My faith is reposed in Bangladesh, as its young brigade is ready to take over the mantle with the right attitude, aptitude and willingness… Although, I personally did not have the privilege of meeting all the 13 young Turks covered in this issue… but from the feedback I got from my team, I can say with confidence that they are the chosen ones to lead the country to the next phase of its growth.
These young professionals, well qualified for the job, many of them with foreign degrees, are very much assured of themselves and the goals they wish to achieve. Exposed to the western culture and in sync with the world economic order and its changing dynamics, these youngsters are armed with the right attitude to handle the economic, social and environmental tremors in their quest for growth. While some are already looking at green factories, implementation of safety norms and training for better awareness of workers rights, one of them has taken responsibility of shifting old units from mid city to new premises as per the Government norms.
The job of carrying their company and consequently the country ahead is a big one… but none of them seem daunted by the task. They realize that the challenges are different and the approach to the business also needs to be different to match the evolving international norms of trade. All of them in their individualist style are bringing in changes, mostly with regard to IT intervention, extensive use of new technologies and better working systems. Putting to good use their education, these youngsters are not shying away from developing in-house software systems or implementing innovative cost reduction methods.
Interestingly, these young entrepreneurs are the balancing force between the old and the new and very beautifully merging their father’s vision with their new ideas. They are expanding business and looking at new areas of growth. While one has focus on a very high-end garment manufacturing unit, something Bangladesh has yet to see, another is responsible for his company’s recent diversification into footwear.
Rooted in traditional and religious values, family is the biggest anchor in their lives and parents their prime inspiration… yet like any normal youngster they have their passions beyond work… from movies, music and holidays to luxury cars and shopping sprees… they all enjoy their leisure time. One of these boys even takes out time to compose music and is a known name on Bangladesh TV for his musical compositions and another has the dream to be the first to own a jaguar in the country!
Individual, yet very similar, these 13 young men and women represent the new industry and hint at the direction for growth and the determination not to let the hard work of the first generation go waste, but build and consolidate the business for a better Bangladesh…
[tabs_container style=”style1″ maincolor=”#000000″ overcolor=”#ed0000″]
[tab title=”Samiha Azim”]
Samiha Azim has mastered the art of balancing; she is a smart businesswoman, a devoted mother, a loving daughter and wife. You know her contemporary decision-making skills are moulded tastefully with the traditional values she imbibed during her upbringing, when she speaks fondly of her love-cum-arranged marriage. Her sharp observation is obvious when she condemns the dropping efficiency levels in the industry, from “shop floor to senior levels”.
The eldest of three children, Azim chose to work with her father, at the Shinest Group, instead of her husband, who owns Trust Trousers. “From the beginning of our relationship, my husband knew I’d join my father’s business. He encourages me to follow the ambitions my parents have for me.” Support extended by her parents as well as in-laws has pushed Azim to dream bigger, “My father has already done so much, I don’t know how much space is left for me to innovate; but yes, I want to touch new heights of success. That is why we are constantly improving our factories. In fact we have a project coming up in Himmayatpur; it would be bigger factory, more modern with cutting edge technology and a very modern washing plant. We shall be making very high fashion garments there. I am also working on weaving project which would come up in next two years. Every day I spend some time on planning new projects but my focus is always on the current operations.”
These dreams have also fed on the experience she acquired at the company. She believes that education is important but tricks of the trade can only be learnt through experience. “From day one, I would pose questions to anyone and receive surprised looks.” Today she single-handedly manages the company, with special focus on sourcing and marketing, while her father looks after the investments he’s made in varied fields outside the company.
Taking a leadership role, she is always trying to adopt new ways of working, which also includes their new office… “I spend almost 12 hours in this office and so do our people so if you want to spend half of your day somewhere, it has to be really comfortable and visually appealing otherwise efficiency decreases,” she reasons.
