In the dynamic and critical domain of pharmaceutical distribution and scientific operations, where national health relies on strategic foresight and flawless execution, Dr. Ahmed J. Jabbar stands as a key figure in shaping the Iraqi healthcare landscape. As the Director of Operations at Shubber Scientific Bureau, and with a profound history of leadership in both global and local pharmaceutical powerhouses, he is justly recognized as one of the ‘Global Visionaries to Follow in 2026.’
Dr. Jabbar has two sides to him that act as one force driving him to fulfil his mission. His time at Sanofi gave him the foundation for years to come as he learned how to maintain distribution worldwide for high-quality products and successfully execute on a global growth strategy on a conservative budget. This valuable experience refined Dr. Jabbar’s capability to ensure the accomplishment of every local plan by aligning it with the highest caliber of operations performed throughout the world.
After transitioning his skills from Sanofi to Shubber Scientific Bureau, he was able to implement a major change and improvement throughout his organization based on this experience by improving business efficiencies, optimizing supplier chain effectiveness, and building high-performance sales and promotional teams, driving business success in a marketplace filled with competition.
Through all of these areas, Dr. Jabbar possesses an unwavering commitment to the operational excellence of his organization, working as a cohesive team player with a goal of improving patient access to quality medicines. For Dr. Jabbar, continuing on with this mission to raise the standards of the pharmaceutical industry within Iraq, he works in partnership with other leading pharmaceutical companies to create innovative products while delivering medicines on time to patients who need them. In addition to providing this level of service, he is also the strategic mind behind the scientific need for innovation, turning scientific necessity into commercial viability for patient access to the product.
The Defining Crucible: Crisis Leadership in Iraq
Dr. Jabbar’s leadership journey began with a profound decision in 2008: pivoting away from traditional clinical practice after graduating from the Baghdad College of Medicine. He chose the pharmaceutical industry, believing he could create impact at scale—influencing healthcare nationwide. His early momentum at Sanofi was electric, leading to promotions from Medical Representative to Head of Sales for Sanofi’s business in Iraq by May 2012, a role he held for four years.
Then came the defining test of his career: the 2014 takeover of major territories by ISIS. Leading teams during that period transcended mere performance; it became an intense crash course in crisis leadership. It was about “protecting people, ensuring access to essential medicines, navigating risk, and making decisions under extreme pressure.” These years—demanding foresight, adaptability, and decisive action—forged the resilient leadership mindset Dr. Jabbar still applies today.
The Entrepreneurial Pivot: Preserving Continuity
When Sanofi closed its direct presence in Iraq in 2016, Dr. Jabbar faced another turning point. Instead of seeing it as a setback, he leveraged his robust network, relationships, and reputation to establish a hybrid business model through the general trading company Judi Apex. This entrepreneurial period preserved his market continuity, deepened his commercial instincts, and strengthened his resilience, allowing him to represent multiple pharmaceutical companies and license products to sub-distributors in Kurdistan. This agile, self-directed experience was crucial before he chose to return to corporate leadership, joining Shubber Scientific Bureau in 2018, where he quickly ascended to Director of Operations.
The Mall of Brands: Visionary Consolidation
Upon joining Shubber in 2018, Dr. Jabbar identified a critical early signal: the Iraqi market was shifting toward global-standard compliance and strategic consolidation. Multinationals no longer wanted transactional distributors; they demanded fully integrated, strategic partners.
This insight birthed the vision: to transform Shubber into “The Mall of Brands”—a national platform capable of hosting leading global pharmaceutical companies under one umbrella. This single ecosystem provides promotional excellence, commercial discipline, regulatory compliance, strong supply chain performance, and institutional capabilities. Supported by the owners, this vision led to heavy investment in structure and talent development. Today, Shubber represents ten prominent multinational pharmaceutical companies, and the “Mall of Brands” has become a market reality, positioning the firm as “the preferred strategic partner for global innovators in Iraq.”
Anchoring Local Execution in Global Standards
Dr. Jabbar ensures Shubber Scientific Bureau stays ahead of the curve by anchoring local execution in global standards. Strategically, this means maintaining close engagement with multinational partners, adopting their global best practices, and adapting business models to Iraq’s unique market challenges. This allows the firm to respond proactively to regulatory changes, pricing volatility, and market dynamics.
Technologically, Dr. Jabbar has overseen the modernization of multiple core pillars: forecasting and demand planning, CRM platforms, logistical and inventory visibility, and data-driven commercial decision-making. These advanced tools ensure clarity, transparency, and speed throughout the organization. His entire management philosophy rests on three core fundamentals:
*Strategic Clarity: “Everyone must understand where we are going and why.”
*Operational Excellence: “Systems must be scalable, compliant, and disciplined”, and
*Continuous Development: A learning culture ensures that people grow alongside global standards.
He affirms that innovation ensures Shubber doesn’t just keep pace but ‘lead transformation within the industry.’
Cultivating Confidence: The Pipeline of Empowered Leaders
Dr. Jabbar believes that culture is not imposed; it must be built consistently. He focused on creating an environment where people develop, gain confidence, and lead with integrity. He highlights that many of today’s departmental leaders were once junior staff, proving the effectiveness of his investment in mentorship, structured development pathways, and exposure to international practices.
