Meb Nov 2013 e-version

NOVEMBER 2013

Bi-monthly Magazine | Issue 19

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PKT CEO Anchors Alma Mater at Batu Kawan Edmund Edward Chief Executive Officer ALC College

MORE IN THIS ISSUE: ISSN 2232-0342

Professor Ian Pashby Pro-Vice-Chancellor University of Hull

HIGHLIGHTS: UTAR forges close ties with Taiwan universities

Dato’ Michael Tio Group Chief Executive & MD PKT Logistics Group Sdn. Bhd.

BUSINESS SEGMENT: PR Yourself: Raise your brand above the clutter and noise of the competitive landscape with Freda Liu

PP17103/19/2013 (030736) 2013 Issue 19/ 2013 November RM7.001 9772232034009

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SHIP AHOY:

Professor Ian Pashby Pro-Vice-Chancellor University of Hull

FULL STEAM AHEAD FOR PKT-HULL CAMPUS

BILLIONAIRE ESPRESSO a recharge for entrepreneurs Available in all major bookstores.

POPULAR | MPH | KINOKUNIYA | TIMES | BORDERS ISBN 978-967-5945-28-1 Photo credit: mccain photography

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PR YOURSELF Freda Liu Radio Presenter and Producer at BFM

CORPORATE Managing Director: Steven Shim Office Manager: Vicky Shim Key Accounts Manager: Wong Finance Manager: Bonnie

EDITOR’S

EDITORIAL TEAM Editor: Alexandra Wong Writers: Lee, Michael Contributors: Yap Thai Meng, Leong Pei Lee, Sr Azita Mohamed Tahir, Chua Yu Kiat, Cheang Wai Leong, Tay Kae Yi, Ooi Yeng Khoon Photographer: Mccain Photography Contributing Photographer : Alan-Lim photography Graphic Designer: Nazir Tay PUBLISHER Penerbit Wawasan Nusa (M) Sdn Bhd (866716-P), Wisma Wawasan, 19-2 Jalan PJS 8/12, Dataran Mentari, Bandar Sunway, 46150 Petaling Jaya, Malaysia Tel: 603-56301802, Fax: 603-6301803, Email: info@pwn.com.my, penerbitwawasan@gmail.com Website: www.pwn.com.my PRINTER BS Print (M) Sdn Bhd No 10 Jalan Indrahana 1, Off Jalan Kuchai Lama, 58200 KL, Malaysia Distribute by MPH Distributors Sdn Bhd All rights reserved by MBA Edge™ and its publisher.

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I have very fond memories of Northern small town Batu Kawan.

In my undergraduate days, my friends and I would make day trips here for seafood – fresh, tasty, and most importantly, kind to our student-size wallets.

The quiet backwater of my memories is expected to change dramatically in the next couple of years. Following the Penang State Government’s decision to revitalize the township in an ambitious industrialization plan, Batu Kawan was catapulted into the limelight, and in its wake, has attracted a slew of new economic developments.

Our cover story features The Ship Campus, one of Batu Kawan’s most highly-anticipated new projects. The result of a historical collaboration between logistics giant PKT Logistics

EDITOR’S NOTE

NOTE Sdn Bhd and the revered University of Hull, The Ship Campus will be designed over an actual ship, making it a truly one-of-a-kind landmark.

Beyond its bold architectural vision, the real genius of the project lies in its location within a larger site that encompasses an actual logistics hub and recreational facilities. By incorporating teaching facilities within a real-world working environment, the Ship Campus will become that rare model of entrepreneurship and academia working in symbiosis. And backed by the experience and expertise of a top-ranked academic institution, The Ship Campus’ potential to improve the quality of education in Malaysia is nothing short of enormous.

In our Business Segment, we address that tricky marketing animal called public relations. Sure, everybody knows that practising good PR can boost your business, but isn’t it the purview of big companies with even bigger budgets? Not really, says Freda Liu, a veteran PR practitioner and currently producer-presenter on business radio station BFM 89.9. In this MBE exclusive, she shares valuable insights on best practices in PR, no matter the size or nature of your business.

Happy reading, and look out for our bumper issue this December.

Alexandra Wong 5

CONTENTS

08 THE SHIP CAMPUS: PKT CEO Anchors Alma Mater at Batu Kawan

COVER STORY Highlights

UTAR forges close ties 32 with Taiwan universities

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In this exclusive interview, MBE speaks to PKT Logistics Group CEO Dato’ Michael Tio and University of Hull Pro -Vice-Chancellor Professor Ian Pashby, who was in Penang for the Memorandum of Intent Signing on 9th October 2013.

Featured

Interviews Tan Kok Beng

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Jefferson Lim

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Ong Fong Yew

36 The Opportunity in Risk Dr Lee Siew Peng, the Head of MBA programme (general MBA and

specialized MBA – Corporate Governance and Building Management) at

UTAR

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CONTENTS

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BUSINESS SEGMENT PR YOURSELF

Freda Liu, Radio Presenter and Producer at BFM

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BUSINESS SEGMENT An Eye For Talent

Talent scouts Hazel Loke and Cefyone Tan from top Malaysia-based agency Lovea International

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COVER STORY

PKT CEO Anchors Alma Mater at Batu Kawan

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f medical students can be taught in hospitals, why not others in their respective industries?

This is the pragmatic reason behind the historical collaboration between ALC College a subsidiary of logistics giant PKT Logistics Group Sdn Bhd and the University of Hull, United Kingdom to build The Ship Campus as an academic institute that will incorporate teaching within a working environment.

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The Ship Campus will be the second major education foray after The Lighthouse Campus in Shah Alam. PKT Logistics new subsidiary ALC College which was acquired solely for the group’s education venture. The Ship Campus will be the first international university campus in the mainland of Penang.

Expected to cost a whopping RM130 million, the campus which was conceptualised over a ship, will sit on a portion of a twohectare land in Batu Kawan which was acquired by PKT Logistics

from Penang Development Corporation. The One Auto Hub development will include automotive logistics facilities, warehousing, a lighthouse lodge, a pavilion, a jetty and a mangrove walk.

In this exclusive interview, MBE speaks to PKT Logistics CEO Dato’ Michael Tio and University of Hull Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Ian Pashby, who was in Penang for the signing of a Memorandum of Intent (MOI) between the two parties, held on the 9th of October 2013.

COVER STORY

Q1. What was the biggest challenge in getting this project off the ground?

We have overcome the stage of challenges.

Otherwise we would not be signing the Memorandum of Intent. I would say, wooing the university to agree to the proposal was my original challenge.

by the Northern Corridor Implementation Authority (NCIA).

