50 Years of Fulfilling Aspirations

NEWS@SIM
MCI(P) 117/01/2015
19
30
Deepening
our imprint
Providing
greater opportunities
page
SIM50
celebrations
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2
page
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MEDIA STORIES THAT MADE HISTORY FOR SIM IN 2014
40
Leading thoughts
and trends
50 Years of Fulfilling Aspirations
Minister Lim Hng Kiang (5th from left), SIM Chairman Tan Soo Jin (4th from left) and former chairmen and senior executives raising a toast to the SIM 50th Anniversary.
SIM50 celebrations
2014 was a momentous year for SIM as we turned 50.
Although 50 years may count as a very short time in
the course of civilisation, it has been a phenomenal
five decades. As Singapore’s first professional management institute, SIM has not only transformed our
nation’s education and training landscape through
various pioneering and innovative initiatives, we are
also proud to have helped many individuals fulfil their
aspirations.
Our year-long celebrations culminated with the
official opening of the SIM Campus Development
Phase 2 and the SIM50 Gala Dinner in November officiated by Minister Lim Hng Kiang, Ministry of Trade
and Industry. Media coverage of our anniversary
activities such as the SIM50 Learning Series, which
featured prominent sports personality Mr Pierluigi
Collina, former FIFA World Cup referee, and bestselling author and motivational speaker, Ms Catherine
DeVrye, and the opening of our expanded Clementi
campus strengthened our position as the market
leader. Anniversary fund-raising activities benefitted our adopted charities – Student Advisory Centre
and Singapore Children’s Society and confirmed our
responsibility towards the community .
Deepening our imprint
Amidst our celebrations, SIM continued to deepen
our imprint in the tertiary education landscape. SIM
University (UniSIM) made headlines with the strong
News @ SIM
demand it attracted for its three new full-time undergraduate programmes. The strongest endorsement
of UniSIM’s rising stature was a prominent profile of
UniSIM President, Professor Cheong Hee Kiat in the
Straits Times. Similarly, SIM Global Education (SIM GE)
received positive coverage for its increase in enrolment by almost 50% over the past five years. It further
differentiated itself as the leader of the pack when it
was voted ‘Best Private Institution’ for the sixth consecutive year in the AsiaOne People’s Choice Awards.
SIM GE CEO, Dr Lee Kwok Cheong was also honoured
by RMIT University with a Doctor of Business Honoris
Causa.
Providing greater opportunities
In 2014, media covered the various new programmes
offered at UniSIM such as arts, sports, music education and human resource management, all niche
and growing areas. Our collaborations with industry partners were also highlighted, such as UniSIM’s
tie-up with SGX to develop content for our financial
and investment-related CET courses and SIM GE’s
Memorandum of Understanding with UOB Bullion and
Futures to launch a new Financial Training Centre to
enrich students’ learning through a simulated trading
environment.
preneurial exploits also attracted the attention of the
media.
Leading thoughts and trends
Our academics from both UniSIM and SIM GE continued to be featured in the local media, lending credence
to SIM. They provided comments on topics such as
the economy, manpower, transport, education, early
childhood, elderly care, human resource, counselling
and mental-health, amongst others. Other opinion
leadership coverage included the 3rd edition of the
SIM Management Monitor Survey as well as various
speaking platforms organised by SIM Professional
Development and SIM Membership. Among them
were the SIM Annual Management Lecture, featuring
Professor Clayton Christensen, world’s top management thinker, and the SIM Interest Group Convention,
anchored by National Geographic TV Adventurer and
motivational speaker Rob Lilwall.
SIM’s news in 2014 were covered in The Straits Times, The
Business Times, TODAY, Lianhe Zaobao, Berita Harian,
My Paper, The New Paper, AsiaOne, Channel News Asia,
Shin Min Daily News, Bernama.com, The Star (Malaysia),
VoxSports, Redsports and HRM Magazine.
SIM’s ongoing commitment to providing its students with a holistic and rich campus life, unmatched
by other PEIs, continued to bear fruit. Our students’
success stories in their academic, sporting and entre-
PAGE 1
January – December 2014
SIM50 CELEBRATIONS
private educational institute,
broadening its role beyond
management development.
SIM50 CELEBRATIONS
THE SUNDAY TIMES | Sunday, August 24, 2014
50 years of pioneering private education
by Lyn Chen
Through many
pioneering and
innovative firsts,
SIM has helped
people fulfil
aspirations
and contributed to
Singapore’s success
in upskilling
its people.
From its beginning
as a management
institute, SIM now
offers a wide range
of programmes
for lifelong learning
A
fledgling but far-sighted
pioneer, moving in unchartered waters but unwavering ––
the path of Singapore’s growth
also distils the journey of one
institution, the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM).
Indeed, one could say that
both were born out of necessity: The success story of one is
bound up in the other, both surpassing expectations over the
past five decades.
invited the Institute to run the
reputable Open University of
the United Kingdom (OUUK)
degree programmes.
This initiative, originally to
give teachers who had missed
out on a tertiary education a
second chance at acquiring a
degree, also became popular
with other working adults.
