Advisory
Desiree Sayde
Legal Education
Bachelor of Laws, Saint-Joseph University (USJ) of Beirut, Lebanon, 1995
Licenses & Qualifications
- Lawyer and Member of Beirut Bar Association since 1999
- Certifications in Governance, Compliance, and Leadership from Harvard, Cornell, and INSEAD
Professional Experience & Notable Contributions
Desiree Sayde is a Senior Vice President in Legal and Compliance at Majid Al Futtaim Retail, bringing 26 years of experience in legal, contracts, compliance, and governance within complex, matrixed organizations.
- Leadership at Majid Al Futtaim Retail: Desiree currently oversees legal and compliance strategies, contributing to corporate governance and ensuring regulatory adherence.
- Strategic Roles at Petrofac Ltd.: As Group Investigations Director, she was responsible for the Investigation Management System and Framework, ensuring compliance and governance excellence.
- Pivotal Contributions at Unilever: Serving as General Counsel for Supply Chain & Procurement across the MEA, Turkey, CIS, and GCC regions, she led the regulatory excellence project, developed a regulatory early warning system, and established the legal framework for the Grow Africa initiative. She also played a critical role in operationalizing Unilever’s largest HPC factory in the region.
- Compliance Leadership at GE and Schlumberger: As Chief Compliance Officer for GE’s Global Growth Organization in the MENAT region, and Legal Lead for GE’s Energy Management Business, she demonstrated strong compliance management and legal strategy formulation.
- Career Foundation at Farid El Khoury Law & Associates: Desiree began her legal career at our firm, progressing from Legal Trainee to Legal Associate, and finally Senior Associate, before embarking on her multinational career.