Ameera Shah is an Indian tycoon and a prominent figure in the Indian healthcare industry. She is the Promoter & Managing Director of Metropolis Healthcare Limited (Metropolis Labs is a chain of diagnostic companies, with its central laboratory in Mumbai, Maharashtra). She is listed as one of the Most Powerful Women in Business by Fortune India for the three back-to-back years from 2017 to 2019. In 2018 and 2019, she was listed as one of the ‘Most Powerful Women’ on the list of Business Today.
Wiki/Biography
Ameera Shah was born on Monday, 24 September 1979 (age 41 Years; as of 2020) in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. Her zodiac sign is Libra. Ms. Shah studied commerce at Junior college in H.R. College of Commerce and Economics, Mumbai, Maharashtra. Ameera holds a BBA degree in finance from the University of Texas at Austin, Texas, United States and she completed the Owner-President Management Program at Harvard Business School, Boston, Massachusetts.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 6″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Black
Family
Parents & Siblings
Ameera’s father, Dr. Sushil Shah, is a Pathologist, and her mother, Dr. Duru Shah, is a Gynaecologist. Her Sister Aparna Shah is a Geneticist.
Ameera Shah with her father, Dr. Shushil Shah
Ameera Shah’s mother, Dr. Duru Shah
Husband
Ameera is married to an Indian-origin man who was born and brought up in the United Kingdom. Their marriage took place in a resort in Goa, India.
Career
Board Membership(s)
Ameera Shah retains the board membership of Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd from August 2018 to the Present. Since June 2018, she has been a member of Shoppers Stop Ltd. Since September 2014, she has been a board member of Kaya Ltd. Ameera also holds membership of the Indian Association of Pathology Laboratories.
Chairman
In 2012, Ameera was the Chairman of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) Health Services Committee.
Advisor
Ameera holds the position of advisor at Baylor College of Medicine (University in Houston, Texas) and Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad.
‘Dr. Sushil Shah’s Path Lab in Gamdevi, Mumbai’
In the 1980s, Dr. Shushil Shah (father of Ameera Shah), studied the methods and procedures of pathology on a fellowship program in the US. The medical facilities in India at that time were indifferent, which made him complete his studies in the US and start his own pathology laboratory, ‘Dr. Sushil Shah’s Path Lab in Gamdevi, Mumbai. Firstly, he started the Lab from his garage. During her summer and winter vacations, Ameera assisted her father at his Lab by writing the bills, replying to the patients on phone, and even cleaning the arms of the patients before compounders took blood samples. ‘Dr. Sushil Shah’s Laboratory’ was a well-known clinic In Mumbai, after 20 years of its establishment. Ameera Shah came to light when she expressed her desire to be an entrepreneur. To avail of the benefits of the liberalization policy of the Indian government, she wanted to grow up the clinic of her father to the next level. Ameera held charge of the single Path Lab to diversify it with the finest amenities.
The Inception of Metropolis Healthcare
Ameera started hiring new talent, created new sections, and computerized communication systems, soon after joining her father’s Path Lab in Mumbai. She named the Laboratory Metropolis Healthcare. Amalgamations and tying up with the existing laboratories came under the umbrella of Metropolis healthcare.
Growth & Development
According to Ameera Shah, Metropolis healthcare follows the highest standards of corporate governance and ethical business policies. Under the authority and guidance of Ameera Shah, Metropolis earned extraordinary goodwill for its shareholders. Metropolis provided a 9% premium to its partners in 2019. The unique growth and developmental structure and competitive advantage of Metropolis allured the private equity investors in India to do 3 rounds of investment in Metropolis. The Ministry of AYUSH and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare honored Metropolis with the ‘Best Diagnostic Laboratory in India’ award at the Women’s Health Conference in 2019, under the initiative and direction of Ameera Shah.
Ameera while receiving the ‘Best Diagnostic Laboratory in India’ award at the Women’s Health Conference 2019 supported by the Ministry of AYUSH and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
In terms of the initial public offering, Ameera said in an interview in 2020 that Metropolis Healthcare was one of the healthcare corporations that had not issued its shares to the general public. Ameera justified it by saying that IPO was just an event to create liquidity. Ms. Shah further winded up her statement on the initial public offering that IPO was a terminal figure to the stakeholders and hard-working employees, and outsiders who trusted the organization. She said-
It’s been a good ride for investors, and people have made money, and that’s important. But that is definitely not my biggest achievement for sure; it is the kind of institution that we’re all building together. It’s also the starting point for a new journey, which is of new investors, new employees, new people coming on board, and new belief and hope in the company.”
Under the supervision of Ms. Ameera Shah, Metropolis Healthcare proclaimed itself as a multinational chain of diagnostic centers in India in 2020. It revealed that its branches existed in over six countries – India, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Ghana, Zambia, and Kenya. According to the 2020 data analysis, Metropolis had 125 laboratories and 2000 plus patient service centers globally.
