Interview with General Director

Hey,

I could not attend career services events. So I interviewed two of the senior government officials in the organization where I am doing my internship. I will post their interviews. Here is the first one:

I interviewed Mr. Assad Zamir, General Director of Programs, in Ministry of Agriculture. He is young and very talented fellow. He has done his Bachelor’s in management from Preston University and has done his Master’s in Economics from San Jose, United States. He is Fulbright Scholar. He has worked on many senior positions during his career. He has been Adviser to the minister, manager, director and now general director.

Q: How is your experience with public sector?

A: It is complex and challenging. However, it is interesting and especially if you are committed for the good of many, you will enjoy the small wins that you achieve.

Q: What are some of the challenges?

A: Bureaucratic procedures would be also the main challenge. But we have to know that’s how governments operate. In addition, low capacity, political environment and the complexity of dealing with various stakeholders such as public, donors, parliamentarians and etc are other major challenges.

Q: How did your master’s degree helped you?

A: it helped me to better analyze the issues. It helped me to understand various strategies. Most importantly, it helped me see how developed world operates.

Q: What would you like to change in public sector?

A: I would like to have better operations. Importantly, I would like to focus more on implementing policies rather than developing them. Shortly, I can say that I would improve the business processes.

Q: Any suggestion for the new graduates?

A: The real world is not as simple as we see it during our studies. Therefore, we have to be patient when we enter into an organization. We should learn first about the organization and we should find out where we can fit. Every job is not prepared for everyone. So, we have to make sure that we choose the right job for ourselves. I do not say that studying does not help but we should not entirely rely on it.

All the best,

Thank you,

Javid