Then we got into discussions about who to invite. For me, University of Hull was a clear choice, partly because it’s my alma mater. But even before The idea of One Auto Hub, that, I was already sending my was part of the Entry Point staff to the logistics faculty Project (EPP) approved by the of Hull. It’s uniquely one of federal government. The idea of few universities in UK with a having lifestyle and education logistics faculty. elements incorporated into the hub came about after attending When I made this suggestion the regional corridor and to one of the NCIA staff, he cities lab that was facilitated asked, “You are from Hull

Now that we’ve signed the MOI, the actual work begins. The degree certificates will be conferred by the University of Hull so we need to make sure quality is of the same standards as the main campus before we validate and

Professor Ian Pashby, Pro-Vice-Chancellor University of Hull

Dato’ Michael Tio, Group Chief Executive & MD of PKT Logistics Group Sdn. Bhd.

University ? My CEO Datuk Redza Rafiq is also from Hull University!” I thought to myself, this is a match made in heaven!

Straightaway, he called Datuk Redza, who agreed immediately to fly with me to United Kingdom to invite them to Malaysia. For the other side of the story, I think you should get Professor Ian’s perspective. align the programmes with ALC College. But it’s a very good time for us to be doing this.

We’re looking into expanding the university activities into a more global realm. And I know Malaysia well because I’ve lived here for five years.

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COVER STORY

Arrival of YAB Tuan Lim Guan Eng , Chief Minister of Penang to witness the MOI Signing

Q2. Let’s talk about inviting the University of Hull to be your education partner. Was it difficult? What was the biggest showstopper to making it happen?

While visiting the University of Hull, I was walking towards the ViceChancellor’s office. Along the walkway, there were pictures of ships. I asked the person leading the way and he said that he said, our VC is from South Africa and he is very fond of ships. Bingo!

Here I was, about to present The Ship Campus. I was sure he would be very happy. After our presentation the VC was very optimistic about our plans.

In fact, the challenge came from a different direction. Just as Hull was making plans to come to Malaysia, we got the news that a moratorium was imposed on new foreign universities coming to Malaysia.

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But I didn’t want to give up.

We went to see the Director of MOHE, who confirmed a moratorium had been implemented. She told me, this is not the end. You can acquire a university or college and use it as a vehicle to run franchise courses under the University of Hull.

This is exactly what we did.

We bought over ALC College, a leading accounting and business tertiary education provider in Klang Valley. It was step one of the many steps we’ve taken since.

COVER STORY Q3. Will the degrees be recognized by the Malaysian government?

Yes, they will be. They have to be approved by the Ministry of Education.

Otherwise we will not start the courses.

Q4. Dato Michael, you’re a logistics guy. Why go into education?

I have a passion to contribute to society with my personal tagline of “CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) is not about how you spend your profits, instead it’s about how responsible you make your profits”. All this while, I’ve been hosting student tours at our facility in Shah Alam. I take time to understand them while I enjoy inspiring them with real-world business situations.

After some time, I began to feel that we could do something more for the education sector.

At several trade missions between government and private sectors, the common issue that is discussed about fresh graduates are the lack of technical know-how, can’t get up to speed quickly enough. I thought to myself, If medicals students can be taught in hospitals, why not others in their

respective industry? This will definitely be very much in line with the government’s visions.

Thus I began courting ALC College’s CEO Edmund Edward, who also happened to be my classmate. I told you him, with your vast experience in the education industry and my entrepreneurial background.

Let’s join together and bring education to a higher level.

Q5. So education fits into your personal big picture?

Yes. Like I mentioned earlier about CSR, I look at the business of education as part of my corporate social responsibility.

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COVER STORY

Q6. At the Memorandum of Intent Signing between University of Hull and ALC College on 9th October 2013, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng mentioned, I quote, “From a business perspective, it didn’t seem to make a lot of sense but the way Dato’ Michael emoted convinced me.” What was your winning sales pitch?

They were not very interested at the beginning.

They looked at it as though I was a property developer.

Somebody who was coming in to buy a big piece of land.

I made passion the key in our presentation, passion in terms of trying to instil in them that we are moving towards the direction of incorporating teaching into a working environment.

Why choose University of Hull? I’m a graduate of Hull. I’m passionate about my alma mater. I’ll be very

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I’ve been hosting student visitors.

I take time to understand how they are educated and I enjoy sharing with the hopes of inspiring them with realworld stories.

proud to tell people that my university produces quality graduates. I’m definitely passionate about making it a success. Likewise, Professor Ian is also from the university of Hull, he even resides in Hull. To add to it, he also is very fond of Malaysia and is happy to work with us.

After we presented the idea to Chief Minister, he was very impressed. He opened up the whole Batu Kawan development and gave me a few options to construct the One Auto Hub.

COVER STORY Q7. Is it normal for an education institute to be located in an industrial zone?

When you present an education project to anyone in the Malaysian government, normally they will give you a very low-priced land outside the city, so that you can get the students to lower down the cost.

And here I am doing the exact opposite of what others are doing. I’m putting it right smack in the highest-priced zone of the Batu Kawan development facing the second bridge.

Q8. Why? The short answer is that we just want to do things differently from other people. But not for the sake of just being different.

We believe the old method doesn’t work.

If you put students to study in a campus outside the industry, they are not aligned with the industry requirements. Once they graduate they will require another 6 months of training before they can work. Especially engineers to be more precise.

At The Ship campus, before graduation, every student will already be trained in a working environment. They don’t need another six months training before employment. We believe we can solve the Malaysian government’s issue of fresh graduates which lack experience by teaching within a working environment.

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COVER STORY Q9. What’s the story behind the unique design of the university campus?

The design is the most attractive aspect of the university. Traditionally, education and business/ working environment will not be put under one roof. In fact, this was one of the challenges that Michael mentioned earlier.

When they proposed this concept to us, the question we asked was, why are you putting a college on an industrial development? The answer was: That’s exactly the point!

Michael was already planning the concept in Shah Alam, where the Lighthouse Campus is only separated by a single door from their warehouse.

So the warehouse and the auditorium are built as part of the same structure.

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With the ship campus, we are very lucky to have strong support from the Penang state government with the backing of Northern Corridor and other relevant authorities. These are the authorities who match us with the industry players. We need to do a lot of matching with the industry. How many engineers are you looking at? What specialty are you talking about?

We will search for the right talent and provide a list to them according to the needs.

Q10. Sounds like you’ve really gone all out to do onground research.

Yes we have! Even when I mentioned to Ian I was targeting 5000 students for the Ship campus, he was shocked.

I was quite surprised.

But when he explained how it would work, it was clear Michael had a better vision than me.

