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Tuesday July 26, 2005

Proton may employ foreigner as next CEO

PROTON could possibly employ a foreigner to be its new CEO, said the company’s chairman Datuk Mohammed Azlan Hashim.

“It's important for the new CEO to understand the requirements of the company to progress, he told the media when asked whether a non-Malaysian could be hired for the post.

Azlan said no deadline had been set for the board to hire a new CEO, but the matter would be approached with urgency.

He said a professional headhunter would likely be appointed to seek out the right candidate.

“We do not want to prolong this interim arrangement. Clearly, we will go about this as quickly as possible,” he said.

Azlan said the new CEO must understand the requirements of the company.

“In the formative years, the task was to learn as much as possible about manufacturing and mass market production.

“From there, Proton went on to develop capabilities to conceptualise, design and engineer and manufacture its own products that it has today.

He said that while all of these still held, Proton needed to prioritise and focus on other areas.

“Clearly, we need to sell more cars. We need to generate volume sales, gain wide acceptance of the product, increase our export markets and increase our brand awareness.

“We need to continually expand the product range and continually strive for better product quality. Proton has grown rapidly over the years and we need to move along.”

“Proton is not just an automotive company. It is actually a core activity within the Malaysian manufacturing sector, he said.

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Proton: Time for change
CEO ‘had guts to turn Proton into carmaker’
Mahaleel’s trying tenure
Norzahid, Rashid front-runners for Proton post

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