Could you tell us a little about yourself?

I am Saeed Zokayi, an entrant of the year 76 at Sharif University in the field of Materials, and in the year 81 I continued my master's degree in the same field at the same university and I am currently the CEO of Parsa Polymer Sharif.

Did you have an interest in your field?

I remember that I had also been accepted in the Mechanical Engineering field at the University of Science and Technology, and at that time I was considering three fields: Materials, Industries, and Mechanics. However, ultimately, after further research, I chose Engineering and Materials Science at Sharif, which, of course, in the first two semesters, I did not realize my interest in this field enough, until after Dr. Bagheri returned to Iran, the Polymer specialization was introduced into this field, and I discovered my interest in the polymer area and continued with enthusiasm during my bachelor's and later master's studies.

How was your academic situation during your studies?

Like many students at the beginning of their bachelor's studies and the first semester, I did not have a good academic situation and I did not take this matter very seriously, but gradually I started studying and continued to be among the top 5 students each semester in the faculty.

The greatest value that I believe in is impact; therefore, it does not matter whether you are an employee or a CEO, you must see in what position you have more impact. When we look at society, despair constitutes the dominant atmosphere. I do not want to talk about optimism; I want to say that positive realism is something that can lead to our progress and serve as a launching pad.

How about student activities?

I seriously followed news related to politics, but during my student years, I did not enter political organizations. However, due to my interest in student activities, I became a member of the scientific association and participated in student activities within the faculty.

What was your mindset during your student years? How much did you think about starting a business?

Initially, I thought about getting hired by a good company, but as I progressed, my perspective on the surrounding space and existing potentials increased, and I realized that the entrepreneurial environment was more suitable for me. This change in mindset was due to the personality that gradually formed in me. Naturally, I do not recommend entrepreneurship to everyone; to move in this direction, each person needs a series of essential parameters, such as a risk-taking personality, stress management, managing conditions and crises, and continuous effort, which are characteristics that must exist within you. Since such characteristics, especially self-confidence, develop gradually in a person's character, one must utilize time and become more determined about the decision made over time. Many times I am asked, what has Sharif given you? One of the most important answers I give to this question is self-confidence.

What other impacts has Sharif had on your path?

Perhaps more important than the self-confidence that Sharif gives you is the network and connections it creates for you. Currently, many of the companies and colleagues that are alongside Parsa Polymer are due to the connections that were formed during my student years. Some of the projects that Parsa Polymer has undertaken and the growth we have experienced in this path are results of these connections.

When did you enter this path? Were you also thinking about applying?

During my master's period, I was involved in a path that is currently a concern for many students in the country. The topic of applying was the main issue that I thought about during a period of my master's studies. One of my friends, who was studying at MIT and is currently working at Google, once told me: If you cannot get accepted from top universities, do not apply at any cost. Currently, our students are entering the application process at any cost. At that time, I received acceptance from several universities in the USA, Canada, and Italy, but two reasons prevented me from entering this path: one was that my application options were not the best possible, and I did not want to enter this path at any cost; the second was that at that time, which was the end of my master's program, upon Dr. Bagheri's suggestion, we started a project in the polymer field that progressed very well. After realizing the promising environment of this field in the country and seeing that there is a lot of room for growth in this path, we decided to work in this area and register a company.

What services does Parsa Polymer provide? What is its product?

Parsa Polymer was officially registered in the year 86 and started its serious work. Initially, Parsa Polymer began its work by selling polymer additive formulations to companies, but we soon realized that this was not cost-effective. After successfully obtaining loans and securing capital, we started producing polymers for various industries by purchasing machines and setting up our production lines. Plastic parts for cars, everyday plastics, and basically anything that involves plastic are among these items.

If you have any final words, we are listening?

The greatest value that I believe in is impact; therefore, it does not matter whether you are an employee or a CEO, you must see in what position you have more impact. When we look at society, despair constitutes the dominant atmosphere. I do not want to talk about optimism; I want to say that positive realism is something that can lead to our progress and serve as a launching pad.

Sharif gave me confidence and networking for development.

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