1960s:Trains managers
for a young economy
Singapore was a third-world
nation, infrastructure was poor
and capital, limited. Unemployment was high and labour
unrests, rife.
Singapore, through the Economic Development Board (EDB),
embarked on an ambitious
industrialisation drive to develop
its economy. The people needed
to lead industries and manage
businesses were sorely lacking.
Recalling the early management culture, Dr Richard Eu,
SIM’s founding Chairman (far
right), who served from 1964 to
1996, said that “up to a certain
level, there were no local managers –– they were all expatriates”.
Dr Eu, then managing director of Lee Wah Bank Limited, was
invited by EDB to grow its management training unit through
an offshoot, dedicated management institute.
On Nov 28, 1964, with seed
funding from the EDB and a
grant from Ford Foundation, the
nation’s first management institute was founded.
Mr Lim Kim San, then Minister for Finance, noted at the inaugural annual general meeting of
SIM in 1966 that formal training
was the preserve of more wellknown professions, and that no
attention was paid to the art and
science of business management.
“In fact, those who chose
business as a career were left to
their own devices and ingenuity
to hit or miss, more often it was
a miss,” he remarked.
SIM quickly fulfilled its mission, starting with offering short
News @ SIM
It expanded its bachelor’s
degree programmes to areas
such as computing, construction management and financial
planning to support the needs
of the economy.
With its strong track record
in catering to working executives, the Education Ministry
President Tony Tan Keng Yam, UniSIM’s Patron, at the opening of SIM’s expanded campus at Clementi.
Mr Lim Kim San (centre) presents
Mr Hon Sui Sen (left) with the EDB’s
Founder Donor certificate in 1965.
Looking on (right) is Dr Richard Eu.
courses which were oversubscribed.
It also promoted professional
management practices by undertaking research and publications
on the topic.
1970s: Breaks new
ground for
management training
EDB marketed Singapore as a
“quick operations start-up location”, where factories were built
ahead of demand. Industrial
development surged ahead.
So did demand for more
intensive management training.
At SIM’s annual dinner in
1973, then Finance Minister Hon
Sui Sen noted new challenges in
the labour landscape.
He called on the Institute
to equip its students not only
with the “techniques and tools”
of management but develop
“qualities of leadership and good
sense”.
The Institute launched several certificated programmes
which were the first to meet the
demand for in-depth education
in different management fields.
The first of these was its
two-year, part-time Diploma in
Management Studies (DMS) programme, started in 1973, and
still the signature management
101 course today.
Its success was duplicated
in a similar suite of Mandarin
diploma programmes, much
to the delight of the Mandarinspeaking executives.
The DMS was even ahead of
the nation’s push towards “skills
upgrading”, which became the
buzzword when the Skills Development Fund was launched in
1979 to stress the link between
training and economic survival.
SIM broke another new
ground.
Leveraging its membership
base, it promoted networking
and sharing of best practices
among the management fraternity. The first interest group of
marketing executives was set
up, paving the way for 11 more
specialist groups to add to the
vibrant SIM community.
1980s: Leads as
a game changer
Singapore embarked on the
“Second Industrial Revolution”,
says EDB, muscling in on knowledge-intensive activities such as
research and development, engineering design and computer
PAGE 2
Dr Richard Eu, SIM’s founding chairman.
software services.
Opportunities in new fields
abounded, and peoples’ aspirations were further stoked.
To support the pent-up
demand for higer education, SIM
changed the rules of the game:
For the first time, it brought
overseas education right to Singapore’s doorstep.
In 1986, SIM partnered the
University of London to offer its
Bachelor of Science in Management Studies.
Two years later, the Royal
Melbourne Institute of Technology’s Bachelor of Business Administration programme followed.
Singaporeans could now
acquire a quality foreign degree
locally, a breakthrough that revolutionised the tertiary education
scene here, opening a pathway
for others to follow.
Furthering its mission as a
management institute, it pioneered the signature Job of the
Chief Executive programme, a
prestigious programme to train
the top echelons of companies,
and the Annual Management
Lecture, which gave a platform
for local executives to glean best
practices from renowned leaders
and thinkers.
By now, the SIM brand was
familiar among those who
wanted to fulfil their aspirations
through higher education and
talent upgrading.
Dr Tay Eng Soon, then Minister of State for Education, at SIM’s
graduation ceremony in 1982,
noted that SIM’s “participants
and graduates must have found
their way into almost every facet
of economic activity in Singapore over the years”.
Inaugural graduation of RMIT’s
Bachelor of Business Administration programme.
1990s: Upgrades a
nation of teachers
As Singapore’s economy moved
up the value chain to
strengthen key sectors such as
chemicals, electronics and
engineering, SIM too
established itself as the premier
January – December 2014
2000s: Comes of
age as a private
university
Continuing its pioneering and
innovative spirit, SIM foresaw
the need for a unique university
for working adults.
Its successful partnership
with the OUUK formed the bedrock for the setting up of the SIM
University (UniSIM) in 2005.
