Profile, Sikander Hazir

‘Engineering never truly resonated with me,’ he shares candidly. ‘I’ve always been more drawn to the front lines, where ideas connect with people, and real conversations shape outcomes.’

Sikander’s first major leadership experience came within a large, military-run organisation of over 20,000 employees, an environment defined by discipline, urgency, and scale. ‘We were building infrastructure – motorways, dams, highways, tunnels – on tight timelines. It was about people, quality, precision, and progress,’ he recalls. While he was formally in an HR role, he also often operated as a de facto chief of staff, which taught him about orchestrating diverse teams and projects in high-stakes, high-pressure settings where both people and outcomes mattered.

‘I spoke the truth as I observed it, even though it didn’t align with what he’d been told by others’, Sikander recalls. ‘He listened carefully, asked thoughtful questions, and when I presented the facts, he took the time to validate them himself. That moment of mutual trust became a turning point. It changed everything that followed.’

That honesty around the various work streams, and the courage to speak the truth and stand by it, led to his appointment as chief of staff. It is something that he sees as central to the role. ‘If I can’t speak the truth to my principal, I’m not doing my job,’ he says. ‘I’m not here just to support; I’m here to offer clarity.’

At the heart of Sikander’s approach are the values championed by his Chairman, encapsulated in a philosophy they refer to as CGM: character and good manners.

‘Character is about truthfulness. Without truth, there can be no trust. And without trust, there’s no progress,’ Sikander explains. ‘Truthfulness eliminates insecurity. That creates humility, and humility opens the door for learning. Add integrity and resilience, and you get people who are willing to grow even in difficult times. And we do all of this with good manners—because good manners are the beauty of any organisation.’

When Sikander first began his journey with Mr. Dawood, he openly shared that the broader organisation didn’t fully reflect these values. In response, a revised performance management system was developed, rooted in CGM, and designed in partnership with a university [KSBL]. This system does not evaluate performance alone, but focuses additionally on behaviour, asking how employees interact with one another: Are they truthful and honest in conversations? Do they lift others or create friction? Do they live the values even under pressure?

Promotions and salary increases are based not only on results but also on how well individuals embody CGM in daily decisions and interactions. As a result, culture becomes a collective responsibility, not just a leadership aspiration. ‘We’ve even let go of people who were delivering strong results but didn’t uphold the values’, Sikander says. ‘That’s hard, but it sends a clear message.’

And yet, as he’s quick to add, this isn’t a quick fix. ‘Culture takes time to build. We’re on a journey. But I believe that, eventually, our people will start speaking the truth with courage, not because they’re told to, but because they feel safe and inspired to do so. That’s when real transformation happens.’

But sometimes, even behind-the-scenes work is recognised. ‘After we overhauled our compensation and rewards system, the CEO acknowledged my work in a town hall. I wasn’t expecting it, but it meant a lot,’ he says. ‘You don’t do it for recognition. But when it comes, it reminds you that your work matters.’