THE SUN, Sunday, March 24, 1996

Luck, hard work and being at the right place at the right time saw his meteoric rise in the automotive industry. Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Bhd (Proton) managing director Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh, who will be resigning on May 1, has come a long way since the first national car, Proton Saga, rolled off the conveyor belts in 1985. Julie Goh goes behind the scenes with the man who has contributed in no small way to the national car industry.

Some people say you need tonnes of good luck to land you where you want to be; others say pure hard work will get you there.

But for Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh, it was being there at the right place and time which put him in his position today. Nadzmi has such a smiling face with charming and excellent mannerisms. But most of all, he knows his job inside out. Luck, hard work and being at the right place at the right time saw his meteoric rise in the automotive industry. Perusahaan Otomobil Nasional Bhd (Proton) managing director Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh, who will be resigning on May 1, has come a long way since the first national car, Proton Saga, rolled off the conveyor belts in 1985. Julie Goh goes behind the scenes with the man who has contributed in no small way to the national car industry.

Some people say you need tonnes of good luck to land you where you want to be; others say pure hard work will get you there.

But for Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Mohd Salleh, it was being there at the right place and time which put him in his position today.

Nadzmi has such a smiling face with charming and excellent mannerisms. But most of all, he knows his job inside out.

"I never expected to be what I am today. When I was younger, I first wanted to be an electrical engineer, then I wanted to become a quantity surveyor. Never a businessman," he said.

A Kelantanese born in 1954 in Kota Bharu where his father was a district officer, he grew up with 9 siblings and like most children, he collected stamps and coins. "I also used to repair broken radios. I was fascinated by things to do with engineering and science," he reminisced.

Today, he holds a string of degrees (in economics, chemistry and mathematics as well as a masters in economics and statistics) from a couple of universities in the US.

In the 1980, he returned home to Malaysia and joined a group of friends, who were lecturing in Universiti Pertanian Malaysia (UPM), to lecture economics to final year and masters students.

Nadzmi joined the international marketing division of national oil corporation Petronas for a year before he was invited by a friend to work for HICOM Bhd in 1982 as an assistant projects manager.

When Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad announced that Malaysia would start producing its own car, Nadzmi was roped in to be part of the national car project team which gave birth to Proton, the manufacturer, and Edaran Otomobil Nasional Bhd (EON), distributor for the domestic market.

In 1984, he was seconded from HICOM to serve in EON as marketing services manager. Two years later, he was promoted to the division's general manager.

From that point in time, there was no turning back for Nadzmi who was then appointed to the EON board in 1989 and became its executive director in 1990.

In November 1992, Nadzmi was transferred and appointed deputy managing director of Proton.

Obviously, his efforts were pleasing the big boys as 6 months later and at the age of 39, he was promoted to the position he now occupies – managing director.

He modestly attributed the company's financial performance to cost reduction measures. "I also believe that if you want to get things done, you must measure it constantly. It is useless if you do not know how much you have achieved, " he noted.

Helming Proton is not an easy task as he is not only running the country's first automobile project but more importantly, it is the prime minister's "pet project."

Nadzmi recalled that it wasn't easy. "I was still learning. I figured that the best way to get exposure was to meet all the senior executives and chairmen of motor companies around the world. So I met all the executives and the CEOs and I discovered that I was able to bounce of ideas with them."

Back then, he was not married, so he was able to end his day at 3 or 4 o'clock in the morning and be back at work 5 hours later. "This went on for some time until my body system just broke down," he said.

Nadzmi recollected a bad experience in his working life – he mad a wrong choice of recruiting a dishonest executive who was a malingerer. According to him, there are 3 types of managers – those who make things happen and those who do not have any idea what had happened.

"You must be very careful of who you employ, especially at the management level. These people must be able to learn from their mistakes and not repeat them. Mistakes must be treated as learning costs too," he said. Nadzmi also holds the opinion that a good businessman should know how to get from the point to another with the least possible time and cost taken. "A good businessman must also take risks but he must not be foolish. Besides, if you are too safe, you're not going to be great. Great people take risks." A methodical person who loves flying remote-controlled airplanes, Nadzmi said his vision is for the company to be able to use its own production techniques to develop its own car. "We must be a full-fledged car manufacturer that can compete in the world market. Our product must be competitive in terms of design, pricing, technology and costing. To do that, our manpower must be trained to be creative. They must upgrade their skills and knowledge.

In managing the company, he said he works through consensus.

He believes that important decisions must be made at the nearest point of action and that communication skills are very important in any big organisation.

"My staff are a team. It is always vital to let them know where the company is heading and what the targets and objectives are. This will enable them to act according to the company's mission," said Nadzmi, who professes to be a good cook.

On the corporate front, he has won several awards including the Malaysian Business Man of the Year Award in 1986 and the national Outstanding Young Malaysian Award 1993 under the business and economic innovation category. He was also once elected as a member of "Global Leaders" for Tomorrow" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Nadzmi goes hunting and fishing whenever he has free time, which is rare. This president of the Belia 4B Flying Club is also picking up tips on flying the ultralight.

After almost 3 years of running the show at Proton, Nadzmi said he is comfortable where he is now. At the time of this interview, there was already speculation over his future in Proton following the takeover of HICOM Holdings Bhd by Datuk Seri Yahya Ahmad. Proton is part of the HICOM group.

Asked then if he will be there a long time to come, he replied: "Now, that's a very difficult question to answer. I think I will be around as long as the big boys still want me.

I am very grateful to the prime minister for having the confidence in me and giving me the opportunity to be where I am now." The humble Nadzmi does not realise that without dedication and hardwork, opportunities too can be lost.