Business Review Asia - August 2018

ASIA EDITION AUGUST 2018 asia.businesschief.com

BICS

Transforming connectivity

Takeda

Competitive, sustainable procurement

City Focus HANOI

Aflac Creating a cus t omer-led approach through innovation TELEKOM MALAYSIA REDEFINING SUPPLY CHAIN SUCCESS

TOP 10

CEOs in Asia

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DR. JONATHAN WOETZEL

Senior Partner McKinsey & Company

MR INDRANIL LAHIRI President & CEO, Siemens Malaysia

LARA OLSEN

SHARBINI SUHAILI

DR. HIROSHI OKAMOTO

JEAN-PIERRE FAURE

Regional Manager Business Development Tesla Energy Asia Pacific

Group Chief Executive Officer Sarawak Energy

KEN KOYAMA

Chief Economist & Managing Director, Institute of Energy Economics, Japan (IEEJ)

VENU NUGURI

Senior Group Vice President ABB Group’s Power Grids Division, South Asia, Middle East and Africa

PAUL SCANLAN

Chief Technology Officer Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.

Executive Vice President TEPCO Power Grid Inc.

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Chief Technology Advisor (CTA) Meralco

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JAMES CHONG

Managing Director Accenture Digital (ASEAN)

FOREWORD

he ecosystem in Japan is developing quickly across the financial services industry,” says Aflac’s Chief Transformation Officer, John Moorefield.

In Business Chief Asia’s August cover story, the insurance giant explains how its ‘customer first’ approach is driving growth across the fast-moving nation.

We also spoke to Malcolm Chan, Managing Director of Asia Pacific at BICS. The global communications provider is making waves in the region, connecting an often diverse and complex landscape through technology. Chan discussed the challenges and opportunities that go with this.

Elsewhere this month, Juvo’s Chief Data Officer Aristotle Socrates offers insight into the challenge of providing fintech for underbanked communities across the globe.

For this month’s Top 10 article, we’ve taken a look at the ten most valuable CEOs in Asia, and our City Focus zones in on why the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi is one of Asia’s most fertile business environments.

Be sure to take a look at our other company profiles on property and construction giant WT Partnership; Pan Pacific Hotels Group; Telekom Malaysia; education company Wall Street English; Takeda Pharmaceutical Company; and utilities firm Tenaga Nasional Berhad.

Feedback is appreciated and you can find us across social media @Business_Chief – we hope you enjoy the issue!

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R E A D T H E L AT E S T I S S U E

CONTENTS

Digitising insurance for the future

10

32

42

expanding connectivity

across Asia

52

HANOI City Focus

64

CONTENTS

76 Wall Street English

92 106 Takeda

Telekom Malaysia

120 Tenaga Nasional Berhad

138 WT Partnership

160 Pan Pacific Hotels Group

10

Digitising insurance for the future WRITTEN BY

CATHERINE STURMAN PRODUCED BY

ALEX PAGE

AUGUST 2018

11

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

AFLAC

Placed on Fortune magazine’s list of The World’s Most Admired Companies over 10 times, we find out how Aflac strives to soar above the competition

I 12

nternationally recognised by its famous icon, ‘the Aflac duck’, insurance giant Aflac has become a leader within US and Japanese markets. Delivering exceptional services and solutions with a ‘customer first’ approach, its growing Japanese customer base has presented a number of challenges, but unlocked new opportunities through digitisation.

Although technology continues to disrupt the way in which customers access products and services, spanning both policyholders and agents, John Moorefield, Executive Vice President and Chief Transformation Officer, explains that the Japanese insurance industry has previously been less aggressive in the adoption of new technology. However, the country is undergoing a significant sea change.

The changes in Japan are driven by evolving customer behaviours, but are consistent with changes that organisa-

AUGUST 2018

tions such as The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and Accenture have monitored and analysed worldwide. Customers expect expanded and enhanced services to be included with the products they purchase, and the quality of these services is becoming as important as the products themselves.

“The interest in fintech and in implementing new ways of delivering services to customers in the insurance industry is picking up in Japan at an accelerated

TECHNOLOGY

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a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

AFLAC

rate. It’s not only creating a situation in which we’re catching up with the kind of services delivered in other regions, but we’re also, in some ways, getting ahead, because we’re just making a generational jump,” says Moorefield.

Responsible for Aflac Japan’s information technology, policy services and security, as well as the company’s transformation at Aflac Japan, Moorefield, along with other leaders, ensures that the 16

company’s customer first approach will remain the key driver as it broadens its product line.

“We are ensuring that our priorities are driven by what the customer wants. From that perspective, we are working extremely hard to not only be the most innovative in terms of insurance products for our customers, but to also be the leader in technology deployment to accelerate customer service,” he says.

“This encompasses the turnaround time for requests and the usability of our applications. This ensures customers are satisfied AUGUST 2018

TECHNOLOGY

BIO

John Moorefield Executive Vice President and Chief Transformation Officer ­ — John A. Moorefield, executive vice president and chief transformation officer is responsible Information Technology, Policy Services, Information Security and Transformation for Aflac Japan. Mr. Moorefield joined Aflac in 2005 and has held several key positions, including chief information officer of Aflac Japan.

Prior to joining Aflac, he served as a principal in ApproxiCom, LLC and held leadership positions at Cap Gemini Ernst & Young LLP, Fidelity Investments and NationsBank. He was promoted to his current position in January 2017.

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

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The Digital Future Is Now The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) is a global management consulting firm and the world’s leading advisor on business strategy. We partner with clients from the private, public, and not-for-profit sectors in all regions to identify their highestvalue opportunities, address their most critical challenges, and transform their enterprises. Our customized approach combines deep insight into the dynamics of companies and markets with close collaboration at all levels of the client organization. This ensures that our clients achieve sustainable competitive advantage, build more capable organizations, and secure lasting results. Founded in 1963, BCG is a private company with offices in more than 90 cities in 50 countries.

For more information, please visit the website: HTTPS://WWW.BCG.COM/DIGITAL-BCG/OVERVIEW.ASPX

BCG’S PERSPECTIVE ON DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION When it comes to the digital transformation of business, the future is now. Companies worldwide are using digital technologies and advanced analytics to unlock new sources of economic value and achieve step-function improvements in productivity, flexibility, and speed in business and in IT.

WHERE DO WE START? BCG’s “Digital Acceleration Index (DAI)” measures the degree of digital maturity and a global study based on DAI shows that digital maturity drives superior performance.

The Digital Acceleration Index helps organizations assess their digital maturity—that is, uncover their digital strengths and weaknesses, determine whether their digital capabilities are lacking or imbalanced, and evaluate how well they perform against peers in digital efforts.

Our global study shows that increased levels of digital maturity significantly improved competitive advantage in multiple areas, such as time-to-market, cost efficiency, product quality, and customer satisfaction.

(technology in the industrial production processes of physical goods), and enterprise (infrastructure, platforms and standard software packages).

Companies will increasingly build internal capabilities and focus resources on product and service technologies and production technologies for competitive advantage.

For example, autonomous cars use a variety of product and service technologies—including, radar, lasers, GPS, odometry, and computer vision—to detect and interpret their surroundings. They also include apps that link the customer to the OEM. Meanwhile, companies will devote fewer internal resources to enterprise infrastructure, opting instead for cloud-based utilities.

Not only does getting the digital transformation right improve a company’s operations, but it can also boost valuations. According to our research, traditional assetheavy companies often trade at low multiples, even below annual revenues, while pure digital companies typically trade at multiples that are several times that of revenues.

INITIATIVES CREATING THE TECH FUNCTION OF THE FUTURE

Digital strategy and digital transformation are top priorities for CEOs around the world, but a fundamental question remains: How do we make these happen? BCG has found that the most successful companies excel at Speed, Scale, and Value—in parallel. That is, they determine: How can we move at digital speed? How can we change the way we work across the entire enterprise? How can we create tangible value for the business—and for customers?

1. Develop product and service technologies close to the business. With fewer internal resources devoted to enterprise technologies and technologies that are more integrated into the business units, leaders can turbocharge product and service technologies. Small teams can focus on working closely with product managers and customers on new products and services, speeding up iterations and time to market.

TRANSFORMING IT TO TECH TO ENSURE DELIVERY

2. Integrate technology and the business. Today’s silo-like IT function needs to be transformed into an embedded and integrated business technology structure. In practice, this means that leaders need to create collocated, cross-functional teams for agile development and effective collaboration of business and technology resources.

There is a strange dynamic at play at many traditional companies: technology is increasingly important, yet in many cases, the IT function is not involved in the development of the new, differentiating products and services aimed at ever more discerning and empowered customers.

IT transformation is part of a larger need to digitize businesses: the vast majority of companies are, or are becoming, technology companies—at least to a certain degree. Soon, technology will be embedded in nearly every product, service, and process, all of which will be integrated into a broader digital ecosystem. Powerful software will be the backbone of products, services, and customer engagement. Data is already a highly valuable asset for every company, and the ability to analyze and act on that data is at the core of a company’s competitive advantage.

To handle the digital shift, companies must bring business and technology together. More specifically, they must rethink how they manage three categories of technology: product and service (technology embedded in end products and technology that embeds end products into digital ecosystems and customer interfaces), production

3. Build software engineering capabilities as a critical differentiator. We have seen large incumbent companies staffing more than 75% of IT roles with generalists. Leaders need to make significant changes to this skill mix, moving the organization toward specialized engineering and analytical skills to develop products and services.

4. Ensure powerful governance and steering capabilities. In the future, business units will all have their own capabilities for developing products and services, so strict rules and regulations will be necessary. Leaders will need to ensure a strong governance and steering function to coordinate certain areas such as vendor management; ensure that standards are met in various areas including cybersecurity, data, and application architecture; and avoid unexpected side effects such as heavy loads affecting specific parts of the infrastructure.

TECHNOLOGY

“ We are working extremely hard to not only be the most innovative in terms of insurance products for our customers, but to also be the leader in technology deployment to accelerate customer service” — with our service without having

John Moorefield,

to go through multiple steps of

Executive Vice President and

contact.”

Chief Transformation Officer

21

In order to support these applications and provide new services, Aflac and other organisations in Japan rely on

and adapt accordingly using both top local

companies providing and

talent and off-shore delivery centres.

enhancing core IT functions such

Across its entire portfolio, Aflac has also

as infrastructure operations, sys-

invested in a number of cloud platforms,

tem development and

including those provided by IBM, SalesForce

communications. Some of the

and ServiceNow, to support its distribution

market leaders in these areas are

system, and introduced several payment

NTT Communications, Pactera

methodologies which will take advantage of

and NTT Data, which are demon-

new services in the Japanese market.

strating their ability to understand new expectations

“This allows us to pay claims and reimburse our customers for certain transactions a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

AFLAC

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AUGUST 2018

TECHNOLOGY

via ATMs. ATMs in Japan are not just cash machines, but provide many services. Being able to take advantage of that provides convenience for our customers,” explains Moorefield.

“Leveraging new payment strategies that banks are developing allows us to provide instant payments to customers, without waiting for a night-time batch routine from a bank. We’ll be able to pay customer claims almost immediately in certain cases.

These are the kinds of things we are able to take advantage of because the ecosystem in Japan is developing quickly across the financial services industry.”

CUSTOMER-FIRST From its innovative product offerings, to being awarded the Computerworld Smithsonian Award for Excellence in Technology, Aflac has always sought to look at customer data and related pain points to prioritise and transform the customer experience through an Agile methodology. a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

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“We use customer feedback based

FACT

on what we have developed to constantly iterate and update applications, and to develop new products for what customers want to see from an insurance product perspective,” notes Moorefield.

“We determine the gaps which are not met in the marketplace, particularly for the younger generation of customers. Two years ago, we launched a new product line for income protection in the case of short-

Aflac was one of the first companies to contribute more than $1mn to the Red Cross for Tsunami relief in Japan in 2011

term illnesses, driven mainly by the needs of the 20-30-year-old customer

25

group which has not been our base

a policyholder can complete online ver-

customer group.”

sus using the call centre. Our

With a need to appeal to all demo-

mobile-first push is fairly aggressive in

graphics, Aflac has sought to overhaul

terms of ensuring that as many ser-

the way in which customers interact

vices as possible are pushed to the

with the organisation – from visiting an

smartphone or to a mobile tablet to

agent, to choosing a web or mobile

deliver services to customers.

application, Moorefield has worked to

“The reality is that we’re going to

completely enhance and expand the

have to figure out how to deliver all ser-

business’s platforms.

vices to all age groups.”

“We were the first in Japan, in our

As Aflac works to meet this chal-

part of the industry, to allow online

lenge, partners are a vital source of

claim submissions, and we’re expand-

knowledge and experience for the pro-

ing that to cover as many claim types

motion and enhancement of

as feasible on that platform,” he says.

digitalisation initiatives. Accenture and

“We are expanding the services that

BCG, for example, do this by proactively a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

AFLAC

TECHNOLOGY

“ The ecosystem in Japan is developing quickly across the financial services industry” — John Moorefield, Executive Vice President and Chief Transformation Officer 27

proposing new services as part of regular interactions and information sessions.

tion of Japan.

Since 2012, it has built on its commitment to supporting the Aflac Cancer Center, and invites young

COMPANY PRIDE

patients to design the Aflac Holiday

Whilst Aflac remains committed to

Duck, which is then sold in Macy’s

its core values, it also places signifi-

stores across the US. All profits go

cant investment in a number of

toward new treatment programmes.

philanthropic causes.

Additionally, Aflac was one of the

In the 1990s, the company

first companies to contribute more

pledged $3mn to establish Chil-

than $1mn to the Red Cross for Tsu-

dren’s Healthcare of Atlanta and

nami relief in Japan in 2011.

built the first Aflac Parents House,

“Tsunami relief is just one exam-

which is now owned and operated

ple,” reflects Moorefield. “We’re very

by the Children’s Cancer Associa-

committed to children’s cancer and a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

AFLAC

cancer research, that’s just a core value to us.

