Hashem Bajwa redefines what it is to be a strategist. His world is one that enables true transformation and innovation, and one where he leads a creative process designed to remake brands, design new products and create the sometimes arduous road to developing new customer and brand experiences. The former Director of Retail Strategy and Experience Design at Apple, Hashem works with world-class brands and their leaders to elevate their vision and architect the future, by helping them craft clear narratives that lead to reinvented retail design, digital platforms and products created to enhance the consumer experience. He is a catalyst for change who is able to translate intention into action. Alongside Angela Ahrendts and the team at Apple, Hashem led the transformation of the Apple retail experience with the creation of Today at Apple. This comprehensive, global and local program allowed Apple to turn their assets and products into dynamic learning, creative and entertaining experiences for Apple's consumers globally and locally.
 Through his unique understanding of how to bring cross-functional teams together to make something new at the Enterprise level, Hashem threaded the needle, allowing Apple to achieve this mission driven concept for consumers everywhere. Hashem’s career began at the United Nations working in communications. His unique approach of sparking energy with heart, humanity, equality and creativity will no doubt be of extraordinary value as he pursues this next phase in his career, of working with clients on transformative projects. He is someone who believes in and lives by the idea that we must leave the world better than we found it, which is only one of the many inspiring takeaways from being with Hashem. In this conversation, Karen and Hashem discuss not only his career as an exceptional strategist and leader, but the fundamentals of transformation, the psychology involved and the self-awareness that’s required in order to truly excel, inspire and ignite change.