An unforgettable journey: A story of corporate-social transformation of

Huntsman Tioxide (Malaysia)

Adapted and modified by Dr Graham Lucas for UON, from the case study by: Nik Maheran Nik
Muhammad, Marhaini Hassan, Suryani Awang , Anidzan Ariffin, (Universiti Teknologi Mara, Kelantan,
Malaysia).

Accessed May 2019 from, https://www-emeraldinsight-

com.ezproxy.newcastle.edu.au/doi/full/10.1108/20450621111187362

The capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, for
managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relationships (Daniel Goleman).

Chance? Luck? These two words are NOT a guarantee to success. Most people of greatness have
gained their success by making the decision to become the person they dream of becoming and not
because of mere luck. These great people choose to become the person they want to be simply
because of their own belief – a belief of having the ability to be better and to be able to obtain what
they have been aiming for, and having a strong determination to succeed. In order to be successful
and to project the image of greatness, one needs to start sowing the seeds of beliefs into becoming
great. Of course, there are dozens of obstacles on the journey to success, but fear no more as ones
inner voice is telling one to get rid of the self-doubt and the insecurities. So, with these life
philosophies in mind, Tuan Haji Rozano Saad, one of the leading men of Huntsman Tioxide, sighing
with gratification, smiling with self-satisfaction and quickly turning on the ignition of his Alfa Romeo,
slowly stepping on the accelerator pedal, moving on into Teluk Kalong, Kemaman, Terengganu. To
him, there are no more second thoughts. He has finally decided to stop wasting mental energy on
things which he did not manage to do, but decided to settle on his action plans and rectify the
deplorable conditions of Huntsman Tioxide. Furthermore, he sensed that there has been a unique
calling in achieving these goals. Rozano, a man of unremitting triumphs believed he could enhance his
own performances while at the same time raising the living standards of people around him. This was
true enough, for at the end of the day, he has made a significant contribution, and Huntsman Tioxide
is now proudly moving forward.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Back in 1985, a decision was made by Tioxide group from the UK, to invest in a titanium dioxide plant
in the ASEAN Region. Three countries were chosen and a survey was conducted. Sufficient
infrastructure coupled with the stable political and socio-economical factors, gave Malaysia the edge.
The Tioxide Group decided to build a plant in Teluk Kalong Industrial Area, in Terengganu, Malaysia.
An Environmental Impact Assessment was conducted and the plant was successfully erected in 1991.

The Teluk Kalong plant, being the most modern sulphate route titanium dioxide plant in the world,
was constructed with the capability to fully neutralize wastes, to meet the strictest Environmental,
Health and Safety Standards. Indeed, the latest proven pollution-control equipment is installed to
ensure that no environmental degradation will result from its activities. On-going operation of
pollution-control equipment represents nearly 20 percent of production costs.
Huntsman International took over the equity of Tioxide Malaysia Sdn Bhd in July 1999 and the entity
has been called HTMAS since then. Huntsman Tioxide, became one of the largest producers of
titanium dioxide pigments. It employs over 3,000 people worldwide and has factories in seven
countries with a total nameplate production capacity of over 550 thousand tons per year. Its product,
titanium dioxide pigment provides whiteness and opacity to a vast range of everyday products from
coatings and plastics, to paper, inks and even cosmetics and food. HTMAS growth has not always been
that smooth.

Despite some “management difficulties” during the early 1990s, Huntsman Tioxide (HMAS), went
ahead with a major expansion in-to Asia. The Board of Directors, mainly consisting of expatriates,
voted for Teluk Kalong, Kemaman, Terengganu to be their newest “depot.” Ironically, the location
was “chosen” mainly because of its “heavenly” and picturesque views. Additionally, however, the
government were planning economic support for businesses who came to this area.

The Teluk Kalong plant is set in an industrial area of Terengganu on the east coast of Malaysia, and
currently has over 200 employees. For the first six years of its commissions, Tioxide Malaysia faced
losses, but this changed by 1999 when locals took over the company. The plant now has a production
capacity of titanium dioxide of 550,000 tons per annum. Approximately, 80 percent of its production
goes to export markets in the Asia Pacific region. Huntsman Corporation is now one of the world's
largest chemical companies. The average profit of Huntsman was approximately MYR 48 million from
1992 until 2007 (Figure 4) and it reached MYR 110 million in 2005, the highest achievement during
that period. The turn-around and success of Huntsman Tioxide is said to be because of Rozano Saad,
and his team.