With a long-term goal to support the policyholder with great insurance products and technology, Aflac will continue to make advancements to remain a technology leader.

“Aflac has a spirit, and I’m very proud to be part of an organisation whose core philosophy is to be there at the time of need for the policyholder,” states Moorefield.

“Our focus is on how to quickly and efficiently pay claims, to get money in the hands of the policyholder at their time of need, and we really have a commitment and the spirit to do that. It removes stress, helps the policyholder recover, 28

and that’s a meaningful thing to me.”

Although change can be particularly difficult to undertake in Japan, especially with a focus on quality and perfection, Moorefield is eager to take on the challenge.

“At the end of the day, when we do something, we do it right,” he concludes. “It has a significant impact due to the large size of the company and that’s very gratifying, I truly love what I’m doing.”

AUGUST 2018

TECHNOLOGY

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a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

LEADERSHIP

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expanding conne WRITTEN BY

AUGUST 2018

ANDREW WOODS

a

ectivity

across Asia

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Malcolm Chan, Managing Director of Asia-Pacific at global communications provider BICS, tells Business Chief about the challenges involved in digital networks across the region and what BICS is doing to solve them

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

LEADERSHIP

M

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ultinational communications enabler BICS is a key global voice carrier and the leading provider of mobile data services worldwide ranging from mobile connectivity, seamless roaming experiences, fraud prevention and authentication, to global messaging and the Internet of Things (IoT). Tasked with keeping the vast and culturally-disparate continent of Asia connected with the most powerful communication networks is Malcolm Chan, Managing Director of Asia-Pacific.

BICS reported a sharp increase in LTE (Long-Term Evolution, the standard for high-speed wireless communication) roaming traffic in the Asia-Pacific region this year, which is being largely driven

by Europe. In Q1 2018, Europe overtook the Middle East as the top destination for outgoing roamers from Asia-Pacific using LTE services, accounting for around 54% of outbound LTE roaming traffic. Tourists and business travellers visiting the AUGUST 2018

region from Europe, in turn, accounted for the highest number of inbound roamers (57%).

During 2017, LTE roaming traffic in the region grew three-fold, with recent data suggesting that growth is set to continue in 2018.

Last year LTE calls made between countries within AsiaPacific accounted for 30% of international LTE traffic in the region, reflecting an increase in LTE data roaming globally. In January, BICS reported that global LTE roaming traffic more than doubled in 2017, with Europe experiencing a 600-800% increase in traffic during the summer months, this surge driven in part by the EU’s regulation on wholesale roaming charges which came into effect in June 2017.

SECURITY ON THE MOVE

“Asia is unique,” Chan explains.

“It's very diverse, and not just in terms of spoken language. A lot of what we do is enabling roaming and the correct security for people on the move across the

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Malcolm Chan, Managing Director of Asia-Pacific BICS

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

LEADERSHIP

region by localising the engage-

phone, you like to know it's

ment, when it's crucial. We also

secure, that there is some real

provide different sample rights,

privacy and some degree of

for getting a PIN off your phone

authentication. We work at a high

for example, where we can

level with the developers of the

authenticate if you're a natural

apps, so that when a customer

user. We're also able to provide

uses an app, or when a customer

authentication through an aux

does an online transaction over

cord, which not many people

the phone, there’s a level of secu-

are doing today.”

rity that's expected,” says Chan.

China, with 1bn 4G connec-

36

When you roam, you need even

tions accounting for 40.2% of all

more assurance that security

global LTE connections, spear-

standards are being met. With

heads this growth, but other

a vast network of countries in

markets such as Australia, South

Asia where English is not the

Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Indone-

first language, BICS is able to

sia, Myanmar, the Philippines and

provide English language as

India are also seeing accelerat-

well as localised services to its

ing migration to 4G. The GSMA

customers. BICS has operations

estimates that mobile data

in Korea, Malaysia, China, and

growth will be the driving force

further afield in Australia. “We

behind future revenues and oper-

can talk in and understand your

ator investment in the region.

language. We understand your

“What's really driving our

customers. The customer

industry right now is security.

experience is very important

When you download onto your

for us,” says Chan.

AUGUST 2018

“ When you download onto your phone, you like to know it’s secure, that there is some real privacy and some degree of authentication” — Malcolm Chan, Managing Director of Asia-Pacific BICS A VAST REGION

As well as security, BICS can offer users a consistent experience and smooth transition despite cultural variations in the digital sphere. “To use Google Maps and Gmail or update your Facebook app is difficult in a place like China where you cannot access Google or Facebook. In addition, many of our Chinese customers are asking, ‘How do I bridge that gap if I’m holiday in Europe? How do I enable that service?’ In terms of the service we provide, an important aspect is that we bridge that gap.

“Our traffic is growing as much as threefold every year. But things will change as we lead on into 5G, which in a sense is still in its infancy. We are already helping a handful of customers to enable what we call 5G roaming.”

BICS has a global network that connects all of these individual network relays across each country. “Because we ourselves run that network, we can provide a couple of things.

First, it's not political, which means we actua s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

37

LEADERSHIP

ally monitor and manage the speed and latency across all these networks on our own. We are our own organisers, which works very well for us and I think differentiates us from many other providers on the market. The other aspect is distance.

Because of what I call our ability to aggregate this information, about what people like doing on their phones, what types of apps they are accessing, where they are, and at what time are they doing this – we can provide analytics. Increasingly, it's about translating information and data, how we can help customers and occupants monetise.”

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As we know, Asia is a diverse and rapidly changing territory, so what are the geographical breakdowns when it comes to digital? “Although we are a small organisation here in Asia, out of the 20 people we have here, they are 16 nationalities. It's something we’re very proud of, because we believe in diversity. Every country has its peculiarities. So, in terms of knowing our customers and the cultures we deal with, we are able to speak the language of the home countries.”

“When talking about production of digital services, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia and parts of Korea are ahead of the curve. China and India collectively make up 2.7bn people – that’s 36% of the world’s popAUGUST 2018

ulation in just two countries. In both of these countries, the middle class is growing which means an incline in digital services.

“These are regions that are full of opportunity. China is a huge and fast-growing market and we believe in being close to our customers in the region. So, we are already operating for our customers in these countries. What we do, is we take that experience, and we share pure knowledge and mental property and bring it back to other countries which are a little behind the curve. By that, I'm talking about Indonesia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and to some extent India. And with the right investment, and the right strategies, digital is sure to fly in those regions too.”

“Of the 20 people we have here, there are 16 nationalities. It’s something we’re very proud of, because we believe in diversity” — Malcolm Chan, Managing Director of Asia-Pacific BICS

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TECHNOLOGY

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Mobile tech for the

underban

AUGUST 2018

Juvo aims to offer financial inclusion for all by creating financial identities and credit history for those in underbanked communities. This has been made possible by the growth of mobile, as Business Chief found out

nked

43

WRITTEN BY

OLIVIA MINNOCK

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

TECHNOLOGY

I

n an increasingly digitalised world, a huge proportion of the global population still lacks access to proper banking facilities.

Without the benefit of plastic or mobile apps, building up a digital identity and credit history can be near impossible. “Juvo was founded with a big mission: to establish financial identities for the billions of people worldwide who are creditworthy, yet financially excluded,” explains Aristotle Socrates, Chief Data Officer. “We partner with mobile network operators to reach these billions of people – many of whom are in cash-based economies.”

Juvo combines consumer internet, predictive

44

algorithms and modern mechanics to implement a data-science based ‘Identity Scoring’ system to augment a credit score, which would otherwise be decided from the top down, but instead is made via pre or post mobile payments, i.e. from the bottom up. Essentially, Juvo allows people without a credit score to build up a credit history, reaching towards its goal to ‘empower the billions of unbanked people in the world to create financial identities and access financial services’.

The company’s Identity Scoring service uses a combination of data science, machine learning and mechanics to create identities for those who don’t have a credit history through prepaid mobile accounts, allowing users to build up an identity and use banking options they may not have had before. The company was founded in 2014 and AUGUST 2018

launched its service publicly in 2016, having since grown from 100mn to 500mn users. The company now employs 70 people and has enabled over 400mn transactions to date, boasting 1mn active subscribers per day. Juvo operates across 25 countries in North and South America, Europe and Asia, working with partners that include Sprint, Telefonica and Deutsche Telekom.

“We give consumers the choice, effectively, of being a post-paid user vs a pre-paid user. We save people trips to the top-up station, which saves them time. I think every human being in the world understands the value of time,” Socrates explains.

45

From astrophysics to fintech Socrates trained as a theoretical astrophysicist but is now becoming more of a technologist. “My general approach to tackling quantitative problems remains strongly informed by my past life as an astrophysicist.” He moved further into the tech space in 2015 when he joined Juvo as Chief Data Scientist. “The field of data science was heating up, and it seemed like a promising place to explore and come up with interesting ideas. After speaking with founder Steve Polsky, I thought Juvo was the best idea I had ever heard, at least in Silicon Valley.” Socrates describes the move as a risk, since Juvo was then just a startup with 10 employees but adds that this was actually a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

TECHNOLOGY

a selling point. “I was driven by the idea itself, and the opportunity of being able to create something significant from scratch.”

It is clear the data scientist strongly believes in Juvo’s central mission to develop financial service access to the 3bn people in the world who are underbanked. “The only way to accelerate the placement of those people into a modern financial system is by building a credit or financial knowledge base atop of, and across, multiple 46

operators. And that’s effectively what we’re doing.”

Data Science in finance In his role as Chief Data Scientist,

having people with some form of scientific experi-

Socrates has a wide scope of

ence of training – from either academia or a tech

responsibilities. “The term ‘data

company – gives an additional boost in capacity

scientist’ is a bit funny since there’s

in various areas of work and ideation.”

no science without data,” he muses.

Socrates adds that while many companies use

“Data Science means different

data science to support other departments

things at different companies.”

through creating algorithms, Juvo is different. “At

However, Socrates is keenly aware

Juvo, our Data Science function is a lot broader,

that the importance of data scientist

which is understandable given our mission. In

is becoming increasing recognised

addition to our core function, we do some

by many businesses, particularly at

engineering, product management, partnership

a time of rapid digitisation. “Every-

management and even sales and business

one seems to be discovering that

development,” he explains.

AUGUST 2018

“ Juvo was founded with a big mission: to establish financial identities for the billions of people worldwide who are creditworthy, yet financially excluded” — Aristotle Socrates, Director of Data Science, Juvo

Mission possible?

the ability generate huge meaningful amounts of

In order to allow users to build up a

transaction data. However, they are limited in

financial identity via mobile, it has

their ability to act on it. This requires data science

been necessary to partner with

to play an organisational role that is relatively

some of the largest telecoms

expansive on the organisational spectrum.” Juvo

carriers in emerging markets. “Our

will further utilise these carriers to build on its

mission is to create a mechanism for

impressive number of subscribers for the future.

generating credit by establishing

“The path is, in my view, quite clear: integrate with

meaningful financial identities for

more mobile network providers!”

mobile phone users in the develop-

Juvo builds up its financial profiles by offering

ing world. That’s a big, difficult and

gradually larger loans. “It’s interesting to

broad problem. Our general line of

understand why mobile network operators don’t

attack is through carriers who have

do this in the same way we do – the simple a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

47

TECHNOLOGY

answer is risk,” Socrates explains. “We end up taking a tremendous amount of risk on the path of building a credit history for users, at scale. All mobile operators offer small emergency loans, which might cover a single phone call for example, but at Juvo we offer a whole month’s worth of service per loan. Our Data Team was compelled to take this risk to help fulfil the vision and mission of our company: to build meaningful credit.

“We really didn’t understand how radical our loan sizes were until well after we’d been offering them for many years,” Socrates admits. “We 48

figured out how to manage this risk after the fact. In the beginning, you’re just trying to make things work!”

Juvo’s goal for the future is to expand its service to help financial service providers. “We want to create a financial platform that allows financial service providers to gain access to the transaction histories that we’re building on top of mobile network operators. As I see the problem, the reason the underbanked are underbanked is that in their locale, the data infrastructure required to connect transaction history to capital, is non-existent or seriously inadequate. Right now, we’re working towards constructing a platform that allows end-users and financial institutions to bridge that gap.”

AUGUST 2018

“ We save people trips to the top-up station, which saves them time. I think every human being in the world understands the value of time” — Aristotle Socrates, Director of Data Science, Juvo

49

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

CITY FOCUS

City Focus

52

HANOI AUGUST 2018

I

FS EE AT CU TO RR E

ÂŁ1.5bn Approximate revenue

2002

Year founded

1,800 Approximate number of employees

BIO

Jon Grainger joined Freshfields as Global Head of Service & Transformation in February 2017, before assuming the role of CIO in December last year following a month of servitude as interim CIO. Before this Grainger spent seven years at Capgemini as Vice President & Programme Director, responsible for leading IT transformation programmes, content development strategies, innovation and research as well key operational functions. Grainger has also spent time with Fujitsu, Deloitte, and Accenture.

Between 2013 and 2015, Grainger attained a Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the University of Warwick, through Warwick Business School. He is also a holder of a degree in computer science.

With a highly-skilled population and burgeoning technology sector, Hanoi is growing into one of Asia’s most fertile business environments EDITED BY

BEN MOUNCER

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

53

CITY FOCUS | HANOI

W

ith a population approaching 8mn, a strong but stable level of growth and

policies that promote business and infrastructure, Hanoi is becoming the next hot international business centre.

