Our Sad Loss

Feyyaz Berker, one of the founders of Tekfen Holding and the founding chairman of TUSIAD (Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen’s Association), has passed away

Feyyaz Berker, one of the founders of Tekfen Holding passed away on 22 August 2017.  The loss of Berker who died at the age of 92 struck Tekfen community and the business world with grief. The body of Berker will be buried and put to eternal rest at Aşiyan Cemetery after the noon prayer to be performed at Bebek Mosque following the memorial ceremony to be held at the headquarters of Tekfen Holding in Ulus on Wednesday, the 24th of August.

92 years in service of Turkey

Feyyaz Berker was born in Mersin on 7 October 1925. His father was Mr. Dr. Ahmet Muhtar who was an ophthalmologist and served as a Deputy of İçel for two periods between the years of 1939-1946. After completing his primary education in Mersin, Feyyaz Berker continued his education at the American College in Tarsus. In 1939, he was enrolled at Robert College, which had a very important place in his life as he stated. After graduation from the high school, he continued his education at the Department of Civil Engineering at the School of Engineering at Robert College. During those years, he shined out with his athletic identity as well as his academic success.

After completing his higher education at Robert College in 1946, he went to the University of Michigan in order to continue his education in the USA. While he continued his education on one hand, he started to work at Kaiser-Frazer automobile factory in order to earn his pocket money. After receiving his master’s degree as a Master Civil Engineer from the University of Michigan in 1948, Berker worked at a construction-engineering firm in California for one year. He returned to Turkey in 1949.

After completing his military service in 1950, he began to work at the Ministry of Public Works due to the need for well-trained multilingual young engineers in the country. After working as construction manager at Esenboğa Airport, he became the Head of Laboratory and Research Department at The Ministry of Public Works in 1954. In 1956, he founded Feyyaz-Nihat Consultancy and Engineering (FN) Company, constituting the core of Tekfen, with Ali Nihat Gökyiğit, who had started to work at the Ministry of Public Works after graduation from Robert College and the University of Michigan like he did. After participation of Necati Akçağlılar who joined them after a short period, the company was renamed as Feyyaz-Nihat-Necati Consultancy and Engineering (FNN) Company. Although the company initially provided consultancy and engineering services, it then entered the construction business after foundation of Tekfen İnşaat (Tekfen Construction) in 1957.

The harmonious association among these three partners allowed Tekfen Construction to display a rapid growth in the following years and to turn into one of the leading construction companies of Turkey. In addition to construction works, the Company also entered the industry sector upon establishment of Tekfen bulb factory in 1964. This investment imprinted on people’s minds with the slogan of “When the sun sets, Tekfen rises” was followed by the other industrial investments like Mis Süt (1976) and Toros Agri (1981) made in the following years. Growing in the fields like export with Tekfen Dış Ticaret (Tekfen Foreign Trade – 1981); banking with Tekfenbank (1989); retail with Belpri (1988) and Makro (1993); and real estate development with Akmerkez (1993) and Tekfen Emlak (2000); Tekfen became one of the leading holdings of Turkey.

A responsible businessman

Believing that private sector in Turkey must also contribute in the resolution of the country’s problems and the development of the society, Feyyaz Berker started his activities to this end by providing support for the establishment of the Economic and Social Studies Conference Board under the leadership of Dr. Nejat Eczacıbaşı in 1961. Then, playing an active role in the establishment of TUSIAD in 1971, he served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of TUSIAD for nine years until 1980. Meanwhile, he was engaged in lobbying activities by establishing committees with the participation of leading businessmen of Turkey in order to develop the foreign trade relations of Turkey and to ensure the lifting of the arms embargo imposed by the USA against Turkey during Cyprus Peace Operation. Within this framework, he chaired the board of TUSIAD that held a meeting with the US President Gerald Ford in 1975.

