Singapore Business Review (July - September 2023)

Rhonda Wong CEO, Ohmyhome p. 24

FROM THE EDITOR

CIRCULATION: 18,000 ONLINE READERSHIP: 410,000 monthly unique clicks through Google Analytics

The SingaporeBusinessReview is the highest circulating and best read business magazine in Singapore. Our online readership has an average of 215,000 unique viewers, according to Google Analytics. We won the Business Trade Media of the Year Award at the 2017 MPAS Awards.

Do reach out to us if you would like us to tell your story to our readers via print and online advertising or events.

EDITORIAL MANAGER

PRINT PRODUCTION EDITOR

PRODUCTION TEAM

GRAPHIC ARTISTS

COMMERCIAL TEAM

Tessa Distor

Anna Mae Rodriguez

Noreen Jazul

Consuelo Marquez

Frances Gagua

Olivia Tirona

Simon Engracial

Emilia Claudio

Janine Ballesteros

Jenelle Samantila

Cristina Mae Posadas

ADVERTISING Reiniela Hernandez reiniela@charltonmediamail.com

AWARDS Julie Anne Nuñez awards@charltonmediamail.com

ADMINISTRATION Eucel Balala accounts@charltonmediamail.com

EDITORIAL sbr@charltonmediamail.com

SINGAPORE

101 Cecil St., #17-09 Tong Eng Building, Singapore 069533 +65 3158 1386

HONG KONG

Room 1006, 10th Floor, 299 QRC, 287-299 Queen's Road Central, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong +852 3972 7166

MIDDLE EAST

FDRK4467,Compass Building,Al Shohada Road, AL Hamra Industrial Zone-FZ,Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates

www.charltonmedia.com

PRINTING

Times Printers Private Limited 18 Tuas Avenue 5, Singapore 639342 www.timesprinters.com

a member of Times Publishing Limited

Can we help?

Editorial Enquiries: If you have a story idea or press release, please email our news editor at sbr@charltonmediamail.com. To send a personal message to the editor, include the word “Tim” in the subject line.

Media Partnerships: Please email sbr@charltonmediamail.com with “Partnership” in the subject line.

Subscriptions: Please email subscriptions@charltonmedia.com.

Singapore Business Review is published by Charlton Media Group. All editorial materials are covered by copyright and may not be reproduced without consent. Contributions are invited but copies of all work should be kept as Singapore Business Review can accept no responsibility for loss. We will, however, take the gains.

Sold on newsstands in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, London, and New York. Also out in sbr.com.sg with an online readership of 215,000 monthly unique visitors*.

*Source: Google Analytics

**If you’re reading the small print you, may be missing the big picture caveat emptor

Millennials, particularly from the Asia-Pacific region, are emerging as a transformative force in the art market, with data revealing their growing significance as buyers at renowned auction houses like Christie’s, Sotheby’s, and Phillips. Learn more about the evolving tastes and economic power of a new generation on page 26.

Parallelly, as businesses adapt to changing market demands, there is an increasing emphasis on sustainability. We delve into the risks of greenwashing. Read on page 12.

In another article on page 24, we put the spotlight on a womenonly founded prop-tech company, Ohmyhome, which has made history by listing on Nasdaq in 2023. This development exemplifies how technological advancements and entrepreneurship are driving change and creating new opportunities in the business world.

These diverse developments reflect the ever-changing business landscape in Singapore and beyond. Read on and enjoy!

Tim Charlton

Singapore Business Review is available at the airport lounges or onboard the following airlines:

Singapore Business Review is available at the following clubs and hotels:

American Club

Hollandse Club

Laguna National Orchid Country Club

Raffles Country Club

Raffles Town Club

RSYC

Seletar Club

Sentosa Golf Club

Singapore Cricket Club

Singapore Island Country Club

Swiss Club

The Tanglin Club

The China Club

The Legends Fort

Canning Park

The Pines Club

Tower Club

Singapore

Fullerton Hotel

Grand Plaza Park

Royal Hotel Inter-

Continental

Le Meridien Orchard

New Park Hotel

Pan Pacific

Raffles Hotel

The Hilton

The Regent Singapore

The Ritz Carlton

The Swiss Hotel

Stamford

Traders Hotel

Singapore

Darby Park

And at 16 serviced residences

PUBLISHER & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Tim Charlton

FUTURE FOCUSED

On

Daily news from Singapore MOST READ

On the first day of January 2023, Singapore made available the overseas network and enterprises (ONE) pass, a new visa that offers five-year validity. Amongst the qualifications required for the visa is a $30,000 monthly salary. Although the visa is designed to help Singapore attract top global talent, some businesses may face challenges in meeting the salary threshold.

MOST READ COMMENTARY

Bridging Loans: an alternate option for clients affected by TDSR

BY Satish Bakhda

As property prices in Singapore continue to rise, more and more clients are finding themselves affected by the Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR) framework. This framework, introduced in 2013, sets a limit on the amount of debt a borrower can take on based on their income and other financial commitments. Though, securing financing for property purchases was harder for some clients.

Starting in September, Singapore will heavily reduce the use of public resources in private debt recovery. This is because under the amended Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act (IRDA), all bankruptcy proceedings will now be handled by private trustees, except for cases deemed as public interest, marking a significant departure from the previous bankruptcy regime in Singapore.

Rethinking fintech growth with a productled approach

BY Mark Velthus

Whilst APJ economies, including Singapore, are at lower risk of a recession, they will see a spillover from the broader global slowdown. The fintech industry, in particular, is facing a new set of challenges. The industry saw incredible growth because of the digital transformation boom that happened during the pandemic. Everything went online, then management of finances followed.

Three ways retailers can serve ‘budgeteers’

With inflationary pressures as a top concern, retailers are faced with a new challenge to adjust price strategies for customers who insist on value for money without sacrificing sustainability and quality. These consumers are called budgeteers, according to marketing firm Euromonitor International. This type of customer is adopting a new spending behaviour, “sustainability by proxy.”

The race to gender equity for Asia’s startups

BY Priya Lakshmi and Gaurav Arora

New study finds that 75% of women in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region want to learn new tech skills. Similarly, 74% of women in Singapore want to upskill, but more than 54% cite lack of time as the greatest barrier. How can we support greater women’s participation to build a diverse and vibrant startup industry? Entrepreneurship is the engine of a thriving economy and driving growth.

ONE Pass visa dilemmas balance talent attraction and salary pressures

Private trustees take over bankruptcy cases in Singapore

OPPORTUNITIES

DOCUSIGN

DocuSign helps organizations connect and automate how they prepare, sign, act on and manage agreements. As part of the DocuSign Agreement Cloud, DocuSign offers eSignature, the world’s #1 way to sign electronically on practically any device, from almost anywhere, at any time.

Today, over a million customers and more than a billion users in over 180 countries use the DocuSign Agreement Cloud to accelerate the process of doing business and simplify people’s lives.

NORDVPN OPPORTUNITIES

NordVPN is the world’s most advanced VPN service provider, used by millions of internet users worldwide. NordVPN provides double VPN encryption, Onion Over VPN, and guarantees privacy with zero tracking. One of the key features of the product is Threat Protection, which blocks malicious websites, malware, trackers, and ads. NordVPN is very user-friendly, offers one of the best prices on the market, and has over 5,000 servers in 60 countries worldwide.

OPPORTUNITIES

S P JAIN SCHOOL OF GLOBAL MANAGEMENT

S P Jain School of Global Management (SP Jain) is an Australian business school with campuses in Mumbai, Dubai, Singapore and Sydney. The School offers a plethora of undergraduate, postgraduate, professional and doctoral programs with a motive of crafting leaders for the 21st century workplace. The learning experience provided by them is modern, relevant and truly global. Their full-time MBA programs have significant recognition as evinced through global rankings by Forbes, The Economist and The Financial Times to name a few.

To know more, please visit www.spjain.sg

ERA to reshape the future of APAC real estate with AI PropTech

analytics function to illustrative timelines.

The latter, in particular, has proven instrumental to Gideon’s work, serving as handy visual sales aids. “It used to be that we had to sketch out detailed payment timelines by hand for homeowners, but now that there are templates which we can tap on, the pitching process goes a lot smoother,” said Gideon.

On a corporate level, ERA has allocated $5.2m towards proptech development for 2023 and is yielding tangible gains on its innovations too.

The implementation of a ChatGPT model in March, for instance, saw app adoption by agents rise by 30%. Moreover, since the launch of SALES+ in 2022, there has been a 45% year-on-year surge in agents achieving commissions exceeding $1m.

These positive outcomes highlight the transformative impact of ERA’s innovations, but what do they mean for the future?

The path ahead for ERA

When it comes to cutting-edge new technologies with market-changing potential, ERA Realty Network (ERA) is no stranger to being a pioneer.

Now, the largest international real estate agency in Singapore is on the cusp of another property technology (proptech) innovation. Following the debut of its super app SALES+ in August 2022, the agency elevated its flagship tool’s capabilities with Artificial Intelligence (AI) integration using OpenAI’s Generative Pre-trained Transformer 3.5 (GPT-3.5).

From June 2023, these AI-powered real estate tools will be available to the rest of ERA Asia Pacific’s regional offices, including Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.

This rollout aligns with ERA’s annual theme of “Enrich Lives, Embrace Tech” wherein realtors are technologically empowered to benefit consumers, specifically with prompt engineering, which involves guiding AI to craft high-quality copies with a human voice.

“Integrating AI into our tech offerings was a natural next step to take for us. It [AI] bolstered our agents’ ability to do what they do best, and to do it faster, and to also do it better,” said Marcus Chu, Chief Executive Officer of ERA Singapore, ERA Asia Pacific & APAC Realty.

“By rolling out our AI proptech tools to the rest of ERA’s APAC offices, we are able to take that synergy and harness it to drive even more growth and fuel our success across the region.” Adding on, Marcus firmly believes that ERA Singapore’s proptech investments are a solid bedrock for building fruitful relationships between clients and agents.

“With our AI proptech tool powered by ChatGPT, ERA agents are able to streamline their work processes, giving them more time to foster meaningful business relationships. This newfound efficiency is key to driving success for both our agents and the clients they serve,” expressed Marcus.

SALES+ app: A results-yielder for all

Ask Gideon Sim, an ERA Senior Division Director, his thoughts about SALES+ and he will praise its all-round utility.

“I use SALES+ for everything, every day. For example, I tapped on the ‘Plus’ function, which is powered by ChatGPT, to script an entire series of Instagram reels. It’s also useful for summarising in-depth market updates for sharing,” said Gideon about the app, which has valuable features – ranging from a property

In 1996, ERA broke new ground by launching a Mobile Access Network that gave associates market information instantly. Then in 2013, iERA, an in-house mobile app was launched, notching ERA yet another industry first. Now, under the leadership of its current CEO, ERA is poised to achieve new technological milestones with the introduction of the Sales+ app.

With competition intensifying in the real estate industry, Marcus strongly believes that proptech innovation is the way forward.

“Technology is pivotal for staying competitive; it is why we are always striving to make headways in our digital solutions,” Marcus shared. “With our proptech, ERA agents not only have the ability to adapt to fast-changing market conditions, but are also able to stay ahead of the pack.”

Taking a broader perspective, this will solidify ERA’s identity as “a dynamic, everevolving business” among consumers and agents, Marcus said.

Shedding light on ERA’s plans to achieve its vision, Marcus added on by sharing about new breakthroughs that are waiting in the wings.

“We intend to implement more tech enhancements, such as a new listing portal, an in-app visual o ptimisation function, as well as advanced content analysis. Agents will also enjoy a seamless experience when they submit their transactions online,” he said.

“And that’s just a glimpse of what’s on the horizon for the coming months.”

The

real estate agency is poised to make waves with its all-in-one app with AI integration.

With our proptech, ERA agents not only have the ability to adapt to fast-changing market conditions but are also able to stay ahead of the pack

Marcus Chu, CEO of ERA Singapore, ERA Asia Pacific & APAC Realty

MoH's Healthier SG lowers hospitals’ load and cuts spending

With the establishment of ambulatory care centres, some of Singapore’s big hospitals resolved their overwhelmed capacity. This same strategy is applied with The Ministry of Health’s Healthier SG, which seeks to place higher focus on preventive care with an ecosystem-based approach that engaged general practitioners and community care centres, offloading the burden from tertiary care hospitals.

“The main idea behind Healthier SG is to shift the emphasis of the healthcare system from treatment to prevention. In the long run, this will produce better health outcomes for the population at a lower cost. For this to happen, the locus of activity needs to shift from hospitals to community care providers, particularly GPs,” Dr. Alan Ong, principal at Boston Consulting Group (BCG), told Singapore Business Review

Under the health reform, there are four goals:

i) deploying family doctors for preventive care, developing health plans for lifestyle adjustments; ii) regular health screening and vaccinations, activating community partners to lead healthier lifestyles; iii) launching national enrolment exercise for residents to commit to seeing one family doctor and a health plan; and iv) setting up IT and manpower plans as well as financing measures to operate Healthier SG.

Naithy Cyriac, a partner at YCP Solidiance, said the health reform also helps create a more seamless patient journey. For example, patients will first go to family doctors for preliminary health assessment; and for further consultation, they may be transfered to other tertiary hospitals.

She noted that since some community care centres might not have the most sophisticated medical equipment, a bigger hospital will act on the treatment that will need advanced technology. “Instead of patients directly going to bigger hospitals, they can go to a family doctor, first, and build that relationship and trust with them,” said Cyriac, in an interview with Singapore Business Review.

Another way that health reform can help big hospitals is to promote the role of primary care through smaller clinics that large private hospital networks have now been focusing on. Cyriac cited Raffles Medical Group, IHH Healthcare, and Fullerton Health as some of the wellknown healthcare groups investing in primary care facilities.

“The large private hospital groups are actively engaging their customer base by sharing insights on their website and allowing residents to register interest/enrol for the Healthier SG initiative easily,” said YCP Solidiance’s Cyriac.

The implementation of Healthier SG relies on the national enrolment programme, which will be in phases starting in the second half of 2023. The Ministry of Health will encourage residents aged 60 years and above to enroll with a family doctor in mid-2023, followed by those in the 40-59 age group in the next two years.

Lower healthcare spending

A major goal of Healthier SG is to reduce long-term growth in healthcare expenditures. Preventive care is often substantially cheaper than treatment, whilst also resulting in better health outcomes for the population.

Evidence for this comes from systems such as Kaiser Permanente which have a strong emphasis on prevention woven throughout all aspects of their interactions with patients, said BCG’s Ong. However, it is also important to recognise that cost savings will take time to materialise.

Ong said the initial phases of Healthier SG will boost recommended health screening and to increase uptake of regular follow-up and management of chronic diseases.

“This will have a short-term impact of increasing strain on the health care system as more people are found with medical conditions, and more people come forward for the management of their chronic conditions,” Ong said.

Instead of patients directly going to bigger hospitals, they can go to a family doctor, first, and build that relationship and trust with them

HEALTHCARE

The main idea behind HealthierSG is to shift the emphasis of the healthcare system from treatment to prevention (Photo from HealthierSG.gov.sg)

“However, in the long run, earlier detection and intervention will result in a lower burden of disease. It is therefore important to plan with an understanding that Healthier SG will take time to show the desired outcomes of lower cost and better quality of life,” Ong explained.

YCP Solidiance’s Cyriac said Healthier SG’s goal of lowering cost is a long-term effect, given the reform’s phased approach.

The idea is that the reform seeks to address vulnerability to chronic disease by enabling patients to have regular annual consultations with their family doctor for early diagnosis and treatment of potential symptoms linked to chronic diseases, Cyriac said.

One way of lowering the cost of healthcare under Healthier SG is also implementing more affordable drugs. This is where the pharmacist’s cooperation with GPs and family doctors will come in.

“Since more people register with GPs, it will be easier to deliver the screening in a community base. For example, through local clinics, people can receive recommended diabetes screenings to identify patients’ health conditions. With the increased screening coverage, patients could be identified at an early stage,” Chia Hsuan Lin, an analyst at GlobalData, told Singapore Business Review.

“It will be essential for GPs and pharmacies to provide medical consultations and personal advice,” added Lin. Spending on early-stage treatments or moderate to severe treatments is seen to increase and the government’s goal is to control the overall spending, making it more affordable, said Lin. Lowering healthcare expenses will especially help the elderly, who face severe financial burdens since they are the most vulnerable to illnesses.

Amongst the factors that prompted the new health reform is the growing geriatric population in Singapore. One in four residents is expected to reach 65 years old and above by 2023.

Singapore also observed the prevalence of chronic diseases that include hypertension and hyperlipidaemia, which went up to worryingly high levels, at 32% and 37%, respectively.

Notable subsidies, according to Cyriac, include access to fully subsidised recommended screenings (type 2 diabetes, hypertension, breast/cervical/colorectal cancer etc.) and vaccinations (influenza and pneumococcal vaccinations for 65+ years old etc.). “The first onboarding consultation with the family doctor will be free for residents. Additionally, residents will no longer need to co-pay part of their bills (usually 15%) when opting for MediSave

for chronic care management,” she said. Expenses for yearly check-ins for family doctors will also be subsidised by the government and family doctors will receive an annual service fee, tiered based on health risk profile, scope of needed care, and progress made in preventive care or chronic disease management for the enrolled residents.

“Additionally, to ensure consolidation and sharing of patient health metrics, a oneoff grant will also be offered to the primary clinics to encourage digitalisation,” said YCP Solidiance’s Cyriac.

GPs that are part of the primary care network (PCN) will also get funding and administrative support from the Ministry of Health (MOH).

“This initiative further incentivises family doctors to join the PCN. In 2018, 340 clinics were part of the PCN and have grown to 670 clinics today compared to about 1,800 clinics in total in Singapore,” said Cyriac.

Digital challenge

HealthierSG’s IT segment will also upgrade digital health apps and wearables to decrease manual tasks and improve health diagnosis. An example is the Healthy365 (H365) app, which monitors other aspects of healthy living with a diet logging tool that tracks daily caloric intake and provides personalised feedback based on dietary patterns.

But implementing advanced tech may face cybersecurity issues. A 2022 study from Philips Singapore showed that only 23% of Singaporeans are sharing their health data regularly with their doctors or

healthcare providers. Amongst their top concerns are data privacy (35%) and a lack of know-how on sharing health data (20%).

HealthierSG can address this challenge first, by giving patients the choice of what data may be shared, said Cyriac. “The data access is fully controlled by the patient, so they can choose what can be shared,” she added.

Second is, providing a one-time grant or subsidy to help family doctors receive the upgrade and implement the digitalisation processes needed to address privacy concerns. MOH is pushing for a framework for the secure collection of health data throughout Singapore’s healthcare ecosystem as embodied in the Health Information Bill still pending approval in the Parliament.

“The bill will mandate licensed healthcare providers to contribute patients’ summarised medical records into the National Electronic Health Record, so as to enable access to patients’ health data by their care teams across different settings. It will also mandate data governance, IT, and cybersecurity capabilities by healthcare providers and data intermediaries,” as mentioned in the whitepaper.

MOH is also studying provisions in the bill as it will also implement clear and stringent safeguards to ensure proper handling of health information.

Another obstacle to digital apps is encouraging the elderly population to use them. The expansion of eldercare centres (ECs) may help and HealthierSG seeks to grow the ECs from 119 currently to 220 by 2025.

One of the healthcare reform’s goals is developing health plans for lifestyle adjustments (Photo from HealthierSG.gov.sg)

Savills warns of higher cost of doing business in SG due to ABSD rate hike

The government’s move to increase the Additional Buyer Stamp Duty (ABSD) for purchasing property may create friction in the smooth functioning economy of Singapore, an industry expert at Savills has warned.

Alan Cheong, Savills Singapore’s head of research, said there will be a time when the availability of rentable properties for foreigners who come to Singapore for work will diminish. By dissuading Singaporeans and PRs who buy properties for investments, there will come a time when the ratio of available properties for rent relative to the size of the tenant market will decline.

“Over time, once economic recovery takes place, there will be an increase of foreigners coming here to work again. As the number of foreign workers coming here keeps increasing, by chasing investors into the residential market, we are actually crimping the supply of rentable properties and that will tighten up the rental market,” said Cheong. “The long term implication is, it just raises the cost of doing business here in Singapore,” he added.

The hike in cost also restricts Singaporeans with money from investing in real estate, which prompted Cheong to ask: “Is it wrong [for them to invest] in real estate? Or buy real estate for their children? Why stop people from buying something that goes up in value?”

In his view, there should not be any additional measures on taxation of properties given that the total debt service ratio (TDSR) is already in place.

Earlier, the government raised the ADSB to manage property investment demand.

Other options

With higher ABSD rates in place, Cheong advised investors to look beyond the private residential sector of Singapore.

“There are conservation shophouses, there are strata offices, whole office blocks, retail, there is also industrial and hotels. There’s

no shortage of investable sectors in the sub sectors within the Singapore real estate market,” he said.

Meanwhile, for foreigners who still wish to buy properties in Singapore, particularly those who came to Singapore as a worker or professional, the expert from Savills advises them to wait a “bit longer” and rent an apartment first.

“Professionals who come here and contribute to the economy have [high] chances of getting permanent residency (PR). Once they get the PR, they just have to pay 5% ABSD,” he said.

Cheong dished out the same advice to ultra-wealthy foreigners, given that they have a better chance of obtaining permanent residency or Singapore citizenship. “Sit back, wait, and get legal advice on how to get your PR or citizenship. It takes time, maybe over a year, two years or three years,” he said.

“If it’s their first property purchase, they will then be levied with no ABSD if they got a Singapore citizenship, or an ABSD of 5% if they are a permanent resident,” he added.

However, he underscored that ultra wealthy individuals are “pretty inelastic to taxes,” so they will likely still pay 60% ABSD.

Unlike foreigners, Singaporeans are not as affected by the rate hike. But the hike will be “stingy” for citizens who plan to buy a second property.

“[Singaporeans, particularly] Gen X buy second properties on behalf of their children, because they want to set their children off on a better path,” Cheong said.

Instead of buying the properties on their children’s behalf, Cheong advised them to pass on the savings that they have amassed and let their children buy the properties themselves.

“If the children buy it as their first property, they will not [be charged an] ABSD,” he said.

Alan Cheong, head of research at Savills Singapore

There’s no shortage of investable sectors in the sub sectors within the Singapore real estate market

Government raised the ABSD rate for foreigners buying properties in Singapore from 30% to 60%

Continual innovation in hospitality key to adapting amidst

the hospitality industry must continuously innovate and have a future-proof mindset when developing new hotels. This is the case for Far East Hospitality, which has worked on a variety of brands to meet the ever-growing spectrum of guest types. On top of this, the company also chooses to stay and develop scale within specific territories where there is a strong rule of law, good political stability, and tourism growth potential.

Kiong added that for companies and their leaders to succeed in their respective industries, it is important to have a clear, compelling, and visionary narrative that is rooted in proper research, logic, and truth. “The ability to sell this narrative is the starting point,” he said.