As a strong contender in the world’s 20 largest cities, Hanoi’s growing technology industry, solid marriage of innovation and development and range of business opportunities make it a great place to base a business. As one of Viet54

nam’s best-kept secrets, Hanoi’s metropolitan area is projected to have a population topping 15mn by 2020, with many highly-skilled citizens seeking employment.

Hanoi has seen constant growth approaching 8.8%, with significant investment in skyscrapers, business centres and infrastructure to support this growth. Partially responsible for this growth is the regular reform of administrative measures, improvements for investment opportunities, and development of government policies to help struggling entrepreneurs.

AUGUST 2018

Easygoing city life What can you expect in a city that is over 1,000 years old? An interesting mix of tradition, culture and new technology. One of the biggest draws for business and IT professionals to Hanoi is its low cost of living. A resident can grab a pint at the corner bar for under $1 USD, an inexpensive meal for under $2 USD, and pay utilities, including broadband internet, for about $60 USD for an 85 square meter apartment. Yet at the same time, the city has the highest Human Development Index in Vietnam, which looks at income, life expectancy and education.

To get a better feel for the local vibe, Hanoi’s Old Quarter has examples of traditional architecture, beautiful lakes abound in the region and its many museums and French colonial structures have given the city the moniker of “Paris of the East”. Over the past five years, it’s been consistently among the top 10 travel destinations worldwide. Shopping, art, cuisine and the theatre are all just a short cab or bike ride away, as are a number of art galleries that have sprung up around the city. a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

55

CITY FOCUS | HANOI

56

AUGUST 2018

Change in the weather Recently, up to three-quarters of the population of Hanoi were employed in state-owned industries, with an additional 9% in collectively-owned enterprises and another 13.3% in private enterprise. However, this balance is quickly shifting as the government is downsizing and private enterprise growing.

The city has been experiencing a strong boom in industrial production and exported goods to other countries, with these two facets of the economy contributing significantly to the national GDP and experiencing growth of 10-20% annually on average. The city’s eight industrial parks are being supplemented by an additional five large-scale parks and 16 small and medium industrial clusters.

Following inconsistent growth in the 1980s and 1990s, Vietnam has invested heavily in the development of its infrastructure, industry, and technology. Combined with Hanoi’s regional focus on growth, planning, and real estate development, this has created a unique environment where professionals can enjoy the combination of a lower cost of living and exceptional business and investment opportunities. However, with the expected growth over the next few years, smart investors will look at real estate sooner rather than later to enjoy the best return on investment. a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

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CITY FOCUS | HANOI

58

AUGUST 2018

As one of Vietnam’s largest IT

Tech is on the up in Hanoi

service companies, FPT is the

The FPT Group isn’t the only

third-largest business in the

flourishing telecom business

country and has ties to Intel

in Hanoi; in fact, the city is

and Microsoft.

considered by many to have a

FPT Group

It has a presence in over 20

better tech industry than the

countries worldwide, including

more populous Ho Chi Minh

eight subsidiaries and two

City. Appota Corporation is a

associates. Its focus on soft-

mobile app development

ware development, system

company focused on games,

integration and IT services

advertisement, and pay-

gives it a solid base for future

ments, which has gone

growth through digitisation and

through three separate suc-

disruption in the market. Its

cessful funding rounds.

position places it at the top for

Gmobile provides mobile net-

IT services and in the second

work services in the top five

position for broadband ser-

service providers, including

vices in Vietnam, and it’s rated

Hanoi-based Viettel, Viet-

as a top-100 global service pro-

nam’s state-owned telecom

vider by the association IAOP.

that is the largest in the country.

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

59

CITY FOCUS | HANOI

Hanoi’s business scene Transportation in and around Hanoi is fairly simple and doesn’t require much driving.

The low cost of living means it’s very inexpensive to hop on a bus or take a taxi wherever you need to go within the city, with a metro rail system currently under construction. A novel option for getting around troublesome traffic jams is the “xe ôm”, or hug 60

bike, grabbing a quick ride from a local motorcyclist.

When it’s time to visit other cities, the new international terminal is only 15 km north of the city, and the Vietnam Railways system makes short jaunts easier.

Hanoi has a wide range of hotels to make business travel or long-term business stays more comfortable. The city’s many delights wait to be discovered by curious professionals who are eager to experience all that Hanoi has to offer.

AUGUST 2018

Currency

Dong 1945

Year of independance

7.5mn Population

Nearest airport

35km

Noi Bai International Airport

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

61

T

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64

AUGUST 2018

CEOs in

Asia

Business Chief profiles the top business leaders in Asia, ranked

by Forbes in order of CEO net worth at the end of 2017 E DI T E D BY

B E N M OU NCE R

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

65

T O P 10

Dilip Shanghvi

CEO, Sun Pharmaceuticals The net worth of Shanghvi was also reduced from $16.4bn to $11.8bn, but his personal ranking is still noteworthy.

He founded the company in 1983 with an initial investment of $1,000. Today, Sun Pharmaceuticals employs more than 17,500 people across the globe, with annual revenues upwards of $4.5bn. The 61-year-old briefly held the status of richest man in India in 2015.

66

Lei Jun

CEO, Xiaomi The company chaired by the 44-yearold who co-founded it in 2010 is now the fifth-largest smartphone supplier on the planet and a tech giant in China.

Lei stepped down from Kingscroft, the Chinese software company that he took public in 2007, to found Xiaomi, and also added to his fortune as a venture capitalist. In 2016, his net worth was reported to be more than $14bn but Forbes downgraded his status to $6.8bn in October 2017.

AUGUST 2018

Azim Premji

Chairman, Wipro Ltd Azim Premji now runs Wipro Ltd., the huge global IT service provider that employs 160,000 people. He is listed as the second-richest man in India.

Wipro Ltd. offers engineering, maintenance, analytics, databases and third-party services and products to customers throughout the world. The company shows revenues of $8.47bn, and Premji, who is now 81, boasts a personal worth of $19bn.

Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz al Saud The Saudi Arabian prince made his fortune by investing the inheritance that came from his grandfather, the first ruler of Saudi Arabia. He is the only one of the ten richest men in Asia to not be affiliated with a single company; his holdings include real estate, education and entertainment, specifically Twitter, Four Seasons Hotels, Time Warner and Lyft, the Uber competitor. His net worth is calculated at $22.5bn.

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

67

T O P 10

Wang Jianlin

Owner, Dalian Wanda Group Dalian Wanda Group is the largest commercial property firm in China. The 62-year-old entrepreneur, however, is branching out. He recently bought Legendary Entertainment and has begun construction of a building in Chicago that will reportedly cost $900mn. Wang, with a personal net worth of $29.7bn, was the recipient of the Malcolm S. Forbes Lifetime Achievement Award in

68

2016, the first mainland China busi-

Lee Shau Kee

Owner, Henderson Land Development Founded in 1973, Henderson Land Development is based in Hong Kong and holds shares of Towngas and Hong Kong Ferry. The 88-year-old Lee built his fortune in real estate, and his company shows earnings of $3.6bn, with total employment numbering more than 7,700. Lee himself is worth approximately $29.4bn, up nearly $11bn from a comparable Business Insider 2016 listing.

AUGUST 2018

nessman to claim such recognition.

69

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

T O P 10

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Dave Crowley

Mohamed Nasr

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Chief Technical Advisor Microsoft

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Chief Financial Officer RTI Connectivity

Chief Executive Officer Aqua Comms

Bruce Neilson-Watts

70

Global Optical Architect Facebook

Linette Lee Chairperson, SJC2 consortium & Director, Submarine Cable Investment Singtel

Larry Schwartz Chief Executive Officer Seaborn Networks

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Mukesh Ambani Chairman, Reliance Industries

As the head of a petrochemical company that he took over from his father in 2002, Ambani can boast a number of records. For a brief period in 2017, he surpassed Bill Gates as the world’s richest man. The 59-year-old also claims

Li Ka-shing

Chairman, CK Hutchinson Holdings

title to the world’s most expensive home; his 27-story Mumbai mansion cost $1bn to construct. His oil and gas company also added more than $15bn

The owner of CK Hutchinson Holdings,

to his personal wealth last year, bringing

with a reputed worth of $34.5bn, Li Ka-

it to $38.9bn, an increase of 67%.

shing followed a varied path to secure his fortune. The Hong Kong-based company deals with port operations as well as retail, energy, infrastructure and financial business. With employees upwards of 188,000, the 88-year-old businessman announced in 2017 that he was forming a partnership with another top Asian business leader, Jack Ma of Alibaba, to introduce a digital wallet service in Hong Kong. His current ranking has risen dramatically from a reported 2016 figure of $19.5bn.

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

71

T O P 10

72

Jack Ma

CEO, Alibaba Both the man and the company are legends, and the story just continues to grow, as does Jack Ma’s net worth, Alibaba and its associated enterprises. The 52-year-old founded China Yellow Pages in 1988, before beginning Alibaba in 1991. Today, the company is among the largest e-commerce businesses in the world, with tentacles that spread from China to Mexico and beyond, encompassing numerous subsidiaries and offshoots. Alibaba has earmarked $15bn for its new Academy of Discovery, Adventure, Momentum and Outlook. As chairman, Ma’s worth sits at $59bn.

AUGUST 2018

01

Ma Huateng CEO, Tencent

Topping the list with a personal net worth of $59.8bn, this CEO is one of the youngest of the group. Tencent Holdings is ranked as one of the ten most valuable companies in the world, with media and entertainment services, e-payment systems, and a host of subsidiaries to offer value-added services for smartphones and other media

73

across China. Tencent own the Chinese webchat service WeChat, home to more than a billion users. The company posts revenues of $3.28bn and employs approximately 40,700 people.

Ma also is a stakeholder in GluMobile and 58.co

Image: Reuters

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

We see something. Amid the streams of ones and zeros, we see a world where oceans of data yield sparks of insight and unending questions are being answered. A world where every space is intelligent and each connection is seamless.

Where cutting-edge computing has the power to carry mankind to new planets, and faster data analysis accelerates the race for a cure. Where solutions come before problems arise and physicists have the power to map the universe’s origins.

We see a world where Everything Computes, and what’s next is extraordinary. ©Copyright 2017 Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP.

See it all at hpe.com

WA L L ST R E E T E N G L I S H

76

A WORLDCLASS ENGLISH EDUCATION, ENABLED BY IT WRITTEN BY LAURA MULLAN PRODUCED BY MIKE SADR

AUGUST 2018

TECHNOLOGY

77

As one of the world’s most learned and spoken foreign languages in the world, English classes are in high-demand. By cutting through the noise with its innovative digital strategy, Wall Street English is delivering an education like no other

w w w. b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

WA L L ST R E E T E N G L I S H

E

nglish is the most widely used language worldwide, with approximately 1.5bn speakers around

the globe.

The biggest market for learning a language is English, valued at over $50bn in annual revenues. Whether learning for travel, business or for socialising with friends and family, many people around the world have decided to learn English as an additional language.

This is where Wall Street English can support. With over 400 centres in 28 territories as well as a cutting-edge digital platform, the firm is one of the global leaders in adult Eng78

lish education.

“We’re focused on changing futures,” explains Michael Garcia, Chief Technology Officer. “As a premium offering, we emphasise the world-class service we offer and the support our students receive throughout their whole learning journey.”

With new grammar, rules, and accents, learning English can be challenging but Wall Street English believes it has perfected the right method of teaching through what is known as ‘blended learning’.

Combining online and digital media with traditional classroom methods, blended learning has become a tried-and-tested model in the education sector.

Garcia says that this modern take on learnAUGUST 2018

“ We take pride in offering the most supportive training in the market. It’s the way that we teach and the blended method, powered by technology, that really makes our programme work” — Michael Garcia, Chief Technology Officer

TECHNOLOGY

79

ing is what distinguishes Wall Street

$20mn to greatly enhance the learning

English from its competitors today.

experience. The feedback we received

“We use digital, visual tools that help

from our students has been really posi-

to introduce new concepts for our Eng-

tive – they feel that the product is

lish learners. Then we reinforce those

innovative, intuitive, and fun.

lessons with face-to-face encounters with a teacher,” he says.

“We never use technology for tech-

“Service and support are a huge differentiator for us,” he adds. “We don’t just take on a new student and leave

nology’s sake. For us, it’s about

them alone. Complementary classes

applying technology that is fit-for-pur-

and teachers that you can connect with

pose to maximise the learning

at our centres or through online com-

experience. Our digital learning plat-

munities make sure that students have

form is a good example of this, which is

the support they need to meet their

why a few years ago we invested about

objectives. We take pride in offering a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

stream

About us Slipstream is a hi-tech company based in Shanghai, China, delivering Salesforce consulting and implementation services to customers all over the world. Slipstream is Salesforce certified consulting partner. It helps you leverage best in class cloud-based Salesforce CRM solutions to successfully navigate through the digital transformation. With the power of real-time business insights in hand, Slipstream helps you unlock new business opportunities and deliver an unparalleled customer experience.

Making Technology Easy

Why Slipstreamďź&#x; Slipstream boasts 40+ Salesforce certified consultants and has successfully delivered many Salesforce implementation projects, with rich experience in diverse industries, especially in education, pharmaceutical & healthcare, hi-tech and manufacturing. Its customers include well-known companies like Wall Street English.

If you want to learn more about us, please visit our website at www.slipstream.com.cn or email us at marketing@slipstream.com.cn

WA L L ST R E E T E N G L I S H

the most supportive training in the

as Japan, Germany and India whilst

market. It’s the way that we teach

strengthening its position in its leading

and the blended method, powered

market – China.

by technology, that really makes our programme work.”

With a global footprint spanning

for about 18 years, and it is currently our largest market,” Garcia notes.

across Europe, Asia, Latin America,

“We’ve got 75 centres across 11 differ-

North Africa and the Middle East, Wall

ent cities there today and close to

Street English has a rich legacy in the

70,000 students in the region with

education market.

plans to grow further.

