| ASCENT GROUP is located in Bangladesh with its operations predominantly in the capital city of Dhaka. The Group, with a staff body of over 1500, is comprised of seven companies, all operating in the service sector. The Groups’ primary services are in education, retailing and construction.
However, capacity has also been developed in Information Technology and Information Systems, Transport and Logistics, Training and Professional Development and Off-set Printing. The Group has established itself as a market leader and has achieved growth rates of 20% every year.
Given the diversity in operations, our staff comprises of professionals in the fields of Finance, Sales, Marketing, IT, HR, Engineering, Teaching, Academic Management, Customer Service, etc.
Over the years we have developed a reputation as being one of the leading employers in the country with excellent working conditions and competitive benefits.
The Group includes the following companies:
- Scholastica Pvt. Ltd.
- Scholastica Transport Services Pvt. Ltd.
- Etcetera Bangladesh Pvt. Ltd.
- Office & Home Solutions Pvt. Ltd. (OHS)
- Printcraft Company Pvt. Ltd.
- Imagine Technology BD. Pvt. Ltd. (ITL)
- Services for Professional Education &
Enterprise Development (SPEED)
The first of these companies, Scholastica Private Limited, was established in 1977 by the founding Chairperson, Mrs. Yasmeen Murshed. The objective of this venture was to provide a complete English medium primary, secondary and high school program in Bangladesh.
As the school expanded, it was incorporated in 1997 to a private limited company. It is around that time that her son, Mr. Syed Maher Murshed, returned to Bangladesh and joined the family business. Through his initiative and desire to venture into related service sectors, subsequent companies were established.
Ms. Syeda Madiha Murshed, daughter of Mrs. Yasmeen Murshed, while residing abroad, also contributed to the development and expansion of Ascent over the years. She developed the first Teacher Training Program in 2001. She returned to Bangladesh in May 2006 and joined the family business, primarily focusing on education management, curriculum development and corporate professional development programs, given her background and experience in these areas.
The activities of the Group are diverse, yet all companies share a common goal in enhancing lifestyles through innovation and a commitment to quality. The innovative approach to product design and delivery and a constant effort to enhance value offered with our products and services have become a trademark of the Group. The Group prides itself on being efficient, friendly, time bound with sound financial management and having a good working environment.
We provide a platform for creativity, initiative and professionalism for all our staff using a flat management style and with a streamlined bureaucracy.
Group MissionThe Group is committed to becoming a leading service sector organization with substantial market share in each business division by 2015. Although the Group has been in an expansionary phase in the last 3 years, the Management is committed to sustainable and consolidated growth. Quality is not compromised. Heavy focus on strategic planning results in measured growth by ensuring that synergy amongst the sister concerns forms the platform for future business expansion. A constant process of internal reviews is carried out in order to ensure that the group remains cost effective in delivering its operations.
The management is always conscious of the need to establish business rules and looks to introduce information systems wherever possible in order to standardize operations. The Group emphasizes the need to remain flexible, which allows the evolution of the management to fit the needs of the Group today. Although the sister companies are independent legal entities, the Group benefits from positive camaraderie among all its staff and works hard to keep a dynamic working culture. Along with expansion comes the constant need for capacity building. Both these
areas will always remain a priority of the Group.
Group Corporate OfficeThe Group moved to its current corporate office in 2004 to accommodate the increasing number of employees and the need for larger real estate space. It comprises nine floors, with approximately 50,000 square feet, and houses the central offices of all the companies and the common departments. This structure enables the Group to derive benefits in many ways, such as: optimal utilization of office space, greater efficiency in communication and coordination between companies and departments, better access to shared resources, enhanced oversight and an overall increased effectiveness in management. Other business locations of the group currently include:
- 7 campuses of Scholastica School
- Numerous outlets of Coffee World (a chain of
Coffee Shops) - Numerous outlets of Pizza Corner
- A full fledged training center equipped with
IT labs, training rooms, conferencing facilities managed by SPEED (the
Group’s professional development and in service training institute) - Central warehousing facilities for the Group
- Offset printing factory (Printcraft Company
Limited) - OHS furniture assembly and carpentry workshop
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