Orient Issue 63

Orient MCI

ISSUE 63

ISSN 0219-1245

9 770219 124002

63

17

IN FOCUS: RICHARD FENNING, CEO, CONTROL RISKS

25

SUSTAINABILITY — TAKE ACTION TODAY

Connecting Business Creating Opportunities WWW.BRITCHAM.ORG.SG

109/11/2016

THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE BRITISH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE - SINGAPORE

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ISSUE 63 / SEP 17

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Contents

11

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

13

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE

SPECIAL FEATURES 17

In Focus: Richard Fenning, CEO, Control Risks

25

Sustainability — Take Action Today

FEATURES 22

Cybersecurity — What About the Threat from Within?

28

From Barn to Bright Lights — an English Unicorn in Asia

31

Driving a PR Business in China

34

Boat Owning in Singapore

37

Sustainability Reporting: Responsible Business Practices for SMEs

40

Singapore’s Industry-friendly Landscape

AT THE CHAMBER 44

Britain in Southeast Asia News

46

Business Group News

48

Business Services News

50

BritCham New Members

52

Sterling News

55

Corporate News

58

Members’ Offers

60

Events

W W W. B R I T C H A M . O R G . S G

British Chamber of Commerce, Singapore, Sponsors GOLD AND DIVERSITY SPONSOR

GOLD SPONSORS

SILVER SPONSORS

BRONZE SPONSORS

SUPPORTING PARTNER

BRITCHAM BOARD: PRESIDENT: Bicky Bhangu: Rolls-Royce Singapore VICE-PRESIDENTS: Damian Adams: Simmons & Simmons Sian Brown: Barclays Bank PLC SECRETARY: Cecilia Handel: Tanglin Trust School Ltd TREASURER: Veronica McCann, Manulife US Real Estate Mgmt Pte Ltd BOARD MEMBERS: Richard Warburton: Arcadis Annabel Moore: Diageo Singapore Pte Ltd Haslam Preeston: Jardine Cycle & Carriage Limited David Pugh: The Fry Group Mark Chowdhry: Baxters International Andrew Vine: The Insight Bureau Andrew Pickup: Microsoft Asia Chris Reed: Black Marketing — Enabling LinkedIn For You Robert Williams: British Airways Damian Hills: The British Club COMMITTEES: Business Group: Richard Warburton Events: Sian Brown External Affairs: Bicky Bhangu Membership: Damian Adams BUSINESS GROUP CHAIRPERSONS: Built Environment: Marius Toime (Chairperson),

Editor: Lucy Haydon lucy@britcham.org.sg

Orient is a quarterly magazine published by the British Chamber of Commerce, Singapore.

Co-Editor: Nicole Alison Lim alison@britcham.org.sg

© All rights reserved.

39 Robinson Road #11-03 Robinson Point Singapore 068911 Tel: +65 6222-3552 Fax: +65 6222-3556 Email: info@britcham.org.sg www.britcham.org.sg

The views and opinions expressed or implied in Orient are those of the authors or contributors and do not reflect those of the British Chamber of Commerce, its officers or editorial staff. No reproduction of articles without the prior permission of the Chamber. Unsolicited transparencies and articles are sent at owner’s risk

Rick Hancock (Co-Chair) Diversity: Stephen Trevis Energy & Utilities: Tim Rockell, Bree Miechel (Co-Chair) Entrepreneur & Small Business: Jonathan O‘Byrne, Miles Gooseman (Co-Chair) Financial Services: Ashley Jones (Chairperson), Sunil Iyer (Co-Chair) InfoComm Technology: Andrew Pickup (Chairperson), Magda Chelly (Co-Chair) Leadership in Asia: Stephen Wyatt Marketing & Creative: Chris Reed Professional Services: Mark Chowdhry, David Gardner (Co-Chair) Scottish Business Group: Neil Mclnnes Sustainability & Responsibility: Rosie Danyluk, Sarah Cragg (Co-Chair) Transport, Logistics & Supply Chain: Simon Petch Women in Business: Dora Lui (Chairperson), Angel Cheung (Co-Chair) Young British Chamber: Joe Tofield (Chairperson), Gemma Tresser (Co-Chair) MANAGEMENT TEAM Interim Executive Director: Lucy Haydon Membership Manager: Nicole Wharfe Membership Administrator: Sharmila Maniam Marketing & Communications Executive: Nicole Alison Lim Senior Events Manager: Zoe Fazan Events Manager: Sophie Gowing Finance Manager: Pauline Yeo Business Services Manager: Carole McCarthy Senior Business Services Advisor: Nico Putri Safari Business Services Advisor: Jessie Or Office Administration Executive: Anna C Garciso

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PRESENTS

The BritCham Ball The BritCham Ball is back with all its glory.

Get ready for the Christmas party to end all Christmas parties.

Saturday, 9th December 2017 Shangri-La Hotel 7PM - 2AM

Visit www.britcham.org.sg for more information.

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President’s Message

W W W. B R I T C H A M . O R G . S G

Dear Members, I hope you had a good summer break and are now looking forward to the last quarter of the year.

At the Chamber, we have been strengthening our Board composition and management structure to help shape the future of the Chamber and continue to deliver value to our Members. To that end, I would like to take the opportunity to thank Steve Cranwell, HSBC, for his service on the Board, and welcome Damian Hills, President of The British Club, onto the Board for 2017/18.

In the past few months, we have seen significant events in the UK; with the Prime Minister’s snap election in June resulting in the Conservative Party losing their majority seats in the House of Commons. Despite not achieving the mandate for Brexit she had called the election for, Theresa May has formed a new government and is looking to guide the UK through the Brexit process.

Bicky Bhangu

President, British Chamber of Commerce, Singapore

The official talks started on 19 June and the terms of the UK’s withdrawal and the nature of its future relationship with the EU are yet to be decided. The UK and EU negotiating teams have a target date of Friday, 29 March 2019 for Brexit to be finalised, and as this two-year-long process begins to take shape, the Singapore Government has asserted that they will be watching closely to gauge the implications on Singapore’s economy and prepare to adjust the country’s strategy to remain competitive. In the coming months, we expect to see an increased number of visits and engagements with UK ministers and trade delegates to Singapore to strengthen regional connectivity and find opportunities for dialogue and agreements.

We recognise Singapore as a leading location for business, and as we mark Singapore’s 52 years of independence with another great National Day celebration on 9 August, we note Singapore’s position as second in the world in the current World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Index (GCI). Since independence, Singapore has meticulously planned and developed a business-friendly environment, with a very clear focus on the future by investing resources into areas of business that are important now and in decades to come.

One area of business that has rightly been gaining attention over the years has been the topic of sustainability. With investors and shareholders taking greater interest in sustainable practices of companies, the announcement from the Singapore Exchange that all SGX-listed companies issue mandatory sustainability reports by 2018 is certainly a step in the right direction. Companies must now identify sustainability actions and environmental, social and governance factors that affect business strategies. This move places Singapore on par with bourses around the world including those in Australia, Hong Kong, Europe and the United States. In this edition, we delve into what this change means for businesses going forward.

Looking forward to the months ahead, we once again approach our peak season of flagship events. The 18th Annual Business Awards Gala Presentation Dinner will take place on 28 September and I’m pleased to share that this year saw a record-breaking number of entries. Our winners will be announced in the next issue, so do keep a lookout for it.

Preparations for the BritCham Ball on 9 December are also underway and I hope to see you there as we take the opportunity to celebrate a successful 2017 together.

Best Regards,

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Executive Director’s Message

W W W. B R I T C H A M . O R G . S G

Dear Members, Welcome to the September 2017 issue of the Orient magazine.

The year is rushing by at speed and has been one of change for the British Chamber team. This year we have said a warm farewell to our former Executive Director, Brigitte Holtschneider, as well as several long-term team members. Such is the nature of Singapore, we have been fortunate to welcome several people to our team and continue to strive to support your business here in Singapore. Our objectives continue to be to connect businesses, connect people and create opportunities for you, our members. If you would like to chat with us about how we can help you, please do stop by the office, call or email us — our door is always open!

As you read this issue, we are well into the season of flagship Chamber events. Last month we enjoyed our regular Back to Work networking event, ably hosted as ever by our Supporting Partners at The British Club. This month we celebrate the best of business at our 18th Annual Business Awards Gala Presentation Dinner. The culmination of four months of planning, encouraging companies to recognise their achievements and judging, the Gala Dinner is the highlight of our business events calendar and attended by many of our C-Suite members and guests. This year we are delighted to welcome Minister Josephine Teo as our Guest of Honour and keynote speaker.

Lucy Haydon

Interim Executive Director, British Chamber of Commerce, Singapore

Looking ahead, we have a full calendar of events for you throughout the last few months of 2017, building to our final event of the year, the ever-popular BritCham Ball.

Hosted on 9 December at the Shangri-La Hotel, this year will build on the success of last year’s Ball which focused on the fun of the Christmas season. Join us for a night to remember, bring your friends or host your team in the ultimate Christmas office party!

We look forward to seeing you there.

Best Regards,

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/britishchamber-of-commerce-singapore Twitter @britchamsg Instagram @britchamsg Facebook @bccsingapore

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Sterling Members

W W W. B R I T C H A M . O R G . S G

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17

In Focus

In Focus: Richard Fenning, CEO, Control Risks

By Lucy Haydon In these unprecedented times of political and economic change, organisations must learn to understand the shifts in risk and opportunity. In this issue, I discussed this risk paradigm with Singapore-based Richard Fenning, CEO of Control Risks, who brings 25 years of experience and a sense of perspective to the issue

W W W. B R I T C H A M . O R G . S G

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In Focus: Richard Fenning, CEO, Control Risks

W W W. B R I T C H A M . O R G . S G

You have been with Control Risks for almost 25 years, how has the global outlook on risk changed throughout this period, and in particular between regions?

When I started out in the early 1990s, markets like China, India, Russia and Eastern Europe were emerging. With the globalisation trend, there has been so much change since then that it feels like a lifetime ago.

Our history as an organisation has been to ride the wave of change with our clients, as people expand to new markets. Our historic premise has been that our clients are based in secure, well-regulated and ordered markets, taking decisions to invest in more complicated, frontier markets about which they know far less and are more unpredictable. That transfer of capital from safe, regulated and ordered to poorly regulated, difficult to understand but highgrowth markets has been the status quo.

Now, a lot of the original “safe” markets are going through change and turbulence, and the riskier markets are looking a lot more attractive. Data and technology have created a more democratic risk arena. Data has become the new currency and vulnerability, and it has eroded the contrast between stable-but-low-growth, and unstable-buthigh-growth markets. Now there is a more balanced model which is the future for us, and for businesses willing to take a gamble on the opportunities.

How can organisations plan ahead and mitigate the risk during this period of geopolitical change in multiple regions?

It does feel that we are living in an age of unprecedented fragility in the international system. We have the UK going through an existential political crisis, and the Middle East, even by normal standards, experiencing major complex problems. Asia on the whole looks to be a lot more ordered and steady than other parts of the world, even if the dial is being steadily turned on the perennial issue of North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme. China’s emergence as an economic power now sees it starting to stretch its political muscles on the international stage. That causes tension in this part of the world, particularly with Singapore’s neutrality as a country that is open and integrated with the West, but also mindful of its relationship with China and keeping the balance. So far, China is coming out favourably in the public relations war in comparison with the United States, which is going through a very public period of political turbulence that has implications for geopolitics.