Before Rozano was recruited however, and despite pouring billions of dollars in-to the new operation,
the company was losing money. The board decided that Huntsman needed a new figure-head with
strong leadership ability to steer the company's direction back onto the right “path.” In terms of this
recruitment, it is said that Haji Rozano Saad just happened to be there at the right time and at the
right place. Interviewed by the local management team, Rozano seemed to be the perfect candidate.
The management team sensed people would benefit from Rozano's unique personality and was
convinced that no one could contribute as much as Rozano. Moreover, Rozano was seen as an
influential type of a person. To the board, such qualities seemed to be crucial in order to encourage
employees to participate rather than just being onlookers. Rozano was a man with no superhuman
abilities, but he was filled with a strong will, imagination and a readiness to explore the new world of
Tioxide, consequently ignoring the warning that it was a “mission impossible.” He firmly believed that
he would be able to contend with the deeply rooted prejudice of his predecessors that the local
employees were not committed; create a new life for the company and make success a reality, even
though others might just laugh in his face and tell him to forget about it.

The “mat salleh” co-workers were bemused by Rozano's actions. He was very aware that they were
not convinced of his capability, and that they were unsure of his ability to bring forth a new order in
the company. Already, they were dismayed by the fact that he was a local. What could a local Malay
man possibly do in operating a western-dominated, large company like Huntsman Tioxide?
Nevertheless, Rozano was determined to move forward. Indeed, Rozano wanted to prove that he was
not an ordinary Melayu but a Melayu with potential and a readiness to perform. He was never hesitant
in moving forward and had not had the slightest idea of not fitting to the industry's standard. He did
not stop. To him, all the pessimistic comments were motivational.

Rozano's previous engineering background at ICI was a blessing. Not only did he have technical and
operational skills, he also had good grounding in leadership skills. It was here he practiced tactics to
be able to raise awareness, define responsibilities and set standards among his subordinates. To him,
quality should never be compromised. Giving attention to details, being precise and believing that
small things do matter were all his secrets to success. Rozano felt confident he could direct his
“people” in a new direction and dimension.

With Rozano's influences and newly introduced visions for the company, Huntsman Tioxide gradually
showed improvement in profits. Nevertheless, Rozano never sat back and relaxed. There was more
to be learned and explored and the “metamorphosis” would not take place over night. He believed
that in order for a company to be successful, it takes years of perseverance and self-discipline. This is
Rozano's “bed rock” of life and he made this known to everyone under his leadership.

To help make things “work,” Rozano also invited his team of managers to gather information and share
ideas. This is to say that he believed that there should be a two-way communication and a “give and
take” technique to make the organization stronger. Rozano Saad is described as a man with a charming
personality. One would be touched to see him of a higher authority lowering himself down to the
level of others in order to gain confidence, loyalty and cooperation among his co-workers. Rozano
and his team would never be too busy to discuss matters pertaining to the betterment of the company
with leaders of different departments. At the same time, Rozano also encouraged his whole
management team to go through the same leadership development program which he experienced.
Here, his intention was to ensure his management team “spoke the same language” an as a way to
reinforce the new company direction as well as encourage them work together.

A major stumbling block for Rozano, however, was outside the organisation; trying to gain the
communities acceptance of the operation. Ultimately however, Rozano, once an unknown Malay
man, not only changed HTMA but brought tremendous changes into the lives of the villagers and
became an inspiration to many of the Teluk Kalong kampong people. The once remote, “quiet” town
is now very advanced, busy and rewarded with lots of job opportunities. Many of the Teluk Kalong
people now agree that Huntsman has done wonders to the environment and social setting of their
village. It is no longer a common scene to see the Kemaman dwellers, sitting on the broken benches
by the beach munching on the spongy keropok lekor. Many of the local youngsters would make it
their dream to be part of the Huntsman family. However, this was not always the case.

