Maznah Hamid - The iron lady

Known as the Iron Lady of Malaysia, Datuk Maznah Hamid is a very well known entrepreneur, business woman as well as a famous motivational author and speaker. Long, long time ago, in a galaxy far far away, Datuk Maznah decided to buy an almost bankrupt, unknown security company and turned into a multi-million, respectable empire.

　

During the early days, she employed a few guards, with herself being jack of all trades in the small outfit - clerk, secretary, manager and sometimes the guard herself! And in order to expand the business, she and the husband sold their own house and moved to a new, smaller place which come without proper amenities.

　

With only a few thousands capital of their own, her company has to compete with hundreds of other licensed security companies in Malaysia, with many of them were established with up to millions of capital. And against all competition, the company survived and triumphed.

　

The company, Securiforce now is one of the biggest security companies in Malaysia, having more than 30 branches across Malaysia and employing more than 4000 employees. And all of this is achieved without financial help or capital from financial institutions.

　

Alongside with other prominent Malaysian business icons, Datuk Maznah become one of the entrepreneurs who build and grow companies and play important roles as a leader, strategist, while contributing to the overall growth and improvement of the society's life in Malaysia.  

　

Datuk Maznah has also established Maznah Motivational Centre, MMC, which conducts seminar on business and human development. Her book "Motivasi Memburu Kejayaan" is a best seller and has become the source of guidance to the aspiring entrepreneurs who can learn from her own experience, principles and secrets in her quest to achieve success and excellence.

Resources :

1. http://www.skorcareer.com/malaysia-eng/entrepreneur/datukmaznahhamid-profile.htm
2. http://skorcareer.com.my/blog/10-great-malaysian-entrepreneurs/2008/09/23/

The accidental entrepreneur

LOOKING back at the last nine years, here are the hard facts I have had to face:

1. Before SPM, I was too lazy to study hard as I knew I had the financial backing of my parents. I never thought about how lucky I was, or how much they sacrificed to put me through college;

2. I finished SPM with dreams of being a hotshot engineer in Silicon Valley riding the dot-com bubble. Of course, I knew shockingly little about what any of those things really entailed; and

3. Up till recently, my knowledge of the world – its problems, its people, and its culture – was severely lacking as it was shaped by commercialised Western television and the Internet. 

Although I grew up in Malaysia, I had little exposure to folk from other social classes.

My journey began at the dawn of the millennium when I completed my A-Levels and went on to pursue an engineering degree at Northwestern University in Chicago, the United States (US). It was very, very cold there – minus 20 degrees Celsius at times.

Three years after starting college, I was a radically changed person. I realised that my true calling was to devote my life to work that was meaningful to me, and that I did not enjoy engineering in its traditional sense, although I graduated with a Bachelor in Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences.

Upon graduation, I was determined to find employment in the non-profit sector and secured an internship at an organisation that provided food to the homeless in Chicago.

Although I enjoyed my work immensely, I was not able to remain employed there due to my US work visa situation. I had to decide if I was to return to Asia to work in the development/non-profit field, or pursue a corporate career in the US, which was the only way to secure a work visa at the time.

The allure of a large pay cheque, sharp grey suits and expense accounts eventually won me over and I accepted a management consulting position in Philadelphia. I worked there for two years and went on to become a manager at a global pharmaceutical company in Princeton, New Jersey, making more money than I ever thought possible.

Fortunately, throughout my corporate career, I focused on learning from my work environment and saving as much money as I could while pursuing other interests after work hours.

After three years in my cubicle, I left the corporate world and began to work on my own entrepreneurial ventures in Philadelphia and other cities. I wanted to be a small business entrepreneur because it would allow me to live a lifestyle that I cherished. More importantly, I would be able to pursue work that would be meaningful to me – personally and professionally – without being held accountable to someone else’s whims or the profit motives of owners or investors.

Over the years I discovered (due to a combination of part-time work and meeting new people) that my passion lay in “social business”.

This is the model of running profitable, successful companies which at its core takes into account the 3 P’s – people, planet, and profits.

This effectively combined my interests in the traditional business world with providing a social benefit to the communities I worked in.

My entrepreneurial ventures include partnering with an experienced real estate investor on low-income housing in Philadelphia. I also developed an education consulting business where I worked as a career counselor for 20-somethings who were trying to find their place in the world. Most importantly, both endeavours were entrepreneurial in nature and very meaningful to me as they met the objectives I wanted to achieve in my professional career.

After spending close to 10 years in the US pursuing further education and work opportunities, I recently decided to move back to Asia.

Spending time with my family, pursuing meaningful business ventures in Malaysia, and exploring and enjoying my native land was a calling too strong to ignore.

I intend to continue my work in real estate and career guidance here, but also focus my energies on other business ventures including sustainable tourism, fitness, and nutrition – all passions of mine.

As I pause midway through my life and look back at life after SPM, I realise that the road I took was one that I never expected to be on, but I am eternally grateful and humbled by the opportunities I have had. I intend to live the rest of my life building upon that foundation.

I constantly remind myself of my primary goal – creating positive change in the world. All great journeys start with small steps, and I hope anew everyday to have the courage to take them.