She doesn’t shy away in accepting her workaholic nature. Even during a vacation, Azim keeps her phone next to her. “When I go for a holiday, I keep attending to calls and emails. My mom keeps complaining that I’m like my (workaholic) father,” she jokes and adds, “There is nothing as an off-day in the garment business.” [/tab]
[tab title=”M. Ishfaq Ahsan”]
“I am a very lazy person and love sleeping,” laughs M. Ishfaq Ahsan, who admits that it is his father’s hardworking nature that inspires him to excel. “One of the biggest lessons my dad has taught me is to spend maximum time on the shopfloor; and the second being that we owe it to our people to make profits so that they can lead a comfortable life,” shares Ahsan.
Though very confident of Bangladesh’s capability to hold the buyer, Ahsan does not take his success lightly and has taken initiatives for change to ensure continued growth. One of the biggest changes he has initiated is the setting up of Industrial Engineering and R&D departments and formulating a proper Time and Action plan for the employees who in his opinion “had no idea what to do” when he joined. With an unwavering focus on increased productivity, he strives to take all the measures to achieve his goal, including trimming manpower and incentivizing production, wherever necessary.
Undeterred by resistance from the old brigade in his company including his dad, Ahsan went all-out to implement paperless ways of working in the office, “When I joined the company, we only had one or two computers as my father firmly believed in old school methods of maintaining records in pen and paper. It took him a while to adapt to computers and software. Now I am glad he uses an iPod to check his emails,” Ahsan iterates with pride.
A larger milestone in his professional ladder is the company’s diversification into the footwear segment, “We will initially sell in the local market and then start exporting to the European market. The unit is under construction and the product will reach the market in 2015,” informs Ahsan.
Being a responsible leader, at the helm of the entire production process is tough and time consuming, yet Ahsan true to his age manages to take out time for his social commitments and goes daily after office hours to meet his friends for a quick coffee or dinner even if he is getting late. [/tab]
[tab title=”Shah Adeeb Chowdhury”]
Adeeb’s vision about Evince Group is clear, “In the next three years, I plan to raise the turnover from US $ 40 million to US $ 80 million.” The ambitious lad derives immense support from brother Rayeed who claims, “My vision is different from his. I would like to minimize wastage and deliver the garments at even more competitive prices so that I can dominate the market. I want it to be a professional enterprise.”
Both brothers, though diverse in their approach are deeply influenced by their father. “I would say at times it is more difficult than easy working with my father, but I think it’s a very good thing because if he makes it easy right now, in the long run I am going to have a really hard time,” says Adeeb. The reverence he has for his father’s legacy is evident in his decision not to make any structural changes to the company without his father’s approval. “My father is doing a lot of things right and those things don’t have to be touched. So I have to keep that in mind before implementing any change,” he adds. Yet, Adeeb has implemented an industrial engineering department at the factory, which has helped in sampling and has supported immense improvement during production process.
Growth and prosperity can be seen in every aspect of the brother’s take on the business, from their unwavering focus on increased productivity to materialising their dream to start a retail brand called Noir. “Our very own retail brands for the complete lifestyle from shoes to clothing, in fact everything! We are going to call it affordable fashion, the age group being 20 to 35,” says an enthusiastic Adeeb, who knows that the future depends on how well they can implement their dream project. [/tab]
[tab title=”Md. Tahsin Azim Shezan”]
“I work a lot and am fond of making money” – is a simple but realistic confession underscoring Shezan’s practical outlook of life. His conformist attitude is established when he says he finds it much easier to tackle his father than his brother, whose strict supervision makes him strive for higher goals. “I couldn’t say no when my elder brother almost ordered me to join the business after my graduation, even as I was preparing to join Airtel,” recalls Shezan.
Three years on, Shezan has proven his mettle, handling the entire production unit at Classic by himself… visiting factories, convening buyer meetings, planning production and committing shipment dates are his day-to-day undertakings. But he hasn’t compromised on his dreams, “I always dreamt of owning a brand… So I initiated one! I pay a visit about thrice a week after office hours to follow up. It’s being led well by the CEO,” shares Shezan. Thinking big, Shezan supported by his brother Irfan is looking to test the brand in India first before moving to the US.