After years of being sent to a sudden standstill due to the COVID-19 pandemic, recovery has been challenging for many industries, including the hospitality sector. The lack of cash flow caused some to completely close, whilst some survivors considered rebranding or renovation to enhance competitiveness.

As the Chief Executive Officer of Far East Hospitality, Arthur Kiong initiated transformative changes in the company’s operations and led the group’s expansion to greater heights. Kiong joined the company in July 2012 and has since provided key leadership that has helped in the growth of the organisation’s hospitality property development and management business through joint ventures and acquisitions. Far East Hospitality now has over 90 properties across numerous countries, which includes Australia, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Hungary, Malaysia, New Zealand, as well as Singapore.

With more than 35 years of experience in hospitality, Kiong has received numerous awards for his leadership and contribution to the industry. Most recently, he received the Executive of the Year - Hospitality & Leisure

award in the Singapore Business Review Management Excellence Awards 2022. The awards programme honours the most outstanding leaders, executives, and teams in Singapore who have made substantial and tangible contributions to their businesses. It also recognises employee engagements and COVID management initiatives that have not only left a positive impact on customers but also on the workforce.

Future-proofing in hospitality

Given that hospitality is a brick-andmortar industry, Kiong emphasised that its pace of change is much slower than the pace of political economic, technological, psychographic, and demographic change. As such, the sector constantly finds itself “on the back foot,” with hotel models of the past no longer being successful today and investments taking a long time to reach a return of investment.

However, Kiong believes that companies in

This narrative must then be followed by an alignment with all internal stakeholders whilst companies muster all resources to move in the direction of the defined mission. Kiong then emphasised that execution takes courage and must be led from the top to ensure that a company not only delivers what is promised in terms of quality but also does so sustainably.

Leader’s purpose to serve

As he leads Far East Hospitality through numerous adversities, Kiong shared that leadership is more than a title but a privilege. Given this, he has created the “Acts of Grace”, which has since become the company’s service values.

Each letter in the “Acts of Grace” stands for a unique attribute that serves as philosophy to all staff members: Attitude, Customer, Team, Savviness, Observation, Fulfilment, Gratitude, Responsiveness, Anticipation, Change, and Engender Trust.

Kiong also constantly assess how he may add value to those who work for him, with him and ultimately, the company he works for. He explained, “I am given a season to steward an organisation and the purpose is to serve others. To not only do good business but to do good in business.”

Far East Hospitality CEO Arthur Kiong answers questions on leading a resilient company amidst challenges in the hospitality industry.

ever-changing guest types

I am given a season to steward an organisation and the purpose is to serve others. To not only do good business but to do good in business

Arthur Kiong, CEO, Far East Hospitality

Companies need an eco-overhaul to sidestep greenwashing perils—analysts

With greenwashing threats on the rise, experts outline four key board responsibilities to firmly anchor sustainability in business values.

More often than not, businesses unconsciously overstate their sustainability goals. This prevalent tendency for businesses to inadvertently exaggerate is the reason why companies in Singapore, like NTUC Fairprice, appointed a chief sustainability officer.

Whilst it is a step in the right direction, remedial efforts should not stop there as there should also be strong collaboration between the board of directors and the management of the firm.

Sara Galloway, co-head of global sustainability practice and consultant at Russell Reynolds Associates (RRA), cautioned that without successful collaboration, these firms run the perilous risk of being labeled as greenwashers, undermining their credibility in the eyes of stakeholders and the public.

“If the board is not supporting the management and if management’s not singing from the same hymn sheet, you start to get a disconnect, and you find that sustainability efforts risk becoming disjointed or unsuccessful,” Galloway told the Singapore Business Review.

She also said the disconnect between management and the board will leave employees looking for another job.

At the stage where ESG (environmental, social and governance) is of utmost importance in businesses, Gabriel Nam, partner at Page Executive, said businesses must take a more proactive approach to turn sustainability into their advantage apart from just fulfilling compliance reporting.

Like Galloway, Naithy Cyriac, a partner at YCP Solidiance, underscored collaboration because it will help identify and pursue short-term, medium-term, and long-term ESG priorities internally and externally.

Human resource experts must discuss key responsibilities for board directors to enhance ESG strategies.

Four essential responsibilities

When nearly 70% of businesses in Singapore admitted that they either inadvertently overstated or inaccurately represented their sustainability efforts, Galloway said board directors need to be educated on the material ESG risks and opportunities for the company.

According to RRA’s study, the first key responsibility, educating directors on material sustainability risks and opportunities to equip the board to productively contribute to their company’s sustainability strategy discussions.

Page Executive’s Nam said the board should educate the company on how ESG can eliminate risk and monitor the firm to ensure that the company will see the long-term perspective of sustainability development.

“The responsibility when it comes to sustainability is to ensure that the sustainability agenda will not be isolated, and then embedded into business and strategy whenever possible,” Nam told the Singapore Business Review YCP Solidiance’s Cyriac said the board also needs to review the corporate purpose and culture of the firm to ensure that it

is aligned with a new focus on sustainability, using a “review, re-align and reward” framework.

“This leads to realigning what your goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) are, and realigning what the organisation structure should be to have a better focus on sustainability,” said Cyriac.

An example of this is a company included in the German MDAX, which launched multiple workshops with external advisors to educate its board on sustainability. The firm, which has $14.5b (EUR10b) revenue, included presentations from consultancy firms that tackled sustainable leadership.

Locally, Singapore Exchange is already doing sustainability training starting in 2022, which allows directors of listed companies to join at least one of the eight sustainability training courses to help them be equipped with sustainability matters. The second key responsibility is to integrate ESG risks and objectives into the board processes and all the internal control and management systems that are linked with it, said Galloway.

Take, for example, an apparel manufacturer in Canada that has been integrating sustainability factors throughout its responsibilities. It started prioritising codifying sustainability oversight in its corporate governance and Social Responsibility Committee Charter and disclosing data for multiple external frameworks.

The next key responsibility is to oversee key sustainability risks, opportunities, and management’s key performance indicator or KPI on an ongoing basis and in close partnership with the management team.

This is what an American firm in the organic food distribution industry is doing as it implements the company’s policies and strategies to address environmental, social, and governance concerns. It includes sustainability and corporate responsibility from a corporate governance standpoint and recommends any modifications to address evolving requirements of various stakeholders.

To read the full story, go to https://sbr.com.sg/

Sara Galloway

Gabriel Nam

Naithy Cyriac

The board must review the corporate purpose and culture of the firm to ensure that it is aligned with a new focus on sustainability

Exploring the Progressive Impact of Pantai Hospital Kuala Lumpur

A Look Back at the Hospital’s Performance of Excellence.

Throughout the continued recovery stages of the pandemic, hospitals have been the main point of contact for communities alike. Having served as the backbone of health systems, it is imperative that they ensure ongoing functionality, operation work, and resilience, as well as the safety of all patients and employees. In today’s medical landscape where the health needs of patients vary, resilience is day-to-day, which gives hospitals opportunities to adapt and transform.

For Pantai Hospital Kuala Lumpur (PHKL), putting patients first is no new concept. Having been the first hospital in Kuala Lumpur to vaccinate government healthcare workers and those from other hospitals, PHKL remains to create cultures that put patients first. What is more, the pandemic provided experience in creating ground-breaking clinical achievements as well as a strong management team for well-rounded support.

Taking a look back at their recent advances, one of PHKL’s many accolades was in winning the Team of the Year - Healthcare Award at the Malaysia Management Excellence Awards 2022. In light of this recognition, the award, which was presented by Singapore Business Review, accentuated PHKL’s continued innovation in improving patient health outcomes by the hospital’s dedicated clinical

research team. Ensuring that the coordination of clinical services to develop new treatments and value-based care is performed safely and ethically, an experienced clinical trials team of 6, is spearheaded by the hospital’s clinical research manager, Dr Wong Shin Yee.

It is also within Dr Wong’s leadership that the clinical research team has undergone 17 completed trials, and is currently conducting 22 active ongoing trials, with just 8 more coming in the near future. Their work in producing quality research and clinical trials marked further recognition in internationally esteemed medical publications such as the Lancet peer-reviewed 2020 medical journal and the Clinical Cancer Research and New England Journal of Medicine in 2022.

PHKL’s VDO Framework and Employee Engagement Initiatives

In particular, PHKL’s clinical excellence is pitted on the pragmatics of the Value Driven Outcomes (VDO) extensible framework. As this is to understand value-based care and patient health outcomes, the sustained reliance on VDO by PHKL is to create unique ways in which the hospital offers care to their patients. Moreover, the 3 segments that equate to PHKL’s VDO are Patient Experience, Patient Safety, and Clinical

Outcomes. Altogether, they supplement quality measures that are tailored to suit each medical condition.

Another core speciality that PHKL garnered recognition for was for the hospital’s resilience in enhancing employee engagement, for which they were awarded the Employee Engagement of the Year – Healthcare Award at the Malaysia Management Excellence Awards 2022. As employee engagement is operationally, a positive work-related mindset, it is vital that such opportunities are made to help hospital employees connect with their work on a more personal level. Hence, these continually pursued PHKL initiatives are known as the ‘Chat with CEO’ and the ‘Watch our Weight’ (WOW) programmes.

Connecting Employees and Patient-Centered Excellence

Since its fruition in 2018, the Chat with the CEO initiative remains to be a key, promising approach to fostering connection, safety, as well as belonging within PHKL’s working culture and environment. Most importantly, the initiative ensures that employees are aware of the support they have from PHKL’s CEO Erica Lam and the hospital’s Executive Leadership team. Serving a powerful incentive for PHKL employees that goes beyond upholding a work-life balance, irrespective of any business size is on the hospital’s WOW programme. Having been created to instil wellness benefits for employees, the programme was initiated to approach effective health promotion and the holistic development of employees. As the latest health topic was the prevalence of obesity, certain health and nutrition workshops were catered to directly influence work behaviour, attendance, and job performance.

All in all, the effectiveness of these activities accumulated to PHKL’s recognition for the two prestigious awards. Other honourable mentions included PHKL’s win in the GlobalHealth Asia-Pacific Awards.

The recognition for PHKL’s Oncology in particular is well attributed to the hospital’s decade of experience in the field. Since its establishment in 1981 with only 6 chemotherapy bays and one oncologist, PHKL has led by great means in becoming the first private hospital in Malaysia to provide cancer therapy for patients. Most notably, these awards paid homage to the goodness of patient-centred high-quality care that PHKL exudes to both the local and international communities. Above all, PHKL continues to enhance the patient experience by consistently demonstrating excellence through their clinical expertise as well as going above and beyond for compassionate care.

PHKL continues to enhance the patient experience by consistently demonstrating excellence through their clinical expertise as well as going above and beyond for compassionate care

Erica Lam, Chief Executive Officer at Pantai Hospital Kuala Lumpur

Developers face new requirements as gov’t safeguards property market from AML/TF

The new anti-money laundering and terrorism financing requirements will take effect on 28 June.

Come 28th of June this year, the government of Singapore is introducing new anti-money laundering and anti-terrorism financing measures for property developers and for good reason.

In 2016, two real estate agents were fined for failing to report suspicious property transactions: one involving a a bungalow in Sentosa Cove worth $23.8m and another involving a new condominium unit. Both agents dealt with individuals who were later found guilty of conducting illegal activities. Making sure such incidents don’t happen again and to keep up with international standards, Singapore is dead set on tightening up regulations.

“Given the vibrancy of the real estate market in Singapore, the importance of having effective laws and regulations in place to safeguard against the occurrence of any ML or TF activities is well-recognised,” Pat Lynn Leong, senior partner at Dentons Rodyk, told the Singapore Business Review.

The requirements

Under the new measure, developers will be required to perform risk analysis, carry out customer due diligence (CDD) measures, report suspicious transactions, and keep records for five years.

In performing risk analysis, Leong said developers must consider looking into “the profile of their purchasers and the countries which they are from or in.”

Gazalle Mok, partner at Rajah & Tann, said developers should also implement internal programmes and measures that include internal audits to test and monitor the policies, procedures and controls, with a corresponding duty to enhance them if necessary.

When carrying out CDD, Leong said developers will have to fill checklists and forms which can be found in the “Guidelines for Developers on Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing,” which was released in March. CDD is carried out in three levels: standard, simplified, and enhanced. Mok said the level of CDD will depend on the profile of the purchasers.

“The forms require the filling in of certain information such as the purchaser’s particulars or the particulars of the individual who is acting on behalf of the purchaser,” Leong said. “As for the checklist, developers may opt to use their own to conduct the CDD but must ensure that the prescribed requirements are complied with.”

Developers must complete both documents before granting an Option to Purchase (OTP) or before accepting any sum of money, including any booking fee from the purchaser. “Developers should note that CDD must be performed even for existing purchasers with whom the transaction was entered into before the implementation of the new Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing (AMLTF) requirements,” Leong underscored.

“Developers should also be aware that where CDD measures fail to be satisfactorily performed or completed, they must not grant an OTP, accept any money (including booking

fee), or enter into a Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) with the purchaser,” she added.

When there is a reason for developers to suspect their purchaser of being a terrorist under the Terrorism (Suppression of Financing) Act (TSFA) or UN Act, developers must not proceed with the issue of “options,” collect of monies, nor enter into SPAs.

“Developers must not open or maintain any account for, or hold and receive monies from an anonymous source or a purchaser with an obviously fictitious name,” Leong said.

If and when an OTP has been granted to the purchaser already, the developer must terminate the transaction, she said. Lastly, Leong said developers will need to keep a record of documents such as the OTP and SPA, for five years and make it available to the Controller of Housing.

Other documents that need to be kept include Form 3, which is the “particulars, documents and information to be provided to intending purchaser before issue of OTP, found in the First Schedule of the Housing Developers Rules,” and the “Records of Simplified Customer Due Diligence or Enhanced Customer Due Diligence Conducted” if applicable.

Heftier fines

Singapore’s more stringent measures also come with heftier fines. According to Mok, developers who fail to comply with any of the new requirements will be “guilty of an offence and be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $100,000.”

Navin Naidu, partner at Dentons Rodyk and former Deputy Public Prosecutor said developers may also face suspension or revocation of any licence that has been granted to them if found guilty of any ML or TF offence.

“However, most individual liability for money-laundering related transactions continues to be governed by the Corruption Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Offences (Confiscation of Benefits) Act (CDSA),” Naidu said.

“Individuals who knowingly, or with reason to believe, facilitate such transactions may be liable to prosecution for offences which would likely carry an imprisonment term. Persons convicted of ML or TF offences can also be disqualified from holding key appointments in developers,” Naidu added.

To read the full story, go to https://sbr.com.sg/

Given the vibrancy of the real estate market in SG, the importance [of these laws] is well-recognised

Singapore’s more stringent anti-money laundering measures come with heftier fines

Pat Lynn Leong

Gazalle Mok

Navin Naidu

MARKETING BRIEFING

Here are AI strategies that complement, not replace, human expertise

Generative AI can be used as a chatbot and trainer for store managers, and businesses that do not have the tech will fall behind, e-commerce specialists said.

When worries about job displacement hit employees in this new era of generative AI, marketing and e-commerce experts reveal ways to leverage the technology’s features for in-store management. If executed correctly, it may improve customer experience and satisfaction.

So, experts suggest using this technology as an ally instead of completely replacing the human touch.

Industry leaders, such as Intrepid Singapore CEO FanRu Meng, and AnyMind Group Managing Director for Product Development, Ryuji Takemoto, support integrating generative AI into businesses whilst preserving the essential role of human intuition and expertise.

“Tech is a tool to improve the quality of our services alongside a human expert. This is assurance that we wanted to offer, to our team, and each individual, that ChatGPT, automation, or any generative AI is not there to replace human skills,” Meng told the Singapore Business Review Varun Sharma, senior vice president for Asia Pacific and Japan at Emplifi, called generative AI a “people enhancer” because these tools cannot thrive without humans’ input of factual data sets.

Change and the unknown may frighten some due to job displacement, but it will be a boon for brands worldwide, said Chris Vincent, chief international officer at Pattern, a marketing firm.

How to use AI

The first strategy to use generative AI is to train store managers or chat managers to improve their chat services with customers, which will also enhance their experience, according to Meng.

Before AI was invented, store managers needed a trainer who would provide a dedicated session with a team. This will be removed because AI can allow store managers to ask hypothetical questions and in turn, will be given the answers to those queries.

“You can also configure that into different tongues and manners from different countries,” said Meng. “In that way, when it comes to the text-generated or text interactions, you will be able to help agents from any part of the world to… respond to the real customer in the type of manner that the customer is coming from.”

There may be different types of interactions or tones, though, when it comes to engaging with customers about electronics or fashion, he added.

Pattern’s Vincent said generative AI can also be trained in multiple languages and allows firms to provide chat support to customers worldwide. Generative AI can also learn from previous interactions, continuously improving its responses and problem-solving abilities, he said.

The second strategy is that Open AI’s invention may also be used to create a question-and-answer format. Takemoto said it could be used to create prompts in customer chats to produce certain actions such as advertising with

relevant product recommendations and return orders sent to logistics companies. The third strategy is for generative AI to be configured into a chatbot to directly answer simple questions from customers.

“What we see in ChatGPT that is different from the current chatbot is that it can process a larger data set right and give you more comprehensive [answers] and create more of a better reasoning to the answer,” said Meng.

For Emplifi’s Sharma, AI-powered chatbots can improve customer satisfaction because it cuts response time and will address concerns urgently. If a brand is not doing this, Sharma said it will fall behind competitors who are actively investing in these tools.

The fourth strategy, Takemoto said, is to create product reviews and user-generated content on social media. In this way, the business will understand the differences from competitors and use them in the marketing plan.

Takemoto said that store managers and chat managers may also use the technology to automatically generate content for advertisements and landing pages.

Sharma shared that their company has an AI tech solution that generates ready-to-publish social media copy for brands. Social media teams can place their instructions on the tool and can select customisations such as tone, emojis, hashtags, or questions.

The fifth strategy is to leverage text and image data, analyse, and explore other data utilisation methods for influencer marketing to drive more potential customers to make purchases, said Takemoto.

The sixth strategy is to use generative AI to create product descriptions to decrease manual inputs from humans, who can focus more on other essential aspects of their work, Takemoto said.

Emplifi’s Sharma cited as an example using AI for personalisation through emails that show products that are appropriate for the target audience or landing pages that offer customers content that is aligned with their needs, interests, and ideals.

To read the full story, go to https://sbr.com.sg/

Tech is a tool to improve the quality of our services alongside a human expert

Generative AI is a “people enhancer”

FenRu Meng

Chris Vincent

Varun Sharma

Pilon innovates to bridge cash flow gaps in businesses

Through the platform’s app Pilon Plus, it enables immediate payment for suppliers and extended terms for buyers.

Businesses know “cash is king” and Singaporean-owned startup, Pilon, believes that “cash flow is queen” and just as important for businesses. In a time when firms find solutions to streamline their supply chains, Pilon Co-founder and CEO Eddie Lee’s company thought of offering a platform that optimises cash flow for both suppliers and buyers.

Through their app, Pilon Plus, suppliers now get an overview of their invoices on the mobile dashboard and no longer need to call their buyers’ finance team to enquire about their payment.

The summary of total due payments in the next 30, 60, or 90 days are intuitively shown and the supplier can choose which invoice they want to get paid earlier or to get paid immediately.

When requested by the suppliers, Pilon facilitates the early payments to them while the buyers pay Pilon on the invoice due date. This will eliminate the need for the supplier to chase for payment from the buyer and free up the finance team from the buyer on enquiries calls. This in return improves efficiency on both sides of the operations. Lee also

[Suppliers] have a snapshot of the invoices of their financial health on a mobile app

revealed that they earn by getting a small percentage fee of the invoice value whenever a supplier requests early repayment.

“[Suppliers] have a snapshot of the invoices of their financial health on a mobile app, when they work with this particular buyer,” Lee told the Singapore Business Review Supply chain financing is not the only service of Pilon. Lee said they are also operating “Recharge,” a mobile app that allows employees to get their salaries in advance.

He called the process “earned wage access,” which means instead of waiting for their full salary to arrive on the 15th or 30th of the month, employees can use the Recharge app to draw down the salary they have already earned. For example, S$250 (US$190) after working for seven days. This is different from debt because the money is a portion of an employee’s salary that they have already made and is requesting for it to be paid before their payday.

“The human resources team cannot process your pay on an everyday basis, because it will be too much work for them. That’s why they do it every two weeks or in some companies one month. But with

Recharge, we allow the companies to enable their staff to draw down from their already made salary, as and when they want to,” said Lee.

How it started

Seven years ago, Lee and his partner, Alex Chua, thought of combining their expertise in finance and technology to start the company. Chua, co-founder of Pilon, already has been operating a financing team specialising in invoice financing and is one of the largest non-bank service providers in this industry.

To expand their network, their common friend, Jojo Malolos, whom they met in Cambodia, helped the duo secure an opportunity to showcase their solution to a Philippines conglomerate who are looking to reduce the cash conversion cycle for their suppliers.

When they finally rolled out their solution in the Philippines, that was when they coined the name Pilon, which was based on “piloncitos,” tiny engraved gold coins used in the country’s Archaic period. These coins eventually replaced the barter system, which was more difficult as Filipinos would trade with goods instead of money.

Since piloncitos fixed the inconvenience of barter, Lee and Chua used the name as their firm seeks to resolve the struggles in cash flow.

Just like any other startup company, Pilon’s journey wasn’t easy. Starting in 2020, as they could not fly in, the only tool they have to convince their potential client is through video calls. It was more difficult when they had to pitch against local fintech firms in the Philippines, which have the proximity and localisation advantage.

On top of that, Pilon’s integration with the local banks was also layered with hurdles as their banking partner requires them to adhere to strict technology compliance guidelines as they themselves are heavily regulated by Philippine central bank, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. One year later, Pilon launched its web app and is also now currently working with banks and financial institutions in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Singapore.

To read the full story, go to https://sbr.com.sg/

Eddie Lee, Co-Founder and CEO; and Alex Chua, Co-Founder, Pilon. (Photo courtesy of Pilon)

Phaidon proves ‘office environment is not dead’ with bigger workspace

The expanded Singapore office is seen as Phaidon International’s ‘jewel of the crown.’

Companies are still in limbo of whether their employees are best suited to work remotely or in the office. At Phaidon International, a global recruitment agency, talent consultants are finding that they prefer to work at the company’s larger office in Singapore.

To make a conducive environment for its employees, Phaidon doubled its floor space at 30 Raffles Space, expanding to an 11,000-square-foot office. The new space, which can accommodate 180 to 200 people, features flexible work areas, networking opportunities, and meeting rooms.

Andrew McNeilis, managing director of Phaidon International in Asia Pacific, said whilst they offer hybrid arrangements for employees, the “vast majority” of their

employees prefer to work at their office. He added that they invested in a lot of space because they believe that “office environment is not dead.”

