For over 25 years, Dr. Basma Albuhairan has created, led, and advised innovative and ambitious initiatives in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, across domains including clinical operations, health technology adoption, business transformation, education, investment, and innovation. She is an accomplished leader with a distinguished track record spanning strategy, development, and transformation across diverse industries, especially in establishing, leading, and managing public private partnerships.

She is currently the Managing Director of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Affiliate Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution Centre in Saudi Arabia, which supports the Kingdom’s “Vision 2030” by being a platform for public-private, multi-stakeholder collaboration to maximize technological benefits to society and minimize the risks associated with Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies in the Kingdom.

A healthcare professional and academic by background, Dr. AlBuhairan has deep expertise in setting up greenfield healthcare facilities and operations, healthcare transformation, education, investment development, and innovation. Also, she was a key advisor and part of the Founding Team of the Research Development Innovation Authority (RDI Authority). She has helped King Abdulaziz Medical City, Riyadh (Ministry of National Guard Health Affairs) to commission, set up, and manage clinical departments and lead cross-collaborative initiatives in areas such as patient safety with diverse stakeholders across the organization. She then became Healthcare and University Relations Leader at IBM, where she led key strategic relationships under the portfolio of healthcare and education.

Subsequently, she co-led the commissioning and setup of the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz University Hospital, and served as its Deputy CEO. In conjunction to this role, she also led the establishment of the Princess Nourah University Health Sciences and Research Center.

Dr. AlBuhairan also went on to serve as Chief Events Management and Business Development Officer at the National Center of Events; an advisor to the Minister of Investment. Prior to that, she was an Advisor to the Governor of the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA), and led the Healthcare and Life Sciences Sector where she was instrumental in attracting multinational life sciences organizations to the Kingdom.

A hallmark of Dr. AlBuhairan’s career has been her personal agility, strong ability to lead, and skills in cross-cultural, multi-disciplinary communications and collaborations. Being passionate about lifelong learning and imparting her knowledge and experience with others, Dr. Albuhairan has been a mentor for many individuals across diverse cultural backgrounds. She was an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the School of Medicine, University of Utah, USA. Basma holds a PhD in Patient Safety Policy Making (Sheffield University, UK); and two Master’s, in Molecular Biology (Brown University, USA) and in Infection Reduction Post Total Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeries (Sheffield University, UK).

Dr. AlBuhairan is also a fellow of the prestigious Eisenhower Fellowships Organization, and was awarded the Ward Wheelock Fellow Award in 2013.