The question we are sometimes asked by international businesses is does any of this actually matter? Yes, it does. What we are seeing is a fundamental shift in the way

It takes an amount of bravery to succeed in times of uncertainty like this, a bravery of vision and action to see and seize the opportunities.

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In Focus: Richard Fenning, CEO, Control Risks

nations interact with each other and trade is the everyday mechanism by which those relationships happen. For Britain, as a consequence of political change, we can see it having to reassess its relationships with the EU, as well as having to reshape economic relations with all its major trading partners on a bilateral basis. That is profoundly difficult for companies to anticipate and undermines their ability to make informed investment decisions.

At Control Risks, we enable clients to concentrate their efforts on their core business by stripping away much of the hyperbole and hysteria about politics and giving perspective to uncertainty.

Organisations like us exist to focus clients on the core objective facts so they can make better informed decisions about the balance between the opportunities and the actual risks around trade, market access, political change, corruption and so on.

Uncertain times like these create an environment in which it is essential that risk, as the flip side of opportunity, is more acutely understood. This is key to our philosophy: our business does not exist to tell people that the world is inherently risky. Our job is to help people understand how risk and opportunity are two sides of the same coin; how to balance that and to get a sense of appropriate risk into proportion, so that people can really focus on achieving their objectives.

It takes an amount of bravery to succeed in times of uncertainty like this, a bravery of vision and action to see and seize the opportunities. Behind the rhetoric in

The need to react to shifting geopolitical change is part of the fabric of international commerce and will never go away. the headlines, the conversation of business continues. The need to react to shifting geopolitical change is part of the fabric of international commerce and will never go away.

We have seen an increase in highprofile, global cyberattacks recently.

How can organisations stay ahead of those who plan to do harm for political or personal gain?

Just a few years ago, people would be highly critical of organisations that were

hacked. Whereas now, there is a change in realisation that everyone is vulnerable, and the blame is now placed on how culpable you were in getting hacked, and how you responded. Customers and investors are intolerant when organisations have been deficient with their preparation and poor in their response. Understanding the cyberthreat landscape and why and how an organisation is vulnerable is key to managing these risks.

Some of the highest-profile cyberattacks are nation-to-nation activities and headline-grabbing ransomware like WannaCry back in May, which see companies caught in the middle. But there is a huge amount of everyday criminality designed to disrupt and steal from organisations. The level of threat depends on the industry sector, the countries in which you operate, and the culture of openness within your organisation. There is an interesting mentality of organisations

W W W. B R I T C H A M . O R G . S G

There is an interesting mentality of organisations finding it easier to focus on external threats rather than believe that an insider from your own company could plan to do harm or indeed cause harm through negligence. Educating people on the internal and external dangers around cybersecurity is essential. finding it easier to focus on external threats rather than believe that an insider from your own company could plan to do harm or indeed cause harm through negligence. Educating people on the internal and external dangers around cybersecurity is essential.

We have a large cyber practice that advises companies on the need to invest in making sure systems are as protected and robust as possible. We help clients to understand what is of critical value in

their organisation, where their systems might be vulnerable, and how to protect these assets. You can never be 100% secure, so you should prioritise protecting what really matters. In the WannaCry example, many people had simply not updated the security patches offered over time, which left them vulnerable. Cyberattacks typically do not require a high level of sophistication; simply not paying attention or becoming fatigued by the constant number of updates which are critical to your business’ protection can leave an organisation vulnerable.

About the Company Control Risks is a specialist risk consultancy that helps create secure, compliant and resilient organisations, providing the insight and intelligence to realise opportunities and grow. Clients are supported with strategic consultancy, expert analysis and in-depth investigations, handling of sensitive political issues and practical on-the-ground protection and support. Working across five continents and with 36 offices worldwide, Control Risks provides a broad range of services to help clients manage political, integrity and security risk. For more information visit www.controlrisks.com

How far is the current Middle East disruption likely to escalate, and what will its impact be for businesses?

The Middle East has a number of complicating factors. The wars in Syria and Northern Iraq tend not to directly affect businesses, but in some ways the ongoing dispute between Qatar and its Gulf neighbours is more difficult to understand from the outside and also why it has become so public. The reasons are largely historical, relating to Iran, and other complicating factors.

It has been very public and hugely disruptive, as people had assumed that the GCC countries from a business perspective were reasonably stable and collaborative.

These short-term escalations are far harder to plan around, and require regular intelligence and analysis from companies such as us. The region is already living with the consequences of persistently low oil prices by recent historical standards.

There is an opportunity with Iran, which, with a market of 80 million people, holds many attractions for investors. However, remaining sanctions do still make it a country to approach with caution and a rich environment for the kind of analysis that we do, helping organisations to see the opportunities in balance with the risks.

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Feature

Cybersecurity — What About the Threat from Within?

By Gino Bello, Senior Director – Technology, FTI Consulting Securing your organisation’s data from hackers is critical. The threat from external parties, whether a breach or leakage, ransomware or social engineering, causes financial and reputational damage. But so does the threat from trusted employees. Although hackers make the headlines, a large percentage of data leakage is caused by trusted employees. We discuss how organisations can best protect their data, both reactively and proactively, from "the threat from within"

S

ecuring your organisation’s data from hackers, whether your customers’ privacy or valuable intellectual property (IP), is critical. The threat from external parties, whether a breach or leakage, ransomware or social engineering, causes financial and reputational damage. But so does the threat from trusted employees.

Although "outsider" hacks make the headlines, 43% of data leakage is caused by trusted employees. So how do organisations best protect their data, both reactively and proactively, from "the threat from within"?

Competition

In today’s competitive world, the value of IP increases. Internal and external parties recognise this. Theft of trade secrets and software by South East Asian countries cost US$600 billion a year. Two out of three departing employees take confidential business information with them. Although "outsiders" are generally

Theft may occur to profit from the sale of data, to form competing enterprises, or to try and get ahead with new employers. threats that have been addressed with traditional security measures, preventing and detecting insiders is more challenging using "cookie-cutter" measures.

What’s at Stake

Beyond monetary and reputational loss, workplace data theft — for example proprietary, confidential, or copyrighted — is problematic. Theft may occur to profit from the sale of data, to form competing enterprises, or to try and get ahead with

new employers. Employers need to be agile so that employees have appropriate access to data to perform their duties, but secure enough to satisfy their mandatory obligations. In today's digital world, data theft from customer contact databases, sales, marketing, business and strategy plans, designs, formulae, research or source code is easy.

Investigation — Responsive

Once an organisation suspects misconduct, they should consider bringing in computer forensics specialists to preserve and analyse IT assets, rich in evidence. Computer forensics specialists are armed with techniques to find the "smoking gun". They can interpret subtle clues left by thieves to create a comprehensive account of the theft and identify the compromised data. With the evidence compiled by experts, organisations can mitigate the potential damage and bring perpetrators to justice.

W W W. B R I T C H A M . O R G . S G

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Types of Digital Evidence More common assets include laptops, desktops, servers, email accounts, smartphones and external storage devices. Newer, non-traditional types of digital evidence can include cloud, social media, open source intelligence, GPS / activity-based mapping paths, language / sentiment analysis and ‘clickstream’ analysis.

Any IT data destruction or retention policies that could inadvertently destroy evidence should be suspended. Once the suspect’s assets have been determined, the forensics team can create images of hard drives, as well as secure copies of email, network folders, use of document management systems (DMS), and customer relationship management (CRM) databases.

A Forensic Image An exact, bit-for-bit, defensible, and validated copy of source digital evidence used to preserve the original data for law enforcement, trial or investigation. A forensic image can be taken off laptops, desktops, servers, mobiles and other portable devices.

Retracing Steps — Analysing the Evidence

Within the Microsoft Windows operating system, a user’s options, preferences, configuration and activity logs (e.g. when

Feature: Cybersecurity — What About the Threat from Within?

USB drives are connected) are saved. This can prove to be a critical piece of evidence, as theft via flash drives is one of the most common methods of data transfer. Similarly, evidence of cloud storage usage such as Dropbox and OneDrive can be uncovered, adding to the timeline. File metadata can also provide clues into the actions and intent of a departing employee, e.g. files most recently opened, pinpointing potentially compromised files.

Types of Misconduct Where Digital Evidence is Crucial Large or small-scale IP theft, collusion of employees to set up a competitor, inappropriate access by privy employees, corporate espionage, breach of contract, harassment and bullying.

Threats from the Cloud

The corporate world has embraced cloud-computing applications that allow employees easy access to solutions wholly in an online environment, adding another layer of considerations for preventing and investigating theft. Applications such as CRMs or DMSs contain valuable information that can range from client lists, marketing strategy documents, to minutes. The ease with which this data can be accessed, whether within the organisation or remotely from an employee’s home, makes cloud applications appealing to would-be data thieves.

A data forensics expert can analyse logs and employee's web browser artefacts

to determine when these cloud-based applications were accessed and determine what was uploaded. Analysis of CRMs or DMSs can assist in building the timeline and determining intent of an employee.

Have they accessed or downloaded more information than they would typically? This type of activity can be detected proactively so that potential "flight risks" can be identified.

What Else Can Be Done?

Proactive Measures

Organisations can take the following proactive measures to protect themselves: • Categorise ­— know the location of data and its value. When an issue arises, knowing where relevant data is stored enables teams to focus on specific data sources.

• Conduct regular cyber risk and information governance reviews to mitigate the risk of data theft. Conduct "tabletop" dress rehearsals of potential incidents. Where appropriate, seek independent, external advice.

• Training employees on the consequences of misconduct.

• Forensically image employees’ devices that are privy to valuable information, regardless of whether there are allegations. It is cost- and time-efficient and retains key digital evidence when issues arise in the future.

• Think outside the box — what applications (e.g. CRM, DMS, chat logs, spam filters) can be leveraged to detect behavioural changes that suggest impending departure or misconduct of employees?

• Consider overt or covert investigations.

There are advantages to both.

About the Author Gino Bello is a Senior Director in the Technology segment at FTI Consulting and is based in Singapore. A computer forensic expert and certified Computer Examiner, Gino specialises in forensic collection, analysis and expert reporting of digital evidence. He has led a broad range of matters including large-scale, cross-border disputes, arbitrations and e-Discovery engagements in class actions and royal commissions. He also assists clients in cyber risk and incident response. Gino has led investigations into IP theft, information leakage, anti-bribery and corruption, regulatory and other employee-related misconduct.

About the Company FTI Consulting is an independent global business advisory firm dedicated to helping organisations manage change, mitigate risk and resolve disputes: financial, legal, operational, political and regulatory, reputational and transactional. Individually, each practice is a leader in its specific field, staffed with experts recognised for the depth of their knowledge and a track record of making an impact. Visit www.fticonsulting.com for more information.