“We don’t force anyone to be in the office. It’s completely by choice, but people want to be here,” McNeilis told the Singapore Business Review

The bigger office will be home to its other brands, including Selby Jennings, LVI Associates, DSJ Global, EPM Scientific, Larson Maddox, and Glocomms. Phaidon increased meeting rooms to accommodate more client interviews, meetups, and networking activities. The meeting rooms are named after rocket ships to emulate the company’s growth plans.

Andrew McNeilis

Phaidon’s logo warmly welcomes employees at the workspace’s main entrance.

3

A Starbucks coffee machine and a vending machine ensure refreshments for workers. 5

2

The aesthetic lunch room allows workers to enjoy local cuisine in style.

4

6 6

REPORT: OFFICE SPACE

More companies go for bigger collaborative spaces in post-pandemic offices

ISG Singapore, JLL Asia Pacific weigh in on fit-out trends, costs and near-future challenges.

When the COVID-19 pandemic forced office lockdowns, employees kept the image of their individual desks planted at their own respective work spaces. Since then, many companies have ditched that concept of a fixed office setup. Kelvin Hon, general manager of construction, fitout, and engineering company, ISG Singapore, said returning employees will find that their companies have transformed their offices into more collaborative spaces.

“Creative, collaborative spaces are getting bigger and they tend to take up more space within an office. Fixed offices or fixed work desks, I find those features on a decline,” Hon told Singapore Business Review

Height adjustable stations and hot desking -- whereby a number of desks are allocated for a group of workers on rotation instead of individual assignment -- are also on the rise, he said. For meeting or discussion rooms, Hon said companies want them to cater to video conferencing tools such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams.

“Basically, the buzzword has been having people communicate better with one another, rather than working in their own silos or stations,” he said, adding that since more companies are focusing on effective group communication, the finishes of new spaces tend to create the “collaborative” vibe.

‘Fit-out

styles’

Hon said companies also prefer furniture that are functional, which is why they prefer ergonomic chairs.

In terms of location, many companies still aim for the central business district. But Hon also observed a “decentralisation” in terms of companies served by ISG that are moving their “back office functions” out of the city center.

Martin Hinge, JLL Asia Pacific executive managing director for project and development services, said their clients have been investing “in better quality space to pivot the office to drive collaboration.”

The buzzword has been having people communicate better with one another

JLL’s survey showed that 56% of companies plan to have open and collaborative office space with no dedicated areas by 2025.

“As evidence of the trend to shift offices toward more collaborative environments, we see a reduction in spend on traditional office elements such as partitions,” Hinge said.

In a separate survey, JLL also found that companies believe that collaborative working is one of the primary purposes of office space.

“Therefore, the office space should be designed as a destination for employees as part of their hybrid workstyle, to encourage both new and current employees to spend time in the office. Furniture solutions that offer the flexibility of configuration help support collaborative working and are essential to achieve this goal.” JLL’s Hinge said.

According to JLL, there are three styles for fitting out offices: progressive, moderate, and traditional. These three styles differ with the percentage of enclosed offices, traditional benching, and space given to meeting rooms and agile or collaborative work zones, explained Hinge. Amongst the three, ISG

Singapore’s Hon said that many companies adopt the moderate set-up. The reason for this, Hon explained, is that the moderate style caters to “a number of job functions” and so changing workstations, for which progressive fit-outs are designed, may not be suitable.

“Humans, being creatures of habit, have to just keep going back to the same particular hot desks day in, day out, [and, likewise] they tend to use the same particular locker…That’s why companies take the moderate function whereby it’s a mix of the progressive and traditional, rather than just go full on progressive,” he said.

Based on the JLL report, the progressive style has an open floor plan with no enclosed offices, with traditional benching covering 60% of the floor area and the remaining space given to meeting rooms and agile or collaborative work zones.

The moderate style, on the other hand, has a “substantially open plan with 10% enclosed offices, with traditional methods of working covering 70% of the floor area, with the balance given to meeting rooms and agile or collaborative work zones.”

The progressive style has an open floor plan with no enclosed offices

Kelvin Hon

Martin Hinge

INDUSTRY INSIGHT: CONSTRUCTION

Competing construction firms unite to meet industry’s towering demand

The sector is expected to grow by 2.1% to $36b in 2023.

With millions to billions of dollars involved in every construction development venture, one would assume that builders compete fiercely to secure these projects. That cannot be said about Singaporean constructors that have begun to collaborate with competitors amidst an anticipated growth of the industry.

Data from the “Singapore Construction Industry Databook Series” show that Singapore’s construction industry will grow by 2.1% to reach $36b in 2023. The Building and Construction Authority (BCA), meanwhile, estimates construction demand to range between $27b and $32b.

“Companies are actively exploring collaborations with competitors to risk-share and capitalise on new build projects,” Dennis Lee, partner at RSM Singapore, told Singapore Business Review. “Construction firms have [also] been looking closely at capacity management, reducing down time and working closer with authorities to explore flexibility and efficiency in project planning,” Lee added.

Catching up

Lee said firms are also collaborating with competitors to make up for lost time during the pandemic and work on project schedules that have been pushed back.

ISG General Manager Kelvin Hon has made the same observation, citing how several contractors are working on a single development since the clients have split big projects up into separate packages.

Lee agreed that subdivision of a project into smaller phases or packages may promote concurrent activities and reduce overall project duration.

The RSM Singapore expert added that doing such will also help “limit exposure to a single main contractor that may not have the strongest of financial positions.”

“Working with a broader range of project vendors, allows developers to extract value by leveraging on a range of expertise, specialisation and

Downsides [of collaborating] include inconsistent communications in particular relating to health and safety

valuable relevant experience,” Lee added. However, he underscored that there are still projects that have fallen behind timelines despite such arrangements. “This can often be attributed to coordination challenges and having to align interests with a larger pool of working parties,” said the RSM expert.

“Other downsides [of such an arrangement] include inconsistent communications in particular relating to health and safety, which can be overlooked when having to deal with numerous parties,” he added.

Tech as foundation

Apart from coming together, firms have leaned into technologies such as Building Information Management Systems (BIMS), to avoid project delays. BIMS, in particular, helps firms in terms of “better end stage visualisation and anticipation of resource or material deficiencies which could further worsen project delays. Companies also looked hard into implementing project management systems which allowed them to reduce data gaps and better identify project shortages that could be addressed

with the necessary parties earlier,” said Lee. Hon said that adoption of technology brings enhanced efficiencies and opportunities to the construction process, whether it’s the use of game-engine derived 3D renderings to produce realistic building walkthroughs or to validate material products and specifications. Head-mounted cameras are also used to provide project updates without the requirement to physically visit site for progress reports. These technologies not only help speed up projects, but also address other challenges hampering the industry such as the manpower crunch.

Addressing obstructions

Lee said labour shortage remains one of the major challenges of the industry, given that Singapore has a heavy reliance on foreign manpower for building projects. Insufficient dormitory space throughout Singapore to house registered construction workers have also affected labour supply in the industry. To read the full story, go to https://sbr.com.sg/

Companies are actively exploring collaborations with competitors to risk-share and capitalise on new build projects

Kelvin Hon

Dennis Lee

FINANCIAL INSIGHT: M&A DEALS

Digitalisation, decarbonisation drive M&A deals in APAC

Technology, and media and telecom (TMT) was the busiest sector in the Asia Pacific region by volume with 622 deals.

Marketmaker showed that in Greater China, the largest deal in terms of value was the merger of Wuhanbased luxury electronic-vehicle (EV) maker Lotus Tech with Singaporebased special-purpose acquisition company L Catterton Asia Acquisition Corporation at SG$7.39b (US$5.5b).

Greater China’s fourth-largest deal also involved another EV maker, WM Motor Global. The company was acquired by Hong Kong’s Apollo Future Mobility for SG$2.69b (US$2b).

“Automotive is another sector [which will likely see growth] given the themes like autonomous vehicles and electric vehicles. We’re seeing a lot of investments happening and those kinds of things,” Maheria said.

Businesses’ pursuit of digital transformation has been driving dealmaking activity in Asia Pacific and several experts predict it will continue to do so for the remainder of 2023. First-quarter activity showed that the technology, media and telecom (TMT) sector contributed two of the largest deals in the region and was the busiest sector in terms of deal volume, with 622 transactions.

“Tech acquisitions have been a consistent force driving mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Last year, we saw a lot of deals revolving around artificial intelligence and the future of work,” Sapana Maheria, director for Thematic Research at GlobalData Plc, told Singapore Business Review.

“Automation and cybersecurity were very strong themes in the last few years. Cloud is also a very strong theme,” Maheria added.

These days, generative AI applications such as ChatGPT are making waves in the market. “I think innovation and tech are the two things that are going to be very strong drivers for M&As in 2023. What we expect is that as cost-cutting is going to be one of the main focus areas for businesses, we will see a lot of focus on

automation, with innovations, (and) more collaborative tools really picking up, hence, driving the M&A deal trends as well,” she said.

Within the TMT sector, Maheria said there will likely be a lot of companies focusing on cloud, cybersecurity, AI, big data, and 5G connectivity that will be acquired during the year.

In March, Singapore’s GIC Private Limited acquired a 50% stake in the Bain-owned Works Human Intelligence Co., which offers cloudmanaged service, amongst others. The deal had a value of US$2.6b, making it amongst the top deals in APAC for Q123.

Decarbonisation draws deals

Whilst digitalisation plays a dominant role in driving M&A deals in APAC, and globally, Maheria said decarbonisation is also seeing an upward trend.

“As 2030 approaches… decarbonisation is going to be one of the primary themes driving the M&A activity,” according to Maheria, adding that most companies have environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) goals set seven years down the road.Data from

At present, the theme of decarbonisation is more prominent in venture capital deals, with companies investing in businesses and products that allow them to collect data on their emissions or track their performance of goals. Maheria underscored that companies are also under pressure from their shareholders to address the various aspects of ESG. “Gen Z, which will soon be the majority of the workforce, is very aware and conscious about the carbon footprint that a company has, so companies need to be very actively investing in reducing it,” she stressed.

Given the ESG movement, Maheria also predicts that the power sector will see growth in M&A deals.

“Energy transition is one of the major themes in the sector. Hydrogen and renewable energy are massive themes as well and are getting a lot of investment,” she said. “We expect [the power sector] to remain either consistent or grow in its M&A activities in 2023.”

Banking on China

Apart from decarbonisation and digitalisation, some reports are stating that the resurgence of China’s economy will also likely drive transactions in 2023. China’s recovery, however, “may not be as smooth sailing as most have expected,” according to Sumit Punwani, partner for Corporate Finance, Deal Advisory at KPMG Singapore.

To read the full story, go to https://sbr.com.sg/

Within the TMT sector, there will be many companies focusing on cloud, cybersecurity, AI, big data, and 5G connectivity

We will see a lot of focus on automation driving M&A deal trends

Sapana Maheria

Sumit Punwani

CEO INTERVIEW

Ohmyhome eyes sector and market expansion post-Nasdaq debut

CEO Rhonda Wong brings properties vision ‘to be there for everyone’ from Singapore to the world.

When sisters Rhonda Wong and Race Wong started Ohmyhome in 2016, their first goal was to provide Singaporeans a trusted avenue to buy, sell, and rent out their homes. Little did they know that seven years later, they would make history as the first women-only founded proptech to list in the United States and the first to do so in 2023.

In an interview with Singapore Business Review, Rhonda Wong said the Nasdaq listing will help Ohmyhome achieve two of its goals: to double down on their technology and expand service offerings to more markets.

“We have to continue investing into building the latest state of the art technology to ensure that we will have the best services, and we can continue to lead the future of PropTech,” the Ohmyhome CEO said.

“We’re constantly building new tech features. We want customers to have faster and more streamlined updates about their property. So that could be about the valuation of their mortgage, when they should sell their homes, how the market is doing in terms of transactions, listings, asking prices. These are some of the things that we’re working on, that we will be launching in the near future,” she shared, adding that it is important for Ohmyhome to provide a very seamless transaction experience for their customers.

On expanding markets, Wong said they hope to also serve customers in Southeast Asia, and across the globe. Other than Singapore, Ohmyhome has services in Malaysia and the Philippines.

Wong, however, shared that whilst they have received a lot of interest from around the world following the IPO, they will be focusing on their core markets at the moment.

She also underscored that solutions will vary per market, and what works for Singapore, may not work for homebuyers elsewhere in Southeast Asia.

In Singapore, Wong said she wants Ohmyhome to serve more than just homebuyers.

“The market opportunity is very large and growing. (The) IPO definitely assisted us with having more brand awareness to quickly now talk to more partners,” she said.

“We’re actively looking to expand not just in different countries, but also across different sectors of the market. Right now in Singapore, we’re serving HDB private transactions as well as landed transactions. There’s a lot more room that we can grow and serve, in terms of number of customers, in terms of percentage of market share. These are the immediate plans that we will be taking care of right now that the big busyness with the IPO has settled down,” she added.

Building long-term value for shareholders

Seven years after its inception, Ohmyhome has transacted over 11,600 homes and has achieved a gross transaction value S$3.3b (US$2.5b).

With these figures and their track record, Ohymyhome gained strong interest from investors, which boosted their confidence about debuting in Nasdaq. “If you ask if we’ve

We want customers to have faster and more streamlined updates about their property

been worried, of course. When people keep saying the (IPO) market isn’t doing very well, it makes us think, ‘oh, okay I guess maybe it’s not the best time,’ because people keep saying that. But now that we have done the listing, our stock price has been doing well and the liquidity is strong. I think it further attests to the confidence that the market has in Ohmyhome and I’m happy about that,” Wong claimed. With strong confidence from investors, Wong said they never thought that the market was not in their favour.

Wong stated that their investors likewise don’t have to worry about Ohmyhome amidst an uncertain economic environment, given that the company runs in a sector that is not sentiment driven but need driven.

“When it comes to the property market, during a cyclical market, whether it’s a fluctuation, whether it’s volatility, what you generally see is the change in the price of the property. But the transactions of the property when it comes to the mass market, they don’t change a lot. The reason is because selling and buying a home, for most people in Singapore, is due to a change in their life. We’re talking about getting married, having children, moving (closer) to schools,” Wong said.

“Now, of course, we see differences. That means, when times are good, people are buying larger homes. But when times are not that good, people are just basically getting homes that they can afford at that time. These are also times when actually we find that our customers require better solutions,” she added.

Ohmyhome will continue investing into building the latest technology to ensure it can continue to lead the future of PropTech (Photo: Rhonda Wong, CEO, Ohmyhome)

INTERVIEW

How GAR’s golden strategy shields agribusiness from global supply chain chaos

GAR utilises shipping partnerships and expanded logistics to mitigate supply chain disruptions.

Global political tensions continue to stop or slow down the flow of raw goods and experts are predicting that the supply chain mess will not end anytime soon. One agribusiness company was one step ahead in this situation and used what it already had to grow its business.

SGX-listed Golden Agri-Resources’ (GAR) head of investor relations, Richard Fung, said their firm’s supply chain was “barely” hit by the Ukraine-Russia war because of their shipping facilities and their partnership with Stena Bulk from Scandinavia, which has had a joint venture with GAR, Golden Agri-Stena, since 2013.

“[Golden Agri-Stena] helps us to be more independent in terms of being able to distribute our products so that when the Ukraine conflict started, we were well-prepared and saw a limited impact on our operations,” said Fung.

Aside from Stena, GAR has joint ventures with GSB Tankers and Sinar Mas LDA Maritime.

Data from its website showed that GAR shipped over 4 million metric tonnes of cargo in 2020 and delivered cargo to 45 ports worldwide.

GAR’s chartering arm, Golden-Agri Maritime, had prepared them for transportation needs such as shipping, trade, and distribution of its products to local and export markets. The company also operates an extensive distribution and logistics network in Europe, encompassing shipping, freight, and warehousing facilities, as well as dedicated storage terminals or warehouses in Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Romania, and Colombia.

Indonesia’s ban

GAR’s logistics facilities also helped counter Indonesia’s export ban on crude palm oil, one of the top products that GAR produces. The restriction was imposed in April 2022 to improve the accessibility and affordability of cooking oil in the Indonesian market. Despite this, GAR did so well because of its global distribution network.

“During the ban, we could continue to serve our international clients from our overseas inventories” explained Fung. The ban also had little effect on GAR since it exported higher value-added products unfazed by the export restriction such as specialty fats, oleochemicals, and biodiesel.

“Historically, the company was initially very much focused on upstream operations, but as volumes expanded, we realised that we needed full vertical integration, so we will not become too dependent on our off-takers,” Fung explained.

This 2023, the company is again embattled by the newest restriction that the Indonesian government imposed against palm oil exports. Exporters were allowed to ship six times their domestic sales volume, down from eight times domestic sales before January 2023. The country also suspended the majority of its palm oil export permits until the end of April to boost domestic supplies.

GAR said it is complying with the government’s strict rules by balancing its export of palm oil. For every six tonnes sold for export, GAR provides one tonne for the domestic market.

On the suspension of permits, the agribusiness said it has enough export permits to serve its international customers during the suspension period.

GAR’s net profit grew 1% to S$528m (US$392m) in the second half of 2022, supported by the company’s downstream earnings.

When GAR left the High Carbon Stock Approach (HCSA), environmental groups accused the firm of weakening its stance on “no deforestation.” GAR is one of the biggest supporters of the HCSA methodology, as one of the founders.

Anita Neville, GAR’s chief sustainability and communications officer, said they may have ended the membership but did not halt the support for the HCSA methodology across its supply chain.

To date, GAR conserves 79,000 hectares of high conservation value (HCV) and high carbon stock (HCS) areas. GAR is backing suppliers in conserving 117,000ha of HCV and HCS areas. In a March brokerage report, Malaysian-based RHB Bank’s overall ESG score for GAR was 2.67 out of 4. It mentioned that GAR reduced greenhouse gas emissions intensity by 25%.

“The company has continuously rolled out conservation planning programmes and, in 2019, set aside over 7,700 ha of HCS forests for conservation,” RHB analysts said.

RHB cited that GAR partnered with major palm oil producers and buyers to develop a new radar-based forest monitoring system to oversee deforestation as it happens in near-real-time.

GAR has joint ventures with GSB Tankers and Sinar Mas LDA Maritime (Photo from GoldenAgri.com.sg)

Richard Fung

Anita Neville

SCAN FOR FULL STORY

Auction houses in Asia-Pacific thrive on millennials’ art-buying power

Young collectors are seen to be particularly drawn to contemporary art as growth for Christie’s, Sotheby’s, and Phillips are highly anticipated in art hubs in Hong Kong and Singapore.

Millennials have proven themselves to be the new generation that paints a profitable path for auction houses. In fact, last year, younger collectors accounted for 34% of Christie’s, close to 40% of Sotheby’s, and nearly a third of Phillips’ buyers.

“Asia-Pacific (APAC) remains the powerhouse of new and millennial buyers with strong buying power,” Francis Belin, President of Christie’s Asia Pacific, told Singapore Business Review. In Christie’s recent Spring Auctions in Hong Kong, millennials accounted for 45% of all new buyers to the sales.

Sotheby’s Chairman for Asia

Nicolas Chow said millennials are also the biggest growing demographic amongst their Asian buyers in contemporary art, fashion, and luxury.

Apart from accounting for the lion’s share of auction houses’ buyers, millennials from the APAC region are also spending hefty amounts on art.

In 2022, 62% of the spending from millennials at Christie’s globally was from APAC millennials.

Jonathan Crockett, chairman for Asia at Phillips Auction House, said young collectors from Asia, even firsttime buyers, are spending millions of dollars on art.

“People in their 20s and 30s in the West dip their toes in the water or start off buying something that costs around US$1,000 to US$20,000. But here [in Asia], it never ceases to amaze me how pretty much every auction we have, new, first-time buyers come in at the million-dollar level and above. Sometimes, to the tune of up to US$10 million. It’s something that doesn’t really happen in the West, but seems to be prevalent here,” Crockett said.

Contemporary art draws attention

In terms of art type, millennials are drawn to contemporary art, particularly those by Western artists.

According to Crockett, Asian buyers have been “increasingly supportive of the Western market” in the last five to 10 years.

“Asian buyers are now responsible for even creating or supporting the entirety of the market for certain artists in the West,” Crockett said.

But Crockett thinks that whilst these young Asians are influenced by Western pop culture, this influence could be temporary and can be expected to change in the future. “I think that there’s so much talent here in Asia that is being overlooked in favour of their Western counterparts and I think that change will happen sooner rather than later,” he said.

Auction houses are brushing up their efforts to ensure that Asian artists get their deserved spotlight. Christie’s, for example, increased the number of works by Asian artists in their 20th and 21st Century Art Hong Kong Spring auctions this year by almost 20% compared to 2022.

Zhang Daqian’s “Pink Lotuses on Gold Screen” (Photo from Sotheby’s)

[Here in Asia] new, first-time buyers come in at the milliondollar level and above

Asian contemporary art is specifically favoured by Gen X collectors, said Belin. However, millennials are also showing a growing interest in this category.

Chinese art takes centre stage

Apart from contemporary art, Asian buyers are also drawn to Chinese art.

“We saw the resurgence of the Chinese art market, the demand for classical categories, like Chinese works of art, Chinese modern paintings, and Chinese classical paintings,” Chow said, adding that the reopening of borders played a part in the art market’s comeback.

“We had more collectors coming from Mainland China than we’ve seen in many years during the pandemic. For the last three years, particularly in categories that are very connoisseurship driven, like antiquities, or paintings, where each and every piece requires a physical examination, we posted the nineyear high result for those categories, selling for over HK$1.6456b (US$200m), which is an incredible result,” Chow added.

Belin said Chinese classical furniture is also sought after by Asian collectors. An example of Chinese classical furniture sold last year was a Huanghuali Circular Incense Stand. The piece sold for HK$71m (US$9m) in November 2022 at Christie’s Hong Kong, achieving a world auction record for an incense stand.

“APAC buyers collect objects that speak to their passion, cultural and historical roots,” Belin commented.

Artist fetch millions

Looking at artists, females and those with modern style are fetching millions from Asian collectors.

“There’s been a lot of interest in female artists in the last two years and there’s been a huge growth,” said Chow, adding that female artists are particularly famous in the contemporary area.

Modern artists are also gaining popularity amongst Asian collectors.

Pieces by modern artists which were sold at Christie’s Hong Kong in 2022 include Zao Wou-ki’s 29.09.64. for HK$278m, Marc Chagall’s L’envol du peintre for HK$22.7m, and Pablo Picasso’s Buste d’homme dans un cadre for HK$175m.

In addition, in Spring 2023, Le

promenoir des amants by René Magritte reached HK$51m, marking the modern master’s auction debut at Christie’s Asia, and the artist auction record for Singaporean modern painter, Georgette Chen was broken by Christie’s again with the work Still Life with Big Durian, which realised HK$14m.

