How Iwan Sunito Went From A Poor Academic Record To Stunning Success

Over the past 15 years the Crown Group, an Australian property development company, has had a tremendous growth pattern. After having amassed a portfolio of projects worth over 2.8 billion dollars, the popularity of the company is causing it to expand beyond its Australian borders. A co-founder and CEO of the company, Iwan Sunito, has a driven passion to prove that Indonesians can be very successful in the world-wide market and contribute significantly to society at large.

The Early Life Of Iwan Sunito

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Mr. Sunito came from humble beginnings, born in 1966 in the city of Surabaya and was raised in a remote area of Indonesia. When he was finished with elementary school he moved to Surabaya city where he began high school. When he was 18 he moved to Sydney, where he completed his high school education.

Further Education

The educational experience of Mr. Sunito was not very good in its early stages, as he had his challenges and difficulties in his performance academically. When he moved to Sydney, it was a chance for him to start over. It enabled him to leave behind some of the former limitations which had held him back. He had to also overcome a thick accent, which caused him to work even harder in his new quest for knowledge.

Iwan was not an overnight success in college, and Architecture was not his first choice of a subject in which to study. He originally wished to become an aircraft engineer, as he had drawn model planes in his free time. His performance was less than satisfactory in college, but he did not let this discourage his ambitions. Architecture became his passion and he graduated from the University of South Wales in 1992 with honors. The next year he obtained his Master of Construction Management degree.

Iwan Sunito’s Career

Mr. Sunito chose to stay in Sydney, rather than go back to Indonesia, and took a job working for Cox Richardson Architects. He recognized the opportunities that the growing Sydney community offered for an architect and his desire was to eventually run his own company. Within six months, Iwan resigned and established his own firm, Joshua International Architects.

Iwan Sunito Crown Group built 55 housing units with his partner, Paul Sathio, a fellow Indonesian, who he had made acquaintance with at school. Mr. Sathio already had 10 years of experience in the commercial property markets. Iwan knew, however, that a larger company could take on larger projects and create a brand to go along with it. So Iwan and Paul co-founded Crown Group.

Entering into the commercial property market had its challenges, Iwan and Paul knew that in Australia it was much easier to run a company than if they were to go back to Indonesia. There the setup and running of a business was much more complex, and also Iwan was much more familiar with the geography and the opportunities in Australia.

It is very unusual for a person from Indonesia to become successful in a foreign country as Iwan Sunito has done. However this 46 year old husband and father of three wonderful children, owes his success to hard work, dedication to a plan, and focusing on results.