What really makes Shezan proud is the appreciation he received from his brother and dad for introducing a new line in the factory with highly paid multi-skilled operators working on varied machines, raising the output from 800 to 1100. Trained in Lean, he has now taken up the challenge to implement Lean at his Rajhinderpur factory. Initially only a few lines would undergo change and if successful, the entire factory would be revolutionized.
Being involved at the shopfloor, Shezan is a keen observer and realizes that to take the company forward there has to be stress on skill development and incentivizing the work. His vision is to have motivated workforce and for this he has already shown an open-handed approach in giving OT and also bonus to stellar employees. Shezan has entered into a tie-up with Zuki for training programmes enhancing skills and efficiency, every two months. [/tab]
[tab title=”Md. Monabber Ahmed”]
Deeply influenced by his father and therefore much like him, Md. Monabber Ahmed is far-sighted in terms of his professional goals and most importantly, he does not believe in compromising with his work, even if he has to take it home. “I have an office at home, in line to an idea developed by Dad in 1990 knowing well that in Bangladesh, the political events interfere with your day-to-day life in unthinkable ways, especially during elections when you can’t even move from your house,” says Monabber.
The fourth generation into the business, Monabber handles the marketing segment in the company and has brought about significant structural changes like setting up a computerized networking system with high speed internet because he was appalled to see “a long queue, to send e-mails, behind the only two computers that were in place,” when he joined.
Making changes in the company invited initial dissatisfaction among employees. “Our marketing manager used to teach me things during my schooling years and then suddenly I became senior marketing manager, making all sorts of changes in the system. It took a while to overcome that barrier and I earned their respect by maintaining the strong work-ethic that I inherited from my father.” But to bring in a hint of friendly and informal flavour to the mostly solemn surroundings, cricket is taken up as a popular topic, “Everyone in Bangladesh is fond of cricket; cricket helps maintain the informal bond,” smiles Monabber.
Taking the concept of healthy competition to a ‘productive’ level, the one outstanding strategy that Ahmed has helped implement across all eight factories of the company is a cost cutting programme called the Wastage Reduction Competition. He is proud that the top management has not only appreciated but also supported this initiative, which has really led to cost reduction. A simple scheme, wherein whichever factory achieves minimum wastage in production, receives acknowledgment certificates and prizes, has motivated every factory to work harder to reduce wastages. “Asking them to reduce wastage will not change anything, but creating a competitive environment helps in bringing out desirable results,” says a satisfied Monabber, ready to take on the next challenge. [/tab]
[tab title=”Alif Rahman”]
Far-sightedness, simplicity and a desire to learn define the ways of Alif Rahman, Project Coordinator at his father’s apparel manufacturing venture. Starting by managing projects for the establishments of an accessory factory and a woven shirts factory in collaboration with a Hong Kong based company, Rahman has moved towards establishing green dyeing factories without feeling the need to change his designation. “I don’t plan to be on the board of directors anytime soon. I still don’t think I have the ability to make big decisions; I’d rather take that opportunity later in life. My learning should be where I am now. In project management, one of the many things I enjoy is the need to work with cross functional teams. So not only am I dealing with the architect but also with the electrical engineer, the production and the sales people,” reasons Rahman.
One of the challenges that Rahman effectively tackled soon after joining the business was to bridge the gap between the mid-level management and the top level executives. “You can be the son or daughter of the Chairman or the MD, but you have to have a friendly attitude towards your staff. You should be able to share a cup of coffee with them and show good leadership skills whenever required,” says Rahman. He also believes in skill development through what he calls “best-practices exposure” for his employees, citing the example of his dyeing manager who visited Turkey. “I used to tell him he can use less water to dye a particular fabric but he always insisted that it was not possible. After coming back from Turkey, he admitted it was possible, because he saw it first-hand.”
All for the development of his country and its people, Rahman even while studying in Australia has his heart set on creating employment back home. “Even during my O levels and A levels, I was influenced by my teachers who used to say that the only way out of Bangladesh’s economic problems is through the creation of jobs and that whoever has the resources, needs to do it.”
