Buletin Takaful

Source: The Star, 20th February 2010

Datuk Syed Moheeb Syed Kamarulzaman, Takaful Ikhlas Sdn Bhd’s president and chief executive officer was in the midst of unpacking his stuff at the group’s new headquarters in Bangsar South when StarBizWeek caught up with him for this interview.

There were stacks of unopened boxes in one corner of his office and he had yet to decide where the big bookshelf should go.

“We just moved in two days ago, so it is a bit of a mess here,” he apologises.

A small wire art piece in a shape of a motorcycle is tucked in one corner, close to his desk. It turned out to be an ice-breaker as noticing the writer’s glance, he starts talking about his passion for motorbikes, music and marathon.

“The motorcycle was a gift from a dear friend more than 20 years ago. I had told him that one day I’m going to buy a Harley-Davidson, and later he gave me this small-scale replica as a gift until I could afford the real thing,” he recalls.

Moheeb bought himself a Harley-Davidson Sportster on the eve of his 55th birthday, but kept the replica anyway as he had grown attached to it.

The Sportster, however, was not Moheeb’s first ride.

That honour goes to a Yamaha, a hand-me-down from his older brother. The old “kapchai” did not last long and was traded for a Triumph Tiger 500 motorbike.

The Triumph took him everywhere during his student days as he pursued a law degree at Institute Teknologi Mara (ITM), now known as Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) and during his early working life.

“I got into the insurance business after graduating in law,” Moheeb says.

He may have got in by accident, but 35 years down the road, he is still in the business.

Moheeb, 57, started his career at Royal Insurance where he work for almost 15 years, before he moved on to Aetna Insurance in a stint that lasted slightly more than four years.

A call from a schoolmate with an offer to helm SEA Insurance was hard to resist, but he was there for only a short period of three years, before he took up the top job at German re-insurer Gerling Global Re.

Four years later, Moheeb was brought in to lead Takaful Ikhlas when the company was set up.

“We started out from zero and at the time there were only two other takaful operators in town,” he says.

The best thing about being a startup was that he was given the opportunity to create something from the ground up.

He exploited technology to the fullest from day one and the firm scored many “firsts” in the takaful and financial security business through various innovations.

His first hand experience in the ways of British and American insurance business, as well as the exposure to German re-insurance discipline was incorporated into Takaful Ikhlas operation from the earliest days.

Thus far, his management of takaful operations appear to be paying off well for Takaful Ikhlas.

Syed Moheeb says that the firm is on track to achieve RM630mil in premium for the year ending March 31, 2010.

To compare, the firm recorded RM580mil in premium in the previous financial year, and it was at RM420mil the year before.

“We had to hold back a bit in 2009 because of the economic uncertainties. We also needed to ensure the infrastructure is ready to cater for our growing business,” he says.

Syed Moheeb is not one who is easily held back from what he sets out to achieve.

Motorcycle riding is a life long passion for the Kangar-born, and in his “younger” days, Syed Moheeb was the consummate sportsman.

He picked up rugby during his school days at Malay College of Kuala Kangsar (MCKK), and continued to play the gentlemen game competitively for quite a few years.

Syed Moheeb also took up marathon running, while he was working in Kuala Lumpur and got involved in races around the country. His team won a few medals and trophies, so he must be quite fast, or at least his team mates were.

A minor operation, however, forced him to give up long distance running. He went for track events instead.

“I’m always running for something, not from something,” he says in a jest. His involvement in track events was confined to industry meets.

Moheeb recalls an incident at one of these meets when a competitor remarked to him just before the race was about to start that his previous race was quite a while back.

“I asked him when was that, and he replied during the SEA Games!” he laughs. Moheeb lost the race, but only by a small margin.

Even today, one bypass surgery later, Moheeb strives to keep active. “I took up golfing for a while, but gave up soon because of my handicap.”

Instead, he traded down his BMW RT1200 touring bike for a GS650 – which he says is easier to manoeuvre. The two-year-old Harley, however, was not for sale.

Today, Moheeb still goes out for regular rides with friends and colleagues, and has even set up a motorcycle club at Takaful Ikhlas.

“It’s a great way for everyone to bond and let loose some steam.”

With three kids all grown up, his wife Datin Syarifah Zahrah sometimes accompanies him during his occasional outstation rides.

Like many of those who had gone to residential schools, Moheeb still keeps in touch with the “old boys.”

Moheeb mentions that he did not complete his tour at MCKK, due to “professional differences” with the then headmaster Azizi Ismail – the first Malay headmaster at MCKK.

“I was advised not to stay,” he says. He later completed his secondary education at Bukit Bintang Boys School.

But MCKK stuck with him and with a few friends, they still play in a band every now and then.

“We had been practising the same old songs for the past 30 years, so I think we got quite good at it,” says Syed Moheeb, who is the designated drummer for the band.

The band, which goes by the name CNS, or Central Nervous System performs at dinner events. Their latest gig includes a performance at a royal dinner in Negeri Sembilan.

Fun and games aside, the seasoned Kangar-born insurer is a chartered insurance practitioner and a board member of the Malaysian Insurance Institute (MII), where he sits in the MII executive committee.

He is the chairman of the Malaysian Takaful Association and is a member in various industry groups, both in takaful and conventional insurance.

Industry-wise, Syed Moheeb was the driving force behind the introduction of electronic claims estimation system in the country.

Drawing from visits to Japan, UK and Germany, he saw how motor damage claims submission and approval process were considerably shortened through technology.

Using that knowledge from day one, Takaful Ikhlas not only had the electronic cover notes in place, but from day one of operations the company already had electronic claims estimation in place.

Given his unique experience in conventional insurance, re-insurance and Islamic financial protection business, Moheeb is also a sought-after speaker at local, regional and international forums.

“My other interest includes travelling and photography,” Moheeb says, and he was quick to identify our photographer’s equipment and even tried out a few shots himself. He travels to London quite often, in his capacity as a board member of Principle Insurance Co, the first independent takaful company in the UK.