The first governmentendorsed private university for
working adults offered a flexible, “learn today, apply tomorrow” brand of education that
took off immediately with busy
executives.
To ride on the tremendous
demand for education and
continuing training, SIM consolidated its expanding role to
better respond to a wide spectrum of learners.
In 2005, the Institute
restructured as three refreshed
entities:
• UniSIM – offers its own
industry-relevant degrees to
working adults
• SIM Global Education –
offers reputable overseas
degrees, locally for degree
seekers
• SIM Professional Development – offers short training
programmes for working
executives.
In less than a decade since
its birth, UniSIM was mandated
as the sixth publicly funded
university. In 2013, it was designated as Singapore’s third law
school. Looking back, SIM has
grown not just in size but in
stature.
From a shophouse-office in
Chinatown, SIM now has a fullfledged campus on Clementi
Road, doubled in size with the
completion of an expansion
programme this year.
SIM has more than surpassed its original social mission.
Through many pioneer-
1964
SIM’s Clementi campus today
Nov 28 – SIM is
founded with seed
funding from the
Economic Development Board and
grant from the Ford
Foundation.
1971
SIM launches
the first
National
Computerised
Management
Game.
First graduating class of the SIM Diploma
in Management Studies (1975).
1979 1973
ing and innovative firsts, it has
helped people fulfil aspirations
that grew in parallel with the
nation and, in no small part,
contributed to Singapore’s success in upskilling its people, its
only resource.
SIM forms Interest Groups for
networking and
sharing, with
the Marketing
Executives
Group as the
first.
Professor You Poh Seng, then executive
director, SIM, opening the Chief Executive
programme (1983).
1980 1982
SIM IN NUMBERS
THEN
•300 members
•Nine employees
NOW
•More than 50,000
individual and
corporate members
•900 employees
•2,000 teaching
faculty
•36,000 students
•132,000 graduates
SIM launches
signature
Job of the
Chief Executive
as one-week
residential
programme.
SIM launches
the Annual
Management
Lecture with
then President
C. V. Devan Nair
as inaugural
speaker.
SIM launches
two-year
part-time
Diploma in
Management
Studies, the
first dedicated
management
course.
1984 1986
SIM starts
in-house
consultancy
and
training
services for
companies.
SIM introduces
first overseas
degree
programme
locally from
University
of London.
1992
Ministry of
Education (MOE)
invites SIM to
run Open
University UK
degree
programmes.
Dr Tay Eng Soon speaking at the Open University
Degree Programmes launch event (1993).
2014
SIM completes
its $300-million
campus expansion
in Clementi.
2013
MOE designates
UniSIM as
Singapore’s
third law school.
2012 2005
Singapore
Government
designates
UniSIM as sixth
publicly funded
university.
SIM
restructures
with the
setting up of
SIM University
(UniSIM).
From late bloomer to lifelong learner
Lecturer Dr Mohd Effendy Rajab, who got his doctorate at 44 with
SIM’s flexible programmes, says never give up
by Lyn Chen
W
hen lecturer Dr
Mohd Effendy
Rajab tells his students he is a “living
example” of why
they should pursue their academic
dreams, he is not
boasting.
He says: “I tell
them to never give
up hope, and in no
time they will realise
their dreams –– that
it’s possible to get a PhD if they stay focused.”
Indeed.
Dr Effendy, whose 11-year educational journey
with SIM began with a certificate course when he
was 33, went on to achieve a diploma, bachelor’s
and master’s degrees, before attaining his doctorate
at 44.
An associate faculty at SIM University (UniSIM)
and associate lecturer at SIM Global Education (SIM
GE), he first embarked on his studies because he
realised he did not have the academic qualifications
“to progress up the corporate ladder”.
It was 1988. He was then a senior fire and secu-
News @ SIM
rity officer at a petrochemical complex.
He adds: “When I completed my bachelor studies,
I began to appreciate the value of knowledge and
so decided to continue the learning journey to the
doctoral level, purely out of the love for knowledge
that I’d discovered.”
The 59-year-old encapsulates the essence of the
SIM student: Determined, self motivated life-long
learner, resilient in the face of challenges.
He had to juggle work, home and evening studies as a father of a young son, recalls Dr Effendy, who
is married to a nurse.
Then, he faced financial constraints for his Doctor of Education at SIM-George Washington University.
His father loaned him a big chunk of the $65,000
course fee.
He promised to repay the loan but didn’t get the
chance to – his father died of cancer a year after he
graduated.
However, studying at SIM made it easier for Dr
Effendy to stay the course.
“SIM has a proven track record in the field of adult
education in Singapore since its inception,” says Dr
Effendy.
He adds: “I was confident to have continued my
pursuit of knowledge with SIM due to its high quality
PAGE 3
programmes and the instructors who have both the
academic qualification and relevant industry experience.”
He adds: “My stint at SIM left a profound impact
not only in my profession but in my life.
“It gave me the opportunity to realise my dream
of getting a tertiary education and to realise my love
for teaching.”
His “most rewarding experience” is seeing his
students following in his footsteps in pursuing their
ambitions, adds Dr Effendy, who is also executive
director of the Singapore Scout Association.