COVER STORY

I’m passionate about my alma mater. I’ll be very proud to tell people that my university comes out with quality graduates.

Q11. A slightly more ambitious goal, would you say?

It can be ambitious. What happened is, over the years, I have become very active in social media marketing. I have built up followers among polytechnic and logistics students who come from all over Malaysia to visit PKT and name PKT their ideal working environment.

For me, after diploma, the next step is degree. Both campuses will offer masters degree to graduates who want to move to another level. For both the diploma and degree students.

The ship campus will have the full spectrum of courses, while Lighthouse will be more specialised.

We have followed the same setup as Hull’s Scarborough branch, in terms of departments, administration, student accommodation ... we try to run it the same way over here, of course, inside a ship campus.

We will duplicate the names of the student accommodation in Hull e.g. Thwaite Hall, Needlar Hall and Taylor Court. When the students finally decide to do a Master’s degree in Hull and

Professor Ian & Edmund Edward, congratulated each other while witnessed by the Chief Minister of Penang

step into Hull, they will feel the similarities.

I believe it’s going to be a state of the art campus, with a high quality lifestyle because of the wharf, and a conducive working environment in the vicinity.

The programmes will be very detailed because we are incorporating teaching into the working environment.

We will help the students do placement. We will sign with a lot of industries to be our partners because this is the only foreign university in the Northern Corridor.

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COVER STORY Q11. You’ve clearly got a head start, with a great template from a prestigious university. But at the end of the day, it’s a business risk – to be exact a RM130 million risk. Are you confident of pulling it off?

We are feeling confident because we have a wellestablished mechanism for validating programmes. We have already done it for the six colleges in UK. We’re doing the same thing here, except the college is 7000 miles away.

I’m a business man.

Every day I take a lot of calculated risks. I’ve been spending the last three years getting along with students and I do a lot of research with student visits. I ask them a lot of questions. I know where their position is. I even tested my ideas: if I have a campus like this, how many of you will be studying there?

From left to right: Rafizal, Augustine, Datuk Wira Jalilah, Dato’ Michael Tio, Jeffrey Chew, Professor Ian Pashby and Edmund Edward

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Nobody would believe it when I came up with my concept of a warehouse. Typically anywhere in the world, a warehouse is in the design of an A shape. If you visit PKT today, you’ll see that it is a ship, a wave and a lighthouse in one. It is already different. Duplicating what I have already done successfully in Batu Kawan is not a big challenge to me It is a similar idea but in a different function. I depend on ALC’s CEO, Mr. Edmund to run it.

Very fortunately, we also have Professor Ian, who has a passion for Malaysia, to overlook it. With great people and a marketproven strategy, I believe we can successfully educate students towards high value education.

HI BOSS! HI BOSS!

What’s your CORPORATE IDENTITY?

www.bwg.com.my

INTERVIEWS Kokbengtan8@gmail.com

What made you decide to pursue the MBA? Continuous improvement is my motto. One of the main reasons to pursue my MBA is to upgrade my management knowledge and business skills since I have left academic world for the past 18 years. In addition, I want to be more disciplined and committed to the work I pursue. I also want to get exposure to other industry professionals so I can cope with the rapidly changing world.

Who inspires you?

Actually, the person who inspires me is Nick Vujicic. He is the most inspiring and motivating speaker I have ever seen.

To quote him: “You don’t know what you can do unless you try it”.

What is your favourite quote?

“Self discipline leads to self confidence which leads to freedom”.

Tan Kok Beng Assistant Vice President II, Pricing & Strategy

Current University Victoria University of Melbourne at Sunway; University of Nebraska Lincoln, USA (Bachelor of Science majoring in Economics and Management)

Job Description Conduct market survey, analyze property market conditions, develop strategic prices and launch the property. The major challenge of my job is to develop marketable products with fairly high profit margin.

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FEATURED

THE OPPORTUNITY IN RISK C orporate governance has come under greater public scrutiny as a consequence of the financial crisis, resulting in increased focus on risk management, especially in areas of critical risks as operational, compliance, and fraud (Richard Chambers, President of Institute of Internal Auditors). In this exclusive interview, Dr Lee Siew Peng, the Head of MBA programme (general MBA and specialized MBA – Corporate Governance and Building Management) at UTAR, explains how sound knowledge in corporate governance could significantly increase your value in your organization.

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FEATURED

About DR LEE SIEW PENG Assistant Professor Dr Lee Siew Peng has been attached to UTAR’s Faculty of Accountancy Management for 10 years.

As Head of programme, she provides academic and administration support to the faculty and assisting students in their pursuit of their MBA programmes and carrying out daily operations of the divisions to ensure they are consistent with university policies and procedures. Dr Lee has a Doctor of Philosophy (Corporate Finance), Universiti Malaya; Master of Finance, Curtin University of Technology, Australia and a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting and Information Systems), Curtin

University of Technology, Australia. Her professional qualifications include ASCPA.

Q1. Prior to moving into an academic career, you worked at an auditing firm.

Why did you make the career switch?

Having acquired the necessary experience conducting audit activities, I felt a need for a career change, something more educational. Teaching has always been my childhood dream. I decided to pursue higher education i.e. my Master and Phd to fulfill my dream of being a lecturer.

Q2. What did you find most fulfilling about your PhD experience?

Pursuing my PhD was a great five-year experience.

I was continuously challenged to understand the existing theories in finance, some of which were developed even before I was born. I found that discovering knowledge gives me tremendous satisfaction.

I decided to pursue my PhD in Universiti Malaya while I was working at UTAR. I had a good mentor/ supervisor, Prof. Dato Dr Mansor Md Isa who guided me well throughout the five years. I wrote journal articles with him, presented papers on his behalf, listened to his advice - all of which

contributed to what I am today.

My goals were for personal development and career progression. Studying the PhD part-time was intense. It was really a challenging for me to juggle work and study.

However, through this struggle, I learnt time management and became more proficient in the advancement of my knowledge in finance.

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FEATURED Q3. What is the main thesis of your doctorate paper?

My PhD research focuses on mergers and acquisitions in Malaysia. We often read in the newspapers about a particular company merging with another company and one company taking over another company.

Why do companies merge or acquire another company? What are the motives of mergers and takeovers? Who gains in the process? Are these activities good for the economy? If these are public-listed companies,

what is the market reaction to merger or acquisition announcements?

These are really interesting questions for conducting research but there are not many comprehensive local studies available. So I decided that this was a good topic for my PhD thesis. I hope my research has been able to contribute to the academic profession and society in general.

Q4. What motivated you to pursue the Master of Finance and not MBA? I wanted to become an academic specializing in finance. A traditional MBA covers broad areas of business functions that include general management, finance, marketing, human resource management, accounting, organization behavior, operations research, etc.