Now, following a promising purchase

82

“We have been present in China

“Baring and CITIC purchased the

by Baring Private Equity Asia and CITIC

company earlier this year and they

Capital Holdings Limited, the firm is set

each bring very unique and amazing

to look for new markets in regions such

strengths to the partnership,” he con-

Click to watch: The Wall Street English ‘Blended Method’

AUGUST 2018

TECHNOLOGY

83

tinues. “CITIC understands the

companies within their portfolio, so we

Chinese market extraordinarily well

can learn a lot from them.”

and, as our largest market, it works to

As Chief Technology Officer, Garcia

our advantage to gain deeper expertise

is all too aware of how technology is set

in the region.

to transform the education sector for

“CITIC have a strong relationship

the better.

with technology giant Tencent, owners

At Wall Street English, he says that

of the WeChat platform with over a bil-

new cutting-edge tools are helping ele-

lion registered users. That’s beneficial

vate the learning experience for

for us as we can tap into their expertise

students and franchise owners alike.

to help accelerate our technology capabilities and reach more students.

“Baring is also very strong in the education space with several education

“We’ve evolved from our roots as a traditional bricks-and-mortar company,” he says. “Technology is helping to present more choice to our learners. a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

TECHNOLOGY

Previously, we required students to come into our centres to register but last year we launched a new functionality in China through Alibaba’s Tmall platform, which allows students to enrol in some courses online whilst also allowing us to reach more prospective students.

“Earlier this year, we also re-launched our own branded website in China that allows students to register and pay for their course online. It’s about the convenience factor.

If they can’t come into a centre because they’re too busy or it’s not in their direct location they can sign up, register and start learning online.”

Digitisation is not just transforming how consumers register for the course, it’s also giving them more flexibility and choice about where, when and how they’d like to study.

“Our platform is available on a globally distributed architecture that can be accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” notes Garcia.

“We’ve launched mobile capabilities for our course so our students can learn on a smartphone or tablet. We also recently launched a digital classroom capability so that face-toface interactions with teachers can happen online. We are constantly innovating and utilising the scaled agile framework to rapidly react to market needs.”

“ We never use technology for technology’s sake. For us, it’s about applying technology that is fit-for-purpose to maximise the learning experience” — Michael Garcia, Chief Technology Officer a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

85

WA L L ST R E E T E N G L I S H

With a supportive learning environment and flexible study schedule, it

also helping the firm support fran-

seems that this model has been a

chisees and business partners so that

roaring success.

they can become more profitable.

The company owns its operations

86

Garcia believes that digitisation is

“As we complete the shift to new

in China as well as partially in its native

ownership, we are also promoting a

home of Italy but, beyond that, many

very simple yet contemporary technol-

of its centres across the world are

ogy footprint,” says Garcia. “It’s an

franchised.

opportunity to really focus on what’s

With a proven business model,

needed to operate the business and to

a top-class product, and promising

minimise both the costs and the com-

returns, the Wall Street English brand

plexity of our technology environment

is an exciting investment opportunity

for our franchisees.”

that has attracted partners around the globe.

AUGUST 2018

Other initiatives implemented by Garcia and his team include rolling out

TECHNOLOGY

Click to watch: The WSE Technology Team – Chennai 87

a new placement test that assesses students’ English ability.

Wall Street English is helping to provide more personalisation for learners and an adaptive, flexible learning environment and it seems data and analytics will be critical to make this a reality.

“We’re always thinking about how we help our students achieve their personal goals through the power of learning English. Our course is structured into 20 levels. This means that, no matter where you are in your learning journey – if you’re a beginner or more advanced – we can tailor the course to suit you. a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

WA L L ST R E E T E N G L I S H

“We’re focused on changing futures. As a premium offering, we emphasise the world-class service we offer and the support our students receive throughout their whole learning journey” — Michael Garcia, Chief Technology Officer

88

AUGUST 2018

TECHNOLOGY

“We’re rolling out a new placement

“It looks at several metrics and

test that basically assesses our stu-

sends a warning if it identifies that a

dents’ English ability and tells them

student is struggling or going off track.

the level that they should be starting

This allows our staff members to step

at when they join our course,”

in and intervene. We want to ensure

Garcia explains.

that our students have a great experi-

“Our students want a course that is tailored to their needs and can be

ence and progress.”

Adapting to the ever-changing needs

adjusted depending on their progress.

of the market is perhaps one of the big-

Some students may want to move

gest hurdles facing Wall Street English

more quickly, while others want to take

today, but by partnering with agile

their time and put a bit more emphasis

technology partners Garcia says the

on certain topics. We’re using data to

firm is ready for consumers’ education

adapt the course to their needs.

needs of tomorrow.

“Today, we have a patented algo-

“We value the partners that really

rithm which considers several factors

take the time to understand the

to understand how a student is pro-

dynamics of our business and

gressing through their learning

want to evolve with us,” he adds.

journey,” continues Garcia.

“It is with such

BIO

Michael Garcia is Chief Technology Officer at Wall Street English. With 16 years of experience, Michael leads the business’ technology strategy, ensuring key platforms are fully supported and provide the best customer experience. He also provides crucial support to global franchisees, helping them to maintain and grow operations. a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

89

WA L L ST R E E T E N G L I S H

a changing landscape that we sometimes have to shift our focus very

services in China.”

Today, Wall Street English stands as

quickly to work on new projects. One of

one of the largest providers of English

our partners, Slipstream, have been

language education for adults. The firm

working with us for several years. They

provides English language instruction

have shown a strong knowledge of the

to over 200,000 students worldwide,

market and they understand our key

and thanks to its cutting-edge digital

enterprise platforms very well.

strategy it seems the firm is set to con-

“It’s also great to have such a partnership with Baring and CITIC and

tinue on this upward trajectory.

“Above all, what excites me in the

access to their portfolio companies.

next five to 10 years is the overall tech-

For example, we work closely with

nology strategy,” Garcia says.

CITIC Telecom to provide networking

“Technology has become a central

90

“ The investments we’ve made and continue to make in improving our technology capabilities are having a huge impact in the performance of our business, and most importantly, the outcomes of our learners” — David Kedwards, CEO AUGUST 2018

TECHNOLOGY

91

aspect of the company’s operations

“The investments we’ve made and

and its future growth so I’m excited to

continue to make in improving our

be playing such a big part in that while

technology capabilities are having a

also having a direct impact in changing

huge impact in the performance of our

the lives of our learners.”

business, and most importantly, the

The efforts of the company’s technology department haven’t gone

outcomes of our learners,” he says.

“Michael and his team are playing a

unnoticed. CEO, David Kedwards,

central role in this digital transformation

highlights that technology will remain

of our business.”

a pivotal arm of the company’s business strategy. a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

Enhancing patient lives

thanks to proficient

procurement

92

AUGUST 2018

S U P P LY C H A I N

JAPANESE PHARMACEUTICAL GIANT TAKEDA IS REALISING THE BENEFITS OF A REORGANISED SUPPLY CHAIN. BERNADETTE MAIER, HEAD OF PROCUREMENT FOR EMERGING MARKETS, REVEALS HOW SHE PLANS TO KEEP UP THE MOMENTUM WRITTEN BY

TOM WADLOW PRODUCED BY

CHARLOTTE CLARKE

93

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

N

o company survives 237 years without a degree of forward thinking. For Japanese pharmaceu-

tical firm Takeda, this has been no more apparent than in the past four of these years.

An institution in Japan, Takeda’s rich journey spanning more than two centuries has exponentially gathered pace during the last decade thanks to a series of acquisitions.

However, in order to make such growth sustainable for the long term, CEO Yasuchika Hasegawa decided in 2014 that a new, globalised approach was required.

Fast-forward to 2018, and a centralised 94

procurement function is responsible for more than $6bn of Takeda spend – the engine room driving the company’s expansion in existing and new markets.

Bernadette Maier is Takeda’s Head of Procurement for Emerging Markets.

Based in Singapore, she joined the firm in December 2016, lured by a combination of a legendary heritage and the chance to play a leading role in new market entries.

Her mission? To utilise and develop Takeda’s post-transformation procurement setup and generate value for both business and patient.

“The vision which goes across all Takeda procurement is really being inspired by the patients we serve,” AUGUST 2018

S U P P LY C H A I N

she says. “The function really is working in partnership, and I think that is the key word here. We are working in partnership to create competitive, sustainable procurement capable of delivering exceptional value for Takeda and improving the lives of patients.”

FACTS

The Japanese firm is ranked 12th in the world by prescription sales and enjoys a particularly strong presence in North America, Asia and Europe 95

A ROOT AND BRANCH TRANSFORMATION The work undertaken prior to Maier’s arrival laid the foundation that she works from today.

Before 2014, Procurement was organised in seven fragmented silos which individually held little strategic influence in the company as a whole and only delivered minor cost savings per annum (approximately $60mn).

In just two years, owing to a concerted effort unanimously backed by company leaders, Takeda’s procurement function transformed into a global, category-based a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

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S U P P LY C H A I N

“ THE FUNCTION REALLY IS WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP, AND I THINK THAT IS THE KEY WORD HERE. WE ARE WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP TO CREATE COMPETITIVE, SUSTAINABLE PROCUREMENT CAPABLE OF DELIVERING EXCEPTIONAL VALUE FOR TAKEDA AND IMPROVING THE LIVES OF PATIENTS” — Bernadette Maier, Head of Procurement for Emerging Markets

organisation which now holds a place

busy with our internal activity

at the top table of decision making.

rather than being there with our

Maier highlights the importance

business partners, at the table

of a partnership culture, driven by

early on to see what their needs

teams which work collaboratively

are and understanding what they

to achieve goals.

need to be successful.

“In the past I think we were very

“We also needed to be speak-

much transactional and operational

ing their language. I think this is

orientated,” she explains. “We were

the key that we have now – a proa s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

97

Takeda Berlin

98

curement team on the ground

FACTS

who also understand our business partners' language.”

This holistic approach has already reaped reward to the tune of almost $1bn in savings made in the financial years 20142017, with Takeda awarded a Procurement Leader’s World Procurement Award for Internal Transformation.

For Maier, now is the time to stabilise and build on this success. “A lot of people tend to AUGUST 2018

Among Maier’s key emerging markets include Russia and former Soviet countries, Latin America and China

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Ben Wang e-mail: peng.wang@imtpath.com cell: +86-13700115213

forget how important stability is. There is

TRUST AND TALENT

a balancing act we need now, especially

Maier’s leadership revolves

when it comes to emerging markets like

around a strong faith in her team

Russia and China.

of 23 professionals based in vari-

“Another key challenge and priority is making

ous sub-regions on the frontlines

sure we win the battle for talent. We want to be

of delivery. Whether in Sau Paulo

recognised as a very attractive employer, with

or Dubai, she has empowered her

Procurement seen as an attractive place to be.

leadership to make decisions for

“Finally, the fundamentals. The core is that

the best interest of the business

we deliver value and, ultimately, enable the growth and research and development we

and end user.

Many of these regional leaders

need in order to benefit the lives of our

are fellow women, another cultural

patients. It all goes back to the patient again.”

feature that makes Takeda stand

S U P P LY C H A I N

out in the realm of procurement. Across the whole Procurement organisation there is a 50-50 male to female leadership split.

“From a recruitment point of view, it is attractive to see that women can develop a career here in Procurement, “says Maier. “There is space for women, which I think also makes Takeda a very successful brand. We don’t have that problem you see in so many industries where the higher up you go, the fewer women you see.”

Maier has just returned from Boston in the US where she 101

“ LOOKING AT EMERGING MARKETS, THERE ARE SO MANY PATIENTS OUT THERE WHO NEED OUR PRODUCTS. I STRONGLY BELIEVE THAT TAKEDA CAN BRING GREAT THINGS TO THE PATIENT AND TO SOCIETY, AND THIS WHY I AM EXCITED DAILY TO WORK HERE” — Bernadette Maier, Head of Procurement for Emerging Markets

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

helped lead a procurement talent workshop for the company. Succession planning is a key part of her job in ensuring that Takeda attracts and keeps hold of valued staff, and the ability for employees in Procurement to travel and take on special projects helps make it an attractive organisation to work for.

She also elaborates on Takeda’s ‘Procurement Academy’: “This is our internal learning programme, an online portal for all 102

procurement employees. There are around 100 different programmes, from negotiation training to finance programmes

feature. Communications have also

for procurement. So, whatever

been transformed, with channels

their needs are, they can tap in.”

such as Yammer, e-newsletters and video all utilised to boost engage-

AN INNOVATION FOUNDATION

ment across the company’s 350

Technology is another important

procurement professionals.

draw for Procurement employees, according to Maier.

A vital element of company’s the

“We recently launched a ChatBot, “TakiSan”, for Takeda Procurement,” Maier adds. “This

2014-2016 procurement transfor-

ChatBot is learning our languages.

mation was the introduction of a

It's learning how to identify cost-

new suite of technology which

packages on accounts in order

underpins the centralised model,

to answer questions from the busi-

with self-service tools being a key

ness. We are very much looking into

AUGUST 2018

S U P P LY C H A I N

FACTS

Takeda is the largest pharmaceutical company in Japan and commercially present in more than 70 countries, with products and innovations predominantly covering areas of metabolic diseases, gastroenterology, oncology, cardiovascular health, CNS diseases, inflammatory and immune disorders, respiratory diseases and pain management.

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

103

what artificial intelligence can mean for us in the future."

“We also have large projects going on to harmonise our system landscape we have in place. For example, we are really strong on the use of Ariba. All of this shows me that I'm in the right place with my leadership team, with my peers, having this vibrant conversation on the impact

“ THERE IS SPACE FOR WOMEN, WHICH I THINK ALSO MAKES TAKEDA A VERY SUCCESSFUL BRAND. WE DON’T HAVE THAT PROBLEM YOU SEE IN SO MANY INDUSTRIES WHERE THE HIGHER UP YOU GO THE FEWER WOMEN YOU SEE”

of Procurement going forward.”