Perhaps the “student” he is proudest of is his
29-year-old son, Ghazali Mohd Effendy.
Son, like father, pursued his Bachelor of Business
Management from RMIT University through SIM GE,
graduating in 2011.
Dr Effendy, who won the Singapore Workforce
Development Agency’s Lifelong Learner Award in
2002, sums up his lifelong quest for learning.
“The environment is changing so rapidly…unless
you continue to discover new knowledge and learning, you soon become obsolete.
“Hence, I am a firm believer of lifelong learning
as it not only keeps you employable but it helps to
challenge the mind.”
January – December 2014
SIM50 CELEBRATIONS
THE SUNDAY TIMES | Sunday, September 14, 2014
Dreams come true
Mr Abdul Aziz Yusof
(below, second from right)
Chief executive officer
Cleaning Express
SIM University
• 50 academic programmes
• 14,000 students
• 22,000 alumni
The first and only private university
with a focus on working adults, UniSIM’s flexible programmes, coupled
with online learning, allow mature students to learn anytime, anywhere.
This enables them to juggle work,
studies and personal commitments.
These students also enjoy up to 55 per
cent fee subsidy from the Government.
Through active collaboration
with industry partners in curriculum
development and teaching, it ensures
practical and real-world learning, delivering its promise of “learn today, apply
tomorrow”.
Given its strong track record, UniSIM has been asked to offer full-time
programmes from this year, beginning
with accountancy, finance and marketing.
It has also been designated as Singapore’s third law school.
UniSIM president Professor Cheong
Hee Kiat hopes to train graduates in
what he calls “the three Hs - head, heart
and habit: the discipline and rigour in
applying one’s knowledge; a social consciousness in the decisions one makes;
and a self-directed interest in lifelong
learning”.
Opening doors to
myriad prospects
SIM’s diverse programmes offer students multiple
learning pathways and teaching approaches
F
rom short courses to post-graduate degree programmes,
the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) creates
opportunities for those who pass through its doors.
At 50 years, SIM is now the leading private provider of
higher education and professional training in Singapore.
SIM provides a diverse range of programmes for school
leavers and working adults through its three arms: SIM University (UniSIM), SIM Global Education (SIM GE) and SIM Professional Development (SIM PD).
News @ SIM
The Institute has in place rigorous academic assurances to
ensure high standards and quality.
UniSIM and SIM GE are registered under the Council for
Private Education’s (CPE) Enhanced Registration Framework.
Additionally, SIM GE was among the first to be awarded
the EduTrust certification by the CPE in 2010. UniSIM is also
audited under MOE’s Quality Assurance Framework for Universities.
PAGE 4
SIM Global Education
• 70 academic programmes
• 23,000 students
• 110,000 graduates
SIM GE provides opportunities to
degree seekers to pursue overseas university programmes on home soil.
Programmes offered include those
from the University of London, RMIT
University and University at Buffalo,The
State University of New York.
Its partnerships with reputable
overseas universities as well as the
mix of local and international students
bring a global perspective to its rich
learning environment.
SIM GE’s holistic approach incorporates a wide range of initiatives to
develop all-rounded students.This
includes sporting, artistic and community activities, internships as well as an
Education Abroad programme.
Dr Lee Kwok Cheong, CEO, SIM GE,
says: “We encourage all our students
to know themselves and what they are
good at. We equip them to be employable with a portfolio of competencies,
such as leadership and teamwork, in
addition to a degree qualification.”
SIM Professional
Development
• 600 executive programmes held yearly
• 11,000 professionals trained yearly
SIM Membership
• More than 50,000 corporate and
individual members
• Wide range of socio-professional events
SIM Membership provides a myriad of
opportunities for its members to network with, and learn from, one another.
It has 12 special interest groups, for
areas ranging from marketing to entrepreneurship, enabling professionals
with common interests to connect and
share knowledge.
The yearly Interest Group Convention is one such platform where
prominent industry leaders are invited
to speak on topics that stimulate collaborations and foster innovative business solutions. Other key membership
events include talks, workshops and
visits to companies.
January – December 2014
SIM PD’s executive training courses and
customised in-house training programmes for companies help PMEs
upgrade their skills.
Its courses range from organisational strategies, sales and marketing
to human resource management.
The SIM Annual Management Lecture is a hallmark event for executives
to learn from leading management
thinkers such as Peter Drucker, Michael
Porter and Clayton Christensen.
It also has a suite of programmes
for the developmental needs of senior
management such as The Job Of The
Chief Executive programme.
SIM executive director Ronald Tan
says: “We adopt a holistic approach to
our training programmes, such as providing pre- and post-training assessment to ensure our participants gain
the most from their training, and can
bring back solutions to their organisations.”
News @ SIM
• Certificate in English Business Administration, SIM (1993)
• Certificate in Management Studies, SIM (1995)
• Diploma in Management Studies, SIM (2001)
• Bachelor in Business Administration,
SIM-RMIT University (2006)
• Job of the Chief Executive, SIM PD (2013)
“Cleaning Express began as a one-man operation in 1988, with
limited capital.
