Page 54 - ICE BUSINESS TIMES March 2020

Telecommunication
Man
of Action
Yasir Azman, CEO of Grameenphone
(GP) on preparing the telecom
behemoth for the next digital
revolution
Congratulations on
being at the helm of GP.
How does it feel to be the
CEO of the company
where you’ve been
working at for so many
years?
Actually I am very thrilled,
overwhelmed, and at the same
time humbled. Besides my family
and friends, the way the whole
country has felicitated-in terms of
lots of good wishes, congratula- understanding your customer
tion messages, confidence,
promise to support, makes me
happy and grateful. At the same
time, it reminds me of our
promises and the ability to deliver
on those.
GP boasts a subscriber
base of 76 million. There
are a lot of other foreign
companies, for example,
WeTransfer has almost
80 million subscribers.
So when you are the
48
with the global perspective of You are the CEO, you have When you started in the be the 50-year
technology and services. Internally I to juggle different kinds of corporate world, did you anniversary of our
by our current group CEO and you make sure that it is a this is how you want to see There are a couple of projects th
would say that I was really inspired
do a kind of mapping, like
work every day. How do
independence?
President of Telenor Sigve Brekke,
we are working on at this point i
with whom I worked very closely in
your life change? Did you
productive day? Or how
time. As mentioned earlier, we ar
India. I have seen how passionately
have aspirations that have
do you finish all of a day’s
building an ecosystem, which give
he used to understand customer pain
work?
brought you up to this
the best data experience, where w
points and then linking them to
product & service development. Let Simply put, we translate our vision level? will be ready for 5G, IoT and thi
future in pursuit of bringing in
into a strategy, which in turn is
me give you an example. I took him
My educational background was very
modern digital services for the
translated into action. As of
one day to a retail shop to show the
simple. In my early days, I was in
Grameenphone’s strategies, there are
urban people, particularly to the
kinds of products and services we
Udayon school till up to class 1.
very simple four or five pillars which
youth and the professionals. At t
sell in that area (Odisha). Eventually,
Then I went to Kakoli High School.
all of our employees are aware of,
same time, we at GP are committed
what impact do we create? Let's take
slum with 1.5 lac people who were
followed by Abujar Gifari College and
the example of the Internet. If
all those strategies delineating our
country. And there we have a coup
through an internet connection, a he came to know about a nearby and there is clear action point out of Then I went to Dhaka College, to reducing the inequaliti
the customers of the products. To my
I was lucky enough to get admitted
professional’s career gets changed, it utmost surprise, he wanted to go deliverables. A big company like ours into IBA to do my MBA. I have never of projects: one of t
has everything very structured which
empower the women in the deep
geographic location well. It was my changes the generations following. there and understand what kind of helps to measure whether we could thought of, nor dreamt of working at rural setting. We are wo
product they may need. But there
GP as the CEO. But I have always
When I become a better person, the
country, my people; things were next generation will benefit from it. was no road, it was too muddy and deliver our goals in a day, we had an aspiration to lead a team and in place the right digital
already known to me. But when I With our services and innovations, narrow, filled with huts. He then measure customer satisfaction, to work for something which ensures network coverage for
went to India that tested me on how
to work with a completely different we can create immense ripples and instructed me to get a motorbike; he customer KPIs every day. You couple contributes back to society. I am deep-sea fishermen. We ar
set of people: I didn’t know who was can change lives and communities. I drove the bike with me sitting behind that with a good monitoring system fortunate enough to have ended up on the innovation for the
and voila! You would know whether
community as well as on digitizin
CEO of a big company who, and whom to call, and how to would like to bring that narrative him. On our way, we talked with the your day is productive enough or in a technology company. In the education. So these are the fo
customers, and in the evening we
process, what I learnt is that if you
and mindset in GP, with an even
basically get help. There I was
like this, how do you basically tested to demonstrate my better version. We are always good, built a completely new product, not. Now as for myself, if I look back, concentrate on your present, if you areas where we have
confront the enormity? leadership skills because I was the our starting point was something like which was based on customer needs. you know, I worked as Chief market- utilize your time in the present, it exploring & progressed.
