Hicham Zerhouni
Hicham Zerhouni is a 2015 New Leaders Council Fellow; the first Moroccan to be accepted to such a prestigious fellowship. The New Leaders Council Institute is America’s premier leadership and professional development, training, mentoring, networking, and career and political advancement program for young professionals. Hicham is the Managing Principal of TransCultures, he was born in Fez, He moved to Chicago when he was 19, after completing a Diplôme d’Etudes Universitaire Générales in English Language. In 2006 he graduated from Northeastern Illinois University with a Board of Governors BA in Political Science and a Master’s Degree in Political Science with focus on International Relations in 2011. While he worked in banking as an International Analyst, he taught foreign languages to executives and government officials seeking to understand global markets and political diversity. In 2006, he launched Argan Oils, a socially conscious cosmetics company that markets an organic oil from Morocco while supporting women cooperatives and preserving an endangered indigenous tree. He went on to work as a Global Media Analyst during the Arab Spring, where he provided subject matter expertise, cultural knowledge, and provided insights about the turmoil in the Middle East. After that he worked as a market researcher providing expertise to global companies on how to attract global consumers using digital technologies. He left that job to start TransCultures, a globalization services company that helps organizations in the private, public, and non-for-profit sectors overcome cultural barriers and achieve their global potential by customizing language and cultural solutions to help them grow in today’s global economy. Since 2004, Hicham has been the founder and organizer of Chicago Arabic Language Culture and Civilization Club; a platform for Arab Americans and new Arab immigrants to start a dialogue about their future in Chicago. Hicham serves on the Advisory Council on Equity, a Chicago Commission on Human Relation council that advises the Mayor and City Council on policy matters regarding civil rights with a focus on equal access to employment, housing, and public accommodations. He speaks at conferences on many issues regarding leadership, diversity, political participation, cultural and language access issue. |