One year after my father acquired the company in 1997, I
joined him as sales manager, bringing with me eight years of
experience in an MNC, where I climbed the ranks from cleaning
crew to manager.
As a young man with only post-secondary education, I was
thirsty for knowledge. While in National Service in 1993, I had
begun studying part-time at SIM.
I went on to acquire a diploma and a
degree from SIM. My learning journey at
SIM has given me a positive outlook, and
I am more confident in running my business, working my way up to be the CEO.
I also signed up for The Job Of The
Chief Executive programme to learn more
about strategic thinking, planning, negotiation and human capital development.
Today, Cleaning Express is a leading
multi-service enterprise that employs 850
people.
Lifelong learning is in my DNA. I must
say that I am in a much better position in
today’s competitive business environment
to take my company to greater heights.”
Mr Alan Wong
Manager
Abilities Beyond Limitations
and Expectations (ABLE)
• Bachelor in Social Work, UniSIM (2013)
• Master of Gerontology, UniSIM (current)
“My wife was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001. During one
of our many hospital visits, I overheard a woman pleading with a
man, presumably her husband, to let her die as she was in pain
and they had no means to pay for prolonged treatment.
Although I had been wanting to do good Samaritan work for
some time, this was the moment of truth for me: I decided to
enrol in UniSIM’s social work programme after spending more
than 20 years in the retail industry.
One of the best things about UniSIM’s programmes is its flexible time-table that allows me to juggle work and study, and
complete my degree in good time. I am also thankful to my wife,
who’s in the pink of health now and was very supportive of my
career switch and studies.
The teachers in UniSIM’s social work programme are experienced practitioners.Their selfless dedication to their work taught us more than any textbook could.
I recall the words of Vice-Dean Associate Professor Seng Boon Kheng: ‘To do good work, one need not study. But to
do good work right, one has to be formally trained to be able to muster resources.’
I am currently pursuing my master’s in Gerontology. I now have both the theory and the practice to help me in my
job.”
Ms Shannon Goh
Regional human resources manager
Modec Management Services
• Certificate in Management,
SIM (1995)
• Diploma in Management
Studies, SIM (2000)
• Bachelor in Psychology,
SIM Open University UK (2005)
• Postgraduate Diploma in
Human Resource
Management, UniSIM (2007)
• Executive Committee,
SIM Human Resource
Interest Group
“While working as an office administrator in the late 1990s,
I was offered the opportunity to become a human resource
(HR) coordinator in 2003.
I really enjoyed the role but realised that there was so much
more for me to learn. So I decided to upgrade myself through
a degree programme.
SIM helped me to realise my dream.
At that time, the SIM Open University UK was an obvious
choice because I could work and study. To me, psychology was
the most relevant course since it focused on human behaviour.
After graduating, I was promoted to HR supervisor, after
which I joined another company as HR manager.
Studying with SIM all the way was a planned decision: I
trust its reliable brand name and like its conducive environment and trainers who are experienced and qualified.
I am an active SIM member, and participate regularly in its
membership events, enabling me to keep connected with a
network of professionals.
Not only can I be on the lookout for talent, I also get to
know experts whom I may need in my job.”
- Profiles by Sheryl Quek
PAGE 5
January – December 2014
SIM50 CELEBRATIONS
THE SUNDAY TIMES | Sunday, October 12, 2014
Dreams
come true
Mr Shane Lee, 27 (right) founder, 6oz Espresso Bar
Learning for the real world
SIM works with leading academic and industry partners to ensure educational excellence
that meets industry needs
F
or the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM), quality and relevance are
essential traits in each programme it offers.
To ensure this, SIM partners universities that are known for their rigour and
close links with the industry.
SIM also collaborates with industry to identify needs and tailor curricula to meet
those needs. It selects industry partners who are leaders in their fields and whose
experienced practitioners deliver real-world knowledge to students.
• Bachelor of Business (Management), SIM-RMIT (2012)
• SIM GE scholar
Taking to the skies
“I had always wanted to run my own business since I was young. SIM GE’s education gave me the gumption to realise my dream and discover my strengths.The
Institute’s all-rounded education gave me life skills that helped me in the running
of the coffee business, which my partner Diana and I started in 2010.
People management and budgeting modules enabled me to handle different
personalities as well as to plan my business finances. Being involved in many
leadership roles, such as the university’s string orchestra, which I founded, cultivated in me a great sense of discipline and the ability to make accurate decisions
quickly.”
•Bachelor of Science in Business, UniSIM (2011)
In touch with community needs
•Bachelor of Science in Banking
and Finance, SIM-UOL (2001)
“When I decided to pursue the degree
in 2009, I was a senior sales engineer
at Schneider Electric Singapore.
The degree developed in me competencies which I apply at work in
areas like accounting, business law,
management and marketing.
The degree also paved the way
for me to take on a bigger role, leading to my promotion last year.
My experience with UniSIM has inspired me to keep on learning and improving to take
on greater responsibilities at work.”
