Do Not Fly Blind: Learnings and Real Life Stories from a 35-year Career at Shell

Rafi Baghdjian was an executive at Shell for 35 years, covering the technical, commercial and leadership aspects of the energy business during 10 assignments in 6 countries: Netherlands, Japan, United Kingdom, Oman, United Arab Emirates and Qatar. His main expertise lies in cultural navigation, deal-making and strategic leadership.

In October 2017, Baghdjian took up the position of CEO at IDeA (Initiatives for Development of Armenia) Foundation, in Yerevan.

After starting his career with Shell in The Hague, Baghdjian moved to Yokohama in 1984 working on the design of the NWS (Australia) LNG project. After a couple of years back in The Hague, he moved to Shell International Gas, in London. In 1989, Baghdjian transferred to Tokyo, as manager for the Brunei LNG Project. In 1992, he moved to Muscat as the Corporate Affairs Manager for Oman LNG and thereafter transferred to London as the Project Leader for the Mariscal Sucre (Venezuela) LNG project. In 2004, he moved to Dubai as General Manager Gas, Middle East, for Shell Global Solutions International. In 2007, Baghdjian transferred to Doha as Vice President Technical Services and Business Relations for Qatar Shell. In July 2012, Baghdjian took up the position of Chief Operating Officer at Shell Abu Dhabi. In May 2016, Baghdjian was named a Chief Operating Officer of Shell UK until he retired from Shell in January 2017. Baghdjian then became the CEO for Middle East and North Africa at N2Growth, an executive search and consulting firm.