ing officer for 4 years, 7 months and
that, we are basically preparing
This is not only a fact of the Head of the state. That phase of my back in 1997, when the current This incident changed the way I used builds your future, which is very
present time; this is what we have to be analyzed. The amount of job instilled in me the confidence Honorable Prime Minister Sheikh to think before ideating a product or 16 days– the largest time frame in simple. But we often miss that part, ourselves to understand
dealt with over the last 23 years. data they generate every day can that I can take on a role, I can be a Hasina had democratized the telecom innovating a service. His customer the history of GP any CMO has we always think of starting to sort of project we can work in th
The credit goes to our good and be overwhelming, and to confront leader at any setup. When I was with multiple licenses. The vision orientation mindset I still follow served. I still have equal energy and prepare for the next. It is good that realm of public-pri
to unleash the real potential of
passion to contribute and grow as a
you have a goal for the future, but
while thinking of product develop-
efficient workforce who has been that kind of bigness, we must leaving Karnataka, we actually shut was to spread connectivity in rural ment. professional. Because at the end of you also need to utilize your time digital Bangladesh. Beca
Bangladesh. One may recall the first
down our business there and I tried
taking care of our subscribers, to prepare ourselves with the right to make sure that all of my team campaign, where a village woman the day, I ask myself whether I have now to make the most of it. I have government has a very h
bring on innovation and keep
kind of skills and efficiency. Last
creating values. But when you but not least, protecting our members were able to secure jobs. was featured with a phone in her When you have become a a strong & meaningful purpose in not thought of that I would come and they are investing in it,
there are opportunities to work
whatever I do. As long as the
talk about how I really confront customers’ privacy is also an And then only when I accepted a job hand. We have come across a long successful professional is purpose is achieved, I would consider here, but I did have the confidence together.
the bigness, I think it is very important area where we focus on. in Oslo, I would say that was a way and still, a lot more needs to be there any challenge that my day to be a productive one. that if I did well with my present
humbling: to have the confidence completely different setup, beyond done. So if we, as a team, can shapes you like a different then it would pave the pathway for a What are you really into
and trust of the 76 million When we are talking what I knew in the Bangladesh or understand it and feel it, then we better future.
customers. You need to be very about a succession plan, India market. There I was basically will innovate, invest and do more in person? outside your work?
down to earth, in terms of you have been serving trained on how to see the future an effective manner. I want to bring Success to me equals doing things Can we expect something I am a family-oriented person.
coming in, this digital distribution that mindset into GP in a bigger way. transparently, in the proper manner. extraordinary from GP Actually there is not much else t
need, and serving them, to outside as well as inside taking place. That has had an impact You achieve something not via a considering that 2021 will you could do, other than to give
connect them to what matters the country. Which one to build existing Grameenphone for When you say you want to shortcut, or not by depriving quality time to your family, and
most. For us, it is important to do you think has the next, to modernize it. bring in change and keep someone, or not by cheating your nothing can be better than that.
concentrate on a few things that impacted you more in innovating, are there any customers. When you do something now in a situation that within ne
are very impactful. In the telecom Do you have plans to in a transparent way, and you can 2 to 3 years, my children will go
industry, you need to ensure very professional life? other global CEOs you develop a sustainable business higher studies. InshaAllah. So ap
good customer experience, Different stages of my career change how things are look up to? model, that something to me is a from work, I try to spend the res
because when it comes to data, it impacted me in different ways. done here at GP? You see I will probably not mark success. What shapes us as a the time as much as possible with
my three kids and wife. And I hav
professional is a way we keep
is almost like, without data, we When you are in the early stage of I think we need to understand the someone outside at this point. I advancing towards our goals. My two little passion to see whether I c
your career, there is nothing other
would stop breathing. Our day to
follow a lot. I read what Sundar
purpose of whatever we do as a
day job is to ensure that we offer than working hard. When I joined team, as an organization. It is not Pichai from Google is saying. I read cents for the next generation and the a little for our village in Sunam
the right kind of experiences to the GP back in 2005, I was a sales only about the everyday what is coming from Microsoft, IBM, youth would be to learn how to think I try to visit the place twice a
our subscribers. Secondly, manager. I am grateful to that numbers–how many subscribers we Facebook, and small organizations transparently and honestly. The path and try to render help to anyone
understanding the customer
might not be easy, but this is how
who is in need. The act of giving
everywhere. I read like almost 14
stint because it enabled me to
behaviour, by which I mean how understand the industry, the sign up, how many data packs we different books last year to learn and one can go and secure the ultimate back indeed brings immense peace
sell. Rather the question should be:
they are using our services, needs customers, the country and the when we take a subscriber onboard, unlearn and keep myself updated success. in my mind at the end of the day.