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Special Feature

Sustainability — Take Action Today

By Sarah Cragg, Account Director, MullenLowe salt You want to have a positive impact on the planet, be more sustainable at home and at work, but how do you go about it?

Here are 10 ways you can still be the change you want to see

W W W. B R I T C H A M . O R G . S G

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T

he word sustainability is overused and often associated with long reports, technical language and a general sense of guilt that you should be doing more.

But sustainability does not have to be this way. While the dictionary definition means the ability to maintain something at a certain level, it has come to mean something far broader and is now linked to not only minimising your negative impact on society and the environment, but also maximising the positive impact you or your company can have.

In 2016, 58% of companies with a clearly articulated purpose experienced 10% growth, compared to only 42% of companies not prioritising purpose. But how can you bring purpose to your job, if you are not the CEO or responsible for sustainability? Or maybe you want to be more sustainable at home, but don’t know where to start. To overcome action paralysis, here are 10 changes anyone can make, regardless of role, to have a positive impact and be more “sustainable”.

At Work:

1. Skills-based volunteering. This entails leveraging skills of individuals or teams to support charities, helping them achieve their missions. Many companies have hours dedicated for volunteering and by providing their services, charities can take advantage of professional skills they could never normally afford.

In Singapore, Talent Trust partners with businesses to provide charities with advice from expert volunteers who help with their vision, mission and business plan.

2. Choose impactful suppliers.

Businesses can have a positive impact through their purchasing power. Are you supporting companies doing good for the environment or community? For example, if you’re looking for a barista, have you considered Bettr Barista, a first-class coffee company empowering marginalised women and youth at risk? Or, if organising a team building exercise, consider working in a food court for a day with Dignity Kitchen. You will have a great bonding experience while supporting Singapore’s first hawker training school for disabled and disadvantaged people.

Special Feature: Sustainability — Take Action Today 3. Reduce your air conditioning. Nearly 80% of homes and 100% of shopping malls and offices in Singapore have air conditioners, which if too cold, releases unnecessary carbon emissions and heats up the planet’s atmosphere. If you are too cold at work, your colleagues will be too, so why not speak to your Facilities Manager and ask them to turn up the temperature? Find out more about the impact of air conditioning and the steps you can take to reduce it with #up2degrees.

4. Carbon offset your flights. One round-trip flight from Singapore to the UK creates a warming effect equivalent to four tonnes of carbon dioxide, per person. The average European generates about 10 tonnes a year — almost half your allowance. However, the reality of living in Singapore means you cannot avoid flying, whether for work or to see family. Alleviate some guilt through carbon offsetting, where emissions are calculated using an online carbon calculator and you pay a company to counterbalance your climate pollution by investing in a project elsewhere.

5. Creating a culture of purpose. Now more than ever, employees seek a sense of purpose and meaning in their work. Can you create this for your team? Organisations should help employees understand the impact they are having. Through meeting with customers (or with the community the organisation is impacting) and sharing stories, you can create an atmosphere where people are open to sharing ideas for impact, benefitting the company, community and employees. This can unlock potential for impact which can otherwise be easily missed.

At Home:

6. Recycling. Recycling is nothing new but Singapore’s domestic waste recycling rate is only 21%. However, this is improving; all condominiums are now required to provide recycling bins and the government is launching a campaign teaching Singapore residents how to recycle properly. Singtel and SingPost also announced the launch of

a nationwide electronic waste recycling programme, where people can dispose of redundant electronics at ReCYCLE bins or by mailing through any post box. Increasingly, there are no excuses for not recycling!

7. Eat less meat. Drawdown, a book that analyses 100 solutions to global warming, ranks switching to a plant-based diet as the fourth-most impactful climate change solution. Livestock farming produces from 20% to 50% of all man-made greenhouse gas emissions, so eating less meat can lead to big savings on emissions. One way to change habits and eat in a carbon-conscious way is the Climatarian Challenge App. 8. Go plastic-free. Did you know that every piece of plastic ever made still exists? By 2020, (unless we drastically change how we use plastic) it is expected that there will be more waste plastic in the sea than fish (by weight). Be part of the solution and take action by: a. Avoiding products in plastic packaging (e.g. pre-packed fruit and vegetables)

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b. Reducing where possible (bring your own water bottles and refill; remember your reusable shopping bags) c. Refusing plastics that escape as litter (e.g. straws, takeaway cups, utensils) d. Recycling what cannot be avoided 9. Invest in green. Green finance is the setting up of market instruments and policy tools to fund public and private investments that contribute to sustainability. For example, there must be positive climate or other environmental benefits such as in renewable energy or energy-efficient infrastructures. In April,

City Developments sold Singapore's first green bond and DBS is now taking orders for Singapore's first offshore green bond. Speak to your bank about their green finance options.

10. Choose sustainable seafood.

Today, more than 75% of the world’s commercial marine stocks are being fished close to, already at, or beyond their capacity. Use WWF’s Singapore Seafood Guide when shopping for ingredients or eating seafood in restaurants. Each year, 73 million sharks are killed primarily for their fins to feed

our demand for shark fin soup. Say no to restaurants or hotel chains that serve shark fin soup.

As Ban Ki-Moon, former Secretary-General of the United Nations said, “We are the first generation that can end poverty and the last generation that can take steps to avoid the worst impact of climate change.” There is no silver bullet for addressing climate change or creating a more equitable world and being more sustainable will require a variety of strategies. While these may not all be relevant to you, try one that is. Every little bit helps.

About the Author Sarah Cragg is co-chair of BritCham’s sustainability and responsibility committee. This is the first of a series of sustainability articles looking at how everyone, no matter what their role, can have a positive impact. Watch out for an upcoming workshop in the new year, to help people find their purpose.

Sarah is an Account Director at MullenLowe salt, an award-winning strategic communications and sustainability agency whose mission is to create positive change through communication. They manage corporate and consumer communications for clients to enhance their external reputation, promote internal alignment, embed purpose and ensure impact. Clients include complex multinational companies (Unilever, Givaudan, Roche) and iconic Unilever brands (such as Lifebuoy, Closeup, Pepsodent and Ben & Jerry’s).

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Feature

From Barn to Bright Lights – an English Unicorn in Asia

By Michael Gould, Founder and CTO, Anaplan A combination of accelerating economies in emerging markets and access to a vast new consumer base has given businesses the motive and means to capitalise on new opportunities across the globe.

The Anaplan growth story is testament to this; from being born in York, England to launching in Asia-Pacific in 2014

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he world is a small place these days. A combination of accelerating economies in emerging markets and access to a vast new consumer base, along with challenges in more traditional markets and technological advancement, has given businesses the motive and means to capitalise on new opportunities across the globe. The Anaplan growth story is testament to this; despite being born in York, England, our first customers were based in the US and Australia.

While Silicon Valley is seen as the undisputed holy grail for tech companies searching for expansion, UK businesses are equally turning to the potential in the Asian market, and vice versa, with a number of European tech firm acquisitions made by Asian firms over the last few years. Anaplan has certainly been part of this Euro-Asian movement, launching in AsiaPacific (APAC) in 2014 — and our customer roster in the region has quickly grown since then. The potential is clear and we aren’t the only British unicorn to see this, with TransferWise launching a hub in Singapore earlier this year.

Breaking New Ground

Despite the opportunities available, making the move into new territories can be challenging. Those working on longer-term expansion projections are often left behind by companies able to expand quickly and efficiently, something particularly true in the technology industry. Companies need to have a sensible business plan that factors in global market volatility from the outset to reap the benefits of becoming a global business.

Expansion is an expensive business and keeping overheads as low as possible will help keep total costs down. When it comes

to physical expansion, my advice is to set up low-cost regional offices and keep overheads as low as possible until the team is operational. Sales are also no longer reliant on being in-market. With our R&D division based in York and our CEO simultaneously setting up a global HQ in Silicon Valley, we’ve been global since day one and never looked back.

Setting up a software business made this tactic easier to execute, given that we weren’t dependent on significant physical investments in each new region.

Ensuring that these people have experience in the local market and clearly understand the unique challenges which businesses are facing in that region is also crucial.

You can start expansion into a new region with just two or three people in your team. With a sales manager and communications consultant, you’re equipped to begin selling and get the word out that you’re supporting that area, while ensuring that you don’t burn through valuable capital. With smaller numbers, getting the right people in is key to your success. Ensuring that these people have experience in the local market and clearly understand the unique challenges which businesses are facing in that region is also crucial.

added to a global network, measures need to be in place from the start to seamlessly integrate them and ensure there are no slip-ups on simple factors such as time difference and currency exchange rates. In the case of workforce restrictions, such as those likely to accompany Brexit and the potential US travel ban, giving your employees the tools to communicate efficiently with teams in different geographies will be increasingly important.

Keep New Territories Connected

Connecting Through Technology

Regardless of the opportunities present, a large global workforce can be hard to maintain and justify if the results don’t go your way. This highlights just how crucial a business’ ability to operate smoothly on this scale is.

Keeping employees well-connected is important and speed is everything — a new satellite office cannot afford to be isolated from the wider organisation or it will fail faster than you can say “wellconnected”. When a new territory is

Undoubtedly, the acceleration of digital disruption has been the primary factor allowing businesses to rapidly expand and still stay connected on a global scale. An important development here is that cloud technology now allows a workforce to operate from one central platform; using a single reference point eases communication and removes the need for colleagues to negotiate a series of disconnected documents. Harnessing technology that can connect every corner of a business, alleviating spatial and

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Feature: From Barn to Bright Lights — an English Unicorn in Asia

interdepartmental divisions, can make functioning efficiently on a global scale a much simpler task. Ultimately, a business that operates its different regions in isolation is not a global business and will miss out on opportunities as a result.

Local Nuances

It’s also crucial to be tuned into the challenges you face in the specific target market and that you have a clear view of where there is an opportunity for success. When expanding beyond your home region, understanding how local regulations can impact your product and how it’s developed is very important.

As an example, cloud providers must be acutely aware of local rulings around data storage and governance, particularly around geographical locations; understanding these local nuances can make or break a business.

From a cultural perspective, the Asian region has a wide range of legal environments and business regulations to be aware of. Even during our early growth stages, Anaplan had international influences and expertise, which have certainly supported our ability to scale internationally and understand different markets. This has continued to be a focus for us, with a whole host of different nationalities now sitting on our board and senior team.

Remain Agile to Capture Global Opportunities

Expanding a business in an uncertain and challenging global economy can seem like an uphill battle. However, each business is different; the reality is that establishing a solid customer base in your chosen region and staying agile are key to a successful expansion. This is made more important by the potential impact of unforeseen events such as changing trade deals, the availability of staff, and large fluctuations in exchange rates.

The best way to stay as agile as possible is to have a clear view of what multiple futures could look like. That means having a real-time overview of the business and the ability to quickly understand the implications of any market changes.

Businesses can make better and more informed decisions when they connect people, processes and information across all business functions in one unified platform.

Using this recipe for success, we have established a presence in eight countries across APAC and 16 across the globe, as we continue to explore the tech opportunities in this flourishing region.