However, being idealistic in no ways means a ‘no profit’ approach and he also believes that being an entrepreneur also means having to earn money for oneself, so he is working toward growth with a slow and steady approach with a vision to be near the US $ 65-70 million in the next couple of years. “We’ve grown every year but not fast enough. We want to move more into managing what we have more efficiently, than just adding on to what we have, because I feel in the future, there will be more challenges in the RMG sector in Bangladesh so we have to prepare accordingly,” reasons Rahman. [/tab]
[tab title=”Amer Salim”]
“The best part about my schooling was that we learnt discipline,” says a charming Amer Salim of Knit Asia Ltd. At 32, Salim is the Director of his uncle’s legacy, but the journey to acquiring what had been already ascribed to him, is where discipline paid off.
“After graduation I joined SQ Group where I worked as a Junior Executive for production planning because I knew that learning from the operational level is the best. After switching three more manufacturing jobs, my brother and I started our own sweater manufacturing unit. That is when I realized how difficult it is to setup a factory that required frequenting banks, pushing to get loans and approvals, buying machinery and obtaining all the licences. My experiences made me responsible,” iterates Salim. He has proved himself worthy of handling the home business.
Tough times kept rolling in but Salim never failed to prove his excellent managerial skills. “When I joined the Ashulia factory I noticed how there was a hoard of helpers on the premises. When I proposed to trim the workforce, the supervisors and operators took it upon their ego; losing helpers was being equated to being demoted. It took a great deal of counselling to rid them of this mental barrier,” recalls Salim whose smart move also helped them escape the impact of the increased wage rates, even when other factories were struggling to reduce their workforce. Salim also helped streamline paperwork practices by listing SOP’s for the employees which helped the company receive an ISO certification they were unable to receive earlier.
Salim is not only a responsible businessman and nephew but also a responsible citizen. He is deeply influenced by the MD of the company, A. Matin Chowdhury, who believes that they should move with the nation and give back to society. “Our idea is to contribute to the country; we want to do it together for the people. If we spend money here, we all can contribute to the economy together,” he reasons, beaming with pride at the goals that he has set, not only for the company but for the improvement of the nation. [/tab]
[tab title=”Tahseen Ahmed Khan”]
Groomed personally by his father, Tahseen has borrowed the vision for his company from his father, “We do not want to be highest value company but we want to be the biggest in Bangladesh,” he says. With a group turnover of US $ 235 million, the group owns the second largest pharmaceutical company in Bangladesh, a satellite media channel, a logistics business and a substantial garment accessories business. “But for my father, it’s not the profit or the money you are making, but how much employment is generated for the country, which is top priority,” adds Tahseen.
Following closely in his father’s footsteps, Tahseen is proud of the fact that instead of taking the beaten path of getting a foreign education, he has studied in his homeland and capitalized on the opportunity to get hands on experience at his father’s company. He never had a fixed position or work profile, a strategy that allowed him to acquire knowledge in every field of the business. Today besides looking after key areas as Director in his company, Tahseen is also Executive Director at a buying office working in collaboration with an Italian company.
Presently, Tahseen is looking after the process of shifting old units from mid city to new premises as per the Government rules. Besides this he is also involved in consolidating his woven business by merging three units and making one big unit along with taking care of expansion by putting up a new unit with 21 lines. Another pet project is a lingerie unit and for fund the company would soon be going for an IPO. “If everything goes according to our plan, we will start construction in January 2015 and it would take around 8 months to put the unit in place and the production would start from last quarter of 2015,” shares Tahseen.
A keen learner, Tahseen has risen to such position that today he offers vital assistance in the areas of policy making, structure, financial analysis, reporting and accounts; areas that he felt lacked efficiency before. During the day, he keeps busy with operational work and deals with production hassles in the evening. His office hours get extended beyond 6:30 PM during which he works on pipeline projects. As a result, he has had to sacrifice the time spent with his friends, among the toughest measures that he has had to undertake for the growth of his business.