His culture encourages solution-driven thinking and ownership, not dependency. Teams are empowered to challenge the status quo, contribute ideas, and act with accountability, which is essential for resilience. This approach enabled the firm to navigate supply pressures and market instability “not with fear, but with confidence and adaptability.” For Dr. Jabbar, a resilient organization is one where “people feel they are part of the journey, not just employees filling a role,” ensuring that human capital grows alongside global operational excellence.
The Role Model: From Baghdad to the Global Stage
Dr. Jabbar’s career is punctuated by milestones that affirm his exceptional talent. A defining personal accomplishment was his first-year performance as Head of Sales at Sanofi, where his evaluation was rated as a “role model in the business,” achieving overachievement both qualitatively and quantitatively. This led to him being the only participant from the Middle East selected for Sanofi’s rigorous Future Leader Program within the ITC region.
During this program, he underwent advanced executive development, culminating in the Sales Force Model 3.0 project. He presented this project as a TED-style talk at Sanofi headquarters in Paris before the Global CEO and executive board—a career-defining moment. His commitment to continuous learning is further evidenced by his participation in the Business for Tomorrow Program at IMD University in Lausanne, the completion of his MBA in 2022, and his attainment of 17 Harvard ManageMentor certifications. Organizationally, the ultimate testament to Shubber’s impact is its recognition as the leading distributor of multinational pharmaceutical brands in Iraq, solidifying its reputation as the “Mall of Brands.”
Cross-Functional Resilience: The Rotational Model
In an industry defined by constant disruption, Dr. Jabbar has implemented cross-functional rotational development as a transformative initiative. This innovative approach assigns promotional team members to on-the-job training within supply chain operations, and vice versa, exposing employees to the full business ecosystem.
This strategy achieves multiple benefits: it strengthens interdepartmental collaboration, significantly increases talent agility, and improves operational resilience by guaranteeing continuity during staff shortages. Concurrently, the firm modernized supply chain processes using better forecasting tools, transparent inventory mapping, and integrated commercial–logistics coordination. This holistic approach has significantly reduced operational inefficiencies in Iraq’s complex market, creating a more agile, service-oriented, and future-ready organization.
The Phoenix Moment: Building Opportunity in Shock
The most challenging obstacle Dr. Jabbar faced arrived in 2016, when Sanofi decided to close its legal entity and direct representation in Iraq. This was a profound “emotional and professional shock,” suddenly ending a chapter into which years of effort in building teams and partnerships had been invested. Where many would have paused, Dr. Jabbar chose to build.
He leveraged his network, reputation, and relationships to quickly launch a general trading company called Judi Apex. Through this entrepreneurial venture, he secured distribution agreements and licensed products to sub-distributors in Kurdistan, effectively preserving his market continuity. This extremely difficult period became his unexpected bridge, teaching him how to “create opportunity in uncertainty, how to navigate without institutional backing, and how to build commercial models from scratch.” What could have been a career setback became the foundation of his subsequent growth, ultimately leading him to join Shubber Scientific Bureau and ascend to Director of Operations.
Ethical Foundation: The Non-Negotiable Standard
Dr. Jabbar maintains a fierce conviction that in healthcare, “growth means nothing if it is not ethical.” This principle guides Shubber Scientific Bureau to operate with the highest standards of responsibility. The firm strictly adheres to global compliance standards, enforces fair promotion practices, ensures rigorous pharmacovigilance and transparency, and runs on SOP-driven internal governance. Every business decision is weighed against its direct impact on patients.
Furthermore, his view of sustainability extends beyond compliance to encompass human capital. Shubber invests deeply in people, ensuring that the development, loyalty, and continuity of leaders who started within the organization represent “the ultimate form of sustainability.” For Dr. Jabbar, ethical leadership is not a mere slogan; it is the non-negotiable foundation of every decision the organization makes.
The Trinity of Leadership: Clarity, Purpose, and Momentum
Dr. Jabbar offers emerging global leaders a powerful mandate: “Lead from clarity. Grow through challenges. Stay true to your values.” He clarifies that visionary leadership is not about predicting the future, but about preparing the organization to shape it.
His core advice is actionable and principled: leaders must build strong fundamentals in their field, stay curious by embracing global perspectives, and invest in their teams, recognizing that “leadership is never a solo journey.” He urges them to treat challenges as teachers, not obstacles, and, crucially, to never compromise integrity for convenience.
Ultimately, he distills his philosophy into a powerful formula: Purpose gives direction. Vision gives momentum. Together, they create leaders who make a meaningful and lasting impact.
The Roadmap Ahead: Digitalization and Specialty Care
Looking ahead, Dr. Jabbar’s roadmap for Shubber Scientific Bureau is anchored on three strategic pillars designed to reinforce its position as a defining force in the region.
First, the firm aims for Deeper Strategic Partnerships, expanding collaboration with global innovators in high-value areas like specialty care, biosimilars, and advanced therapies to ensure Iraq’s access to world-class treatment. Second, the organization is committed to Operational Digitalization, progressing toward full digital integration across key functions, including forecasting, supply chain visibility, CRM platforms, and analytics. This ensures transparency, accuracy, and real-time decision-making, streamlining operations in a complex market. Third, the firm prioritizes Leadership Development & National Expansion, continuing to elevate internal talent and build broader national capabilities to reinforce structures that support long-term, sustainable growth. By embracing innovation, investing in people, and partnering with global leaders, Shubber Scientific Bureau is set to continue shaping Iraq’s healthcare landscape well beyond 2026.
