Towards Seven Decades of Astra for Today and Indonesia's Future
Jakarta – Astra possesses a strong foundation in facing various dynamics and challenges. Over the past six years, Astra’s performance has remained solid, reflecting the resilience of a diversified business portfolio sustained over 69 years.
This condition is supported by decades of operational experience, consistent commitment to maintaining product and service quality, and strengthened synergies across Astra’s extensive business operations.
Therefore, Astra will remain focused on operational excellence and disciplined capital allocation, leveraging its strong balance sheet position to support sustainable value creation for all stakeholders.
Furthermore, through various sustainable social contribution initiatives, Astra continues striving to provide wider direct benefits for communities, particularly in rural areas, and works towards becoming a Pride of the Nation.
“Sixty-nine years is not merely a measure of time, but a story of millions of steps that have grown and moved together with the nation,” said Astra President Director Djony Bunarto Tjondro when discussing Astra’s long journey.
Astra’s journey over nearly seven decades has been built on a strong philosophy. Astra aspires to be a shady tree – a company that not only grows strong but is also capable of sheltering and providing benefits to the surrounding community.
Based on Catur Dharma values, inherited from Astra founder William Soeryadjaya, this philosophy subsequently became part of Astra’s vision of Prospering Together with the Nation, which continues to guide the company’s direction today.
Catur Dharma is not merely a written principle but a value lived in every decision, every collaboration, and every step the company takes. This value serves as a compass for all Astra personnel, particularly in fulfilling their roles and ensuring Astra maintains clear direction when facing various temporal dynamics.
Catur Dharma forms the basis for determining the company’s strategic direction, realised through the 3P Roadmap – Portfolio, People, and Public Contribution – as a framework balancing performance and sustainability whilst strengthening company resilience to align present and future needs.
Astra firmly believes companies are not built solely by systems or strategies but by the people who implement them. Therefore, people legacy is a critical element that ensures Astra’s continuity from one generation to the next.
According to Djony, consistent practice of Catur Dharma in daily operational activities plays a vital role in carrying forward the values inherited by the founders.
Therefore, Catur Dharma practice by Astra leaders in every decision, collaboration, and company step is essential to ensure sustained internalisation of Catur Dharma values among the next generation of Astra personnel – leading by example.
Furthermore, understanding and effective application of Catur Dharma across the Astra Group are continuously strengthened through various socialisation and internalisation programmes conducted at every level on an ongoing basis.
“Evaluation and refinement of implementation are conducted periodically so company culture remains relevant and effective in supporting Astra Group performance,” clarified Djony. People are Astra’s strength. When speaking of people, this journey will never end.
“We must continually search for and develop new talents, and we prepare new leaders who possess both good capabilities and good hearts, good character, and loyalty to the organisation,” he said.
In this context, Astra accelerates individual development programmes, cross-business rotation, and assignments with increasing responsibilities so executive candidates and leaders across the Astra Group gain diverse exposure to sharpen their leadership capabilities.
This must be done consistently to filter and obtain good talents that will take the Astra Group in an increasingly positive direction.
Because business models and technology, as well as products, will always change with evolving times, business order evolution, competition, and changes in consumer behaviour. Therefore, people with good character, shaped by good values, will be the determining factor for organisational and corporate success.
Companies will always experience generational and leadership changes. However, shared values will endure and become the binding element of the company’s journey.
Therefore, Djony emphasises that the leadership regeneration process at Astra is a strategic cycle that is always prepared beforehand and does not occur suddenly or unexpectedly.
The leadership succession process, he clarifies, is prepared at Astra several years in advance in a planned manner to ensure leadership continuity. Every era has its people, and every person has their time.