08
SPOTLIGHT
THE IT SOCIETY / Issue 02/2022
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Getting to Know the New SCS Leader SAM LIEW President, SCS Managing Partner, Government Strategic Business Group, NCS
In March 2022, Sam Liew took over the reins as SCS President. Sam is SCS’ 17th President since its inception in 1967.
Earliest Tech Experience: Using WordPerfect for a university assignment Earliest Professional Tech Experience: As a COBOL Programmer in my first role Last Played: Minecraft and Rise of Kingdom An Item You Can’t Live Without: Make it two – my clipboard (with my handwritten notes) and my water bottle Favourite Way to Relax: Spend time swimming and gaming with Jonathan Liew Best Partner in Crime: Jonathan Liew (Sam’s nineyear-old son)
Some of you have probably heard about the SCS 4 + 1 approach at the recent SCS Gala Dinner on 6 May. But if you haven’t, it is not too late. The IT Society chats with our new SCS President, Sam Liew – the man who came up with the 4 + 1 approach, to understand what it really is and his game plan for making it happen. Q: Question, SL: Sam Liew Q: What is the SCS 4 + 1 approach? SL: The SCS 4 + 1 approach was birthed as a result of us tracing back to the basics of what SCS truly represents. It is about contributing to the community we live in. That is why at the heart of the 4 + 1 strategy, it is about the people we need to engage and support. The “4” represents the students, youths, professionals, and seniors and vulnerable groups. The “+1” represents the trade associations and chambers of commerce (TACs). TACs are experts in their industries and business domains. SCS hopes that through our outreach to them, we will be able to support them in infusing “Tech” and “Digital” into their agenda.
lives have improved. Our society has also grown to become a lot more efficient and inclusive. Knowing that SCS has the power to support our community invigorates me and reaffirms that our focus on the SCS 4 + 1 approach is the right strategy.
Q: Why is this a good time to launch the SCS 4 + 1 approach? SL: When I first joined the industry, it was all about computerisation. Then came the internet evolution, and now, emerging tech like cloud, data and artificial intelligence (AI). It is quite clear across the years that the technology evolution is here to stay. Thanks to technology, our
Q: That sounds fantastic. How does SCS plan to galvanise everyone in embracing the 4 + 1 approach? SL: Good question. Let’s break it down. As I mentioned, the students are a group that SCS actively supports. As they say, catch them when they are young. Get them excited about tech and equip them
SCS as a tech society, has been around for 55 years and over 52,000 members. My mission is to rally everyone to come together to support these community groups under the 4 + 1 strategy. If we can do that well, we can help our country be even more successful – especially during these challenging “emerging from the pandemic” times.
with the right skills so that when the time comes for them to pursue their careers, they can make the right choice. If they do eventually join the tech industry, great! And even if they don’t, they can still put technology and their digital skills to good use in the profession of their choice. Our SCS Student Chapters help bring tech topics closer to students in schools and Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) through infocomm clubs, webinars and events like the SCS Splash Awards. Another important group is our youths – anyone below the age of 35. They have just embarked on their careers, and from the SCS perspective, we can provide them with mentorship, guiding them in their career choices and how to navigate this tech-driven environment. From our interaction with members of our SCS Youth, we note that many of these youths have strong desires to contribute to the community through their tech skills. For example, at the recent Digital for Life Festival, our SCS Youth volunteers went ground-up to provide technology support for the various activities.