About the Company Anaplan is driving a new age of connected planning. Large and fast-growing organisations use Anaplan's cloud platform in every business function to make informed decisions and drive faster, more effective planning processes. Anaplan also provides support, training, and planning transformation advisory services. Anaplan is a privately held company based in San Francisco with 16 offices and over 150 expert partners worldwide. To learn more, visit www.anaplan.com

Anaplan’s premier user conference Hub Comes to You will run across three cities in APAC, 4th–5th October in Singapore, 11th October in Sydney and 13th October in Tokyo.

The conference will bring together industry visionaries, leaders, experts, and people looking to be inspired and share the vision of connected planning. Visit anaplan. com for more information on this and other events across the region.

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Driving a PR Business in China

By Jim James, Founder and Chairman, EASTWEST Public Relations In this article, Jim James discusses the importance of public relations in his quest to import cars into China

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ack in 2011, after having ran EASTWEST Public Relations (PR) for more than two decades, I decided to begin importing British hand-built sports cars to China — a project I was very passionate about. It was quite a jarring switch, with many new challenges to be grappled with — one of them being the legislation relating to cars in China, as it was new to me.

I had moved to Beijing in 2008 to open the offices of EASTWEST PR in response to a growing number of requests from clients following the accession of China to the WTO in 2001; and met a media landscape undergoing a sea change, with government-owned publications making the transition to commercially viable companies. At the same time, digital media channels were on the rise, posing complications to traditional publications.

Clients were unsure of the best strategies and agencies were still offering "red packets" to journalists to attend events.

Well-known global media outlets had yet to establish a presence in the country, but the rapid adoption of the internet meant that sites like CNET or Bloomberg were held in high regard. However, the real scale of influence was to be had with ministry-owned publications. Local public relations agencies were proliferating as it was then considered to be more lucrative to sell the story instead of tell the story.

As a foreigner myself, navigating the best ways to both build a business and to communicate on behalf of clients in China was a demanding task. With budgets set aside for publicity work still playing catch-up to the scale of scope, and with clients fresh to the market and yet to firmly establish healthy profit margins, I rapidly assembled a team of former journalists. Whilst they were skilled at the craft of authorship and business strategy, the transition to a digital-focused knowledge economy meant the need for a very different set of skills in the public relations industry.

Selling handmade low-volume luxury British sports cars seemed like the ideal antidote to an increasingly competitive world of businessto-business public relations. It took a year and 13 ministries to receive the licence to import Morgan sports cars. The business started because I imported a Roadster 4-Seater to

Feature: Driving a PR Business in China

China, and whilst parked one day, I met a journalist who worked with a famous car magazine. It seemed only logical for us to take my British racing-green convertible to the Forbidden City for a shoot. Within minutes, a crowd was blocking the passage to one of China’s great monuments, until the police moved us on. Ironically, the car business started because of PR.

It is not difficult to conjure grand ideas for a client. What is hard is to make them appropriate for the client and deliver a return on investment.

As we started building the brand in China, my complete lack of car industry experience was just one of many handicaps, but what the brand needed was a strong communications strategy. Media contacted us to take more photos at many locations both within and outside the city. And within months, we had enquiries to our Mandarin language website from potential customers.

The training of building messaging, establishing proof points and finding key opinion leaders was just the right mix of skills to accompany the legal and commercial activities of brand protection, foreign exchange management and showroom construction. The opportunity to take this heritage brand, localise the messaging and build a 360-degree profile both online and offline was the perfect outlet for the 20 years of communications work which I had been doing. The key difference this time: I was spending my own money, not earning fees.

Thinking like a client is the best discipline that an agency consultant can have. It is not difficult to conjure grand ideas for a client. What is hard is to make them appropriate for the client and deliver a return on investment. Most consultants have worked either as journalists or always in an agency and think in terms of time and

billings. There’s nothing wrong with that per se, but connecting PR to sales leads is a key deliverable that is often missing in the quest for brand awareness or impact via a Corporate Social Responsibility initiative.

In the last three years, we have seen the migration of search from desktop to mobile, and this is creating both location-based marketing opportunities and m-commerce transactions. In 1995 when EASTWEST PR first started, we used to send transparencies to the media and posted releases, which in an emergency were sent by fax. We would then wait a month for the magazine to be delivered, or to the next day for newspapers.

Today, the entire life cycle and sales cycle can be completed within 24 hours. The challenge for a business like Morgan is to continue generating content to remain within the search pages or news streams of the multitude of media which customers

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are either subscribing to or generating themselves. The public relations agency comes back centre stage again as the source of key messaging, facts and strategy as the stories unfold about the brand.

I recently became the importer for a British active lifestyle drink called WAKE, and again, it is the public relations firm which is driving the forward part of the business by arranging key opinion leader tastings, media reviews and product placement at events.

Most businesses start thinking of channels

to market, stocking those, and then activating the marketing mix including social media, advertising and events. Now that supply chains have become so quick, it is becoming clear to me that demand is what must come before supply and that PR is a low-cost and effective way to drive demand to the sales management tools being used by the company.

Over 20 years ago I started a public relations agency in Singapore, and although I am now also importing British sports cars and sports

About the Author Jim James is the Chairman of EASTWEST Public Relations pte ltd, Singapore.

Established in Singapore in 1995, clients of the agency include Avnet, IEEE, Irdeto, Telegent and Morgan Motor Company. Jim is also the Managing Director of Morgan Cars (HK) Limited and general manager of Malvern Morgan Cars Beijing (limited) company. For more information about Jim James and EASTWEST PR, visit eastwestpr.com

drinks to China, the necessity of getting noticed explains why there is always going to be a role for public relations. In the digital age, getting noticed takes focused and consistent generation of engaging content which includes a call to action by viewers who are online 24/7. Each market and each company will require a unique strategy, but communicating "why the brand exists" is just as important as "what the product does", because alignment with values secures a customer’s loyalty much more than a simple set of features.

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Feature

Boat Owning

By Benoit Ratigan, Yacht Consultant, Cars and Yachts Most of us only ever dream of owning a boat or yacht.

In this article, Benoit Ratigan will help you realise that these dreams can actually be turned into reality

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ost of us only ever dream of owning a boat or yacht and contrary to popular belief, these dreams can actually be turned into reality — in some cases for a fraction of the price of buying a new car in Singapore. Best of all, there is no COE required.

As with cars, you will need to do some research prior to buying a boat as there are many potential pitfalls which, with the right advice, can be avoided. As a

purchaser, there are no costs associated with viewing boats or yachts prior to making an offer and commissions are typically paid for by the seller.

Unlike cars, you shouldn’t buy a boat or yacht if you are going to leave it moored in a marina or on a dry rack for months on end and expect it to start first time upon your return.

Salt air and salt water are threats which your boat needs protection against. The more you use your boat or yacht the better.

Your first point of contact will either be a yacht dealer who represents specific boat brands or a yacht brokerage who lists used boats for sale — some companies will include the services of both.

In Singapore, there are two ways to register or license your pleasure craft: 1. Registration (Flagging) By flagging or registering a new boat purchase, you will not be required to pay the 7% GST.

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in Singapore However, you will have to comply with other rules and regulations when looking for crew, and each time you wish to leave the marina.

In addition, you will not have to undertake your Singapore specific boat driving licence, the Powered Pleasure Craft Driving Licence (PPCDL), but will have to complete an online test, renewable every six months.

The PPCDL will teach you about boating in Singapore waters and will be invaluable to anyone who has not had any prior experience driving boats.

2. Licensing (SZ or SZH) Licensing your new boat on the other hand means that the 7% GST will have to be added to the purchase price but will mean that cruising within Singapore waters will be much easier. One of the prerequisites for licensing or buying a boat already licensed is that you will have to obtain the PPCDL, which will allow you to skipper a yacht up to 24 metres in length.

The PPCDL will teach you about boating in Singapore waters and will be invaluable to anyone who has not had any prior experience driving boats (I always recommend this to anyone wanting to purchase a boat, whether licensed or flagged).

Jet skis have to be licensed either SZ or SZH and anyone wishing to ride one can only do so with a valid PPCDL even if only chartering for a few hours.

The difference between SZ and SZH is that SZ licensing is for private use and SZH licensing is for individuals or companies wishing to enter the boat charter business.

The above information does get updated from time to time so please check in with your Cars and Yachts broker.

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Marina Location

Singapore currently has seven marinas and in order to berth your boat or yacht, you will be required to become a member of one. Prices will vary greatly depending on your location of choice. Some will offer term memberships and most have lifetime memberships. Consider which you will prefer — to have your boat or yacht wet berthed (lying in water) or dry stacked.

With a membership, you will benefit from preferential rates not only when paying for your berth but also at the food and beverage outlets. The marinas usually organise various events throughout the year which all members are encouraged to participate in.

Feature: Boat Owning in Singapore

Maintenance

All boats or yachts have to be regularly maintained and cleaned, to limit any issues developing over time. When the boat is lying in water, diving will also be required to clean the hull, whilst also checking that corrosion hasn’t affected any of the moving parts. A rule of thumb is that you will need to spend around 10% of the value of the boat or yacht per annum on maintenance. However this figure will vary depending on how well the craft has been looked after, and how regularly it has been serviced.

Please ensure that you work with a reputable company. And once an offer has been accepted, whether you are the seller or the

buyer, make sure that the company you are working with gets you to complete a Sales Contract or Memorandum of Agreement which will cover all parties concerned.

Brokerage boats, unlike cars, can have large debts associated with them and your broker will need to make sure that you do not inherit these as they tend to follow the life of the boat or yacht unless settled prior to the sale.

With this information in hand, Singapore has so much more to offer — whether you want to cruise local waters or venture further afield into Malaysian, Indonesian and Thai waters, a boat will provide you with the freedom only boat owners can relate to.

About the Author With a background in logistics and shipping, Benoit Ratigan worked as a yacht broker before setting up his own business consultancy focusing on developing new business for his clients. He is currently engaged with Cars and Yachts as a yacht consultant and manages all matters related to yacht ownership and the yachting lifestyle.

About the Company Cars and Yachts Pte Ltd specialises in the sale and purchase of new and used cars as well as brokerage yachts. They believe in breaking down the misconceptions people have when dealing with car sales companies and yacht brokerages. For more information, visit www.carsyachts.com.sg

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Sustainability Reporting: Responsible Business Practices for SMEs

By Chin Chee Choon, Director, Assurance and Advisory, Nexia TS & David Lai, Manager, Governance, Risk Management and Internal Audit, Nexia TS Sustainability reporting is the process of understanding, communicating and monitoring your organisation’s most significant impacts on sustainability issues such as climate change, human rights, corruption and many others. Its importance was highlighted by the Singapore Exchange's June 2016 announcement that it will be mandatory for all companies listed on the Exchange to issue a sustainability report by 2018. Here is a guide to help SMEs draft their sustainability report

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Feature: Sustainability Reporting — Responsible Business Practices for SMEs

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s defined by Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), sustainability reporting (SR) is the process of understanding, communicating and monitoring your organisation’s most significant impacts on sustainability issues such as climate change, human rights, corruption and many others. In view of the current expectations in creating value for the stakeholders, SR brings clarity to investors, stakeholders and companies alike.

