Board of Directors

Randa El-Sayed Haffar is a Managing Director and Senior Private Banker serving Gulf Private Banking clients, mostly in Kuwait. Ms. Haffar manages the relationships of high net worth families, corporations, and institutions while based in New York, USA. She joined Citi in 2000 as an Associate Banker and became a Banker in 2004. There, she was awarded the prestigious Chairman Council award 15 times and the Hall of Fame Award in 2012. Prior to joining Citi, she was at Chase Manhattan Bank as a Global Business Development Officer for International Personal Banking. Her prior banking career was with Coutts Bank (Switzerland) and The Bank of New York. Ms. Haffar holds a bachelor’s degree in Public Administration and Political Science from American University of Beirut (AUB), Lebanon and a master’s degree in Public Finance and Financial Management from New York University. Ms. Hafar is a member of the Board of Trustees of AUB and an Executive Board Member of the Elmer and Mamdouha Bobst Charitable Foundation, which focuses on health and education philanthropy. 

Ms. Eraiba is a Senior Vice President of the Trust Company of the West (TCW), which manages a broad range of value-added investment products for many of the largest corporate and public pension plans, financial institutions, endowments, and foundations in the U.S., as well as a substantial number of foreign investors. She has over 30 years of experience specializing in technology and healthcare, having been involved in a wide range of transactions for both money management and investment banking for technology companies. Before joining TCW, she founded Rosetta Group Research LLC, an independent technology research and advisory firm catering to the investment management industry. Ms. Eraiba began her Wall Street career with Lehman Brothers and then worked at Salomon Brothers before founding Advanced Technology Investments. Prior to joining the financial community, she worked as a chief engineer in the technology industry. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Arab Bankers Association of North America (ABANA) and Board Chairperson of iEARN-USA, the largest worldwide network of students, teachers, and schools. Born in Egypt, Ms. Eraiba received an engineering degree (B.S.E.E.) in electronics and computer science from Washington University and an M.B.A. from Columbia University.

Ms. Gillmon is a Global Client Executive at Chubb, a global provider of insurance products, where she manages key client relationships, domestically and globally, in the North America Major Accounts Division. Prior to joining Chubb, Ms. Gillmon held key positions with Marsh, a global insurance broker and risk management firm, over a sixteen year period - first joining as a Global Property Broker for Risk Management clients where she handled both the advisory and global program coordination. Ms. Gillmon’s focus on multinational corporations and global programs led her to Dubai, where she headed the team for incoming multinational business and oversaw the placements and partnerships with local markets in the Gulf Cooperative Council (GCC) region. Returning to the U.S., Ms. Gillmon continued her career with Marsh and joined the Client Executive Practice, managing relationships for Global Risk Management clients across a range of industries – retail, real estate, manufacturing, financial services, and intergovernmental organizations. Ms. Gillmon has also served as a Portfolio Manager for Marsh’s Private Equity Mergers & Acquisitions Group in New York. Ms. Gillmon earned her B.A in International Relations from Mount Holyoke College and is currently pursuing an Executive Master’s in International Service and Global Security at American University.

Mr. Habib is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Intercontinental Aircraft Group LLC (IAG), a global aircraft acquisition consulting and brokerage firm.  Prior to co-founding IAG in 2012, Mr. Habib spent 17 years at a leading corporate aircraft manufacturer, where he held various positions of leadership, lastly as a Senior Vice President and corporate officer. Mr. Habib’s operational aviation experience includes eight years of active duty service as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps and Navy where he was designated as a naval aviator- he flew duties as a pilot with Southwest Airlines Co., and spent time as a demonstration pilot for an aircraft manufacturer.  He holds an FAA Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) license and numerous aircraft type ratings.  Mr. Habib is a graduate of Rutgers University where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science.

Mr. Malkassian is a San Francisco Bay Area native and graduate of the University of California, Los Angeles. He is the founder and owner of Ropama, an international agriculture holding company focused on the procurement and distribution of premium leathers to the leading French and Italian couture brands. The company has been the worldwide market share leader in premium calfskin leather trade. Mr. Malkassian also owns and operates USDA agriculture facilities in California and Texas.

Mr. Malkassian now focuses on multi-family and warehousing redevelopment in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is chairman and managing director of RAM & East Oakland Property Group, Inc. Additionally, his focus has expanded into diversified angel investments involved in emerging technologies and Bay Area small businesses.

Mr. Malkassian has expanded his deep interest in cinema and has for the past ten years participated in film development and production. Some of his projects include Freeheld and Silk Road. For his recent project, Amerikatzi, filmed in Armenia in 2020, he worked as a producer and an executive producer.

Prior to joining the NEF Board, Mr. Malkassian served on the Near East Relief Historical Society Committee. He has a deep connection to the region that NEF serves. His family history ranges from Anatolia, Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, and the United States. He has traveled extensively through the region and is passionate about the political stability and cultural preservation of its cultures.

Patrick and his wife share a deep interest in the fine arts, ranging from classical to contemporary. He resides between San Francisco and Malibu, California.

Mr. Mardirossian has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Near East Foundation since 2002, was NEF's Board Chair from 2007 to 2015, and now continues to serve as Chairman Emeritus. He is a Partner and the Chief Operating Officer of Kohlberg & Company, a middle-market private-equity firm, and serves on the board of directors for several companies controlled by Kohlberg & Co. Mr. Mardirossian was born in Lebanon of Armenian decent and immigrated to the United States with his parents in 1969. He is actively involved in international and Middle Eastern affairs. Mr. Mardirossian received a B.B.A. and an M.B.A. from the Lubin School of Business at Pace University. He is also a Certified Public Accountant.