Digital market and NFTs

Unlike the past years, the digital art market has been “a little bit quiet” said Chow. However, the expert believes that digital collectables like nonfungible tokens (NFTs) will see some growth either by late 2023 or 2024.

“Looking at how cryptocurrencies are making a comeback, we expect digital collectables to be pulled along,” Chow said.

“I think there are signs that digital collectables, may be on the way back, we have a platform now Sotheby’s Metaverse for trading in the primary sector and secondary sector, digital collectables, and we’re sort of primed to take this opportunity when the market is expected to bounce back,” Chow added.

Despite NFTs being tested amidst the volatility of the broader crypto market, Christie’s sold 87 NFT lots in 2022 across all its platforms for a total of HK$46m (US$5.9m) from artists such as Diana Sinclair, Mad DogJones, and Fewocious. An auction in May 2023 of digital artworks by Jack Butcher was 100% sold and totalled HK$724,470 (US$93,000).

Moving forward, Belin said Christie’s will continue to advance digital art and NFTs as a serious collecting category within Contemporary Art.

Uptrend in online auctions

Whilst the COVID-19 pandemic halted auction houses from conducting in-person live events, it also gave them a new avenue to recruit new clients.

The online platform of Christie’s, for example, was its No. 1 recruiter of new clients in 2022, accounting for 64% of its new buyers.

Phillips Auction House was also able to tap into an entirely new database of clients through its online offerings, said Crockett.

“Online selling grew out of the requirement to replace our engagement with our clients and replace our in-person live events with something else. With a return of in-person, live events and the ability to travel, the requirement for an enhanced online auction offering no longer exists,” Crockett explained.

“However, we found that when we had our first online sales, we were able to serve [not only] our existing client base, but we also found that we were tapping into an entirely new database of clients we previously had no contact with,” he added.

Going forward, Phillips will have a selection of both online and live auctions, he said.

Art as an investment

Rather than buying art as an investment, the auctioneers advised clients to collect out of passion. But for those who are considering investing in art, Belin said “true masterpieces stand the test of time.”

La Montagne Sainte-Victoire by Paul Cézanne, for example, saw a 258% increase in its value. In May 2001, the painting was sold for HK$301m (US$38.5m) and by

Phillips’ inaugural 20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale at its new Asia HQ (Photo from Phillips Auction House)

The digital art market has been a little bit quiet

Francis Belin

Jonathan Crockett

Nicolas Chow

November 2022, its realised price was HK$1.08b (US$137.8m) during the sale of the collection of Microsoft cofounder Paul G. Allen

Chinese works of art whose market value also increased throughout the years include a rare Qianlong period doucai moonflask.

According to Belin, the moonflask’s market value has soared over 10 times since it was first sold in May 1995 for HK$8.16m (US$1.03m). In May 2023, it sold for HK$108m (US$13.8m) when it was presented at Christie’s Hong Kong Spring Auctions.

Chow also had a client who bought imperial seals in the 90s. Back then, his client bought the seals for about HK$391,140 (US$50,000). Ten years ago, the seals were sold for about HK$469m (US$60m).

Chow, however, underscored that he does not encourage buying art as an investment.

“This is not what we’re here for and we really try to bring the passion and the precision of the art to the collectors around the region,” he said.

Growth for art market

Singapore is amongst the emerging art markets of Asia, given that it connects collectors from all over Southeast Asia.

While Hong Kong remains the location of Christie’s Asia-Pacific headquarters as Asia’s key art hub, they have continued to invest in the

Singapore market.

In October 2022, Christie’s hosted their most extensive cross-category auction preview event in Singapore to date at The Arts House At The Old Parliament – convening collectors from across the Southeast Asia region, and they hosted a further preview at the same location this Spring.

“We have a positive outlook in Singapore, which continues to be our key growth market,” said Belin, adding that Singapore’s percentage in Christie’s new buyer count has increased by 15% in 2022 from 2021.

Belin added that the free flow of capital and people as well as a healthy art ecosystem are some of the attributes that make a global art hub.

In August 2022, Sotheby’s also held its first auction in Singapore after 15 years.

“There’s been a lot of wealth [in Singapore]. [We are seeing] more and more family offices. [Our return to the Lion City] was a way of addressing that growth. We wanted to bring and let people experience, on the ground, art and luxury,” Chow said.

“What we’ve actually seen with our sales last year was an incredible enthusiasm from the people on the ground,” he added.

An unrivalled art hub

Hong Kong will remain a key art hub in Asia-Pacific, given its competitive advantages that took decades to build and be matched, said Belin.

“[The city] has free flow of capital; talents equipped with experience,

expertise, international perspectives, and multi-language proficiency; favourable policies on tax, import and export, with efficient logistics; and geographical convenience that connects mainland China and itself with the rest of the world,” Belin said.

“The mature and ever-vibrant art ecosystem in HK also helps cement its status as a key art hub in the region – from museums, international and local art galleries, auction houses, art fairs like Art Basel and Art Central, to seasoned and younger collectors,” the Christie’s APAC president claimed.

Showcasing Hong Kong’s efficiency as an art hub, Belin said it only takes two to three days for them to transfer a painting from its overseas hubs in New York, London, and Paris to their gallery in Hong Kong and set it up for preview and sale.

The opening of M+ and Palace Museum also strengthened Hong Kong’s position as an unrivalled art hub in Asia, said Chow.

Crockett, for his part, said Hong Kong should enable arts and culture to percolate into the daily lives of the average person in the city.

“Hong Kong is a city that was built on trade and commerce and there’s a lot of wealth here. In other cities, wealth exists in arts and culture and that’s yet to manifest itself here in Hong Kong,” Crockett said.

“I think there [is a] need for more world-class exhibitions happening here, more arts events. Art needs to be promoted more as a worthy subject to study at school. It shouldn’t just be about maths and economics,” he claimed.

Outside the Window (2022) by Chen Ke was sold for HK$5.08m during PHILLIPS’ 20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale at its new Asia headquarters in West Kowloon (Phillips Auction House)

Art needs to be promoted more as a worthy subject to study at school

Lin Chen leads the auction for Georgette Chen’s Still Life with Big Durian during Christie's 20th and 21st Century Art Evening Sale. (Christie’s Images Limited 2023)

INTERVIEW

OCBC extends $3.5b in Eco-Care Loans

With 1 in 5 of its home, renovation, and car loans now green, the Singaporean bank targets 10% growth in environment-friendly credit by March 2024.

Singapore has long set its sights on making the crown the world’s greenest city; and its citizens are more than willing to take on the challenge.

In the two years since launching its Eco-Care Loans, OCBC Bank said that it has extended over S$3.5b (US$2.64b). The loan series – available to retail clients looking to purchase a home, conduct renovations, or own a car – offers a range of benefits for those meeting certain green goals and criteria.

“The 2022 OCBC Climate Index Survey found that cost and inconvenience are two major considerations when it comes to consumer’s choices of whether to adopt or incorporate sustainability into their lifestyles,” Phang Lah Hwa, head of consumer-secured lending at OCBC Bank, told Singapore Business Review

“By offering preferential rates, our Eco-Care Loans provide consumers with the impetus to take concrete action by making their homes more environmentally friendly, or switching to electric cars,” she said.

Green loans now account for one in every five home, renovation, and car loans that OCBC extended from March 2021 to March 2023. Compared to a regular loan customer, the OCBC offers our Eco-Care Loan customers preferential rates and extra benefits. For instance, Eco-Care home and renovation loan customers can enjoy a one-time S$88 (US$66) bill rebate when they apply for Senoko’s LifeGreen24 plan, shared Lah Hwa. One major target that Singapore highlighted in its bid to become greener is to encourage take up of electric vehicles or EVs. In its Green Plan 2030, Singapore outlined plans for all new car and taxi registrations to be of cleaner-energy models from 2030; and floated plans to build 60,000 charging points island-wide by the same year, 40,000 of which are in public car parks and 20,000 in private premises.

For its part, OCBC now offers green loans for would-be car owners to encourage them to take up the use of electric vehicles. “We partnered [with] Charge+ to offer Eco-Care car loan customers with three months of free charging credits, and it can be used at more than 700 Charge+ charging points across Singapore,” Lah Hwa said.

Loan customers staying in landed property can even opt for a complimentary home charging station to be installed at their house instead.

No greenwashing here

To ensure that homeowners are eligible for OCBCs Eco-Care home and renovation loans, they must first pass the Building and Construction Authority’s Tropical Home Energy Efficiency Assessment (THEEA). As of writing, OCBC said that it is the only bank that utilises THEEA as a prerequisite to apply for a home or renovation loan in Singapore.

THEEA measures homeowners’ intention to adopt greener alternatives across three categories. First is home design, such as the use of solar window film, for example. The second involves the home’s installation of energyefficient appliances, which equates to those with at least

Our Eco-Care Loans provide consumers with the impetus to take concrete action [for sustainability]

three or four ticks for energy efficiency, add Lah Hwa. The third criteria is whether or not the home has smart home features that regulate energy consumption, such as a smart thermostat for control of the air conditioner.

In the future, OCBC aims to target an almost 10% year-on-year growth in its Eco-Care Loans over the next 12 months up to March 2024. This is despite taking into account the inflation as well as expectations of a housing market slowdown in 2023.

“Driving the transition to a sustainable low-carbon world is a core pillar of OCBC Bank’s corporate strategy to drive growth,” Lah Hwa stressed. “Products such as the OCBC EcoCare Loans are one of the ways that we are delivering value to our consumers while simultaneously contributing to the sustainability movement.”

Outside of the Eco-Care Loans, OCBC has also been taking steps to push the green finance agenda. Lah Hwa stated they have achieved S$44b (US$33b) in sustainable finance commitments as part of their five-year climate strategy, and are on track to achieving their target of S$50b (US$37.7b) by 2050.

Cost and inconvenience are two major considerations when it comes to consumer’s choices, Phang Lah Hwa

RANKINGS: BANKS

Singapore banks champion employee well-being, upskilling

Singapore Business Review’s new ranking of Singapore banks reflects top notchers' steady growth and adaptability to changing landscape.

Banks in the Lion City have continued to grow for the fiscal year 2022, garnering a 3.4% year-on-year (YoY) increase in headcount based on the Singapore Business Review’s annual bank rankings.

The bank rankings, which reflect the employment hiring situation of select banks in Singapore, had a change in methodology. Banks in the list have been categorised according to percent changes from the previous year’s tallied figures.

This method facilitated a sounder way of ranking them despite the difference in their respective employee populations.

With the new ranking process in place, Credit Agricole CIB. registered the highest annual increment of 20.3% YoY to 1,686 employees, taking the top spot in terms of

employee growth.

The 2023 ranking had HSBC Banking Corp. at No. 2 with a growth rate of 20.0% to increased employment of 3,890, followed by United Overseas Bank (UOB) at No. 3 with an increment of 11.7% to 10,056 employees. Trailing them at No. 4 was Maybank Singapore with a 5.1% growth and 2,101 employees.

Bucking the growth trend, banks which saw big dips were UCO Bank (11.9% to 37), State Bank of India (5.6% to 117), and DBS Bank (4.6% to 12,000).

In terms of tally count, the top five banks in order would have started with OCBC, DBS Bank, UOB, Citi Singapore, and Standard Chartered. However, in the case of Citi Singapore and Standard Chartered, Singapore Business Review did not receive any response in press time.

Notably, in a report by Bloomberg made last 8 June, Standard Chartered is implementing targeted job cuts in Singapore, Hong Kong, and London as part of its cost reduction strategy, aiming to save about $1.35b by 2024.

The bank recently initiated job reductions in middle office areas such as human resources and digital transformation in Asia.

This information comes from undisclosed sources who wish to maintain privacy. Further, another source noted that some junior staff members will also be affected.

Whilst the exact figure is yet to be determined, the total number of job cuts is expected to exceed 100.

Despite the outgoing and incoming talents in this major industry, it is vital to understand the key trends in the hiring environment because employees naturally come and go for various reasons.

Hence, it is the responsibility of employers to keep in check what makes employees stay.

Employees’ well-being

In recent years, more Singaporeans find their personal well-being of top importance. According to a survey by professional services firm Aon, about 78% of Singapore-based employees stated their well-being has become a bigger priority since 2020.

This was above the region’s average of 48% stating that their well-being has risen atop their priority list. However, only 35% of Singapore employers rated the overall well-being of their company as “excellent or very good.”

Singapore Business Review reached out to Singapore’s banking institutions to find out how they can improve their employees’ health and skills, and secure their future in the work environment.

Maybank Singapore, for example, is particularly concerned about seeking the success of its employees, according to its head of human capital, Wong Keng Fye. He emphasised that human beings now purposefully look for meaning in their careers and do not just seek plain employment. “I think it’s important that employees recognise and have a sense of purpose in whatever they want to do,” Fye said.

He said employees look beyond just the dollars and cents. “They’re

In recent years, more Singaporeans find their personal well-being of top importance

It is vital to understand the key trends in the hiring environment because employees naturally come and go

Wong Keng Fye

looking at the ratio of quality of life, sustainability, and if the organisation is providing opportunities, career development, and of course, will enrich their ability to work from home,” Fye added.

In another study by Randstad – a global human resources services firm – results showed that about 48% of Singaporeans would not take a job if it does not offer a hybrid set-up or the option to choose whether to work at home or in the office.

UOB is one of those financial institutions that has come to value the work-life balance setup. “UOB is the first Singapore bank to officially implement our hybrid working policy on a permanent basis for our employees in July 2022, offering flexibility for colleagues in eligible roles to work from home or at a location other than the assigned work within the city of their work location,” said Dean Tong, head of Group HR at UOB.

Now that more than 50% of UOB’s employees practise its hybrid working policy, its internal annual engagement survey reflected a large increase in productivity scores, said Tong.

Employers adapt

It is very much emphasised by these human resource managers that a good working environment would equate to a productive workforce. But they also agree that it is of utmost importance to see a person beyond their employment.

ZiYing Wu, Head of Human Resources Crédit Agricole CIB

Singapore, told Singapore Business Review that they launched the Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) for their staff to avail themselves of confidential and professional services.

If employees get to experience personal or work-related stresses, the EAP is an avenue for them to have any mental or physical health issues addressed.

Similarly, Maybank, UOB and HSBC Singapore have each established a counselling service for their workforce to remedy the damaging effects brought upon by the COVID-19 pandemic on people’s lives.

Noting the opportunities they have opened for employees to access mental health support, Fye said, “We

also try to train a group of Maybank bankers... to respond and advise them.” Over the past few years, Maybank has had over 10 employees across various departments trained to counsel staff with privacy afforded utmost value and respect. “Of course, we want to know if we can help. But sometimes the staff doesn’t want to talk, and we respect the privacy of others if they choose not to,” said Fye.

Working environment

According to these Singapore bank employers, there has been a higher demand for jobs within the environmental, social and governance (ESG) landscape as well as the technology sector.

UOB’s Tong observed that roles in technology, anti-money laundering (AML) compliance, sales, services and operations saw greater attraction for applicants.

“We are making sure our employees are equipped with future-ready skills, too. This can be seen through the various programmes that we have implemented such as our group-wide flagship training programme, BetterU, to invest in upskilling and reskilling our people,” Tong said.

UOB also began its Group Technology and Operations Academy last year which upskills and certifies their estimated 6,000 technology

RANKINGS: BANKS

and operations workforce in areas such as cybersecurity, software and infrastructure, Tong said.

On the other hand, Crédit Agricole CIB’s Wu said that more job opportunities in ESG for the banking sector signal the greater push toward carbon neutrality. Notably, the French international bank said it hired its very first Singapore-located sustainable banking teammate in 2022.

“As we see a growing importance and need in this area, we envision that this could be the start of a growing sustainable banking team in Singapore, enabling us to better support our clients with their sustainable finance strategy in line with our bank’s leadership as a pioneer in sustainable finance and our group’s targets to accelerate the transition to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050,” Wu said.

Mukul Anand, head of human resources at HSBC Singapore, said the bank is committed to boosting the skills of young talents in Singapore. Its Global Graduate programme participants in Singapore surged 35% in 2023, whilst university and polytechnic work placement programmes also jumped 33%.

“Our people are our greatest asset and we are committed to helping them develop skills for the future,” said Anand.

Employees look at the ratio of quality of life, sustainability, and if the organisation povides opportunities

We are making sure our employees are equipped with future-ready skills,too

Dean Tong

Ziying Wu

Mukul Anand

RANKINGS: BANKS

SG banks strong and stable despite uncertain AT-1 issuance market – experts

Singapore banks may face higher funding costs as lenders could demand higher risk premiums on AT-1 papers. Investors shall and always be informed of their offerings, especially AT-1 bonds

Singapore banks have a stronger resilience compared to their Asian counterparts, so experts say. But just how strong they are and how easily they adapt to global banking crises are occasionally put to the test.

The zero write-off of Credit Suisse’s Additional Tier-1 (AT-1) bonds presented concerns over the impact of AT-1 bond losses on global banks. Although Asian banks are less likely to be dramatically affected, it pays to see how and why Singapore banks stand in the wind.

Credit Suisse’s AT1 write-down AT-1 bonds are a type of hybrid debt that can be converted into equity if a predetermined event occurs, acting as an additional capital and buffer for banks. That’s why Credit Suisse’s $17b-writedown of AT-1 notes early this year caused such a stir in the industry.

The “Lion City” has been marked to have a lesser chance of following in the footsteps of the AT-1 writedown of the Swiss bank, according to Gary Ng, senior economist at Natixis Corporate & Investment Banking.

“Singaporean banks have higher ratings than Asian peers with minor AT-1 bond price movement and low reliance on AT-1, and therefore the impact is limited to credit ratings. Based on our calculation, DBS and OCBC’s AT-1 to Common Equity Tier 1 (CET 1) ratio is around 5%, lower than the average level of 14% in Asia,” Ng told Singapore Business Review.

He emphasised that Singapore’s AT-1 bond coupon rate is one of the lowest in the region at 3.6%. Thus, a slight increase would not have a great impact on general funding costs.

The challenge Singapore banks tend to face in this scenario is higher funding expenses as lenders could demand higher risk premiums on AT-1 papers, Ng said.

Singapore banks’ niche Singapore is one of the two markets

in Asia that practice statutory bail-in regimes to ensure no creditor worse off (NCWO) coverage in times of resolution.

According to a report by CreditSights, the absence of a loss absorption hierarchy makes it unclear when a statutory bail-in regime is also existing. However, banks are mandated to carry resolution plans on what can be solved.

“Bank regulators and public authorities maintain significant clout in normal times but have typically even more clout in stressful times. Regulators and public authorities have considerable powers and a range of tools at their disposal,” a report by S&P Global Ratings said.

Yet, the Swiss regulator did not undergo a resolution process, rather a point of non-viability (PONV).

The PONV scenario is often left for interpretation of which events are considered infeasible and gives monetary authorities the pliability to write off AT-1 notes similar to FINMA.

“We do expect, unlike in the case of FINMA, that APAC regulators will use the PONV clause if required in situations where they have to arrange for capital support and not for situations where they arrange for liquidity support,” explained CreditSights.

Singapore is known to strictly

comply with its NCWO framework that creditors who receive a lower amount during a resolution process compared to what they would have received if the bank had been liquidated, can seek reimbursement for the shortfall from a resolution fund provided by the financial industry.

Issuance in the future

The MAS continued to remind financial institutions that investors shall and always be informed of their offerings, especially AT-1bonds.

Natixis’ Ng said Singapore banks issuing AT-1 bonds in the regulatory environment are all about “confidence and predictability.”

“The monetary and financial regulations imposed by MAS are already one of the most stringent in the world to provide for a stable financial environment, and the stability could benefit local banks when competing with other banks in the market,” according to Ng.

Despite numerous banks putting a halt to their AT-1 issuances in the aftermath of the Swiss incident, some are now slowly getting back in the grind.

“There is no new issuance from Singapore after the UOB’s deal in January 2023. In the medium run, Singaporean banks are likely continuing their issuance once sentiment improves,” Ng added.

Singapore banks have a stronger resilience compared to their Asian counterparts, so experts say

Gary Ng

franchisees can play unique strategic roles in furthering the brand’s success in the local market(s) with their in-market knowledge of business, marketing and talent strategies.

“Singapore is a lucrative market and springboard for both master franchisors looking to expand in the region and for aspiring individuals seeking opportunities. Singapore’s dynamic pro-business environment, political stability, among other considerations, offer a much lower barrier of entry. FLAsia2023 is the key knowledge exchange and business networking platform where both franchisors & franchisees can greatly benefit from” said Mr Dickson Low, President of Franchising and Licensing Association (Singapore).

Franchising & Licensing Asia 2023 Paves the Way for Aspiring Entrepreneurs & Global-Ready Brands

Singapore, 18 May 2023 – With more professionals seeking a career change, franchising and licensing continue to be viable options for aspiring entrepreneurs pursuing business ownership. Franchising and licensing offer multiple benefits including a proven business model, established brand recognition, readily available training, support and infrastructure; all of which translate into more assurance and confidence, and lower failure rates, more flexibility and potentially better control over a fulfilling and rewarding career.

Brands to check out at FLA2023 include the The TungLok Group, Russo’s New York Pizzeria, the KC Group of Companies (owner of full-service salon brands such as Kcuts, Kskin and Clippers Barber), Mitsuba Japanese Restaurant, Speech Academy, Mscents, Chewy Junior, and many more.

Association (Singapore) and organised by Constellar, FLA2023 offers tremendous opportunities for aspiring individuals and entrepreneurs to connect with global-ready brands who are looking to expand into the rest of Asia Pacific and globally, with Singapore as the springboard.

More details will be shared nearer to date. To attend Franchising & Licensing Asia (FLA) 2023, sign up here at https://bit.ly/MediaReg2023

With a diverse and unique range of product and service brands on board, FLA2023 is the ideal platform to meet brand owners and franchise leaders, as well as discover how franchisees can play unique strategic roles in furthering the brand’s success in the local market(s) with their in-market knowledge of business, marketing and talent strategies.

