(Courtesy of Wulan Tilaar Widarto)Many people assume that it’s easy to simply follow in the footsteps of one’s parents in taking over a family business.

Wulan Tilaar begs to differ. Her entry in 2005 into the eponymously named cosmetics empire of her mother, Martha Tilaar, was not easy, she says.

In making changes in the company, founded in the 1970s, she admits she faced resistance in some quarters, particularly from longtime employees.

“There was a tug-of-war on how to deliver the news to the senior and junior employees. The most important things are to build good communication and apply different approach between the senior and junior employees,” said the Martha Tilaar Group vice chairwoman, who is responsible for the company’s salon and day spa as well as beauty school.

The 35-year-old often tells employees that they are like the five fingers on one hand: each has a role, but they must be coordinated for success.

“To senior employees, I ask them to help their ‘children’ or ‘sister’, while to the juniors I tell them to respect the seniors, who already have many experiences. In a way, they then complement each other.”

She has introduced new policies, including for employees in setting targets and lengthening work hours, from the former 9-to-5 schedule to 9-to-8, as well as customer discounts suited to the conditions in Jakarta.

“The targets help employees to set the bar higher, while we need to give discounts because everyone loves price cuts and nowadays people still linger on past their work hours to wait for traffic to subside, so that is an opportunity,” she said.

The third of four children in her family (her father is an academic), Wulan’s emotional attachment to the company dates back to her childhood. She would spend time at the firm after school and during holidays; she reminisces about sitting at the reception desk and looking at the people who came and went, staring at the lipstick division in the factory and distributing flyers during the annual Jakarta Fair.

When she entered the company, especially the Spa and Beauty School, the Boston University graduate decided to get the necessary education at Cidesco, a Zurich-based international organization that offers training for beauty therapy qualification.

“Besides taking Cidesco, I also took several management courses. I learned a lot from my mother, too. If I don’t learn it myself, I will be in trouble, because I have to develop the system, standards and manage the employees,” she said.

She has also had first-hand experience in therapy sessions to understand problems that employees face and to find solutions. She found the problems could be very simple, such as a lack of dry towels.

“A good leader should be able to come up with a solution. We can also ask the employees, because they may already know the best way to solve it, but are either too shy to speak up or are afraid of the boss getting angry,” she said.

“I try to keep an approachable management style, moving forward and target oriented.”

Wulan also introduced a reward and punishment mechanism. Employees with good achievements will be sent to competitions and exchange programs abroad. Underperforming employees must face the consequences, such as allowance cuts, warning letters and the requirement to pay compensation if they accidentally break the equipment.

Quality concern

The beauty and cosmetics industry is continuing to flourish with the emergence of new brands. Wulan said one of the challenges facing the cosmetic industry faced was finding qualified and smart human resources who were passionate and had a deep understanding of their products.

“We need to educate customers about quality cosmetics because the market now offers many cosmetics that are cheap, but not necessarily safe. Also, many Indonesians are still blinded by foreign brands,” she said.

High employee turnover is another major challenge.

“During my mother’s era, employees would work for years and decades. Nowadays it’s hard to find employees with a strong sense of belonging and loyalty. People have become more money oriented and opportunist,” she said.

Despite the company’s efforts to invest in and upgrade human resources, employees still leave for greener pastures. However, she added, sometimes they return.

“Those employees find out that while the other company may offer bigger salary, it also has harsher office politics. Here in Martha Tilaar, the atmosphere is more familial,” she said.

Wulan strives to maintain a professional yet accessible approach with employees, and is fair when it comes to disciplining or terminating staff.

“I will not fire a person without a strong reason or on emotional grounds. I try to find the proof and then verify it directly with the person. If I quickly jump to conclusions from what people say, it will not be fair. If it’s only a case of like or dislike, there are so many of them. Firing someone is the final option.”

Family values

Wulan starts her day at 4:30 a.m. when her two daughters awake. After breakfast, she leaves home at 6 a.m. on the one-hour drive to their school. There is still enough time for her to take morning mass at St. Theresia in Menteng, Central Jakarta, before she starts work.

“I gain my strength from prayer. It helps me to think soberly,” she said.

Although she has brought change to the firm, she maintains her mother’s established corporate values of DJITU, an Indonesian acronym for discipline, honesty, innovative/faith), persistence and perseverance. She said the values remain important for the company to move forward and achieve targets.

“I believe that there is no instant fame or instant success, because anything that is gained instantly can lead to an instant downfall. People who start from bottom know the problems and can appreciate other people,” she said.

While the third generation of the Tilaar family is still in elementary school, Wulan said she invited the children to exhibitions where the company was represented to teach them about the business.

For young people wanting to work in the beauty industry, Wulan has several tips: get a proper education, regularly update your skills and knowledge and always be passionate, persistent and display perseverance.

“We need to get a proper education because many people often look down on people working in the beauty industry,” she said. If you don’t update the skill and knowledge, the look you make will appear outdated. If you persevere, you can gain more than having a normal 9-to-5 job.”

Place and Date of Birth: Jakarta, July 13, 1977

Career Experience:
Currently vice chairwoman of Martha Tilaar Group; previously held graphic designer positions in the US at University of Cincinnati, Western Southern Life Insurance, Cincinnati, and Allen & Gerritsen, Watertown, Massachusetts

Education Background:
Mount St. Joseph University in Cincinnati, Ohio, Bachelor’s in graphic design Boston University in Boston, Massachusetts, Master’s in mass communication-advertising Cidesco Beauty Aesthetics Diploma, 2007

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