Ms Rossana Chen Sina, 29
Programme manager,
Community Mental Health Division,
Agency for Integrated Care
INDUSTRY PARTNERS
ACCA Singapore, AMKFSC Community Services Ltd, APF Group, Building and
Construction Authority, Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, CPA
PAGE 6
Nurturing global, future-ready citizens
RMIT University (RMIT)
A leading university in Australia, RMIT seeks a partner that is able to expand the reach and diversity
of its programmes, ensure quality academic delivery, and provide a student experience comparable
to that on its home campus.
Its vice-chancellor and president, Professor Gill Palmer, says: “SIM Global Education (SIM GE)
has an excellent reputation for providing high quality educational services, very much in line with
RMIT’s expectations.”
Collaboration with industry is integral to RMIT’s leadership in applied research and education.
RMIT works closely with SIM GE to adapt curricula to meet industry requirements in Singapore and
regionally. As a result, RMIT graduates are valued by employers around the world for their leadership skills and work readiness.
The partnership, established in 1987 as the first between an Australian and Singapore educational institution, is stronger than ever. Says Prof Palmer: “We are truly pioneers, making history
together…With over 8,400 RMIT students at SIM GE and more than 30,000 graduates, this is RMIT’s
and Australia’s largest international partnership.”
• Bachelor of Nursing,
SIM-University of Sydney (2014)
“My work involves developing community mental health programmes.
One of the most useful modules I took at UniSIM was Abnormal Psychology and Intervention.
It helped me to better understand and develop
services to meet clients’ mental health needs.
My experience at UniSIM was like climbing a
mountain, with the lecturers as guides. At times,
juggling learning and work seemed difficult, but
as we reached each station, the journey became easier.
My degrees are a passport to opportunities. I took up my current position in 2012 and
was promoted this year.”
ACADEMIC PARTNERS
Australia - RMIT University, The University of Sydney, University of Wollongong
Switzerland - IMI International Management Institute Switzerland
United Kingdom - University of Birmingham, University of London, The University of Manchester, The University of Sheffield, University of Southampton,
University of Stirling, The University of Warwick
United States - University at Buffalo, The State University of New York
To be relevant, UniSIM plugs into the social work sector through its partnership with AMKFSC Community Services
(AMKFSC), enabling it to tailor its social work programmes to reflect concerns such as the higher cost of living, problem gambling, and work and school demands, and to place interns for hands-on experience.
Dr Vincent Ng, AMKFSC’s executive director, says: “The collaboration provides opportunities for students to
understand and stay current with the changing issues faced by the community.”
Senior staff members from both partners meet regularly to discuss social issues and share ideas, and three of
AMKFSC’s senior staff members are on UniSIM’s associate faculty. Says Mr Mohamed Fareez Mohamed Fahmy, centre
head at AMKFSC (Cheng San), who teaches on the programme: “Lecturers who are professionals ensure that the
skills and knowledge passed to students are current and relevant.”
“The bachelor’s degree enabled me
to subsequently pursue my master’s
at the London School of Economics
and Political Science and to work
abroad.The programme exposed me
to real-life applications of financial
principles from lecturers who were industry practitioners.
What I have learned is being applied as I provide professional services to help companies in initial public offers, mergers and acquisitions and other financial needs. I feel that SIM is the best private
provider of tertiary education in Singapore, bar none.”
Ms Cindy See, 28
Registered nurse,
St Luke’s Hospital
• Bachelor of Counselling, UniSIM (2010)
• Master of Counselling, UniSIM (2012)
News @ SIM
As one of the industry advisors to SIM University (UniSIM), ST Aerospace collaborates with the university to develop
aviation maintenance curriculum with a focus on the upkeep of today’s state-of-the-art aircraft.
This equips students with a firm foundation in subjects from aerospace engineering concepts to airport management.The company also sponsors its staff members to UniSIM’s aviation degree programme, arming them with both
technical and management skill sets.
Mr Lim Serh Ghee, chief operating officer of ST Aerospace, says: “Future graduates will be better equipped to
tackle jobs involving composite repairs and inspection of the new generation of aircraft.”
Prospects of graduates who have the potential to go further in their careers are also bolstered.
Mr Lim says: “We identify mechanics, technicians and engineers who have the aptitude to go beyond the technical path to explore a management path.”
Mr Tan Soon Hoe, 36
Director, investment banking,
China Galaxy International
Financial Holdings Limited,
Hong Kong
Mr Firdaus Abdul Samad, 38
Sales manager, global operations
Schneider Electric Overseas Asia,
Brunei
With SIM’s holistic education, students also learn soft skills needed for the working world.
In addition, SIM’s wide range of continuing education and training (CET) courses
ensure a continuum of learning.The Institute also works with companies to identify
training needs and tailor programmes to optimise learning effectiveness.
An SIM education –– whether a degree or CET programme –– equips individuals
with knowledge and skills that are ever in demand and relevant to the workplace.
“Nurses are now tasked with an
even wider range of responsibilities. Knowledge prepares us for
a world of changing possibilities. Before pursuing the nursing
degree, I was caught up in the
routine of ward life — completing
tasks and attending to patients —
without a deeper understanding of things.
