CEO - Descon Oxychem Ltd

Profile: 

Aamir Niazi brings diverse global leadership experience spanning 35 years across America, Europe and Asia. These were senior leadership and general management roles. His early education was at Aitchison College, where he was the valedictorian, winning the coveted Rivaz Gold Medal. This was followed by his undergraduate and graduate degrees in business administration from the prestigious Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. He graduated as number one in the MBA class of 1977, and consistently won the SEDCO award for early leadership for three consecutive years.

Aamir has published a number of articles on economic and foreign policy, and is currently the President, Board of Governors of the Pakistan Society for Training & Development, an eminent non-profit society, serving the nation’s human capital needs since 1966. He is also a member of the Academic Council of the Textile Institute of Pakistan, the university’s highest body for policy-making. He was selected as one of the Top 100 CEOs and business leaders in Pakistan in 2014 and 2015. He is an uncommonly humble and unpretentious man, who credits God, his wonderful parents and his remarkably supportive wife for his beautiful journey through life.

Blurb:

One of the prominent challenges is, the need to build a balance between short term goals and longer term strategic objectives. Short term operating goals directly contribute to the achievement of longer term strategic objectives. I try and ensure that there are logical linkages within the company and between the two.

Evolve: What is the secret of your organization’s continuous and consistent growth?

Aamir Niazi: There are three key factors responsible for Descon’s consistent excellence over the last thirty eight (38) years. First is the Chairman’s clear strategic and global vision. Mr. Abdul Razak Dawood has articulated and implemented his vision of making Descon a world-class engineering, manufacturing and construction company, operating internationally. Second, consistently exceeding customers’ expectations in all markets serviced by the corporation. Third, unfailingly offering the highest ‘unique value proposition’ to its clients, partners and consequential stakeholders. Mr. Dawood has emerged as one of the most well-respected and admired captains of industry in the Middle East and Asia. He is sought globally for his counsel on matters of international significance.  

Evolve: How do you manage a rapidly growing company while focusing on operations?

Aamir Niazi: A. Commitment – build commitment of the team that surrounds us. B. Courage – exercising courage in the pursuit of delivering essential goals. C. Discipline – Ensure discipline at all levels of the organization, to ensure unity of purpose in delivering the mission. D. Growth – assuring that the organization and its teams have the right capacity and capability to deliver growth, and continue expanding the scope of our businesses.

Evolve: You must be facing a number of business challenges. How do you address them?

Aamir Niazi: There are a number of significant business challenges. However, one of the prominent ones is the need to build a balance between short term goals and longer term strategic objectives. Short term operating goals directly contribute to the achievement of longer term strategic objectives. I try and ensure that there are logical linkages within the company and between the two. In addition, we must have the competence to bring about effective integration, which avoids the risk of short term goals cannibalizing longer term strategic performance factors.

Evolve: How do you look at the industry and its current market trends?

Aamir Niazi: Pakistan and its primary industry have a very promising future. This assessment is based on a historical context as well as an objective review of the future. Historically, between the periods of 1950-2012, Pakistan’s GDP growth was 4.83%, it did not experience a single recession and it never defaulted on a sovereign obligation. This places Pakistan in an exclusive group of responsible nations, and there is a real need to understand this remarkable performance. Looking at the future, Pakistan has emerged as one of the top 25 economies in the world, has a large market with more than 50% of its 200 million people below 30 years, a consistently higher discretionary income, a retail market which is one of the top ten globally in growth over the next 20 years, and the emergence of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Clearly, CPEC will be a major catalyst and a lubricant for sustained trade, economic and industrial development. Finally, the Pakistani banking sector is one of the most resilient and successful ones in the world, which remained unaffected in 2008 global financial meltdown.  In addition, we are seeing real progress and corporatization of the livestock and poultry industries, which rank in the top 15 globally. These form an integral part of the favorable forecast for the Pakistan economy over the next two decades.

Evolve: What is the importance of values in sustaining a company? Can values repel change?

