SBACC Feb-Mar 2015 Newsletter

PMC NNECT S B ACC ’s N e ws l e t t e r

Issue 2015 February - March | www.sbacc.org.sg

SBACC - first in Singapore to receive ISO/IEC 17024 Certification

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Introducing New Domain Specialisations

Human Resources, Productivity & Financial Management

PMC and SME TALK about

Workplace Efficiency and Goals Setting FEB - MAR 2015 | 01

PMCONNECT

Feb - Mar

CONTENTS 04

ACHIEVEMENT We are Singapore’s first Organisation to receive the ISO/IEC 17024 accreditation

05

INTRODUCING NEW DOMAIN SPECIALISATIONS Find out more about DAC-Human Resources, DAC- Financial Management and DAC-Productivity

07

PMC SAYS Read about how PMC Raymond Phua achieved impactful results in productivity

09

SME STORIES OE Manufacturing Pte Ltd: Workplace Efficiency and Big Savings for OE Manufacturing Pte Ltd

10

SME STORIES Hock Lian Huat Foodstuff Industry Pte Ltd: Mission to Set Business Goals and Directions CALLING ALL PMCS! Published articles are rewarded

11

PAST EVENTS: CMI’S CHINESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATION & MINDEF-BOSS SEMINAR

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PAST EVENT: BUSINESS MISSION TO ISKANDAR CONFERENCE UPCOMING EVENT: REVIEW AUDIT OF INTELLECTUAL ASSETS WORKSHOP

Building Lasting Relationships with PMCs Ha ppy Lun a r N ew Ye a r!

SBACC continues its journey towards excellence. Not only are we the only national certification board for Practising Management Consultants in Singapore, we are also the first to receive ISO/IEC 17024 accreditation from Singapore Accreditation Council (SAC) for our efforts in maintaining stringent processes in certifying our Practising Management Consultants (PMCs). This gives great assurance to you and your clients, knowing that we are on equal footing with international best practices when it comes to putting the mark of credibility on our PMCs. We are indeed grateful to you and all our partners from industry, academia, professional bodies and government agencies for all your support in our mission to obtain accreditation.

But professional excellence does not stop here. We at SBACC will strive even harder to be a conduit between our PMCs and the business community, and to raise the bar in management consultancy standards. We encourage all our PMCs to not only keep themselves abreast of general management developments around the world, but also to be recognized as specialists in specific domains.

You can now apply to be certified as PMC-Productivity, PMC- Finance Management and PMC-Human Resources, and later in the year PMC-Workplace Age Management. There will be special certification fees awaiting you. Do look out for the early bird promotion to accelerate your career. You may check here for details or send your enquiries to marketing@sbacc.org.sg.

We look forward to a strong and continuous relationship with you, the catalyst for business transformation.

ISO/IEC 17024 Cert No. PC-2015-01

Sin g apore Bus i ness Advi s o rs a n d Con sultants Co u nc i l 2 Bukit Merah Central #18-03 , Singapore 159835 Tel: +65 6272 3238 Fax: +65 6273 3023 www.sbacc.org.sg | secretariat@sbacc.org.sg | marketing@sbacc.org.sg | www.facebook.com/sbaccsg

Lau Chuen Wei Executive Director

editorial SBACC design UNIT ONE STUDIO

FEB - MAR 2015 | 02

CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE

Moving ahead with ISO 17024: Quality in Consultant Certification SB ACC , offi c i a lly es ta b li shed i n 2013 , is a national certification board for Practising Management Consultants, supported by government agencies, including SPRING Singapore, WDA and IPOS. SBACC is pleased to inform that on 9th Jan 2015, we have been accredited with the ISO/IEC 17024 certification by Singapore Accreditation Council (SAC). This is an important milestone for SBACC, a first in Singapore, as the scope covers the criteria for an organization’s structure and governance, its quality management system and an organization’s certification program for individuals. It will therefore enhance SBACC’s principles of integrity and impartiality in certifying our Practising Management Consultants (PMCs) and in turn give an extra edge in the branding of certification housed under SBACC. This certification will also better facilitate the marketing efforts of the PMCs especially with SMEs who can be assured that when working with PMCs they are committed to a code of professional conduct. We therefore encourage all our PMCs to continuously upgrade their skills and knowledge of an ever changing business environment that is both competitive and global for our companies in Singapore. The PMCs in this respect have an important role to play to be effective change agents assisting their clients in transforming their organisations.