The importance of Takeda’s

— Bernadette Maier, Head of Procurement for Emerging Markets

procurement function cannot be understated when it comes to the 104

firm’s pioneering output of medical treatments.

Maier cites Takeda’s recent efforts with its dengue vaccine candidate, which remains a key area of focus to help tackle this significant mosquito-borne viral disease that threatens 40% of the world’s population.

And it is this end output and potential to transform lives that ultimately motivates Maier on a daily basis.

“Looking at emerging markets, there are so many patients out there who need our products. I strongly believe that Takeda can bring great things to the patient and to society, and this why I am excited daily to work here,” she concludes.

AUGUST 2018

S U P P LY C H A I N

105

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

T 106

AUGUST 2018

TECHNOLOGY

TELEKOM MALAYSIA redefining procurement for supply chain success WRIT TEN BY

DA LE BENTON PRODUCED BY

CHARLOT TE CL ARK E

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

107

T E L E K O M M A L AY S I A

Through a full-scale transformation journey, Telekom Malaysia redefines its procurement function

H 108

istorically, procurement has

business needs and strengthening

always been perceived as

supplier relationships to deliver shared

a support function. Over the

value to the organisation,” says

last decade however, there has been

Mohamad Mohamad Zain, Chief

a considerable shift as more and more

Procurement Officer, TM.

businesses around the world are

With a career spanning over 20

investing heavily to create greater

years, working in a number of roles

alignment between procurement and

within TM from insurance management

the strategic direction of the company.

to enterprise risk management,

For Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM),

Mohamad has seen first-hand the

Malaysia’s Convergence Champion,

changing role of procurement and feels

procurement has evolved far beyond

his experience finely positions him to

its traditional function and is now

lead TM’s transformation journey.

pivotal in the success and future growth of the business.

“Procurement has indeed played

Procurement was identified as one of the key pillars to the company’s Performance Improvement Plan (PIP)

a pivotal role in ensuring speed to

3.0, which focuses on delivering value

market, improving customer stickiness

via total cost ownership savings,

via quality products and services while

increased speed of procurement

also assuring supply sustainability to

process to support speed to market

support all year-round dynamic

and be more responsive to the

AUGUST 2018

TECHNOLOGY

“The Group Procurement vision is to optimise productivity,” says Mohamad, “while also building an organisation that has a sustainable competitive advantage towards “Procurement Made Easier” with stable, effective and efficient sources of supply” — Mohamad Zain, Chief Procurement Officer, TM

109

dynamic business needs across the wider TM Group.

“The Group Procurement’s vision is to optimise productivity,” says Mohamad, “while also building an organisation that has a sustainable competitive advantage towards “Procurement Made Easier” with stable, effective and efficient sources of supply.”

Through his role, Mohamad is a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

Building a Better Connected Malaysia Huawei is a leading global provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices. With integrated solutions across four key domains – telecom networks, IT, smart devices, and cloud services – we are committed to bringing digital to every person, home and organisation for a fully connected, intelligent world.

Huawei’s presence in over 170 countries, serving 45 of the world’s 50 largest communication operators and is at Forbes Top #79 company. Huawei achievement are through trusted partnership and collaboration. Where

www.huawei.com/my

Huaw custo syste

At Hu centr susta innov innov resea that a priv

wei creates value, drives growth and improves omer operation, create lasting dynamic to the ecoem and co-existence with our customer.

uawei, we fulfil our customer needs of experience ric services and strategic focus and our customer ainable growth that inspire global and local vation in their organisation. Emphasising in vation focuses Huawei invest heavily in advance arch, concentrating on technological breakthroughs drive the world forward. Founded in 1987, Huawei is vate company fully owned by its employees.

T E L E K O M M A L AY S I A

“ We are expecting the Industrial Revolution 4.0, and so the future of procurement will largely dependent on technology, robotic and Internet of Things (IoT).

Through our journey, we are laying the foundations in order to be ready for this future�

112

— Mohamad Zain, Chief Procurement Officer, TM

AUGUST 2018

BIO

Mohamad Zain Chief Procurement Officer, TM Mohamad, 54, gained vast experience in insurance services while serving a UKbased insurance company for six years, including as Officer in charge for agency and direct client underwriting, claim management and re-insurance, designing insurance for credit card company and bank assurance, serving both domestic and Multinational Corporation clients.

He joined TM in 1993 as an Assistant Manager and has been tasked with managing the corporate insurance programme and implementing the Enterprise Risk Management programme for TM in 2001. In 2007, he was appointed GM entrusted with an expanded portfolio of Group Business Assurance covering Enterprise Management, Revenue Assurance, Fraud Management, Insurance Management, Credit Management Policy & Monitoring, Corporate Compliance, Business Continuity Management and Enterprise Business Management. He was promoted to VP, Group Business Assurance, a position he held from 2011 until his appointment as Chief Procurement Officer on 1 September 2014.

TECHNOLOGY

part of the senior management committee, something he feels enables him to change the perspective of procurement. One of the key changes that he has implemented, in order to measure the success of this strategic transformation, is the addition of optimising the supply chain and procurement management as the Group’s key performance indicators.

What this does is present a challenge that Mohamad must continue to overcome; continue to demonstrate to stakeholders the

113

true value of the new procurement

understanding the already identified gaps in the

model in contributing positively to

Company’s basic procurement function.

the Group’s profitability.

“I need to continue to show how

These gaps allowed TM to anchor its transformation with three key pillars; value creation and

procurement can assist our

expansion, responsive to business dynamics and

marketing team on speed to market

speed in procurement process and execution.

with competitive product and

The pillars will enable TM to implement

services,” he says. “This can then

a best-in-class procurement model, but any

ensure that our suppliers can fully

transformation journey is not without challenge.

apprise on the overall objective of our new procurement model.”

TM’s transformation journey

For Mohamad, he views challenge as an opportunity to continue pushing forward.

“I look across our transformation to date, the

began in 2013, overseen by

results that we can point to, and it gives me the

Mohamad’s predecessor. Moham-

additional adrenalin I need to keep on pushing for

ad took over in 2015 and immedi-

better results,” he says. “Whilst we have success-

ately worked across the Group on

fully established a cross functional category a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

C O M PA N Y N A M E I N C O R P O R AT E C O L O U R

FIBERHOME GROUP FiberHome Technologies Group is a leading equipment vendor and global solution provider the field of information technology and telecommunications. This high-tech enterprise is directly affiliated to the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council. It is also the largest enterprise located in the Optics Valley, Wuhan, China.

114

FiberHome Group Add:No.6, Gaoxinsilu, East Lake High-Tech Development Zone, Wuhan, Hubei, P.R.China 430205 Tel:+86-27-81618829 | Fax:+86-27-81618977 Email: marketing@fiberhome.com Wuhan FiberHome International ( Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. Add:Level 43 South Wing, Menara TM, Jalan Pantai Baharu, 59100 Kuala Lumpur Tel: +603 2241 5780/4818/4808 | Fax:+603 2241 4770

MONTH 2018

Sales Directot: Aslan Zhou Email: zhoujun@fiberhome.com

www.fiberhomegroup.com/en

TECHNOLOGY

management team, improved

But Mohamad is a firm believer in not standing still

governance to allow speed of

and is already looking at the next step in order to

procurement approval, and

continue to improve, with technology and

strengthened supplier relationship

embracing digital procurement a clear goal.

management, there is still room

While Mohamad looks to the future

for improvement, including

of technology, that’s not to suggest that technol-

embracing technology.”

ogy hasn’t played a defining role in this transfor-

The transformation by its very nature is defined by improving

mational journey.

“To support the procurement transformation,

performance. Mohamad’s

technology has and will be fundamental in the

sentiment of continuous learning is

delivery of speed and efficiency in our processes,”

shared across the Group. Four

he says. “As such, we have embarked on PINTAR

years into this journey and TM can

project, designed to provide data analytics on

already point to RM1.0 billion

spend analysis for our category managers.”

(USD250 million) TCO savings

PINTAR, or the Procurement Institutionalisa-

through the expansion of value

tion of Technology Applications and

creation, as well as expanding its

Resources, specifically enables greater

strategic vendor portfolio and

efficiencies across spend analysis, online tender

improving overall governance and

and quotation, supplier performance manage-

control in order to achieve faster

ment and contract management and repository,

procurement process.

amongst other key areas. a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

115

T E L E K O M M A L AY S I A

With technology redefining industries all around the world this brings upon a challenge that is not unique. The global technology conversation is defined by Artificial Intelligence, Automation, Big Data, but are these terms simply turning into buzzwords? What work does Mohamad and TM do to ensure that the Company is implementing the right technologies for the right reasons and not just following trends?

“As a technology company, technology and digitalisation have been part of our business DNA from the very start,” says Mohamad.

“TM has its own R&D team, Network & IT Technical Committee and Chief Digital Officer 116

that continue to provide advisory across the Group on new technology and digitalisation plan.

At the same time, we also benchmark with peers across the globe and in some instances securing advice from our key suppliers who have implemented robust supply chain management system.”

As a supply chain and procurement function, having a strong supplier network is crucial. In the journey of implementing a new procurement model, that supplier network proves more vital than ever.

Mohamad admits that a transformation of this scope is not one that can be completed alone, with the strengthening of supplier relationships in itself a core pillar of the journey. TM has redefined how it approaches supplier and vendor management, with expanded collaboration with mega AUGUST 2018

TECHNOLOGY

“ Whilst we have successfully established a cross functional category management team, improved governance to allow speed of procurement approval, and strengthened supplier relationship management, there is still room for improvement, including embracing technology.”

— Mohamad Zain, Chief Procurement Officer, TM

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

117

T E L E K O M M A L AY S I A

suppliers (foreign and domestic) and those local vendors nurtured via its Bumiputera-Vendor Development Programme (BVDP).

To date, we have over 9,200 vendors registered with us with close to 4,400 Bumiputera vendors. At TM, we have a robust and transparent procurement process; and we adhere to industry’s best practices. We are committed to maintaining the highest degree of integrity, transparency and accountability in the conduct of our business and operations. At least 42% of our projects are based on tenders and we also award projects that require economies of scale to our long term and strategic partners.

118

The BVDP is designed to stimulate the activity and involvement of local suppliers across Malaysia in tenders and other procurement activities. These activities can be stand-alone or through collaborating with foreign partners, with the goal of sharing technology and knowledge to the local suppliers in order to develop the capabilities of the local supplier network.

“This programme will not only support the capability building of local vendors who will then be able to compete for regional business needs through tenders,” says Mohamad. “For TM, based on our BVDP framework, the entry level would be the Entrepreneur Development (ED) and Blue Lane (ED programme specific for ICT-based or start-up technology company companies) levels. Once the vendors show AUGUST 2018

TECHNOLOGY

improvement in their processes and capabilities, they will then be upgraded to Strategic Partners, and then elevated to become a Corporate Champion and finally to a National Champion.

This journey may take three to five years.”

TM has already amassed a strong portfolio of both foreign and local strategic suppliers such as Huawei, Fiberhome, Nokia as well as Opcom, Dura Mine and Lite Cable.

As the title implies, this procurement journey is one of continuous improvement. Procurement as a function will continue to change and evolve and TM must continue to evolve with it in order to continue to deliver success.

“The future will see TM begin to better embrace new technology, organisational and process redesign, and continue to push for cultural change in supporting this changing space,” says Mohamad.

“We are expecting the Industrial Revolution 4.0, and so the future of procurement will largely dependent on technology, robotic and Internet of Things (IoT). Through our journey, we are laying the foundations in order to be ready for this future.”

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

119

Malaysia’s utility powerhouse:

120

Tenaga Nasional Berhad

Embarking on its new strategic vision ‘Transforming TNB,’ Tenaga Nasional Berhad has high ambitions to become one of the world’s top utility players by 2025 WRITTEN BY

LAURA MULLAN PRODUCED BY

ALEX PAGE

AUGUST 2018

ENERGY

121

With a total capacity of 50MW, Large Scale Solar (LSS) farm located in Kuala Langat, Selangor is the first and the largest in Malaysia a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

TENAGA NASIONAL BERHAD

W

With over 9.3mn customers in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Labuan, Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) is

now a household name, standing proudly as the largest electricity utility in Malaysia.

In providing electricity to the region’s businesses, homes and industries, the utility firm has truly helped to develop and empower the nation, all whilst championing an unwavering commitment to sustainability. But now, what is the next step for the utility giant?

With its meticulous 2025 vision – ‘Reimagining 122

TNB’ – the company’s CEO and President, Datuk Seri Ir. Azman Mohd, explains how the utility company wants to build on its rich legacy and become a top 10 global utility player by 2025. In doing so, TNB hopes to empower people for a better life and a better future.

“TNB is a born and bred Malaysian company, which has a rich and deep-rooted history in building the nation, even before the country received its independence,” reflects Azman. “With 67 years of experience, TNB is Malaysia’s leading utility player throughout the value chain of Generation, Transmission, Distribution and Retail.

“Guided by the ‘Reimagining TNB’ strategy, TNB is now venturing into new businesses and opportunities beyond our conventional business and territory,” he continues. “Over the past AUGUST 2018

TNB workers stringing the lines of the monopole tower, Pulau Besar, Melaka, Malaysia

ENERGY

TNBs latest plant in Perak, Manjung is the most efficient coal-fired power plant in South East Asia

Click to watch: ‘Tenaga Nasional – Better. Brighter’ 123

TNB is a born and bred Malaysian company — Datuk Seri Ir. Azman Mohd, CEO

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

TENAGA NASIONAL BERHAD

leader in renewable energy. “So far,

TNB believes that its value lies not only in providing access to electricity to homes and businesses throughout the country but also in adopting sustainable practices and activities in our operations to improve societal and environmental outcomes

we have secured 741 MW of renewable energy capacity globally,” comments Azman.

