SELECTION PROCESS, SAYS TABUNG HA JI CEO

NO FAVOURITISM IN HAJ

KUALA LUMPUR: Unlike most of his peers who take up golf as a form of exercise, Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) group managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Johan Abdullah walks up the stairs to his office every day.

Asked how he spends his free time and whether he plays golf, Johan smiled sheepishly and said: “Fortunately, no. I tried golfing during the Investment Banking Day, but I just couldn’t get hooked on it.

“So, I walk up to my office on the 38th floor, beginning from five floors at a time and increasing gradually.

He said he would pant heavily upon arriving at his office.

“My staff thought there was something wrong with me,” he relayed to New Straits Times Press (Malaysia) Bhd group managing editor Datuk Abdul Jalil Hamid in an interview last week.

Johan was appointed as TH group MD and CEO on July 1. He succeeded Tan Sri Ismee Ismail, who had been at the helm for more than 10 years.

Johan holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration (Finance) from Morehead State University in Kentucky and a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration (Finance) from Eastern Michigan University, both in the United States.

He had served as group MD and CEO of BIMB Holdings Bhd from May 15, 2008 to Jan 15, last year.

Johan has extensive experience in corporate finance, capital market and Islamic banking, and held various roles in Bursa Malaysia Bhd, including as deputy chief regulatory officer from January to April 2008.

He was also part of Bursa’s team in all aspects of stock exchange, serving as head of issues and listing division from 1999 to December 2007, as senior vice-president of securities issue from January 2002 to December 2004, and as vice-president of listing from January 1999 to December 2001.