We transform
healthcare organizations

Rayan Salam is the Founder and CEO of Cedro Strategy, where he leads the firm’s vision to drive performance transformation, strategic growth, and investment execution across healthcare and related sectors. With a career spanning over two decades across private equity, asset management, and healthcare operations, Rayan brings a unique blend of capital markets expertise and operational leadership to help Cedro’s clients and portfolio companies scale sustainably and unlock long-term value.

Prior to founding Cedro, Rayan served as CEO of Blue Ocean Health, a Dubai-based healthcare management firm operating across genetics, fertility, fetal-maternal medicine, and tertiary care. Under his leadership, Blue Ocean Health managed a diverse portfolio of healthcare assets—including First IVF, Burjeel IVF (now First IVF Fertility Center), First Genomix, and Jumeirah American Clinic—across the UAE, US, and Europe. He also represented Dr. Michael Fakih as shareholder director on the board of New Reproductive Care, the holding company of Fakih IVF clinics in the UAE, Qatar, and Oman.

Previously, Rayan was Deputy CEO of Emirates Hospitals Group, where he led the strategic direction and turnaround of one of the UAE’s largest healthcare networks. He oversaw a platform of over 45 assets, including hospitals, surgery centers, pharmacies, labs, and specialty clinics, and managed a team of more than 2,200 employees, including over 450 physicians. His mandate covered end-to-end operations, financial discipline, physician recruitment, and system-wide performance improvement.

Earlier in his career, Rayan was a founding board member and CEO of Ithmar Capital Partners, a DIFC-regulated investment firm focused on private equity and special situations in public equities. He launched and managed ICP Special Situations I LP, a pioneering fund in the region focused on activist strategies in listed MENA equities. He also served on the firm’s Investment Committee, Executive Management Committee, and Audit & Risk Committee.

Rayan began his career in investment management, first at Silverstone Advisors in New York, and later as a founding member of Algebra Capital, a MENA-focused asset manager with USD 1.6 billion in peak AUM, later acquired by Franklin Templeton, where he continued as a Fund Manager and Investment Committee Member until 2015.

In addition to his corporate leadership roles, Rayan has served on several boards, including a Kuwait-listed construction company and the Board of Trustees of Idad School in Lebanon, supporting children with special needs.

He holds a Bachelor of Commerce (with distinction) from the University of Toronto.

Siddharth Nag is the Chief Strategy Officer at Cedro Strategy, where he brings a unique blend of cross-functional insight, financial acumen, and operational depth to help clients unlock value through strategic turnarounds, performance improvement, and disciplined growth execution. With over 15 years of experience across healthcare, investment management, and corporate strategy, Siddharth plays a central role in guiding Cedro’s engagements across complex transformations and mission-critical initiatives.

Prior to joining Cedro, Siddharth served as Chief Strategy Officer of Blue Ocean Health, where he led firm-wide strategic planning and back-office operations across a portfolio of healthcare investments. He was instrumental in driving several key transactions, including the acquisition of a majority stake in Burjeel IVF, the proposed sale of First Genomix to a listed US-based diagnostics company, and the coordination of a high-profile bid for NMC’s controlling stake in Fakih IVF.

Earlier, Siddharth was Senior Vice President for Strategic Initiatives at Emirates Hospitals Group, where he oversaw operational improvements across the network, spearheaded the integration of IT systems, optimized supply chain workflows, and played a key role in resolving legacy issues that impacted group performance. His leadership helped transition the business toward more sustainable and efficient models of care delivery.

From 2015 to 2019, Siddharth was a founding investment team member and Associate Director at Ithmar Capital Partners, where he helped define and execute the firm’s special situations strategy focused on undervalued MENA equities. His ability to bridge deep-dive financial analysis with operational execution allowed him to structure and monitor complex turnaround investments across multiple sectors.

Siddharth began his career at HSBC as part of the top-ranked UK TMT equity research team, before joining the MENA buy-side team at Franklin Templeton, where he covered public equities across the GCC and Levant.

He is a CFA charterholder, and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Electronics & Telecommunication Engineering (with Distinction) from Pune University, and an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode.

Ziad Makhzoumi is the Finance Lead at Cedro Strategy, where he supports partner companies in designing and implementing robust financial strategies, strengthening governance frameworks, and unlocking sustainable enterprise value. With more than four decades of international experience in finance, strategy, and corporate restructuring, Ziad brings unmatched depth and perspective to Cedro’s advisory practice, particularly in complex and high-stakes environments.

Ziad’s career began at Booz Allen & Hamilton, where he gained foundational experience in strategy consulting before taking on senior executive roles across global markets.  From 2008 to 2013, he served as Chief Financial Officer of Arabtec Holding PJSC, where he led the financial restructuring of the region’s largest publicly listed construction group during one of the most challenging periods in its history. His leadership was pivotal in stabilizing the business and restoring investor confidence.

