Segment 1 – Origins of a Visionary
Q1 Tamara, every mentor has an origin story. Take us back to the beginning. Was there a defining moment or experience early in life that set you on this path of believing in the future and wanting to shape it?
Q2 Perhaps it was during your childhood or your college days in computer science – was there an aha! moment when you realized, “Technology and policy, that’s where I can make a difference”? We’d love to hear any personal story from your early years that sparked your vision.
Q3 You grew up and started your career at the nexus of very different worlds – the tech world and the policy arena. Did you always intend to blend those two? For instance, were you the type of software engineer who was equally drawn to social issues and governance? Or did one passion come first and lead to the other?
Q4 Many leaders have obstacles or even failures that shape them. Could you share a challenge you faced in your formative years – maybe doubters who said a woman couldn’t excel in software engineering, or a cultural expectation you had to push against? How did that experience mold your resolve?
Q5 What lessons did you carry forward from those early chapters? For example, if you were mentoring your younger self or someone starting out now, what would you tell them was the most important thing you learned when you were just Tamara at the starting line, not “Dr. Tamara” yet?
Segment 2 – Bridging Code and Policy
Q6 How do you bridge those two worlds? For instance, when you were CEO of $Pay Rem, your fintech remittance startup, you were deep in technology and entrepreneurship. How did that tech perspective influence the way you approach government policies? Did you find yourself saying, “If only regulators understood this tech…” and conversely, when you stepped into policy roles, “If only techies understood the policy constraints…”?
Q7 Can you share a story of a project where tech and policy truly came together? Maybe an e-governance initiative in a MENA country where you helped design digital public services? What was it like convincing government officials to embrace a digital solution? Walk us through that – any memorable moments, perhaps resistance you overcame or a breakthrough where a traditional institution finally said “yes” to innovation.
Q8 You’re known as a MENA public policy specialist in tech. The Middle East and North Africa region has such diversity – from highly digital economies to places just starting out with governance tech. What’s a challenge you often face in that region when implementing digital governance? Is it infrastructure? Is it mindset and trust? Maybe share an example, like working in a country where you had to build digital trust among users or officials who were used to paper processes.
Q9 And conversely, what’s a success story that you’re proud of in digital governance? Perhaps something where a policy you contributed to directly improved citizens’ lives – like an online portal that increased access to education or a fintech regulation that made remittances cheaper and faster for families. We’d love to hear a tangible “win” and the human impact it had.
Q10 Also, I’m curious – do you still ever get your hands dirty with code these days? I know you’re a President and an executive now, but once a software engineer, always a software engineer, right? Do you ever jump in to prototype an idea or at least speak the lingo with your development teams, and does that surprise your policy colleagues?
Segment 3 – Empowering Change: Women & SDGs
Q11 I’d like to start with a story if you have one – maybe of a woman or a girl whose life was changed through one of your initiatives. It could be someone from a rural area who got a scholarship, or an entrepreneur you mentored who broke barriers. Sometimes these individual stories show us why this work matters. Is there a particular person or moment that reminds you, “This is why I do this”?
Q12 I also read that you led a global campaign against gender-based violence spanning 70 countries – wow! That’s massive. What was it like coordinating something across so many regions? Did you encounter cultural pushback in some places, and how did you adapt? Please share what that campaign achieved and perhaps a powerful moment from that journey (maybe a country that surprised you with an outpouring of support, or a personal thank-you from someone affected by the campaign).
Q13 When we talk about women’s empowerment and SDGs, it’s big picture and also deeply personal. On one hand, you’re dealing with policy – quotas, funding for girls’ education, laws protecting women. On the other hand, you’re dealing with mindsets – centuries of culture and attitudes. Which do you find tougher: changing laws or changing minds? Perhaps you can give an example: maybe a policy victory that was hollow until the community embraced it, or a grassroots change that happened even before the law caught up.
Q14 Education is a theme in your work – you’re literally the president of an international education federation. If you could reform one thing about how girls and young women are educated or empowered globally, what would it be? Is it access to STEM? Is it mentorship opportunities? What’s a change that you believe would create a ripple effect for achieving those SDGs, say by 2030?
Q15 And I have to ask – you wear so many hats, how do you stay connected to the people you’re trying to help? Do you travel often to meet students or communities on the ground? Maybe share a humble moment – like sitting down for tea in a village or a time you were moved to tears by a story at a workshop. Sometimes as leaders we have these grounding moments that keep us humble. Do you have one that keeps you motivated when the bureaucratic side of things gets heavy?
Segment 4 – Navigating Storms (Controversy & Clarity)
Q16 Dr. Tamara, could you tell us about a time you faced significant resistance or criticism? Perhaps you introduced a bold policy or took a stand that was controversial. For example, did you ever push a digital governance reform that threatened established interests or faced cultural resistance? What happened, and how did you respond when the criticism started pouring in?
Q17 It might be tough to revisit, but we learn a lot from those moments. Maybe there was a project that didn’t go as planned – say, an initiative that failed initially or got public pushback. How did you handle the fallout? Did you ever question yourself, and what helped you find clarity and stay true to your vision?
