Fundraising Fox

Najla Al-Midfa

Investor

CEO, Sheraa at Mindshift Capital

Sharjah, UAE

Find your path to Najla

1,256 people in our graph share verified history with Najla — schools, employers, funds. One of them is your warm intro.

Laura BuhlerunlockedNajla: together at McKinsey & Company (2009)
Najla: together at Google, Inc (Mountain View, CA)
×2Najla: together at McKinsey & Company
×4Najla: together at University of Bath

About

Najla Al-Midfa is the Vice Chairperson of the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa), where she previously served as Founding CEO, and Vice Chairperson of the Emirates Growth Fund. During her involvement, Sheraa has incubated over 200 ventures that have raised more than $270 million in investment and launched the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Festival in 2017. She also holds board positions across several organizations, including publicly listed companies, in sectors such as banking, energy, and education.

Experience

  1. Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa)Vice Chairpersoncurrent2024 — presentSharjah, Sharjah Emirate, United Arab Emirates
  2. Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa)CEO2015 — 2024Sharjah
  3. Emirates Growth Fund (EGF)Vice Chairmancurrent2024 — present
  4. Emirates Growth Fund (EGF)Vice Chairman and Managing Director2024 — 2025
  5. United Arab BankBoard Membercurrent2012 — presentUnited Arab Emirates
  6. Dana GasBoard Membercurrent2021 — present
  7. Emirates Development Bank (EDB)Board Membercurrent2020 — present
  8. Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park (SRTI Park)Board Membercurrent2024 — present
  9. Sharjah Education AcademyBoard Membercurrent2024 — present
  10. Friends of Cancer PatientsBoard Membercurrent2025 — present
  11. National Agriculture Centre (UAE)Board Membercurrent2026 — present
  12. Eisenhower FellowshipsEisenhower Fellowcurrent2019 — present
  13. The Aspen InstituteFellow, Middle East Leadership Initiativecurrent2011 — present
  14. Young Arab LeadersVice Chairman2015 — 2023
  15. KhayaratFounder2014 — 2018United Arab Emirates
  16. Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development (Abu Dhabi, UAE)Senior Manager, Entrepreneurship Development2010 — 2013
  17. McKinsey & Company (New York, NY)Senior Associate2008 — 2009
  18. Google, Inc (Mountain View, CA)MBA Intern2006
  19. Shell (Dubai, UAE)Business Analyst2003 — 2005
  20. PricewaterhouseCoopers (Dubai, UAE)Senior Associate2000 — 2003

Skills & more

Private Equity30Business Strategy99Management Consulting98Business Development51Strategic Planning63Venture Capital26Strategy99Financial Modeling31Change Management21Social Entrepreneurship17Project Management21Entrepreneurship99
+12 moreStart-upsWomen LeadersTeam LeadershipDue DiligenceValuationBusiness AnalysisNegotiationBusiness PlanningPublic SpeakingLeadershipCorporate FinanceProgram Management

From Najla's professional profile.

Colleagues at Mindshift Capital

Anton Iassenev
Chief Commercial Officer at Ellerston Capital
Barbara Baumgartner
Investment Committee at Mindshift Capital
Daphne Kis
Director, WorldQuant University at Mindshift Capital
Heather Henyon
Founding General Partner at Mindshift Capital
Joumana Jallad
Investment Committee at Mindshift Capital
Katherine Kirsch
Venture Partner at Mindshift Capital
Marcia Dawood
Venture Partner at Mindshift Capital
Rebecca Hall
Venture Partner at Mindshift Capital

Frequently asked questions

Who is Najla Al-Midfa?
Najla Al-Midfa is the Vice Chairperson of the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa), where she previously served as Founding CEO, and Vice Chairperson of the Emirates Growth Fund. During her involvement, Sheraa has incubated over 200 ventures that have raised more than $270 million in investment and launched the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Festival in 2017. She also holds board positions across several organizations, including publicly listed companies, in sectors such as banking, energy, and education.
Where does Najla Al-Midfa work?
Najla Al-Midfa is CEO, Sheraa at Mindshift Capital.
Where did Najla Al-Midfa go to school?
Najla Al-Midfa studied at Stanford University Graduate School of Business (MBA); University of Bath (BSc(Hons), Computer Science).

Same school

Also attended Stanford University Graduate School of Business2,000

Roelof BothaAdvisor & former Steward at Sequoia Capital; SpaceX board memberPeter FentonGeneral Partner at BenchmarkSteve JurvetsonCo-founder of Future VenturesDavid SzeAdvisory Partner at GreylockKatherine BoyleGeneral Partner at Andreessen Horowitz (American Dynamism)Hunter WalkCo-founder & Partner at Homebrew

+ 1,994 more

Also attended University of Bath194

Catherine BergersenSenior Executive Assistant at Mayfair Equity PartnersJohanInvestor at InvestinorMaddie CoughlinInvestor at DN CapitalBen PalmerInvestment Professional at OxxJuliette PetitChief of Staff at Keen Venture PartnersSarah HollyheadDirector at Marlin Equity Partners

+ 188 more

Shared employers

Also worked at Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa)4

Sonia WeymullerCo-Founder and General Partner at VentureSouqKevin CzokManaging Partner at Stakehouse QPAhmed AJFounder at Tasker AIKarim DakkiFounder at Klaim

Also worked at Emirates Growth Fund (EGF)1

Stephen WeltonChair of Board at British Business Bank

Also worked at Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park (SRTI Park)1

Abdulaziz Al LoughaniFounder at Floward

Also worked at Shell (Dubai, UAE)159

Rob van der MeijPartner at Capricorn Venture PartnersElina HolkkoPartner and CFO at Lifeline VenturesKatie ClasenPartner at Prelude VenturesSamuel MugoyaGeneral Partner Advisor at Beyond Capital VenturesBikram DangInvestor Relations at Group 11Mira InbarPartner at ArcTern Ventures

+ 153 more