TODAY

Throughout the world, there is the ongoing existence of family-owned companies which have endured and flourished for years and years. Also in those well-known companies which have gone public, family members still hold the reins or the same families influence the decision-making of the companies to a certain limit. In the world famous Ford automobile company, William Clay Ford, the grandson of company founder Henry Ford, assumed the duties of CEO and Chairperson and is currently acting as Executive Chairman. In Asia, among the most successful second generation entrepreneurs who inherited their fathers’ businesses is Lee Kun-hee, Chairman of Samsung Group. According to Businessweek magazine, the income generated by Samsung Group amounts to 17% of South Korea’s GDP.

In Myanmar, the majority of businesses are family-owned. The second generation individuals of some of these family-owned businesses who have taken charge of their respective companies have been approached and inter-viewed by us and their views on how to maintain and develop their business, how they retain the good legacy handed down by the founder, and how they handle the changes and challenges, are featured in this story.

Daw Khine Thit Lwin
Executive Director, TMW Group of Companies

The company was started by my father U Wai Lwin 24 years ago. The market is a lot more competitive now not only with local companies but also with international companies. Since the time of Founding, the company has grown significantly. The first generation started out on its own and gained success to a certain point.

This very first generation assumed the role of Founder and set up this company. We who belong to the second generation have to consider how best to sustain its growth and success. We would have to make it more successful and bigger.

Father is now taking the Supporting Role and does not interfere in Day-to-Day Opera-tion. He gives us a lot of free rein to do the decision-making on our own so we have to take responsibility for our own decisions.

Work related specifications and performance indicators these days are apparently higher than before. This is not only in Myanmar. For example, regarding educational qualification for recruitment. previously a graduate degree was sufficient but now Master degree is required. In the economic market too, business indicators are much much higher.

Our company started out with Electronics but now we have expanded to other industries such as Hospitality & Management, Construc-tion Materials, etc. Among these, some industries have become more mature. In the Electronics sector which I take care of, in my father’s days, the focus was on Wholesale and Distribution. Now we focus also on Retail. Similarly, Wai Yan Electronics does not market only one brand, it focuses on a variety of brands or a variety of commodities starting from mobile phones to home appliances.

Both my parents are hard-working discipli-narians and give special regard to Work Ethics. They lead by example. We follow the path they have laid. They have supported us fully so we just have to emulate them and try our best.
Because we practise Performance-based Pay system, it’s not hard to balance between old and new employees. The main thing is to have ‘the right man in the right place’. If they succeed, we have to appreciate their success. If things don’t turn out right, there’s this question of how to make improvements.

The frequently asked question is if we, the second generation, does not have a lot of pressure since the first generation had been very successful. I think there’s a difference between pressure and motivation. And regarding pressure, sometimes pressure is good. The Founder is always thinking out briskly how to gain sustainable success so watching him gives us motivation. That is why we can now stand on a better position than before. The Founder is tenacious and broad-minded. He is an industri-ous person in the company too. After a success has been gained, another plan to gain better success is thought out. He keeps thinking for the short term as well as the long term.

In the management sector, the method practised before was different. As Father puts it, it was a practice with a mixture of love. This is a good system. But there are a few require-ments so what I try to do is add a new system without changing the old values. For example, including in the Salary System an additional Pay per Performance. If a system is right and the right persons are placed in the system, the going will be smooth for the long run. But before we make a change, we have to ascertain where we are and then we should close the gap and try to define a new goal.

Overall, our company gradually grew dur-ing the first ten years. Later on, especially during these five years, the growth is twice as that of the first fifteen years. Just as international brands have expanded, we created our own brand Wai Yan and we upgraded our trade in all facets.

Now we cannot treat our present company like the small one initially founded by Father. These last five years, we focused on the company like a big company with relevant standards. The Organization Structure is no longer centralized like before. Employees are given the Decision Making Power level-wise. And we also focus on Training and Development. Because we want our partners to grow as much as we do, we co-operate with them in training and system matters. And we also provide User Training for our End Users.

Translated by Mra Hninzi