A Master of Finance is more focused in the area of finance.

It offers programmes in core finance areas as well as those indirectly related to finance. It really provided a solid foundation for a career in finance.

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The general MBA is more of a general degree; the programme incorporates core subjects that are general in nature, and students are trained to be in general management and with an emphasis on leadership. A specialized MBA tends to be more focused and have greater depths in a particular discipline i.e., finance, accounting, marketing and management.

FEATURED

Q5. Why did UTAR introduce the MBA (Corporate Governance) and MBA (Building Management) programmes three years ago? What kind of demand does it fulfill in corporations?

We felt that it is important to have an MBA that specializes in Corporate Governance, given that frequent financial crisis was happening all over the world; the Asian Financial crisis of 199798, the Enron and WorldCom debacle, and more recently the subprime crisis in 2007. We felt that the lack of good corporate governance practices around the world contributed significantly to these crises.

This programme aims to equip students with the competencies (knowledge, value and skills) to interpret the importance of corporate governance in

the contemporary business environment and in Malaysia.

The MBA (Building Management) is new. The programme was jointly developed with the Building Management Association of Malaysia (BMAM). It is now professionally recognised

by Building Management Association of Malaysia (BMAM). We only introduced the programme last year along with the BA (Hons) Building and Property Management.

This postgraduate degree was important to meet the current needs of new entrants or

aspiring professionals seeking to work in the property/ building profession.

In Malaysia, real estate/ property industries are expected to grow at a steady rate over the next decade and provide employment opportunities for well-trained individuals. As a growing population has greater housing needs and businesses look to expand, there will be an increased need for qualified property/building managers to oversee and manage residential and commercial properties, and shopping complexes.

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FEATURED Q6. How is UTAR’s programme diferent from most of the real estate programmes that are currently offered?

Most of the real estate programmes that are currently offered focus on the technical aspects of building management. UTAR’s Building Management programme focuses on the comprehensive knowledge of the management of building, properties, shopping complexes as well as condominiums.

In additional to the technical aspects of building management, this programme aims to infuse diverse knowledge into our MBA (Building Management) students - for example, strategic marketing and management, facilities management, financial management and property investment appraisal.

We hope this programme will make a difference with additional management knowledge to students; and they will have the opportunity to advance to higher positions and oversee larger properties with a wider range of responsibilities.

Q7. For graduates who originate from an unrelated field looking to take up this programme, how would the MBA help them in their career prospects? For alreadyworking audit practitioners, how does the programme help them bring more value to the corporate organizations they serve?

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We hope this programme will make a difference with additional management knowledge to students; and they will have the opportunity to advance to higher positions and oversee larger properties with a wider range of responsibilities.

Corporate governance is about good management practices and controlled practices of organizations. It brings more transparency and accountability in corporate management and builds market confidence for investors. Large companies control large amount of resources at their disposal. Good corporate governance practices

FEATURED ensure that these resources are properly managed for the benefits of all stakeholders, and should not being abused or misused for personal benefits of those entrusted with these resources. Students in the programme would have strong and solid knowledge and application in the corporate governance’s best practices and they should be able to contribute positively to their organizations.

We have also linked with other institutions to provide value

add to the MBA (Corporate Governance). UTAR recently signed an Memorandum of Collaboration with The Malaysia Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (MAICSA). Under the collaboration, students who have completed the MBA (Corporate Governance) are eligible to apply as MAISCA Graduate members giving them full graduate status. This means that upon completing their MBA (Corporate Governance),

students will also receive the ICSA status. Corporate Governance has started to gain prominence and play a more important role in corporate management in the past decade.

Company Secretaries are high ranking professionals, welltrained to uphold the standards of corporate governance, and to achieve compliance and administration efficiency of an organisation.

Q8. According to the Institute of Internal Audit Malaysia (IIAM), Malaysia is striving to make Internal auditing a profession by 2015.

Presently, the only people accepted as “professional” auditors are members of the accounting profession. Will the UTAR programme help to achieve this goal? And do you see the programme playing a role in nation-building – e.g. help strengthen Malaysia’s PLCs in terms of leadership, governance and risk management issues?

Definitely. UTAR is taking a proactive decision in offering the MBA (Corporate Governance) programme. We are confident that the graduates of this programme will bring real value add to their organizations by putting their knowledge into practice and improve corporate governance practices in

these organizations. Malaysia seeks to be a fully developed nation by 2020 and we see transparency and accountability in organizations as a trajectory towards that aim.

We are aware of the IIAM’s position and we believe that we complement each other.

We look forward to working closely with IIAM to enhance Malaysia’s PLCs in terms of their leadership, governance and risk management. We will continuously re-design our programmemes to suit current need as we meet the needs of the country.

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FEATURED Q9. Who should enrol in the MBA (Corporate Governance) and MBA (Building Management) programme?

The MBA (Corporate Governance) is an ideal programme for any professional aspiring to a senior career in Corporate Scretaryship, Corporate Administration, Corporate Governance and Risk Management or any senior executive, and/or board director position.

The MBA (Building Management) is ideal for any candidates who wish to contribute effectively in the fields of property and asset management, property investment appraisal, facilities management, real estate and tenancy law, risk management and Insurance, and marketing management.

Q10. What is your advice to those interested to pursue the MBA? An MBA is considered a good investment for career building.

A post graduate qualification prepares you for possible changes at work and mobility in the workplace. Obtaining an MBA is about maximizing your personal worth, and learning and developing new skills. If you are looking to become more marketable in the business field, an MBA can prove helpful. My

advice to MBA students is that to obtain maximum benefits from the programme they have to give themselves time and effort, to immerse themselves into the programmeme, to take advantage of your lecturers by probing deeply into the subject area, and to understand how theoretical knowledge can be practiced in organizations.

Q11. Lastly, what is your educational motto?

I believe that to be a good academic, we need to continuously update and improve our knowledge. To me, the PhD is probably the “door� which 26

provides a convenient entrance to acquire new knowledge and research skill.

FEATURED

INTERVIEWS

Jefferson Lim Internal Auditor at LPI Capital Bhd

Current University Victoria University MBA (VUMBA) at Sunway; CPA Australia; Bachelor of Commerce, University of South Australia

What made you want to study an MBA? VUMBA is a solid step towards my future career as a person who understands and appreciates accounting and business.