Finally, on behalf of the Trustees, Board of Directors’ and management and staff of SBACC I thank all our stakeholders in our achieving this accredition. I hope all our PMCs will benefit from this as we continue in our endeavor to bring the best in the consultancy profession.

Shabbir H Hassanbhai Chairman

FEB - MAR 2015 | 03

ACHIEVEMENT

SBACC

First in Singapore to receive ISO/IEC 17024 Certification

S

BACC enters 2015 with a new achievement. As the first organization in Singapore to attain this international standard accreditation for the certification of individuals, SBACC has further strengthened its credibility and standing in the business community, and is moving forward with renewed vigor.

“The SAC Accreditation Scheme for Personnel Certification provides third-party assurance of the integrity and competence of certification bodies that certify personnel as it means that the certification body has met stringent criteria. To achieve accreditation, certification bodies need to meet the international requirements in ISO/ IEC 17024:2012 Conformity assessment – General requirements for bodies operating certification of persons. As a result, certification companies which have attained accreditation will be more competitive in the

global market. Employers, industries and the general public will also have more confidence in the competence of individuals certified by accredited certification bodies.” said Ms Chang Kwei Fern, Director of Singapore Accreditation Council.

This international recognition is strong evidence of the high standards practised by SBACC in its certification process. Practising Management Consultants, and the companies that engage them, can be assured that SBACC’s certification is a stamp of quality, which means that SBACC’s PMCs are the consultants of choice when companies seek change agents who can help them in their business transformation. Starting this issue of the PMC Connect, we are pleased to be able to share with you some success stories of our PMCs. We hope this will spur others on to achieve even greater heights in their consultancy careers.

FEB - MAR 2015 | 04

F E AT U R E

Introducing a new Domain specialisation –

Human Resources Perlita Tiro

Chairman, Domain Area Committee (DAC) -HR, Practicing Management ConsultantsCertification Board

The client would know immediately the value-add of a specialist and would trust the specialist to solve issues at hand.

Y

ou are probably a seasoned PMC for a few years now, handling assignments for clients primarily in the field of Human Resource. Are you happy to carry on just as another PMC or would you want to be considered and be known as a specialist in your field of expertise?

In the current business environment, companies are getting more discerning in their requirements and expect the best services they can buy. Multinational and larger companies have either the backing of their head offices or are able to afford to engage full-time seasoned human resource managers and directors who have been exposed to a wide variety of situations and challenges. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs), unfortunately, have limited resources, and yet require the same level of expertise to solve the ever-changing and evergrowing challenges within their respective organisations. SMEs inevitably start small but some of them grow to be publicly listed companies and some even extend way beyond our shores to become strong global brands. Thus, the level of sophistication of management structures, HR strategies, recruitment policies and remuneration and benefits has to change too. The need for Consultants to specialise and cope with the changing needs of different organisations with different structures at different stages of growth becomes vital.

If you have the HR expertise, why not count yourself as being “the specialist consultant” to refer to for HR consultancy?

This could be compared to going to a medical specialist once the General Practitioner determines the specific ailment. The client would know immediately the value-add of a specialist and would trust the specialist to solve issues at hand. The specialist would also be able to justify higher fees. As your

reputation grows, your name will be widely known in the business community primarily from referrals of earlier clients.. You naturally develop to become the leader and authority in your respective fields and will be sought after not only as a consultant but perhaps as a speaker, if you are not yet in the league. We are aware of a good number of you who are already in the league, in which case, you can become an authority in the region once you attain regional expertise.

