Our Team
Mahboob Mahmood Managing Director
Mahboob is the Founder and CEO of a leading Asia-Pacific knowledge solutions business engaged in market research and e-learning.
Through offices in Singapore, Beijing, Tokyo, Sydney, Delhi and Islamabad, the company’s 100+ team of analysts, researchers, writers, instructional designers and technologists serves a blue chip client base consisting of leading multinational corporations, financial services firms, government agencies and educational institutions.
Mahboob is also an Adjunct Professor of Entrepreneurship at INSEAD, where he teaches social entrepreneurship. He has advised social enterprises and/or developed case studies on social enterprises in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Pakistan, Philippines and Sri Lanka in a range of sectors including education, energy, healthcare, microfinance and tourism.
Previously, Mahboob was a Partner at the international law firm of Sidley Austin LLP. He has in-depth experience in structuring and implementing mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, project financings and structured financings.
Mahboob received his Juris Doctor from Columbia University School of Law in 1986, Diploma in International and Comparative Law from Columbia University School of Law in 1986, Master of Arts in Political Science from The Johns Hopkins University in 1987 and Bachelor of Arts in Politics from Princeton University in 1981. He has been a member of the New York State Bar Association and the American Bar Association since 1987.
Simon Gill Director (Farm Initiative)
Coming soon.
Toby Martin Director (Recreation Initiative)
Coming soon.
Marcus Heers Director (Planning)
Marcus' role at 360 Palawan includes strategic design and stakeholder management. He was deeply involved with the initial change of management at the resort.
When not busy with 360 Palawan, Marcus is a consultant with McKinsey & Company. As such, Marcus served mostly public sector clients in various projects. He supported IT strategy implementation and improved project controlling and operational processes.
Before taking the role of a consultant, Marcus worked for Lufthansa German Airlines. He was responsible for the application design at Lufthansa Cargo’s Quality Management department. Moreover, he worked as a Trainer at Lufthansa Systems.
Marcus obtained the degree Diplom-Kaufmann from the Goethe-University Frankfurt and also studied at the Wharton Business School. He received an MBA with distinction from INSEAD (France/Singapore). During his studies, he wrote a research paper in cooperation with Lufthansa German Airlines on Dynamic Redemption Pricing at frequent flyer programs.
Matt Lubetich Director (Government Relations)
Matt's experience in operating Philippine corporations give 360 Palawan a solid inroad to local and executive government units.
A 4th generation entrepreneur, Matt's resourcefulness built two successful media companies in the early 90's creating promotional education and training content for Fortune 500 clients including Target Stores, Georgia Pacific and Conoco Philips. At the start of the new millennium, Matt migrated to Asia where he excelled through various leadership roles in the Bigfoot Group of Companies. He is currently Managing Partner at Bigfoot Ventures providing senior leadership across its Asia-Pacific interests. Matt valuates synergies that fit the current private and public portfolio requirements and develops relationships that nurture and feed these requirements.
Matt's passion for land development was recently rewarded with the appointment as CEO of Bigfoot Properties, Inc., a global property developer whose tenants include Facebook in Los Angeles, and developments such as Bigfoot Centre in Hong Kong. Matt's attention to service and diverse diplomacy is a key link in driving the company forward.
Michael Gleissner Principal Investor
Asia-based media and business entrepreneur Michael Gleissner started his professional career in the telecommunications technology industry in Germany. He pioneered e-commerce with Europe's first online bookstore "telebook", developed web hosting (with one of Germany's leading web hosting service), as well as business process outsourcing with a contact center in Namibia, Africa, which served as the German-language customer service operation for his companies.
He relocated to the US in 1996 where he focused on international liaising in his businesses. After serving in several high profile positions as senior executives in technology companies, including vice-president at Amazon.com (which acquired one of his companies in 1998), he retired from active operational duties and has been focused on managing his investments through a New York-based investment operations.
He acquired Bigfoot in 2000 which now serves as the binding entity for various investments and operational activities.
Currently based out of Hong Kong and Singapore, he recently focused on entertainment ventures with the launch of Hong Kong-based, Bigfoot Entertainment, and the large production facility and film school in Cebu, Philippines.
The Bigfoot Group of Companies synergistic invesments include media and entertainment, education, land and internet development. Founder, Michael, has played an instrumental role as a social investor in establishing 360 Palawan who also has a grant commitment from the Bigfoot Asia Pacific Foundation for exclusive investment in social and environmental projects.
Samia Ahad Executive Chef
Samia is the Founder and Culinary Director of Coriander Leaf and Screening Room, two leading food and entertainment businesses in Singapore. Located in Clark Quay, Coriander Leaf combines pan-Asian fine dining cuisine, catering, executive team building programs around cooking and a cooking. Located in the Club Street area, Screening Room combines a Mediterranean menu, rooftop bar and music venue, fine whiskies bar, movie theatre and filming studio.
Samia has extensive experience as a professional chef and cooking teacher. In 1991, she received a Diploma in Professional Cooking and Culinary Arts from the Institute of Culinary Education in New York. She then interned as a cook at The Quilted Giraffe, then one of only two four-star restaurants in New York. Thereafter, she worked for four years as a cook at March, one of the top twenty restaurants in New York.
Samia has published her own cookbook, Simply Samia, and contributed recipes and articles to numerous books and magazines, including The Joy of Cooking (Scribner), One Potato, Two Potato (Random House), Saveur (New York), Cooks’ Illustrated (New York) and Stir (Singapore). She has also featured in several television programs on cooking and is one of the leading contributors to the Singapore Sun Festival’s culinary program.
In addition to her Diploma in Professional Cooking and Culinary Arts from the Institute of Culinary Education (New York), Samia has a Diploma in Marketing from The London College of Communication (London).