Mr. Nadir Dhanani presented a topic on Commercial Real Estate Investing, at a WZCC Houston Chapter event on August 26, 2015. About 30 years ago, Mr. Dhanani started as a cashier at a gas station and worked his way to becoming a very successful real estate investor. He has invested in gas station/fast food combination locations, shopping strips, and commercial buildings, and is currently developing two hotel properties. He provided very detailed insights into different types of commercial real estate investments such as medical facilities, shopping strips, buildings, hotels, land, etc. and he discussed the return on investment that can be expected for the various investments. He also discussed how to obtain bank loans, the business entities that can be set up for partnerships, the typical items that should be included in tenant leases, and the types of expenses that can be incurred by the property owners. He also compared commercial real estate investing to residential property investments and Real Estate Investment Trusts. The presentation was very well received by the attendees with a long Q&A session.
The Houston Chapter of WZCC holds dinner events for its members several times a year featuring distinguished speakers from various disciplines. The speakers are carefully chosen for their expertise in topics that help our members in their profession, business, or personal lives. On March 10, 2016 the Houston Chapter of WZCC presented Dr. Bahadur Sarkari, M.D., a distinguished psychiatrist with a long and successful clinical practice in London and the U.S. Dr. Sarkari is double Board Certified − in Adult Psychiatry as well as Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. In his one-hour presentation titled: “All You Wanted to Know About Mental Health But Were Afraid to Ask”, Dr. Sarkari kept the audience totally engaged with fascinating myths, facts, and actual cases of the wide variety of disorders that make up mental illness. In a very well organized talk, Bahadur Sarkari exposed the myths and wrong attitudes people have towards mental disorders. The spectrum of disorders that psychiatrists have to deal with ranges from anxiety, the most common problem, to schizophrenia, the most devastating mental illness. For each of eight different disorders, Dr. Sarkari covered its cardinal features and symptoms, along with the treatment and medications that help alleviate them. Particular attention was paid to Alzheimer’s disease and the special problems that mental health creates in the work place. He presented alarming statistics that highlighted the widespread and serious consequences of mental illness, leading to poor job performance, dysfunctional family life, and sometimes even suicide. Typical cases of mental illness that Dr. Sarkari encountered in his practice often brought humorous and astonishing reactions from the audience. Dr. Sarkari’s presentation was very well received, as evident from the animated discussions and questions that followed. WZCC (Houston) is grateful to Dr. Bahadur Sarkari for taking the time to share his knowledge with our members. “WZCC (Houston) helps members succeed as entrepreneurs and professionals through career enhancement, better financial management, and enrichment of their personal lives.”
Pradeep Anand is no stranger to the Houston Business and Cultural Scene. He also happens to have many friends from our Zoroastrian Community. For over 30 years, he has helped executives at more than 60 industrial and technology companies develop strategies and tactics that swiftly accelerate revenue and margin growth. His work experience ranges from High-Tech to No-Tech industries: in Oil & Gas, Engineering, manufacturing, Software, Technology and Services. He has published many papers on Oil & Gas, Career Development, Outsourcing, Business Growth/Marketing, India, etc. Pradeep is President and founder of Seeta Resources, Adjunct Faculty at Rice University MBA program; Mentor to Startups/NextGen Employees, etc. He is an Alumni of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and also the author of the book An Indian in Cowboy Country with stories from an Immigrant’s life that many of us are so close to. WZCC Houston Chapter invites you to attend this very interesting talk. Click here for more information
Vistasp M. Karbhari is a Professor in the Departments of Civil Engineering, and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington, where he served as the 8th president from 2013 to 2020. He is internationally known for his research on processing and mechanics of composites, durability of materials, infrastructure rehabilitation, and multi-threat mitigation, for which he has received awards and is a fellow of numerous professional organizations. As an administrator and higher ed leader he is known for his work and advocacy for access and attainment in higher education as well as for enhancing excellence and has been honored by numerous organizations for his contributions including as a Fellow of Complete College America.
