Tuesday October 5, 2010
By DIANA ROSLAM
Miss Yasotha Krishnan is no stranger to the business world. Despite being in this industry for less than 10 years, she has already paved her way to becoming one of the country's upcoming female entrepreneurs.
As the chief executive officer of Zazen Health Solutions (ZHS), she has taken the business to a level where it has become one of the most prominent brands in technology-based wellness in Malaysia.
She has had her fair share of triumphs and hardships but these have not stopped her. This feisty lady is truly a force to be reckoned with. Composed, articulate and professional, she shares with us the ups and downs of her business and how she got to where she is today.
Have you always wanted to go into business?
Yes, I have a natural liking and interest in business. It’s funny because I studied social science in University Science Malaysia (USM) majoring in social work and minored in anthropology. It has nothing to do with business but I get excited when someone talks about business.
I had a small business dealing with hampers and souvenirs for six to eight months before joining my chairman, Dhyan Vimal, who is into training and development. We started a business from a technology we found, called Far Infrared. Having confidence in me, my chairman literally handed over the business to me.
Our first outlet was in Klang. I managed the business which was basically online with the help of my staff in Malaysia as I was away in Canada at that time. I was working as a trainer at the Dhyan Vimal School of Mastery in Canada. It was quite overwhelming when I came back in 2008 but it was a challenge I was ready to take.
What qualities of a CEO do you think you possess?
As a CEO, you have to be driven, energetic, focused and sharp, and you cannot allow yourself to be distracted. I am always on the move and I like to get things done by constantly thinking of business strategies and plans, and venturing into new and unknown markets. I learnt composure, making decisions and bringing visions to reality. These are the skills I learnt from the Mastery programme. It has given me strength, skill and the ability to be what I am today.
How do you feel on winning the Masterclass Women Entrepreneur of the Year 2010 at the Malaysia Business Leadership Awards?
Honestly, I thought it came too early but nevertheless, it has given me the motivation and drive to do more. Meeting successful business people such as Datuk Sri Dr Tony Fernandez (CEO of Air Asia), Datuk Sri Che Khalib Mohamad Noh (CEO of TNB), and Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir (CEO of Proton) made me think that I can also make difference in the business world.
In your opinion, why do some businesses fail?
Statistics have shown that almost 90% of young businesses fail within the first three years. Why is that? I think it happens when a business is not ready, has no strength to persevere or if the management is too cocky, doesn't want to learn or listen to advice. It is good to have a teacher sometimes. The chances of failing are high if you think you can learn and find out everything on your own.
What sort of challenges do you face in business?
Nothing is ever easy! Some of the challenges I face are to get the right people for the right job and making the right judgment call. In business, you are vulnerable to opportunities, both bad and good ones. You have to take time to assess the right opportunities and people, and making the distinction, whether they are strengths or chaos.
Another challenge that I face is progression. Projects do not happen as fast as you wish. It takes a lot of patience as it could be time consuming. I would love to do more campaigns, road shows and carnivals but funds are limited.
What are some of the perks of your job?
I think the best perk is that I have grown tremendously to become who I am now. I am now able to do things that I would’ve never imagined doing and I have mastered a lot of skills within myself. I have become very strong, steady and grounded.
I have met a lot of good people, too. I used to believe that there are not many good people around. Being in this business, I have come to see that there are a lot of good people out there. It’s whether you attract them to you.
How long has the company been in this industry?
It has been four years now. It has been an eye-opening experience and I believe it will get more interesting and exciting. At the moment, we are based in Malaysia but I am very committed to branch out to neighbouring countries such as Brunei, Vietnam, Indonesia, Singapore and even as far as India. We already have someone from Nigeria who will be expanding our business there.
What are your aspirations for the company?
I foresee this business expanding into a wellness centre or perhaps, our own hospital in the future, provided it works out and the direction is there.
Do you have any other plans for the company?
I’m in the midst of discussions with PLUS highway to install FIR systems at their R&R spots. We are also working with Felda (Federal Land Development Authority) to create health and awareness in the settlements. We plan to open up a few outlets in the first 100 settlements out of over 300 that they have. When the project goes through, it wouldn’t be just Zazen coming in; the hospitals and insurance companies will tag along to conduct health checks and offer health policies.
In the next couple of months, I will be
keeping tabs on projects, looking for more people to come in to this business and creating health awareness amongst families in Malaysia.
There are many such health solutions in Malaysia. Do you think yours will survive the tough competition?
I believe we will because we are a dynamic team and we are adaptable to change. What we are doing is different in a sense that we do not push people and we are not loud, instead we are more inviting. We believe that the conventional sales method doesn’t work anymore. Gathering hundreds of people at a location wouldn’t work unless it’s beneficial to them. Humanity is evolving and you need to get with the flow of change. We have the skills, strengths, abilities and we have taken responsibility for our success and the work we are doing. We have an excellent product that speaks for itself; we only need the public to know that it is here and it is available.
You go about encouraging people to venture into your business. What does it take to move in this direction?
Entrepreneurs and those interested to join this business will go through the mastery programme. As much as passion and eagerness is vital, sometimes the absence of basic skills will causes them to fail and when they do, they will be frustrated and give up. Therefore, with every licensee, I would personally conduct this programme for them to be able to have the strength to grow and carry on the business.
There are two ways to join Zazen: you can either set up a conventional or unconventional outlet. A conventional outlet is normally a shop lot while the unconventional one would be in places such as condominiums, sundry shops, hotels, etc. The investment you need to fork out is low; you can open an outlet with just RM85,000 to RM125,000. A more elaborate outlet will cost around RM180,000.
You will be trained, taught and guided with basic structures and formulas. All you need to do is maintain the shop. You will be given brochures, marketing strategies, websites to refer to and customer support. You need to bring your own strength, capitalise on what has already been given and drive it to achieve success. Anyone can join us. You just need to be open to learning, passionate and willing to work.
What advice do you have for aspiring entrepreneurs?
First, you need to be disciplined because there is no short cut. You need to put in effort and the hours. People like Tiger Woods and Datuk Nicol David did not become champions in a day or two. It takes hours, days and years. You need to have discipline; train and prepare yourself to give that 100% if you want to run a business.
Every entrepreneur should make time for self-reflection. It helps them to see what and how they are doing things. Have something you believe in, work on it and you’ll be successful. I have watched people fail for the tiniest and silliest reasons.
My chairman used to say, “You don’t stumble over a mountain, you stumble over a pebble.” It’s critical as you need to be aware of the pebble. Sometimes you are so farsighted of the few million dollar contract but you oversee tiny things like paying for your bills and utilities.