In keeping with this strategy, TNB has undertaken a series of acquisitions and investments in the renewable sector. In March, for instance, the firm snapped up an 80% stake in Bluemerang Capital and Temporis Capital-managed GVO wind.

124

— Roslan Ab Rahman, CCO

“This acquisition complements TNB’s solar renewable assets in the UK by ensuring a stable portfolio

few years, TNB has expanded its international

revenue generation all year round,”

footprint, having established its name in countries

explains Azman. “Wind energy

such as Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, India, Turkey and

assets, in general, generate more

the United Kingdom, making TNB one of the larg-

revenue in the winter period whilst

est electricity companies in Asia.”

solar assets generate the most rev-

Rising to the top of the ranks is no easy task

enue in the summer months.”

but TNB believes it has a meticulous plan for success. Based on four key pillars, TNB’s new strate-

NEXT-GENERATION GRID

gic vision aims to: find future generation sources,

Additionally, the Malaysian firm

create the grid of the future, win the customer

has set itself the task of creating

and futureproof regulations.

the grid of the future by promoting greater digitization and automation.

A GREENER FUTURE

As such, it is set to introduce smart

As part of its so-called future generation sources

meters and advanced metering in-

strategy, the electricity utility is shifting its focus

frastructure facilities for its custom-

towards renewables, aspiring to be the ASEAN

ers and implement data analytics,

AUGUST 2018

TNB is a customer-centric company, supplying household, industrial and business customers with a wide range of energy solutions and services beyond just the sale of kWh

125

S TAT

1949

Year founded

analysis and automation of its operations.

“As the backbone of the electricity system, the grid represents the single most impactful component of the energy industry and a country’s

35,000+

Approximate number of employees

energy needs,” notes Azman. “Therefore, we do not expect grid operations to stay the same as we progress into the future. We are looking to invest in technological advancements that will allow for greater digitisation and automation of a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

TENAGA NASIONAL BERHAD

FACT

the grid. This will lead to improved performance and reliability, which will ultimately benefit our customer.”

CUSTOMER-CENTRIC The third critical pillar of TNB’s strategic vision – winning the customer – underscores its plan to create new and enhanced services and products.

After all, when stripped down to its core, the focus of any successful business is simple – to meet the demands of the customer.

126

• Tenaga Nasional Berhad is the largest electricity utility in Malaysia.

• Tenaga Nasional Berhad has a customer base of 9.3mn customers in peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, and Labuan.

• Moving up 17 spots from 39th place in 2016, TNB is now acknowledged as one of the fastest growing brands in the sector, being ranked 22nd

by Brand Finance Utilities 2018 with a brand value of USD$1.64b.

Putting its customer at the heart of its strategic plan, Azman describes how TNB intends to promote a value-centric understanding of its customers.

“This means looking at customers as more than just a meter and understanding their values and needs beyond their kWh consumption,” he explains. “We have already identified several specific projects ranging from energy management to smart city utility services with various government agencies and corporate entities.”

This customer centric-focus is also echoed

by Datuk Fazlur Rahman Zainuddin, TNB’s Chief Financial Officer, who highlights that an unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction is at the foundation of the 67-year old company’s legacy.

“Our simple business philosophy at TNB is AUGUST 2018

ENERGY

A stunning view of TNB’s men at work that it’s all about serving the needs of people,” he says. “Businesses must be clear of whom they serve and understand these people well. The moment businesses lose sight of this is when the firm loses its value proposition and thus profits or worse, loses its license to operate.”

“Many words can be used to describe Tenaga Nasional Berhad, however, I prefer the simple description of ‘empowering people’,” he stresses. “If we were to go back in history and recall the development of Malaysia from a rural economy to what it is today, it is clear that by bringing electricity to homes, TNB has made a significant difference to the lives of people who, before then, didn’t have access to 24-hour electricity.

“With electricity, lives of people, families and societies have been able to change for the better

The journey to the top entails a shift towards a more performance-oriented and adaptive culture

and as TNB, we are so privileged to be able to serve people this way.”

UPHOLDING HIGH REGULATORY STANDARDS Keeping pace with the ever-evolving regulatory environment, as the fourth and final pillar of TNB’s strategic plan, involves assisting the government in the execution of regulations and policies in the energy sector.

In recent years, the government has imple-

— Datuk Wira Roslan Ab Rahman, CCO

mented Malaysian Electricity Supply Industry (MESI) reform initiatives which notably introduced Incentive Based Regulation (IBR) and a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

127

TENAGA NASIONAL BERHAD

TNB contributes towards unlocking the value of young Malaysians

128

Imbalance Cost Pass-Through (ICPT) mechanisms.

Meanwhile, in 2015, the government

“Regulations make up a vital enabler of our business,” notes Azman. “We must, therefore, continue to work closely with

also launched a subsidy rationalisation

the relevant stakeholders to maintain a

programme and later it established a ring-

conducive operating environment and

fenced single based buyer, amongst other

ensure we have the regulatory support

reforms. Such regulations ensure that TNB

we need to achieve both our and the

operates efficiently and charges custom-

regulator’s aspirations.

ers competitively priced electricity tariffs.

“Additionally, it is imperative that we

This also promotes transparency, robust

remain perceptive and responsive to regu-

finances, and sustainable investments.

latory developments in both domestic and

As such, TNB is keen to collaborate with

foreign markets where we operate, so we

stakeholders to keep pace with today’s

can work harmoniously with the electricity

evolving regulatory environment.

industry laws that govern our sector.”

AUGUST 2018

ENERGY

Many words can be used to describe Tenaga Nasional Berhad, however, we prefer the simple description of ‘empowering people’ — Datuk Fazlur Rahman Zainuddin, CFO

A STRATEGY FOR SUCCESS

Megat Jalaluddin Megat Hassan, predicts

Optimistic about its 10-year strategic

that the firm will increase its earnings

plan, TNB says it is on track to meet these

before interest and tax by 30% in the next

concrete goals. In doing so, the Malay-

three to five years.

sian firm hopes to realise its potential and

“It is hoped that TNB can achieve or

become one of the top 10 utility compa-

even surpass the target and aspiration

nies in the world.

outlined in the strategy towards becoming

Moving up 17 spots from 39th place in

one of the top 10 utility companies in the

2016, TNB is now acknowledged as one

world,” he notes. “This includes becoming

of the fastest growing brands in the sec-

the ASEAN leader in renewables, build-

tor, being ranked 22nd by Brand Finance

ing profitable businesses in South Asia,

Global Top 50 Utilities 2018 with a brand

Southeast Asia and the Middle East, the

value of $1.64bn.

establishment of a robust smart grid that

On top of this, Chief Strategy Officer,

allows for bi-directional energy flow, and a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

129 129

TENAGA NASIONAL BERHAD

It is hoped that TNB can achieve or even surpass the target and aspiration outlined in the strategy towards becoming one of the top 10 utility companies in the world 130

— Megat Jalaluddin Hassan, CSO

Kampung Kuantan Firefly Conservation Project Conservation of fireflies, fireflies research, developing physical infrastructure and generating publicity to attract more tourists to Kampung Kuantan, Selangor, Malaysia

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ENERGY

131

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

TENAGA NASIONAL BERHAD

an increasingly digitally automated grid.”

CULTURAL CHANGE

For many years, TNB has been actively planting and replenishing trees through their ‘Tree for a Tree’ programme

Undertaking a mammoth 10-year plan, Tenaga Nasional Berhad is preparing for a new chapter in its journey and it’s one which is fully supported by its team of over 35,000 people.

TNB’s Chief Corporate Officer, Datuk Wira Roslan Ab Rahman, highlights that apt communication and an innovative culture was critical to prepare the firm for such mammoth changes.

“To make the staff key drivers of our transformation journey and equip them to be brand ambassadors for TNB, we translated the aspiration 132

and educated staff on the new direction of TNB and their role in bringing the aspiration to life. For this, we conducted numerous engagement sessions with the different levels of staff and continuously monitoring our progress.

“The journey to the top entails a shift towards a more performance-oriented and adaptive culture. We are currently working towards ensuring that this culture is imbibed by the staff and ultimately adopted.”

CUTTING-EDGE CONFERENCES Beyond its four walls, TNB is also engaging with its peers to revolutionise the sector and create a brighter future for the region. As a result, the Malaysian firm is set to host the Conference of the Electric Power Supply Industry (CEPSI), AUGUST 2018

Lestari Community Project Installation of solar panels at community care centres to generate electricity under Feed-in Tariff (FiT) scheme

ENERGY

133

Better Brighter Shelter Programme is our newly introduced community programme to upgrade transit homes or dormitories at Government-owned hospitals in Malaysia

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

TENAGA NASIONAL BERHAD

Electricity is and remains but one way of empowerment. With developments in technology, such as renewable energy, energy storage, connectivity, data analytics, and the Internet of Things, we see even more ways of empowering people further 134

— Datuk Seri Ir. Azman Mohd, CEO PINTAR School Adoption Programme TNB adopts under-performing schools and provides the students and teachers with support to enhance academic and non-academic outcomes

AUGUST 2018

ENERGY

one of the largest and most prestigious

compromised its ethics and corporate

events in the electricity supply industry in

responsibility.

the Asia Pacific.

Roslan says: “We look upon CEPSI as

ETHICAL, SUSTAINABLE GROWTH

one of the vehicles that embodies our aspi-

With a desire to create a world that is

ration by bringing the topic of ‘Reimagining

‘Better. Brighter’, Azman describes how

Utility of the Future’ to the forefront. We’re

TNB continuously strives to go beyond

inviting the world’s best utility players and

what’s expected of it, giving back to

experts to share, network and highlight our

stakeholders and playing a meaningful

goals and get the conversation going as

role in the communities it serves.

we look for like-minded partners.”

Yet, whilst outlining this ambitious ‘Reimagining TNB’ strategy, the utility firm hasn’t

As part of these efforts, the electric utility firm has implemented a Green Policy which plans to minimise the com135

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

TENAGA NASIONAL BERHAD

pany’s environmental impact by adopt-

through education. Beyond the class-

ing sustainable practices, developing its

room, TNB has also nurtured technical

green energy business and reducing its

training through the support of voca-

carbon footprint through energy-effi-

tional education programmes through its

cient operations.

subsidiary, Integrated Learning Solution

Empowering local communities, TNB has also contributed to the education

(ILSAS).

“As Malaysia’s leading utility com-

and development of Malaysian youths by

pany, TNB believes that its value lies not

advocating initiatives such as the PINTAR

only in providing access to electricity to

programme, a not-for-profit that aims to

homes and businesses throughout the

enhance the motivation and success of

country but also in adopting sustainable

students from underperforming schools

practices and activities in our operations

136

Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN) UNITEN not only prepares its graduates to be knowledgeable and competent professionals, but also develops them as well-rounded individuals with a broad intellectual outlook

AUGUST 2018

ENERGY

to improve societal and environmental outcomes,” notes Roslan.

The energy sector is experiencing great change with new trends emerging

“We believe that these trends will substantially reshape our future, yet present exciting opportunities,” says Roslan.

Moving forward, TNB will continue to

like the shift in economic power to Asia,

serve society by empowering them in differ-

technology disruptions, the end of cheap

ent ways. As CEO, Azman notes, “electricity

capital and evolving regulatory develop-

is and remains but one way of empower-

ments. By capitalising on these trends,

ment. With developments in technology,

TNB aims to unlock new growth areas,

such as renewable energy, energy storage,

win a new generation of customers,

connectivity, data analytics, and the internet

realise its global ambitions and unleash

of things, we see even more ways of em-

greater productivity.

powering people further.”

137

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

n

138

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CONSTRUCTION

WT PARTNERSHIP

TACKLING DIVERSITY ACROSS SOUTH EAST ASIA WRIT TEN BY

ANDRE W WOODS PRODUCED BY

MIK E SADR

City Garden, Vietnam a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

139

W T PA R T N E R S H I P

140

Will Kennedy-Cooke, MD WT Partnership (South East Asia), discusses the challenges as the business rolls out a consistent and reliable service across diverse jurisdictions in an evolving economic landscape.We also speak to his fellow MD’s Keith Wong (China) and Mark Van Beers (Hong Kong & Macau) about the challenges and growth in their respective regions‌

W

T Partnership is an independ-

and South East Asia (SEA), occupies a

ent international provider of

key position in one of the most culturally

quantity surveying and

diverse and economically-tempestuous

construction cost management services.

regions on earth. A fast-growing global

Founded in 1949 and with a presence in

company with an expertise that extends

Asia since 1962, its Asian Holdings

bespoke offerings of quantity surveying,

regional business, comprising Greater

cost management and facilities manage-

China, Hong Kong, Macau, North Asia

ment consultancy across Asia and

AUGUST 2018

CONSTRUCTION

period. In the short term WTP plans to open fulltime operations in two additional countries with staff numbers potentially growing to 300-plus in three to five years.

“We have been very strategic in each location, harnessing homegrown talent with international expertise where and when required, but without losing sight of being a local business able to support local developers,” Will explains. “Our Singapore office is a hub that supports the region as a whole from which we can add management expertise to any location, together with sharing resources in specific sectors such as infrastructure and facilities management consultancy. internationally, WTP is highly regarded in the

“It is an integral part of our strategy

region, with unprecedented growth in SEA over

that we play to our strengths, work

the past decade.

with the clients and partners that are

After an initial spell there in the early 1990s, Will

a best fit with our people and

Kennedy-Cooke, MD SEA, relocated back to

develop a business that is built to

Singapore in 2006. At that time, after more than

last. We do not need or want to be

40 years of continuous operations, the SEA

the biggest, taking on any and all

business comprised 40 staff in two locations.

opportunities without regard to

Today WTP employs more than 200 staff based

suitability. However, we do strive to

in six offices across four ASEAN countries

be very good at what we do, to be an

working on projects across the region with

employer of equality and choice, to

revenue increased by more than six times in that

grow while retaining quality of a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

141

Paya Lebar Quarter, Singapore

142

Barangaroo South, Australia

Creating landmarks that define cities

Elephant & Castle, United Kingdom

Tun Razak Exchange Lifestyle Quarter, Malaysia

Lendlease is known internationally for creating award winning places.

