Tourism, who inspired me to switch gears into the public sector, setting off on a journey like no other.
For over four remarkable years, I had the opportunity to share Egypt’s inspiring story with its global audience. As a Strategic Advisor and Head of Communications for both the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of International Cooperation, it was a privilege to craft policy frameworks that allowed our country’s impressive narrative to be seen around the world.
Tell us about the inception of the company. How did it all start?
My time at the Ministry of International Cooperation opened up a world of possibilities; I realized that with creative and innovative problem-solving ideas, I could have an even greater impact. And so, intuition was born—designed to craft new pathways to success by developing forward-thinking strategies across public sector and private sector institutions. All of my best business decisions in life have been made with heart, intuition, and guts, and this is where the name comes from.
With a purpose-led mindset, intuition is continuously reimagining value through brand building, marketing, and advertising. Putting strategy before all else, this journey proved successful as it ultimately transformed value across many sectors.
What has made you successful? What do you value?
Bridging top-shelf creative work with business consulting and transformation has been a rainbow that many have been reaching for over the past decade. Egypt is a melting point for creativity, but the issue that clients face is how to create purpose-led creative work that solves business problems or meets their ambitions. What we’re doing, day in and day out, is trying to take creativity, which is about understanding, and spread it to reach more people and places. One of our values is partner, not agent. I believe clients find value in intuition simply because we care.
Which are the major services of the company and how do they the company to get ahead in the competition? What value-added services does the company provide?
Our well-versed team takes a collective approach to consulting, leveraging our extensive expertise and network of creatives to craft comprehensive brand strategies that guarantee growth. But it’s more than just giving advice. Clients don’t just come to us because we’re creative. The creative gets all the glory, but strategy is our secret sauce.
What we do is create value by guiding the entire process from concept development through implementation, ensuring that any business reaches its maximum potential. Instead of chasing after fame, we take the road less traveled. We understand that these days people want more than what’s on the surface; they’re asking questions about brands and wondering who’s behind them. That’s why we excel at exceeding expectations by carefully crafting an identity with a story, elevating clients to embody something special, deepening their connection with their customers, and giving back to society.
What is the significance of innovative ideas in the company?
Our entire process is about innovation and creativity. Building a relationship and the experience of a brand is developed across multiple touch points, and this requires a lot of new concepts. This is what makes our job very exciting and liberating. As much as the industry is dependent on making glorious TV commercials, if we can also take different narratives and translate them into different mediums, this is what sounds amazing to us.
Give us your opinion on; do organizations rely heavily on individual heroics or team processes?
Last week, our executive team discussed the world of standard processes versus responsible freedom. It’s a delicate balance—one that can be difficult to find success in. Our mantra and values reminded us how important it is to promote individual creativity. If you’re more comfortable using tools like Slack and Trello for efficiency, then go for it; if not, then it’s not mandated. We’re free to work as we wish but still have a great job done. Accountability….
What are your responsibilities as the founder and CEO of the company? What is the happiest part of your daily routine?
With an average of 35,000 decisions made each day, I’m always asking myself, How can I make some of those critical choices the best they can be? Seeing the amazing impact we can have on society just by making wise decisions is inspiring. I’m grateful for our team gatherings, where creative ideas come together and turn into something amazing. It’s a joy seeing my team push themselves every day with new challenges and the motivation they have when they see the results of their work come to life.
What advice would you give someone going into a leadership position for the first time?
As an entrepreneur, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the lonely journey ahead. But with every challenge comes a valuable lesson; and that is to be kind to yourself even when things don’t go exactly as planned. Take time each day for experimentation. Trust the process and have faith that life will continue onward through grace and kindness towards oneself.
