Richard Attias
| Richard Attias | |
|---|---|
 Richard Attias in 2011. | |
| Born |
November 19, 1959 Fes, Morocco |
| Nationality | Moroccan |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Spouse(s) |
Cécilia Ciganer-Albéniz (2008–present) |
Richard Attias (born November 19, 1959) is a Moroccan[1] events producer, founder and former chairman of PublicisLive and presently the executive chairman of Richard Attias and Associates, and the founder of The New York Forum.
Background
Attias was born in a Jewish family. He graduated as a civil engineer from the Institut national des sciences appliquées de Toulouse, and got a master in Mathematics and Physics from the Paris University. He began his career as a sales executive at IBM France and in 1986 became the General Manager of Econocom France and Econocom Japan, a computer leasing company.[1]
During the 1990s, Attias founded an Event Management Company and produced various global events including the Zurich Insurances,IBM, conventions and Boris Yeltsin's visit to France.[1] Richard was awarded the contract for the signature of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) signature agreements in Marrakesh in presence of 35 heads of States and The World Economic Forum for the Middle East and North Africa summit in Casablanca.[citation needed]
A brief encounter with Klaus Schwab, President of the World Economic Forum, resulted in a long-standing partnership and the creation of Global Event Management Company. This joint venture agency went on to manage international conferences, including the International Telecoms Union Congress and the Middle East Peace Summit in Jordan and the famous World Economic Forum in Davos.
Richard Attias sold part of his company to Publicis in 1998 and established a global enterprise producing events for various clients including IBM, l'Oreal, Unilever, BT, Avaya, Lenovo, EDF, Sanofi-Aventis, and different governments.
Richard Attias was named Chairman of the Board of Publicis Dialog which combined the operations of Publicis Events and a range of marketing services. In 2004, Richard moved to New York and became chairman of Publicis Events Worldwide, the first world wide events network with over 600 employees.
At PublicisLive Richard Attias combined the events company and team to form PublicisLive that specialized in the conception and production of international conferences and very high profile events such as the Clinton Global Initiative, the Islamic Conference, The Petra Conference of Nobel Laureates, the Dalian Economic Summit in China, and the Monaco Media Forum.
In 2008, Richard Attias was named special advisor to the Emirate of Dubai to provide a comprehensive strategy to make the city a destination for major conferences, and cultural and sporting events.[2]
Richard Attias was the Chairman the Advisory Board of the Center on Capitalism and Society, directed by Nobel Prize winner Edmund Phelps, from 2009-2010.
In 2009, Richard Attias founded Richard Attias and Associates, a U.S. based global strategic consulting firm with offices in New York, Paris, London, Rabat and Dubai, that supports government and non-governmental organizations worldwide, where he fulfills the position of Executive Chairman.
In 2010, he founded the New York Forum,[3] an annual meeting to promote economic leadership and the New York Forum AFRICA in 2012. The first New York Forum AFRICA took place in Libreville, Gabon, from June 8 to June 10.[4]
Personal life
In 2008, Attias married the former wife of Nicolas Sarkozy, Cecilia Ciganer-Albeniz.[1] He has lived in France, Switzerland, Japan, Dubai and today, from a base in New York, he travels regularly across Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.[5]
Richard also currently serves as Vice President for the Cecilia Attias Foundation for Women, a strategic platform for non-profit organizations dedicated to promoting women’s well being and equality worldwide. Richard is dedicated to promoting transparency for donors to ensure that donated funds serve their intended purpose.
Attias was born into a Jewish family. He completed his studies in civil engineering at the Institut national des sciences appliquées de Toulouse, and earned a masters in Mathematics and Physics from the University of Paris.[6]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 (French) Justine Boivin, Richard Attias, Un Prince charmant très influent, Gala, 6 March 2008
- ↑ Dubai Event Management Corporation appoints Richard Attias as Chief Executive Officer, Ameinfo.com, 6 May 2008
- ↑
- ↑
- ↑ Gala.
- ↑ Les echos.