Understanding different cultures is very important

Abdul Rahman Busaidy is probably the only Omani, who looked east by landing a top position at Jet Airways, an Indian company. But then boundaries have never been a barrier for him, writes Visvas Paul D Karra

When Abdul Rahman Busaidy, then Assistant Vice President Marketing and Planning with Gulf Air which was at its peak at the time, was asked to head the feasibility study for establishing a new airline in India in 1992, little did he think that one day he would be part of that airline heading its Gulf office. The airline in question, which took to the Indian skies one year later in 1993 and has proved to be the numero uno private carrier in India, is, as guessed rightly, Jet Airways. As it turned out, once the feasibility study was conducted and Jet Airways became operational with Gulf Air and Kuwait Airways as partners, Busaidi was asked to continue as board member of the Indian carrier for three years until 1996, when the government of India decided to stop foreign partnerships in Indian airlines.

But as luck would have it, nearly a decade later, when Busaidy was looking for growth in his career, Jet Airways became a natural choice and his earlier credentials with the airline helped him to become the Group Executive Officer, heading its Middle East operations, from its base in Muscat.

Interesting period
Busaidy began his career with Gulf Air in 1981, after obtaining an MBA degree in aviation management from Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in the US and a degree from Scottish University. It was interesting period at that time for airlines and more so for Gulf Air which was in its hey days as the leading regional carrier, and grew significantly before the change of ownerships reduced the strength of that airline.

“The first day I walked into Gulf Air, I wanted to become the CEO of that company. Of course, it did not exactly happen that way because I got to become the CEO of Oman Air. But it is the aim and motivation that matters more. And it is not just a question of dreaming, you have to work hard to get there. And your education, commitment, up-to-date general knowledge and above all the ability to do teamwork will help you,” says 51-year-old Busaidy, a man who has held top positions in some the biggest airlines in the region.

“One has to look and think beyond the boundaries of a country. I went to India and joined an Indian company. The world is getting smaller and Oman is no less a multinational country than any other. Understanding the cultures of various countries is also very important,” adds Busaidy while saying that these are the traits that the Omani youth should adopt if they want to make a mark in the international arena.

Rising through the ranks
As Gulf Air charted an upward growth path, so did Busaidy’s career graph and soon he was heading the marketing and planning of the carrier in Bahrain. After nearly two decades with Gulf Air, in February 2000, Busaidy got an opportunity to head Oman Air as its CEO. Joining Oman Air was like a dream come true for him, but it was not all a bed of roses as the situation then was very different from what it is now. The Sultanate of Oman was having two national airlines (Oman was a joint owner of Gulf Air till 2006); the capital of Oman Air was small, just 12mn rials, and it was quite a challenge to prosper and grow the smaller Oman Air against the giant Gulf Air.

Busaidy rose to the challenge and with the help of the great teamwork from his colleagues, they identified niche markets and gaps not served by Gulf Air from Oman and serviced those routes. At the same time, the government also pumped in more capital into the airline. Busaidy also undertook a fleet rationalisation programme, from five different types of aircraft to just two (Boeing 737s and ATRs), in order to cut down on operational costs and improve the efficiency and agility of the fleet from 7 hours flying time to 12 hours. He also got approval to buy and lease aircraft. Thus, the fleet rationalisation and rationalisation of fleet utilisation helped the airline to introduce new routes.

Simultaneously, Busaidy also invested heavily in automation of the systems and instituted training programmes for Omani graduates and brought in Omanis in management positions. One of them brought by Busaidy was the late CEO of Oman Air, Ziad Al Haremi, who at the time was working in Gulf Air.

Busaidy is proud to say that talented persons like the late Ziad and other Omanis were recruited by him to raise the Omanisation level of Oman Air to 75 per cent in a five-year period. While working as CEO of Oman Air, Busaidy was a board member in several companies like Muscat Private Hospital, Oman Fibre Optic, Oman Emirates Investment Company, Oman Fisheries Company, Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Muscat Duty Free. In Bahrain, he was also a board member of Airport Handling Company.

Forward-looking
His foresight and keen market acumen also spurred Busaidy to ask the government to invest in planes, knowing fully well that Oman’s tourism sector was rapidly developing and the demand for flights could soar. He proposed to have long haul routes to Europe and the Far East. Busaidy says that his plans were not accepted by the Oman government at that time probably because it was difficult to align political and commercial objectives of the airline then, but it is only now that they are becoming a reality. And although, he is no longer with Oman Air, he is immensely pleased that it was he who had laid the groundwork for the growth that Oman Air is witnessing today.

Even as Oman Air was finding its foothold in the region, a new wave of liberalisation was on in neighbouring India and Naresh Goyal, the founder of Jet Airways approached Busaidy to join the team in 2006. It was a challenging and stimulating period for him as Jet Airways competed with foreign carriers to increase India’s share of the market to 50 per cent. Flights to London, New York, China, Toronto, Far East and the Gulf came about and soon the airline’s reputation soared to new heights as a carrier of choice, thanks to its excellent quality of service.

At Jet Airways, Busaidy’s capabilities and abilities have been stretched to the best and he has come up trumps assuming various roles and responsibilities heading the strategic expansion plans; fleet management, HR, investor relations and IT. The main thrust was on the strategic side to manage the expansion plans of India’s fastest growing private airline. Under his guidance, Jet Airways expanded rapidly and today flies to 63 local and international destinations.

Working out of Mumbai, Busaidy got a taste of India, both on the professional and personal fronts and is grateful to Jet Airways for giving him this opportunity. At a personal level, Busaidy was always fond of India but with Jet Airways he was able to get intimate knowledge about India and its vibrant culture. And then he got hooked to Bollywood movies and also had a chance to travel all over India. He also loves Indian food.

India shining
India seems to have made a profound impact on Busaidy as his statement reveals: “On the professional level, I lived in India at a time when it was shining, (no doubt it is still shining). India has a high growth rate second only to China and I could witness that growth in terms of foreign investments, growth of companies. And I saw the youth of India, which is highly motivated and highly educated as well. And then you have the middle class of 400 million whic is also a force to reckon with.”

According to Busaidy, it was interesting to deal with two different generations of Indians, the old and young. He says that he has been associated with India for almost 25 years and could see the change, how the society has shifted to consumerism and their aspirations know no bounds. Some of the top billionaires are from India. It is quite fascinating.

In terms of corporate culture, Busaidy says that working with Jet Airways is completely different from Gulf Air and Oman Air. When he was joining them, Jet Airways had just finished its IPO, having raised a billion dollars in funds and it was an airline, which was trying to find its place in the world arena. The vision of the chairman is quite inspiring and his belief that India can come up with a quality airline that the country can be proud of and compete with the best in the world has been achieved.

In a private organisation, the decision-making is faster; one has to succeed. There is no choice. “You have to really fight and compete in order to achieve the high goals,” says Busaidy. A father of four children, he proudly admits that he has also become a grandfather recently. He always tries to have at least two meals per day with his family whenever possible. Fishing, reading, going to gym and de-stressing are some of the spare time activities that he indulges in.



 

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