Soon after operations began, Rozano, on his way to work, and feeling somewhat alienated in this new
place, was not sure of where to go for a quick breakfast. On his drive to work, the sight of a small
coffee shop with a few men having roti canai was attractive enough to him, so he pulled over. After
finding a table, he ordered roti kosong with teh Tarik. After waiting several minutes however, the
order did not arrive. He thought he was clear and polite enough to the coffee shop owner, so he
waited patiently. But then he realized it was taking too long for a simple roti canai to arrive. Assuming
the waiter did not hear him the first time, he asked once again. Then he added an explanation that
he was in a hurry to get to work on time. He thought that could politely justify his request for a quick
order. This time the coffee owner responded, but the answer was beyond his expectation. He was
asked to go to another coffee shop if he wanted it quick!

Should he answer back, by making a sarcastic remark to the coffee shop owner? If he did, would not
that only portray a childish, immature behaviour? Or was it a mistake for him to be composed and
patient enough even though the coffee owner's response was unacceptable and impudent? For
Rozano, the roti canai incident was just an unimportant matter which could be easily swept under the
carpet and be forgotten. While the feelings of dissatisfaction of not getting the right treatment
reflected Rozano's personality, his treatment was a symptom of a bigger problem.
The locals consisted of a fishing community who bombarded Rozano with claims that his operation
was poisoning the sea life. The sea life was their main source of income and they were not happy that
their income was affected by the existence of this foreign company. Rozano understood their
dissatisfaction. Therefore, he worked even harder to prove to the locals that the plant was giving no
danger to the community at all. As a start, Rozano encouraged his co-workers to buy loads of fish
from the fishermen. Likewise, when there was a similar complaint coming from the durian planters
of Kijal, a nearby town, that their durians were no longer in high demand due to the fear of intoxicated
durians, Rozano and his team bought gunnies of durians from them and even put up a feast. They
invited the locals and ate pulut durian together with them. Rozano also organised diving sessions each
year with the fishermen and school children. They took video cameras under the sea and shared the
footage with the village folks.

These positive outcomes, however, were never viewed by Rozano as a result of him alone. He also
gave credit to other people whose contribution to the company. Aziz Zabidi, his second man, for
example is one of those who deserved the credit. Aziz's most important responsibility is the
production of the titanium dioxide pigments in the plant, which was never expected to be a smooth
sailing process. When the plant started its operation, there were 40 stages of product processing to
be handled which looked fine on paper but not in practice. With many problems that could occur as
early as in the first stage, Aziz Zabidi knew that only 20 percent of the plant's capacity was utilized.
This became another problem area for him to work on. When problems occurred in the plant Aziz
would immediately become a technician and he would work hand-in-hand with his subordinates. The
spirit of togetherness and the importance of human capital has always been part of the people at
Huntsman.

To Rozano, it was a blessing to have his views on many matters shared by Aziz. Rozano and Aziz could
see that the community’s perception of the operation improved over time. To assist in this regard,
together they engaged a consultant from the UK to carry out an annual study on the ecology of the
fish species in the area, and they revealed the findings to the public. Rozano’s level of conviction is
evidenced by his following statement:

“We believe society has made its expectations quite clear and it expects business to
play a leading role in ensuring sustainable development. We are playing our part in
developing practical ways to clarify and manage these issues.” (Tuan Haji Rozano Saad,
Site Director – Operations).

While Rozano and his management team managed to turn things around, it took a very long time, and
profits were not necessarily delivered overnight. HTMAS's achievements have been widely recognised
by others. Managers of Huntsman have spoken of the company’s success at international
conferences. Tuan Hj Rozano Saad, remains Site Director of the company and he also sits as advisor
for INTAN Wilayah Timur. Recently,

In a quiet moment of reflection, Rozano looked out of the window of his office to gaze at the plant
and marvel at how things had changed. What had happened? The same people were here; personnel
hadn't changed much during that time, it even feels different working here. “Maybe it was just my
good luck,” Rozano thought.
Your Analysis:

(1) the context in which the leadership approaches, styles and strategies are acted out

(2) the successes and failures of the identified leadership styles, approaches and strategies

(3) the relevance of power, influence, politics and culture in shaping or rewarding specific leader
behaviours

(4) any apparent contradictions in the intentions, actions or behaviours of the leader or leaders in
this case

(5) recommendations for improving/growing the leadership capabilities of the key individual/s in
this case