Safeer Azeez, DTM
Toastmasters member since: February 2002
Education: B Tech in Mechanical Engineering
Toastmasters offices held and terms of service:
- Club President: Advanced Debate Club (#28675444), Y2023-2024
- Division Director: Division K, D121, Y2021-2022
- Served as District Chief Judge (D121, until 31-Jan-2025)
- District Contest Coordinator (D121, 2023-24)
- District Conference Chair (D116, 2019)
- District PRO (D79, 2010)
- Division Governor (D79, 2008)
- District Leadership Committee / Realignment / Credentials Chairs (various Districts).
- Served clubs across multiple Districts and terms as President, VP Education, VP Membership, Secretary, Treasurer & Sergeant at Arms.
Toastmasters honors and recognition:
- Presidents Distinguished Club: Lagoon Toastmasters
- Presidents Distinguished Area: Area 30, District 79
- Presidents Distinguished Division: Division K, District 121 & Division B, District 79
- DTM – Traditional (2018) & Pathways (2022)
Relevant work experience and how it relates to Toastmasters and your role as a District leader:
I have nearly 30 years in leading aviation organizations, of which close to 20 years are in management & leadership roles. I have spearheaded digital transformation programs, leading cross-functional and international teams. Currently, running a startup I founded specializing in Consulting & Software solutions. I have also established & led voluntary organizations, including alumni and technology forums.
What experience do you have in strategic planning?
Throughout my career, I have led multi-million Dollar, multi-year, cross-functional initiatives from ideation to completion. Collaborating with C level Execs from IT, Finance & Engineering, I have executed long term strategic plans for mission-critical departments – overseeing transition from obsolete / legacy platforms to state-of-the-art & bespoke solutions.
This strategic experience has helped me in leading Clubs, Areas & newly formed Divisions to achieve Presidents Distinguished status.
My entrepreneurial venture also stems from a long term vision for bringing innovative solutions into the aviation software market.
What experience do you have in the area of finance?
1. I have managed a 2.5 year, US$ 15M software product implementation project, within the allowable budget.
2. As accountable manager for a critical department within a large / global airline, I was responsible for yearly budgets upto USD 10Million, which included capex & opex costs covering internal & external man-power, software licensing & support, vendor payouts etc.
What experience do you have in developing procedures?
In the highly regulated airline industry, I was responsible for developing and implementing processes for key operational departments. This included establishing procedures for integrating digital, e-enabled aircraft into the fleet while ensuring IT systems aligned with regulatory requirements and operational needs.
What lessons did you learn from previous leadership positions?
“Commit to roles, only if you can do justice to it”, especially in voluntary organizations. I learned it the hard way!
The responsibility of a leader is always to create, nourish, enable and develop more leaders, so that the organization’s future is in safe hands.
As a leader, your work is half done when you identify a foundational goal for your tenure, create a Strategic plan to reach the goal and ensure team is aligned.
Why do you want to serve as a District leader?
In every year of my 23-year Toastmasters journey, I have taken on leadership roles – from club to district levels – and learnt immensely from and contributed towards each role.
This year, I want to step-up to a Trio role, as I believe it’s the right time to make a meaningful impact to the Toastmasters in D121.
As a Program Quality Director, I want to shape the learning experience of every member across the district & drive educational excellence – both from communication & leadership perspectives, utilising the 100-year legacy of the Toastmasters Educational program.
In your opinion, what are the District mission’s major objectives and how would you work to achieve them?
The district mission “To build new clubs and support all clubs in achieving excellence” in turn enables Toastmasters organization to empower more and more people to become effective leaders & communicators.
To achieve this, as PQD, I would:
- Elevate the quality of education & training by delivering impactful trainings, advanced workshops, and expert master classes.
- Strengthen Pathways experience by offering in-depth guidance on content & benefits as well as structured mentoring.
- Enhance the “Club Experience” across the district, further driving organic growth of membership, more leaders, and thereby more clubs.
Additional information about yourself:
As part of my commitment to social engagement, I revitalized a defunct alumni organization, transforming it into a thriving community within a year.
Additionally, alongside a few colleagues, I co-founded a technology networking platform focused on knowledge sharing, collaboration, and leadership development.
Even after a decade, both organizations continue to grow from strength to strength – leveraging the strong foundation that was laid – impacting hundreds of lives.