Its importance is echoed in the June 2016 announcement by the Singapore Exchange (SGX) that by 2018, it will be mandatory for all companies listed on the SGX to issue a sustainability report.

Importance of SR to SMEs

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are important to national economies and the global supply chains of large companies. In Singapore, SMEs account for approximately 99% of the workforce and contribute greatly to the Gross Domestic Product of Singapore1.

The SR process enables companies, including SMEs, to understand how sustainability may affect their business and allows companies to align strategic goals to help sustain their business in the long run.

In an article published by GRI and the International Organisation of Employers (IOE)2, SR could assist SMEs to grow both internally and externally. Internally, it helps a company to develop its vision and strategy to promote sustainability in business operations, be it in its products or services. By developing a vision and strategy, SR enhances the monitoring of progress which helps a company to not only identify its key strengths but also highlight areas for improvement to make the necessary changes. By preparing to report, it indicates that companies are also ready to discuss with the public, particularly employees, how to tackle each issue and readily resolve them.

Externally, developing vision and strategy would help align organisational objectives in the long term which would enhance the reputation of a company and hence, promote trust from stakeholders. A good reputation would help a company stand out from its peers, providing a competitive edge, which would attract funding vital to the longevity of a company.

The Process of SR for SMEs

Given the restrictions for SMEs in terms of resources and capacity required to produce a full-blown sustainability report, GRI has provided a guide to help SMEs draft their sustainability report.

The GRI reporting process has five phases: 1. Prepare A company would first select a SR team that is familiar with the GRI Standards. Next, organise and conduct meetings with those directly involved in the reporting process to ensure that commitment is present within top management to report and act on sustainability issues identified that are relevant to the organisation and may impact business goals from the environmental and social perspectives. The plan should also include manpower resources, budget estimates and reporting milestones.

2. Connect Identify key stakeholders to collect feedback on sustainability issues identified previously. Determine how the collection of information should be performed while observing the objective and format of the process. The information to be collected should comprise sustainability issues that have been identified as being relevant and crucial for the company to attend to. These, together with recommendations, should be reviewed before being presented to senior management, who will then decide on the topics that will be included in the sustainability report.

3. Define It is important to define what the reporting content of the company is. A company should assess the materiality aspects of the issues that would allow it to achieve its goals in a sustainable manner, respond to

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the information needs of key stakeholders and manage the impacts on the economy, environment and society.

For each sustainability issue identified as relevant, assess potential impacts and where they may occur — that is, internally within the company or externally with a third party that the company has a relationship with. It is crucial to prioritise the sustainability topics identified, by assessing the importance of the stakeholder’s assessment and decisions, and the company’s economic, environmental and social impacts. These should be supported, with reasons, about why they are perceived as “material”.

4. Monitor The SR team members should begin to collect and analyse the information needed in order to build the context of the report.

The SR team should establish monitoring systems to periodically check on the progress of both the sustainability performance of the material aspects and how effective the monitoring systems are.

5. Report The last step is to complete the sustainability report, which is then publicly launched.

The company should decide whether the

information compiled is necessary and what is needed to address the GRI Standard Disclosures. Information presented should be clear, concise and give a complete picture.

In conclusion, SMEs have a very important part to play in building a sustainable future through responsible business practices and there is a clear business case for SMEs to be part of this great SR initiative.

Responsible business practices are about continuous improvement, and combined with SR, they reinforce each other, helping SMEs integrate sustainability into the organisation and capturing new value3.

https://www.spring.gov.sg/Resources/Documents/Corp_ Marketing_Brochure_Eng.pdf

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Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) & International Organisation of Employers. “Small Business, Big Impact: SME sustainability reporting from vision to action”; https://www.globalreporting.org/resourcelibrary/ Small%20Business%20Big%20Impact%20Booklet%20 Online.pdf

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GRI. “Ready to report? Introducing sustainability reporting for SMEs”; https://www.globalreporting.org/ resourcelibrary/Ready-to-Report-SME-booklet-online.pdf

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About the Authors Chin Chee Choon has more than 16 years of collective experience in Risk Advisory, Internal Audit, External Audit and Sarbanes-Oxley areas with PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte and Touche, and two US multinational corporations prior to joining Nexia TS. Chee Choon heads the Corporate Governance, Risk Advisory and Internal Audit services and has been involved in the internal audit reviews of companies listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange, government agencies and also non-profit organisations. Other than internal audit, he was also involved in special projects such as Enterprise Risk Management, pre-IPO internal control reviews, fraud investigation and review of internal control manuals. Chee Choon is also the engagement director for the audit of companies from various industries and sizes including companies listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange. He was involved in IPO projects where the firm functions as reporting accountants.

David Lai is a Manager from Governance, Risk Management and Internal Audit division of Nexia TS, a member firm of Nexia International. He has eight years of experience in internal and external auditing, sustainability reporting, pre-IPO internal control reviews, SarbanesOxley reviews, compliance, enterprise risk management and consulting.

He has served clients in diverse industries including manufacturing, interior design and exhibition, oil and gas, food and beverage, property development and construction, architectural services, education, trading and retail. He was also involved in audit and assurance services of listed and non-listed organisations, with broad exposure in countries including China, Dubai, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

For more information visit www.nexiats.com.sg

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Singapore’s Industry-friendly Landscape Through the construction of specialised hubs for various industries, the Singapore government has, over the past few decades, made a concerted effort for its urban plans to go the extra mile for businesses setting up. In this article by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), we take a look at how this has been achieved

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n central Singapore lies a cluster of complexes — including Nanos, Genome, Helios, Chromos, Proteos, Matrix, and Immunos — whose names hint at the cutting-edge developments taking place within. The 15 complexes form Biopolis, a world-class biomedical research hub where experts from both industry and academia have converged.

Through the construction of this — and other — specialised hubs for various industries, the Singapore government

has, over the past few decades, made a concerted effort for its urban plans to go the extra mile for businesses setting up shop. In general, this has been done in two key ways: by locating industrial parks close to key research institutions, and by providing stateof-the-art facilities where businesses can hit the ground running.

Biopolis was constructed at a cost of over S$570 million (US$404 million), and is now home to the laboratories of world-renowned research institutions and multinational

corporations, including Procter & Gamble (P&G), GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Chugai and Takeda. Here, an international community of scientists from both the public and private sectors work side-by-side, an arrangement which so far has been a boon for biomedical industry players.

A similar hub for the chemicals industry — Jurong Island — was officially opened 17 years ago, and now hosts major players in the chemicals industry such as Sumitomo Chemicals, Dupont and Mitsui

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Biomedical Sciences Hubs in Singapore (All information correct as of June 2016) © Singapore Economic Development Board

Chemicals. The off-shore man-made island was developed specifically for the use of the chemical industry, boasts state-of-theart integrated infrastructure — such as service corridors, warehousing and logistics solutions — and also provides third-party utilities for businesses to share.

CleanTech Park, Singapore’s first ecobusiness park, is another example of such strategic planning: the 50-hectare park, located adjacent to Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, allows businesses

Strategic partnerships with research institutions and government organisations have paved the way for the development of innovative products and new business opportunities.

to develop and test-bed various novel technologies — such as driverless vehicles and remanufacturing technologies — for early adoption.

Success by Design

These strategic urban plans have paid off handsomely for the firms on the receiving end. Strategic partnerships with research institutions and government organisations have paved the way for the development of innovative products and new business opportunities, while the availability of state-

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Feature: Singapore’s Industry-friendly Landscape

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Plans for the country’s urban development show a commitment to continue providing the same benefits for businesses looking to establish a presence here in the future.

Jurong Island Chemical Hub (All information correct as of 2016) © Global Business Reports

of-the-art facilities and technologies have enabled companies to get up and running quickly, and at a lower cost. Others have benefitted from the ease with which they have been able to test-bed new products in a live environment representative of the diverse Asia consumer landscape.

The development of novel cancer-fighting therapies is one such opportunity arising from strategic partnerships. Seven years ago, immunologist John Connolly and oncologist Toh Han Chong met at Singapore’s famed biomedical hub, Biopolis — and years-long

discussions sparked the development of Tessa Therapeutics, which now has two treatments in patient studies — one of which is in the final stage required for regulatory approval. The company is looking at a likely initial public offering (IPO) in the near future, valuing the company at over US$500 million.

Said Connolly in an interview with Bloomberg: “One of the main differences here in Singapore is that they build the infrastructure and connect that with industry and talent from all around

the world. The fact that we went from a meeting between two enthusiastic scientists to running such a big clinical trial speaks to the strength of Singapore’s investment into the sector.”

Businesses across various industries also stand to benefit from readily-available innovative technologies developed out of the hubs in their own processes. One such technology that has emerged in Singapore is dry-ice blasting, which increases the lifespan of product components, enabling companies to lower their costs of production.

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a capability that would help companies in the aerospace, oil and gas, energy, and automotive industries tackle high component costs.

Multinationals have also benefitted from the ready access they have to a compact community of local small and mediumsized enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups with the relevant expertise to take their own development efforts further. Such enterprises are dynamic and agile, and often make great strategic partners for multinationals. P&G, for example, works with a Singapore SME, GWIA, which manufactures small quantities of P&G products that are undergoing testing.

In an interview with The Straits Times, P&G’s director of corporate R&D said the company had chosen to partner with SMEs because of their flexibility, agility and willingness to collaborate, which counterbalances what a big multinational like P&G has to offer.

Moving into the Future

The benefits of Singapore’s industryfriendly landscape are plain to see, and plans for the country’s urban development show a commitment to continue providing the same benefits for businesses looking to establish a presence here in the future.

The technology, which is being tested at the Advanced Remanufacturing and Technology Centre (ARTC) at Singapore’s CleanTech Park, was described by Singapore’s Second Minister for Trade and Industry and Home Affairs, S Iswaran, as

The Singapore government recently accepted the recommendations of the country’s Committee for the Future Economy (CFE), a 30-member committee comprising members across various industries, which published a report in 2016 with specific recommendations on how the country’s urban plans can continue to be industry-friendly, among other things.

In a letter to the committee’s cochairmen, Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat and Minister for Trade and Industry S Iswaran, Prime Minister Lee Hsien

This article was originally published in Future Ready Singapore by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) in May 2017, and is available at: www. futurereadysingapore.com/2017/singapores-industry-friendlylandscape.html

Loong noted that the world was entering a period of uncertainty. “We cannot be sure which industries will perish, and which will flourish. What is certain is that Singapore must stay open to trade, people and ideas, and build deep capabilities so that our people and companies can seize the opportunities in the world.”

To help businesses thrive in an increasingly complex environment, Singapore will design and plan for more economic centres outside the city centre — such as the upand-coming Jurong Innovation District — which will serve businesses in the fields of advanced manufacturing, urban solutions, CleanTech and smart logistics.

Innovative ways in which industries can use land more efficiently are also being rolled out. Industrial hubs, such as the JTC Chemicals Hub, allow for businesses in the chemicals industry to utilise multilevel storage and chemical production, which reduce land use up to 50% — and, consequently, allow them to enjoy lower overheads.

