Fify Manan
Taking Advantage of Disadvantages

FOR Fify Manan, commuting between Jakarta and Georgia in southern United States, is probably like other Indonesians traveling between Jakarta and Yogyakarta or Surabaya. Every month, this 51-year old president and CEO of the Formcase Group, which designs, manufactures and markets modern office furniture, divides her time between those two cities in Indonesia and Atlanta, Georgia.

Fortunately, she doesn't mind the long commute, as it's the only time when she can indulge in her favorite hobby: watching movies. "I like dramas and comedies," she said, during an interview with Tempo English in Karawaci, Banten, where she was resting after a month-long trip to the US. "Beside doing business as usual, I attended the Diaspora's Wonderful Indonesia Festival in New Orleans," said Fify, who is Vice President of the Indonesian Diaspora Business Council (IDBC). Wonderful Indonesia is an Indonesian diaspora and government campaign to promote the country around the world. "I also took time to attend a wedding of a friend who's been a customer for 21 years, in the Dominican Republic."

May 24, 2016