Meet the woman connecting female leaders in the Middle East

WRITTEN BY: KATE BIRCH

Founder of WILD, the first professional network to connect women across the Middle East, and the first in Saudi, Emma Burdett is trailblazing gender equality

Bullied, fired, harassed, manipulated, belittled. There isn’t much Emma Burdett hasn’t endured while working in the corporate sector –from vindictive female bosses to ego-driven male bullies, intimidated by confidence and potential.

Toxic workplace cultures are widespread. A recent survey from the McKinsey Health Institute reported more than half (55%) of people in the Middle East endured a toxic workplace.

“I had a male boss demote me, belittle me, forge sales figures and assign me low producing regions so I would fail,” says Emma, who has worked in various male-dominated sectors, including real estate and construction, both of which remain so today.

It’s one of the reasons Dubai-based Emma created WILD Women Collective, a network dedicated to supporting women, helping them implement boundaries and ultimately providing them with a safe space where they can be ’seen’ and ’heard’.

It was in 2018, following a mental breakdown brought on by burnout, that Emma decided to start WILD with just US$300, officially launching in Dubai in mid-January this year, before unveiling the concept in Saudi Arabia and then Abu Dhabi.

Emma, who is a transformational coach and gender equality specialist, tells Business Chief that what originally started as four women sat around a table with a sheet of paper has since become a “staple, vibrant and integral network within the UAE and Saudi with plans of scaling across other GCC locations and Middle East countries and to launch WILD UK.”

While the WILD Women Collective isn’t the first female professional networking group in Dubai – that title goes to two decade-old Dubai Business Women Council, founded by Dr Raja Al Gurg – it is the first and only network to connect women across the Middle East and the first to launch in Saudi Arabia.

“We are trailblazing gender equality,” Emma says. “Our membership gives women everything they need to create happiness, success, and fulfilment both in and out of the workplace.

“WILD is a movement I am proud to pioneer.”

3 more networking groups for women in the UAE

Dubai Business Women Council

Founded more than 20 years ago by Dr Raja Al Gurg, Chairperson and MD of the Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group, DBWC is the UAE’s leading platform for the personal and professional development of businesswomen in the UAE, providing education, training and networking opportunities. DBWC’s tailored workshops and seminars for members offer training in valuable skills and best practices.

Female Fusion

Founded by Dubai-based entrepreneur Jen Blandos, Female Fusion is the UAE’s largest and most engaged community for womenowned businesses, for female entrepreneurs who want to start, build, grow, and scale.

Members receive masterclasses, workshops, monthly UAE-based meetups and events, and discounts on business-critical services. Membership is waitlisted until September.

The Bureau

Recently co-founded by Dubai-raised sisters Nikita and Rhea Patel, The Bureau is the UAE’s first purpose-build female-focused co-working space – think meeting rooms, co-working lounges, phone booths, podcast studio, fitness studio and pumping room. The Bureau provides purposeful networking, with regular events and mentorship programmes, including industry-specific matches, and a regular series of talks on everything from financial empowerment to mental health.

WILD – supporting wellness as much as ambition

For Emma, who has seen the impact of burnout first-hand, it was important that WILD be as much about wellbeing as it is about striving for success.

“Burnout is real and serious,” declares Emma, and “something I see often with women… as they work tirelessly to prove they are as strong, dedicated and just as committed and ambitious as men.”

Society continues to reward the ’hustle’, the pushing and striving, something Emma argues is an “outdated and backward concept” and one that needs to change. “What we should be encouraging is creating space for ourselves and putting our health and wellbeing at the top of the agenda.”

And research backs this up, with one-third of employees in GCC countries reporting burnout symptoms, and more than 60% reporting symptoms of poor mental health and wellbeing, McKinsey Health Institute finds.

The level of employees experiencing distress, often a precursor to burnout, was also higher in the GCC than globally, with 55% reporting it compared to 32% globally.

And such burnout is often driven by toxic behaviour at work. GCC employees reporting high levels of toxic behaviour at work are seven times more likely to experience burnout –something Emma has herself experienced and is focused on tackling with WILD.