“Zaker bhai is a man everybody looks up to, one with a huge heart”

I met Zaker bhai when I joined Asiatic 3sixty in 1998. I had a friend send in my CV and was later called for an interview. During the interview, Zaker bhai, Sara bhabi, Noor bhai and Director Wajed Sattar were present. After a few questions on academics (since I had no work experience), I was asked what music I listen to, when I said Pink Floyd, Zaker bhai was very happy and he said in 1974 or 1976 he used Careful with That Axe, Eugene in a play. That's when I knew I was getting the job. When I started at the Baily Road office, nobody was bossy not even Zaker bhai, he was more of a friend and a father figure than a boss! A man everybody looks up to, one with a huge heart.
I remember there was this time when we lost a big client to ADCOMM, everyone was not only disheartened but also demotivated, then Zaker bhai came in and sensed it. He said look, “this is the business we're in, we win some, we lose some, it's nothing to be sad about” and took all of us to lunch at Skyroom. Usually in ad firms, it's obvious that if you lose your account, you lose your job. In our case, it was the exact opposite, we lost our account, and in return we got treated! This is the kind of boss Zaker bhai is! He is very honest, he says what he believes in and most importantly he is extremely trustworthy. I mean the man is such a personality! He is not just head of Asiatic, but also Aly Zaker! Often times it is seen that apart from clients, others too, come to him for advice regarding almost anything.

Because Zaker bhai empowers people, he isn't a power-hungry person. After I spent 10 years in the company, he made me a member of the board of directors and gave me company shares. Another example is the fact that Zaker bhai took us from one single company to 14 different ones. Each of which is run by individuals that Zaker bhai himself empowered all according to his plan so that they function flawlessly as independent businesses. He taught me that a good boss is not someone who everyone fears, but somebody who you want to be like in the future, somebody you look up to.

Another interesting fact about Zaker bhai is the fact that he's the longest surviving member of his family, his parents, uncles and aunties have all passed away. All this can be attributed to his healthy lifestyle and positive outlook on life. I mean you've seen people with diabetes, how they get after 10-15 years, Zaker bhai on the other hand has been battling it for the past 30!

Narrated by Isar Kabir and Waleed K. Rajamiya