Lale Saral Develioğlu is an independent board director, board and strategic advisor with 27 years of executive experience, including 15 years in senior and global leadership roles at Unilever, Turkcell, and Pladis. She holds a BSc degree in Industrial Engineering from Boğaziçi University and a master’s degree in Management Engineering and Operations Research from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York.

Develioğlu began her career at Unilever, where she spent 12 years in roles ranging from product management to marketing director. She then spent 11 years at Turkcell, serving as Chief Marketing Officer, followed by Executive Vice President responsible for the Group’s companies in Türkiye and eight other countries. She subsequently spent 3.5 years at Yıldız Holding, where she served as CEO of Godiva Türkiye and the Middle East and as Global President of Marketing at Pladis, the UK-based global snacking company.

Having served on the boards of more than 20 companies, Develioğlu has extensive board and advisory experience across telecommunications, consumer goods, manufacturing, automotive, retail, e-commerce, healthcare, customer services, gaming, and regulated sectors including telecommunications, alcoholic beverages, and pharmaceuticals. Her experience spans Türkiye, the Middle East, the CIS region, and Europe. She currently serves as an independent board director at Coca-Cola İçecek, Anadolu Isuzu, Anadolu Efes, Şişecam, and Vakko, and as an IFC-nominated board director at SAFCO in Pakistan. She also serves as a board director at the DCRO Institute and YÜD – Institute of Directors Türkiye.

Develioğlu’s areas of expertise include marketing, strategy, business transformation, customer centricity, and corporate governance. She serves as a member or chair of Corporate Governance, Early Detection and Management of Risk, and Sustainability committees at the companies on whose boards she serves. She is Chair of the Qualified Risk Director® (QRD®) Governance Council of the DCRO Institute, an Advisory Board Member of Impact Boards Emerging Markets, an EQUIS evaluator, a founding member of the Women on Boards Association of Türkiye, and Vice President of YÜD – Institute of Directors. She is also a technology enthusiast, mentor, and certified angel investor.

Named “Turkey’s Best Marketer” in 2009, recognized as a “Woman to Watch” in 2014, and included in Global Creativepool Annual’s “Top 100 Influencers” in 2018, Develioğlu is the author of Karar Verdim, a book on effective decision-making.