In the pipeline is also a state-of-the-art freight system, consisting of an islandwide distribution network with regional distribution centres connected to both the airport and sea ports. Such a comprehensive logistics system would be a boon for businesses which would be able to tap on these forward-thinking infrastructural improvements for greater efficiency.

As the global business environment becomes increasingly complex and competitive, large corporations need to stay ahead by constantly innovating and keeping their operations lean. Singapore’s landscape — finely tuned over the last few decades — allows businesses to tap on a wealth of valuable expertise and state-of-the-art infrastructure, making for nimbler businesses ready to move into an uncertain future.

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Britain in Southeast Asia News

i

BiSEA News BritCham Philippines, in partnership with the French, German, Italian, Spanish and Nordic Chambers, and the Philippines-Netherlands Business Council, held its 3rd Joint Economic Briefing on 8 June, which focused on Sustainability of Foreign Direct Investments in the Philippines. More than a hundred guests, mostly businessmen and senior executives, attended as active participants during the forum. The Chamber is also organising a DuterteNomics forum on 10 August, in partnership with the Presidential Communications Operations Office and Makati Business Club, to discuss current government initiatives for the Philippines’ economic and development footprint.

For more information, please email uksme@britcham.org.ph, call +63 2 556 5232 or visit the website www.britcham.org.ph/uksmesphilippines

In the past quarter, the BMCC collaborated with government ministries MATRADE and MITI, to host the “What’s Next for UK & Malaysia” keynote address featuring HE Vicki Treadell, the British High Commissioner to Malaysia and YB Datuk Ahmad Musa, Deputy Minister for Trade and Investment. We’ve also launched the BMCC Energy Committee, the first of its kind to serve as a platform upon which partnerships are made in the oil and gas industry, dedicated specifically to British and Malaysian companies. Our Chamber has also won the APAC 2017 Medium Chamber of the Year Award, the inaugural recognition hosted by EventBank. For more information, visit www.bmcc.org.my

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On 25 April, members of the BCCT Board of Directors and representatives of three member companies met with David Cameron, the UK’s ex-Prime Minister, to discuss matters of interest to the BCCT and its members. He was visiting Thailand to speak to the World Travel and Tourism Council’s Global Summit, and agreed to a meeting with the BCCT whilst he was in Bangkok. The meeting was held at the Royal Orchid Sheraton Sukhumvit Bangkok.

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At the Chamber: Business Group News

Marketing & Creative Chairperson: Chris Reed — Black Marketing

T

he Marketing and Creative Business Group has been highly active at the chamber — it crosses over into all industries, engaging everyone in a multitude of ways. So far this year, we have had 17 events and have covered a wide variety of subjects.

These events have included copywriting mastery, luxury branding, rethinking e-commerce, how to use the new LinkedIn, what Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is and how to use it in effective marketing, mastering effective publicity responses, and creating brand love in an era of social media.

Coming up, we have many more events that will educate, stimulate, entertain and inspire, which is our mission statement. So far we have sold out most events due to the interest in marketing in a digital age.

How do you get social, content marketing and branding right? We have experts across the field in every industry and sector giving their time to help spread the word, giving you the edge over your competition.

Marketing is described as many things; digital, social, mobile but it’s really just the former. It's just marketing. Trends come and go but every industry and every brand will always embody and need marketing to achieve their results, be it free marketing through things like positive word of mouth or more classic advertising and research-driven branding. Marketing has always been around and it always will be.

What format it takes is what you can learn at one of our amazing Marketing 360 events.

Look out for a very exciting series in 2018 branded the BritCham CMO Series. We will be inviting the crème de la crème of brand CMOs to address you and tell you what they have planned for their brand, where they think marketing is going, and what you need to know to grow your business with effective and cost-efficient brand-focused marketing.

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At the Chamber: Business Services News

Supporting British Companies doing Business in Singapore Recent Events Synectics (Tower Transit) We were pleased to coordinate a two-part evening presentation at Eden Hall for the Society of Engineers on 8th June. This event was in collaboration with Tower Transit and Synectics Mobile Systems to support the learning and professional development of transport engineers in Singapore.

Iain Stringer and Neil Brockbank of Synectics provided insights into their local and global operations as well as the latest developments in integrated security and surveillance for the transport industry.

“Many thanks to you and all the staff at the British Chamber and Commissioner's Residence for your hard work in organising the event — everyone I spoke to said they enjoyed the evening and were particularly complimentary about the quality of the venue and politeness of the staff,” said Iain Stringer, Sales and Marketing Director, Synectics.

Scottish Rugby We were delighted to facilitate a dinner for Scottish Rugby and Senior Business Leaders to coincide with the summer tour opener for the Scotland versus Italy match last month in Singapore — the first-ever official test match in South East Asia.

The event included Q&A with some of the Scottish Rugby team players and was organised in association with Scottish Development International and BT. Congratulations to Scotland for sealing a win against Italy with a score of 34–13.

For more information on Scottish Rugby’s clear ambitions to “Inspire Scotland through rugby” please check: scottishrugby.org

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IAAPA Asian Attractions Expo — UK China Business Reception (DIT China) Held at the world-renowned Marina Bay Sands, the IAAPA Asian Attractions Expo — Reception brought together UK exhibitors and Asian developers in a networking event on 15th June 2017.

The networking reception was coordinated by our Business Services team and DIT China.

A total of 18 UK companies exhibiting at the Asian Attractions Expo took part in the reception and it was a delightful evening spent networking with guests.

BritCham hosts Trade Mission from Wales The Business Services Team at the British Chamber of Commerce was delighted to host a delegation of Welsh SMEs to Singapore on 10th–14th July, led by the Welsh government to explore and further develop business opportunities in Singapore. Eden Hall was the perfect setting for the Welsh Trade Mission reception, to provide an opportunity for delegates to meet the business community in Singapore along with members of the Chamber in their relevant sectors.

The trade mission commenced with a market briefing for the delegates about doing business in Singapore and her neighbouring ASEAN countries. Special thanks to DIT, the High Commission Singapore and PwC Singapore who joined BritCham and delivered expert advice to the delegates during a market briefing.

Held at Eden Hall, the reception was hosted by HE Scott Wightman, British High Commissioner to Singapore. The reception was attended by 80 delegates and guests.

Delegate companies included: Al-Met, Atticus Digital, CCW – Training Academy, Delio, GeoLang, Patent Seekers, Pinacl GDA, Rachel’s Dairy, Russell IPM, SOFT Care Training & Development, Symltech, Thermal Compaction Group, TrakCel, Vessel Protection Solutions and WE Bridge Academy

Tech Singapore Advocates The Business Services Team was pleased to coordinate a launch event for Tech Singapore Advocates (TSA) at Eden Hall on 19th July 2017. A panel of distinguished speakers, including Sopnendu Mohanty from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), provided insights into the opportunities and challenges in Singapore’s tech industry. The reception was attended by more than 90 guests and it was a delightful evening spent networking and bringing together leading influencers from the technology ecosystem in Singapore.

Export Opportunities Helping UK companies find and apply for Export Opportunities from businesses looking for products or services in Singapore, BritCham Singapore is committed to source and publish Export Opportunities on a regular basis across most sectors. Visit www.GREAT.gov.uk for the opportunities in Singapore and worldwide.

Contact our Team You would like to ask a question? Please contact Carole our Business Services Manager.

Carole@britcham.org.sg

The British Chamber of Commerce Singapore is the appointed delivery partner for DIT (Department for International Trade) in Singapore. Our Business Services team offers market entry support services to British companies looking to do business and grow business in Singapore.

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At the Chamber: New Members

Sterling JDX Consulting Richard Mitcham

BritCham New Members

Corporate Aberdeen Asset Management Sarah Anderson

Accenture Strategy Andrew Lea-Cox

Amicorp Singapore Pte Ltd Sean Green

Country Garden(s) Pte Ltd Janice Yue Ji Wang

Delta Capita J Michele Colenso

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Corporate SME Duane Morris & Selvam Lara Qule

Cars & Yachts Pte Ltd Benoit Ratigan

Expat Living Publications Pte Ltd Susan Knudsen-Pickles

Grain & Feed Trade Association Jade Dyson

G4S Secure Solutions Jonathan Tedd

Horus Security Consultancy Danny Hodder

ING Bank N.V Maggie Caldeira

Portland PR Ltd (Singapore) Jonathan McClory

Tridant Nimrod Kuti

Tyk Technologies Pte Ltd Zane Lim

IDM Training Magdalene Ong

The Shackleton Group Thomas Youngman

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At the Chamber: Sterling News Addleshaw Goddard's Manchester Corporate team has advised B&M Stores ("B&M") on its acquisition of Heron Food Group ("Heron") for a total cash consideration of £152 million.

Heron is a discount convenience retailer that employs 3,800 people and stocks around 1,200 convenience products, including ambient, frozen and chilled foods.

The acquisition of Heron enables B&M to develop and roll out a highly complementary, proven and profitable discount convenience format and brand. The customer profiles of Heron and B&M are similar and both formats are expanding successfully outside their heartland geographies as they open new stores across the country. B&M will continue to expand and develop the Heron business, initially through the addition of between 10 and 20 new units per annum. The AG team was led by partner Roger Hart, and included Oliver Hincks, Jo Cooper, Julie Hodkinson, Justine Delroy and Catherine Concannon.

Visit www.addleshawgoddard.com for more information.

Aviva has signed a significant 10-year distribution deal in the UK with HSBC, to provide a broad range of general insurance products in the UK. This distribution partnership is one of the UK’s largest general insurance bancassurance deals, and presents Aviva with significant growth opportunities in this market.

HSBC customers will be able to purchase Aviva underwritten home insurance and travel insurance through the bank’s extensive mobile and online channels, the branch network and over the telephone. The new deal builds on a former five-year agreement with HSBC to provide home and travel insurance. Visit www.aviva.com for more information.

British Airways announced its partnership with luxury lifestyle brand, The White Company.

The iconic British retailer will supply bedding and amenity kits in Club World as part of the airline’s £400 million customer investment plan, with a focus on excellence in the premium cabins.

Exclusively for British Airways, The White Company has also designed a bespoke, luxuriously soft large pillow and white cotton pillowcase. Customers will also be given a super-soft woven blanket with satin trim and a specially developed luxury duvet, as well as a padded mattress. The new bedding from The White Company will then be gradually rolled out across British Airways’ other long-haul routes.

The new Club World amenity kits come in an elegantly designed bag from The White Company and contain products from the retailer’s "Restore & Relax Spa Collection", as well as a super-soft jersey eye-mask, offering a further touch of luxury in the sky.

Visit www.ba.com for more information.

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Clifford Chance has advised McLaren Group on the combination of McLaren Automotive — a globally renowned luxury high-performance car manufacturer — and McLaren Technology Group, which includes one of the world’s oldest and most successful race teams and a highgrowth technology business. As part of the transaction, Clifford Chance advised on the financing arrangements, including the issuance of £564 million senior secured notes and a working capital facility. The proceeds from the bond offering were used to acquire Ron Dennis' shareholdings in the McLaren Group as well as repay existing indebtedness.