My ultimate career ideal is to hold a management position in a company to foresee the big picture. MBA helps me to wider up my networking skill, and this can help me to improve my communication with the management, colleagues, and even bosses. Moreover, it will automatically increase my skills and knowledge. MBA will open up your mind and create a business mindset; therefore you are able to understand

Job Description

more about yourself and realise how competent you really

To carry out surprise internal audit checks on all branches of the Company including Singapore and East Malaysia; To observe strict confidentiality on all findings of internal audits; and to carry out all other duties and responsibilities that may be delegated by Management

are. One day, I believe I can be a boss by adapting MBA skills.

What inspires you?

Knowledge is my main inspiration. I’m not able to learn all the knowledge in the world, but I can get as much as possible using my own effort. Global world is changing all the time, so I must change together with the environment and be competitive. Nothing will stop me from getting to the top and becoming the best of the best.

What is your favourite quote?

I do not think much of a man who is not wiser today that he was yesterday

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www.viniits.com COMING SOON

HIGHLIGHTS

UTAR forges close ties with Taiwan universities

L

ess than two months after a twelve-university delegation from Taiwan, led by its Minister of Education Dr Chiang Wei-ling, visited UTAR on 27 July 2013, the University reciprocated with a similar visit to Taiwan from 13-17 October 2013.

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The UTAR delegation was led by Council Chairman, Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik and UTAR President Ir Prof Academician Dato Dr Chuah Hean Teik. The delegation also included UTAR Vice President (R&D and Commercialisation) Ir Prof Dr Lee Sze Wei, Dean of Faculty of Science Assoc Prof Dr Lim Tuck Meng and Dean of

Faculty of Engineering and Green Technology Dr Yap Vooi Voon.

The itinerary included visits to Tamkang University, National Yang-Ming University, National Chiao Tung University, National Taiwan University and National Taipei University of Technology.

HIGHLIGHTS During the five-day visit, UTAR signed a joint MoU with National Yang-Ming University and University System of Taiwan.

UTAR and National Yang-Ming University will collaborate on academic activities in the medical and health sciences, including welcoming adjunct professors to UTAR. As a wellrounded university, UTAR will team up with University System of Taiwan to look into areas like engineering, health sciences, arts and social science, creative industries, management and so on. The MoA exchange between UTAR and National Chiao Tung University included

Prof Chuah presenting tokens of appreciation to National Yang-Ming University President Dr Liang Kung-Yee.

The UTAR delegates taking a group photo with Tamkang University President Dr Flora Chang Chia-I (front row center) and representatives from the university.

collaborations on student exchanges for postgraduate studies. Postgraduate students of both universities are allowed to utilise the research facilities at either universities for R&D purposes. The University also signed an MoU with National Taipei University of Technology incorporating staff and student exchanges as well as R&D collaborations.

Going global is part of the University’s 10-year strategic plan. To date, UTAR has

established strong relationships with more than 80 institutions of higher learning in Germany, Poland, South Korea, Japan, Kenya, Tanzania, Australia, the USA and other economies. The University’s move to augment staff and students’ international networking via various international collaborations has rewarding; UTAR has forged formal collaborations with more than 25 universities in Taiwan previously including National Tsing Hua University, I-Shou University and others.

Going global is part of the University’s 10-year strategic plan.

33

HIGHLIGHTS

University System of Taiwan Chancellor Prof Ovid Tseng J. L. receiving souvenirs from Tun Dr Ling and Prof Chuah.

The benefits that UTAR students have reaped from the international collaborations are aplenty. Currently, four UTAR postgraduate students have been selected to do internship in areas like Psychology, Chinese Studies, Computer Science and Engineering under the National Chiao Tung University Elite Internship Programme.

UTAR lecturer Tian Kian Wee who has been accepted by National Taiwan University will have his PhD thesis cosupervised by both National Taiwan University and UTAR. Upon completion, he will be conferred Doctor Philosophy in Life Science from the former and also the Doctor of Philosophy in Science from the latter.

National Tsing Hua University has also been working with UTAR Institute of Chinese Studies since 2012 through the International 34

Tun Dr Ling presenting a pewter plaque as a token of appreciation to National Taiwan University Vice President for Administrative Affairs Dr Chang Ching-Ray.

Volunteer Programme to assist in collecting and preserving historical records and text at Gopeng Museum. Besides that, there is also growing number of students from UTAR receiving scholarships to pursue postgraduate studies at different universities at Taiwan.

UTAR has established strong relationships with more than 80 institutions of higher learning in Germany, Poland, South Korea, Japan, Kenya, Tanzania, Australia, the USA and other economies.

Prof Chuah and National Taipei University of Technology President Dr Yao Leehter shaking their hands after signing the MoU while Tun Dr Ling looks on.

The visit by the UTAR delegation was aimed at strengthening the relationships that had already been established with some of the major Taiwan universities besides seeking to explore new ones. The visit was also at the invitation of Dr Chiang Weiling during his visit to UTAR in July this year for UTAR to explore further collaborations with other institutions of higher learning in Taiwan which has a total of 162 universities.

HIGHLIGHTS

Prof Chuah exchanging an MoA with National Chiao Tung University Senior Vice President Dr Shieh Han-Ping, witnessed by Tun Dr Ling.

ABOUT UTAR Established in 2002 with 411 students, today, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) offers 117 programmes in fields including Accountancy, Actuarial Science, Agriculture, Arts, Business and Economics, Creative Industries and Design, Engineering and Built Environment, Information and

Communication Technology, Life and Physical Sciences, Mathematics and Process Management, Medicine and Health Sciences, and Social Science and Education to over 23,000 students in its nine faculties, three institutes and three centres located in three Klang Valley campuses in Bandar Sungai Long, Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya and

the main campus in Kampar, which was awarded the Pertubuhan Akitek Malaysia (Malaysian Institute of Architects) gold award in the education category in 2013. The employability of its 32,000 over graduates exceeds 97 percent within six months after graduation.

For more information, go to

www.utar.edu.my

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INTERVIEWS

MBA (CORPORATE GOVERNANCE)

What made you want to study an MBA?

Ong Fong Yew

these days and one would be left out without equipping

Lecturer at a Private University

Current University University Tunku Abdul Rahman

Job Description My typical job includes teaching, student activities and research related activities. Sometimes, we also engage in marketingrelated activities, such as open days and road shows. As lecturers, we are also tasked with supervising students’ wellbeing and communicating with their parents when the need arises.

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Many said that experience is king but paper qualifications are equally essential. The workforce is full of competition himself/herself with the necessary education. It is because of this universal fact that I made up my mind to pursue a postgraduate study. Why MBA then? Because the syllabus in the MBA programme is made up of a wide variety of managerial modules, which includes, among others, management skills, finance and IT. It stresses on thinking skills from the perspective of management. This approach ultimately creates an all-rounder manager and this is what attracted me to the MBA programme.

