Planet Talks

Dr Zakaria is an award-winning serial Entrepreneur, Founder of multiple tech companies and an Educationalist. She has launched and scaled multiple startups and businesses across various sectors and markets. As the founder of multiple companies, including Out of Box Ltd (UK), Digital Bee (UAE), Learning Bright (Malaysia), Sidr Productions (UK and Malaysia) and Sidr School (Pakistan) that transcend borders, she has played a pivotal role in leveraging innovation to address global challenges. From Middle-East to U.K, Canada & USA, the journey is marked by creating and scaling ventures that make a meaningful impact across continents.

She is passionate about leveraging advanced AI technology, strategic partnerships, and innovative solutions to create and execute growth strategies, increase market penetration, and achieve sustainable success. With a passion for bridging gaps and driving innovation, she has steered teams across continents, launching tech startups that fill critical needs. Her journey is marked by transforming challenges into opportunities and creating impactful solutions.

She is also honored to be a three-time finalist in the Entrepreneurial category awards by the British Council, recognising her contributions to change, innovation, and societal impact. She also won an award for unique content and ed-tech ventures at Kuala Lumpur International Book Fair (2025) for Sidr Productions – making it one of the thousands of exhibiting agencies to win for outstanding content and unique mobile app concept. Additionally, she is also a recipient of the prestigious Dean’s Prize (2014) for her significant role in advancing the research community at the University of Leeds.

She has previously taught at the University of Leeds, U.K., and currently serves as an International Associate Member at the Centre of Employment Relations, Innovation, and Change, at The University of Leeds, UK.
She has also served as an Assistant Professor at IBA, Karachi.

She is deeply invested in academia. She also serve as a CEC member of several highly ranked universities as well as a guest speaker and mentor for start-ups. Her commitment extends to fostering innovative learning environments.
She is the Founder of Sidr School truly making it embedded in future and faith as per her commitment and dedicatation to shaping the future by providing a nurturing and innovative learning environment for young minds.