The Clifford Chance team was led by Finance and Capital Markets partners Michael Dakin, Fabio Diminich and James Butters with support from Claudia Kim and Emily James; and Corporate partners Mark Poulton and Graham Phillips with support from Adnan Doha.

Visit www.cliffordchance.com for more information.

Cognita Schools Group, a global leader in education, has announced the purchase of Avondale Grammar School in Singapore. In joining the Cognita family of schools, Avondale takes its place as Cognita’s second Australian curriculum school in Singapore, alongside the Australian International School, and the company’s 10th school in the Asian region.

Avondale Grammar School was established in 2007 and is currently home to nearly 300 students from more than 18 nationalities, the majority of whom are Australian and New Zealand passport holders. Over the next few months, Cognita will work closely with the school leadership and wider school community to ensure continuity of the school’s operation and its delivery of an excellent academic experience. The well-being and learning journey of each student will remain the absolute priority as the two organisations come together.

Michael Drake, CEO of Cognita Asia commented, “Avondale Grammar School is a strong addition to the Cognita family. The school has an excellent reputation for its nurturing and welcoming community, as well as its holistic approach to education. This ethos is shared widely across Cognita and is something we believe can be developed further now Avondale is part of our Group. It is an exciting development and we welcome the staff, students and parents to the Cognita family.” Visit www.cognitaschools.com for more information.

EY announced that 669 people globally have been promoted to partner. For the third consecutive year, partners from the emerging markets continue to represent more than a third of all partner promotions, making up 36% this year (up from 35% in 2016 and 33% in 2015). EY also continues to accelerate its commitment to gender diversity across the global organisation, with women representing nearly 30% of this year’s partner class.

Visit www.ey.com/sg for more information.

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At the Chamber: Sterling News Lloyds announced new plans to enhance and speed up the process of approving syndicate business plans in the aftermath of a market turning event (MTE), an insurable loss so significant it results in a rapid upturn in pricing.

The measures were included as part of a report setting out six guiding principles explaining how Lloyds would respond to a MTE. The six principles are categorised into two areas: crisis management, to ensure the market responds to a crisis effectively, pays claims as quickly as possible and remains solvent; and opportunities to support the market. Lloyds said it would focus on shortening the review and agreement process of business and capital plans, allowing syndicates to respond more effectively to the aftermath of a major catastrophe and enable capital to flow into the market more efficiently. Visit www.lloyds.com for more information.

Rolls-Royce has signed a deal with WestSea Yard, part of Martifer Group, to equip an expeditionary oceanic cruise ship for Portuguese-based cruise company Mystic Cruises. The vessel, to be called the MS World Explorer, will be the company’s first expeditionary oceanic cruise ship. The MS World Explorer will offer expeditionary cruise itineraries in Antarctica from November to March and this new vessel’s inaugural Antarctic season is already fully chartered to, and being distributed globally by, Polar Cruise Company Quark Expeditions.

For the rest of the season it will visit small and distinct ports around the world normally not accessible to larger cruise ships and will be distributed worldwide by the German Company Nicko Cruises.

Equipped with environmentally sustainable and top-of-the-line technology developed by Rolls-Royce, the MS World Explorer is the first of several ships to be built by the Portuguese company for its expeditionary cruise line. The design is the result of several years of study and development to create the perfect balance between luxury, comfort, efficiency and environmental friendly operation. Visit www.rolls-royce.com for more information.

Standard Chartered Bank (the Bank) has become the first non-Chinese bank in Singapore to complete a US Dollar–Renminbi Foreign Exchange (USDRMB FX) forward trade on China Foreign Exchange Trade System (CFETS) directly for a Singapore corporate client, since the Bank successfully acquired its CFETS Membership in January 2017, becoming the only nonChinese bank in Singapore to have direct CFETS access.

The Bank supported a trading company in Singapore for a USD-RMB transaction, providing the client a hedge against their underlying trade flows with China. Patrick Lee, Head of Global Banking, Singapore, Standard Chartered Bank said, “Standard Chartered Bank is pleased to have completed the first transaction for our client in Singapore using direct CFETS access. The CFETS membership allows the Bank to provide premium service and quick time-to-market solutions to clients who have cross-border transaction needs in RMB. With the enhanced efficiency in transaction costs and timeliness in obtaining onshore FX rate quotation, we expect to serve more clients on their RMB cross-border payment needs.”

Visit www.standardchartered.com.sg for more information.

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At the Chamber: Corporate News

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Accenture, together with Pearson, the world’s learning company, has created and launched a new digital customer experience which will simplify and improve the user experience for students, educators and jobseekers looking to access Pearson’s learning materials and services.

The new website and content publishing platform will give users a single “front door” to access Pearson’s education products and services more easily and intuitively than ever. The new digital learning experience, designed, built and delivered by Accenture Interactive, will boost Pearson’s mission to improve access and outcomes in education.

Visit www.newsroom.accenture.com to read more.

Aggreko has taken delivery of the world’s only diesel power generator certified for rental use in hazardous areas. The 750 kVA unit is fully ATEX-approved and has full safety features that allow it to be used in hazardous zones both on and offshore, and is believed to be a world-first for generating electricity in areas at risk of explosion.

“Aggreko always wants to bring cutting-edge solutions to our customers, and to provide the safest possible environments for all personnel and business operations, so we are very proud to announce this step change in safety,” said John Wilson, Aggreko’s Area General Manager, Nordic Region. “It’s a major investment and an exciting advancement that will raise the standard for many industries where safety is paramount.”

Visit www.aggreko.com/en/news to read more.

In July this year, Baxters International launched their exciting new app — BAM!, an online marketplace for buying and selling art pieces from all over the world. Born out of a desire to promote global art entrepreneurs, the objective of BAM! is to provide a forum that truly supports both the artist and the buyer.

In just a few simple steps, artists can upload their work and start connecting with art lovers around the world, giving them access to a much wider audience and the potential opportunity to forge a sustainable career.

Paintings, prints, jewellery and gems, conceptual art — whether you are an artist or an art lover, check it out today at www.baxters-art.com or on Google Play or the App store.

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At the Chamber: Corporate News Explore a new range of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) resources at the CGMA Store to help you develop where you need to, no matter where you are in your career. You now have an unprecedented choice of CPD resources in leadership, strategy, communication, risk and technology, through the new Association of International Certified Professional Accountants.

It’s more important than ever to stay at the leading edge of learning and innovation and our professionally curated resources help you to develop exactly where you need to, whatever stage you’re at in your career. Explore CGMAstore.com today.

The big HR news here in Singapore is the launch of the National HR Framework which is supporting a newly formed institute (IHRP) by tripartite partners MOM, NTUC and SNEF. CIPD has been closely involved with the formation of the new framework having sat on the task force, and they look forward to playing an important role in the drive to professionalise HR here in Singapore moving forward. Another progress piece is the unveiling of their brand-new website. It’s packed with new features and content, and has a fantastic search function which will allow visitors to instantly find a range of subject-specific materials such as research reports, fact sheets and podcasts. If you work in HR or Learning and Development, there’s a wealth of easily accessible information at your fingertips. So go take a look for yourself by visiting www.cipd.asia and let them know how you get on.

A consortium led by G4S, the world’s leading security company, announces it has won a four-year contract valued at €30 million to provide its latest electronic monitoring equipment and software for the Ministry of Justice in France. The contract will see the rollout of G4S monitoring technology — including Global Positioning System (GPS) devices — to enable continuous tracking of subjects within France, its dependencies and territories.

The electronic monitoring programme in France is one of the largest in the world with more than 11,000 active monitors at any one time. This technology, designed, developed and delivered from the company’s electronic monitoring business in the UK, has been used in more than 18 countries around the world.

G4S Monitoring Technologies Managing Director, David Byrne, said, “This agreement will see electronic monitoring continuing to play a vital role in France’s justice system and the adoption of our latest technology sets the benchmark in Europe.”

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The Marlborough College Malaysia Council was delighted to appoint Alan Stevens as Master of Marlborough College Malaysia, in November 2016. Stevens will be succeeding Robert Pick, the Founding Master, who has led the College during its first five years and has been associated with Marlborough for 37 years.

Stevens, together with his wife, Heather, will join Marlborough College Malaysia ahead of the Michaelmas Term of 2017 from Barnard Castle School, an HMC (Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference) co-educational boarding and day school in County Durham, England, where he has been Headmaster since 2010. Visit www.marlboroughcollegemalaysia.org for more information.

MSIG Insurance and DBS bank have launched Singapore’s first instant electronic payment service for travel insurance claims. The new initiative will reduce the time a travel claim is settled by approximately four days. DBS/POSB account holders who have bought MSIG’s travel insurance plans through the DBS website and have signed up for a member login account with MSIG’s customer portal will be able to benefit from this real-time claims payment service. This instant electronic payment service rides on DBS’ new API named DBS IDEAL RAPID and MSIG is the first company in Singapore to deploy this new service.

“Being the first to tap on the bank’s real-time payment service is a reflection of our long-standing and solid partnership with DBS,” said Michael Gourlay, CEO of MSIG Insurance. In 2016, MSIG was named the Asia Pacific Insurer Claims Team of the Year by the Insurance Post Claims.

Unruly announces an exclusive partnership with Dow Jones, making the video ad tech company the only platform to deliver outstream video ads across its digital media properties, including the Wall Street Journal. Through the partnership, Unruly buyers will have exclusive access to the Wall Street Journal’s elite, global audience, which is particularly sought-after amongst the business and finance sectors. It is available to advertisers on both desktop and mobile devices, including Unruly’s vertical video and 360 ad units.

“In a time when fake news and ad fraud are still rampant across the industry, the need for trustworthy, premium and safe environments for brands is critical to business success.

This partnership should excite buyers who are looking for ways to reach business decisionmakers in user-friendly video formats. There’s no more premium site to reach these influential readers than the Wall Street Journal,” said Kenneth Suh, EVP, Global Business Development, Unruly.

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At the Chamber: Members’ Offers

To find out more about our members’ offers, visit our website under Membership -> Members Offers.

