• 
• 

Published on November 21, 2007

Kovit Kantapasara feels he is just a tiny part of a giant multinational firm, GE Energy.

Still, as chief of the company's unit in Thailand, he feels he made the right decision to join the company 14 years ago, when the unit was starting from scratch. He was then GE Energy Thailand's second employee. Kovit now has 120 subordinates with a range of operations that stretches across Asia.

At present, the staff operates under contract to provide power-plant maintenance services. In Thailand, GE Energy has such contracts from Tri-Energy and the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand. Kovit is also happy that under his leadership, GE Energy Thailand has extended its services to power plants in other Asian countries, such as Japan and Taiwan.

Among such units in Southeast Asia, GE Energy Thailand is the biggest in terms of revenue, fleet, and number of staff.

"Thai engineers are of high quality," Kovit says. "It was once perceived that [engineers] from English-speaking countries would perform better, but it has been proven that Thais work harder, are quick learners and are second to none in terms of language. They can also work under team leadership."

Kovit joined GE Power Systems in 1994 as a power-plant-project sales manager. He moved to energy services in 1997 and successfully developed the business from a US$3-million (Bt102 million) concern to an annual earner of $100 million.

He feels great pride in being able to promote Thais to the international stage. Some of his staff came from the oil and gas sector, but they learn quickly.

"I'm proud that I can push my subordinates forward. I'm proud that they prosper and rise beyond myself. It shows I have succeeded as a boss," he says.

In recruitment, Kovit has a philosophy of hiring those who are better than himself. "If they're great, then more jobs will come and the company will succeed. Then I can spend time on unattended areas," he says.

After years of serving the multinational company, Kovit feels comfortable in complying with the corporate system. At GE, for instance, there is an annual staff ranking. All staff are divided into three groups: "top talents" are the first 10-15 per cent who have potential to be promoted or are excellent at their current jobs; "highly valued" usually describes 80-85 per cent; and the rest are "least effective".

As a boss, Kovit must also submit his objectives to head office at the beginning of each year. At the end of the year, the goals are reviewed.

Being in an industry where the players include multinationals like Siemens from Germany, Mitsubishi from Japan, and Alstom from France, Kovit forces himself to be alert to changes.

In the past, power generating involved only natural gas and coal. Now, with pressure from higher fuel prices and depletion of natural resources, the industry is concerned with new technologies.

Kovit says he feels privileged to work for a giant company with the financial muscle to invent new technologies or acquire established technologies from other players.

In Thailand, his company is now involved in biogas-power generation through technologies acquired from Jenbacher. He now foresees the need to study nuclear power, following the Thai government's recent interest in atomic power.

As Thailand becomes more concerned about pollution, he is ready to introduce coal-classification technologies acquired from Chevron, in order to reduce toxic emissions.

While waiting for GE's research and development of new solar-cell technology, Kovit is also interested in launching a wind-powered generating plant with technology acquired from Enron Wind.

Helping him understand these technologies is his degree in mechanical engineering from Chulalongkorn University. And helping him chart the company's business is a master's degree in business administration from the University of Oklahoma.

Kovit was made country manager of GE Energy Thailand in 2001. Recognising and tapping his ability to drive business growth, GE Energy promoted him again in 2004 to country executive for the Indochinese subregion.

Kovit, 48, still sees a lot to do, not only in Thailand but also in Indochina.

While GE Energy is involved in hydropower plants in Laos, a sales office was recently established in Cambodia, where only 100 megawatts is consumed per year from an installed generating capacity of 150MW. Kovit sees a lot of potential in Cambodia, because most companies and hotels have their own generators, and excess capacity - if any - can be exported to neighbouring countries like Thailand and Vietnam.

GE Energy has also been operating in Vietnam for two years and is expecting to reap benefits from the industry's growth when the country is able to secure increased supplies of natural gas. Kovit sees Vietnam as a high-potential market with an annual growth rate of 20 per cent. Presently, due to power shortages, electricity is switched first to corporate and industrial users, leaving many households in the dark.

"I enjoy hard work," Kovit says with a smile. "People need inspiration. New jobs require us to be alert. Although I've worked at GE for 15 years, I'm still in a learning mode. For the past 14 years, it's always been exciting."

Achara Deboonme

 The Nation