Resources :

1. http://thestar.com.my/education/story.asp?file=/2011/10/30/education/9675986&sec=education

George Ang (Revenue Valley Sdn Bhd)

Success did not come instantly to local entrepreneur, George Ang, whose company today owns more than 35 restaurants in Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.

Boasting an annual turnover exceeding RM75 million, Revenue Valley Sdn Bhd is a holding company that owns some of the popular casual dining restaurants in Malaysia like The Manhattan FISH MARKET, Tony Roma’s, London Fish Tales and TOKYO.g.

“While studying in Australia, I was also working at several established restaurants to partially fund my own education,” he said. “I have worked as a cook, a kitchen hand, a waiter and even a dishwasher. Therefore, I am not ashamed even today, if you happen to visit one of the restaurants under my care, you may just be lucky enough to have me, the waiter, serving you!”

On being an Entrepreneur

It took a dream to become an entrepreneur – especially a successful one!

“I always dreamt of becoming an entrepreneur (although not necessarily in the food business) and for the first seven years of my career when I was involved in the corporate banking, I was always reading and exploring what business to get myself into,” he recalled. “There are always the ups and downs in being an entrepreneur, but I have always enjoyed the ride and not regretted anything.” Ang started his business when he was still a bachelor boy. There were fewer commitments then, and the fear of failing was much lesser.

In retrospect, he admitted: “If you asked me to start all over again today, maybe I may think twice! If I had the opportunity to reverse the clock, I would have chosen to get married earlier, start my business when I was younger and make better plans!”

Having become a successful entrepreneur, Ang encouraged students to be more enterprising. “Seriously, if you are aspiring to be an entrepreneur, you first must enjoy the process, instead of thinking of becoming a millionaire overnight. To me, it is the process of learning and to pick one self up after falling that is more fun,” he said.

His two other close friends, Dr. Jeffrey Goh and Dickson Low, joined him to start the first Manhattan FISH MARKET brand outlet in MidValley Megamall in 2002. Within the span of seven years, the Group has grown by leaps and bounds.

In 2005, his company was nominated for the Golden Bull Award as one of the emerging SMEs; at the same time, he managed to secure the Master Franchise for the popular American casual dining restaurant chain famous for its ribs and steaks called Tony Roma’s. In 2008, the Manhattan FISH MARKET was awarded the winner of SMEs Best Brand in Asia Pacific for Western Seafood category. His motto has always been: “Failure is a step closer to success; therefore, never ever give up at the first sign of failure! If you have that attitude, you will somehow succeed.”

The former old boy of Gajah Berang Secondary School Melaka does not forget his roots, especially people who have made strong impressions in his teenage years.

His time at Sunway

“You always remember the people who made an impact on your life,” he told us. He attributes whatever knowledge he now has in Accounting to one accounting lecturer, Mrs Lim, whom he describes as being “very strict.” Other names like First Year Economics lecturer, Ms Wong and English Literature lecturer, Ms Siva, still stick on his mind until today. In fact, he still remembers a famous line from his Mathematics teacher, Mr. Manaf, who used to say that, `life can be much more interesting than just Mathematics!’

After spending two years at the then Sunway College, Ang then left for Perth to pursue his Second and Third Year undergrad studies and finally graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce (major in Finance & Accounting) in 1993.

When he first joined the then Sunway College in 1990 to do his TEE (now known as Australian Matriculation), he was a young man hailing from Melaka. “It was a huge learning curve for me. My first impressions were that people seemed more complicated, well-to-do, and showy,” he said.

Gradually, he began to love student life. His favourite hang out was at the snooker centre across the old Sunway College building in PJ New Town. “There were quite a lot of distractions to our studies, compared to the campus at Bandar Sunway that we have today. Almost every weekend we would end up going to DV8, a disco near the college for dance and drinks.”

Swimming Ahead

The Manhattan FISH MARKET brand is gaining popularity. Recently, another outlet was set up in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.

With the aggressive growth, Ang expects Revenue Valley Sdn Bhd will hit a turnover of RM100 million for the financial year ending 2009. The company currently owns 100% of MFM Restaurants Sdn Bhd which operates The Manhattan FISH MARKET restaurants in Malaysia. It also owns 100% of MFM Restaurants Pte Ltd, which operates The Manhattan FISH MARKET restaurants in Singapore, besides owning 50% of MFM Restaurants (Thailand) Co. Ltd which operates The Manhattan FISH MARKET restaurants in Thailand.

In 2005, the company set up Grandpolitan Sdn Bhd (with 100% equity) to operate the Master Franchise of Tony Roma’s in Malaysia. Revenue Valley now owns 100% share of Sushi Groove Sdn Bhd, which operates TOKYO.g restaurants in Malaysia.

“I hope to continue building great retail brands, which again may not be necessarily in the food business. Despite an accounting background, I enjoy reading Marketing books more than any other literature, and recently, I had a rare opportunity to meet Mr Philip Kotler, the Father of Modern Marketing himself!”

As far as Ang is concerned, he is prepared to face any challenges in bringing his business to new frontiers. For young entrepreneurs, he advised: “If you have to swim against the tide, it’s better than to give up and end up in the fish market.”

Resource :

1. http://sunway.edu.my/success/2009/06/nothing-fishy/