At SBACC, we have painstakingly undertaken the development of various fields of specialisation within HR, realising that each field could be fairly independent from each other. With a team of seasoned experts in HR in their respective fields, we have designed the PMC-HR structure which consists of one core (ie everyone must qualify for) plus a selection from six specialisation tracks. The applicant will be required to select the core and at least one of the six specialisation tracks, to qualify as a specialist in HR and specifically, in the specialist track chosen.

PMC – Human Resources Structure Core

H u m an R eso u rc e Con su ltan cy

Specialisation Track 1

M an power Pl anning

Specialisation Track 2 Specialisation Track 3 Specialisation Track 4 Specialisation Track 5 Specialisation Track 6

R ecru itm e nt & Selec tio n Com pen s atio n & Ben efits Per for m anc e M an agem e nt Talen t M an ag e m e nt Le ar n in g & Developme nt

FEB - MAR 2015 | 05

F E AT U R E

Before one can qualify as a PMC-HR, the applicant will need to be certified as a PMC, and then fulfil the following eligibility requirements specifically for PMC-HR: PMC-HR Certification E x p er ien c e & Ed u c at io n

1) Certified Practising Management Consultant with least 7 years of experience in HR management function or HR consultancy experience; AND 2) Diploma in HR or relevant training in HR

Co n s u lta n cy H o u rs

At least 1000 (internal/external) consulting hours in the past 3 years, of which 500 should be in HR specialization.

Co n s u lta n cy P ro j ec ts

Written summaries of 3 or more recent (internal/external) HR projects for the area of specialization outlining the client business situation engagement approach, the specific proposed solution, including diagnosis of the issues, identification of options, and definition and justification of the proposed course of action. These will be used during the panel interview.

Applicant must also provide clients’ contact information for verification of projects undertaken.

C lien t a n d ot h er 3 r d Pa rt y R ef er en c es

Co m p et en cy ( H R d o m a in c ert if ic at io n f r a m ewo r k )

Et h ic s Re co m m en dat io n Va lid it y

Provide references in the form of testimonials or independent 3rd party evaluation / feedback in relation to all the consultancy projects presented to the Review panel.

Complete HR competency gap assessment comprising MCQs and/ or case studies, and attend an interview before Review panel comprising at least one HR expert.

The panel will cover the responses to the competency gap assessment and review the projects submitted by the candidate. If at any case where the applicant is deemed to lack certain HR skills, the applicant will be recommended to take up WSQ HR training modules by WDA’s list of training partners.

Pass PMC’s examination on the code of Ethics and ethical aspect of consulting.

By the Review Panel.

Recertification every two years based on Continuing Professional Education (CPE) requirements.

Realising that we already have a significant pool of people out there who are reputed to be experts in their respective HR fields, we have designed two tracks that PMCs can choose from to obtain the specialisation: 1. A fast track. by answering a written questionnaire and meeting a review panel – this is designed for those with extensive HR experience both internally as HR Managers and as external consultants.

2. A normal track. by answering the same questionnaire, sitting through a written case study and meeting a review panel – this is designed for those who have less experience but have interest and the potential to grow into a full-fledged HR consultancy professional.

Those who may be short of the knowledge and experience needed to qualify under Track 2 might be required to take some courses to narrow the gap.

So to the PMCs out there, to be or not to be an HR specialist, your future is in your hands. We certainly encourage you to further your career as a PMC-HR and we will help you along this journey.

“Consulting is a diverse industry. SBACC encourages

you to grow beyond a generic Practising Management Consultants and attain further professionalism in the knowledge intensive area of Productivity. In this day and age where resources are scarce and organisations need to enhance the productivity of whatever they are able to harness, businesses are in dire need of experts who can take on the role of change agents to help them on their journey of transformation. SBACC’s role is to ascertain that you have the necessary knowledge and skillset to be a certified PMC-Productivity, enabling you to stay relevant to industry needs and be that future forward Singapore.

-- Ms Isabella Loh, Chairman of DAC-Productivity.

”

“Management consultants generally carve for

themselves a niche areas of specialist knowledge and skills. Recognising this, the PMC Certification Board has identified various areas of specialization for certification so that your existing, and potential, clients and potential clients as well as other business associates funders will be able to identify your areas of domain knowledge and professional expertise.