Event Details

Franchising & Licensing Asia (FLAsia) 2023

17 – 19 August 2023 (Thursday – Saturday), 10am – 6pm, daily

Website: https://franchiselicenseasia.com/

With Asia as one of the fastest-growing economic regions in GDP per capita, countries in the region are seeing significant growth in their middle-class populations, where this tier of consumers with higher spending power and disposable income are influencing global consumption patterns and driving demand for premium and better-quality service and products. This is where the franchising and licensing models allow homegrown and established brands and aspiring individuals to step in to meet these consumers’ needs. Today there are more than 4,300 franchise systems throughout Southeast Asia with more than 150,000 franchisee firms licensed to sell goods on behalf of master franchise brands.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FranchiseLicenseAsia

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/franchiselicenseasia/ Official Hashtags: #FLAsia2023 #FLAsia

Empowering aspiring individuals with knowledge, best practices and meaningful connections to jumpstart their business ownership journeys, Franchising & Licensing Asia (FLA) – Asia’s most established trade platform for the industry – returns this year from 17-19 August at Sands Expo and Convention Centre Level 1. Presented annually by the Franchising & Licensing

About Franchising and Licensing Association (Singapore)

Event Details

Franchising & Licensing Asia (FLAsia) 2023 17 – 19 August 2023 (Thursday – Saturday), 10am – 6pm, daily

For more information, please contact:

Carine Lin

Manager, Communications & Culture

Email: carine.lin@constellar.co ;

Mobile: 9336 3746

“Singapore is a lucrative market and springboard for both master franchisors looking to expand in the region and for aspiring individuals seeking opportunities. Singapore’s dynamic pro-business environment, political stability, among other considerations, offer a much lower barrier of entry. FLAsia2023 is the key knowledge exchange and business networking platform where both franchisors & franchisees can greatly benefit from” said Mr Dickson Low, President of Franchising and Licensing Association (Singapore).

Brands to check out at FLA2023 include the The TungLok Group, Russo’s New York Pizzeria, the KC Group of Companies (owner of full-service salon brands such as Kcuts, Kskin and Clippers Barber), Mitsuba Japanese Restaurant, Speech Academy, Mscents, Chewy Junior, and many more.

FLA (Singapore), one of the founding members of the World Franchise Council, was established in 1993 with the mission to nurture and develop Singapore's franchising industry. An essential component of Singapore’s knowledgebased economy, FLA (Singapore) promotes and facilitates the use of franchising, licensing and branding as a growth strategy for Singapore enterprises, thus contributing to turning Singapore as a regional franchise and license hub. Through its partnership with Singapore government agencies and international franchise and license bodies, FLA (Singapore) also assists its members in their international development programmes. With an active growing membership of close to 140 companies, representing more than 250 strong brands, FLA (Singapore) is led and managed by a dedicated team of advisors, committee members and full-time secretariat with the goal of supporting Singapore companies to expand internationally. https://www.flasingapore.org/

More details will be shared nearer to date. To attend Franchising & Licensing Asia (FLA) 2023, sign up here at https://bit.ly/ MediaReg2023

For more information, please contact:

Carine Lin

About Constellar

Website: https://franchiselicenseasia.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FranchiseLicenseAsia

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/franchiselicenseasia/

Official Hashtags: #FLAsia2023 #FLAsia

Manager, Communications & Culture

Email: carine.lin@constellar.co ; Mobile: 9336 3746

Constellar connects a global eco-system of event partners and consumers through a holistic portfolio of intellectual property (IP) in the Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) industry. As Asia's partner of reference for curating innovative event and venue experiences, Constellar activates impactful networks to bring global markets, businesses and consumers together for sustainable growth. With our expertise and dedication, we are invested in helping you build trusted relationships with stakeholders for the long term and enabling cross-industry collaboration through world-class audience engagement solutions. Visit constellar.co for more information.

EXCELLENCE AWARDS

SBR Technology Excellence Awards 2023: Recognising digital disruption leaders in SG

Organisations in Singapore are continuously adapting to build a globally competitive technology industry, utilising the city-state’s position as a hub for the testing and development of new products and services. Companies are serving their clients and customers better than ever amidst the competitive environment and several government initiatives to drive the demand and adoption of technology solutions in Singapore. They are paving the way for digital transformation in their respective industry.

In recognition of companies that are leading in their industries’ respective digital journeys, the SBR Technology Excellence Awards has returned for its 5th year. It is the most prestigious awards programme for technological innovations, recognising exceptional companies in Singapore that are riding the digital disruption wave

SBRTECHNOLOGY EXCELLENCEAWARDS 2023WINNERS

Accredify

Blockchain - Education

AETOS Holdings Pte Ltd

Smart City - Safety & Security

Allgreen Properties Limited

Information Management - Real Estate

Alta

Fintech - Alternative Investments

Blackpanda

Cybersecurity - Safety & Security

bolttech

Fintech - General Insurance

Cadence Design Systems, Inc.

AI - Semiconductor

Cambridge Advisers Pte Ltd

RegTech - Consulting

CapitaLand Investment Limited

AI - Real Estate

CapitaLand Investment Limited

PropTech - Building Services & Facilities

Caton Technology Asia Pte Ltd

Connectivity - Media & Entertainment

CCH Management Services Pte. Ltd.

Automation - Financial Services

Certis Technology (Singapore) Pte Ltd

Analytics - Safety & Security

Analytics - Utilities

China Mobile International (Singapore) Pte Ltd

IoT - Automotive & Transport Equipment

and leading the technological revolution and digital journeys of their respective industries.

The winners of the Technology Excellence Awards, organised by Singapore Business Review, were lauded at the Awards Dinner held last 25 May 2023 at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands.

The esteemed panel of judges for this year’s nominations consisted of Cheang Wai Keat, Partner, Consulting, Ernst & Young Advisory Pte. Ltd.; Lee Ser Yen, Partner, Cyber, Advisory, KPMG; Sunil Agarwal, Partner, PwC; Cheong Chew Wai, Executive Director, Consulting, Deloitte Southeast Asia; and Cecil Su, Director, Cybersecurity, BDO.

Congratulations to all the winners!

Circles

Cloud - Telecommunications

City Developments Limited

Digital - Real Estate

Creative Technology Ltd

Hardware - Electronics

CrimsonLogic Pte Ltd

Digital - Logistics

CYNOSURE AESTHETIC AND MEDICAL APAC SERVICES PTE. LTD.

Machine - Healthcare Technology

DBS Bank Ltd

Big Data - Financial Services

Dedoco

Blockchain - Safety & Security

Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA)

Digital - Non-Profit or Government Organizations

DuPont LLC

Automation - Electronic Manufacturing

Electrolux S.E.A. Pte Ltd

Online Services - Consumer Products (Durables)

Etiqa Insurance Pte. Ltd.

AI - Financial Services

FairPrice Group

AI - Marketing Technology

FairPrice Group

Digital - Retail

FrieslandCampina AMEA Pte Ltd

AI - Consumer Products (Non-Durables)

Fusionex Group

AI - Logistics

FWD

Digital - Life Insurance

GECO Asia

ICT - Training and Development

Gigamon

IT - Infrastructure

GuocoLand

PropTech - Real Estate

Heilind Asia Pacific (SG) Pte Ltd

Connectivity - Electronics

HIVE by Income

Fintech - Financial Technology

Hoya Electronics Pte Ltd

Hardware - Semiconductor

HP Inc

Hardware - Computer Hardware

InsurAce

Blockchain - Insurance Broker

InterSystems

Connectivity - Financial Services

Intertek Testing Services (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.

Analytics - Oil & Gas

IPC Systems

Cloud - Financial Services

J&T Express Singapore

E-Commerce - Logistics

Kemin Animal Nutrition and Health, Asia Pacific

Biotechnology - Manufacturing

KSL Corporate Services Pte. Ltd.

Automation - Business Services

LexisNexis

AI - Legal

LogRhythm

SIEM - Computer Software

Mandai Wildlife Group

AI - Hospitality & Leisure

Mercedes-Benz Singapore Pte. Ltd.

Blockchain - Automotive Services

Moomoo Financial Singapore Pte. Ltd.

Fintech - Investment and Wealth Management

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Smart City - Education

National Supercomputing Centre (NSCC) Singapore

Data Centre

NAVER Cloud Corp.

Cloud - IT Services

NTUC LearningHub

Digital - Training and Development

PerkinElmer Scientific Singapore Pte Ltd

Machine - Manufacturing

Phaos Technology Pte Ltd

Nanotechnology - Semiconductor

Rajah & Tann Technologies Pte. Ltd.

Legal Tech

Resolute Communications

Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality - Internet/New Media

RightShip

Analytics - Shipping

SIFT Analytics Group

Analytics - Business Services

SNACK by Income

Mobile - Personal Insurance

Standard Chartered nexus

Emerging Technology - Banking

Starbucks Singapore

Digital - Food & Beverage

Straive

Automation - Publishing Services

Strides DST Pte Ltd (EVCo)

AI - Environmental Services

Surbana Jurong

Automation - Consulting

Tata Consultancy Services Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd.

Infrastructure Technology - IT Services

Tata NYK Shipping Pte Ltd

Cloud - Shipping

Tatvic Analytics

Analytics - Marketing Technology

Tiger Brokers (Singapore)

Fintech - Brokerage

Toku

Enterprise Software - IT Services

Trust Bank Singapore

Digital - Banking

Twill by Maersk

Online Services - Shipping

VIAVI Solutions

ICT - Aerospace & Defense

Xiaomi Technologies Singapore Pte Ltd.

IoT - IT Services

ZA Tech Global (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.

API - Insurance Broker

EVENT: SBR TECHNOLOGY EXCELLENCE AWARDS

AETOS Holdings Pte Ltd

bolttech

CapitaLand Investment Limited

Allgreen Properties Limited

Cadence Design Systems, Inc.

Alta

Cambridge Advisers Pte Ltd

China Mobile International (Singapore) Pte Ltd

CCH Management Services Pte. Ltd.

Certis (Singapore)Technology Pte Ltd

Caton Technology Asia Pte Ltd

Circles Electrolux S.E.A. Pte Ltd

City Developments Limited

Etiqa Insurance Pte. Ltd.

FrieslandCampina AMEA Pte Ltd

Creative Technology Ltd

FairPrice Group

Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA)

CYNOSURE AESTHETIC AND MEDICAL APAC SERVICES PTE. LTD.

EVENT: SBR TECHNOLOGY EXCELLENCE AWARDS

Fusionex Group

GECO Asia

FWD

Gigamon

GuocoLand HP Inc

HIVE by Income

Hoya Electronics Pte Ltd

InterSystems

IPC Systems

KSL Corporate Services Pte. Ltd. LexisNexis

J&T Express Singapore

LogRhythm

Kemin Animal Nutrition and Health, Asia Pacific

Intertek Testing Services (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.

EVENT: SBR TECHNOLOGY EXCELLENCE AWARDS

Mandai Wildlife Group

Moomoo Financial Singapore Pte. Ltd.

Mercedes-Benz Singapore Pte. Ltd.

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

National Supercomputing Centre (NSCC) Singapore

Rajah & Tann Technologies Pte. Ltd.

PerkinElmer Scientific Singapore Pte Ltd

NTUC LearningHub

Phaos Technology Pte Ltd

Resolute Communications

Starbucks Singapore

Tata NYK Shipping Pte Ltd

RightShip

SNACK by Income

Strides DST Pte Ltd (EVCo)

Trust Bank Singapore

Tiger Brokers (Singapore) Toku

ZA Tech Global (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.

Embracing the HP Way: HP’s future-ready plan for innovation and growth

HP’s Future-Ready plan focuses on innovation, sustainability, and empowering diverse talent to create a positive impact on business, customers, and the world.

improvement in productivity and quality, which creates less material waste.

HP’s success is directly tied to its ability to support and grow Future Ready people. “We want to win in high-performance teams and a purpose-driven culture. Placing purpose at the heart of what we do is simply good for business. We do all we can to ensure HP is a beacon attracting diverse talent. Most importantly, we will increase our focus on career development and advancement as we evolve our culture and empower diverse, high-performing talent,” said Vincent.

Megatrends and HP

Our culture: The HP Way

Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard created more than an audio oscillator in that Palo Alto garage. They built a way of doing business—the HP Way, which guides how we work together to create thoughtful ideas that can change the world. It means HP can be Future Ready.

Becoming ‘Future Ready’

The world is radically different than three years ago, and the scale and pace of disruption is only intensifying. HP’s 3-year Future Ready plan is designed to drive fundamental change across our portfolio, throughout our operations, and in how we engage and empower our employees. At the heart of these changes are HP customers, central to everything we do.

“Future-ready portfolio for us is about winning through innovation and growth, redefining how we work, live, and play. Technology plays a huge role in creating better experiences. For the first time, a majority of the global workforce is hybrid; with 11% working exclusively from the office, 6% working exclusively from home and 70% working a blend of two to four days from the office,” says Vincent Ong, Senior R&D Director at HP Singapore.

HP, therefore, needs to innovate a growing portfolio of devices, peripherals, services and subscriptions tailor-made for the hybrid world. HP is creating more immersive experiences that allow distributed teams to feel connected and creative, new services, and subscription models including paper and print hardware that combine convenience and flexibility,

robust security, and privacy protection.

Beyond that, Vincent strongly believes it is essential for HP to zero in on areas that can drive significant competitive advantage and market leadership for its products.

This would include the company’s increased focus on sustainability goals when developing products. After all, it is HP’s mission to create technology that inspires ambitious and meaningful progress.

Vincent adds, “When it comes to Futureready operations, we want to win with a sustainable world-class supply chain, Go-To-Market, and digital capabilities. This means redesigning our global supply chains around sustainability and resilience. We have an HP Planet Partners Program, which allows customers to return and recycle print supplies and hardware with ease. We are proud to have recently reached a milestone, over 1 billion Original HP Ink and Toner cartridges have been recycled by customers worldwide with HP Planet Partners since 1991”.

HP also owns an Advanced Manufacturing factory in Singapore, using 4IR technologies in its printhead manufacturing operations, moving from labour-intensive and reactive processes to highly digitised processes that leverage automation, AI-driven, data, and additive manufacturing.

This drives operational excellence, cost efficiency, and sustainability with a 20% decrease in manufacturing costs and a 70%

Vincent also spoke on how, as technology rapidly advances and changes society, we need to accept that we are living in a VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity) world.

Because we are living in a world of constant, unpredictable change, leaders, and businesses need to be agile and be ready to disrupt and be disrupted. They should adopt a growth mindset and a solid understanding of megatrends shaping our decisions.

For HP, understanding the sweeping demographic, socioeconomic, and technology trends and how they relate to one another is incredibly important. HP believes these trends have huge ramifications for how we live and work in the future. These powerful megatrends are driving HP’s strategic priorities and long-term investments right now. They influence everything from HP’s research and development agenda to our workforce and IT infrastructure planning, as well as shape how we engage our customers.

HP’s approach is guided by a deep understanding of the megatrends shaping the world. By leveraging this knowledge, the company is able to drive strategic decisions, invest wisely, and make a lasting impact that extends far beyond the organisation. “HP is not simply a place where people come to work, but a place where our work makes an impact—on our business, on our customers, and the world,” Vincent concluded.

HP is not simply a place where people come to work, but a place where our work makes an impact—on our business, on our customers, and the world

RND Team

Ready when you are

Join HP Singapore

HP Singapore was established in 1970. Today, it has more than 3,000 innovators and problem solvers from over 35 nationalities engaged in the production of high technology products for customers worldwide.

We are transforming business and society – through Sustainable Impact (People, Planet, Community) and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion to effect change. HP also seeks to cultivate a growth mindset that drives innovation and empowerment.

We create technology that makes life better for everyone, everywhere. Our mission is to engineer experiences that amaze. That's just who we are. It's what we do. Now it's your turn! It's up to you to make the world a better place to live and work. We are here to help you achieve that and be the best version of you.

https://jobs.hp.com/

Fully integrated gas chromatography with PerkinElmer’s GC2400

The GC 2400 Platform from PerkinElmer can help you make faster decisions from anywhere during gas chromatography applications.

Every day, analytical laboratories are challenged with balancing high productivity with efficient operations. And with the growing trend of hybrid work models, gas chromatography operators seek remote access to their GC –whether they’re working in a different part of the lab or at a completely different location.

The GC 2400 Platform from PerkinElmer helps you make faster decisions from anywhere, whether in or out of the lab. The innovative technology enables access to real-time chromatography information on the go, allowing the user to efficiently monitor the status of sample runs with a detachable, intuitively designed touchscreen.

In addition, the SimplicityChrom™ Chromatography Data System (CDS)Software maximises GC productivity and increases the automation of lab operations by allowing each step in the GC workflow to be integrated together, from instrument control to data processing.

Reduced downtime and increased productivity

PerkinElmer’s GC 2400 Platform is designed to drive productivity by combining smart connectivity, simplified operations and sustainable solutions. The platform facilitates comprehensive and automated workflows and remote connectivity functionality supported by live system status, while the SimplicityChrom CDS Software is designed to expedite results at any experience level.

The GC 2400 Platform offers smart sampling capabilities to optimize operations, as well as status notifications and easy-to-maintain hardware. Tasks are driven by software and workflows are automated and comprehensive so that users can focus on results.

In addition, the platform features smart gas management to reduce its gas consumption, and uses hydrogen as a carrier gas with a built-in sensor to improve lab and operator safety. Its flexible, smart sampling capabilities can support sustainability and are designed to grow in sync with your lab’s needs.

Streamlined, efficient gas chromatography via an integrated system

The GC 2400 Platform consists of four pieces of hardware and two software applications that come together to provide complete, efficient workflow solutions for gas chromatography. These are the AS 2400™ Liquid Sampler, MS 2400™ SQ Detector, GC 2400 System and HS 2400™ Headspace Sampler from PerkinElmer, as well as the Simplicity Vision™ App and SimplicityChrom CDS Software.

PerkinElmer’s AS 2400 Liquid Sampler features plug-and-play towers that can be easily transferred between analytical channels or GCs without needing to be reconfigured manually. This significantly reduces downtime and

increases overall lab output and return on investment. The sampler features both single and dual tower configuration options and has multiple tray capacities.

The MS 2400 SQ Detector offers accurate detections in full-scan mass spectra, selected ion full ion (SIFI) and selected ion monitoring (SIM)modes. The single-quad system provides labs with the flexibility needed to maximise sample throughput and operate smoothly and efficiently. Its exclusive Marathon™ Filament technology boasts exceptional durability and extended lifetime, while the SMARTsource™ Technology provides tool-free source access, cleaning and maintenance, giving your lab greater instrument uptime and sample throughput.

The GC 2400 System from PerkinElmer aims to offer a new experience for GC monitoring by providing crucial information from both inside and outside the lab at a glance. Its use of our SimplicityChrom CDS Software and Asset Genius™ solution allow it to automate the collection, visualisation and reporting of key performance data for insights into your most critical lab assets.

Our HS 2400 Headspace Sampler introduces samples into the column without the use of a gas syringe or valve and loop through its use of unique pressure-balanced sampling technology. This minimises many sources of variability and contamination, which enhances sample accuracy and reproducibility by avoiding dead volumes, carryover and peak distortion.

On the software front, Simplicity Vision allows for real-time status updates and monitoring of every step of the GC workflow, as well as instrument setup and pre-run manual operations. The programme can be used as a single or multi-instrument interface to enable operators to work remotely and make decisions on the go. SimplicityChrom CDS Software connects and integrates all steps of the GC workflow in an intuitive, flexible manner; the programme also supports compliance with 21 CFR Part 11.

Complete, integrated workflows for gas chromatography

The GC 2400 Platform is ideal for a range of analytical sectors and applications, from industrial and environmental analysis to food and pharmaceutical quality and safety testing. The platform offers connectivity and workflow integration for all points of the GC process.

PerkinElmer’s OneSource Laboratory Services portfolio offers comprehensive workflow solutions for food, environmental, industrial and pharmaceutical analyses. These include services to guarantee regulatory compliance, support non-core yet critical laboratory activities, ensure your lab’s IT system works correctly, and assist in the event of lab relocation.

To provide accurate residual solvent analysis in a timely manner, the GC2400 Platform is one part of an analytical workflow that relies critically on efficiency. The SimplicityChrom CDS Software integrates the analytical workflow to offer an intuitive user experience when meeting compliance and traceability requirements.

Selecting and preparing the ideal consumables

The GC 2400 Platform’s innovative design and smart features are designed to make it easy for cutting-edge labs to access, operate and monitor their gas chromatographic separations, which are made from the rugged, reliable and reproducible columns that constitute the heart of any GC instrument.

PerkinElmer can help you select the best column to separate and accurately quantitate your sample, as well as offer stationary phases and column dimensions to suit your unique analytical needs. We have invested in in-house column manufacturing capabilities to offer a new level of reliability and performance – each new GC 2400 is shipped with a PerkinElmermade column to make sure your instrument and analysis are accurate from the start.

In addition, we provide a full range of vital consumables to support your analytical workflow, with each consumable carefully chosen and engineered to give the best results. For more information about the GC 2400 or any of PerkinElmer’s other gas chromatography solutions, please visit www.perkinelmer.com/GC2400

Digital banks have arrived but what does this mean for Singapore consumers?

ByDwaipayanSadhu,ChiefExecutiveOfficer,TrustBank

Singapore’s

banking sector is unique in the region. It is well-developed and the existing banks have invested heavily to build digital versions of their extensive product offerings and traditional services.

Aside from being one of the world’s leading financial hubs, Singapore also has strong foundations for a successful digital bank with close to 100% adoption of the national digital identity and best-in-class and real-time digital payment infrastructure in place.

It was under these conditions that Trust was born in September 2022, becoming the first of the country’s digital banks to launch to the public with a range of retail products comprising a credit card, savings account, and family personal accident insurance.

Seven months later, Trust reached more than 500,000 customer sign-ups, equivalent to about 10% of the Singapore market, making it one of the fastest-growing digital banks anywhere in the world.

In doing so, Trust firmly placed a Singapore digital bank on the global map for digital banking whilst driving greater standards of customer experience and innovation.

Why was there such a strong response to Trust’s launch, and what does the rise of digital banks mean for Singapore consumers?

Digitally-native versus traditional

Let us first consider what’s different about the new wave of digital banks. Rather than transforming an existing business into a digital one, a digital bank is built from scratch, specifically to be digital. We call this digitally native. A modern, digitally-native bank uses the very latest and best technology to create a cutting-edge platform.

From a customer perspective, this creates some major benefits. First, whilst many banks have invested heavily in digital services and sometimes created visually attractive apps, the basic experience is built around systems that are in many cases, decades old. Banks have made great efforts to modernise, but it costs huge amounts of money, takes time and is very hard to do effectively. This restricts the digital experience that customers can get from this type of digital banking.

For a new, digitally-native bank there is no legacy technology and customers get a truly digital experience. This allows for much faster and more seamless processes. For example, Trust’s onboarding time is one of the fastest in the world. Or, for example, the various processes in a legacy bank continue

to be batchbased, unlike Trust where almost everything is real-time.

Secondly, the lack of expensive legacy technology to maintain and a physical branch network to support means that a digital bank can run at a lower cost. The cost savings are passed onto its customers. You can see this in propositions such as lower fees, better deposit rates and no minimum balance requirements. These benefits also help to promote financial inclusion. For example, customers who are not consistently able to maintain a minimum balance in their savings accounts would not be

The importance of an ecosystem partner

So far, we’ve just covered how a digitallynative bank differs from a traditional bank. In addition to this, a growing trend among digital banks is to build around an existing consumer ecosystem. Building around an ecosystem provides customers with an enriched and easy-to-use range of services that complement core banking services. This also brings together data from a wider range of sources to create a more personalised and relevant offering for the customer.

penalised with a fall-below fee.

