Interviews
The interviews in the Creating Emerging Markets archive form a permanent and unique resource held in Harvard Business School’s Baker Library. Many interview transcripts can be downloaded immediately in full, and all others are available upon request. Each interview page includes supporting resources about the interviewee and her or his business. If the interview is conducted in a local language, an English translation is provided. Many of the interviews are on video. These full-length video interviews are available to qualified researchers by contacting HBS archivist Rachel Wise. Harvard ID holders are able to access the full-length videos through the website.
We welcome feedback and suggestions for ways to improve the project.
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Results
- Ghana
Kwasi Abeasi
CEO, Africa Investconsult Ltd.
(Financial Services)
“You have to negotiate. And you have to go with a team that knows how to negotiate. Otherwise you’ll get a deal that looks good. Later on you find out it’s no good.”
- Bangladesh
Sir Fazle Hasan Abed
Founder and Chair, BRAC
(Microfinance, Development)
“I’ve never thought that you can do good only through nonprofit activities. You can do good also by doing business.”
- Argentina
Arturo Acevedo
President, Grupo Arcelor Mittal (Acindar)
(Steel and Mining)
“It is important to clearly define social responsibility. We have always upheld a very active and responsible policy in this field. We make mistakes, and a lot of things still need improving, but corporate social responsibility is a major corporate concept.”
- India
Anu Aga
Thermax Private, Ltd.
(Equipment Manufacturing)
“[As a leader], you don’t have to know everything In fact, one of the beliefs I have is [that] skills can be hired. The leader has to show wisdom—that cannot be hired.”
- Chile
Roberto de Andraca
Chair, Cap S.A.
(Steel)
“[I]n 1998–2000, when a severe steel price depression developed and 30% of steel companies went bankrupt. At the time we already ranked among the 20% lowest-cost steel companies.”
- India
Rahul Bajaj
Chair, Bajaj Group
(Diversified)
“We were in a socialist raj. You couldn’t make anything until you got an industrial license and you couldn’t make more than the license capacity.”
- Turkey
Cem Boyner
President, Boyner Holding
(Retail)
“Retailing is probably the world’s second oldest profession. You have so many people that come into your store who you touch... our salespeople are psychologists... clairvoyants... They can read character. So we just gave the authority to them.”
- Colombia
Antonio Celia
CEO, Promigas
(Natural Resources)
“At Promigas Foundation, we work to improve public education quality, and we have reached one million children in 17 years. Our motto is 'Education is Everything.' It is inclusion, equity, social mobility. Education frees people and enables them to do what they value.”
- Kenya
Dr. Manu Chandaria
Chair and CEO, Comcraft Group
(Steel and Aluminum)
“[O]ne principle that we adopted in our lifetime and with our children we always told them that money’s here today; money may not be there tomorrow. A good set of principles and values that you have, those will remain with you for your lifetime.”
- Nepal
Binod Chaudhary
Chairman, Chaudhary Group
(Diversified)
“I’m happy to say that what we envisioned—that we want to create the first Nepali multinational which will own and promote brands, which will be globally known—[has been realized].”
- South Africa
Hubert Danso
CEO and Vice Chair, Africa Investor
(Financial Services, Media)
“[O]nly 12–15 percent of all of our trade is actually intra-African. So there’s a huge opportunity there, and a need, to build that out.””
- Colombia
Henry Eder Caicedo
Chairman of the Board, Inversiones Manuelita
(Agribusiness)
“Working at a public organization has taught me how to deal with public powers – you have to get along with them. If one is a businessman, one also has to get along with politicians and understand what matters to them and how they think.”
- Argentina
Tomás Hudson
President, Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) (now part of Akzo Nobel)
(Chemicals)
“Our focus was on getting to know the product in order to adapt it to the market and providing technical support. I believe we were innovators, both in product development and better customer service.”
- Kenya
Mohamed Jaffer
Chairman, MJ Group
(Cargo Handling)
“I think entrepreneurs should dwell on this thought - you are not safe in a castle if those around you live in shanties.”
- India
Naina Lal Kidwai
Former Country Head, HSBC India and Founder, India Sanitation Coalition
(Financial Services, Banking, Sanitation)
“It’s very hard to get corporates and NGOs to work together. It’s surprisingly hard to get two corporates to agree on a common agenda or indeed NGOs to agree on common agendas. But I think years of experience, some patience, certainly having credibility with the corporate world, and some credibility with the not-for-profit world helps in driving some of these collaborations”
- India
Hemendra Kothari
Chairman, DSP BlackRock Investment Managers Pvt. Ltd.
(Financial Services)
“In a successful partnership the basic principles of working in unanimity and on a consensus basis was [were critical], such that everybody understands what’s best for the company.”
- India
Suresh Krishna
Chair, Sundram Fasteners
(Metal products)
“There were no secrets in the company at all if you keep on telling the truth, it builds a certain amount of confidence in the work force.”
- Colombia
Jorge Londoño Saldarriaga
Former President, Bancolombia
(Banking; Finance)
“Disaster can teach us important lessons”
- Brazil
Erling Lorentzen
Former CEO, Aracruz Celulose
(Pulp and Paper)
“[W]e managed to build a special port in the country. Part of the government said, ‘There are sufficient ports ’ But I got it through it was one of the bases for the success of Aracruz.”
- Mexico
Antonio Madero
Founder and CEO, SANLUIS Corporación S.A. de C.V
(Automotive Parts)
“A company is not made solely by one man. He alone cannot be the leader, the visionary, the one making contacts, the one who opens the doors and establishes the course of the company.”