What inspires you?

My family and the people around me. Watching them working hard, committed to achieve their goals, motivates and inspires me positively.

What is your favourite quote?

We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean, but the ocean would be less because of that missing drop – Mother Teresa

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INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA-WALES www.iumw.edu.my

COURSES AVAILABLE Centre of Foundation Studies • Foundation in Science N/010/3/0120 • Foundation in Arts N/010/3/0160 Faculty of Business and Law • Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) N/345/6/0313 • Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) in Finance N/345/6/0314 • Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) in Entrepreneurship N/345/6/0346

• Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) in Management N/345/6/0368 • Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) in Marketing N/345/6/0258 • Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) in Human Resource Management N/345/6/0366 • Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) in International Business

NURTURING FUTURE TALENTS Benefits of studying at IUMW • Our courses and programmes are designed and delivered with the highest quality in mind.

• We gather experts and professionals in the relevant fields of study to devise up-to-date and comprehensive modules and structures of our programmes.

• Partnership between the University of Malaya and the University of Wales.

• More than 200 years of combined academic experience.

• Bachelors and Masters programmes accredited by the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) and the Ministry of Education (MOE).

• Dual Award certification by IUMW and the University of Wales.

N/345/6/0367

• Bachelor of Business Administration (Hons) in Islamic Finance N/345/6/0382

• Master of Business Administration N/345/7/0327 Faculty of Arts and Humanities • Bachelor of Professional Communication (Hons) N/321/6/0064 (With majors in Global Communication, Interactive Media, Media Management and Professional Writing)

Faculty of Health and Social Sciences • Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Psychology N/311/6/0030

INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MALAYA-WALES City Campus, Jalan Tun Ismail 50480 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Hotline: 1700-81-4869 GPS: 3.160276, 101.691676

Owned by :

BUSINESS SEGMENT

BUSINESS

SEGMENT

Profiles of Extraordinary People

SUBSTANCE, RELEVANCE, SIGNIFICANCE

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BUSINESS SEGMENT

YOURSELF

PR

FREDA LIU is a producer and presenter on BFM 89.9 (www.bfm.my), an independent and the only business radio station in Malaysia. As the host of BFM’s Enterprise segment, she has conducted over 5000 interviews with captains of various industries, including marketing gurus Jack Trout & Al Ries, financial

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I

n an economy where every company wants to be a thought leader or trend-setter, public relations has never been been more powerful in shaping perception, no matter the size or nature of a business. But what does it take to do it right? In this exclusive interview, we ask Freda Liu, popular PR veteran and host of the Enterprise segment on business radio station BFM 89.9. gurus Robert Kiyosaki and Kim Kiyosaki, godfather of mind maps Tony Buzan, Wikileaks’ Julian Assange, Hard Rock Café founder Isaac Tigrett and mobile phone inventor Martin Cooper Having spent over a decade in the communications industry with international public relations consultancy Edelman PR Worldwide, IBM in Malaysia and across Asia

Pacific, she has worked with a variety of clients in a myriad of industries from financial, IT to healthcare, including Maybank, UPS, Schering-Plough, Caltex and Eu Yan Sang. She is also a Certified Professional Coach from Corporate Coach Academy, accredited with the International Coach Federation, the world’s most recognized coaching body.

BUSINESS SEGMENT Q1. Congratulations on the launch of your new book, PR Yourself: Red Lipstick and Amazing Shoes.

Why did you write this book?

Having done close to 5,000 interviews, I have come across thousands of business owners.

What makes some interviews so memorable? Why is it that some individuals have a way of getting their message across and others lack that certain finesse?

In the Western media, before the product is out, they’re out there talking about it.

Asians are very shy in contrast. I do believe it’s an Asian thing to a certain extent where we don’t like to be seen thumping our own chests.

It’s a pity because we’ve got great companies in Malaysia and there are a lot of missed opportunities. I see this everyday and want to change that. So in my book, I feature local companies who are doing a great job in PR as role models.

Q2. Let’s talk about your background. You studied marketing but ended up in PR. Why? I took up marketing when I furthered my studies in Australia because I enjoyed learning about consumer behaviour and research. PR was not part of the course.

Then I took two optional studies and realized that I had a natural inclination towards

advertising and PR. If you go into advertising, you’re either copywriting, client servicing or doing creative. In PR you do all three. You take the brief, you come up with the plan, you execute. I love a challenge, so the choice was pretty clear.

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BUSINESS SEGMENT Q3. How does PR figure in the context of marketing?

In marketing, you can do events, promotions, run advertisements, or do PR. I call PR the poor cousin of marketing because it’s usually the first to go during recession, but it has the most value. Think about it – why do you buy newspapers?

At the end of the day, people buy the paper to get stories, not read ads! With PR, there’s no guarantee a story will come out but then it forces you to ask, do I really have a story?

Conventional advertising costs a lot of money. PR is not free but it is the most cost effective tool.

Q4. If you had to summarize the function of PR in one sentence, what would it be?

You identify a story for them and see what is newsworthy.

What do you think people want to know? What’s the story behind the product? Some companies have great stories, but they don’t know that. It’s PR’s responsibility to get the story out of them and build an effective campaign around that story.

For example, my client Schering-Plough came up with a medications called Clarinase. It was the only one that was nondrowsy then. You can’t advertise medicines in Malaysia, so how do you tell the story?You’ve got to do it in an indirect way.

Q5. After five years in Edelmann, you joined IBM. Why would PR practitioners switch from the agency (Edelmann) to client side?

The reality is a lot of people want to go to the client side because it’s a lot more money.

Personally, I joined IBM because it was also a good company.

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BUSINESS SEGMENT

Q6. Did you find it challenging to articulate to a techie?

There are two ways to handle a tech story. You have the geeks who want the configurations, the stats, the data. In IBM, the geeky stuff usually comes from corporate and fortunately, they are quite standard.

But if you want to sell to a bank, telling them that XYZ server has a ABC capacity isn’t going

What do you think people want to know? What’s the story behind the product? Some companies have great stories, but they don’t know that.

to help much. The only way to make it more interesting is to put yourself in the shoes of the customer. Find out which customer used the product.

How did it help their business?

This is the story. It is PR’s responsibility to find these customer stories, which are harder to get.

Q7. Do you ever find that you have to tread on a fine line between lying and selling?

No! Never, ever lie. You’ll get caught. If you tell me I have to [lie], then sorry, I can’t work with you. Doesn’t your product have enough credibility on its own?

I don’t like to be caught in a situation where I don’t know and I pretend to know. I’ll try to get as much content and if I don’t know, I say I don’t know. It’s ok.