Thirdly, a modern digitally-native bank can deliver an enhanced experience that is truly designed around the customer but for a legacy bank, there are often many conditions that a customer has to achieve in order to get higher rewards or interest. However, these are not available in the app and the customer has to keep track of their progress.

In addition to these technology-based benefits, building a bank from scratch creates a new culture that is agile and with minimal hierarchy. Coupled with the latest technology, a digitally-native bank can listen to its customers and deliver solutions to them very quickly. Even with significant investments, these technology and cultural capabilities are hard to replicate for large organisations that have evolved over several decades.

In Trust’s case, we have partnered with FairPrice Group which has an ecosystem that includes Link Rewards, the marketleading consumer rewards and loyalty programme. With more than 1 million customer interactions every day in Singapore, this extensive ecosystem has been closely integrated with our modern technology platform from the start. Due to their modern technology and agile culture, digitally-native banks are uniquely positioned to deliver the benefits of partnering with an ecosystem to their customers.

What this means for consumers

Whilst we are confident that the introduction of the new wave of digitally-native banks will raise standards and bring immediate benefits to consumers in Singapore, this is just the beginning. Digital banks will need to tap into their unique strengths to develop products that solve the real needs of customers. They should do this by continuously listening to them and building products that create value for them.

By adopting this approach, digital banks will be able to build an inclusive and strong proposition that will attract customers from all segments of society.

Whilst we are confident that the introduction of the new wave of digitally-native banks will raise standards and bring immediate benefits to consumers in Singapore, this is just the beginning

Trust Bank App

HOYA dominates mask blank market, expands production to meet growing demand

Geoffrey Akiki talks about optical and extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography as well as mask blanks.

to be strong in the future as the miniaturization in semiconductors continues.

Mask blank sales are difficult to accurately predict due to the dramatic fluctuations that occur with customers’ development speeds, and also because they are not consumables and are not necessarily linked to movements in the semiconductor industry as a whole. However, in regard to products for EUV applications, the cumulative number of EUV lithography machines installed is deemed as one of the indicators of growth of the EUV market.

substrate upon which their customers imprint the patterns that produce semiconductors. Optical blanks can be transmissive or refractive which can produce binary or phaseshift properties. In contrast, EUV masks are mirrors for X-rays. Both types are used to help put patterns on silicon wafers, which eventually become the circuits,” said Geoffrey Akiki, President, HOYA IT Segment Company (LSI, FPD, MD, Optics).

In 2021, the electronics market experienced an increase in shipment of personal computers, smartphones, servers and other major finished products. This led to higher demand for logic devices, memory, analogue semiconductors, etc., translating into 26% growth in the semiconductor market overall. Going forward, the growth of the market for mask blanks is expected to continue, given that semiconductor manufacturers and foundries are briskly conducting research and development activities aimed at the further miniaturisation of electronic circuits using extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography—a cutting-edge manufacturing technology—and that customers’ research and development demand is the key driving force for the demand for mask blanks.

HOYA Position and Market Share

The company has maintained a large share of the market over the long term by leveraging their strengths in technology and manufacturing as a leader in boosting semiconductor performance. HOYA has conducted EUV blanks research for nearly 20 years, and have demonstrated a firm presence in this field which has exceptionally high hurdles to clear for entry.HOYA is the only manufacturer that has rolled out both EUV and optical (existing non-EUV lithography technology) mask blanks.

HOYA Outlook

HOYA expects that demand for mask blanks for EUV lithography will continue

HOYA has and will continue to expand its manufacturing line as appropriate to meet customer demand. HOYA added a manufacturing line for mask blanks for EUV lithography in 2020 and plan to further expand their production capacity by making additional investments in 2022 and subsequent years.

Overcoming Challenges in High-NA EUV Scanners

In the field of High-NA EUV scanners (nextgeneration EUV scanners), which are slated to be used in production from 2025 onwards in pursuit of further miniaturisation, the challenge is to tackle the 3D mask effect, by which the circuit pattern transferred to a semiconductor wafer is deformed as a result of diagonally-incoming light being blocked by the photomask’s absorber. To resolve this, HOYA is carrying out developments to make the absorber thinner with their partners in the supply chain of semiconductor production.

“HOYA has been positioned as the leader in mask blanks for a long time. HOYA are a critical part of the general photomask industry. The blank HOYA produce is really a

HOYA’s

Journey to Leadership in EUV Blanks and Future Technological Advancements

Mask blanks are a critical part of the supply chain. Optical blanks have been around for a long time and are therefore a mature, well-understood technology. Since masks have to be ready to do development in the semiconductor fab, HOYA must develop the new products well before they are used in the production of chips.

“I joined HOYA almost five years ago. At that time, no one was producing EUV blanks in volume. Very quickly, people wanted to go into high gear. Despite the difficulties, HOYA successfully ramped up. There were many challenges in terms of defects, yield and control which HOYA learned our way through and overcame,” Mr Akiki adds. “HOYA are investing in more tools as well as technical and manufacturing resources. Just as HOYA did in becoming the leader in EUV technology at the beginning, HOYA will continue to be preeminent in new technologies and products. The past few years have been exciting but it is only the beginning!”

Just as HOYA did in becoming the leader in EUV technology at the beginning, HOYA will continue to be preeminent in new technologies and products

Geoffrey Akiki receiving the SBR International Business Awards trophy

HOYA awarded at the SBR Technology Excellence Awards

Adding convenience to your cup of coffee

Starbucks Coffee Singapore wins this year’s SBR Technology Excellence Awards.

As one of the most recognisable coffee brands in the world, Starbucks® has been at the forefront of the industry in tying convenience whilst making their coffee rewarding for their customers.

Being a leading food and beverage brand across many markets, the company introduced their Mobile Order & Pay (MO&P) feature on the Starbucks® Singapore Mobile Application to streamline store experiences for their patrons.

The Mobile Order & Pay feature allows for a more convenient journey for Starbucks® Rewards members to make all transactions through the app, from placing an order and paying ahead, to choosing a pickup method within the app. For their efforts to provide better customer journeys and experiences, Starbucks Coffee Singapore received the Digital - Food & Beverage Award at the 2023 SBR Technology Excellence Awards.

The awards programme recognises the achievements and strides that companies in Singapore have undertaken in developing world-class products and services aided by technological innovations, and Starbucks® Singapore’s Mobile Order & Pay pushes them ahead of their competitors.

Seamless Rewards: Starbucks® App

Members can also collect Stars and earn rewards with Starbucks® Rewards through the Mobile Order & Pay function within the app, similar to in-store transactions.

Customers can be guaranteed a fast and seamless experience from ordering using the app and skipping the queue to pick up their order, ready at the counter. Most of the items that Starbucks® offers, from food items and select At-Home coffee and tea, are available for purchase through the Mobile Order & Pay app, with the Order section of the app containing a menu that lists all available offerings at participating stores. The app also allows customers to customise their beverages just the way they like and choose how their items are served, similar to in-person interactions.

Starbucks® e-Gifts can also be sent through the app, with the option for members to browse through the online store for the latest merchandise offerings that include Starbucks® cards, F&B vouchers, and brand merchandise such as tumblers and mugs. These are all purchasable directly from the Online Store through the app.

The app also features Starbucks® Delivers, where customers can order their favourite

drinks and more from the comforts of their homes and have them delivered straight to their doorsteps. Payment made directly through the app also allows members to earn Stars and redeem rewards from the accumulated Stars.

Innovating for Customer Experience

Connecting with customers through meaningful touchpoints on offline and online channels has always been the brand’s goal in delivering a unique Starbucks Experience. With the development of the Starbucks® App and Mobile Order & Pay, the company is able to improve the efficiency of baristas while providing faster and seamless transactions for their customers, without compromising on its customisability, food and beverage offerings, and gifts that are available in stores. Looking towards the future, Starbucks® states that they are investing in various technologies that will be able to meet the evolving needs and wants of their target market, focusing more on bringing convenience that meets the habits and taste profiles of Singaporeans. By embarking on a digitalisation effort, the company has also pivoted into investing in sustainability, supported by the development and capabilities of their mobile application.

Choose to Order & Pickup Now to add to your convenience when you are on the go, Schedule An Order ahead of time and pick it up at the time of your choice, or opt for Dine-in Ordering where you can place your orders without getting up from your seats in stores. Go for Starbucks® Delivers and have your favourite food and beverages delivered to your house directly

Starbucks Team at the SBR Technology Excellence Awards Dinner

Customers can enjoy their favourite items through the MO&P feature on Starbucks® App

Starbucks® Delivers

Proactive digital risk management is key to every digitalisation journey and is a must to safeguard your organisation’s data, systems, services, and reputation.

Grow and stay compliant with our digital risk management expertise and best in class suite of tech-enabled solutions.

Let your business grow with confidence in the new digital and data economy.

Stay ahead of the curve and focus on growth, not vulnerabilities.

BEYOND STARTING A CAREER, IT'S ABOUT PURSUING

A CALLING.

At DSTA, you will make an impact as you fulfil your career aspirations. Are you ready to defend our future with the next wave of tech innovation?

Make a move that matters at dsta.gov.sg

STRATEGY IN ACTION

Certis Technology (Singapore) wins at the SBR Technology Excellence and National Business Awards

The company was recognised for its innovative solutions with Mozart, Certis’ multi-services orchestration platform, and Smart Toilet Analytics.

Ground-breaking solutions by Certis Technology have received recognition for their significant improvements in productivity, efficiency, and cost savings.

9 Mozart, their multi-services orchestration platform, provides a 100% overview across all facilities on a single platform and achieved a 66% decrease in incident response time with over 20% reduction in manpower requirements.

9 Smart Toilet Analytics, the datadriven public restroom management system, increased productivity by 33% by enabling more efficient resource allocation for preventive cleaning activities, which in turn led to a 20% surge in both toilet cleanliness and user satisfaction.

These achievements reflect the company’s commitment to delivering solutions that positively impact their clients’ operations. “The best gauge of the value of your technology investment is two-fold. One, the technology we put in place must integrate seamlessly with operations to deliver real business outcomes; and two, it must generate applicable data for us to harness the power of analytics. This is what we do at Certis that adds value to our clients’ businesses, “ said Leonard Oh, Senior Vice President, Deputy Head, Technology Services Business, Certis.

In regard to their achievements, Mozart won in the Analytics – Safety & Security category at the SBR Technology Excellence Awards and in the Analytics category at the SBR National Business Award. Concurrently, Smart Toilet Analytics won in the Analytics – Utilities and Utilities categories, respectively, at the prestigious awards programmes.

Optimising Security Operations with Mozart Mozart is Certis Technology’s advanced operations management platform that integrates real-time data from AI and various security and safety sensors, such as CCTV cameras, lift supervisory panels and panic alarms, for incident detection.

Real-time Overview of Sites and Automated Incident Detection

The platform consolidates all insights into a single window-pane, providing a 100% overview across all multi-site facilities at the Security Operations Centre, manned by Certis’ operators. With 24/7 situational awareness through the unified monitoring platform, incident management and critical security processes are able to be swiftly orchestrated. Furthermore, Mozart also leverages AIenabled event detection modules, including facial recognition, crowd detection analytics, fighting detection, and unattended bag detection, to enhance threat detection and crime-fighting capabilities. These modules automate incident detection and trigger real-time alerts to Certis operators, enabling faster deployment of security officers to address threats.

Swifter Response to Incidents and Reduced Manpower

With the adoption of Mozart, security detection and escalation has improved, leading to a response time consistently within 5 minutes of occurrence — a 66% decrease in response time compared to

The best gauge of the value of your technology investment is two-fold. One, the technology we put in place must integrate seamlessly with operations to deliver real business outcomes; and two, it must generate applicable data for us to harness the power of analytics

pre-Mozart surveillance frameworks. The overall adoption of Mozart has also reduced manpower requirements by over 20% for current and future contracts, lowering operational costs and allowing the security team to focus on critical tasks that enhance overall security effectiveness.

The Future of Hygiene Management with Smart Toilet Analytics

Concurrently, Certis Technology’s Smart Toilet Analytics is changing the experiences at public restrooms through digitalised restroom management. It harnesses cutting-edge technology, including advanced sensors, predictive analytics, and a digital management platform, to inform timely cleaning activities.

Predictive Maintenance to Optimise Visitor Experience

Smart Toilet Analytics uses an AI-driven approach that encompasses the use of a single, consolidated cleanliness index, the Hygiene Service Index (HSI). HSI was personally developed by Certis Technology to better quantify cleanliness levels by grading restroom cleanliness on an actionable scale to predict a future need for cleaning activities. Data from Internet of Things (IoT) sensors on ammonia levels and foot traffic, and user feedback are indicative of unsanitary restroom conditions. The HSI aggregates these various variables, to accurately track and determine cleanliness levels in real-time, enabling the index to predict future cleanliness levels and schedule on-demand cleaning services.

Increased Productivity and User Satisfaction

Currently implemented in public transit restrooms such as in MRT toilets, these factors all work hand-in-hand to successfully achieve its goal of improved restroom cleanliness and user experience whilst optimising cleaning resources. The approach has resulted in at least a 20% improvement in overall restroom cleanliness, alongside a 20% increase in user satisfaction. Additionally, the use of Smart Toilet Analytics has spiked a 33% increase in productivity, enabling efficient allocation of resources, resulting in a better return on investment.

Leonard Oh, Senior Vice President, Deputy Head, Technology Services Business, Certis

YOUR WORKSPACE EXPERIENCE APP

CapitaStar@Work is CapitaLand’s Workspace Experience App that aims to deliver an elevated and integrated user experience to CapitaLand’s Workspace Tenants and Properties.

Discover A Suite Of Features. All In One App.

Contactless Access

Enrol and gain access through facial recognition, dynamic QR code or mobile credentials

Space Booking

Browse and book meeting room and event spaces for your business needs

Visitor Invitation

Grant visitors QR code access to turnstiles conveniently

Community Events

Stay updated and sign up for the latest events and happenings in your property

Digital Solutions

Integrate your office systems with building systems seamlessly through readily available APIs

InterSystems Simplifies Data Aggregation for Innovative Fintech Company

Founded in 2019, Fintech startup Doxa Holdings International simplifies trade flows between buyers, suppliers, and financiers by providing them with a collaborative trade platform. Focusing on digitalising procurement, payment, and financing, the Singapore-based company is adopted by companies, primarily in the construction industry, in South-east Asia.

Doxa’s platform, called Doxa Connex, is an enterprise-level cloud-based SaaS solution that leverages technologies like Blockchain, Cloud computing, and Microservices. The platform is accessible anywhere in the world and brings together buyers, suppliers, and financial institutions on a single platform, seamlessly facilitating the end-to-end operational processes and exchange of trade documents and data.

Needed a New Approach to Data Transfer

Prior to InterSystems, Doxa Connex was using an outdated form of data transfer called Extract, Transform, Load (ETL). Whilst the practice was still producing the desired results, the processes involved were costly. They were also highly manual and limited in scalability.

According to Edmund Ng, one of the founders of Doxa, the process back then was extremely taxing on his employees, and it consumed an unreasonable amount of time. Doxa once considered developing a technology middle layer, but it could have resulted in a more complicated and challenging problem than fixing it. Doxa needed a better solution.

“As our business started to scale up, our approach to data transfer and system integrations was simply unsustainable,” Edmund shared. “It was putting a huge strain on our employees and our resources, and we knew we needed to find a better solution.”

InterSystems IRIS - a Cloud-first Data Platform

Through the Singapore Fintech Association, Doxa eventually discovered InterSystems,

and IRIS, its comprehensive data platform that is designed for the cloud environment. InterSystems IRIS consists of a multi-model transactional data management engine, an application development platform, an interoperability engine as well as an open analytics platform. IRIS offers a single database that allows for massive concurrent transactions, high-speed ingestion, and realtime analytics workloads.

With the IRIS platform, Doxa Connex facilitates data aggregation and sharing between clients, suppliers, and financial institutions more efficiently, with little manual input. The platform also helps bind the complex data in Doxa’s systems into one database, automates authentication, and helps manage complex security layers, especially for financial institutions.

Edmund added, “With InterSystems IRIS, we can confidently say that we have a solution that can handle the complexity of data aggregation and sharing that our clients demand. We have seen a significant improvement in the speed and efficiency of our processes, which has translated into better outcomes for our customers.”

Seamless Movement of Data Through Multiple Systems

InterSystems IRIS now forms the ‘bloodstream’ of Doxa. The embedded presence of IRIS in Doxa Connex has made the movement of data through multiple types of systems more efficient and uninterrupted.

Additionally, the ever-complex data movement and integration, especially between Doxa Connex, companies’ internal systems and financial institutions, is now easier with IRIS working out the processes of complex data transfers in the background.

Edmund also said, “InterSystems IRIS is a user-friendly, collaborative tool that enables us to manage a growing number of integration partners and customers. IRIS is a perfect fit and has allowed us to deliver on all our objectives. Without it, we would not be where we are today.”

Finally, IRIS provides processing speed, allowing Edmund and his team peace of mind as they balance the needs of a growing number of clients. IRIS frees them up to focus on delivering on Doxa’s business objectives of providing effective procurement-to-payment digitalisation for its clients.

InterSystems IRIS is a user-friendly, collaborative tool that enables us to manage a growing number of integration partners and customers. IRIS is a perfect fit and has allowed us to deliver on all our objectives. Without it, we would not be where we are today

The firm was recognised at the SBR Technology Excellence Awards.

InterSystems team at the SBR Technology Excellence Awards

Crews make ships go

Cared-for crews make ships go safer, stronger, better

Book a crew welfare assessment with RightShip today

Committed to exceptional service

Kemin solutions are strengthening safety throughout the food chain, improving animal nutrition via enhanced feed-ingredient utilization to raise healthy livestock and poultry.

Lipid nutrition and quality

Enzyme technology

Milling efficiency

Gut health

Mycotoxin control

Feed safety

Mineral nutrition

Rumen-protected amino acids

www.kemin.com

BRIDGING TECH TALENT GAP FOR ASIAN BUSINESSES WITH GECO ASIA

Experience the power of GECO Asia, the bespoke solution for driving your business's digital transformation. Our talented professionals possess next-gen skill sets curated to meet your specific needs, fueling your growth from day one.

Skilled Next-Gen Time to market with ready-to-contribute talent

Up

Kickstart your digital transformation today with our exclusive deal: complimentary talent placement with potential savings exceeding SGD 10,000*

*Terms and conditions apply: Promotion valid until September 30, 2023. Selection of one candidate, up to 2 interview arrangements for IT or technology roles, and savings amount varies based on the talent's salary.

Asia operates under an Employment Agency Licence

SUPERCOMPUTING FOR SINGAPORE RESEARCH

NSCC Singapore was established in 2015 and manages Singapore’s national petascale facilities with available high performance computing (HPC) resources. As a National Research Infrastructure funded by the National Research Foundation (NRF), we support the HPC research needs of the public and private sectors. With the support of its stakeholders, NSCC catalyses national research and development initiatives, attracts industrial research collaborations and enhances Singapore’s research capabilities.

Find out more about our resources and how Singapore's supercomputers are helping to solve the most complex and computationally challenging research across different sectors. Visit www.nscc.sg.

NSCC.SG

Pasir Ris 8 | Pasir Ris Mall

Vibration Sensors Receive known pulses on the mesh.

Vibration Actuators At speci ed time intervals, generate known pulses on the mesh.

A Smarter Way to Monitor Aviary Habitats

Solution Design and Core Technology

T h i s a d v e r t i s e m e n t h a s n o t b e e n r e v i e w e d b y t h e M o n e t a r y A u t h o r i t y o f S i n g a p o r e T h i s i s n o t a n a d v e r t i s e m e n t c a l l i n g a t t e n t i o n t o a n o f f e r o r i n t e n t i o n t o o f f e r , a n y i n v e s t m e n t

Embedding protection at the point of need

Top companies lauded at SBR International and National Business Awards 2023

Businesses in Singapore have faced unprecedented challenges in recent years and now, as the world adapts to a new normal, many companies have risen to the occasion through strategy adjustments and changes in operations. They showed that they can thrive amidst challenges and now have the opportunity to expand and improve their offerings, whether locally or globally.

With this, the SBR International Business Awards is back in its 10th year to recognise foreign companies that have made trailblazing initiatives and outstanding achievements that earned them a strong foothold in the Lion City. Meanwhile, the 8th SBR National Business Awards was also launched to commend Singapore’s homegrown and local companies for their excellent projects that greatly contributed to the country’s economy.

SBR INTERNATIONAL BUSINESSAWARDS 2023WINNERS

AIA Singapore

Life Insurance

Allianz Trade

Business Insurance

Aries Marine LLC

Marine Services

Aspire Lifestyles APAC Pte Ltd

Business Services

Autonomous a2z

Automotive & Transport System

Bolloré Logistics Singapore Pte Ltd

Logistics - Sustainability Development

Crawford & Company International Pte Ltd

General Insurance

CYNOSURE AESTHETIC AND MEDICAL APAC SERVICES PTE. LTD.

Healthcare Technology

Dematic Pte Ltd

Logistics - Technology

Engie RCS Pte. Ltd.

Data Center

Exyte Singapore Pte Ltd

Industrial Construction

Fusion Worldwide

Supply Chain

Gensler Architecture

Hoya Electronics Pte Ltd

Electronics

The winners of the SBR International Business Awards and National Business Awards, both organised by the Singapore Business Review, were honoured at the Awards Dinner held last 23 May 2023 at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands in Singapore.

The esteemed panel of judges for this year’s nominations consisted of Jiak See Ng, Asia Pacific Financial Advisory Leader, Deloitte; Gaurav Modi, EY Asean and Singapore Consulting Leader, Ernst & Young; Irving Low, Head of Advisory (Consulting), KPMG Singapore; Greg Unsworth, Digital Business Leader, PwC Singapore; Roger Loo, Executive Director and Head of Management Consulting Services, BDO Consultants Pte Ltd; and Henry Tan, Group CEO & Chief Innovation Officer, CLA Global TS Holdings Pte. Ltd.

Congratulations to this year’s awardees!

Huawei International Pte Ltd Technology

Kaplan Higher Education

Educational Management

London School of Business and Finance

Technology - Education

McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Food Manufacturing Solutions

NAVER Cloud Corp.

Cloud Services

NICOMATIC PTE LTD

Electronic Manufacturing

SGK Inc

Marketing

Shamir Singapore Pte Ltd

Consumer Products - Durables

Wavin Singapore Holding Pte Ltd

Construction Technology

SBR NATIONAL BUSINESSAWARDS 2023WINNERS

Adventus Singapore Pte. Ltd.

IT Services

AETOS Holdings Pte Ltd

Security Services

AirCarbon Pte. Ltd.

Financial Services

APRIL International Enterprise Pte. Ltd.

