Alltech’s Dr. Aman Sayed shares his career journey
Dr. Aman Sayed is the managing director of India and regional director of South Asia at Alltech. He earned his master’s degree in veterinary (Poultry) science from Bombay Veterinary College and was honored with gold medal distinctions both at graduation and post-graduation. In the mid-2000s, through the work he completed during the last year of his master’s program, he realized that there weren’t enough veterinary specialists in the field and that customers were in dire need of professional assistance. This realization led him to begin pursuing roles in privately owned enterprises.
His journey began in the year 2000, with setting up an R&D farm for an Iowa-based multinational firm, where he was later elevated to a technical position serving West India. In 2003, he joined Emirates Agriculture Technologies to oversee a free-range poultry project in Sharjah. He gained job experience in Dubai during his time in the Middle East and established Kentucky Equine Research’s operations there, working in the equine racing industry.
The opportunity to join Alltech knocked on his door in 2005, and Dr. Sayed recalled that moment by saying, “It has been said that everything comes to you at the correct time and that you need to trust the process, and this exactly defines my career.”
He initially had the chance to meet Alltech’s creator, Dr. Pearse Lyons, in 2006. Dr. Sayed was profoundly impacted by his encounter with Dr. Lyons on multiple levels. Dr. Sayed has always been driven by and remains motivated by Dr. Lyons’ philosophy that problems need to be proactively addressed as soon as possible rather than waiting for them to happen and then reacting. Dr. Lyons’ advice inspired him to always go that extra mile and helped him land in his current position.
While working at Alltech, Dr. Sayed has learned that every day is a new day and a new beginning. He wants his team to maximize business growth and serve customers to the very best of their ability.
Over the course of more than 17 years with Alltech, Dr. Sayed has held a number of positions, rising from business development manager to regional area manager for the business’s poultry and dairy operations in West India. Later in his career, he took on the responsibilities of general manager of sales for North India and started to manage the markets in Bangladesh and Nepal. He eventually rose to the position of general manager for Poultry in India before being elevated to general manager of South Asia in 2012.
He has participated in numerous professional training programs, including the Alltech Mini-MBA program in collaboration with the University College Dublin Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School in Ireland, in addition to getting experience while managing Alltech’s multispecies business unit. He gained knowledge from the course about the value of preserving an entrepreneurial attitude and being prepared to take financial risks in order to turn a profit.
As someone who serves in a decision-making role, Dr. Sayed has the responsibility of building a team of people who have a strong work ethic. He consistently assesses team members based on three fundamental values: honesty, openness and diligence. He thinks that everyone who works for any company should uphold these fundamental values. A person’s ethics and morals, a growth-focused attitude, and a high degree of engagement, both personally and professionally, can be seen in this trio of characteristics.
Over his 23-year career journey, Dr. Sayed has experienced both calm and rough waters while making challenging decisions related to driving business growth and profitability. To tackle these challenges, he has always strived to make unbiased decisions guided by the core principles of business growth – but he also endeavors never to neglect the human aspects of empathy, compassion and emotion.
In 2019, Dr. Sayed had a meeting with Dr. Mark Lyons, Alltech president and CEO, where the Indian Poultry Journalists Association posthumously honoured Dr. Pearse Lyons with a Lifetime Achievement Award. At the event, Dr. Mark Lyons spoke about Alltech’s purpose of Working Together for a Planet of Plenty™ and invited everyone to collaborate, across industry sectors and geographical boundaries, to create a place where animals, plants and people thrive in harmony.
“I am so delighted to be a part of this vision, which focuses on creating a world of abundance for future generations,” said Dr. Sayed. “This mission continues to drive me to make a positive contribution, as the only way to do exceptional work is to enjoy what you do. I feel passionate and energetic about what I do at Alltech; it’s what I live and breathe.”
Dr. Mark Lyons has shared the proverb, “If you want to travel fast, go alone; but if you want to go far, go together.” Dr. Sayed is a great supporter of teamwork above individual performance, and taking that route has gotten his team to where they are today. This motto makes him even more ambitious, and he hopes to serve in larger geographic areas in the future.
“Because of their sheer dedication and contributions to society and to my life, I will always be grateful to the Lyons family,” said Dr. Sayed.
For more information about Alltech India, visit www.alltech.com/en-in.
