Shahrzad Rafati is an Iranian-Canadian Chairwoman and CEO of RHEI, formerly BBTV, a global tech company headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, which develops AI solutions for content creators and media companies, including its "emotionally intelligent" Made platform, and data licensing solution, RHEI Data Pro."BroadbandTV helps companies leverage YouTube branding potential" Vancouver Sun
Early life Rafati was born 1979 in Tehran, Iran and immigrated to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada as a teenager.Blattberg, Eric. "From war zone to boardroom: The improbable rise of BroadbandTV's Shahrzad Rafati," Digiday In 2005, she completed her BSc in computer science at the University of British Columbia. Rafati also studied French at Université Paris Sorbonne (Paris IV),Rickwood, Lee. "Man or Woman, Tech Offers Opportunity for All, Says Canada’s Top Digi CEO" Diversity Now and is a graduate of the Young Global Leaders Oxford Module: Transformational Leadership at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford. Shahrzad also received her Honorary Doctorate from University Canada West in 2020.
Career
Separate from her role as a CEO of RHEI, Rafati is also a board member for Bjarke Ingels Group, an architecture firm, and was named Vice Chair of the board for Invest in Canada in 2019. She has been a board member of the Vancouver Economic Commission, and the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs.
In September 2018, it was announced that Shahrzad was appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to represent Canada on the Business Women Leaders task force, which was formed to advise global leaders on issues of women's economic empowerment as part of the G20 Summit.Weiss, Geoff. "Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Taps BBTV Founder Shahrzad Rafati For Women’s Economic Initiative" Tubefilter She was later appointed as Canada's representative for G20 EMPOWER, a private sector alliance with the goal of advancing women's representation at leadership levels in the private sector.OECD."Policies and Practices to Promote Women in Leadership Roles in the Private Sector Report prepared by the OECD for the G20 EMPOWER Alliance" In 2019 she was also appointed as the Vice Chair of Invest in Canada, a federal agency that aims to create jobs in Canada by facilitating foreign business investment by highlighting Canada's talent pool, economic growth across multiple industries, and geographic advantage as a hub for global trade. In January 2025, Rafati was also appointed by the Prime Minister to the Council on US-Canada Relations.
Awards 2020: CanadianSME Magazine, Business Woman of the Year 2019: AdAge Creativity Awards, Visionary/Founder of The Year 2018: Ernst & Young, Entrepreneur of the Year, Pacific, Technology CategoryUnknown. "Entrepreneur Of The Year 2018: Technology" BC Business 2018: Canadian Innovation Awards Winner - EntrepreneurGreenwood, Max. "Announcing the Winners of the Seventh Annual Canadian Innovation Awards" Techvibes 2017: Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Award Winner - Hall of FameUnknown. "The B.C. achievers on WXN's 2017 Top 100 list of Canada's Most Powerful Women" BC Business 2017: Canada's Top 40 under 40Unknown. "2017 – Canada’s Top 40 Under 40" Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 2016: Hollywood Reporter's 20 Most Powerful Women in Global Television,Roxborough, Scott. "The 20 Most Powerful Women in Global Television 2016" Hollywood Reporter Person of the Year by BC Technology Association,Unknown. "BroadbandTV’s Shahrzad Rafati Named Person of the Year by the BCTIA" BC Technology TheWrap's Innovator ListSchwindt, Oriana. "TheWrap’s 2016 Innovators List: 11 Change Agents Who Are Disrupting Hollywood" The Wrap 2015: Variety's Power of Women list,Unknown. "Women’s Impact Report 2015" Variety 2014: Digital Life Design (DLD), Munich, Germany, panelist: Digital Storytelling: Surfing the Video Explosion (January 2014)Digital Life Design. "Digital Storytelling: Surfing the Video Explosion" DLD Conference 2013: Digi Awards, Executive of The Year (December 2013)Thomas, Knowlton. "BroadbandTV's Shahrzad Rafati Named Executive of the Year at 2013 Digi Awards" Tech Vibes 2013: Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100™ Award Winner in the Sun Life Financial Arts & Communications category (December 2013)Crawford, Emma. "B.C. home to 19 of country’s top 100 most powerful women" Business in Vancouver 2013: Ernst & Young, Pacific Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year (October 2013)Techvibes NewsDesk. "EY Names 2013 Pacific Entrepreneur of the Year Winners" Tech Vibes 2013: Business In Vancouver, CEO of The Year (October 2013)"BIV unveils 2013 BC CEO of the Year winners" Business in Vancouver 2012: 40 Under 40 Business in Vancouver (December 2012)"https://www.biv.com/article/2012/12/biv-announces-fresh-crop-of-forty-under-40-winners/" Business in Vancouver 2011: Fast Company's 100 Most Creative People in Business (2011)"MOST CREATIVE PEOPLE 2011 37. SHAHRZAD RAFATI" Fast Company See also
List of Iranian businesswomen
References
External links