When Suroj Lamsam took the helm recently at Loxley Plc, he was determined to prove wrong the old Chinese saying that a family business never lasts beyond the third generation.
Mr Suroj, the fourth generation of the wealthy Lamsam family that owns one of Thailand's oldest trading firms, vows to ensure that Loxley's 77-year legacy lives on.
But he is not pursuing lofty business growth or a dramatic change in the way Loxley does business.
"Ours is an old organisation with a conservative approach to business and staff who have been with us for a long time," he says. "Changes cannot be made overnight. Don't expect us to pursue the same path of mind-boggling growth as other big Thai family businesses."
At Loxley, any business undertaking requires consensus from the management team, who are family members. No single executive can afford to be wrong and take the blame for a decision, Mr Suroj says.
He recognises the need for a "complete overhaul" of the company's corporate structure to keep up with the dynamic business environment.
Mr Suroj enjoys weekend trips with his family and spending time on the water.
Regarding the Chinese idiom about the third generation of family businesses wrecking companies, how will the fourth generation do?
If the third generation already wrecked it, there wouldn't be anything left for me to continue. For Loxley to continue to grow, we will have to focus more on our core businesses.
What is the business direction under your leadership?
As a long-lasting conglomerate that has weathered many economic crises, Loxley has dramatically adapted its business direction to accommodate changing times and market conditions.
I am taking up my uncle Dhongchai Lamsam's role as president, which he held for more than 30 years. As he established strong roots and an organisational structure, we will continue to take the same course set by my uncle to expand the company.
There are many good business units in which we need to expand and create a stronger market presence, such as power and utilities, telecommunication, and trading.
In addition, there are huge potential opportunities in the infrastructure field, including roads and railways, which Loxley has ignored in the past.
What's at the top of your to-do list?
In such an established company as Loxley it will be difficult to pinpoint a first task. The most important issue is how to keep our revenue growing at a stable pace.
Loxley relies on many projects to drive its growth. The revenue will have to be balanced into, say, intern projects and day trading.
We need to acquire new competencies, phasing out outdated work methods. All this will be handled under my leadership.
2017: The time for consolidation and overhaul
It's time to consolidate our several business units and companies into a larger organisation to improve operational efficiency by reducing redundant personnel and processes, which can result in long-term cost savings.
Let's say the PABX (private automatic branch exchange) phone business, an internal corporate network system, has seen a continued drop-off as digitisation takes hold in the telephony industry. The traditional PABX phone industry is dying, though it was once the pinnacle of telecommunications, because of its higher cost than digitised solutions, limited functionality, inaccessibility and redundancy.
Loxley needs to make PABX business a lower priority, keeping employees working in this area in survival mode.
Our consumer product business, under the group's trading business umbrella, is also becoming less attractive. Loxley is the authorised distributor of Cook vegetable oil, Trachang premium fish sauce and Nong Po milk.
The company needs to work closely with these manufacturers to overhaul their marketing strategies to reach their target audiences, helping to lift sales.
Mr Suroj pays homage to his Lamsam ancestors on the 18th floor of the Loxley building in Bangkok's Klong Toei district.
Loxley has been a family business for decades. Will it change under your leadership?
I don't feel that Loxley is a family-owned business any more. We're a publicly listed company. Even though family members still hold many key positions, there are many other key executives who are professional managers.
However, the company does need a complete overhaul of its internal business and organisational structures to keep up with the rapidly changing business environment.
We're designing and developing new strategies to keep our business afloat and cope with the accelerating market pace. New strategic plans are expected to be delivered within the next two months.
How will Loxley adapt to the rapidly changing consumer needs and new demands of the telecom and business world?
Loxley has never had a problem adapting to new technologies to serve our customers' needs. We have always been able to attract many worldwide brands to be our partners, such as Harris, Avaya, NEC and Huawei.
But being able to adapt to change quickly has become even more important for survival, as the pace of change is faster than ever. Digitisation is rapidly changing the business environment.
As new business opportunities emerge, it's necessary to drive our organisational change. We need to evolve in order to stay competitive.
What development can we see at Loxley in the near future?
In the next few years, Loxley will have to transform into a leaner company. We will focus more on a few industries, as the range of Loxley's products and services is too wide.
When you are involved in many fields, it is difficult to grow in all of them.
In order to better compete, the company will have to be more focused on our business competencies, knowing which units to keep and which to let go. Even though we would like to be in all fields of business, maybe having less is more.
Will Loxley go international under your leadership?
Loxley has expanded our trading business group into Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, exporting products such as high-quality jasmine rice, vegetable oil and other food items.
What are your goals for the company, and what would you do if you weren't a Lamsam?
Difficult to say at the moment, as the world is changing all the time. In the 25 years I have been working at Loxley, I've seen many changes that have improved our lives and the way we do business.
As to being born a Lamsam or not, I think it's more important to look at what you can do to improve your work. A job is a job, and my philosophy is you have to enjoy your work to be productive and creative at it.
What are your hobbies?
Time permitting, a weekend trip to my house in Pattaya, scuba diving and water sports are very relaxing for me.
As my youngest daughter is a figure skater with goals of reaching the Winter Olympics, I also spend a lot of time at the ice skating rinks at Imperial World Samrong and Central Rama 9 watching her training sessions and giving her all the support that I can.
What are your retirement plans?
Frankly speaking, I will consider retirement when the time is right. My new role as president just started and there are several accomplishments I am aiming for before I pass on this position.
Too many people live to retire. For me, I live to work. I've never thought of work as work. To me, it's all living and learning. Life is about striving and growing. I want to continue making it!
But if I have to retire, I'm sure I'll find an enjoyable life after retirement.