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BUSINESS SEGMENT

Q8. 11 years is a pretty long time and IBM was a good employer. What made you decide to switch to BFM? After five different roles in IBM, I tried a marketing role. Through no fault of the company, I just thought, hmm it’s not me. Then BFM called. My friend Noelle said they were looking for presenters.

When she told me it was in a new building next to Centrepoint - two traffic stops from my house! - that did it. The station was unproven; it was in July or August before it launched [was it in 2008?]. And of course you get worried. Can it last the distance or not? So far, I think we’re doing great in BFM. We are not paid very well but we feel there is a sense of purpose.

Q9. How do your past experiences in PR contribute to what you do now?

Getting stories! In the Enterprise segment, we kick off with Open for Business at 10am. Thank Goodness I’ve had the corporate experience to do the interviews and broadcasting experience from RTM. 11 o’clock is about personal development, a subject which is close to my heart.

Then the segment at 12 is about technology, which is my past life.

Q10. Who are some interesting personalities you’ve interviewed recently?

Last Friday, we talked to an Italybased luggage manufacturer called Crash Baggage. Their bags look like they’ve been dented so people don’t want to steal them! Then at 11, I had a Gen Y boy who did Tedx Youth in KL. 44

Finally we had a professor who applies Bhagavad Vita and Sun Tzu theories to management efficiency. Everyday it’s something unique. The highlight this year was Nick Vujicic!

We end with a segment called Resource Centre, in which we talk about HR and Legal – again, tapping into my corporate experience. The elements just gelled together. If you ask me to join normal radio stations where you just play music, I can’t do it. I’ll be bored and wondering, what’s my career progress?

Here, everyday you’re learning.

With PR, there’s no guarantee a story will come out but then it forces you to ask, do I really have a story?

Conventional advertising costs a lot of money. PR is not free but it is the most cost effective tool.

Q11. What’s the biggest difference between PR for a solo proprietor and a large corporation?

Money [Resource?]! Big companies always have a focussed person who does PR. When you’re alone, there are still a lot of things you can think about doing. At least have a PR

plan. You don’t want to wait until a crisis before you think of PR. Ultimately, when you get bigger, you’ll need to hire someone or outsource.

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BUSINESS SEGMENT

Q12. Any PR tips for an enterprise or medium-sized company?

A lot of people come up with one great story. You have that one interview - but what happens after that? That’s why you must have a plan. There are many different ways of generating visibility. Where are your customers at? That’s where you go. Let me use mytaxi as an example. Ever

noticed that after concerts, there are two guys holding up a placard that says, call mytaxi now? It’s very clever! Does it cost a lot of money? No! But it works because they go where their audience is. There is a saying in PR, Go where the fish are.

Q13. Last piece of advice on PR?

Spend some time understanding what your values are.

When I interview business owners, I ask them what their values are. No book or resource on branding will help you unless you’ve identified what your core values are. Before getting to the PR of things, you need to know who you are.

When BFM started, we came from other industries and had different ideas. And we clashed, so much so that one

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day, my boss said let’s sit down and talk about our values. At BFM we always ask ourselves three questions: is what we do educational? Is it enlightening?

Is it entertaining? Does it resonate with people? These are the values that drive us.

These values transcend age, race and personality.

We have a B school and an apps magazine, but they reflect the

same values as our broadcast content. Even if you go into other business ventures, your brand values don’t change.

Once you know what your values are, then you come up with an effective PR plan.

"PR Yourself" is a powerful tool kit for anyone who wants to elevate their brand. Freda Liu has crafted a high energy, visually inviting, easy read that is filled with valuable resources to raise your brand above the noise and clutter of your competitive landscape.

Unless you want to be stuck in the sea of ordinary – buy this book now!

Available in all major bookstores.

ISBN 978-967-5945-30-4

BUSINESS SEGMENT

AN EYE FOR T TALENT

alent scouts Hazel Loke and Cefyone Tan from top Malaysia-based agency Lovea International – which counts former Miss World Malaysia Thanuja Ananthan, Lee Yvonne and Chloe Chen in its starstudded stable - tell us what it takes to succeed in the highly-competitive talent industry.

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BUSINESS SEGMENT Cefyone Tan is Lovea International’s talent

Hazel Loke heads the Exclusive Talents

booking manager.

Department of Lovea

At a youthful 26

International. She has

years old, Cefyon

11 years of experience

has accumulated

in talent management,

more than five years of entertainment experience and been

grooming and deportment for talents and personal

involved in thousands

improvement. She

of advertisements.

is very passionate

She is often described

about discovering

as aggressive, responsible, adept

and marketing new potential talents .

at multi-tasking and an astute judge of character.

Q1. For the uninitiated, what exactly do you do in your job?

How does a talent agency work?

them for the client. During the shoot, I may or may not be involved. If I’m coordinating the shoot, my level of involvement We manage a pool of talents could range from taking which we term internally as a precautionary steps to make library or talent database and sure the talent shows up on time, help talents negotiate with to ensuring that she doesn’t spill clients to secure top rates and coffee on a white shirt before more detailed terms. When we going on TV. I once played nanny receive a job brief from a client, to a hyperactive five-year-old. I we match the right candidate to used all sorts of gimmicks, from the talent requirements. A milk plying her with Yakult, Ribena, product may call for a family, colour pencils, toys to devising for instance. We then screen games, to keep her occupied. through our database of suitable Otherwise she’d be running candidates before shortlisting around every five minutes!

My main job scope at Lovea is to scout for new talents, especially current beauty queens. When we spot potential talent, we approach them and find out what their specific talents or interests are. Are they good at singing or acting? Do they have the height for runway, or the photogenic face that looks good on a magazine cover? Knowing their strengths, we next go about grooming and promoting them for the right jobs.

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BUSINESS SEGMENT

Q2. What talents are in high demand in Malaysia?

Pan-Asian, which refers to Asian mixed with Caucasian parentage, though today, even a Chinese can look Pan-Asian. The reason behind this is market-driven.

Ads that are shot in Malaysia

Q3. Business owners carry business cards.

Do models have something similar that they show to prospective clients?

An agency will compile a talent’s relevant info into a compcard.

kid model casting

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A compcard is an important tool for a talent. It’s a single sheet comprising different photos of the talent, accompanied by vitals like height, weight, or a prominent feature. If the talent has a special achievement - for example, she’s a beauty queen, or commercial talent experience - we mention that too.

are used for the whole region in countries like Singapore, Thailand, etc, not just Malaysia.

So you can’t have a face that is easily associated with one ethnicity, because it has to appeal to a bigger market.

Q4. From a Malaysian perspective, is it more common to sign up with an agency or work as a freelancer?