Manufacturing - Paper

ASEAN Cableship Pte Ltd

Marine and Offshore Engineering

Asia Cargo Network

Cargo Handling

Certis Technology (Singapore) Pte Ltd

Analytics

Certis Technology (Singapore) Pte Ltd

Utilities

Constellar Venues Pte Ltd

Business Services - Events Management

Cyfirma Holdings Pte Ltd

Technology

enCity Urban Solutions Pte Ltd

Consulting - Urban Planning

Epsilon Telecommunications Pte Ltd

Cloud Services

Hugosave (Atlas Consolidated Pte Ltd)

Financial Technology

India International Insurance Pte Limited

General Insurance

Kawarin Enterprise Pte Ltd

Manufacturing - Steel

Keppel Data Centres

Data Center

LEAP Commerce

Internet/New Media

LEAP Commerce

Social Media Marketing

Lendlease Global Commercial Trust Management Pte Ltd

Commercial Real Estate Trust

M1 Limited

Telecommunications

Moove Media Pte Ltd

Advertising

Neovation Consultancy Services Pte. Ltd.

Healthcare Technology

PARKROYAL on Beach Road

Hospitality & Leisure

Prosemi Pte Ltd

Manufacturing Technology

PSB Academy

Education

Singapore Aero Engine Services Private Limited

Aviation

Singapore Paincare Holdings Limited

Healthcare

Singapore Post Limited

E-Commerce

Stamcorp International Pte Ltd

Metals & Mining

Vividthree Holdings Ltd.

Media & Entertainment

Whiteways Systems Pte Ltd

Broadcasting

Workstation Pte Ltd

Real Estate

Y-SG Pte Ltd

Logistics - E-Commerce

YCP Group Management Consulting

Autonomous a2z

AIA Singapore

Allianz Trade

Bolloré Logistics Singapore Pte Ltd

CYNOSURE AESTHETIC AND MEDICAL APAC SERVICES PTE. LTD.

Exyte Singapore Pte Ltd

Gensler

Crawford & Company International Pte Ltd

Dematic Pte Ltd

Fusion Worldwide

Hoya Electronics Pte Ltd

School

Huawei International Pte Ltd

London

of Business and Finance

Wavin Singapore Holding Pte Ltd

APRIL International Enterprise Pte. Ltd.

Kaplan Higher Education

McCormick & Company, Incorporated

Adventus Singapore Pte. Ltd.

ASEAN Cableship Pte Ltd

AETOS Holdings Pte Ltd

Asia Cargo Network

Certis Technology (Singapore) Pte Ltd

Constellar Venues Pte Ltd

India International Insurance Pte Limited

Keppel Data Centres

LEAP Commerce

enCity Urban Solutions Pte Ltd

Epsilon Telecommunications Pte Ltd

Lendlease Global Commercial Trust Management Pte Ltd

Moove Media Pte Ltd

PARKROYAL on Beach Road

Singapore Aero Engine Services Private Limited

M1 Limited

Neovation Consultancy Services Pte. Ltd.

Prosemi Pte Ltd

PSB Academy

Singapore Post Limited

Singapore Paincare Holdings Limited

YCP Group

Vividthree Holdings Ltd.

Whiteways Systems Pte Ltd

Y-SG Pte Ltd

AIA Singapore nurtures sustainability and community wellbeing through CSR initiatives

AIA Singapore’s commitment to sustainability and corporate social responsibility extends beyond the Green Pledge, encompassing initiatives like the AIA Better Lives Fund and engaging the community through football.

AIA Singapore has always been passionate about making a positive impact on people’s lives, and it believes that a healthy environment is fundamental to achieving its brand promise of enabling Healthier, Longer, Better Lives (HLBL) for all. As a leading insurer in Singapore, the company recognises its role in helping communities live better as well as the importance of environmental wellness in enhancing the well-being of its community. Exercise in the outdoors can be invigorating for both the mind and body.

As part of the AIA Green Pledge, AIA Singapore committed $5m to the National Parks Board’s (NParks) registered charity, Garden City Fund, with the goal of planting 16,666 trees in Singapore’s parks and nature reserves over a five-year period. This contribution is the largest by any organisation to the NParks OneMillionTrees movement, which aims to plant more than one million trees across Singapore’s streetscapes, gardens, parks, park connectors, nature

reserves, and nature parks, amongst other areas. Through this contribution, AIA Singapore aims to not only enhance the wellbeing of its community but also contribute to Singapore’s vision to become a “City in Nature.” With people at the heart of everything that AIA Singapore does, it wants to build stronger connections between the community and the environment. The AIA Green Pledge supports its sustainability efforts in the local community by helping create more urban green spaces across the city. It represents AIA Singapore’s commitment to doing its part in creating a more sustainable Singapore. The company believes that every action counts in collectively creating an environment that future generations can also enjoy.

Commitment to community and empowering children’s lives

AIA Singapore’s commitment to the local community has always been a priority. Its longstanding partnership with its adopted charities, like Children’s Wishing Well and VIVA

Foundation for Children with Cancer, is a testament to this commitment.

In 2021, AIA Singapore launched the AIA Better Lives Fund, which is managed by the Community Chest. The fund seeks to provide children and families from adopted charities with better access to education, growth and development, and healthcare. In total, it raised over $500,000 for the AIA Better Lives Fund in 2022.

One of the cornerstones of AIA Singapore’s Corporate Social Responsibility programme, the AIA Grant-A-Wish campaign, aims to grant wishes to children from its adopted charities. With the help of global partner Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, it raised more funds for Grant-A-Wish whilst also engaging customers and the wider community through sports activities.

Engaging CSR initiatives and team spirit for community impact

In 2022, AIA Singapore also collaborated with its partners to bring back the AIA Kids

AIA sponsors social worker to London

Football Clinic, led by coaches from both the Tottenham Hotspur Football Club and the Football Association of Singapore. These clinics aim to encourage families and aspiring young football players to lead healthier lives. All proceeds from the clinics benefit the AIA Better Lives Fund. Additionally, AIA Singapore hosted the annual AIA Charity Golf and Dinner, which creates a unique engagement opportunity for stakeholders such as distribution channels, business partners, as well as employees to come together for dinner after a golf game.

The AIA Executive Committee takes a people-first approach to everything that they do and has shown dedication and commitment to supporting the local community, in alignment with AIA’s promise of enabling people to live HLBL.

The committee also inspires employees to be part of the company’s community efforts. Staff are encouraged to participate in the AIA Green Pledge and Better Lives Fund initiatives, working together to do good for the community.

Fostering sustainability and collaboration for a greener future

Since 2021, divisions across AIA Singapore have been taking part in the AIA Plant-ATree programme, as part of the AIA Green Pledge. They have been raising funds and coming together to take part in tree-planting activities. To launch the pledge and to mark the insurer’s 90th anniversary in April 2021, AIA Singapore gathered long-serving staff, management team, insurance representatives, and employees across its various divisions to plant 90 trees at the tranquil Rower’s Bay, located at Lower Seletar Reservoir.

Thereafter, it has been organising regular tree-planting days that also help foster teamwork and camaraderie amongst employees. For example, the Customer and Digital team planted close to 120 trees at Alexandra in commemoration of World Environment Day last year.

These events not only contribute to the AIA Green Pledge, but they also provide the opportunity for AIA Singapore’s people to do their part in creating a more sustainable future whilst also strengthening their bonds with their colleagues.

Staff and leaders regularly work together at AIA Singapore to make CSR initiatives a success. For instance, at the AIA Charity Golf and Charity Dinner last year, this team spirit played a crucial role in every aspect of the event, from logistics to volunteering to donating. At the charity dinner, staff and

AIA Executive Committee worked closely together to inspire guests to donate by singing for a cause alongside Spurs legend Teddy Sheringham. AIA Singapore believes that businesses have an important role to play in driving change and contributing to a more sustainable future. Its promise is to enable people to live Healthier, Longer, Better Lives. Its purpose-driven focus is grounded in the simple truth that healthier communities and a healthier environment are inextricably linked. The World Health Organisation (WHO) considers climate change to be the biggest health threat facing humanity.

Promoting stakeholder collaboration

One way for businesses to bring about positive change in their local communities is by collaborating with credible partners and activating stakeholder cooperation. This approach enables AIA Singapore to work alongside stakeholders in order to deliver the most value to local communities.

AIA Singapore believes that every action, no matter how small, counts. Through the AIA Green Pledge, more trees will be planted across the dense urban environment with the hope of further increasing Singapore’s green cover.

Beyond the benefits to human well-being, green spaces can help mitigate the urban heat island effect as well as the impacts of higher temperatures on human health.

The company sees the AIA Green Pledge as an integral part of its broader commitment to sustainability and corporate social responsibility. By promoting more partnerships and stakeholder collaboration on impactful programmes and initiatives, everyone can work together so that future generations can also enjoy their home island.

AIA Singapore’s ongoing efforts in sustainability and community engagement to the local community remains steadfast. It will continue to explore new ways to engage stakeholders through innovative campaigns and initiatives that inspire and empower individuals and families to live better.

This year, in alignment with the AIA Green Pledge, it expanded the initiative by offering to plant a tree for each investment made by a customer into the AIA Sustainable Multi-Thematic Fund through a selected AIA Investment-Linked Product lasting six months or more. The company will also continue to leverage partnerships, such as that with Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, in order to further integrate its CSR activities into engagement with stakeholders.

AIA Singapore is delighted and honoured to be lauded at the SBR National Business Awards. With the recognition of its sustainability efforts and corporate social responsibility, the company is motivated to deepen its efforts and make a bigger difference in the community.

AIA Singapore’s commitment to the local community remains steadfast. It will continue to explore new ways to engage stakeholders through innovative campaigns and initiatives that inspire and empower individuals and families to live better

AIA and National Parks Board tree planting event

More Than Just a Convention Venue

football fields – as well as the development of the largest electric vehicle charging hub in the eastern part of Singapore. These projects will significantly boost the venue’s sustainability infrastructure.

Situated within the buzzing, multicultural hub of Singapore, Singapore EXPO is the country’s largest purpose-built meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) venue. With over twenty years of exhibition and event experience, Singapore EXPO is a trusted venue partner that offers elevated experiences through curated and compelling spaces. As the landscape of the MICE industry continues to evolve, Singapore EXPO remains at the forefront of change and innovation, anticipating the demands and needs of event organisers. With its rejuvenation and commitment to sustainability, it is poised to set new standards for environmentally responsible venues.

Sustainable Practices

The significance of sustainability has grown exponentially. Events traditionally generate substantial waste and carbon emissions, emphasising the need for environmentally responsible practices.

To combat this problem, Singapore EXPO is taking the lead in minimising its environmental impact. Going green has been a continuous journey for Singapore EXPO since 2012 when its meetings and convention wing became the first MICE venue in Singapore to receive the BCA Green Mark Platinum Award. Building on this success, Singapore EXPO has again been awarded the same accolade for 10 exhibition halls this year. It has set an ambitious goal to achieve net zero status by 2024 with Singapore’s largest single-site solar rooftop installation – at an estimated size of 6.5

“We are proud to support Singapore’s vision to become Asia Pacific’s leading sustainable MICE destination by 2030,” said Mr Chua Wee Phong, Chief Executive (Venues) of Constellar. “It’s important to invest in both our physical infrastructure as well as develop the necessary skillsets in our people in our journey to net zero, so that we can create a strong foundation to build, sustain and scale our sustainability initiatives.”

an impressive array of wellness activities in line with the Singapore Tourism Board’s Wellness Festival Singapore held in the same month. Singapore EXPO also launched the inaugural Space Fest @ EXPO in December 2022. Leveraging its expansive 123,000 sqm of event space, the festival featured outdoor live screenings of the World Cup matches and a wide range of space-themed activities, including a 5D cinema, virtual reality games, go-kart racing and a giant inflatable indoor playground. These diverse offerings attracted audiences spanning from families to passionate football fans, cementing the venue’s new identity as a dynamic and multifaceted event destination. With the success of Space Fest @ EXPO, Singapore EXPO continued to ride on the bandwagon of festivals with the new aim of enhancing B2B tradeshows. In the first quarter of 2023, Singapore EXPO, in collaboration with Informa Markets, organised Beer Yard @ FHA, an extension of the attendees’ experience during Food and Hotel Asia 2023. Held at the outdoor atrium spaces of Singapore EXPO, the Beer Yard boasted as many as ten craft beers on tap and nostalgic Singaporean games to bring delegates back to the past.

In addition, Constellar will be piloting waste measurement methodologies at events held at Singapore EXPO, including at the upcoming Food & Hotel Asia 2024. By December this year, it will implement urban farming on the rooftop of Singapore EXPO’s convention wing, which will complement the venue’s ongoing food waste management initiatives. A food digestor, which turns food waste into electricity, compost and water, will also be operated within its 800-seater food park.

Vibrant Festivals

As part of its efforts in relooking at the event experience, Singapore EXPO launched a series of festivals last year. Starting with Be@EXPO, a wellness festival in collaboration with the Singapore Tourism Board that was held in June 2022, the event showcased

Exclusive Privileges for Event Organisers

On top of its ongoing festivalisation, Constellar has introduced the EXPO Advantage Program, which provides event organisers exclusive privileges and access to accommodation, media, and event and lifestyle support at attractive rates. With this new programme, event organisers will have the tools they need to create unique experiences for delegates and visitors.

Singapore EXPO is disrupting the MICE industry with its innovative and fresh new offerings, all whilst pushing towards its sustainability goal of achieving net zero by 2024.

Space Fest @ EXPO

Beer Yard @ FHA

Singapore EXPO remains at the forefront of change and innovation, anticipating the demands and needs of event organisers. With its rejuvenation and commitment to sustainability, it is poised to set new standards for environmentally responsible venues

Safeguard your future with India International Insurance Pte Limited

India International Insurance Pte Limited (III) has emerged triumphant at the esteemed SBR National Business Awards, securing the top position in the General Insurance category. III, a emerging insurance company renowned for its commitment to excellence and customer-centric approach, showcased its industry leadership and innovation, earning this remarkable recognition.

Organised by the Singapore Business Review, the SBR National Business Awards celebrates the exceptional accomplishments of companies across various sectors. The awards aim to acknowledge outstanding organisations that have demonstrated exceptional performance, innovation, and best practices in their respective industries.

III’s victory in the General Insurance category underscores its unwavering dedication to providing comprehensive and dependable insurance solutions to its customers. With a robust portfolio of insurance products and services, III has established itself as a trusted partner for individuals and businesses seeking protection against unforeseen risks.

“We are thrilled and honoured to receive this prestigious award,” said Ms Nalini Venugopal,

CEO of India International Insurance Pte Limited. “This recognition reflects our team’s relentless pursuit of excellence and our commitment to delivering superior insurance solutions to our valued customers. We would like to express our gratitude to the SBR National Business Awards and organisers for acknowledging our efforts.”

Customer-centric approach propel III’s success in insurance industry III’s success can be attributed to its customer-centric approach, which focuses on understanding and meeting the unique insurance needs of individuals and businesses. The company’s comprehensive range of insurance products includes motor insurance, travel insurance, property insurance, personal accident insurance, and various other lines of coverage. III also offers tailored insurance solutions for corporate clients, providing them with customised risk management strategies to safeguard their assets and operations.

In addition to its commitment

to customer satisfaction, has made technological advancements in their processes. The company has embraced technology to enhance its service delivery and streamline its operations. Through its user-friendly website (https://www.iii.com. sg/), customers can easily access information, request quotes, and manage their policies. III’s digital initiatives have played a crucial role in providing a seamless and convenient insurance experience to its policyholders.

The recognition at the SBR National Business Awards highlights III’s improving market position and its contribution to the growth and development of the insurance industry.

The company’s commitment to maintaining high standards of professionalism, ethical conduct, and customer satisfaction has positioned it as an emerging player in the general insurance sector.

As III continues to build on its success, it remains focused on expanding its product offerings, leveraging technology, and enhancing customer engagement. The company’s dedication to excellence and innovation ensures that it will remain a trusted insurance partner for individuals and businesses alike.

The insurer shined at SBR National Business Awards in the General Insurance category.

The company’s dedication to excellence and innovation ensures that it will remain a trusted insurance partner for individuals and businesses alike

SAESL wins SBR National Business Award for safety-driven initiative

SAESL has won the SBR National Business Award for its safety-driven initiative, the Behavioural Based Safety (BBS) programme.

organisation’s Core Values. We have also launched the SAESL Operating System to provide leaders with the framework, tools, and resources to better manage their teams and drive towards our goal. In addition, we have engaged an external consultant to train our leaders and facilitators to foster positive safety behaviours in the context of different business scenarios.

Align personal interest with Organisation’s objectives

Reflecting the well-known axiom of “you get what you measure”, the performance appraisal system has also been revamped to align individual performance and personal interests with:

• Shared KPIs of the organisation which measure behavioural-based safety observations and improvement projects arising from such observations; and

Ajourney to drive behavioural shift

Recognising the success of the BBS programme applied in the field of Occupational Health and Safety (OHS), SAESL, the world’s largest Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) facility for Rolls-Royce Trent engines, started the BBS programme as a supplement to the Quality and Safety Management system. The BBS programme aligns behaviours with the Values and Culture of the organisation, through proactive identification and positive reinforcement of desired behaviours. Staff are trained to carry out safety observations of their peers, encouraged to investigate the underlying behaviours and to provide timely feedback in a non-judgmental manner. The emphasis is placed on the behavioural perspective to address the root cause of the issue and open the scope for necessary corrective and preventive actions. To drive a long-term behavioural shift, we incorporate “consequences” to reinforce both positive (recognition & rewards) and negative behaviours (Just Culture framework). The former will motivate staff to go above and

beyond their job duties to ensure safety. Instead of calling out unsafe behaviours only, we also highlight and reinforce expected good behaviours where staff who exhibit good safety behaviours are acknowledged, recognised, and rewarded. This sets up a positive norm through peer-to-peer modelling and recognition.

The important role of leadership

Whilst BBS is primarily a bottom-up approach, it requires top-down leadership support for it to become a company-wide, sustainable effort. SAESL’s “Narrate & Demonstrate” is a monthly safety walk conducted by the business leadership that proactively reinforces good safety behaviours and validates real-time understanding and mitigation of risks within the local teams. The role of leadership and its influence cannot be over-emphasised. Having leaders model and reaffirm positive behaviours sends the strongest signal of what is most important. Leaders are coached to give constructive feedback and to always cast the right leadership shadow that is aligned with the

• Core Values comprising Safety. There have been many organisations that have failed in their BBS implementation. Therefore, we must be mindful of potential pitfalls and common mistakes. We have put in place several indicators to measure our maturity; number of employees trained in BBS, the number of proactive reports that had shifted from condition to behavioural reporting, the number of observations conducted, and finally, the number of improvement projects arising from BBS data analysis. The key performance indicators are not hard output metrics, but rather an indicator of maturity and mindset to serve as a progress report card for our stakeholders.

It is our goal that peer-to-peer observations will become a way of life instead of being scheduled or rostered. When staff acknowledge or reaffirm each other for every right behaviour, and when leadership spends time proactively setting the environment by modelling, coaching, and advocating the right behaviours, safety will truly be embedded as part of our Values and Culture.

“Our products fly people around the world. Therefore, it is always our top priority to ensure our products meet the highest safety standard in SAESL. We have embarked on a journey to drive behavioural and cultural shifts, and we are pleased that our effort is recognised with this prestigious award,” Simon Middlebrough, CEO, SAESL

Simon

Middlebrough, CEO, SAESL

Multi-language approach expands horizons on Vividthree’s ComicVid

By prioritising user engagement and understanding diverse preferences, Vividthree aims to revolutionise the comic entertainment industry.

Upon analysing the user demographics of Vividthree Holdings Ltd., it became evident that a strategic response was necessary to cater to a wider audience for their innovative platform, ComicVid. This Over-The-Top comic video platform calls for an inclusive multi-language approach, acknowledging the diverse linguistic preferences of its users. By embracing a multilanguage strategy, Vividthree Holdings Ltd. aims to effectively bridge the communication gap and ensure that ComicVid reaches a broader spectrum of users worldwide.

“As we analysed the viewership data of silent horror and examined the demographics of ComicVid, we observed a substantial number of subscribers from South America, Europe, Indonesia, India, Malaysia, China, and Thailand. Recognising this diverse user base, it became evident that implementing a multilanguage approach would be instrumental in expanding viewership and raising awareness,” said

Jonathan Zhang Weiquan, Chief Executive Officer, Vividthree Holdings Ltd.

The primary mission underlying the development of ComicVid was to establish a truly versatile and inclusive platform capable of serving the diverse needs of a

global audience. By striving to offer comics in languages that users can genuinely comprehend and relate to, Vividthree Holdings Ltd. aimed to foster a deep connection between the content and the individuals consuming it. Through this visionary approach, the company aimed to create an enriching and all-encompassing experience for users, ultimately leading to heightened engagement and satisfaction levels. By ensuring that language is not a barrier, ComicVid aspires to unite comic enthusiasts from around the world, promoting cultural exchange and appreciation in the process.

Recognising excellence

Vividthree’s groundbreaking innovation in the realm of digital platforms has been duly recognised and honoured with the prestigious Media & Entertainment award at the esteemed SBR National Business Awards. This remarkable accolade serves as a resounding testament to the unwavering dedication of Vividthree Holdings Ltd. in delivering unparalleled, inventive solutions that captivate and inspire comic creators and enthusiasts on a global scale.

The company’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of what is possible in the world of comics has not only earned them this prestigious recognition but also solidifies their position as a trailblazer in the industry. With this award win, Vividthree stands as a shining exemplar of how innovation and engagement can shape the future of media and entertainment.

“It signifies that our hard work and creativity have been recognised on a global scale. This achievement propels us to a higher level in our industry and reinforces our dedication to pushing the boundaries of digital storytelling,” Jonathan added.

In an interview with Singapore Business Review, Jonathan talked about the development and implementation of ComicVid, as well as their plans for the future of the platform.

Struggles in sustainable partnerships, battling copyright infringement

Undoubtedly, the implementation of multi-language support posed its own unique set of hurdles for Vividthree. One notable challenge that emerged was the task of securing sustainable partnerships

Vividthree team at the SBR National Business Awards ceremony

with proficient voice-over providers in each target market. The company recognised the criticality of finding reliable contributors who could not only offer precise translations but also meticulously proofread the content to preserve the intended message of the creators.

Ensuring accurate translations is vital to guarantee that the essence and nuances of the original comic are faithfully conveyed to the audience in different languages. By enlisting the services of dependable voiceover partners, Vividthree aimed to uphold the integrity of the creator’s vision while delivering a seamless and authentic experience to users across the globe. Despite the intricacies involved, the company remained resolute in its commitment to sourcing competent collaborators who could not only translate but also understand and preserve the essence of the comic’s narrative. This conscientious approach reflected Vividthree’s unwavering dedication to maintaining the highest standards of quality and ensuring that the multi-language support truly enhanced the user’s engagement and overall experience on the ComicVid platform.

