Mahbub Jamil, 83, died on Wednesday. Jamil was a very successful businessman whose behavior and approach to business are a model of focus and ethics. It is for this that he will be remembered.
In every society, the men and women that lead the corporations and companies that produce the goods and services are key to the welfare of the society. As one would expect, there is a spread of ethical behavior. In most nations, there is constant pressure to reduce compliance with regulations and deny ethical behavior, as this will usually raise profits in the short run. The complex legal and regulatory environment presents a challenge when following these rules has a direct negative impact on profitability and executive compensation.
How corporate leaders deal with this dilemma is vital to the health of their company. But, in a larger sense, it is essential to the modernization and industrial development of the whole society.
Mahbub was a master at finding the right line. This is not a matter of a company “doing good”. Quite the contrary, it is a matter of maximizing profits within the rules. The rules are not only compliance with taxes, labor relations, and the environment but, most importantly, maintaining product quality. He responded to the problem of good quality, and raised higher costs but fought for the reputation of his brand and pushed for higher productivity. This path made his enterprise, Singer, a long-run success building the value of the company in a slow and steady manner through all kinds of trials and tribulations. Mahbub took the slow path with integrity and protection of his products. This required toughness and determination to stay on the line he chose.
Mahbub was key to the founding of the American Chamber of Commerce. From the early efforts to establish this organization, he worked tirelessly to overcome the remarkable number of hurdles that the government was able to erect. Eventually, there was a successful outcome and much of the credit goes to Mahbub's calm perseverance. He saw the establishment of the organization, steady growth in its membership, and the introduction of the annual Trade Show. Many countries have followed this path in Bangladesh.
The third point I will mention is that he saved Biman. As an advisor to the Caretaker Government in 2007/8 for civil aviation, Mahbub faced the fact that Biman had no real fleet of aircraft. There were leased aircraft that always caused problems with continuity of leases, responsibility for maintenance and difficulties in building the cadre of pilots and cabin crew Biman needed. Mahbub, in a remarkably short time, was able to sign an agreement with Boeing to sell to Biman a significant fleet. Financing was arranged through the US Export-Import Bank and Biman's future changed.
I end by saying how much my own life benefited from having Mahbub as a friend. His humor, the precision of his mind, his never-ending good manners, and his calm in the face of chaos taught me much.
