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Silver lining
It was the mid 80s and I was looking for a replacement for a colleague who had decided to leave. As she walked into my office for the interview, she was all smiles. That is her trademark, her beaming ear-to-ear smile. Fresh out of IBA, she was looking for a job. Meet Rupali Chowdhury.
As she settled down in her planning and control job, she became a quick favourite in the office. Rupali is the proverbial silver lining for anyone who is down and depressed. Her affable and down to earth spirit will put you at ease as her easy conversation will lift your spirits above the dark clouds.
As you talk to her, you know there's no hidden agenda behind her unguarded tete-ii-tete. Beyond her friendliness and 'anyone can talk to me' attitude, she has that indomitable spirit which has made her the CEO of Berger Paints Bangladesh Limited. Her philosophy in life, "Never give up on your hopes and drcams. Keep trying. You are bound to achieve your dreams," reflects her achievement.
Married and with two children, Rupali has struggled to balance home and work. She feels women face difficulties when they begin their career,
and undergo a serious crisis in trying to juggle a balance between work and life after childbirth. When asked to take the responsibility of the Head of Marketing and Sales, she was perplexed.
Beyond the glamour of leading a colourful, result oriented department, it involved traveling, and being a mother of two young children she was concerned. She accepted the responsibility and consequently she says, “It made me less of a mother. In life, that's the equation - you gain some and at the same time, you lose some."
A CEO is the organisation’s leader, setting the tone and culture of the organisation. Rupali says her priorities are to ensure a common understanding of the company's strategy by the management team, ensure that her team grows through continuous performance feedback, and to instill trust, openness and self-confidence. She believes in an exemplary culture of learning, transparency and giving credit where due. She wants to imbibe a spirit of risk taking so that decisions can be taken at 'lightningspeed'.
As CEO, what are her visions in running the business?
Rupali is clear about setting clear-cut inspirational but realistic targets that will improve the market share and enhance share holder's value. This can be done by a continuous search for sustainable competitive advantages. She believes that a CEO should provide a broad direction where people have the freedom to take decisions and feel empowered.
A priority that comes out again and again during a conversation with Rupali is her concern with putting die right people in the right place. One should always hire the best even if there is the fear of losing the bright ones, which does happen occasionally. Her belief is that even for the time being, these bright people make an immense contribution.
Rupali has traversed a colourful career path in almost all major operational functions, gathering experience that got her inducted in the Berger Paints Board in 2004. Reflecting back, she says, the most important event in her career was when in the early 90s, they got approval for a major capital investment in information technology. That decision changed the way the
company worked, departing from manual to a system-oriented operating system.
I muse at the reflection of Rupali's early career with us, and where she is today. Those were the years of carefree laughter, as the young in the company would flock in our room, sharing fun and food, most of the time on her account. Over those years, most of us got married and she was, and is, a welcome colleague at anyone's home. After her marriage, we had to bid her farewell as she needed to move to Chittagong, where she joined Berger Paints.
She has matured into a capable CEO leading a multinational company, a rare scene indeed in the business tapestry of Bangladesh. When you look at women business leaders in Bangladesh, it is usually due to the parasitic privilege of being the wife of a successful businessman. Rupali, like a silver lining, stands out as a true professional. an inspiring example of a woman who has made it to the top by the sheer dint of her courage to perform, to live up to her hopes and dreams.
The writer is the managing director Syngenta Bangladesh Ltd