Shifting from one sector to another often comes with various challenges for many professionals during their careers. Those who are successful in the traversal become leaders in their respective fields. Pranaya Ratna Sthapit, Director of Samsung Nepal, is among the top Nepali professionals who have made their mark in business. Starting from Unilever Nepal as a Sales & Marketing Trainee, he now oversees the Samsung mobile business in Nepal.
In a conversation with the HRM, Sthapit recalled the start of his career, the experiences he gained, his transition to the technology business from FMCG, and Samsung’s business philosophy in customer satisfaction, among other topics. Excerpts:
Q: Tell us about your first job.
A: My first job was with Nepal Lever (now Unilever Nepal) in 2001. I got an opportunity to do my summer internship for the partial fulfillment of my MBA program. Immediately after graduation, I applied for a job and I was selected for the post of Sales & Marketing Trainee.
Q: What challenges did you face initially?
A: It was my first ever job after. On one hand, I was overwhelmed by the opportunity to work in a reputed multinational company but on the other hand, it was challenging to adapt to a new role as a professional. There was a huge difference between simulating business cases in a classroom and performing tasks in the real world. Of course, the summer internship and a few other projects that I took up as a partial fulfillment of the MBA program did help me to an extent to quickly adapt to the new environment.
Q: What lessons in professional development did you learn from the first job? How did the experiences in the first job prepare you for future roles?
A: My MBA specialization was in marketing. After joining the company, I realized that sales and marketing go hand in hand complementing each other. It was essential to learn the basics of sales to become a successful professional in this field. Fortunately, I got an opportunity to be in a BLT (Business Leadership Trainee) program spending one year on secondment to Hindustan Lever (now Hindustan Unilever Limited). It was a yearlong program where one gets to complete sales, marketing, and even factory stints that provide overall business exposure. During my sales stints, I got to work in the northern Indian states of Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, and Jammu & Kashmir. It was quite an intensive task to ride the local bus, travel to all the interior markets, and deal with retailers and distributors on a day-to-day basis driving the sales objectives. Today I realize how valuable was that experience to get my hands dirty and learn basics at the very early stage of my career. It was that foundation on which I could build my career in the subsequent years.
Q: What major achievements were there for you professionally and personally?
A: When an organization performs well, eventually every stakeholder associated with it benefits. Sales and marketing are always at the heart of any organization’s strategy. Directly contributing to the success of the organizations that I’ve been associated with and consistently creating value for stakeholders is the most satisfying thing for me. In that context, being a part of the leadership team at Coca-Cola Bottlers Nepal Limited which won the prestigious Country of the Year in 2009 and 2010 within Coca-Cola Sabco Group was an immensely proud moment for me.
I joined Samsung Nepal as the head of Mobile Experience (MX Division) in 2014. Again, it was a huge challenge and opportunity for me as the mobile industry was flourishing but it was a completely new field for me. It has been a satisfying journey so far to understand consumer needs and introduce innovative products and services that led to Samsung being the leading brand in this market for many years now.
Q: After working in Coca-Cola Bottlers Nepal for over a decade, you joined Samsung Nepal in 2014. How was the shift for you?
A: Beverages or for that matter any FMCG business is relatively much more stable compared to tech business. It was a safe and stable career at Coca-Cola at that time. So, I was in a real dilemma when the opportunity at Samsung came knocking on my door. It was a major decision for me to switch from FMCG to electronics and technology, so to speak. Cut to the present, I just completed my 9th year at Samsung Nepal.
I must say that I’m quite satisfied by the immense learning and exposure as this business is so dynamic and it demands me to be innovative and creative in my approach. Indeed, it has shaped me as an individual and as a professional that I am today.
Q: As the Director of Samsung Mobile, what are your key focuses to solidify Samsung’s presence in the Nepali market?
A: Customers are always at the heart while we put together our business strategy. Superior customer experience and upgrading customers continuously are at the center of what we do. Now, when we say customer experience it starts with superior product experience which is a must, and goes all the way to the quality of experience at various customer touch points. Be it our latest format of brand stores or the largest network of fully equipped service centers, we want our consumers to get the best experience while interacting with the brand.
Today technology is at the forefront of whatever we do. It won’t be otherwise to say that people are becoming more and more dependent on technology. Hence, it’s more of a need for people to upgrade to a better smartphone that enables them to be more effective and efficient in their daily lives, personally and professionally. Samsung being at the forefront of the mobile industry it’s our responsibility to lead the charge. All our efforts in terms of product planning, marketing, distribution, etc. are aligned to support the key focus areas of superior customer experience and continuous customer upgrade.