In Europe, normally a model has to be contracted under an agency. In Malaysia, everybody is a freelancer though we do contract certain talents. The perception is that a freelancer can get more jobs. On the other hand, you may not be aware of market rates and find yourself underpaid.

BUSINESS SEGMENT

Q5. Other than negotiating terms and conditions, what are the benefits of signing up with an agency?

Because we would have worked with many kinds of clients, we are able to provide insider tips to be more successful in casting.

Say you’re going for skincare casting. We advise you not to go in with fake eyelashes and heavy makeup. A client would want to see your skin as bare as possible.

We tell you to wear pastel colours and dress as simply as possible so that you don’t draw attention away from your face.

We even teach you how to stand in front of the camera so that you look taller. Or help you find your best angle. These are all part of the service when a talent signs up with an agency.

Q6. What is a general casting process like?

Let’s say we find a candidate with potential.

We invite them to the studio, where we go through a standard set of procedures: we take photos of the person, get the person to introduce herself and her experiences on video, and ask them to make different facial expressions. Act happy, sad, surprised, etc Being a talent is a lot like being an actor. You are given a role which you are supposed to portray convincingly. That’s why a lot of models end up as actors and vice versa.

We narrow down the list from hundreds to say, 20 talents. We then send the candidates’ compcards to the client, from which they shortlist into maybe 5 people.

Once the client comes back to us, we check the availability of the talent and whether they agree to the terms and conditions of the brief. Some of the jobs may need another casting at the client’s place, according to the storyboard or script.

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BUSINESS SEGMENT

Q7. How has the advent of social media affected the talent industry?

With social media, the scenario is very different now from say, five years ago. A decade ago, talent scouts would scour public areas like malls looking for the next big thing. In fact, many international supermodels were discovered on the streets, in malls, in college. Now, young people upload pictures on their Facebook and get noticed, or they approach us directly. Still,

we need to meet them in person and do a general casting first.

We also have talents going direct to the clients and vice versa. But at the end of the day, clients come back to the agency because it’s too much hassle.

Most times, open castings are a waste of time. A talent manager saves you the pain.

Being a talent is a lot like being an actor. You are given a role which you are supposed to portray convincingly.

That’s why a lot of models end up as actors and vice versa.

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Q8. Is the market for local talent expanding?

Definitely! With more brands coming into Malaysia, talent demand is rising. Take fashion brand H&M. The billboards may feature Lana Del Ray because they originate from the principal, but local models are used for local fashion shows and promotional catalogues.

Q9. What are typical mediums that call for a talent?

Product catalogues, tvc, print ads, media, corporate video. One interesting project involved a matching agency who wanted models to stand inside glass boxes at a public area, as an attention-getting gimmick. If you stand there with your leaflet people might not be interested.

There are many creative ways where talents can be integrated into a marketing strategy. The strategic use of entertainment platforms has become increasingly important to help companies rise above the noise level.

BUSINESS SEGMENT

Q10. About three months ago, Lovea ventured into managing beauty queens – one of the few agencies in Malaysia that offer this niche. Can you share your direction in this segment?

We manage existing beauty queens in terms of career development by promoting them according to their strengths. We make sure jobs are right for the image they wish to portray. Cigarettes or liquor are a no-no.

Aspiring beauty queens can sign up for training and grooming classes by our inhouse trainers, who comprise ex beauty queens – we also offer portfolio shoots.

At present, we work very closely with current and former Miss World Malaysia Thanuja Ananthan (2009), Lee Yvonne (2012) and Chloe Chen (2011).

Being such high-stakes events, beauty pageants can be very stressful emotionally. To do well, your preparation must go beyond the physical.

Lee Yvonne MISS WORLD MALAYSIA 2012

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BUSINESS SEGMENT

When we spot potential talent, we approach them and find out what their specific talents or interests are.

Q11. What’s your advice to an aspiring talent interested in signing up with an agency?

Find out the history of the company, especially its portfolio. Take your time to talk to the talent agent. A lot of people have stars in their eyes, but you have to be realistic about what you can offer.

Accept both your strengths and weaknesses. For example, I was spotted by a talent scout

for a hair advertisement.

Unfortunately, my face was not suitable as they were looking for a Pan-Asian look. When I got the job, I was only the hair model; meaning, my hair was shown but another talent’s face was superimposed on mine. I got paid three times lower than the face talent.

Q12. Has your impression of the industry changed since joining it?

Chloe Chen MISS WORLD MALAYSIA 2011

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People think the talent industry is all about glamour. Sure, we meet beautiful people. We attend fashion shows. But behind the scenes, many other things are going on. When you see a very successful fashion show and tv show being made, you don’t see the hard work, stress and preparation behind it. The thing

is, in talent management, our product is actually human. It’s not a can of milk powder that you can control. Sometimes, people can get emotional or display unpredictable behavior.

Someone can be very goodlooking but he or she could be a diva and turn up late all the time!

BUSINESS SEGMENT

Q13. What do you need to be a successful talent manager?

To be a talent manager, you can be from any background. Most importantly you need exceptional communication and organizational skills. Anything happens from the client side, you get blamed by the talent. Anything goes wrong at the talent side, you get blamed by the client. Many people think we sit back with coffee in hand. No such thing. It is very hectic and there are so many little things that could go wrong. You need to have an eagle eye for detail.

Miss World Malaysia 2013 Melinder Bhullar and Miss World Malaysia 2012 Lee Yvonne

Lovea Model Agency is a Malaysia-based modelling & entertainment Management Company with worldwide modelling and entertainment presence to provide a global, cross-cultural perspective. Lovea’s talents have appeared in a wide range of marketing collateral for a diverse portfolio of clients, including Nestle, Milo, Ogawa and Zurich. Working in partnership with their clients, Lovea fosters the development of each event step by step from idea to inception to execution, and excels at designing and executing integrated marketing programs that help drive their awareness, traffic and sales. www.loveainternational.com

To bring the best out of your talents, you have to understand what motivates them. Is it money?

Fame? You have to be good at reading people.

As a talent manager, you must be able to make both parties comfortable with each other in order to bring out your talent’s best performance for the job.

Our appreciation to The Daily Habit, Chi Fitness@ BSC, Lot 1-02 BRDB Tower, (connected to Bangsar Shopping Centre) 285 Jalan Maarof, Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur for graciously accommodating us for this interview.

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Model & Talent Management | Celebrities Endorsement | Events Lovea International Sdn Bhd (1041268-M) Wisma Wawasan, No.19-1 (1st Floor), Jalan PJS 8/12, Dataran Mentari, Bandar Sunway, 46150 Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan

www.loveainternational.com

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