INTERVIEW ROONGROTE RANGSIYOPASH
Future foundations Roongrote Rangsiyopash epitomizes the modern leader Writing Vishal Patel
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t was 1997 when it became clear that the numbers didn’t add up at SCG’s ceramic tile plant in Tennessee. “The company’s total sales were around $120 million and we had $140 million in loans – that was a big amount that we could not pay,” recalls Roongrote Rangsiyopash, president and CEO of Siam Cement Group (SCG). “I had to go back to Thailand to get some financial help from the parent company so that I could refinance.” At the same time, though, the board was contemplating a strategic exit from the ceramics business in the US. “There were too many of these things going on,” says Rangsiyopash. “It wasn’t easy managing our financials in parallel with managing the huge amount of debt, and selling the company all at the same time.” Eventually, the sale was made. “It took us about three years before we finally sold
I think the first lesson, if you want to survive a crisis, is to up your game and fight
the company to our partner from Italy,” recalls Rangsiyopash. It is a tale of success through crisis, delivered by a young man with limited experience in turning companies around.
Lessons in real life Just ten years earlier, in 1987, Rangsiyopash had joined SCG Group as an engineer. He later worked in sales – “which I enjoyed very much” – before the conglomerate put him through an MBA scholarship in the US. During his time there, Rangsiyopash did fieldwork at the Tennessee ceramics firm. “I was only 31 at the time and working seven days a week,” he says. “Our plant couldn’t compete on cost, so we decided to double our production capacity to bring unit costs down. That was a
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