If you have in-depth knowledge and have been rendering management consultancy services in areas such as financial planning and control, financial accounting and analysis, management accounting and capital budgeting as well as working capital management, we invite you to step forward to be certified as a specialist in Financial Management when we launch this specialist category of certification.

-- Ms Frances Cheang, co-chairs of DAC-Financial Management.

”

Watch out for more information on DAC-PD and DAC-FM in the next issue.

FEB - MAR 2015 | 06

P M C S AYS

PMC Says

An Integrated Approach to Achieving Big Savings through

Productivity Improvement Raymond Phua

kaizenms@singnet.com.sg

I

n my many years of consulting experience with many companies, particularly the SMEs, I have developed an integrated approach that is practical to help SMEs achieve impactful results in their productivity improvement journey. While many SMEs are keen to implement productivity improvement in their businesses, they are, however, unsure of whether tangible results can be achieved.

In spite of having heard successful stories from many sources, they are still reluctant to seek professional help.

In this article, I would like to share with you how impactful results can be achieved through productivity improvement. While many of us crave for the 5Cs for the betterment of our lives, we should also have the aspiration of the 5Cs for the betterment of our businesses. These 5Cs that top management should possess are as follows: 1. Challenges – Management needs to be aware of the challenges faced by the business, such as increased competition, lower sales, declining profits, etc. Prioritising these challenges for concrete improvement efforts is necessary in order to tackle the vital or pressing issues.

involvement, not just in conceiving the implementation plan and setting aside budget for training, but ensuring that employees are guided on and where to start to apply what they have learnt during their customised training.

4. Communication - Frequent communication with all employees on the need to implement the improvement plan, listening to their ideas and reviewing the plans and activities with the employees in a collective manner. This will enable an efficient and smooth implementation of the improvement efforts.

5. Conversion – Management must ensure that plans are implemented, monitored and reviewed for effectiveness. Rewards and recognition systems are necessary to complete the we should conversion process as the also have business embarks on the next the aspiration cycle of improvement, which is the sixth C, Continuous of the 5Cs for Improvement.

the betterment of our businesses.

2. Conviction – There must be the belief and commitment, that these challenges that have been identified and prioritised can be overcome. Management must themselves, believe that improvement technologies or concepts applied to overcome these challenges that are successful in other companies, can also be successful in their business. They must also have the commitment to implement them.

3. Commitment – Commitment from top management. This includes frequent

Many SMEs are also unsure about where and how to start their improvement journey.

A practical approach will be to start by identifying and analysing inefficient activities or problem areas in their vital and valuable resources in the company such as the 5Ms. Questions pertaining to the 5Ms are: 1. Manpower – Do we really need more manpower or can existing manpower be re-deployed in the work system for better optimisation? Are the employees effectively trained to apply their skills and knowledge?

2. Materials – Information is also regarded as material in this case. Can alternative

FEB - MAR 2015 | 07

P M C S AYS

materials be used or should materials be controlled for necessary usage? Is information conveyed in an effective and efficient manner?

3. Machine or Equipment – Do we have frequent machine or equipment downtime?

How are the machines or equipment utilised and is the utilisation rate acceptable?

Can we have greater machine efficiency to produce the desired outputs as required by the customers?

4. Method – Are standard methods of operations being used? Are the existing methods outdated or inefficient? Can the work processes be redesigned for better outputs?

5. Management System – This refers to the integration of the previous 4MS. These may include the various management systems, such as store, finance, sales, maintenance, human resources, production, quality, delivery, etc. The efficiency and effectiveness of the

5Cs from Top Management

various management systems contribute greatly to the business costs. These 5Ms should, therefore, be directed to meet the sixth M, which is Market requirements.

In the course of my consulting work, I have always emphasised to my clients that if they want to achieve impactful results, it is important and necessary that they embark on companywide training such as the Productivity Development Program (PDP) at the workplace for all employees, rather than sending specific individuals to piece-meal courses by external parties.