Operating in Singapore since 1973, today we are also located in Malaysia, China and Japan.

Our integrated approach means we harness our expertise in construction, design, development, investments and management to deliver a project from conception to completion.

We help shape city skylines, create iconic structures, breathe new life into forgotten precincts and create places and spaces for generations to enjoy.

AUGUST 2018

www.lendlease.com

CONSTRUCTION

Toll offshore petroleum supply base, Singapore

service, to aspire for continuous improvement and to care for how our clients optimise value from their development investment decisions.

“We get involved with all sizes and types of projects providing proactive and assured construction cost management for our clients’ investments, together with enduring interest, variety and opportunity for our staff,” says Will, who oversees operations across the 10 ASEAN countries. “Our significant presence in the region ensures we are able to deliver both local and international services with a reputation for providing effective delivery of complex and mega projects.”

“ WE AIM TO PROVIDE VALUE IN MINIMISING WASTE THROUGH DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION AND OPERATION. WE LOOK AT HOW THE TOTAL PRODUCT CAN STILL BE COST EFFECTIVE, BUT BECOME LEANER WITHOUT COMPROMISING TIME OR SAFETY WHILE IMPROVING SUSTAINABILITY” — Will Kennedy-Cooke, Managing Director (South East Asia), WT Partnership

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

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W T PA R T N E R S H I P

144

“ QUANTITY SURVEYING IN HONG KONG, MALAYSIA AND SINGAPORE IS AN IMPLICIT DISCIPLINE, BEING THE LEGACY OF BRITISH INVOLVEMENT IN THEIR DEVELOPMENT, AND TODAY THESE LOCATIONS PROVIDE EDUCATION THROUGH FULL-TIME COURSES IN THE EXPERTISE” — Will Kennedy-Cooke, Managing Director (South East Asia), WT Partnership

Macau Studio City, Macau Due to WTP’s longevity in the region, it enjoys excellent relations with some premium partners from a variety of locations. Will has been involved in some high-profile projects in SEA covering both commercial and public-sector constructions including World Trade Centres 2 and 3 in Jakarta, TRX Living Quarter in Kuala Lumpur, Australian Embassy in Bangkok, the International School Ho Chi Minh City and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore.

“In SEA we’ve undertaken a lot of work with Cognita, a leading global education provider,” says Will. “The relationship with Cognita stretches more than 12 years based on the

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145

formation of trusted relationships with their key

“Our Hong Kong office was

people while creating a baseline for common

initiated in 1976 to start working with

understanding. We have collaborated on more

Hongkong Land, a member of the

than 10 projects across SEA markets, assisting

Jardine Matheson Group. We are

Cognita to provide world-class teaching

very proud of the relationship that

environments. It continues to be a very strong,

has flourished through several

fertile and mutually beneficial relationship.

generational changes of key

“We continue to work with Toll, an Australian

personnel in either business over

origin logistics group now owned by Japan

more than 40 years and continues

Post. We started working directly for them in

today working across multiple

Asia a decade ago and more recently, having

markets in our region. Project

successfully delivered a number of projects

locations include Cambodia, China,

in Singapore, we are also working with them

Hong Kong, Indonesia and

in Australia and New Zealand.

Singapore with the most recent a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

W T PA R T N E R S H I P

BIO

Keith Wong Executive Chairman, Asia, Managing Director (China)

146

For our business in China, employing two site staff working in a client’s site office when we started in 1996 in Shanghai, expanding to 50 in 2006, to more than 500 today with 8 offices across China. We adhere to a traditional quantity surveying practice but when we started, Chinese projects were highly protected, mainly state-owned enterprise (SOE) government projects, although they welcomed foreign investment. And so, we followed Hong Kong developers as they delivered projects in China. At that time more than 95% of our clients were from Hong Kong or overseas with very few local clients.

There was no quantity surveying in China then; they had some cost engineers, but didn’t provide a comprehensive service as we do, from inception to completion of the project. It was not an easy task, at that time, because they just didn’t understand the purpose of undertaking cost control. They didn’t understand

AUGUST 2018

why they needed an independent professional to update the interest of the client side because, at that time, the local client were often very big state-owned enterprises that didn’t know or worry about where the money had been spent.

Our local clients grew to 10% after seven years or so, starting from smaller projects, before getting bigger and bigger. The major opportunities were still foreign (mainly Hong Kong) as local investment was more or less owned by a local government or state-owned enterprise.

From 2005 to say, 2010, most of our projects were in real estate: property development, residential, commercial, hotels, and mixed use. The client’s just build and sell for a quick cash return.

The scale was getting bigger and bigger during that period of time; in the UK, 50,000 sqm may have been considered to be a big project but in China, a big project by then was 500,000 sqm.

The clientele has since continued

CONSTRUCTION

to shift from foreign to local and some 70% of our clients are Chinese now with the rest foreign. So, that change is quite substantial and we’re now doing 4,000,000 sqm projects.

Currently, we are working for insurance companies like Ping An Insurance and financial institutions such as Shanghai Stock Exchange, that we were never able to get in touch with 10 years ago. E-commerce is expanding so fast and we have done an increasing amount of work in logistics relating to that sector, with clients such as JD.Com and Alibaba. We’re doing a 800,000 sqm data centre campus for them and companies like JD.Com, who is the second biggest e-commerce company here. We are also doing a lot of campus work for telecommunication giants Huawei and Tencent.

Now we’re helping also lot of local developers going overseas to do projects in the likes of India, Vietnam, Australia and Italy. Something like

90% of the senior management in Chinese companies cannot speak English and so that’s why we have a very major role to play.

China is changing so quickly. The second-child policy was introduced in 2015 and now the birth rate is 22mn babies per year with estimates this will increase to 30m very soon. The wealth of the Chinese community is expanding and the middle class is quite affluent now, so they’re prepared to pay a lot of money for their children’s education. Consequently, international schooling is a booming market and we are currently working for AIS, Yew Chong International School, Wellington and Harrow from UK who all have big expansion plans in the coming few years.

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

147

An inspiring world of education Cognita is an extraordinary family of diverse yet connected schools joining forces in an inspiring world of education with one common purpose: building self-belief and empowering individuals to succeed.

With over 70 schools in Europe, Latin America and Asia, Cognita provides a uniquely global education for more than 40,000 students that goes beyond grades to develop all-round academic excellence.

Find out more about us at www.cognita.com

YOUR WORLD OF OPPORTUNITY Jakarta Land is a joint venture between CCM and Hongkong Land, which develops and manages the 8 hectare WTC Complex on Jalan Jenderal Sudirman, Jakarta, Indonesia.

Website: www.jakland.com Email: leasing@jakland.co.id

CONSTRUCTION

budget through collaboration with the client and, where available, with input from the principal design team members. We will then be employed to continuously advise, monitor and update, providing forward forecasting to enable decisions that deliver the completed project to budget.

Assuming the budget for capital expenditure is correctly established and informs the feasibility for the project, and assuming revenue

Ningbo Shangri–La Hotel, China

projections are met, then delivering to, or within, that capital budget

completion being World Trade Centre 3 in

means the project returns for the

Jakarta for PT Jakarta Land, a company jointly

client will be met or even enhanced.

owned by CCM and Hongkong Land.

We provide an early warning system

“Another client we do a lot of repeat order work

for issues that are either likely to

for in SEA is Lendlease which has been in

compromise the budget or may

Singapore since the early 1970s. We’ve been

provide value-added opportunities,

fortunate to be involved with their more recent

meaning the earlier you capture it,

SEA development work and we’re currently

the easier it is to plan for how and

working on both their Paya Lebar Quarter

when that issue is to be managed.”

project in Singapore and their Tun Razak

When commissioned to do so,

Exchange Lifestyle Quarter project in Kuala

WTP provides and facilitates formal

Lumpur; the latter being delivered in joint venture

value engineering, or value

with TRX City, a wholly owned subsidiary of the

management workshops early in

Malaysian Ministry of Finance.

the design process to help establish

“In an ideal sense, we get involved right from the outset,” he explains. “Setting the construction

the real aspirations and requirements of a project. Focus is set upon a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

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W T PA R T N E R S H I P

what’s wanted rather than “what’s

whatever reason, is unable to deliver to time and

nice to have” and the removal of

cost. Our cost forecasting to the completion of the

waste. In the process of determining

project helps manage financial decisions and

value, WTP assesses what has to be

mitigate opportunities for dispute. However,

there and what is discretionary for

should a client become engaged in difficulties on

the design to balance the budget

a project, then we’re there to help, interpret and

and project brief.

diffuse,” he explains.

“Much of the discipline of managing the budget obviously depends on

Quantity surveying is an historically entrenched part of the construction process across

the procurement system that transfers the project to the construction phase, together with the profile of the client and its risk appetite. Time is 150

always a big issue because time is cost and therefore overall project programme has a big influence on the procurement strategy. Alternative approaches allow for transfer of construction time and cost risk at various points in the design process depending on the profile tailored to the client’s objectives. Once the transfer of that risk has been completed, the business of construction begins,” says Will.

“We’re also the certifier of payments made to the contractors and we deal with any change through variations, getting further involved if the contractor, for AUGUST 2018

Team Building

CONSTRUCTION

151 parts of the western world,

three locations, quantity surveying is just a part

principally where the British had

of the DNA of the construction and develop-

some involvement with establishing

ment industry. However, in the other SEA

standards and procedures, yet

locations, there are a number of developers who

differs in relevancy and application

may often be unaware of the discipline of cost

in other locations, especially in

planning and construction cost management,

today’s emerging markets.

or how to use the expertise.

“Quantity surveying in Hong

“While the core of quantity surveying and

Kong, Malaysia and Singapore is

construction cost management may be similar

an implicit discipline, being the

the world over, the detailed services we provide

legacy of British involvement in

across SEA markets varies and can also differ

their development, and today these

from those required, for example, in each of

locations provide education

China, Japan, South Korea or Taiwan. Day to

through full-time courses in the

day in SEA we are still mostly commissioned to

expertise,” Will explains. “In these

provide a very traditional, almost old-fashioned a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

W T PA R T N E R S H I P

BIO

Mark Van Beers Managing Director (Hong Kong & Macau)

152

Hong Kong’s one of our oldest offices in Asia and we’ve been here for just over 40 years with our track record in major and mega projects being significant. There’s currently a bid for a design, build and operate project, at the old airport, for a sports precinct of three stadiums and other ancillary facilities and we are in one of the three shortlisted bidding consortia.

So, we’re currently working on that bid, six months in already and, if successful, we will then be providing services to that project for another four or five years.

Corporate fit-out is an important sector of our market in Hong Kong.

We’re currently working on two substantial office fitout projects for Goldman Sachs including the restack of their headquarters. We’re doing another large scale fit out for J.P. Morgan to consolidate a lot of their space into one prime building.

Hong Kong Housing Authority is the public housing body and we currently

AUGUST 2018

have over 20 commissions with them that are a mixture of new builds and term maintenance work; some of them very sizable.

There’s a lot of competition in Hong Kong in our market. There’d be anywhere between 15 and 20 firms that could undertake commercial quantity surveying work, maybe more, and there are probably six or eight who are of a similar size and scale as WTP. Another principal market for us here is Macau where there are 500,000 residents, comprising the entire population from young to grandparents, yet they have 30mn visitors a year.

The whole infrastructure of Macau is still playing catch up with the boom in hospitality and tourism. The construction boom is primarily driven by the gaming operators who are developing mega-scale resorts.

In Macau, in terms of professional consultants and construction workers, there’s a minimal resident labour

CONSTRUCTION

force to deliver the mega resorts. So, the challenge for us is getting people to be based in Macau to live there for a number of years and to cover that cost. It actually turns into quite an expensive place to build and has become one of the most expensive in the world.

The construction cost, salaries and everything are higher than Hong Kong, actually, and although this market has proved successful for WTP, it comes with truly significant challenges. The boom and bust in Macau goes from one end of the scale to the other. There could be very few projects for a couple of years and then suddenly all the gaming operators will simultaneously launch their next phase of major projects. Consequently, our headcount in Macau from 2004 until today, has varied between two and 50 people and it’s gone up and down quite a few times with the cycles of work.

I guess there’s two parts to the Macau market, one being a very local market that seldom uses quantity surveyors at all with the other being the five or six international businesses who have the gaming licenses now, for example MGM, Wynn, Melco and a few more.

Actually, these opportunities all start with architects and engineers designing in Hong Kong and then become a Macau project with a lot of people moving to Macau to work on the procurement and construction.

Increasingly, we are also seeing demand to service projects in Taiwan, South Korea and Japan which are markets that we are looking at the potential for future expansion, each being subject to timing and a deliverable business model.

