As Innoventures Education celebrates its 20th anniversary, CEO Poonam Bhojani reflects on the journey of growth, innovation and leadership that has shaped the institution into one of Dubai’s most sought-after education providers 

Poonam Bhojani is the CEO of Innoventures Education, where she leads a diverse team of more than 1,700 including education leaders, teachers and support staff, across five schools and nine early childhood centres. Innoventures Education currently serves nearly 9,500 students from more than 120 countries, offering a wide range of curricula, including the IB, American, UK National Curriculum, BTEC and Early Years Foundation System.  

The group’s first school Dubai International Academy – Emirates Hills, opened in 2005. Today, Innoventures Education has emerged as a prominent player in Dubai’s educational landscape. 

As the founding CEO, Bhojani has overseen the establishment and leadership of several of Dubai’s leading schools, including Dubai International Academy – Emirates Hills and Al Barsha, Collegiate International School, Raffles World Academy and Raffles Early Childhood Centres. Under her leadership, Dubai International Academy – Emirates Hills became the first KHDA-rated Outstanding IB School in Dubai. 

Looking ahead, Bhojani plans to grow Innoventures Education by over 50%, expanding the group’s reach with new greenfield projects and extending its presence from Dubai to Sharjah. The group also has plans to explore international expansion in the coming years. 

Bhojani is dedicated to empowering students with a holistic, international education that prepares them for success in an ever-changing world. Her leadership philosophy focuses on balancing innovation with core values, and she believes strongly in student empowerment, placing them at the center of leadership within the organisation. 

Recognised as a trailblazer in education, Bhojani has earned numerous accolades, including ‘Education CEO of the Year’ and ‘Indian Female Entrepreneur of the Year’ by Arabian Business. She was also named one of Forbes ME’s 100 Most Powerful Businesswomen in the Middle East in both 2023 and 2024. Additionally, she has served as President of the Middle East IB Association and Education Business Group.  

In this exclusive interview with Education Middle East, she reflects on the evolution of Innoventures Education, its 20-year journey, the role of technology in shaping the future of learning and the group’s commitment to sustainability. 

Can you give us an overview of Innoventures Education’s current standing? 

The business of education, which goes beyond the traditional definition of business, is in a very positive place right now. Education is about winning hearts and minds, and we are thrilled to see our efforts align with our mission: empowering students through a holistic, rigorous and international education to succeed in an ever-changing world. Our vision is to provide world-class education, measured by the highest international standards, and we believe we are achieving that.  

Our students are excelling, and it brings us great joy to provide them with such valuable opportunities. With nearly 9,500 students across five schools and nine early childhood centres, we are proud of the progress they are making. We have established ourselves as one of Dubai’s most sought-after international schools, offering the IB, American and UK National curricula. The recognition and continuous support from the community, both within and outside the UAE, offer great motivation and validation for all the work we are doing. 

Do you have any plans for expansion in the near future? 

We plan to open three new schools in the next two years. All three are greenfield projects and smart schools, designed to be sustainable while incorporating the latest educational technologies. We are also expanding our geographical boundary from Dubai to Sharjah. We have so far been localised in Dubai, but now we are also moving towards Sharjah. Partnering with Arada, Innoventures Education will open a new K-12 international school at the Aljada megaproject in Sharjah. With capacity for 2,000 students, the school will be the first full IB curriculum school in Sharjah. Although our current focus is on opportunities within the UAE, we have plans to expand internationally in the coming years. We are quite excited about the prospects ahead.  

We are in the private international education sector within the Pre-K-12 space. The future of this sector is extremely bright because of the rapid economic development in the region and globalisation of the workforce. The number of schools is going to grow dramatically. We are always looking for opportunity, and we think the developments are quite encouraging outside the UAE. 

Many new cities are being established in Saudi Arabia. The UAE itself has a powerful E-33 [Education 33] vision. The UAE and Saudi are actively working towards establishing themselves as knowledge economies. The need for the moment is innovation and expansion, and we are happy to be able to ride the wave. 

Over the past 20 years, what have been your most significant achievements, and how has your school model evolved since its inception? 

Our students and staff have been recognised across diverse areas, from HR, sports and sustainability to academics and robotics.  

In 2023, our graduating cohort collectively earned more than US$14.5 million in scholarships and admissions to top universities globally, including Ivy league institutions in the US and Oxbridge in the UK. 

Recently, we were honoured with the Al Riyada Award for Best Contribution to the Community, recognising our exceptional HR and labour practices. Additionally, we received the Hamdan bin Mohammed Order of Merit for Sports Education in 2023, becoming the only private school in Dubai to win this prestigious award. 

We are proud to be recognised as the only outstanding IB continuum school in Dubai by KHDA. 

Regarding our model, I’d say that the leadership model has evolved significantly over the past 20 years. While the core values have remained the same, one major shift has been in placing students at the forefront of leadership within the organisation. Students now play a key role in decision-making and contribute significantly to the development of the school. This represents a shift from the traditional school model, and although student leadership has always been part of our DNA, we are now more intentionally empowering students to lead numerous initiatives across the school and be considered a vital part of the leadership team. 