Setting up a Non-profit Organization
In 2017, Ameera started a non-profit organization and named it ‘Empoweress.’ It was et up for the budding and amateur businesswomen who sought assistance on setting up new ventures and those who needed micro-funding. Ameera had the vision since her teenage to empower Indian businesswomen by helping and supporting them, which paved the way to the establishment of the non-profit organization ‘Empoweress.’ This organization has invested and supported more than 50 women-led business ventures in India, where Ameera actively participates as a business mentor and financial supporter.
A Motivational Speaker
Ameera is an outstanding public speaker who preferably speaks on women’s empowerment. She has spoken at various national and international business meetings and gatherings, industry events, and conferences organized by FICCI, IIM, TedX, Harvard Business School, CII, Twitter, and others.
Ameera Shah prompted and influenced enormous young and budding women entrepreneurs in India through a video in 2020 and advised them to follow the right ideas and thoughts while pursuing the way to set up a new organization or venture.
Ameera Shah, apart from encouraging and motivating the young women in India, often focuses on the family members of the women entrepreneurs and their role to design the future of the budding businesswomen. She sought the help and assistance of the husbands of the amateur women entrepreneurs in India. In a conversation with a media house, she said-
Why are men still playing a secondary role in the upbringing of their own child? The woman’s total involvement in the family leaves little or no energy and time to devote to the business. Support and approval of husbands is a necessary condition for women’s entry into the business, owing to the current status quo. So, until that is fixed, it is crucial that men everywhere, rather than being a hindrance, act as a fulcrum for women who wish to pivot from family to career.”
Contribution Amid COVID-19
Ameera actively promoted the vaccination campaign on behalf of Metropolis and Healthcare that was started by the Government of India through her social media amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Mumbai. In one of her social media posts in February 2021, Ameera Shah stated that the COVID-19 vaccine was the key to suppress the disease and its side effects.
Ameera Shah while promoting COVID-19 vaccination campaign through Metropolis Group
Under the supervision of Ms. Ameera Shah, Metropolis and Healthcare had conducted more than half a million RT-PCR tests in India in 2020 and provided abundant assistance to the Indian government and its fight against COVID-19.
Awards, Honours, Achievements
- 2020- ‘The Entrepreneur of the Year’ award in the Life sciences and Health Care category
Ameera Shah won ‘The Entrepreneur of the Year’ award in 2020 in the Life sciences and Health Care category
- 2021- Veerni Award in ‘Health care services’ and ‘Fields of Women Entrepreneurship
Ameera Shah nominated for the Veerni Award 2021 by Chhattisgarh Government
- 2019- CNBC-AWAAZ CEO Awards
- 2019- India’s Most Powerful Women in Business (ranked at no. 28) by Fortune India Magazine
- 2018 and 2019- Business Today’s Most Powerful Women list
- 2018- Tycoons of Tomorrow by Forbes India
- 2018- India’s Most Powerful Women in Business (ranked at no. 36) by Fortune India Magazine
- 2017- India’s Most Powerful Women in Business (ranked at no. 46) by Fortune India Magazine
- 2015- Asia’s Power Business Women, Forbes
- 2015- Young Global Leader, World Economic Forum
- 2015- Women Leadership Award at the CMO Asia Awards
- 2014- Exemplary Women Leadership Award, World Women Leadership Congress & Awards
- 2014- 40 Under 40 Business Leaders by The Economic Times
- 2011- Young Achiever of the Year, CMO Asia Awards
- 2011- Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, by Entrepreneur India & Bloomberg
Favorite Things
- Book: Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
- Businessmen: Warren Buffet and Bill Gates
Net Worth
Ameera Shah’s net worth is approximately $1bn.
Facts/Trivia
- Ameera’s full name is Ameera Sushil Shah.
- Ameera’s other name is Ameera Shah Patel.
- According to Ameera, her leisure time activities are playing tennis and Kathak dance form. She adores trekking. Sometimes, she keeps herself occupied with her own self.
- Ameera enjoys doing evening workouts and reading Fiction and Non-Fiction books.
- Ms. Shah admires sailing and hiking.
- Metropolis raised the quality of diagnostic accuracy, customer experience, empathetic service, technological equipment, and research under the authority and supervision of Ameera Shah.
- At the age of 21, Ameera was working in a much-admired position at Goldman Sachs in New York; however, after some time she didn’t enjoy the work of the financial services and consequently, quit the position. She returned to India in 2012, and her father guided her if she wanted to be an entrepreneur or an executive. He explained to her-
In the first, you can have a great career, prestige and money. If that’s what you want to do then you should stay in the US because that’s where the best opportunities are. But if you want to create impact, if you want to be the heart and soul of a company where the work you do matters, then you need to be an entrepreneur. And for that you need to come back to
- Since Ameera Shah entered her father’s business, she dreamed to expand the business on a much larger scale. Initially, Dr. Sushil Shah’s Laboratory was individual entrepreneurship with no computers, emails, systems, and processes with 1500 square feet working area when Ameera connected with the Lab in 2001.
