Women In Marketing 2024 Edition ft. Rummana Hasan from Ambu A/s

Rummana Hasan is the Chief Marketing Officer at Ambu A/s and shares her story on this segment of Women In Marketing. She advocates for flexibility in the workplace and favours a hybrid work model. Rummana believes that AI is currently underused in professional settings and is keen to observe its potential impact on research and development and product development.

Personal Background:

Thanks for taking the time to participate in our ‘Women In Marketing’ feature. Where were you born, and what childhood memories stand out for you?

I was born in Bromley, England. The childhood memories that stand out for me are foraging around for berries in the woods, climbing cherry trees, Go-Karts and just a glorious childhood of outdoor play.  No mobile phones back then and you had to be a good child to have a video game all to yourself.  Anyway, I’d get quickly bored with video games.

Describe your high school and college years. You were the coolest one, right?

High school was active. I was involved in a great deal of extra-curricular activities, especially theater and the school magazine.  But it was very important for me to excel at school so I invested a lot of time revising my lessons at home. Yes, I was cool if you call being voted head girl cool? Head-girls can be pretty harsh but I was easy-going. College was pretty much the same, and I was editor-in-chief of the college magazine.  I wasn’t uncool, let’s put it that way.

What’s your favourite meal that you wouldn’t share with anyone?

Secret: I love sweets, and sometimes I hide the best flavours. But, generally, I love cooking and eating with others so the pleasure is much more when you eat together.

What would be your plans for a sudden $10 million windfall if you were to receive it tomorrow?

Retire from work, and use my marketing skill-set to lobby for peace and prosperity.  Social movements of change can happen but it takes dedication, a genius idea and a lot of campaigning with the right stakeholders.  

Can you share an interesting fact or hidden talent not found on your LinkedIn profile? Previous Women in Marketing candidate Kate MacWilliam says she can sing, while Nosipho Ginindza is an absolute sneakerhead!

I dabble in Interior Design.

Career and Work:

How do you typically start your day, and are you #TeamCoffee, #TeamTea, or both?

I start my day by catching up with the news and definitely #TeamCoffee in the morning.  Being Swiss, we are all about Nespresso. What else? Then as the day goes by I reduce my caffeine consumption and move on to herbal teas.  Definitely a tea and coffee fan.

via GIPHY

What inspired you to pursue a career in marketing? Didn’t the “I want to become a doctor” bug bite you?

The ”I want to become a doctor” bug bit my grandmother and mother. In expected rebellion, I didn’t conform to this.

Moreover, I was scared of dissecting cockroaches and rats. I think I would have had nightmares after a post-mortem.  What drew me to marketing is that not only can you flex your creative bone whilst remaining logical and realistic all at the same time.  It goes with my ENTP personality traits.

Many industries had to create systems overnight that would enable their respective workforces to work from home due to the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic. What’s your perspective on remote and hybrid work, and how have you dealt with its challenges? Do you have a preference?

I think it’s wonderful to have flexibility as everyone is different and everyone has a different rhythm of working.  Some are effective in the mornings and others in the evenings.  I believe you can get greater productivity out of people and have a less stressed workforce if you give them some time out of commuting and a rigid schedule. 

However, teamwork and relationships at work might suffer.  I would not advise fully remote as teams need to come together and spar and also meet in a more social context for trust building.  For me, it’s been great as I am a bit of a spur-of-the-moment person.  Rigid schedules don’t necessarily suit me.

AI is the hot topic of the day, most specifically, generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini. How do you address the challenges you face in your day-to-day responsibilities? Any specific tools you’d like to plug us with? 

AI in the workplace has not been fully utilised in my opinion. 

It’s more focused on driving efficiency and communication or collaboration.  I believe it can go much further. I look forward to seeing how it might transform R&D and product development. I believe marketers should utilise AI more as part of their toolbox, especially targeting, segmentation and all forms of customer insight mining and acquisition.

According to the WEF, the pandemic caused a 4.2% reduction in women’s employment compared to 3% of men (from 2019 to 2020). How can organisations better support women and mothers, especially in light of the pandemic’s impact on women in the workplace?

We already talked about hybrid working models and flexible hours.  I think it’s crucial to support young working mums as they are the future executives of the industry.  We shouldn’t make the pipeline leaner.  Things have greatly improved regarding lenient maternity and paternity leave. The only other thing I would advise leaders is to stop talking about D&I as if it’s a female problem.  We must go further to redefine leadership traits that are not strictly evolved from the old world of male-dominated boardrooms.  Women have different leadership styles and talents and the leadership competency models that organisations use need updating.

2024 and Beyond:

If you could go back in time, what advice would you give your younger self?

Exercise more patience. Believe in myself more. Balance work with a healthy home life and exercise. Don’t work more than 8-hour days.

What are your personal or professional goals and aspirations for the future? 

Work in more countries. Mentor others.

What are you currently reading, and how do you consume your content?

I read online. I read to escape so I prefer Comics, fantasy etc. It’s my way to switch off.

You wake up one day, and before you know it, you are nearing retirement. What would you like your professional legacy to be? Furthermore, what do your colleagues and superiors admire about you the most?

I aspire to leave a lasting legacy as a catalyst for brand excellence, driving groundbreaking innovation and empowering visionary marketers.

We are always looking for amazing Women In Marketing to profile. Who would you like us to get in touch with?

Stephanie Rupp.

Share a unique message for young professionals in the marketing industry.

Use your gut, it’s usually right and validate your assumptions with your stakeholders. 

Thank you for your time, Rummana. We hope this interview will inspire future leaders and other Women in Marketing. How can people follow you and your company on social media? 

I am available on Linkedin.