By gathering all employees together in the training, specific problems related to the company could be brought up for collective discussion and analysis with the help of the Practising Management Consultant (PMC). The role of the PMC is to facilitate the MAD process. MAD stands for Measure, Analyse & Decide.

He will be there to assure the successful implementation and working towards achieving impactful results.

I have designed an integrated and practical

approach to help SMEs, using the Productivity Development Program (PDP’s Productivity Best Workplace Practices - Basic & Advanced) and Consultancy Guidance by the Consultant, starting from the shopfloor level and gradually expanded to the planning and supporting functions in the company. It is very important for all employees regardless of

The role of the Practising Management Consultant is to facilitate the MAD process.

MAD stands for Measure, Analyse & Decide.

Implement Company-wide Productivity Training

Focus on the Vital & Valuable 5Ms

their positions in the company to attend the training where I will introduce and guide them on common productivity best practices that are practical in their business operations. A

model of the integrated and practical approach is shown in Exhibit A. The basic modules may include the 5S approach to good housekeeping, problem solving and waste elimination techniques focusing on the 5Ms and are customised to their specific problem areas or needs at their workplace. At the advanced level, tools & techniques and its approaches, such as rapid set-up, productive maintenance, lead time reduction, process redesign, mechanisation, operations or production planning and control, and other advanced Kaizen approaches will be introduced to meet the specific needs of the company. At the end of the training, they will be guided by the PMC for a specific period in data gathering, problem analysis, development of solutions and effective implementation of the solutions and to achieve tangible savings of at least 2 times the cost of investment in the consultancy engagement. This approach will be more acceptable and beneficial to many SMEs who are keen to achieve tangible results in their productivity improvement journey.

Project Guidance by PMC

Achieve Impactful Results

Share the Gains

2-3 months of Consultant’s Guidance

Gain at least 2x times savings on cost of investment

Recognition & rewards system for employees

Machine

Challenges Conviction Commitment Communication Conversion

Method

Mgmt.

System

Man

Basic PDP and/or Advanced PDP

Material

An Integrated & Practical Approach to Achieve Impactful Results in Productivity Improvement

FEB - MAR 2015 | 08

SME Stories

By James Wong, Managing Director of OE Manufacturing Pte Ltd

Workplace Efficiency and Big Savings for OE Manufacturing Pte Ltd Raymond Phua was engaged by OE Manufacturing Pte Ltd from Oct 2013 to Feb 2014 to help the company to ramp up their productivity and improve operation efficiency. The company had also not been successful in attracting more overseas customers.

“T LEFT James Wong, the MD taking the Lead in the 5S Implementation at OE Manufacturing Pte Ltd, reciting the 5S Pledge together with his employees.

RI G HT Transformed into a First Class Workplace at OE Manufacturing Pte Ltd after companywide 5S Implementation and Productivity Development Training (PDP).

here were several other factors such as untidy manufacturing workplace, inefficient workflow and quality problems,” said Mr James Wong, the Managing Director of the company.

“Through the referral of my good friend, Mr Ow Chun Choy from Star Union Engineering Pte Ltd, I got to know Raymond Phua.

Later on, I decided to hire Raymond as our management consultant to solve our company problems,” Mr James Wong added.

Raymond listened and studied the company issues well. He introduced the principle of 5S to OE Manufacturing Pte Ltd. He designed and implemented a 3-day company-wide Productivity Development Program (PDP) training session for all the 35 employees for training on Productivity Best Workplace Practices followed by immediate implementation of 5S good housekeeping practices at both the shop floor and office

areas. Raymond also provided 3 months of consultancy service on specific projects such as reducing inventory, reducing machine setup time, improving machine efficiency and reducing design errors. All these processes involved many of the supporting staff and executives.

The result soon showed after the third month with a saving of about $18,000 per month. In total, OE Manufacturing enjoyed savings of over $200,000 over the last 12 months. Rewards and recognition systems were also designed and implemented to encourage and motivate the employees to maintain their continuous productivity improvement efforts.

“We found Raymond to be very professional and knowledgeable. His strongest attribute was his ability to garner the interest and support of the workforce to make the project a very successful one. It was a fruitful experience working with Raymond.

