Sweet smile of success | Bangkok Post: business

Krisda Monthienvichienchai vowed 15 years ago never to serve as the top executive of a company again because the huge responsibility made his smile disappear. He changed his mind four years ago and these days he’s smiling again.

The cheerful outlook is all the more remarkable given the challenge he has accepted as the first president of Mitr Phol Sugar Corporation who is not the member of the Vongkusolkit family. He intends to prove that an outside professional can lead a long-established family-run business to success.

His rise through the ranks at Mitr Phol came after an earlier period in his life when Mr Krisada wondered whether the executive suite was really for him. He had spent a couple of years as managing director with Bangkok Arts & Crafts Plc, and before that as financial controller in Assab Steel (Thailand), and in various positions in Siam Cement Group (SCG). The experiences left him feeling he was not comfortable with a leading position, in which he had to responsible for hundreds of employees.