The degree programme changed that. Beyond teaching me clinical skills, it sharpened my communication, leadership and critical
thinking abilities. It also empowered me to make decisions with confidence. One of the biggest takeaways was learning how to assess
current best practices and adapt them, where applicable, to improve
patients’ lives.”
Australia (Singapore), Don Ho & Associates, Financial Planning Association of Singapore, Foo Kon Tan Grant Thornton LLP, HomeTeamNS, Institution of Engineers
Singapore, KPMG LLP, MAJ Aviation Pte Ltd, National Council of Social Service,
National Trades Union Congress, NexiaTS Public Accounting Corporation, Ong
Teng Cheong Labour Leadership Institute, People’s Association, Republic of Singapore Air Force, RSM Chio Lim LLP, SEED Institute, Sift Analytics Group Pte Ltd,
Singapore Exchange, Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology, Singapore
Logistics Association, Singapore Police Force, Singapore Workforce Development
Agency, Singapore Centre for Chinese Language, Singapore Technologies Aerospace Ltd, SPRING Singapore.
January – December 2014
University of London (UOL)
Providing students with a stimulating academic experience and nurturing them to become well-rounded citizens is an ethos that the
prestigious UOL shares with SIM GE.
Through UOL’s intellectually rigorous programmes and SIM GE’s
delivery of up-to-date and quality teaching, SIM-UOL graduates are
fully trained to become future-ready critical thinkers, contributing to
the global talent pool.
The 28-year partnership has nurtured more than 23,000 graduates, with 740 obtaining first-class honours –– the highest number
among UOL’s offshore partners due to the quality and longevity of
the relationship.
Professor Sir Adrian Smith, UOL’s vice-chancellor, notes: “We
design our curriculum and assessment to ensure that our graduates
develop confidence in their ability to perform under pressure, solve
novel problems, and apply what they know to new and challenging
scenarios. As a result, our graduates develop a lifelong ability to
learn, which is of value throughout their whole working lives.”
News @ SIM
University at Buffalo (UB),
The State University of New York
One of the leading public universities in the United States, UB looks for a partner with a proven
commitment to academic excellence and student support. SIM GE, with strong academic values,
excellent staff and facilities, and an outstanding commitment to students’ success, is such a partner, notes Mr John J.Wood, UB’s senior associate vice-provost for International Education.
“SIM GE has helped make our programmes a magnet for students in Singapore and beyond who
are interested in an American-style higher education,” says Mr Wood.
The partners work closely to determine the degree programmes that best meet the needs of
local students and the labour market, resulting in a high percentage of graduates finding attractive
positions on graduation.
The 10-year partnership has not only nurtured 2,000 graduates and new undergraduate programmes but has also advanced UB’s internationalisation efforts, strengthening its reputation in
Asia.
PAGE 7
January – December 2014
SIM50 CELEBRATIONS
THE SUNDAY TIMES | Sunday, November 9, 2014
Education
for tomorrow
Heartware for tomorrow
Ms Evangeline Ng, 19
Student
• Bachelor of Accountancy (Full-time), UniSIM
UniSIM’s belief in producing professional and socially minded individuals who are inspired to make a change in
society resonates with me.
I look forward to the community service required of UniSIM’s students. This, I believe, will help produce more
caring graduates needed in a more inclusive society.
This “heartware” and integrity is also important in the accounting profession, particularly in Singapore which is
a financial hub with a reputation to uphold.
Together with rigour expected in our studies and an emphasis on independent lifelong learning, I am confident
that UniSIM graduates will be competent and armed with the right values.
Getting a UniSIM degree will not be an end to my learning. I plan to apply for the Chartered Accountant Programme offered by the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants to sharpen my practice.
SIM builds on its heritage
to provide lifelong learning
that meets economic
and societal needs
for the future
By Christina Ching
Tech it forward
Mr Isaac Lee Wei Jian, 29
Subject head for physical education, St Hilda’s Primary School
• Bachelor of Science in Multimedia Technology and Design, UniSIM (2014)
Today’s students are “digital natives” — quick learners with information at their fingertips and are also better
engaged when they learn through gadgets.
As a teacher, I go beyond textbook content to keep learning interesting through the use of technology. With
tech-savvy students, I believe e-learning is the way to go as it is flexible and can better facilitate learning.
To improve and enrich myself, I pursued my UniSIM higher education mid-career.
What I learnt about creating professional videos, I hope to use to teach my pupils to develop a fitness programme on keeping healthy, which in itself will engage them in the learning of the topic. Having taught for four
years, there is still so much to learn. Through CET at UniSIM, I hope to gain the knowledge and skills needed to
continually improve my teaching and to take on new challenges in my career.
UniSIM has been at the forefront of e-learning. Time-pressured working students like me appreciate that UniSIM
uses technology to allow us to learn anytime, anywhere.
UniSIM teambuilding event for full-time
students helps build all-rounded character.
A
s the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) looks beyond its
first 50 years, it is positioning itself
to play an even bigger role in lifelong
learning.