[/tab]
[tab title=”Oishee Ahmad”]
At 24, Oishee Ahmed is wise beyond her years. “If it weren’t for Wisteria, I would’ve been working for a creative agency, but I decided to join the business – to add something new to it,” she confides. A firm believer of balancing education and experience, Oishee joined the company at the intern level.
After a Baccalaureate in Business Administration from Dhaka University and a year-long root level experience, Oishee emerged a strong production specialist at Wisteria Textiles Ltd. “I’m trying to match the production with the financials,” she says. “I plan everything, from ordering the raw materials to date of production to the actual execution. My focus lies on relating the business end to the financials since that has been my background.”
Utilizing her business sensibilities and acquired field knowledge, Oishee has perfected the Time and Action plan at Wisteria and has also developed some small in-house software systems for resource planning. Her input has also been vital in centralizing the various departments in the company to bridge the distance between the management and employees for better decision making and therefore, facilitating an organic growth of the company.
To achieve these goals, Oishee has had to work 12 hours a day and even endure late nights whenever required. Her learning has entailed making mistakes without necessarily being reprimanded by her father who is her guiding force. “He guides me from time to time and helps me to identify right from wrong. So, the situation is bereft of any sort of dictation.” She further claims that work has in fact brought her closer to her father. “We spend so much time with each other, and that I understand him better,” she adds.
On a personal level, Oishee feels that working at Wisteria has upped her endurance levels. “I have learnt not only about technicalities but also changing human aspects. It’s been a pretty steep ride, exciting but even daunting at times,” she says. She also feels the same sentiments toward the Bangladesh RMG in general and says, “Despite the uncertainties surrounding it, the industry is blooming with untapped potential and new opportunities.”
She has found her calling in this tough setup as she says, “I want to see Wisteria grow into a renowned brand in the textile industry. Most RMG/textile manufacturing firms in the country are limited to being only a business entity; I want to break that stereotype.”
[/tab]
[tab title=”Tasnima Sania Mannan”]
A multi-facetted woman, Sania wears many hats with aplomb… A hands-on entrepreneur, Sania carries three phones, while one is for family and one is for office, with the third one she is directly accessible to her workers. Married and a devoted mother of two, she doesn’t even take the luxury of a weekend off and is available 24×7 to attend to the day-to-day problems of her employees. “The workers call whenever they need help, sometimes they don’t even inform me their names or which factory they are calling from and start immediately telling me their problems. It is a lot to take, but as my dad taught me, ‘they come first’, they trust me and it is good for business,” reasons Sania.
President of the company, Sania is heading the garment, textile and sweater divisions, making special effort to do justice to her dual responsibilities. “All our factories are in Chittagong and I live in Dhaka. My children go to school in Dhaka, so I travel two-three times a week, taking the first flight out at 8 in the morning after dropping my kids off to school. After attending meetings and reviewing work at the factories, I take the 9:30 PM flight back, reaching home by 11:30 PM.” She credits her successful juggling of roles to a very supportive husband, who though being an IT engineer, has also opted to get involved in garment manufacturing, as an independent business. Sania continues to work with her family business, smiling sharing that she finds it easier to work with her father than with her husband. “To my husband I never say no. To my dad I can,” she laughs. But she claims it is her husband who knows her better, as a professional. “My father missed my girl-to-woman transition, for him I am still his little girl but on rare instances he does realizes that I’m a mature business woman.”
Her father’s guidance and an extensive foreign education have helped Sania to toughen up and meet challenges with confidence. When she realized that her father was unable to devote time to the growth of the group because of his political commitments, she rose to the occasion and kick–started the much needed transition from a traditional way of working to a more system-driven, and result-oriented approach. “It wasn’t easy. Many managers were upset; few even threatened to leave and we even let few to go, the others saw the good results after we had brought in specialists from India, Sri Lanka and China to oversee the transition.”
[/tab]
[tab title=”M. Ehsanul Haq”]
“I don’t have to work under pressure, but I make sure I don’t let myself go idle as it would make me question my position here. So I go out of my way to learn and to keep my father happy; that is also how I gauge my productivity and progress,” says M Ehsanul Haq, describing his work-philosophy.
