Welcome New IEC Member Turan Kahraman, Managing Director at Turan & Company
May 1, 2023
Dear IEC Members & Friends,
Please welcome new IEC Member Turan Kahraman, Managing Director at Turan & Company, as our next confirmed member of the International Executive Council (IEC). We have included his bio and Linkedin Profile below for your review.’
Turan Kahraman is a leader, business executive and entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience in turning around and running middle market companies. His core business management belief is based on an unequivocal respect for every employee regardless of their position, and giving them the tools and guidance to help them succeed in areas in which they have the most potential.
As a mentor, coach and teacher, he also instills accountability and integrity to all around him. Throughout his management career, he has always focused on building sound financial foundations and loyal and cohesive teams. His philosophy of providing an environment of mutual respect, fair treatment and strong work ethic translated into the employees’ providing excellent service to the customers of the companies he ran. The type of work environment he created also often attracted quality employees from competitors to join his companies.
Born in Istanbul, Turkey he attended Galatasaray Lisesi (one of the most renowned and influential French-Language high schools of modern Turkey.) It was there that he discovered his talent for athletics. He held the Turkish National Records in Discus and Shot Put from 1976-1989. In 1979 he received an athletic scholarship from Brigham Young University and competed for them in Discus and Shot Put. He received a B.A. in International Relations followed by a Master’s degree in Business Administration (1985) where he was the President of the MBA Association.
After graduation he served as a key liaison for a large US corporation for their joint venture in Turkey. Then his engagement in business primarily involved middle market companies. He began as a consultant/dealmaker at MRC Worldwide, an M&A firm. He later turned around companies and held leadership positions in a variety of industries. His first two turnarounds were a bi-coastal chemical manufacturing and distribution business and a large printing and binding business.
In 1999 he was asked to turnaround Askew Industrial Corporation, a Los Angeles-based wholesale distributor of industrial hardware. He later purchased and ran it for a total of 22 years. During that time, with the help of talented and hardworking team members, the company was transformed from a one-location business to a well-respected 10-location industrial concern serving manufacturers and military ship builders throughout the US. He sold Askew in December 2021.
Currently, Turan has investments in real estate and in early-stage startups primarily in tech and biotech. He is also a board member and advisor to some of these companies.
In addition to his corporate experience, Turan has been an active member of various professional and community organizations. He was the Chairman of the American Turkish Association of Southern California. He has also served on the Global Management Center Advisory Board of BYU’s Marriott School of Business. And he was a board director for Bank of Whittier.
With his wife Judy of 40 years, he resides in Orange County, California. They have two sons and two grandsons.
IEC Member Turan Kahraman, Managing Director at Turan & Company
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/turan-kahraman/
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