Aamir Niazi: Values, and more importantly, their practice, are the key levers for building a thriving organizational culture and a sharply competitive business. Descon’s core values are professionalism, teamwork, open communications, leadership and continuous improvement. We encourage our colleagues and leaders in the organization to walk the talk, which is all about being congruent (consistent) inside and out. It is having the courage to act in accordance with our values and beliefs. Demonstrating these behavioral competencies dependably, especially at the leadership level, are the largest facilitators for effective and successful organizational change strategies.

Evolve: What kind of culture you have maintained in your organization and how would you throw light in its significance? 

Aamir Niazi: Descon’s culture is underpinned by the practice of its values within the company and outside with all relevant stakeholders. It is the consistent alignment between values and behavior of associates that are the key determinants for generating successful business results.

Evolve: How do you prevent mistakes and practice damage control?

Aamir Niazi: All organizations make mistakes. Those that learn from them and convert omissions to opportunities are the winners in the long term. Integrity and transparency play a pivotal role, as it enables companies to acknowledge shortfalls and address them in the shortest time possible.  

Evolve: How do you see the quality of your products and customer service in a highly competitive market?

Aamir Niazi: Profitable growth and consistent commercial wins both at home and internationally over the last four decades are the largest testimonial of Descon’s product quality and service levels. Being a multinational company, this success is the most litmus tribute to the company’s competitive offerings and the value it adds to clients businesses.

Evolve: What distinguishes your company from its competitors?

Aamir Niazi: The distinguishing characteristics for the chemicals business are: 1. Our people and their professional pride/drive to exceed customers’ expectations, as umpired by clients.  2.  Design and execution of a strategic plan that is inherently flexible and resilient, positioned to forecast the future, including customer, market, technology, competitive and products’ application changes. 3. Relentless drive towards continuous improvements in its operating and commercial practices. 4. Innovation. 5. An entrepreneurial spirit.

Evolve: Is there any company that has ever impressed you?

Aamir Niazi: I admire and respect a number of corporations in varied industries including financial services. Having said Toyota Motor Corporation emerges at the top as the global market leader in the automotive industry. It came from behind and overtook General Motors and Ford, the unquestionable U.S. giants that had dominated the worldwide automotive market space since the1920s. What made Toyota succeed was a strategy based on ten critical success factors, which became its strategic drivers. These include: 1. Strong position and brand recognition. 2. Remarkable focus on R&D, and the shortest time between product design and successful commercialization. 3. Extensive production and distribution networks. 4. Optimum capacity utilization. 5. Access to the latest available and most efficient technology and techniques. 6. Effective cost controls. 7. Use of most efficient work practices. 8. Establishment of international markets. 9. Global manufacturing rationalization, leading to unequivocal cost leadership (lowest cost producer). 10. Flexibility in determining capital and other expenditures.

Evolve: What is the recipe to achieve long-term success? 

Aamir Niazi: In determining long term success, I focus on three significant areas. These are all measurable and move us towards benchmarking with the ‘best in class’ organizations. Incidentally, benchmarking has no geographical boundaries.  These lead to creating long term significance for the companies that we manage 1. How much value are we creating? 2. How well are we performing against local and international competition. 3. How well are we performing against our peers. Underpinning these three areas are six key challenges on which we must deliver. 1. Creating a strategic vision. 2. Inspiring others and maintaining leadership responsibility. 3. Developing an accurate and comprehensive overview of the business. 4. Decision-making. 5. Predicting the future. 6. Leading change when it matters the most to the organization.

Evolve: Where do you see yourself and your organization in next 5-10 years?

Aamir Niazi: Descon continues to be on a prudent expansion and a profitable growth pathway, which has been its key driver for the enormous success over the last thirty eight years. By 2020 and beyond, the company will significantly enhance its footprint internationally, broadening its base in markets that have a close proximity to its three lines of businesses. Further, the company will continue to be recognized as one of the most successful, responsible and integrity-based enterprises worldwide.

Evolve: Any message for the readers of EVOLVE magazine?

Aamir Niazi: My message to EVOLVE’s distinguished readers is aptly expressed by Albert Einstein, who said; “ Every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life are based on the labors of other men and women, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give the same measure, as I have received and am still receiving.”  Pakistan is a great nation, and we must never shy away from making a difference through our lives, deeds and actions, no matter how humble those might be.