- Initially, people believed that Ameera was the boss’s daughter, and she was pursuing entrepreneurship as a hobby and just having fun in the field. In an interview, Ameera explained-
People assume that you’re privileged, that you don’t actually have to be responsible and follow any rules. But the minute you are not those things, people see it. In the first few months people realized that I was there for building a business. I was working longer hours than everybody else. I was taking standing at the front desk and talking to patients and taking the shouting and firing when necessary. I was not running away from anything or sitting in a comfortable cabin; I was willing to lead from the front.”
- Ameera Shah told in an interview in 2011 that she admired and followed the principles and ideology of Mahatama Gandhi. She added that she received the motivation from the unique contributions of Warren Buffet and Bill Gates towards society. Ameera said-
I admire different characteristics in different leaders. I admire Mahatma Gandhi for his principles and dedication, Warren Buffet and Bill Gates for their actions to give back to society, my mother and father for being professionally successful and wonderful parents, and all sports achievers for their determination and passion.”
- Ms. Shah, at a conference, explained the ethical values and empathy towards humans, while she was addressing 70 managers who had come from all over India, Sri Lanka, Ghana, and Mauritius. She said-
We are not dealing with soap, which was half in size when you bought it; we are dealing with life and death, where a lab result determines somebody’s treatment. If that treatment goes wrong because of your diagnosis, then there should be a very heavy price to pay.”
- In 2017, Ameera, in an interview revealed that on the internet, the most searched thing about her was her husband’s name. She said,
Do you know what the most-searched-for string on my name often is? It’s Ameera Shah’s husband.”
- Ameera Shah attended the Women in Pharma 2017 Summit, which was to motivate, lead, and inspire amateur businesswomen in India.
Ameera Shah, MD, Metropolis Healthcare with Ekta Batra (anchor and editor) and Marina Wyatt, CFO, UBM at the Women Pharma Summit 2017
- At the Empower enclave, in 2019, Ameera explained the traits of a spectacular business world to the young and budding entrepreneurs in India. She stated that find your weaknesses and make them strong to be ahead of everyone in this competitive world. Ameera said-
If you as an entrepreneur are risk-averse then the company will be risk-averse, if you are not organized, the business will not be organized. So it is important to work on yourself as an entrepreneur parallel to building the business, find your weakness and make them stronger and do the same for the company.”
- In an interview, Ameera Shah admired spending outdoor weekends and evenings. The recreational activities she adored were explained by her in an interview. She said,
I don’t like spending too much time in salons or shopping—shopping doesn’t figure on my list at all. I’m happiest outdoors. I spend weekends and evenings playing volleyball at the Breach Candy Club. We have a bunch of guys and sometimes a few women and we have great camaraderie. The other top choice for my weekends is going sailing.”
- Ameera shah was inspired by the ideologies and techniques of Muhammed Yunus; a Bangladeshi social entrepreneur, and the Nobel Peace Prize Winner. In an interview, in 2020, Ameera said that the teachings of Muhammed Yunus inspired her to change her mind from living and settling in the US towards patriotism that brought her back to India from the US. She said,
Personally, I have been hugely inspired by Muhammed Yunus, the Nobel Peace Prize Winner who changed the lives of thousands of people through his idea of Grameen Bank. In my own way, I wanted to do something for my country and thus started my journey with Metropolis in the year 2001. It was a sense of patriotism that brought me back to the country and the sense of purpose in healthcare where there is a huge opportunity to positively impact the lives of people.”
- Ameera, in 2020, shared a story about the funniest mistake she had ever made since she started her business. She narrated the incident-
When I was about 11–12 years old, I used to go to my dad’s lab during the summer holidays (Dr Sushil Shah’s path lab at Gamdevi, Mumbai). I used to be at the lab from eight in the morning to eight in the evening. One of my jobs during that time apart from manning the phone or drawing up customer receipts was to give a lab tour to the guests. At that time, we had a room called the serum collection room. Serum, as we know is a part of blood and is used for certain tests. At that time, these medical words confused me and at one point during a lab tour referred to it as the semen collection room, much to the amusement of everyone in the room.”
- Ameera Shah is a dog lover. She often posts pictures of her pet dogs, Ginger and Lilo, on social media.
Ameera Shah with her pet dogs- Ginger and Lilo
- Ameera Shah loves to eat sweets. In an interview, Ms. Shah revealed her obsession with sweets. She said,
I have a sweet tooth, and eat a minimum of two sweets or chocolates a day! But I am trying to moderate that.’
- Ameera Shah is an active member of the ‘Women Economic Forum.’
Ameera often writes articles to boost women’s inner courage and essence. Some of her famed articles include ‘Facing The Cockroach: How Entrepreneurship Makes You Confront Your Fears,’ ‘Challenges faced by women-led startups,’ and ‘How much is too much?’
- Ameera Shah was elected as the secretary of NATHEALTH, a healthcare body in Delhi in April 2021.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education