FEB - MAR 2015 | 09

SME Stories

By William Tan (陈宥年), Hock Lian Huat Foodstuff Industry Pte Ltd

改善业务目标与方向 Mission to Set Business Goals and DirectionS

从

2011年开始，我们在执业管理顾问 Serene Ong的咨询下，公司有了明显 的改变与进步。 打从我们开始引进虾饼自动化项目，我们 便碰到非常大的挑战。员工对自动化流程不了 解，也对改变相当排斥。现在，我们终于看到 各方面人员的思想与运作都开始协调起来了。 公司各阶层人员的心态、技术与食品安全 意识，包括我自己的管理知识都全面提升了。 我们的营业利润从2012年到今年都在不断 增长中，那是因为Serene指导我们如何在运 作上通过改善得到成本控制。我们的COGS从 53%减到今天的40％。 我们也通过他们的培训与指导，开始引入 学生在职训练，从而让我们最后聘请了一位大 专及一位大学毕业生。有他们加入我们的团 队，让我们感到鼓舞。现在我们正用数据系统 来监督整个运作系统，这也是我们一直以来的 梦想与追求！我深信假以时日我们的公司一定 会有更棒的业绩。 公司现在有了更明确的业务方向与目标！ 这些都是通过Serene Ong的指导而达到的。 Serene不只是我们的顾问，她更像是我们 的家长与老师。这个改革过程有艰辛、有成 长，幸好有她一路相伴。 Serene也是我遇到过最有责任感与耐心的 顾问。在这里我要用最真挚的心来感恩她对我 们的帮助 ！我也希望新加坡能有更多像她一样 优秀的顾问，能够用心帮助我们的中小型企业 取得骄人成就。

ABOVE Mr William Tan, Managing Director of Hock Lian Huat Foodstuff Industry Pte Ltd receiving the award from Mr Lim Hng Kiang, Minister for Trade and Industry at the Great Singapore Food Gift Award Ceremony 2014.

Below Group photos with Hock Lian Huat Foodstuff Industry Pte Ltd team. Left to right: Mr Alan Ng, a friend of Mr William Tan, Ms Jasmine Ker, Marketing Manager, Mr Yu, Sales Executive, Mr William Tan, Managing Director, Madam Lee, Director, Ms Serene Ong, PMC, Mr Koh, Business Executive

Call i n g a l l PM C s !

We encourage and welcome PMCs to contribute articles on management consultancy and SME success stories. Each article should be about 2 A4-pages in length and SBACC reserves the right to select and edit the articles. By contributing these articles, free of charge to SBACC, the author agrees to give SBACC the right to use, archive or reproduce them in any way and in any medium.

To thank you for the time and effort put into these articles, your contribution will be accorded Continuing Professional Education (CPE) hours required for your re-certification.

E-mail us at marketing@sbacc.org.sg.

FEB - MAR 2015 | 10

EVENT RECAP

CMI/SBACC Chinese New Year Celebrations at the British High Commissioner’s Residence

1

1. His Excellency Mr Anthony Phillipson, British High Commissioner, Ms Isabella Loh, Chairman of PMCCB, Mr George Huang, Chairman of SBACC Governing Council and Honorary President of CMI Board of Governor

2

T

ogether with members of the Chartered Management Institute Singapore (CMI), more than 40 PMCs welcomed the Year of the Goat with a joyous celebration on 11 February at Eden Hall, the residence of His Excellency Antony Phillipson, the British High Commissioner. Guests were treated to a breathtaking lion and dragon dance performance followed by cocktail reception with good old English fare. PMCs networked with business owners of both SMEs and listed companies, to exchange industry views and development, and to establish opportunities of collaboration.

Founding Chairman and Chairman of the Governing Council, Mr George Huang, also took the opportunity to announce the inauguration of the Singapore Management Consulting Awards (SMC Awards) to be held in 2015. The SMC Awards aims to honour PMCs who have made significant contributions in facilitating SMEs in the development and competencies of their businesses. More details of the SMC Awards will be made known to PMCs in due time.

