Staff Spotlight: Karen Salama

Title:
Director, Global Strategic Partnerships

Photos

A marketing and communications authority, Karen has over 15 years’ experience building in-house and global practices for both start-up ventures and Fortune 500 corporations, as well as managing, developing and implementing initiatives across multiple industries and disciplines. These include Entertainment, Retail, Technology, Global Affairs, Education, Not-for-Profit, Arts, Health Care, and Startup Ventures.

What is your favorite travel memory?

Brazil when I was 5 years old. It was the first trip that I truly remembered. The people were incredibly warm and kind. The Copacabana beach (and hotel) was beautiful - the sand was unbearably hot. The stunning sunsets - blood orange in colour. To this day, I have never seen a sunset like that. Listening to Bossanova, taking the cable car tram to Sugarloaf Mountain, playing on the swings at the “Blue Park” and drinking mango juice…

Brazil and Brazilians will always have a soft spot in my heart.

How have you changed/grown since working for your current company?

Israeli academia and the mindset is uniquely different from any Israeli I have worked with previously (which has primarily been in the entrepreneurship/start-up world). I have learned a lot about patience, which has never been my strong suit. I have started to appreciate the Middle Eastern way of thinking, which is considerably different from the North American approach. Applying these cultural differences is essential in order to be successful when working globally.

What is the best story you've heard from a return student?

We have had a few wonderful stories and there isn’t one that stands out more than the others. The most important takeaway for me has been hearing how BGU has enlightened the overall experience in Israel and created a connection to the country which had not been created previously. The campus life experience gave these students the opportunity to feel at home and build a life of activity and friends. For the students that had internships, they loved combining their learning with academics and soft skills, as well as meeting and working side by side with innovators and creators. The overall journey has created such an impact that many have expressed interest in returning to Israel and in some cases, to even sign up for more programs.

If you could go on any program that your company offers, which one would you choose and why?

Learning Hebrew is always helpful when working with and/or living in Israel. Therefore, studying Ulpan would be an immediate no-brainer.

Being that there is so much innovation and tech opportunities developing in the Negev with the Advanced Technologies Park and the Eilat Tech Hub, I would also take advantage of working with some of the accelerators and innovation hubs as well as BGU's Yazamut360 (entrepreneurship program).

What makes your company unique? When were you especially proud of your team?

Creating Yazamut360 (our new entrepreneurship program and center) which includes Israel’s first student-run venture fund and Women’s Entrepreneurship program. Cactus Capital Fund, the student-run venture, was modeled after Harvard and MIT with one small (and important) addition: The goal to develop the ecosystem of the region. By creating companies, you create employment and infrastructure that will develop socio-economically. This, in turn, will create the region and thus, make the Negev the next center of innovation in Israel.

What do you believe to be the biggest factor in being a successful company?

Strong leadership. This is the key to any company’s success. A leader with a vision and a solid understanding of how to achieve that vision, even if it means surrounding himself/herself with innovative minds (and more importantly, recognizing and supporting talent and great thinking). This will create an environment of creativity, ambition and drive. Success is married to this mindset.