Q18 Leaders often have to make choices where there is no easy answer – a kind of ethical or strategic dilemma. Have you had a moment like that? For instance, balancing between modernizing quickly with tech and potentially causing job disruptions or privacy concerns in a community. How do you find clarity in such gray areas? Do you have a process – like consulting mentors, reflecting quietly, or something – that guides you to the right decision?
Q19 Also, being a woman in high leadership, especially in traditional sectors, can attract unfair criticism. Did you ever face personal attacks or biases – people focusing on you rather than the ideas? If so, how did you rise above that? (gently) I think it’s important for our audience to hear how you persevered, maybe turned detractors into believers, or simply proved them wrong by succeeding.
Q20 What was the silver lining in these controversies? Often there’s a lesson or an outcome that, in hindsight, was positive. Maybe opposition forced you to refine your idea until it was rock-solid, or it brought allies rallying to your side. Can you share a positive takeaway from weathering a storm?
Segment 5 – Mentor’s Toolkit (Advice & Mentorship)
Q21 Dr. Tamara, you’ve mentored many and led teams across generations. If you were to open your leadership toolkit, what top three tools or principles would you hand to an aspiring leader? Think of someone maybe in their 20s, passionate about tech and social change like you were – what should they hone in themselves?
Q22 For example, one could be vision. You’re clearly a big picture thinker – how can a young person cultivate a visionary mindset rather than getting lost in day-to-day tasks? Any exercises or habits that helped you, like reading extensively or journaling your ideas?
Q23 Another might be multidisciplinary learning. You navigated from software engineering to policy. Many youths feel pressured to specialize, but you made a strength of being multidisciplinary. What would you say to someone who has varied interests – how can they integrate them into a unique career path rather than feeling they must pick one lane?
Q24 Could you share a personal lesson from a mentor you had? Maybe an anecdote of a mentor or boss who guided you early on – something they told you that became a mantra for you. (light laugh) Or even advice you got that you ignored at first but later realized was spot on.
Q25 And how about mentorship from your side – a success story of someone you mentored? Perhaps a junior colleague or a student who came to you for guidance and then flourished. What did you do as a mentor that made a difference for them? That can really highlight what effective mentorship looks like in practice.
Q26 In practical terms, for our listeners, what skills should they start building today? Are we talking coding and communication? Should they volunteer in community projects to understand social issues firsthand? Basically, given how the world is changing – AI, globalization, climate – what should the next generation focus on to be prepared as leaders?
Q27 Also, sometimes the best advice comes from mistakes. Would you be open to sharing one mistake or false start in your career, and what you learned from it? Maybe an initiative that flopped, or a job you almost quit – something human. We all stumble; hearing that you did too and bounced back will be hugely encouraging.
Segment 6 – Rapid Fire Revelations (Truth & Dare)
Now, Tamara, we’ve arrived at a really fun part of the show – “Rapid Fire Revelations!” It’s basically our truth-and-dare quick round. The goal is to have a bit of fun and see a more spontaneous side of you. I’ll throw out a prompt, and you answer with the first thing that comes to mind. Are you ready?
Q28 What’s a common misconception about you? Something people always assume because of your impressive resume or titles, but isn’t true.
Q29 What technology or gadget are you surprisingly bad at using? (teasing) Even tech leaders have that one tech thing that just doesn’t click for them.
Q30 Which leader (past or present) inspires you the most in your work? You can pick anyone – a historical figure, a contemporary icon – who do you often look up to or quote?
Q31 I dare you to describe your mission in life in just ONE word. one word that drives Dr. Tamara Alqolaghassi.
Q32 What do you do to unwind or de-stress after a hectic day of being a global superwoman? Paint us a picture – are you a late-night reader, do you cook, do yoga, binge silly TV?
Q33 Can you share a humbling failure in a sentence? Like, “Tried to X and it flopped” – something quick that still makes you laugh or shake your head.
Q34: I dare you to give yourself a compliment out loud that you wouldn’t normally say. what’s something you’re proud of about you, that we haven’t covered?
Segment 7 – Future Forward (Vision for the Future)
Q35 It’s the year 2030, the target year for the Sustainable Development Goals. Close your eyes and tell us: What does success look like to you by then? In the domains you work in – say digital governance, women’s empowerment, education – what do you aspire the world to be like? Paint us that picture.
Q36 Maybe you imagine MENA governments fully online and accessible to all citizens, or perhaps gender equality in tech where half the coders and engineers are women. What are a couple of milestones or transformations you dream will happen by the time the next generation comes of age?
Q37 And what about you personally? You’ve already achieved so much, but visionaries never stop. Do you have new horizons you want to conquer in the coming years? Maybe expanding your fintech to reach millions more, or starting a leadership academy for youth, or even writing a book to share your knowledge? What’s on your future to-do list that gets you excited?
Q38 For the rest of us – those listening who might be wondering how they can contribute – what do you urge people to do? Perhaps something like, “mentor a young woman in your community,” or “embrace digital literacy no matter your age,” or “hold your leaders accountable for sustainable policies.” Essentially, what calls to action would you issue to all of us so that we can collectively build that future you described?
Q39 And this is a question I ask every guest on this show, so I’d love to hear your take: Dr. Tamara Alqolaghassi, what message would you like to leave for the next generation? What would you say directly to young people who will inherit the world we shape today?