Ensuring safe and ethical content

As such, Vividthree addressed these challenges head-on by collaborating with language experts and contributors to ensure the quality and coherence of the translations.

As Vividthree handles content from a multitude of creators, it recognises the heightened significance of preventing copyright infringement and ensuring the absence of inappropriate materials. The company places paramount importance on these concerns and has implemented a rigorous content curation policy to address them effectively. By exercising meticulous curation practices, Vividthree takes deliberate steps to carefully curate and review all the content available on its platform.

This proactive moderation approach serves as a protective measure, enabling users to indulge in a seamless and enjoyable experience while mitigating the risk of encountering inappropriate or harmful materials. By thoroughly vetting and monitoring the content, Vividthree aims to create a safe and secure environment where users can explore and appreciate a wide

range of comics without concerns regarding copyright infringements or encountering objectionable content. This commitment to content curation and moderation reflects Vividthree’s dedication to upholding ethical standards and fostering a positive user experience within the ComicVid platform.

There have also been other safeguards to maintain control over the distribution and accessibility of content so that ComicVid can remain a secure environment for both creators and users. This is to ensure that content uploaded by users remains exclusive to ComicVid and cannot be transferred to other platforms without proper authorisation.

The right balance for users and content creators

Vividthree takes the creation of a sustainable business model that benefits all stakeholders as a serious matter. As such, it continues to refine its approach to monetisation on the platform, ensuring there is a harmonious balance between generating revenue and providing value to users and content creators.

The company is admittedly still fine-tuning its monetisation strategy, but it remains committed to maintaining the good value it offers both users and creators. “We believe that by prioritising their needs and interests, we can create a platform that is both engaging and financially sustainable,” Jonathan added.

As Vividthree moves forward with its monetisation plans, it will be transparent

and share with users the strategies it has developed. The company’s goal is to ensure that the said efforts will align with its overall vision for the long-term viability of the platform while always keeping the satisfaction of users and content creators at the forefront of its decision-making.

On the topic of moving forward, Vividthree is also excited about the potential of virtual reality (VR) in the entertainment industry and is looking for ways to include it in the ComicVid realm. For the organisation, VR could provide users with a “truly immersive and interactive comic reading experience, taking storytelling to a whole new level.”

Vividthree is now set to launch ComicVid 2.0, which includes new features such as voting, comment sections, and subscriptions for premium content. These features were added with the goal to enhance the user experience by promoting engagement and interaction with the platform.

Driving innovation

Looking ahead, Vividthree Holdings Ltd. is resolutely focused on advancing its platform and enhancing the overall user experience by introducing new and innovative features. Recognising the dynamic nature of user interests and preferences, the company remains dedicated to continually improving ComicVid to cater to a broader range of user needs.

By actively seeking ways to augment the platform, Vividthree aims to stay at the forefront of technological advancements and industry trends. The company is committed to conducting thorough research and development efforts, exploring novel ideas, and incorporating cutting-edge features that align with users’ evolving interests.

Vividthree’s goal is to ensure that ComicVid remains a vibrant and captivating platform that consistently exceeds user expectations. By embracing innovation and adaptability, the company endeavours to create an ever-evolving ecosystem that caters to the diverse tastes, preferences, and demands of its growing user base. With a forward-looking mindset, Vividthree is poised to bring forth exciting enhancements and features that will enrich the ComicVid experience and solidify its position as a leading digital platform for comic enthusiasts worldwide.

Vividthree is committed to conducting thorough research and development efforts, exploring novel ideas, and incorporating cutting-edge features that align with users’ evolving interests.

ComicVid receives the Media & Entertainment award

How digital transformation and supply chain automation is helping businesses navigate disruption

Dematic offers intelligent, automated solutions to drive competitiveness and adaptability.

these things), and in evaluating the right partner to work with.

With the available solutions becoming more and more complex, navigating such a process requires specialist expertise to not only design and plan them but also implement and support them over the lifecycle. Choosing the right partner with the right capabilities and experience is critical to success.

How Dematic can help

Distribution and Logistics have never stood still, being subject to continual change and disruption. However, today many businesses are under more pressure than ever, with new challenges hitting whilst they are still grappling with existing issues. Yet the old idiom stands true: challenge presents an opportunity, and it’s the businesses which see those opportunities and activities, which become more resilient and adaptable to new challenges as they arise.

Pressures from disruption and volatility

There are not many businesses that are immune to the volatility of the current environment; Any business that uses materials, people, space, or equipment will be impacted. In addition to addressing the challenges and disruptions, some businesses have also had to handle exceptional increases in demand because of the volatility.

For example, the spike in e-commerce in 2020 increased demand for electronic chips, resulting in significant shortages and long manufacturing lead times. For almost everyone, the volatility brought about a need to adapt to change and, for some, an additional need to determine how to scale profitably whilst mitigating the risk of overinvesting in capacity.

It’s becoming clear that we will be living in an environment of rising costs for some time to come. Whilst the rate of rising general costs should be expected to stabilise, an underlying shortage of workers will keep upward pressure on wages and the cost of labour.

The land will not get any less scarce, and the ongoing increase in urbanisation will continue to drive up the cost of land and building space for a long time to come.

Driving competitiveness and adaptability

In today’s economic climate of high inflation, supply chain disruptions, long lead times, hypercompetition, and much uncertainty, businesses that choose to do nothing will very rapidly find themselves on the back foot in terms of competitiveness and responsiveness. Businesses that choose to cut costs may make themselves leaner and cheaper in the short term, but this strategy usually fails to address the core issues of being able to adapt and compete in changing conditions, whilst also stifling their ability to invest in growth as well as development.

Businesses that are proactive towards digital transformation and adopting supply chain automation will be the ones building an excellent foundation for driving competitiveness and adaptability. When this is done in the right way, improved productivity, space efficiency, flexibility, speed, and accuracy can drive a significant competitive advantage.

Businesses need to take the time to understand the challenges that could affect them and the opportunities that addressing these might present. Invest the time in identifying and evaluating options that will bring the right benefits to your operations (whether it be productivity, space efficiency, accuracy, speed, capacity, flexibility, or all

Dematic designs, builds, and supports intelligent automated solutions empowering and sustaining the future of commerce for its customers in manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution. Dematic has helped advance automation growth in Asia, from rolling out the first automated system in Singapore in the 1970s, through the first AS/RS in Singapore and Malaysia in the 1980s, to, the largest high-speed automated sorter in Asia implemented in Korea in 2005, to the high-volume, high productivity automated solutions enhancing resilience and agility for Asian businesses today.

Automated systems have been instrumental in leading companies in Singapore being able to outcompete their global competitors through greater operational capacities, productivity, efficiency, and superior service levels to customers in the broader Asia Pacific region. Learn more about how your business can turn its supply chain into a significant competitive advantage with automation and digital transformation at www.dematic.com.

Dematic designs, builds, and supports intelligent automated solutions empowering and sustaining the future of commerce for its customers in manufacturing, warehousing, as well as distribution

Dematic has helped advance automation growth in Asia

ACTING as a committed employer for our teams

A brand of

about our Sustainability Development bollore-logistics com

LEARN MORE

ENSURING ethical and responsible business practices within our logistics value chain

Y-SG Pte Ltd wins SBR National Business Award for Innovative Strategies with YSG Marketplace

The company received the Logistics - E-Commerce award for its groundbreaking digital transformation strategies, revolutionising the industry with innovative solutions, and propelling businesses into the future.

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, international borders were forced to shut abruptly as countries raced to contain the spread of the pandemic. With the outbreak restricting business activities globally, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the retail industry resulted in the closure of many brick-and-mortar businesses.

As a result, physical stores were made to quickly adapt by pivoting and diversifying to new channels to reach their customers and stay relevant in a challenging retail landscape.

YSG Marketplace (ysg.com.sg), wholly owned and managed by Y-SG Pte Ltd (YSG), offers businesses a fully integrated end-toend E-Commerce logistics solution where they are readily and strongly supported by YSG to list and sell on the platform.

YSG’s proprietary solutions include the Order Management Systems (OMS) which is engineered and built on a sophisticated and robust integration of multiple proprietary technological systems. The OMS provides full, single visibility of all orders and fulfilment operations, and takes businesses to the next stage of operational readiness and excellence in the now and future of E-Commerce. It allows business owners to list and sell products on multiple online and offline sales channels, accurately managing orders and products from multiple stock locations. The centralised tracking inventory provides businesses with accurate tracking and visibility of inventories across different stock locations and channels.

Revolutionising Warehouse Fulfilment and Driving E-Commerce Success

To scale up its warehouse fulfilment capabilities, the automated goods-to-person solution that is supported by advanced technology and smart autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) was implemented to automate various time-consuming, laborious tasks like picking, moving, and sorting. With this

revolutionary solution, YSG is able to fulfil over 18,000 orders on any given day.

Since its inception two years ago, YSG has continued to broaden and deepen its capabilities to keep the business moving and stay relevant in the ever-shifting competitive E-Commerce landscape.

This included building a team of professional Enablement Specialists who primarily help YSG’s clients manage all key major marketplaces-related activities and operations, such as store set-up, chat management and participation in mega sales campaigns.

Meanwhile, YSG’s in-house Creative Designers and Digital Marketing Specialists are at the forefront to help its clients in their marketing efforts by ensuring that the right message goes out to the targeted audience segment to boost brand visibility and drive revenue generation.

Data-driven marketing excellence

Using data-driven marketing information, raw data is translated into useful and actionable insights by YSG’s Digital Marketing Specialists to help businesses make the right decisions in optimising their ROI in their next campaign.

For YSG, the company was given an award in Logistics - E-Commerce in the recently concluded SBR National Business Awards.

The prestigious annual awards programme launched in 2016 honours local and

homegrown companies in Singapore and recognises outstanding projects that greatly contribute to Singapore’s fast-growing economy.

In giving the award, the judging panel took into consideration the impact YSG has brought to the community.

YSG maintained a credible and strong reputation amongst Singaporeans in helping both local brands and foreign business conglomerates sell successfully on the key major marketplaces.

The panel considered how YSG is seen as a catalyst for growing the sales of a foreign multinational conglomerate by over 700 times in one year. To date, YSG has listed around 600 brands on its platform.

Expansion through innovation

With YSG growing in prominence as a hub, opportunities for local businesses to expand to new markets in ASEAN is now possible and similarly for foreign businesses to enter the Singapore market.

“YSG Marketplace was officially launched in 2020, a tumultuous year that was characterised by unprecedented global challenges and chaos with major disruptions to public healthcare systems, societies, trade and economies around the world. It was in this very crisis that YSG found opportunities during the darkest hours and we responded by steadfastly transforming the warehouse logistics with proprietary innovative solutions and automation, to make it more robust and to better benefit our colleagues, clients and customers. This award is a significant milestone for YSG as it is a testament that our pursuit and adoption of innovative solutions are recognised by industry leaders. In the years ahead, YSG will continue to innovate, evolve and improve as we strive towards organisational excellence in everything that we do,” Dr

Simon Sim, Managing Director,

This award is a significant milestone for YSG as it is a testament that our pursuit and adoption of innovative solutions are recognised by industry leaders. In the years ahead, YSG will continue to innovate, evolve and improve as we strive towards organisational excellence in everything that we do

Dr Simon Sim, Managing Director, Y-SG Pte Ltd

Enabling the future gateway for the digital economy

ASEAN Cableship’s unrivalled expertise and turn-key solutions ensure seamless connectivity for the global digital economy, expanding networks and enabling future growth.

ASEAN Cableship is the leading provider of submarine cable installation and repair in the region. Since 1986, our strong relationship with national telecommunications companies and quality of work has established us as the preferred choice for submarine cable maintenance.

Our expertise/services now extend beyond ASEAN, to North Africa, Taiwan, and Australia.

ASEAN Cableship continues to install and maintain submarine cables that connect countries. The global digital economy is dependent on these cables.

Our technical expertise enables the burying of cables deeply below the seabed, ensuring protection against damage from anchors, fishing and/ or shipping activities.

Oceanic Lifelines: Global Connectivity Backbone

Submarine communications cables are specialised

cables laid on the seabed between land-based stations, serving as a crucial link for telecommunication signals across vast oceanic distances. It plays an essential role in the field of telecommunications, facilitating the efficient transmission of large volumes of data for businesses and individuals worldwide.

Seamless Connectivity: ASEAN Cableship’s Vital Role

Submarine communications cables, often referred to as the backbone of global connectivity, carry an overwhelming 99% of international traffic, encompassing voice calls, video streaming, data transfer, and online gaming. Internet outages can have significant consequences, including communication breakdowns and reduced productivity. This is where ASEAN Cableship Pte Ltd comes in, playing a vital role in restoring connectivity promptly and minimising disruptions to our daily lives. With a fleet of two cable ships and a barge, supported by a team of professional

One

onshore and

Integrated Solutions: ASEAN Cableship’s Expertise

We provide turn-key solutions for our clients. This includes the full integration of processes; from surveying and planning to the complete burial and testing of cables.

Further, ASEAN Cableship provides consultancy services with bespoke solutions for every requirement.

ASEAN Cableship offers quick and effective access to submarine cable installation and maintenance services. Bespoke solutions continue to be engineered and offered to promote the expansion of a network which enables the future gateway for the digital economy.

Focusing on reliable & bespoke services to meet increasing demand for global connectivity

Our CEO, Mr Too Shiun Jye, receiving the National Business Awards 2023 (Marine & Offshore engineering category)

A successful cable landing operation

of our cableships, CS Asean Restorer

offshore personnel, ASEAN Cableship ensures seamless and quality global connection.

Premium Quality Testing Rapid Turnaround

Your trusted partner for electronics testing since 1998

Our services:

• Authenticity testing

• Electrical testing

• IC programming

• Tape and reel

• Baking

Established in 2011, the London School of Business and Finance, Singapore (LSBF SG) is a global institution which believes in delivering exceptional learning experiences. With a strong focus on academic and professional excellence, LSBF SG offers 100+ courses and qualifications. The courses cover areas such as accounting, finance, business management, hospitality, law, logistics, cyber security, and computer science.

LSBF Singapore aims to be the premier global destination for individuals seeking academic and professional growth. Committed to fostering excellence and providing a supportive learning environment, LSBF Singapore prepares aspiring professionals to become industry leaders.

Genuine Flavour Inspired Solutions

McCormick is a global flavour leader with more than 130 years of experience and a sole focus on creating signature flavours for manufacturers and everyday consumers. From popular sauces, iconic snacks to famous fried chicken, our flavour solutions are everywhere.

NATASHA ZHAO OPINION

Businesses must unlock a mutually beneficial future in 'zero-sum thinking' era

ChatGPT has dominated the airwaves the past couple of months, with fears that artificial intelligence will take over our jobs. This fear has been so tangible, especially against the backdrop of Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong’s Budget 2023 announcement, in which he describes the future as a new era, marked by zero-sum thinking on the global stage.

It would be disingenuous to say that such fears are unfounded. After all, history reminds us that the Industrial Revolution saw machinery-enabled optimisation being accompanied by widespread unemployment.

The assumption is that once we have new technologies like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, people’s jobs are next on the chopping board, as they are rendered redundant in the face of a tool that does their job at a fraction of the speed, and without having to pay for employee benefits like health insurance and paid time off, or even a salary.

But there is one perspective missing from this equation: employers. The very ones who decide how to drive the business forward, and how firing, hiring, and reskilling come into play.

Even before ChatGPT broke into the scene, the future has been murky, with uncertainty looming on the horizon.

Amongst all the crises and urgencies requiring attention, four areas take up the majority of time and attention of senior corporate leaders in the next 6 to 12 months. This discovery was the result of an informal poll we conducted with over a thousand enterprise C-suiters and Board Directors. In no particular order, we have the following domains: Innovation and Technology, Society and Sustainability, Leadership, and Talent and Human Capital.

To shed greater light on what is to come, we spoke with Patrick Tay, Assistant Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress, and senior leaders with a perspective of the respective domains to share what they viewed as pertinent from their vantage points. Their views help us better understand the concerns and issues, with insights into navigating these turbulent waters.

“Change is inevitable, but business leaders must make sustainability central to their company’s strategy and look beyond simple cost-benefit analyses,” said Mr Tay. “Business leaders must ensure a just transition that prioritises a future that is fair and inclusive, not only providing new and meaningful jobs but crucially, safeguarding workers’ livelihoods while getting them up to speed.”

Innovation & Technology - Data with potential insights for strategic decision-making

Workers’ concerns around what the rise of exponentially more advanced technology like ChatGPT might mean for livelihoods are valid, especially when this comes against the backdrop of widely publicised layoffs in the tech industry.

However, it would be a mistake to think of it as a zero-sum game.

The domain of Innovation and Technology is often put to the test when new problems emerge more quickly than existing solutions can solve. The push to innovate then becomes greater, and for the best

NATASHA ZHAO Managing Partner, QED

chance of success, data amassed and collected may hold latent potential in offering ideas, insights or some semblance of a potential answer.

As a result, Ms Wynthia Goh, Senior Partner, Global Co-lead NEXT, said, “Organisations need to master data. Business leaders need to focus on building the capabilities to acquire, manage and use quality data to support the execution of their business strategy. The move from 3rd party to 1st party data means businesses need to build customer data platforms that can support the end-to-end customer journey. Also, businesses need to invest in building data literacy so both leaders and working teams can uplift their ability to use data to run the business.”

Society & Sustainability - short-term pains, but long-term gains

If sustainability is about meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future teams or generations to meet theirs, we as leaders will have to worry about both the short and long term.

As new expectations and habits are forming around the workforce, workday and workplace, the challenge and talent crunch is greatest not at the top nor bottom, but in the middle. People managers are burning out from the duality of having to manage both up and down.

Ms Shubha Shridharan, Group SVP HR – APAC, The Adecco Group, said, “Revitalising and equipping future leaders is one of the many pertinent challenges business leaders face and will continue to face. Mid-level managers experience a unique pandemic-related stressor: they have to cascade strategies from senior leadership, meet key performance indicators, and keep their team engaged, all at the same time. To motivate and retain top talents, businesses must genuinely care.”

Additionally, in the spirit of the Sustainability Development Goal on Decent Work and Economic Growth, which has a component around global unemployment figures, shouldn’t corporates pursuing this walk the talk by exploring manpower upskilling, reskilling or restructuring as a first response, rather than resort to more drastic measures?

Leadership - Cultivate both character and competency

In good times and more so in uncertain ones, people turn to leadership. Imagine a cargo ship wrecked by stormy waters. In one version of the story, the captain lost all the cargo but saved all the crew. In another version, he saved all the cargo but lost all the crew.

If storms are on the horizon, let us be leaders whose characters don’t undermine our competencies. Let us cultivate both as we’re responsible for the future – of our organisation, of the people we lead and of their livelihoods.

We should also remember that we are not alone in steering the ship. Our crew may be most willing to step up and go beyond but remember: there are also many other ships alongside ours, with other captains with whom we can collaborate, to chart paths of least resistance towards safety, creating a pool of knowledge needed to navigate and withstand the stormy waters that lie ahead, going beyond the exchange of information and insights, to something deeper like the sharing of resources and possibly uncovering mutually beneficial relationships.

We are honoured to win the Employee Engagement Award of the Year for the Banking category at the Singapore Business Review Management Excellence Award 2022

CIMB Bank Berhad (13491-P)

Employee Engagement of the Year - Banking CIMB Bank Berhad, Singapore Branch

QUAN YAO PEH OPINION

Transforming the retail horizon: experimental retail and digitalisation key in driving post-pandemic growth

In Singapore, retail sales have essentially returned to pre-pandemic levels. Consumers are returning to stores to find revamped and refreshed retail concepts that showcase the relevance of the brickand-mortar store in the post-Covid era.

Experiential retail is taking centre-stage as brands highlight their stores as more than just a place to transact, but one where consumers can enjoy themselves and engage in experiences.

E-Commerce growth in Singapore has slowed down from pandemic highs, with an initial spike at 53% from 2019 to 2020, but remained strong with a 6% growth rate from 2021 to 2022, according to Euromonitor International. Consumers are now more confident buying higher-value products online. Retailers have also realised the significance an online presence plays in maintaining top-of-mind consumer engagement and are looking to build a consistent and always-on relationship with the consumer, to drive loyalty and recur sales.

Return of pre-pandemic lifestyles and travel drive growth for selected categories in retail

In 2022, the return of pre-pandemic lifestyles due to the easing of social restrictions and the return of international travel has driven demand for some retail categories.

Apparel and Footwear and Beauty Specialist Retailers are seeing good retail sales recovery in 2022, as a return to the office and social events has driven demand for workwear and beauty products. The reopening of international borders has also led to increased inbound visitor arrivals, especially from countries such as Indonesia and China with Singapore being a popular shopping destination for regional tourists. This pent-up demand has driven retail sales recovery for categories such as Jewellery and Watch Specialist Retailers and Bags and Luggage Specialists.

Use of technology to enhance the in-store and online shopping experience

Across physical and digital channels, retailers are utilising technology to improve the shopping experience in areas such as consumer engagement and supporting consumers’ purchase process. In the store, technology is being used for a more customer-centric and immersive experience. Leading international Beauty Specialists Retailer, Sephora, launched its first Store of the Future concept store in Asia at Singapore’s Raffles City Shopping Centre in September 2022. The store seeks to provide a personalised shopping experience through digital technologies, mobile checkouts, and experiential retail, which includes services like workshops, hair consultations, and facial services. In the online space, retailers and brands are also utilising technology to help engage and sell to consumers. For instance, Cellarbration is an alcoholic drinks distributor that distributes products to multiple bars, restaurants, and alcohol retailers. They also host live-streaming

QUAN YAO PEH Senior Research Analyst, Euromonitor International

sessions online on Facebook Live, that have ignited the attention of numerous alcohol lovers in Singapore, with over 24,000 followers on their Facebook page.

The future of retail in Singapore

Looking ahead, the future growth of retail in Singapore will be uneven by category but remains exciting. Grocery Retail which saw significant growth in the pandemic is likely to see sales normalisation as dining occasions shift outside the home once more. Categories such as Jewellery and Watch Specialists and Apparel and Footwear Specialists are likely to recover in line with the recovery of international travel, discretionary spending, and pre-pandemic lifestyles.

Categories that have seen underperformance due to a shift towards E-Commerce will likely see continued poor sales moving forward. This includes Department Stores, which are less popular in recent times due to their uncompetitive pricing and product range, and Appliances and Electronics Specialist Retailers which are seeing sales declines due to manufacturers establishing their Direct-to-Consumer retail channels and price promotions offered by E-Commerce Marketplaces.

The continued digitalisation of retail outlets and the offering of a seamless experience across physical and digital channels is expected to continue, as retailers are now more aware of the need to meet and engage consumers across the purchase journey. Notable efforts include utilising augmented reality and virtual reality to enhance the purchase experience, integrating in-store product stock levels with their websites, and implementing digital payments in-store and online.

Retailers are utilising technology to improve the shopping experience