Leading the Tech Transition
Could you tell us a little bit about your background (family, education and life experiences).
I am extremely blessed and also humbled to come from an eminent and reputable family. Being privileged to be born into a Zamindari family around the early 18th century, one of my great-great-grandfathers was Syed Sarwarjan of Madhukhali and Baliakandi of Greater Faridpur and then Cuttack, in the eastern Indian state of Odisha and then Bamna of Barguna district. His son Syed Abi Mohammad Ahsan inherited his estates and then passed it on to my grandfather Syed Ziaul Ahsan who went on to become one of the youngest independent Members of the Provincial Assembly (MPA) of East Pakistan in 1954 and then the speaker of the House in 1958. My father was schooled in Residential Model, then spent his college life at Notre Dame and then completed his B.com and M.com from Dhaka University. He spent 32 years as a decorated and top rank officer in a private bank in Bangladesh. Coming from this lineage it was a lot to live up to. So my father gave me the chance to get one of the best English medium education possible in Maple Leaf International School. I then went to do get my B.Sc (Marketing) degree and MBA from the United Kingdom. Looking back to those memories of almost half a decade ago, my father had urged me to gain practical work experience and I learned front end sales by working in Nike, Zara, Sports Direct, and then later in a British real estate firm.
My mother has always been the solid rock to keep our household of 2 other siblings and my wife is also an entrepreneur who runs a successful e-commerce food business in the name of Baking Stories when she is not taking care of our three-year-old son. Business and commerce run in for the last two generations of our extended family and all of our cousins and parents coming together to form our diversified conglomerate seemed like the only logical choice. Nevertheless, we have been raised to be family-oriented so to us family always comes first and everything else comes later.
You were educated in England. What your main takeaways from years in the UK and how did it change your look when you eventually returned to Bangladesh?
The British Empire at its peak was the largest in human history having covered around 35 million sq km, which is almost one-fourth of the total land area on Earth. So naturally, there is a lot to learn from that culture and having lived in the UK for a considerable amount of time, its difficult to mention only a few takeaways but one of the most amazing things would be the respect they have for their citizens. It’s got one of the most diversified cultural mixes in the modern world but it’s always their people over any other nationalities. That is why, the love, care and respect the public has for their nation is astonishing. Then there is their discipline, their punctuality, their work ethic, their respect for law and order, their high regard for people’s privacy, their willingness to change for the better, etc are some of their other admirable traits. So after coming back to Bangladesh, I tried to hold onto these good characteristics and pass it on whenever possible. I understand it’s a small scene in the big picture but in the words of the great Chinese philosopher Lao Tze – “ A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”.
Why did you not directly join the family business?
I had learned about the best practices of the UK market but I did not know about the Bangladeshi RMG industry. After coming back from abroad, I joined Viyellatex group as a management trainee mainly because it was led by an extraordinary and an extremely visionary man, the group Chairman Mr David Hasanat, in a short space of time was promoted to the position of Business Assistant to the Chairman of the Group. I am happy that I did as I learned so much from working directly under the great man himself! I also wanted to observe the corporate life in Bangladesh from the other side of the table to be able to get some perspective into the mindset of employees, who I believe are the biggest assets of any organization. I wanted to be able to empathize with them before they may be trying to lead them. I was there for two years and then eventually joined the family business. Then I decided that we had to diversify into other business possibilities to keep our presence in the business sector in Bangladesh, long term and sustainable.
What your motivations for diversifying into conglomerate business sectors?
If I had to answer this question in one word it would be “Sustainability”. I think it is crucial for businesses to try to branch out into other sectors to thrive in the long run. It’s also important to be practical about the idea of the business. It gets a further boost if the business idea aligns with the country’s future plans and directions.
We must also be willing to learn, unlearn and relearn because what it is accepted and applicable today may not be useful tomorrow. That is why it is critical to developing a certain frame of mind that is willing to accept change and adapt to it. It’s a fast-moving world and we must be willing to welcome the inevitable changes. If capable then it is also advisable to travel whenever and wherever possible because it helps to expand the knowledge base. Being able to identify the right business at the right time is paramount.
Why is your vision behind starting Amzotech Solutions Limited and how do you plan to sustainably execute it?
Amzotech Solutions Limited is basically a 4IR technology company. We are currently partners of Dell EMC, Arista Networks and a few other Fortune 500 companies. Basically, we want to create an environment where disruptive technology and trends such as RPA, AI, VR, IoT, etc will significantly alter the way businesses, industries and consumers will operate, simply because it has attributes that are recognizably superior to the current and conventional systems, procedures and habits.
We are proud to offer the SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) solution of Dell RSA and also promoting Arista networking switches and routers. We are also focusing on intensively assisting banks on better KYC and RPA technologies to align with the regulatory guidelines of the central bank.
We want to be one of the leading augmenters of technologies in the nation and then abroad in the foreseeable future. Our vision aligns with that of Bangladesh which is going into digitization or virtualization, so it’s almost inevitable that ICT businesses will thrive provided that it ticks all the right boxes. This ICT industry will also be able to provide hundreds of thousands of jobs for the people of this nation. So it’s a win-win for the country, it’s people and the organization.
As far as the matter of a successful execution is concerned, there are no guarantees of success in any business but there are certain attributes, features that increase the chances of being prosperous. With that in mind, I would say one of the biggest strengths of Amzotech is that all of its shareholders/stakeholders are successful businessmen in their respective fields. We are running garment industries, IB schools, textile chemical companies, human resource firms, full-scale fitness centres, automobile imports, lubricant imports, etc. So I think the experience we have gathered all these years through establishing the business in several sectors is a key point in gaining the confidence to branch out into ICT and hopefully, be able to execute it through hard work, integrity, honesty, discipline, technical knowledge and with the right planning.
What is your corporate ethos when it comes to hiring new employees?
Most of the candidates who apply and are called for interviews are more or less of similar educational backgrounds. Very little, in terms of academic qualifications differ. In terms of experience, I am very open to hiring employees with little or no experience unless of course there is a need for it which is applicable to certain departments and positions. The things I look for the most, in potential candidates are not just Amzotech but all my other businesses are their desire or drive or hunger to shine. I want people with not just potential but the willingness to work hard to back it up, to be honest, to have integrity, to be disciplined and to be loyal.
What suggestion(s) would you provide to the next generation of aspiring young intrapreneurs and entrepreneurs in light of the 4th Industrial Revolutions.
I believe in one of the most simple theories of evolution when it comes to the corporate culture. It’s usually the survival of the fittest. I admit that it’s not always the case but it has a higher probability. So in a world that is getting more and more competitive every day, it’s essential to try to stay ahead of the game. And for that, I think the thirst for gathering knowledge is imperative and I don’t mean that just in terms of academic qualifications. There have been, there are and there may always be anomalies but exceptions aren’t always the best examples.
We must also be willing to learn, unlearn and relearn because what it is accepted and applicable today may not be useful tomorrow. That is why it is critical to developing a certain frame of mind that is willing to accept change and adapt to it. It’s a fast-moving world and we must be willing to welcome the inevitable changes. If capable then it is also advisable to travel whenever and wherever possible because it helps to expand the knowledge base. Being able to identify the right business at the right time is paramount. Once you do, work very hard, work smart but always remember your roots, your family, your friends, your colleagues and people who have helped you in your time of need. Be kind to people and most of all, always remember to be a good human being before everything else because, in the end, it’s crucial to leave a legacy for the next generation to look up to.
