Top of the class

Entrepreneur Sunny Varkey has his hands full building bigger and better schools. Katharine Slowe speaks to the GEMS chief executive.

He didn't study much throughout his school years, admits Sunny Varkey, the CEO of Global Education Management Systems (GEMS). "I finished my A-levels and went into business. That's why I have a passion to make schools," he says.

And he makes them well, judging by his dazzling diamond cufflinks. The tiny trinkets not only reveal Varkey's love of gems, be it jewellery or his education empire, but also the generous returns on offer for operators of schools.

In three decades, the businessman has overseen construction of more than 100 schools worldwide, operating under the GEMS umbrella. It's an achievement that few would have predicted when his parents left Kerala, India, for a new life in Dubai almost 50 years ago.

Following the move, Varkey's parents wasted little time putting their teaching skills to good use.

"We are from Kerala in the south of India and in those days you came to Dubai for better prospects," Varkey says. "They were doing private tutoring and there was demand for a school in the expatriate community."

In 1968, Varkey's parents opened ‘Our Own English High School', a modest teaching facility with basic amenities, for children of expats living in Dubai. But by the early 1980s, the school's ramshackle premises had attracted the government's unwanted attention.

According to Varkey, his parents were given an ultimatum - either develop purpose-built premises or shut down. Varkey, who by this point had opened a small trading company and part-owned Dubai Plaza Hotel, decided to get involved.

With the school's future in jeopardy, Varkey agreed to invest in and manage a new facility. "I was supporting my parents and got involved with the first school," Varkey explains.

"I guess one tends to get close to the profession and then develops a passion for that industry. I started liking what I was doing and the rest is history."

While he's never been to university, the driven entrepreneur says that attending the "university of life" more than makes up for his lack of formal education: "I always tell people if I was to be marked [in an exam] I'd do well. I went through the university of hard knocks. I have run schools myself - as a businessman, a teacher, a manager; everything. I think I am very much an entrepreneur."

Under Varkey's tutelage, one school quickly became two, with several more added soon after. The rapid expansion, which reflected Dubai's boom, was partially due to Varkey's ability to combine education and business.

Describing how this was possible, Varkey says: "Once we were running one school, we received demands from different communities. Custom keeps coming to you, so you try and make sure you use your business acumen and close the gap between demand and supply."

After more than 20 years at the helm, Varkey says he is still inundated with requests for places at GEMS schools. He claims that not even 17% school fee increases in 2007 has dampened interest. Varkey attributes this demand to his refusal to compromise on quality.

"Today, to run any business the costs are going up and I guess we are on the same level," he says. "The cost of running a school is going up each day, but our schools get first choice from parents. We always have a waiting list."

As more people move to the Middle East, the need for quality education in the region continues to grow. GEMS, which caters to both expats and locals, is benefiting from an influx of workers with children.

Varkey is already responding to this demand and has at least six new schools planned for Dubai alone. He realises that for most parents finding good schools for their children is often the crucial factor behind moving abroad or staying home.

Varkey says: "One of the most important things when parents come into Dubai is to make sure their children have the right education. When I first came up with the GEMS name, it was based on looking after the most valuable thing that you have - your children. You are giving your children, your most valuable gems, to us to look after."

An ambitious man, Varkey wants to ensure parents can live in any country, safe in the knowledge their children will be attending a good school. This, he believes, is a realistic aim as GEMS continues to expand and evolve into a global brand.

He says: "We want to be a global company. We do have parents who keep inviting us to go to different countries. In the years to come, we might be in each country, or many countries certainly, which would help parents universally, so they could just go from GEMS school to GEMS school around the world."

It's a monumental task, that typifies Varkey's grand vision. But he admits having schools in different countries already poses several challenges. For example, management has to ensure different curricula are in place to cover several nationalities.

Yet Varkey claims a school's curriculum is by no means the most important component of a good education: "The most important thing in education is probably the delivery of the curriculum. The content of the Arab, American and British curriculum at each level is probably the same, but it is about how you deliver it and the way the children learn. The Americans are not exactly like the British and the British aren't exactly like the Arabs; they have different cultures. It's about delivering to these kids in their own particular community. For example, the systems here are very different to the English system. It is about rote learning here, whereas in England it is all about creative learning. It varies from country to country and community to community. You have to reflect that in your programme."

Secondary in importance, Varkey asserts, is infrastructure, which is necessary for providing the right atmosphere and surroundings. Offering the ideal learning environment is a crucial aim, with Varkey spending US$70million on his newest school GEMS World Academy.

Facilities include a 400 metre athletics track, 660-seater auditorium, a huge library as well as Discovery World, a study area with a robotics lab and planetarium.

Having commented on curriculum delivery and infrastructure, Varkey makes teachers his next subject.

He says: "You have to ensure that you have good, quality-trained teachers. More attention has to be given to training, recruiting and retaining teachers. If these things are taken care of, the children will be able to come out with flying colours."

READERS' COMMENTS

MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM