Nour Al Hassan’s pan-regional translation and content company began in 2008 with two people and now has 70-plus employees, offices in three countries and a portfolio of clients from governments to multinationals based almost entirely around the talents and tenacity of women working from home.

The CEO of Tarjama, which literally means “translation” in Arabic, and now editorial marketplace, Ureed, admits that she didn’t plan it, but quickly realised that the combination of self-discipline, flexibility and motivation of her part-time network was the ideal fit for her business. Most of her network of translators is made up of women who work from home. “Nobody wants to hire people part-time or who want flexible hours to fit around their families, but there are so many talented women who are desperate to work and have the skills and discipline to offer their services freelance,” she tells CEO Middle East.