During the 1980s, a little boy in Belgium was watching a football match with his father and brother and aspiring to be part of one of the country's leading football leagues - Anderlecht. A common enough dream for many young boys, but this particular young enthusiast went on to fulfil his dream at 18, when he secured his first paying job with the team.
It was the beginning of many successes for Olivier Crasson. His career in football was to continue for the next ten years. He credits his skills in his corporate career, too, to the game that honed them to begin with. "My training as goalkeeper, which I think is the toughest job on the team - giving team members the confidence to do their job while also trouble-shooting and saving the match in a pinch - has, I believe, helped me develop some skills for crisis management."
Born and educated in Belgium, Crasson has traversed many professional arenas in the last 16 years. With a degree in law and a masters in politics, he started his career in 1994 in the public sector as a project manager, responsible for financing public projects in Brussels. After a few years, he obtained an executive masters in management at the Solvay Business School in Brussels and set up his own consulting company.
But his love for football continued to make a place for itself. He was recruited as a journalist for Canal Plus and presented more than 150 TV broadcasts about the latest European football news in L'Europe des Onze and Kick Off between 1994 and 2001. He recalls a particularly harrowing experience from those years: while anchoring a live football telecast, he suddenly lost his camera connection with the team at Manchester. With no knowledge of even the names of the team members, he had to wing it and provide insights from that day's morning newspaper! Did he pull it off? You guessed it — he did!
In 2003, he took over as general manager of Mercedes Benz Belgium, a post which helped hone his diplomacy skills. But it was not easy, he says with a chuckle. "One night I was actually locked up in my office during a strike by trade unions!"
In 2004, he took a shot at making a living in Dubai by starting a company which imported luxury yachts and boats. It was a huge miscalculation and the initiative sank without a trace. Crasson says that period taught him, among many other things, that good friends are hard to come by in times of trouble.
The setback led to the next milestone in his career; in 2005 he joined Besix - Six Construct, Belgium's biggest construction company, which was restructuring the Ajman Sewerage Project. And that is how he ended up returning to the UAE, this time as general manager of Ajman Sewerage (Pvt) Company Limited, a joint venture between Besix and the government of Ajman, which has since built a $250 million centralised sewerage system in the emirate.
"When I came to Ajman in 2005," says Crasson, "the environment was a radical change from Belgium's organised urban life. The work before me was daunting."
But his typical attitude of getting on with it ensured that in five years many things were achieved - 300km of pipelines were added, all the septic tanks demolished, all households connected to a sewerage system, pipelines set up for clean water. "This may not be a glamorous job, but things are interesting when they are difficult," he says.
Perhaps as a result of such daunting challenges, he was motivated to sign up for the executive MBA programme offered by the Dubai branch of the London Business School last year. "I've enjoyed the course and the interaction and it has been extremely humbling," he says.
Crasson believes being present with his Flemish wife, Inge, in the labour room and participating in the delivery of both his children, Victor and Mathilde, represents his most beautiful experience to date. He adds that being there was essential because men get to play such a small role in child-rearing.
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I am a very positive person and very committed.
I believe that the most extraordinary event is that which has not yet occurred.
I like quality in the way I live and the pursuits I choose to engage in.
I would describe myself as optimistic, loyal, tenacious, a perfectionist, a workaholic, stubborn, humble (sometimes!) and a fairly decent mimic.
I believe in the marvellous power of humour. Also in collective rather than personal achievements.
I love to cook and eat, and see people smiling around me.
These are a few of my favourite things: Music and dance, taking a plane, swimming, running, playing the cello (I had to stop years ago unfortunately), waking up early, making a fire in the desert, deep diving in Oman, playing football, living in the UAE...
I am furious about stupidity, selfishness and dishonest people. Moreover I hate arrogance.
I never get tired of talking to people I like, watching my children learn and play, teasing people!
I think challenges are mandatory and inspirational.
I am always touched by children. They are the most precious things on earth.
Me
Me and work: I spend a lot of time at work and I make a point of maintaining a good atmosphere around me and in the company.
I try to look at each day as a new opportunity to be at my very best, set high goals, be honest, never say no, and work with people who share my passion for doing their best.
Me and my family: My wife has always been a source of energy and inspiration. Since I am always working, my best holiday memories are definitely when I can just go home and spend time with my family.
Me and my beliefs: I believe in all universal virtues.
Me and strengths and weaknesses: Both are directly linked - I have a weakness for ice cream… and I have the strength to go for a long run the next day to burn off the calories.
My idea of giving back: Sharing the information I have, and helping others.
Myself
A key element to be successful is to "know what you are talking about" and is thus to be specialised. However, there are exceptions. As far as I am concerned, I did make deliberate choices. I am of the opinion that life is a series of cycles and I did not want the same one to repeat itself - hence my various first-time attempts - but they all had a common thread: they all had to be challenging.
One of the lessons I have learned from my expatriation is the way Britons deal with challenges, compared with the French-speaking people (and I am obviously one). When an issue arises, a Frenchman will tell you: "This is an interesting situation from an intellectual point of view. Let us analyse the main reasons why we are in this situation and then let us see who is responsible for it." A Brit will say: "We are where we are. How do we take it from here? What is the next move?" This cultural distinction makes the whole difference.