How do you view the role of technology in the education sector, especially in the context of Innoventures Education?  

Technology has become a highly disruptive force, mostly in positive ways, across various sectors of the economy, especially in the post-COVID era. In education, it has significantly enhanced opportunities for collaboration, thanks to technological advancements. We believe technology has immense potential to further strengthen many areas of the education sector. 

Our mission regarding technology is to ‘Energise, empower and enable education for greater success’, and we are adopting the latest technologies but very carefully.  

We use technology for STEM practices to get access to high-quality educational resources, for assessment and to upskill our students. Technology is enabling students to learn at an accelerated pace. Be it AR, VR or mixed reality, our teachers are trained in these areas, and our students are ahead of the game. We won the World Lego Robotics Award for Innovation in 2022 in Brazil against 85 international teams. 

As an organisation, we believe we are at the forefront of innovation. However, we must approach technology thoughtfully and strategically, guided by a clear vision. When addressing 21st-century skills, it’s essential to focus on the head, heart and hands. For the head, we need to cultivate critical thinking and intellectual growth. For the heart, fostering empathy and emotional intelligence is crucial. And for the hands, we must equip students with practical skills to effectively harness the opportunities offered by 21st-century technologies. 

While we try to keep abreast of all the latest technologies, we remain rooted in our core values as it’s easy to get diverted and take different directions with technology. In this context, our core values become even more important. While innovation is essential, it must always be balanced with a strong focus on integrity. 

With all the advancements in technology such as Generative AI and robots training to be teachers, how do you see the future of education? 

As technology continues to advance, the role of the teacher is becoming increasingly vital. From being the traditional ‘sage on the stage’ who disseminates knowledge, the teacher is changing to the ‘guide on the side’ who helps students take greater ownership over their learning. In this context, the teacher’s role becomes even more critical as they guide students in discerning what is right from what is not. While AI tools like ChatGPT can generate an essay in 30 seconds, it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure students understand the importance of producing their own work.  

While ChatGPT isn’t a solution to everything, it would be shortsighted to deny students the opportunity to learn using such advanced tools. The focus should be on guiding students in structuring prompts and using these tools effectively. This requires a different set of skills— not just absorbing content but developing critical thinking abilities essential for learning in any environment. 

Consider a three-year-old starting school today. With advancements in medicine, they may work well into their 80s. Predicting the world 75 to 80 years from now is impossible. We are essentially preparing children for a future we cannot foresee, making critical thinking and the ability to apply theory to solve real-world problems more important than ever. 

Could you elaborate on the sustainability initiatives at Innoventures Education? 

One of our schools was recently shortlisted among the top three for the World’s Best School Prize for Environmental Action. This recognition stems from strong student action and student leadership in the area of sustainability. Student leadership is a core focus for us across all areas.  

As we celebrate our 20th year, we have dedicated this first term to sustainability, launching several initiatives. 

We’ve completed the installation of solar panels across all our schools and committed to planting 20,001 trees across the UAE to contribute to climate action. Additionally, we’ve upgraded our schools with new HVAC systems to reduce our carbon footprint, and students are empowered with data from these systems to understand the impact on climate control. 

We also run our own COP event. We plan to collaborate with schools globally, including those in Brazil, to gain insights into climate control in different geographical contexts. 

The concept of ‘farm to table’ is being implemented in every school, with students, including those in our nurseries, growing produce like herbs and tomatoes. One of our schools even has a traditional farm, beehives and a greenhouse for both hydroponic and traditional farming. We also compost as part of our sustainability efforts. Our students have collected thousands of kilograms of e-waste as part of our environmental initiatives. 

Additional initiatives include community beach cleanups and the ‘Water for Life’ project. These actions demonstrate our commitment to sustainability, with student leadership at the heart of it all. 

Environmental education is integrated into the curriculum, ensuring that students lead these actions. 

What message would you share with educational institutions to encourage sustainability among students? 

Let’s consider an analogy with Toyota. Toyota is a company that makes cars; they could focus on producing more sustainable cars, and that’s their way of contributing. 

As we educate young minds, our most significant contribution lies in educating the next generation about the future and the critical need for climate action, empowering them to become change agents. 

The various projects I’ve mentioned are practical initiatives led by students, designed to help them understand the importance of climate control and why it’s necessary. These projects help foster leadership skills for tackling these issues in the future. 

As a group with five schools and nine nurseries, we can contribute through our buildings and infrastructure. However, our greatest impact will come from educating generations of students on the importance of climate action and how they can drive change.  

Congratulations on the 20th anniversary of Innoventures Education. How do you plan to celebrate this milestone? 

Yes, we do have celebrations planned. While the annual party is certainly a major part of it, we’ve divided our celebration into three key themes across three terms. The first term focuses on sustainability, the second term on opportunity, and the third term on leading technologies. Of course, we couldn’t have reached this milestone without the dedication, commitment and hard work of our staff, so it’s important for us to recognise their contributions as well.