The PMCs found the event not only enjoyable, but fruitful, and they look forward to more of such networking sessions.

MINDEF - Boss Seminar

4

3

5

2. Mr Alywin Teh, member of SBACC Board of Directors, Mr Shabbir Hassanbhai, Chairman of SBACC Board of Directors , Mr Vincent Yong, guest of CMI 3. Mr Delane Lim, PMC, Ms Susan Wong, PMC, Ms Jenny Lim, PMC 4. Mr Albert Kong, SPMC, Mr Eugene Chang Chee Keong, PMC, Mr Robin Teo, PMC 5. Mr Vincent Phang, PMC,Mr Terence Goh Kia Meng, APMC, Mr Goh Mia Jing, guest of CMI

6

7

6. Mr Kuppan Karu, PMC, Mr Delane Lim, PMC 7. Ms Lau Chuen Wei, SBACC Executive Director, Mr Albert Kong, SPMC, Ms Isabella Loh, Chairman of PMC-CB, Mrs Perlita G.Tiro, Board Member of PMC-CB

S

BACC was invited to speak at the MINDEF - Boss (The Business Opportunity Seminar for Self-employed) on 5 Feb at Jen Hotel (formerly known as Traders Hotel). This event kicked-off a series of career seminars organised by MINDEF this year for their Transiting Officers to help them explore their second career options after leaving the Singapore Armed Forces.

40 Officers from the Army, Airforce and Navy were present to find out more about a career in management consultancy. The speakers helped the Officers understand what management consultancy was all about and what it takes to be a successful management consultant.

Mr James Kwek, Head CTRC (Career Transition Resource Center-MINDEF), also highlighted a collaborative Practicing Management Consultant Scheme for MINDEF, a scheme which drew considerable interest from the audience.

FEB - MAR 2015 | 11

PA S T & U P CO M I N G E V E N TS

Business Mission to Iskandar Conference

Workshop

24-26 March 2015 (Tue to Thu)

Review Audit of Intellectual Assets The efficient protection and management of intellectual assets is crucial in determining each organisation’s success. The review and audit of your organisation’s intellectual assets is usually the first steps to undertake. Join this course now to develop capabilities to better manage and exploit your organisation’s valuable intellectual assets! Please click here to register.

A Course Subsidy of up to $750 is exclusively available for PMC-IPM! The participant is required to pass ALL assessments required under this programme. Limited slots are available on first-comefirst-served basis.

O

n 28 January 2015, 6 PMCs joined more than 250 SME owners and working professionals from both Singapore and Malaysia, in the Business Mission to Iskandar Conference.

Co-organised by Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMF) and Malaysia Investment Development Authority (MIDA), the conference explored possibilities for local SMEs to setup or relocate their food manufacturing plants to Iskandar, so that they can enjoy much lower rental overheads when compared to Singapore.

With more than 1.8 billion halal consumers worldwide and a revenue of an estimated RM6.5 trillion annually, the halal food industry is an attractive market for F&B business owners. Mr N. Sabgaran, Executive Director of MIDA, emphasized Malaysia’s endless opportunities in halal food manufacturing due to its established F&A regulations and guidelines and globally recognised halal certification.

Mr Martyn Wong, Manager of

Time

Tue & Wed : 9am – 5pm Thursday: 9am – 5:30pm Venue

IP Academy

A BOV E Q&A Session with Speakers MI D D L E Opening Speech by Mr. N Sangaran, Executive Director of Malaysian Investment Development Authority BELOW Tea Reception at Thistle Hotel

Food Innovation & Research Centre (FIRC) also explained how market opportunities can be discovered through technological makeovers, such as increasing the shelf life of food products.

The conference ended with a Q & A session with the speakers, afterwhich the participants visited iPark, one of the industry parks in Iskandar and viewed land spaces for possible factory plants.

Full course fee

$2,140 per person (inclusive of 7% GST) Contact person

Mr Kelvin Ong at (65) 6330 8688 or email at kelvin_ong@ipacademy. com.sg Please register via www. ipacademy.com.sg/ section/programme/791. html#

FEB - MAR 2015 | 12