About Us
Emerged from ABEY, a company that fights for a job market free of age, gender and age discriminations, Hawa After 40 came to life as an enterprise that provides the mid-30s/40s+ women with fair chances for a better professional and personal life. For that purpose, Hawa After 40 works both sides.
We work with the ladies' side on boosting their job skills through career training and coaching sessions. We upgradewomen’s knowledge with the latest updates in the job market, provide match-making opportunities for full-time job seekers, and guide those who look for opportunities to work from home. We also provide special training and mentorship for women who plan to open their own startups.
On the personal life levels, we help them turn their personal lives around! We indulge women into a supportive community that shares the same point of view, challenges and life stage. That's the role of our bundle of sessions that address the wellbeing of their mind, body, and soul.
On the other hand, we work intensively with corporates and business owners. We endeavor to shed the light on the high qualifications mid 30s/40+women had, and what they are capable of. We also promote for part-time jobs as a win-win scenario, for it to take its fair share into the hiring process. We raise such integrated awareness towards hiring this segment through events, direct proposals, job fairs and more.
ABOUT THE FOUNDER:
Abeer Deif is a Mass media graduate with 15 years of experience in administrations & public relations covering several business sectors and NGOs; Nationals and Internationals. In 2012 she got her kick-start for her initiative “Hawa after 40”, which is currently an enterprise that aims to help women 40+ to re-join the labor market as freelancers/part-timers online and offline. It empowers them professionally to own their livings economically and psychology.
Going through a long journey of development through courses and specialized training programs; Abeer joined the USA Embassy for Women Entrepreneurship Camp WEC'18, and the DAAD “Future of work-leaving no one behind in a glob”. Lately, she gained her certificate as a certified Cherie Blair Foundation Alumni'19. With future plans to expand and grow with “HawaAfter 40”, further plans of academic studies of Entrepreneurship are being taken into consideration.
HOW HAWAA AFTER 40 CAME TO LIFE?
It all started back in 2012, out of my own career collapse. I have been working in operations since 2004. Passing through many experiences, I developed my skills and knowledge till I occupied a Public Relations Manager position at one of the promising event planning and management companies back in 2004, where I spent more than 8 years of my career. I was starting my 40s with a VERY well-established career, powerful profile, and a clear vision for what’s coming next regarding my career path. Everything was just perfect.
Suddenly, they shut the company down in 2012. I was in shock, I didn’t see it coming and out of the blue we were all unemployed. Normally, I started applying for other vacancies believing that my experience will empower me through fetching a new job, but it didn’t.
I applied EVERYWHERE, and it was hardest than I could ever imagine. I was defeated with the responses I was getting and with how the job market perceive ladies at their late 30s/ early 40s. Sometimes it’s the job proposal. They were way less, and unfair, than the actual worth of my +16 work experience. Other times it’s the tech. belonging to generation X, technology in workplace wasn’t a thing on our days. Throughout the years I was indulged into my operation work, technology and digital channels were booming and I was just not following. And now, having such minimal knowledge of them, my chances to get suitable job is just wasted. Worst of all, some companies were perceiving me as an old woman, mother and wife who, they believe, can’t fulfill the job responsibilities due to. Shame on them.
I was 42 by that time. A 42 year experienced woman with a full-of-achievements profile and no suitable job opportunity, not even one. I started to collapse mentally, physiologically, and of course financially. I had one option by that time, to settle down for less. After long period of juggling and shuffling my plans, I decided to go for a position that was offered to me as a Marketing assistant. That job was an eye opening!
I spent 2 years learning all about the world of digital marketing and social media. And as short as it was, my managers saw the fast progress, development and success I was making. That was when I figured out about the actual meaning of new beginnings, and that going to a junior position wasn’t “a settle down for less”, It was actually a kick start to widen my career options!
I found out that, we 40s women, must keep ourselves updated and open-minded to new challenges. We need to think out of the box, widen the scale of our comfort zone or even jump out of it! We have got what it takes! We are fighters, we are experienced, we are multitasking, and we have gone through enough live and career experiences to rock out our careers!
In 2015, I started HawaAfter 40. Putting into it all the experiences, life lessons, and job market updates I have earned throughout the years, I started empowering late 30s/early 40s women throughout their upcoming full career journey. When that was launched, women were super excited to and that actually brought hope for a proper career live. We have been providing training workshops, job market update meet-ups, life boosters’ sessions and empowering network for booming future. Hawa After 40 was an initiative that born out of a career collapse, developed to be an enterprise that supports and empowers women to what’s next, and now booming towards being a super connector between women after 40 and a better professional and personal life to come!