Ziad later became CEO of Fakih IVF, one of the UAE’s leading fertility providers. Under his leadership, the group achieved significant clinical and financial milestones, transforming from a family-run clinic into a scalable, professionally managed healthcare platform. His operational and financial acumen helped position Fakih IVF as a recognized leader in the region’s reproductive health sector.

In addition to his role at Cedro, Ziad is the Founder and CEO of Prime Strategy Consulting Group, advising clients across the region on financial turnarounds, corporate governance, and strategic repositioning. His extensive boardroom experience and commitment to financial discipline make him a trusted advisor to both corporate leadership teams and investors

.Ziad has been honored with multiple accolades, including “Revolutionary CFO of the Year” and “Most Admired CFO in the Middle East,” and was recognized by the Wall Street Journal as one of the top 20 non-royal decision-makers in the UAE.

He holds a BSc in Electronic Engineering and an MBA in Banking and Finance from the University of Manchester, combining technical expertise with financial leadership in a way that continues to shape the trajectory of businesses across the region.

Nurcin Erdogan is the Marketing & Branding Lead at Cedro Strategy, where she partners with portfolio companies to define their identity, clarify their message, and build enduring relationships with customers, partners, and stakeholders. With over 15 years of experience spanning healthcare, technology, and consumer sectors, she brings deep strategic insight and creative vision to brand building, marketing execution, and culture transformation.

Nurcin is also the Founder and Principal of Echo Strategy, a boutique consultancy focused on helping organizations craft meaningful brand narratives and design marketing strategies that resonate internally and externally. Her approach combines psychology, branding, and human-centered design to ensure that a company’s internal culture is in harmony with its external voice—bridging the gap between strategy and storytelling.

At Cedro, Nurcin leads all marketing and brand development efforts across engagements, helping clients translate complex business models and value propositions into compelling messages that build trust and drive growth. She has advised healthcare platforms on patient acquisition strategies, CRM optimization, and digital positioning, playing a critical role in shaping how brands are perceived and experienced across touchpoints.

Her work has been featured in publications such as Gulf Business, where she highlighted the role of trust as a foundation for innovation and meaningful engagement. Whether launching a new brand or repositioning an existing one, Nurcin’s work is defined by empathy, clarity, and a deep understanding of what makes people connect.

She holds a degree in Psychology, along with advanced training in branding and marketing strategy.

Ahmed Amer is a leading expert in lab transformation and embryology, with over a decade of international experience spanning the UK, Middle East, and Europe. As the Lab Transformation Lead at Cedro Strategy, he works closely with fertility platforms to design and build high-performance laboratories and clinics—bringing a rare blend of hands-on embryology expertise and strategic innovation.

With deep understanding of lab workflows, patient journeys, systems architecture, and emerging technologies, Ahmed identifies operational bottlenecks and implements tailored, scalable solutions that drive both clinical outcomes and business efficiency.

He began his career as a clinical embryologist and progressed into leadership roles where he managed lab quality systems, streamlined protocols, and introduced automation tools to optimize performance. At Ovom Care, he played a foundational role in transforming laboratory operations from the ground up—leading infrastructure planning, technology selection, and embedding data-driven workflows to enhance consistency, traceability, and precision.

Ahmed’s approach is deeply pragmatic and informed by real-world lab experience. He understands what happens at the bench, what can go wrong, and how to fix it quickly and sustainably. From optimizing time-lapse incubator protocols to digitizing lab reporting systems and embedding AI-based decision-support tools, he bridges the gap between embryology and innovation—translating strategic goals into executable systems.

Previously, he held key roles at CRGH and ARGC in the UK, where he led major quality and operational improvements within some of the country’s most high-performing clinics.

Ahmed holds an MBA from the Quantic School of Business and Technology, focused on innovation and leadership, as well as a Master’s in Clinical Embryology from the University of Leeds and a Master of Engineering from Queen Mary University of London. He is fluent in English and Arabic.

Maarouf Chaar is a seasoned supply chain and procurement professional with extensive experience in healthcare operations across the UAE and Saudi Arabia. He brings a proven track record of optimizing procurement strategies, driving cost efficiencies, and enhancing supplier performance across hospital networks.

At Emirates Hospitals Group, Maarouf spearheaded all group purchasing activities—covering consumables, pharmaceuticals, facilities, and third-party services. He managed internal and external contracts across the group, led negotiations to reduce unit costs, identified cost-effective substitutes, and worked to improve supplier terms. His contributions extended to supporting the pharmacy function and producing supply chain strategy reports that informed executive decision-making.

Earlier in his career, Maarouf served as a procurement officer at Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, where he coordinated vendor compliance, streamlined procurement through SAP systems, and implemented warehousing improvements that significantly reduced excess inventory costs.

In addition to his operational expertise, Maarouf has advanced knowledge in applying AI to supply chain management, using data-driven tools to enhance demand forecasting, reduce waste, optimize procurement cycles, and support more agile and intelligent logistics in healthcare settings.

Maarouf holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from United International Business Schools in Barcelona and is trilingual in English, Arabic, and French.