My Morning Routine: Tarek Kamel, chairman and managing director of Nestlé Egypt and Sudan

Tarek Kamel, chairman and managing director of Nestlé Egypt and Sudan. Each week, My Morning Routine looks at how a successful member of the community starts their day — and then throws in a couple of random business questions just for fun. Speaking to us this week is Tarek Kamel (LinkedIn), chairman and managing director of Nestlé Egypt and Sudan.

Edited excerpts from our conversation:

My name is Tarek Kamel, and I’m the chairman and managing director of Nestlé Egypt and Sudan. My career started in banking, but I always wanted a role where marketing actually drove the business, and that’s what led me to Nestlé in 2002. After 17 years, I moved to Orascom Development, first as executive director of El Gouna, then to Orascom Development Egypt. In 2023, I returned to Nestlé, but this time as chairman and managing director.

My core job is putting the right people in the right places and allowing them to grow through motivation and guidance. From there, I oversee every part of the business, from procurement, production, and supply security to sales, distribution, and marketing. I’m always balancing daily tactical follow-up with strategic oversight: where we’ll invest, where we’ll expand, and how we’ll actually get there on the ground.

Nestlé meets one of the most basic human needs: food and drink. I take real pride in the history behind that. Our roots in Egypt date back to May 1900, and now I lead one of the oldest multinational companies in the country — one that’s part of nearly every Egyptian home, from water and baby food to Nescafé and KitKat. What excites me the most right now is how fast consumer tastes are shifting. For instance, coffee in Egypt was always consumed hot in the past, but with the rise of specialty cafes, I’ve watched a huge trend emerge among Gen Z toward cold and iced coffee. I pushed to get us moving fast on that shift before we lost ground.

I wake up early, usually before my 7am alarm. The moment I’m up, I jump straight out of bed. I’m not a fan of the snooze button — hitting it is a bad way to start the day. I immediately open the curtains to let the sunlight in, then sit quietly with my small bottle of water for a while. It’s important that I start the day with a simple sense of accomplishment, like reorganizing the fridge. This 20-minute mental exercise each day sets the tone for my day. Breakfast is essential too, even if it’s light: cornflakes or a small cheese sandwich. Part of the early morning routine is the half-hour social media browsing to catch up on the world around me.

I read EnterpriseAM and EnterprisePM daily. Twice a day, I scan the headlines to get the gist. If a story catches my attention, I click through for the details. It gives me exactly the amount of information I need and keeps me connected to events without wasting time.

I get to the office between 9 and 9:30am. My day is a steady string of meetings, whether with internal teams, government officials, or other outside stakeholders. Since I also oversee sales across 18 countries in the Middle East and North Africa, that circle of meetings often stretches into different time zones. Still, I try to leave the office between 6 and 7pm.

Coffee is my one daily constant. I drink it in all its forms — Nespresso, Nescafé, Turkish coffee — three or four times a day. The reasons vary: sometimes I need to focus, sometimes I just need to wake up, and sometimes I simply enjoy it.

My routine for staying focused and organized actually starts the night before. I write a to-do list before bed so I know what’s ahead of me the next day. My relationship with my calendar is a close one; I stay on top of my schedule and commitments for the next six to eight weeks.

I’m a fate-driven person, both personally and professionally. I don’t spend much time thinking about my next career move. Instead, I put all my energy into my current job and leave the rest to God, because success comes to those who master their work. Closer to home, I hope God blesses my son Yehia with a sibling soon. I also hope Al Ahly secures the league title again next season — I’m one of the club’s loyal fans.

Work-life balance is relative — it differs from person to person, and from time to time. My own balance might not suit someone else. I can’t fully disconnect from work, even during long vacations I set aside an early hour each morning before the family wakes up to go through emails — it gives me peace of mind and keeps me energized for the day.

I disconnect from work only to spend time with my family. I also listen to podcasts on topics completely outside my field. As a football fanatic, I’ll watch a match no matter what, even if it's a second-division game in Venezuela.

Reading has always won over TV for me. I gave up on watching TV series years ago — like a lot of people, I just don’t have the patience for long seasons and dramas. Instead, I’m an avid reader of Arabic literature and history. I highly recommend revisiting the novels of Naguib Mahfouz, Ihsan Abdel Quddous, and Taha Hussein. Mahfouz, in particular, had a genius for description — reading him feels like watching a film take shape in your imagination. I’m also drawn to Mohamed Hassanein Heikal’s books, where history unfolds in rich, eloquent Arabic prose.

I’ve held onto two pieces of career advice over the years. The first: think of something you’d love to do, then figure out how to make money from it. Passion is what lets you work without limits, and it multiplies both your output and your success. The second: your career is a jog, not a sprint. The road is long and requires staying power — you shouldn’t rush to have it all at once.