Zamil Air Conditioners (ZAC) has built up a strong reputation for the quality of its products and its uncanny ability to forge strong alliances.

But the employees that have contributed to its success are among its biggest admirers. One of them, Mohammed Al Ashqar, recalls fondly his 30-year-old association with ZAC, describing the caring and compassionate nature of the company.
Mohammed completed his four-year Bachelor of Commerce degree course from Beirut Arab University after having gained a diploma from the Administration Institute in Bait Hanina, Jerusalem.
“I have a lovely wife and five children.  The eldest is my daughter, who is followed by four boys.  My daughter has already completed her schooling, is now married and has three very cute children.  I love my grandchildren very much,” says Mohammed by way of introduction.
Basil, his eldest son, completed his studies in BSC Electronics and is now a US citizen.  Before he left for the United States, he worked for two years in Saudi Arabia.  “If in case the regulations do not permit me to stay in the kingdom after I reach my 60th year, I may join Basil in the US and hope to acquire citizenship after four years’ stay,” he says.  His second son Saaed is a finance graduate and is now working with the auditing company Deloitte.  His third son Ahmed has just completed his studies as medical engineer, while his youngest son Waseem is studying Business Information Systems at Jordan University.
Mohammed replied to questions put to him about his association with ZAC.
 
When did you join ZAC? What were you doing at the time you were selected? What were your feelings when you were selected for service in the company? 
I have been working in this company since 16 June 1975.    I had done some work for the company two months before that time — after I left my job at the Ministry of Education.  In my eight years at the Ministry, I served in three schools in the Eastern Province, first in administration, and then as a full-time teacher. 
Once in a while, I am pleasantly surprised when I meet my former colleagues or especially my former students who now hold good positions elsewhere in the kingdom.  Once, one of my customers turned out to be one of my students.  He had an account, which had not been paid for a long time, and after many follow-ups he finally came to make the final payment.  When he recognised me as his teacher he immediately paid the outstanding balance.  That was funny.
But back to the story of my joining the company – at that time ZAC was called Arabian Refrigeration Industries.  I was very happy because I was looking forward to better opportunities, which I did not have at the Ministry.  In fact I did not join the Teachers College in Ramallah but preferred the Business Administration Institute in Bait Haninah. 

When did you first hear of the company? How has your perception of the company changed since then?
The company was just building the factory and, as I said, it was a better opportunity than my job at the MoE.  I was enthusiastic in participating in the building of the factory, which was the first factory of its kind in Saudi Arabia.  I was among a few who began with the company.  We were led at the time by Khalid Al Zamil, who since moved on to establish Zamil Steel.  Ahmed Al-Zamil and his brother Adib Al-Zamil then followed as the leaders of the company.
The Zamils had a vision of a bright future and they had strong national sentiments.  They believed that this country needed, and still needs, to establish viable industries to help all its citizens.  The Zamils decided to invest in manufacturing and start building a chain of industries.  I have been fortunate to be part of this, and I still consider it a privilege to be associated with the air conditioning industry.  When we started, it was a courageous idea to go into manufacturing since most people did not have the confidence or the trust in Arab industries due to several failed attempts to establish industries in the Arab World.  A few months after I joined, the company began manufacturing its first air conditioners.
We have the right combination – right vision of the owners, the climate of the area, which requires air conditioners, the support of the government through incentives, and the enthusiasm and loyalty of the employees.  These have made us successful.  We began with manufacturing 15-30 units a day and moved very quickly to become one the largest manufacturing companies in the Middle East for air conditioners.
Our first target was to manufacture a unit in a minute and now we have reached more than 2,000 units daily.  We now look forward to manufacturing a unit in a second. 
From then until now, the company has been consistent and my belief in the company remains consistent.

What are the special memories you have of your years of service?
I have many good memories from the time I began my service in the company.   I owe a lot to it and I am thankful of this opportunity to express my feelings.

Talk about your various postings. What is your position in the company now? Describe the nature of your duties. Give your impressions on ZAC’s attention to maintaining high quality standards.
My first job was as accounts assistant to the finance manager and I started the first ledger card of this company.   Next, I worked as an assistant to the finance manager and handled several jobs in accounts.  Due to the expansion of the business and the company having more customers, I was appointed as credit control supervisor in order to institute proper controls in the system.  Before I reached my 20th year of service, I was promoted to credit /treasury manager and since then I have been holding this position.    
My job has given me a lot of experience in matters related to banks and more importantly about how to handle customers beginning from the time he approaches the company until we finally receive and record his last payment.  My responsibility extends to more than 2,000 customers and transactions processed under my supervision reach SR800 million ($213.3 million) per year.

What, according to you, are the strong points of ZAC’s management? 
I already mentioned the vision and the leadership of the Zamils but what is foremost is their concern for the employees, not only for their welfare, but also for their development.  It is hard to catch up with what they are thinking, and you end up being surprised at their success, admiring their correct vision and their broad-mindedness.  And they do this while maintaining strong ties with their culture and religion.
I have noticed so many times that the respect they give to employees and to others is something built into their personality.  That is why we really feel they are very respected by the community around them.     

What training did you undergo to get to where you are now? What training do you expect to take up in the near future?
During my service I attended several courses related to my duties, which have helped me in the management of my work in better ways.  In this company, there is always this feeling that you are still in university, studying and adding more information.  This is how it will be for me until I retire.
We all remember the accounts books written by hand and then the NCR machines, which used a card and a tape pasted on it to record the data.  We started using PCs in the eighties.  When we first used computers we needed to hire people to programme the computer for handling day-to-day activities.  Nowadays, computers are a basic part of our work.
The Zamils are among the pioneers in using computers in their business and now all the branches of the company are linked electronically, which allows us to communicate and keep our records up-to-date easily.  The company has also worked with customers and dealers through computers. 
The training I received is part of the company’s thrust to enhance employee skills for the future.  Excuse me for saying so, but the company is seriously studying expanding its training.  I think it is no big secret that the newly created Training Institute will be the core to Zamil Technical Academy in the future.
What is the debt of gratitude you owe to the company? Discuss the various ways the company has taken care of you, citing some examples.
I asked myself many times why I have stayed this long in this company and did not move to another one for better opportunities, and the answer that always comes back to me is that it was the trust and brotherly treatment from ZAC and the Zamils themselves, which made me always work hard with integrity and loyalty. 
They have always taken care to help me in difficulties in my life, helping me overcome any obstacles I met.  I was in the hospital for three days after a minor operation and I received a few visits.  I also received visits at my house many times for weddings and condolences.  The company even helped me to bring my parents from Jordan to stay with me, and even helped my children gain admission to schools.
And these are just samples of what the company and the Zamils have done for me in the past 30 years.