Announcing the First Lion of the Lions Den 2023, Obaid Rahman from Axiata

Lions don’t concern themselves with the opinions of sheep…

As part of The Innovators 2023, ROCCO introduces within the Genesis event an innovation showcase session where companies can present ideas /products or solutions. An important part of this is the Lion’s Den.

Lion’s Den

A Vendor/MNO pitches an innovative idea / product / solution which could help the Roaming, Messaging, Interconnect and Fraud & Security industry to generate revenues or save costs, become more efficient or offer more quality solutions to end subscribers. They will present to a panel of Lions who give live feedback to them in-front of the Genesis audience.

Obaid Rahman

The first lion Obaid Rahman, Group Head of Wholesale at Axiata Group, holds the responsibility for the entire Wholesale and Carrier Services portfolio across Axiata’s APAC footprint. He has a wealth of in-depth experience from a 25-year career in wholesale telecommunications and is well-recognised as an industry leader. He possesses a successful track record of managing multiple geographies whilst working for major telecom groups across Europe, Middle East, Asia and the Americas and has delivered aggressive commercial and financial targets. Obaid is focused on driving synergies across Axiata’s digital telcos and infrastructure, all while spearheading the establishment of Axiata Wholesale as the preferred wholesale partner across Asia.

Many of a lion’s traits are embodied perfectly within Obaid. He consistently demonstrates remarkable tenacity in hunting down extraordinary goals and objectives, and never wavers from having to make tough decisions. A bold leader in his own right, Obaid is unfailing in commanding the team’s advances with tactical efficiency, and possesses an uncanny ability to quickly perceive problems and transform them into opportunities.

How Lion’s Den works

  • Companies/ Individuals pitch their idea to the Lions, showing with a maximum of 7 slides the full solution, its name, cost, use, time to market, etc
  • The Lions will listen with an open mind to each idea which is being pitched to them.
  • The Lions will ask direct questions, and debate among themselves the pros and cons of the idea and whether they like the idea.
  • They will give honest feedback/constructive criticism stating why they approve or disapprove of the business idea/solution and provide a final opinion.
  • Lions are intimidating, and not always nice, you don’t know how they will react, but they will ultimately provide good advice

The Lions (all people from MNOs) will rate their innovations: 25% of the overall score in The Innovators 2023 Report. Then the audience at Genesis will also have a chance to rate the idea: 25% of the overall score.

Find out more about The Innovators here.