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

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W T PA R T N E R S H I P

service, that almost mimics what used to be extremely quickly, adopting fast track seen in the British market when I started my methods for those who can accept both career there in the mid-1980s. “Although catching up fast and introducing many of more recent approaches from

alternative systems and a different risk profile. But the project still needs to be delivered to budget.�

other more developed international markets, we do lag behind them in many

NEW TECH

jurisdictions where the infrastructure is not

A typical opportunity for potential disagree-

as well developed and the majority of work

ment between contractors and professional

is still executed in a highly traditional

quantity surveyors has been the quantifica-

manner; the client’s team completing full

tion. Ask several people to measure the

design before going to a hard money tender same major project, you will inevitably end 154

to builders. However, especially in the

up with differing opinions on the quantities

complex and mega projects, there are

for individual components. However, if you

more clients now with the appetite to finish

can get reliable and meaningful quantities

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CONSTRUCTION

out of an accurate computer-generated

future operations as well. The opportuni-

model this issue should be resolved.

ties with other new technologies are

“BIM (building information modelling)

immense and the data input requirements

and other technological advances, should

to maximise the effectiveness of BIM is

be embraced fully by all parts of the

coming up to speed. WTP is ready and

construction industry and should certainly

looking forward to the potential to move

not be seen as a threat to the quantity

towards real time cost planning & estimat-

surveying profession,” Will explains. “With

ing and cost management.”

readily accessible, reliable and useful quantities, experts can focus on what

NEW SERVICES

really drives the cost aspects of the

“Most of our work traditionally has been in

project. We will see in due course, sooner

the core building sectors, but we now have

rather than later, a coordinated BIM output

a flourishing infrastructure division working

that incorporates both time and cost, not

on roads, rail, airports, renewable energies

only for the construction process but for

and utilities (including water, waste, power

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

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W T PA R T N E R S H I P

and district cooling), together with the full range of

156

“ BIM (BUILDING INFORMATION MODELLING) AND OTHER TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCE SHOULD BE EMBRACED FULLY

BY ALL PARTS OF THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY AND SHOULD CERTAINLY NOT BE SEEN AS A THREAT TO THE QUANTITY SURVEYING PROFESSION” — Will Kennedy-Cooke, Managing Director (South East Asia), WT Partnership

land reclamation and other large-scale infrastructure.”

Facilities management consultancy services, led from Singapore, is another more recent addition to an increasingly diversified offering from WTP in Asia that is an extension to the same services that have been established earlier within the Australia and UK businesses. “We introduced FM consultancy services into the region just over 12 months ago and have already completed several interesting commissions, both for new and existing clients. The wider market for these services is not very mature and currently nearly all of the work we’re undertaking is in Singapore and Hong Kong,” Will explains. “There are a number of international Asian-based operators that are quite sophisticated in their approach to FM, but generally the facilities management market in this part of the world is playing catch-up with the West.

Sustainability is a key requirement in every sector and is of growing importance to WTP’s services offering. “Several world markets have initiated sustainability targets through a point-scoring exercise,” Will says. “We have Green Mark in Singapore and Australia has Green Star. Leed, a United States Green Building Council initiative, has wide international recognition with a high profile for many corporate clients and there are a number of other sustainable

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CONSTRUCTION

standards in particular markets.

we better with this particular system

Where there isn’t a standard in

or an alternative one? Establishing

a country, they may well adopt one

life cycle models and completing

so we have projects, for example,

whole-of-life studies are an

in Vietnam that are being done to

emerging requirement, harnessing

LEED and others in Indonesia being

both our sustainability and FM

delivered under Green Mark.

consultancy expertise.

“Originally we became involved

“We can also become involved

with how the cost achieves those

with reviews of how existing

sustainable standards in terms of the

buildings can be improved in

capital expenditure. We now look at

energy management to the

not just the cost through the initial

long-term benefit of a building

construction project, but also

owner and the occupants. We aim

examine the implications for the

to provide value in minimising waste

building’s operational life cycle. Over

through design, construction and

the economic life with an appropriate

operation. We look at how the total

planned maintenance regime, are

product can still be cost effective, a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

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W T PA R T N E R S H I P

but become leaner without

planning we do, to the extent that when

compromising time or safety while

we do go into new markets or provide

improving sustainability.”

new services, we have the best chance to get it right. That’s about people and

EXPANDING FOOTPRINT

network. It’s about understanding the

WTP’s expansion in SEA hasn’t

market and not overstretching our

seen the company veer too far from

management capabilities. It’s about

its ethos thus far. “Our growth, short

structuring a business that is sufficiently

to medium term, has been to stick to

flexible, agile and mobile with capability

our core competences; continuing

to both deliver to the local market

to do what we do well,” Will explains.

expectations as well as the requirements

“We’re careful about the model we

of our international clients as opportuni-

adopt for each location and the

ties evolve in different locations.”

158

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Internationally, in addition to the long-term operations that originally started in Australia and the UK, WTP has now also been operating in North America and India for a few years with the Middle East being a more recent market entry. As an international group, the geographic footprint is also growing as more opportunities arise and the business is confident of its ability to both plan and manage this expansion programme that is sure to see the company continuing to spread, and deepen its roots.

159

International Commerce Center, Hong-Kong

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

PA N PA C I F I C H O T E L S G R O U P

Pan Pacific Hotels Group redefines Asia’s food and beverage sector

160

WRITTEN BY

DALE BENTON PRODUCED BY

ALISTAIR WEST

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FOOD & DRINK

161

Pan Pacific Yangon, Myanmar a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

PA N PA C I F I C H O T E L S G R O U P

Through the advent of a leading food hygiene and safety management programme and a design guideline tailored to the future of food and beverage, Pan Pacific Hotels Group redefines the guest experience

T 162

he hotel industry is undergo-

A particular challenge, one that is

ing a transformation. With

representative of a changing indus-

technology continuously

try, is food and hygiene. For Golden

redefining the day to day lives of the

Whitehead, Vice President, Food &

guest, so too is the guest experience.

Beverage at Pan Pacific Hotels

The modern-day guest expects the

Group, one of his first tasks upon

same level of connectivity and acces-

joining the company was to work

sibility in their hotel experience as they

on and implement a global food

would in any other stretch of their lives.

safety programme across all of the

So how does a hotel group respond?

company’s operations.

As one of the most established

“Singapore, where we are based,

hotel and property companies in

has always been very focused on

Asia-Pacific with 40 properties oper-

food hygiene with high standards

ated under its Pan Pacific and

in place. There will be significant

PARKROYAL brands, Pan Pacific

changes to its current system in

Hotels Group recognises this ever

the next couple of years and we

evolving, ever challenging space as it

have to be prepared for that,” he

continues to expand its footprint.

says. “Pan Pacific Hotels Group

AUGUST 2018

FOOD & DRINK

163

Golden Whitehead, Vice President, Food & Beverage at Pan Pacific Hotels Group

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

FOOD & DRINK

has always done very well on adhering to the highest standards and we are now ready to take sustainability to the next level. The traceability of the produce we buy and the amount of waste that’s generated from our hotels are two areas which I am particularly passionate about tackling for a start.”

Whitehead brings a wealth of experience across the global food and beverage sector, having worked for companies such as the Shangri-La, Hilton Group in the UK, Hyatt in Australia and even opened up a number of restaurants in the Middle East with the Jumeirah Group.

This international experience, gleaned from

“ It’s all about keeping the guest in house and staying with us,” says Whitehead.

“Guest experience is crucial and outsourcing is key to enabling greater guest experience” — Golden Whitehead, Vice President, Food & Beverage at Pan Pacific Hotels Group

working in kitchens across the world for hotel groups, has provided Whitehead with the skills and capabilities required to establish a new system across a global operations.

“Hygiene and sustainability has become much more of a focus in recent years, and hotels and suppliers need to work much harder than before to stay at the top of the game. Sustainability efforts require not just commitment but also an investment of resources, and that often needs to be balanced with operating costs,” says Whitehead.

“When I came on board, we partnered with a company called Diversey and together launched a global programme on food safety

Marketplace, Pan Pacific Yangon, Myanmar

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

165

PA N PA C I F I C H O T E L S G R O U P

management which was rolled out

head says. “You’re asking chefs

in the first half of 2018.”

who’ve been cooking a certain

Fast forward to today and White-

166

way their entire lives to com-

head can point to a complete

pletely re-think the way they

implementation of the food safety

have been doing things for

management system across all of

years and learn a new system,

the company’s Pan Pacific and

so training and retraining is

PARKROYAL hotels, which incorpo-

absolutely critical.

rates regular audits and gap

“This extends to the suppliers

assessments for continuous

and purchasers we work with, and

improvement.

some degree of education is nec-

But of course, implementing

essary with suppliers who may not

a system across an entire global

be familiar with the new demands

operation that spans 40 hotels,

of the system. As part of our new

resorts and serviced suites

process, we now audit our suppli-

across Asia, Oceania, North

ers to ensure they recognise the

America and Europe was not

specific products and are able to

without its challenges.

meet the new requirements.”

Whitehead acknowledges

Pan Pacific has seven proper-

that there is a need for a more

ties across Singapore, which is

standardised approach to food

the main hub of its Asia-Pacific

safety and hygiene in Europe

footprint. Having multiple proper-

and Australia. In Asia, he notes,

ties across the city enables a far

there are often more complex

more collaborative approach

food preparation processes.

across its supplier base, not only

“There’s the whole training

in the training of these suppliers

element to consider,” White-

AUGUST 2018

but also on the auditing side.

FOOD & DRINK

“ We work with the suppliers to help them to improve their operations. This is where we train them and when they improve we sign longer term agreements with them moving forward” — Golden Whitehead, Vice President, Food & Beverage at Pan Pacific Hotels Group 167

PARKROYAL on Pickering, Singapore

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

PA N PA C I F I C H O T E L S G R O U P

168

“There will always be demand for F&B. A good hotel, or a good restaurant, will rebuild their concept for today’s market with an eye on tomorrow’s. Then they innovate and redefine it again” — Golden Whitehead, Vice President, Food & Beverage at Pan Pacific Hotels Group AUGUST 2018

Pan Pacific Melbourne, Australia

FOOD & DRINK

ness and packaging of products.

“We work with the suppliers to help them to enhance their operations,” says Whitehead. “This is where we train them and when they improve we sign longer term agreements with them.”

These inspections also provide an opportunity to streamline the supply base and generate cost efficiencies where possible.

Through the auditing process, Pan Pacific looks at what other prod-

Lime, PARKROYAL on Pickering, Singapore

ucts certain suppliers sell and as opposed to purchasing from 10 different suppliers, there will be

Pan Pacific looks at its leading

one or two key suppliers that both

suppliers and issues a guideline

sell the required products but also

that it measures the supplier per-

comply with the food safety man-

formance against.

agement standards.

“You really need to know the

The second task that Whitehead

whole chain,” says Whitehead.

was tasked with was the develop-

“Where everything comes from,

ment of a design guideline for all

how we receive it and then how

the hotel F&B operations across

we store, clean, cook and serve

the brands. One of the major driv-

the product.”

ing forces of this guideline has

The company also works with

been the question of in house pro-

hygienists to look further at the

duction versus outsourcing, which

supplier performance, analysing

again is testament to the modern

storage facilities, fridges, cleanli-

guest expectation. a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

169

PA N PA C I F I C H O T E L S G R O U P

“It’s all about keeping the guest in house and staying with us,” says White-

through third party delivery services.

“All our new hotels still have breakfast,

head. “Guest experience is crucial and

lunch and dinner services, but we offer

outsourcing is key to enabling greater

smaller order dining,” he says. “The

guest experience.”

hotels don’t have numerous F&B outlets

With that in mind, Whitehead set out

as compared to older hotels, instead,

a guideline to redesign a far more efficient

they come with an all-day dining room

and freestanding kitchen concept. This

and maybe one bar or lounge.

wouldn’t remove the kitchen services, but

“With so much choice in the wider

tailor to the technology enabled guest

market, we’ve had to think differently.”

who would prefer to order into the hotel

Thinking differently in this instance

170

AUGUST 2018

FOOD & DRINK

is exemplified by a separate postcode

tives, the Group is investing in its people

onsite, one that guests can order deliv-

and customers by developing pro-

ery services to the hotel, therefore

grammes which are built on its DNA of

keeping the guest within the hotel but

being “Sincerely Yours” – which makes

catering to the modern day experience

sure that whatever the Group does

they expect.

comes from the heart. In always putting

All these changes are in line with Pan Pacific Hotels Group’s brand refresh, which strategy is about making impact-

their interests and needs first, the Group keeps the trust of its customers.

As with any transformation, or imple-

ful changes with eyes on the future.

mentation of change, the journey never

Besides unveiling bold marketing initia-

really ends. As the industry continues to

171

Summit Lounge, Pan Pacific Hanoi, Vietnam

a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

PA N PA C I F I C H O T E L S G R O U P

172

Pan Pacific Beijing, China evolve, so too must the industry players

improvement right across the board.

and Whitehead is aware of this and recog- They are scoring better with our food nises the company must continuously

health and safety management sys-

strive for improvement.

tems and delivering a consistently

“These guidelines are working docu-

high-quality product across both our

ments. We must constantly improve the

Pan Pacific and PARKROYAL brands.”

product going forward,” he says.

Over the next five years, Pan Pacific

“Right now, I’m temperature checking Hotels Group will look to add more hotel all of our properties to see where we

properties across Asia-Pacific and

are along this journey and I’m happy

Europe and widening its global opera-

to say that there are sure signs of

tions. Interestingly, as the footprint gets

AUGUST 2018

FOOD & DRINK

173

Cinnamon Show Kitchen, PARKROYAL Penang Resort, Malaysia

bigger, Whitehead believes the food and

A good hotel, or a good restaurant, will

beverage offering will get smaller.

rebuild their concept for today’s market

The reason for this, he feels, is the rise of third-party food delivery companies.

with an eye on tomorrow’s. Then they will innovate and redefine it again.”

“You can now eat whatever you want, whenever you want it,” he says. “Hotels in the future will design smaller F&B offerings, which are super-focused on what the consumer wants from their dining – and

Sincerely Yours

not necessarily hotel – experience.”

“There will always be demand for F&B. a s i a . b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

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