Mr. Zamir Frotan
Mr. Zamir Frotan, an alumnus of Kardan University, BBA’ 10, is an inspirational United Nations professional who thrives on efficiency and effectiveness. He has over a decade of experience in management and operations.
Currently, He serves as the Global Lead, Business Operations Strategy (BOS 2.0), a stream of the United Nations reform of business operations, which encourages collaboration, efficiency, and effectiveness at the country level in United Nations Headquarters in New York. Mr. Frotan contributes to the reform of United Nations business operations, initiated by the United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Gutters. Previously, Mr. Frotan served as, Operations Specialist in United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Headquarters in New York, USA, as Regional Administrative Officer for International Civil Aviation Organization, a United Nations Specialized Agency in Thailand, as Operations Managers for UN Women in Papua New Guinea, supporting the ambitious work of the United Nations in achieving gender equality and empowerment of women and girls and contributing to development work globally. In Afghanistan, Mr. Frotan served positions of Operations Specialist, Operations Manager, and Procurement Specialist for the United Nations Development Programme, Kabul.
In his current position, Mr. Frotan leads a team of experts globally "I lead a team of experts globally that works with each UN office to identify their strategic, operational needs (in the UN, Administration, Finance, Procurement, HR, Logistics and ICT are collectively defined as 'Operations') and help them to collaborate with each other to achieve these operational goals jointly. This is exciting work as it is projected to avoid approximately $90-$100 million annually from the United Nations operational cost," he says.
Mr. Frotan says about some of the proudest moment in his current job, "In my current job, one role is for me to hunt for and identify innovative solutions or good practices that United Nations offices may have adopted successfully and then work with an expert group to scale such innovation or successes globally for the rest of the United Nations, or even inspire private or public sector. At times, I come across very cool solutions; for example, once, we discussed innovation in the workplace and opted to develop a new online platform for the United Nations to identify, analyze, track, and report on their collaborations and efficiencies. I had the pleasure of leading the development of this platform, which is now utilized by 131 United Nations offices globally and is a key source of information for the United Nations to report its efficiencies to the Member States. Looking back into this product, while I credit the team that worked with us on this product, makes me feel proud too, that I have been able to contribute to one of the signature products at the global level".
"Being able to contribute to the work of an organization that supports humanity, brings democracy, peace, and development, and within that large system, my passion for bringing efficiency and ease of business is what makes me proud. I know if I do my job well, it will impact the life of a human being deep down in any crisis or complex country," he added.
Outside of his current role, he reveals some of the proudest and rewarding moments of his career, "Throughout my career in the United Nations, I have been blessed to have worked in some great roles and programs. In Afghanistan, I worked for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), where I contributed to improve the subnational governance system, bring the opportunities for capacity development of national institutions to take part in the broader role of the United Nations in the development sector. I have very good memories of my work in Afghanistan, challenging but rewarding," he says.
"Later, in my first assignment as international staff, I worked for UN Women, the United Nations agency, with the mission to enhance gender equality and empowerment of women and girls. This assignment was fantastic; my posting was in Papua New Guinea, a country in the Pacific Ocean, north of Australia. Papua New Guinea and UN Women was a wonderful experience; I could explicitly see the impact of my daily work in the communities; we were helping create safe and secure public spaces and environments for women and girls, particularly those that were or could have been the victim of domestic violence. Another exciting assignment that I had was working with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a United Nations specialized agency that assists with the safety and security of the civil aviation system, from airport security to airplane safety, standards, or the aerodrome and aviation policies. In this assignment, I was fortunate to facilitate a team of ICAO experts to Afghanistan to assess the Afghanistan Civil Aviation standards. This visit contributed well to elevate some of the key civil aviation systems, which I feel grateful for it," he added.
Mr. Frotan says his studies at Kardan University helped him be prepared in the professional world and reach his goals, "Kardan has been driving force for me to be professionally fit, grow, compete, and reach my desired goals. Afghanistan's formal education system was way behind when Kardan started its first institute in Kabul with modern and up-to-date curriculums. My first interaction with the world of business administration was in Kardan Institute earlier in 2006, and later on, I joined the very first batch of bachelor's in business administration in 2007. The class of D3, a famous bunch of working professionals, wonderful characters, and great classmates that I still connect with and who are now leading key positions in the private and public sectors.
Despite the challenges in Afghanistan, Kardan has maintained its education curriculum and standards comparable or even higher than many universities in the country and the region. The education that I got in Kardan shaped my professional and personal world. I was able to speak about strategy, modern management, leadership, and, most importantly, communicate to the world and professionals educated in developed countries. My inspiration from Kardan led me to my graduate studies and master's program. At certain stages, I still refer to some of my chapters and materials from Kardan and use them in my day-to-day work. I was proud to be part of the 40 under 40 award winners in 2017,"
"All and all, we are a Kardanian family. My younger brother, Nasrat Mureed is in his final Master's class at Kardan University; two of my nieces Shahab Amiri and Sharif Amiri, are Kardanians in their bachelor's programs, not to mention several other friends and family that has been part of this wonderful institution," he added.
A dynamic and ambitious professional, Mr. Frotan thrives on learning new things, coaching others, and finding solutions to the most pressing challenges. "Learning new things in life and work, being able to action those learnings in practice, ability to mentor and coach my team, friends and co-workers and finding the solution to a challenge is what inspires me the most," he said.
Reflecting on his professional success, Mr. Frotan reveals, "obviously, I have been blessed with a lot of mercy. I want to point to some factors. First and foremost, the family, my wife, Marwa Frotan, has been very supportive of my career, growth, movements to various locations, and my career-related decisions. She has been a wonderful and supportive partner to me, a great mother to our children Omar, Nowaida, and Habiba, and a skillful manager of my life. Having your family on your side significantly helps you perform better and move well. More importantly, you need a great mentor to guide you in the right direction and a network of good friends to emotionally support you. If I put this honestly, I wouldn't have been near where I am today had I not had the support of these wonderful people," he said.
"On the work side, establishing a professional network is key. You can establish this network by being committed, working hard, at times going the extra mile to help your co-workers, manager, and fellows. The work environment is amazing; you would be surprised to see who you would come across in your next career move and how you can be supported. Therefore, maintaining a good professional connection with your school and university instructors, work colleagues, and senior managers are key to success," he added.
His advice and tips to other students and alumni," we are a country in need of good capacities. The younger generation is the hope for our society and our country. I would encourage my graduate friends and current students to take every opportunity to learn, learn from Everything; every moment is an opportunity to build a relationship with the people in your communities, educational or professional environment. Set standards for yourself. You can achieve any goal, your attempts might fail, but if you remain consistent, you will get there".
"Afghanistan needs a new generation, new thoughts, innovation, and transparency. Focus on work ethics, focus on how you can contribute to the peace and prosperity of Afghanistan and the world in the longer term. Celebrate your achievements, don't get over-excited, try new ways of doing things, make mistakes, learn from them, try again until you succeed. You are the future!" he added.
Mr. Frotan enjoys spending time with family and exploring new things, "time in this part of the world is very limited and precious. I spend most of my free time with my family, trying to make time with the kids; we read Shahnama sometimes, going for long drives, play chess. I play chess online with my father or friends, and I also try to go to F45 a High-intensity interval training. Not to forget, washing the dishes and some of the house chores, we all have to keep our home and environment saint clean and share responsibilities. When I travel for work, I take a few days off and explore it if it's a new country. Travel has exposed me to a lot of new cultures, learning, and diversity. It's another school by itself, and I encourage all my friends to travel when they can."