Princess Aljohara Al-Saud is a partner at Henning Larsen studio in Riyadh and has served as the design architect for a number of the Scandinavian company’s projects in Saudi Arabia and the wider region, many of which strike a balance between Arabian and Scandinavian culture.
One of the company’s first projects in the Kingdom was the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Riyadh, designed by Henning Larsen — after whom the company is named — and completed in 1984.
Princess Aljohara has a special interest in promoting women’s positions in Saudi society.
She is actively involved in a network that supports women’s ambitions of achieving executive positions in the private sector.
Princess Aljohara is also a member of the advisory board of the Alfaisal University Department of Engineering.
Recently Princess Aljohara spoke at a Misk Global Forum session called “Dinosaur or future-fit? Careers in a post-job era.” She discussed some of the hardships she faced when she first started working.
“Few organizations at that time had women in their offices,” she said. Undeterred, she “saw an opportunity and grabbed it.”
Princess Aljohara said: “I progressed and started as a junior architect. My skills gradually developed and I became a business development manager.”