Very focused on why he joined the family business, Haq says proudly, “I have always wanted to explore what my father has built. This family business is what helped me achieve everything I have in my life; I didn’t want his hard work to go down the drain.” At an age when many get impressed with the western world, Haq has his head firmly set on his young shoulders. “I feel too many people are obsessed with the notion of working and settling abroad, without realising that you are completely draining out the brain from the nation. In my opinion, garments are a sector that needs fine inputs to grow beyond a point,” reasons Haq.
From the time he joined the company, Haq has worked on implementing IT solutions, improving on worker safety through installation of smoke detectors, increasing automation to reduce wastage and better manpower planning. All these initiatives meant initial resistance. “We used to have helpers for trimming, but even after auto trimmers were introduced workers still tried so hard to convince me that a helper would be needed for cutting the thread,” recalls Haq laughing. Despite trying to pull a fast-ones on the MD’s son, the workforce generally like Haq, for his easy going and helpful nature.
The respect that Haq has earned in the eyes of his employees, according to him is his biggest earning. He may have been Director on paper, but he had to work hard to truly achieve the title which entailed him to work on the shopfloor, explore other factories to acquire knowledge and even train as a merchandiser. His hard work paid off when he inducted two major buyers, Belmark which works for McLaren and an Irish brand, Sixth Sense Global Designs. “I thoroughly enjoyed developing them and they were satisfied from the first shipment. They want to go forward with us so I am hoping to build a continual relationship,” says Haq beaming with pride.
[/tab]
[tab title=”Faridul Alam (Emon)”]
A dynamic young man, Emon effectively leads a workforce of 10,000 people to generate a turnover of US $ 120 million, yet he is a simple person, emotionally anchored by his family. “The moment my work is over I go home to be with my family, which I know is quite unusual for a person of my age. Among my best friends are my father and the Chairman of the company, my father’s business partner. We take breaks to spend quality time together and share almost everything under the sun. I find it better this way.”
A true home bird, Emon opted to study in Kuala Lumpur instead of the US or Europe as he dreaded the thought of being away from home for long durations. “I chose the closest location so that I could visit my parents every month,” he reminisces fondly. Now married with a young daughter, Emon loves spending time with them.
Reverent about his work, there is no compromise and Emon’s leadership qualities are well displayed in the strong code of conduct followed at work that not only entails strictly adhering to SOP’s but also showing respect for the company and its products. He has imbibed the same mindset into his people. “Five years ago, I noticed one morning that in place of a doormat a fabric was placed outside the washroom, this made me very angry since it was our bread and butter they were misusing and I conveyed strongly my objections to the act. Since then my people don’t abuse the products we produce because they know that even I as the owner will never disrespect what we manufacture,” shares Emon.
Always on the outlook for improvement, Emon has brought in the culture of skill development and training. All departments from HR, mid-level management, workers and even top management are trained in batches. “My workers now believe in their managers and know they are skilled to support their work. It’s fun to work in the factory, I really enjoy the atmosphere,” says Emon. In line now is an incentive plan to increase output without necessarily having to increase the workforce. Throwing light on the same, Emon shares, “We are using defect per hundred units or DHU to determine the quality standard in our process. Whoever gets low DHU, gets handsome incentives. We are currently working on how to effectively develop this scheme.”
A source of motivation for Emon, his father has established a modern knit composite unit, from fibre to finished garments, and taking inspiration, Emon has diversified further into energy production of 160 MW per day, for local consumption, and has also invested in a refinery that supplies premium gasoline, regular gasoline, diesel and petroleum to Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation.
Aiming to grow steadily in the fuel industry and even introduce jet fuel in the future, Emon still feels affinity to the garment industry, positive of growth because of the favourable market conditions. “I don’t believe customers have any other suitable sourcing destination for this trade at this moment. A customer recently told me that if I didn’t accept his order at his price, it would move to Cambodia, but when I told him it wasn’t possible to work at such low price, the next day he accepted my offer,” divulges a confident Emon. [/tab]
[/tabs_container]
Post a Comment