Feyyaz Berker also played a pioneering role in the establishment of the Council of Free Enterprise in 1976, aiming to gather all groups representing the Turkish private sector under a single umbrella. Assigning the Chairmanship of TUSIAD to Ali Koçman in 1980, Feyyaz Berker was elected as the chairman of the High Advisory Board of TUSIAD and the Honorary Chairman of TUSIAD in the following years.

Another private sector initiative for which Feyyaz Berker made hard efforts for its establishment was DEİK – Foreign Economic Relations Board that played an active role in opening Turkey up to the world. Acting as the Founding Deputy Chairman of DEİK in 1986, Feyyaz Berker played an important role in the development of foreign trade relationships of Turkey by serving also as the Chairman of its Executive Board between the years of 1987-1997. Feyyaz Berker also assumed the task of Chairmanship of the Executive Board of Turkish-U.S. Business Council between the years of 1985-1987.

An education lover

Also devoting close attention to the social development of the society, including, particularly, education, Feyyaz Berker was elected in 1986 as a Member of the Board of Trustees of Robert College, which he has not severed his ties with after his graduation. Berker also assumed the chairmanship of the Construction Committee and made important contributions in the development of Robert College with new buildings and facilities. Feyyaz Berker Hall, constructed with his financial support, came into service in 1990. One of the founders of Hisar Foundation, Feyyaz Berker pioneered in the establishment of Hisar Foundation Schools with the target of “establishing a structure that can set a good model for Turkish education system”. Berker would express the pleasure that he felt in providing support for education with his words “I am as happy as a child” during his speech that he gave at the opening ceremony of Hisar Foundation Primary School put into service in 1986.

Feyyaz Berker also played an active role in the establishment and management of Turkish Family Planning Foundation established in 1985 under the leadership of Vehbi Koç for the purpose of operating in the fields of mother and child care and family planning. Making efforts for the achievement of the purposes of the said foundation by serving as the Vice Chairman between 1985-1995 and the Chairman of its Board of Directors between 1996-1999; Berker also served as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees and a Member of the Board of Directors between 1999-2007.

Honoured with the title of Honorary PhD by Boğaziçi University in 1986 due to his contributions in Turkey’s model industrialization and his services for Turkish education, Feyyaz Berker was also awarded the Order of Merit by the 9th President Süleyman Demirel, together with his other associates at Tekfen in 1997.

Feyyaz Berker and his associates completely assigned the management to professionals upon the restructuring of Tekfen Holding in 2000. Thereafter, Feyyaz Berker continued to serve as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Tekfen Holding, which he assumed alternately with his other associates, until his retirement in 2014.

FEYYAZ BERKER’S SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY ACTIVITIES

  • Founder, Chairman of the Board of directors, Chairman of the High Advisory Board and Honorary Chairman of TUSIAD (Turkish Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association)
  • Founder, Vice Chairman, Chairman of the Executive Board and Honorary Member of DEİK (Foreign Economic Relations Board)
  • Founder, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of TAPV (Turkish Family Planning Foundation)
  • Chairman of the Board of Directors and Honorary Chairman of Hisar Education Foundation
  • Member of the Board of Trustees of Robert College
  • Member of Advisory Committee of Boğaziçi (Bosphorus) University
  • Member of the American Conference Board (USA)
  • Member of Stanford Research Institute
  • Member of High Advisory Board of MESS (Turkish Metal Industrialists’ Syndicate)
  • Member of Advisory Board of TISK (Confederation of Employer Associations)
  • Founder and Member of the Board of Trustees of TÜSEV (Third Sector Foundation of Turkey)
  • Member of the Board of Directors of TESEV (Turkish Economic and Social Studied Foundation)
  • Founder and Member of the Board of Trustees of TEMA Foundation (Foundation for Combating Soil Erosion)
  • Founding Member of TURMEPA (Marine Environment Protection Association)
  • Founder and Member of the Board of Trustees of TGEV (Education Volunteers Foundation of Turkey)
  • Founder and Member of the Board of Trustees of TTGV (Foundation for Advancing Technology)