TAU President hosts an Online meeting with alumni appointed to senior positions in the Israeli economy during 2020

This is the second consecutive year that TAU President, Prof. Ariel Porat, hosts, congratulates and honors leading key figures in the Israeli economy who have been appointed during the past year, all Tel Aviv University alumni. Even though this year’s meeting was held in Zoom, it still was a real power multiplier.

The TAU Alumni Organization currently celebrates five years since its establishment, led by Sigalit Ben Hayoun, who said: “The year 2020 faced us with new challenges, unlike anything we faced before, but still was fruitful and supplied us with a series of alumni taking key positions in many different fields – from Health, Education and Culture to Infrastructure, Banking and High-Tech."

Tel Aviv University President, Prof. Ariel Porat, opened and surveyed part of the institution's strategy: “We are making efforts to increase our international presence, to display our Multidisciplinarity and to utilize it creating interdisciplinary connections, and not the traditional types, as well as to strengthen the bond between TAU and various companies, especially in the fields of High-Tech and Bio-Tech, creating new collaborations.”

The zoom meeting was attended by two different men named Ariel Porat – one is TAU president and the other is Ariel Porat who was appointed CEO of Siemens Israel. Both admitted it was a different situation. Another executive present was Ron Rotter, who was appointed CEO of the Castro-Hoodies Group this year. Inspired by the custom of alumni organizations around the world, Rotter created a high-quality, branded winter tracksuit with TAU logo as a gift for all attendees.

The executive alumni who participated in the event were:

• Ron Levkovich, Chairman the First International Bank of Israel
• Adv. Tomer Raved, CEO of B Communications
• Ariel Porat, CEO at Siemens Israel
• Yoni Ophir, Executive Vice President at Kushner Companies
• Gabriel Miodownik, President and CEO at Netafim
• Yair Avidan, Supervisor of Banks at the Bank of Israel
• Asher Levy, President and Executive Chairman at NSO Group
• Ron Rotter, CEO of the Castro-Hoodies Group
• Mira Mines, CEO at Women's International Zionist Organization (WIZO)
• Yaniv Bahar, CEO of Alliance High School
• Nir Dagan, Chief Executive Officer at IES Holdings Ltd
• Prof. Dr. Yaniv Sherer, CEO of the Barzilai Medical Center
• Ron Tomer, Phd. Co-CEO of Unipharm and President of the Manufacturers Association of Israel
• Shai-Lee Spigelman, Director General at the Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of Israel
• Gil Sharon, Chairman of Bezeq
• Lior Eshkol, CEO of Wolt Israel
• Amit Edri, Director General at the Ministry of Education, Government of Israel

Who praised the mayor? Who complimented the Supervisor of Banks? Who thanked the former minister?

Ron Rotter, one of the younger attendees at the meeting, admitted that his visits to TAU after graduation were to visit his wife Adi, while she studied Architecture in the wee hours of the night.

The older guard was represented by a number of executives: Yair Avidan, the Supervisor of Banks, who holds three degrees from TAU, and Asher Levy, who serves as President and Executive Chairman at NSO Group, Landa Digital Printing and Gencell, who spoke about the need for mentoring and helping entrepreneurs, CEOs and companies In growth processes.

The field of Education was represented by two - Yaniv Bahar, CEO of Alliance High School who began his career in the Ben Shemen Youth Village, praised the mayor of Tel Aviv for the autonomy and room for maneuver he gives him during the current challenging era. The other is Amit Edri, Director General at the Ministry of Education, who spoke about the necessity of managerial and pedagogical flexibility and the possibility of teaching in all the variety of tools and not just in the classroom, that will advance the country one generation forward.

Ron Levkovich, Chairman the First International Bank of Israel, said: "The strength of the banking system in Israel and its readiness for crisis enables customer service throughout this period and, more importantly, enables the granting of credit to businesses and households and thus helps the economy."

Levkovich also complimented the Supervisor of Banks on the important and sensitive moves he led during the COVID crisis.

Ron suggested removing the TAU campus fences so that the university would become a part of the community and the city: "The fence symbolizes much more than it is," he stated.

The female public sector was represented by the Director General at the Ministry of Science and Technology, Shai-Lee Spigelman, who took office in June and is facing a lack of budget caused by the COVID pandemic, and the incoming CEO of Walt Israel, Lior Eshkol, whose delivery missions are all successful despite the unstable era.

Nir Dagan, Chief Executive Officer at IES Holdings and former CEO of Arkia, joined the Zoom meeting from the desolate airport of Eilat, moments before boarding the plane. President and CEO at Netafim, Gabriel Miodownik, shared that he took office just two weeks before the corona began and ruled: “It’s all about Timing”.

Bezeq's chairman, Gil Sharon, predicted that "2021 will be a significant year for the company - we are investing in the launch of two ultra-fast networks that will contribute significantly to the Israeli economy - launching 5G that will allow wider bandwidth, and a Million households will be connected to the new Optic Fiber”.

 Tomer Raved said that he is involved in the NYU Alumni Organization and is looking forward to getting involved in the TAU Alumni Organization as well, hoping to nurture the alumni community and the next generation.

President of the Manufacturers Association of Israel, Ron Tomer, took office in February, the day they began talking about a delay in supply chains from China, and is working against an "impossible government that is hard to work with."

The event was closed by Prof. Dr. Yaniv Sherer, CEO of the Barzilai Medical Center, which treats a population of 600,000 people, including settlements in the Gaza Strip, and updated that his employees are going to be vaccinated for COVID within a few days.