Shahnaz Al-Sadat is Chairperson of LeapEd Services Sdn Bhd in Malaysia, an
award-winning social enterprise and Malaysia’s first homegrown Education Service Provider, which undertakes education transformation programmes and projects that support the system, school leaders, teachers, students, parents, and the wider community. She left a high-powered career in the corporate sector to embark on nation-building projects and work to transform education.

At LeapEd Services, Shahnaz Al-Sadat has championed the flagship Trust Schools Programme, which has seen LeapEd partner with the Malaysian government and CSR Foundations to enhance schools across multiple contexts: rural, urban, religious, vernacular, and indigenous education. LeapEd's emphasis on holistic development has led to the cultivation of essential life skills among students, enabling them to excel not only academically, but with the critical skills needed for success in the 21st century.

LeapEd has reached more than 1,000 public schools and 200,000 students,
representing 10% of the Malaysian school system which in turn, presents an
opportunity to influence student outcomes throughout the whole system. For
example, the Ministry of Education’s TS25 initiative covering all 10,000 schools, was shaped by LeapEd’s knowledge-sharing programme (PreSTasi), based on the Trust School model.

Shahnaz Al-Sadat’s organisation has also been instrumental in empowering
educators and school leaders. Through professional development programmes and mentoring initiatives, LeapEd equips educators with the knowledge, skills, and resources necessary to deliver high-quality teaching and leadership, fostering a culture of authentic continuous improvement. School Leadership and Teaching competencies have improved by more than 60% from their baseline over the 3–5-year period of intervention, bringing schools to an enhanced level that can be benchmarked against global standards. For example, a Trust School (SK Kempadang) became a Top 3 finalist for the World’s Best School Prize for Innovation in 2022.

LeapEd's influence extends beyond individual schools to the education system as a whole. Through advocacy efforts and strategic partnerships, LeapEd advocates for policy reforms that promote innovation, equity, and inclusivity in education.

Shahnaz Al-Sadat also co-founded Arise Asia, a social enterprise that has helped
various projects to implement solutions addressing social disparities, and is a
Founding Trustee of Teach for Malaysia, affiliated with the Teach for All network. Her most recent initiative is the ground-breaking launch of Malaysia's first digital school, Sekolah Anak Malaysia (SAM Education). SAM aims to provide quality education beyond boundaries to empower every child with personalised digital learningembedded in Malaysian values with global perspectives.