Asking the right questions can help leaders understand their business

After working in investment banking in Amsterdam, New York and Tokyo, Sarab Hans (MBA’00) returned to Canada to take the reins of the family business. Mississauga-based Hans Dairy specializes in South Asian dairy products, but Hans didn’t have experience in dairy food and beverage production and needed to learn about the manufacturing process. “Sometimes, when we come into a position where we’re expected to be a leader, we feel like we need to show we know everything,” Hans says in interview with Food in Canada. “But when you don’t know everything, that is really the wrong way to approach it. So, I asked questions when I needed to. People were very helpful, and I was surprised at how forthcoming they were with information. This way, I built a connection with people. They knew that I was here not to dictate what was going on, but to build the business from the down up.”