Two hours free Handyman Service

BSI Group Singapore Pte Ltd

Developing Global Leaders Asia Pte Ltd

Garner International (S) Pte Ltd

Anagram Group

Bupa Global

Emirates

Harry’s Holding Pte Ltd

Black Marketing — enabling LinkedIn for you

City Developments Limited

EnVeritas Group

Hotel G Singapore

The Dark Art of Marketing

CMC Partnership (UK) Ltd

EVA Group

Hotel G Singapore

British Airways

Courts (Singapore) Pte Ltd

Expat Living

IOM (Institute of Occupational Medicine) Singapore

Allied Pickfords (S) Pte Ltd

One-hour training session at $990 and 10% off all one-day training workshops

Free one-hour consultation on How You Can Use LinkedIn to Achieve Your Business Goals + Free Book

Free One Hour Personal Branding Consultation + Free Personal Branding Book

10% off airfare for British Airways

10% discount on ISO certification, training services and purchase of standards

10% off Medical Insurance Plan

10% discount on facilities and services

Discount on Change Management training and certification

5% off electrical and 10% off furniture on presentation of your BritCham Membership Card

5% off Women in Leadership Programs — Developing Global Leaders Asia

Enjoy up to 10% off Emirates fares

10% off* Digital Content Marketing Services

5% discount on training

50% off Expat Living subscription (usual price $78)

FREE: Two hours’ consultation with Garner International Executive Search & Recruitment Services

15% off at Harry’s on presentation of your BritCham Membership Card

Get 10% discount at Ginett Restaurant & Wine Bar on presentation of your BritCham Membership Card

Get 10% discount at 25 Degrees Burgers & Liquor bar on presentation of your BritCham Membership Card

NEBOSH International General Certificate (IGC) course on 20% off

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JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach

Special offer at Beach Road Kitchen on presentation of your BritCham Membership Card

PizzaExpress Singapore Pte Limited 25% off at Pizza Express on presentation of your BritCham Membership Card

Singapore Cricket Club Up to $1,000 credit for F&B for BritCham members

The Fry Group

10% off UK Tax Return Service

The Institute of Marine Engineering Science & Technology JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach

Special offer at Media Bar on presentation of your BritCham Membership Card

Progress-U Pte Ltd

5% off International Corporate Coaching Program

Singapore Management University

Up to 75% off Sustainable Maritime Operations degrees

5% discount on SMU Executive Development Programme

Total Health Chiropractic Pte Ltd

50% off first visit at Total Health Chiropractic

Mega Adventure

20% off TeamBuilding Programmes

Regus

15% discount for all BritCham members on all products

Sonru Asia Pacific Pte Ltd

10% off Annual Subscription for Corporate Members

Tower Club

Enjoy a six-week complimentary trial membership at Tower Club

MSIG Insurance (Singapore) Pte Ltd

15% off MSIG’s Prestige Healthcare

Spaces.

Special Membership Offer for BritCham Members

Survival Chic

Special Membership Offer for BritCham Members

Transformify

Complimentary Marketing for BritCham members via Transformify

MSIG Insurance (Singapore) Pte Ltd 30% off MSIG’s TravelEasy Insurance

Shangri-La Hotel Limited Shangri-La Business Travel Programme for BritCham Members

Survival Chic

Survival Chic (SC) Partnering with Citi Bank — amazing access and privileges

Ultimate Performance (UPFitness Pte Ltd)

10% off personal training packages with Ultimate Performance

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At the Chamber: Annual Events

BritCham Rugby Lions Tour Dinner 2017 25 May 2017 We held this action-packed evening at the luxuriously decorated Tower Ballroom of the Shangri-La Hotel, with guest speakers, rugby legends Peter Winterbottom, Fergus Slattery and Justin Marshall. The evening started with a drinks reception in the foyer, with guests having a go at our Rugby Throw booth — quite the lively start to a crazy night!

Justin Sampson, better known as Sambo, hosted the evening, kicking it off with a game of Heads or Tails. The sumptuous three-course meal was accompanied by free-flow beverages throughout the evening, a lucky draw, stories from our speakers on their playing careers and a silent auction.

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Justin Marshall — Former Rugby Player, New Zealand | All Blacks

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At the Chamber: Annual Events

Fergus Slattery — Former Rugby Player, Ireland | British and Irish Lions | Barbarian FC

Peter Winterbottom — Former Rugby Player, England | British and Irish Lions

Justin Sampson (Sambo) hosted the evening

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At the Chamber: Annual Events

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BritCham Quiz Night 8 June 2017 We organised a Quiz Night at McGettigan's, Clarke Quay, where our teams showcased their general knowledge and trivia skills in topics such as politics, sports, music and pop culture. Teams of six came together to pit their wits and team Nana Loves Thursday Night Football emerged as the winner!

Quiz Night Leaderboard: Nana Loves Thursday Night Football O'Trivia Newton John Truffle Fry St. James's Place The Quizzly Bears Whisky Business Portsmouth Champions BritCham Babes Google United Rolls-Royce Les Quizerables Doctor Who?

83.5 81.5 75.5 73.0 70.5 69.5 68.0 67.5 65.0 62.0 55.0 39.0

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Brigitte Holtschneider, Former Executive Director’s Farewell Open House 6 June 2017 Members were invited to a special Open House at the Chamber offices where we marked Brigitte's farewell from the Chamber. Members, ex-presidents and ex-Chamber staff came to show their support and bid their farewells.

Building Networks Connecting Business Creating Opportunities

At the Chamber: Breakfast Club Events

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Lessons from the Road with Rob Lilwall — Cycling Home from Siberia 3 May 2017 We were excited to have Nat Geo Adventurer Rob Lilwall as a speaker, where he shared stories of his journeys and reflected on the lessons learned; effective goal setting, building resilience, becoming more positive, and taking calculated risks. He also encouraged our members and guests to open up their hearts to a growth mindset when overcoming great obstacles.

Rob Lilwall — Adventurer, Explorer and Motivational Speaker

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Demystifying Blockchain Technology 18 May 2017 In this session, participants were given a non-technical overview of the latest information on blockchain technology, its potential uses and what it could mean for their organisations. It provided a basic understanding of how blockchain technology works, the industries using it, how they could get involved in blockchain and practical groups to follow.

> Steve Tunstall — CEO and Co-Founder, Inzsure.com Jan-Arie Bijloos — Head of Business Development, Otonomos Rob Kliman — Head of Rates, Commodities and Risk Technology, ANZ Global Markets, Singapore

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Marketing 360 Series: How the New LinkedIn can Work for You 6 June 2017 Our members and guests were given a practical workshop on everything they wanted to know about the changes and differences in the new version of LinkedIn’s professional social media network and how it could still work for them.

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Chris J Reed — Founder and CEO, Black Marketing

Mastering Effective Publicity Response — Learning from Highprofile Examples 20 June 2017 This session focused on public relations and how companies can recover or turn these challenges around when things go wrong.

With a varied career in corporate affairs, BT's Ed Petter shared tips on what companies need to be aware of and the public relations mistakes they should avoid.

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Ed Petter — Group Corporate Affairs Director, BT

Marketing 360 Series: Mastering SEO for your Marketing 4 July 2017 In this session, we reviewed several case studies on examples of successful Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) strategies. We also discovered ways to improve our content and website’s SEO.

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Razy Shah — Director, 2Stallions

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Building Networks Connecting Business Creating Opportunities

At the Chamber: Evening Events

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Hanjin — When Supply Chains Go Wrong 15 May 2017 The Transport, Logistics and Supply Chain (TLSC) Business Group’s "kickoff" event was an interactive panel discussion, joined by an esteemed panel of speakers. We explored the importance and common aspects of supply chains and associated services, and how specific sectors can draw on the experience of others, using the bankruptcy of Korean container shipping group, Hanjin, as a case study example to fuel the discussion.

> James Woodrow — Managing Director, The China Navigation Company Simon Petch — Partner, Watson Farley & Williams LLP Peter Greaves — Singapore Business Restructuring Leader, PwC

Men in Feminism 1 June 2017 Members and guests joined us for an interactive round table event with Barclays WiN4Men as we discussed the importance of including men in the conversation around gender inequality in the workplace.

This session aimed to discover a possible appetite for a regular cross-industry WiN4Mentype forum or network aimed at men. And participants discussed ways to engage more Singaporean men in the dialogue.

> Jason Chui — Vice President Operational Risk, Barclays Investment Bank Craig Digby — Vice President, Barclays Singapore Zsuzsanna Tungli — Managing Partner, Developing Global Leaders Asia

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Championing Ethnic Diversity Initiatives with OnePeople.sg 25 July 2017 The Diversity Committee were delighted to host an evening discussion and presentation with OnePeople.sg. Dr Mathew Mathews shared information on OnePeople.sg’s activities, achievements and future goals and challenges for the Singapore business community in the area of ethnic diversity.

> Dr Mathew Mathews — Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Policy Studies and Board Member, OnePeople.sg

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Whisky Tasting Experience with William Grant & Sons 26 July 2017 Attendees joined us for an exclusive whisky experience, where Neil Strachan took us through what makes Balvenie the world’s most handcrafted single malt scotch whisky.

Attendees got to hear the story behind William Grant & Sons in Singapore and their activities across the Asia-Pacific region.

They also had the opportunity to network amongst other Scottish Business Group and BritCham members!

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Neil Strachan — Regional Brand Ambassador, The Balvenie, Southeast Asia

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Building Networks Connecting Business Creating Opportunities

At the Chamber: Special Events

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Winning the Fight for Female Talent 12 May 2017 What do organisations seek in talent? This session shared key findings that can help in aligning your people strategy with the Diversity & Inclusion agenda. This presentation covered the market trends in relation to recruitment, talent management and mobility from both a global, regional and local perspective.

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Lucy Ashenhurst — Founder and Managing Director, Upstart Alliance Danielle Warner — CEO and Founder, Expat Insurance Sakaya Johns Rani — Partner, Global Mobility Services, PwC Yvonne Tan — HR Business Partner, Global Marketing, BHP Billiton Karen Loon — Partner and Territory Diversity Leader, PwC

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Start-up Series: A Game of Risk and Reward 23 May 2017 Lucy Ashenhurst provided an overview of all the most common issues facing small companies in their journey to success. She also focused on techniques to help reduce a business’ chances of failing. This event aimed to highlight quick and cost-effective ways to protect one’s business and improve their chances of succeeding.

Start-up Series: Make it Work 2 June 2017 Attendees got frank advice with a marketing skew from Joseph Barratt — from reaching their target market, running media campaigns, using content effectively, and optimising their social media campaigns, all the way through to practical interpersonal communication skills.

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Joseph Barratt — CEO, Mutant Communications

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Striving for Certainty in Uncertain Times 9 June 2017 >

Our panel reviewed the 2017 General Election results and discussed the implications of what the results meant for the United Kingdom going forward.

Mark Chowdhry — Managing Director, Baxters International Mark Worthington — Partner & Managing Director – Singapore, Bell Pottinger Nigel Preston — CEO – Singapore, St James’s Place Scott Wightman — British High Commissioner to Singapore

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Brexit, Trump, Technology, Rise of RMB: Asia’s Place in a Grave New World 22 June 2017

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In this session, Stephen D King addressed the key issues facing financial services and global businesses in Asia. He also reviewed the 21st century’s key challenges: migration, technology and currency wars.

Stephen King — Senior Economic Adviser, HSBC and Author

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Business Tour of Changi Airport Group’s New Terminal 4 31 July 2017 The Changi Airport Group (CAG) opened its doors to our members for an exclusive tour of its newest terminal — Terminal 4.

We were introduced to their new fast and seamless travel (FAST) initiatives; checkin, bag drop, immigration clearance and departure-gate boarding systems.

BUILDING NETWORKS CONNECTING BUSINESSES CREATING OPPORTUNITIES

THIS IS WHAT WE DO BEST. The Chamber plays a strong role within the community in Singapore, providing valuable links for our members, whilst maintaining a focus on delivering quality support to our growing membership base.

We currently represent almost 400 companies across all industry sectors. The network of executives representing their companies grew substantially over the past years to now over 3000 a dynamic development that is continuing in 2017.

Our Membership is open to all nationalities.

Join us today! Visit www.britcham.org.sg