Today, we hear the growing exhortation for continual manpower upgrading
to meet Singapore’s new economic and
social needs.
SIM has been responding to this call
by pioneering and innovating educational
and training offerings to equip the workforce well for future job demands.
Spelling out their vision of education for tomorrow, SIM’s leaders outline
new learning realities and look beyond
developing learned minds to cultivating
informed hearts.
New realities in learning
Education and training must keep
evolving to meet new needs. Learning
for life will be the imperative and will
challenge the premise that formal
education must be completed before
employment.
The study and work divide will be
increasingly blurred. Education providers must offer flexible programmes that
allow students to alternate between both,
potentially increasing the number of job
entrants where they are required and
facilitating capability learning and job
adaptation.
Learning must therefore be:
• Applied to ensure that skills are kept relevant and applicable in the real world;
• In-depth to enable strong expert competencies at the workplace; and
• Multi-modal to suit the learner’s disposition.
Given our greying population, programmes must be tailored to re-skill an
older workforce to extend their contributions. Or learn for leisure to keep minds
active.
On the other hand, tech-savvy millennial learners expect not only to be edu-
News @ SIM
cated but also engaged and enthused
throughout their learning journey.
Teachers must go beyond the role of
knowledge feeders to knowledge builders, facilitating learning and empowering
students to learn for life.
They must encourage self-directed
learning and inculcate in their students
the ability to discover, from the vast store
of information available, what is relevant
and can be applied in their context.
Institutions will also have to regard
the preferences for bite-size, just-in-time
information for people who learn on-thego.
With its track record in offering flexible, modular programmes through
e-learning, SIM welcomes the challenge
to further meet the needs of a new generation of learners.
Changing employers’
mindsets
The new education and training
landscape dictates that providing
learning is no longer the sole preserve
of educational institutions.
Currently, industry provides in-house
training and sees to employees’ professional development. Going forward,
employers can also actively partner institutions to identify job-relevant skills and
jointly develop programmes to meet
those needs, both in the classroom and
at the workplace.
Then, industry insights are brought
into the classroom and academic best
practices into the working world.
Says Dr Lee Kwok Cheong, chief executive officer of SIM Global Education: “SIM
will work with industry to create opportunities for students to learn what they are
good at, and what they are passionate
about, through a more flexible, learnercentric approach.This is a field in which
SIM aims to be a leader.”
With this new paradigm, continuing
education and training (CET) must be
structured and assessed for specific skills
attainment; and possibly allow workers
PAGE 8
to gain credits that can be used towards
the attainment of a degree.
A national skills recognition system
will be needed to provide employers with
greater assurance of skills attainment
and give employees better employment
mobility, which in turn encourages learning. In time, the value and meaning of a
degree earned theconventional way will
be re-defined.
New breed of graduates
SIM’s solid track record positions it as a
private education provider in the league
of excellence. Beyond grooming a
competent talent pool, it is committed
to developing a new breed of graduates
needed for a more caring, inclusive
society.
SIM aims to impart to its students
what Professor Cheong Hee Kiat, president of SIM University, calls the “three
H’s”.
“Head — the disciplinary knowledge
and the rigour with which this knowledge can be applied; Habit — a spirited
attitude to self-directed lifelong learning;
and Heart — an understanding of community needs and a social consciousness
in decision-making.”
Adding a fourth H, he says: “We also
need Hands — a willingness to put shoulder to wheel, turn theory into practice,
and walk the extra mile for the sake of
kinsmen and nation.”
SIM’s wide range of programmes and
services for different profiles of learners
means it is well positioned to cultivate
such graduates not just through a onetime education but throughout their lives.
Mr Ronald Tan, executive director of
SIM, concludes: “If you look at the SIM ecosystem, it is an embodiment of a whole
continuum for lifelong learning — from
SIM University to SIM Global Education to
SIM Professional Development — to help
individuals fulfil their aspirations.”
The future of teaching
Dr Sunny Goh
Associate lecturer, SIM Global Education
Education in the future must be able to fuse myriad aspects of a student’s life –– study, work, family and leisure ––
into one holistic experience.
I try to make learning an exciting adventure.
For adult learners, education is more of a collaboration. They don’t need to be spoon-fed as many of them will
have information at their fingertips and already hail from the school of hard knocks in the working world.
For them, learning a theory is bland until it is injected with the spices of daily life. And they also learn to see
things in all their multi-faceted perspectives.
As a lecturer, I used to be the centre of attention in class. Today, students are looking down at their iPads and
laptops to sync what I am saying with their e-lecture notes. I am up against technology! I realise if I can’t beat them,
I’d better join them! I now use technology to communicate my thinking through Facebook, Instagram,Twitter and
other platforms.
With technology and collaborative learning, teaching becomes an enjoyment, and learning, an enlightenment.
SIM can take the lead in multi-disciplinary, cross- industrial education and training by leveraging its single biggest
asset — a diversity of learners across different age groups and walks of life.
Towards hands-on education
Mr Matthew Png
Chief executive officer, UOB Bullion & Futures
Education should not be confined to the classroom. While acquiring knowledge and skills is essential, the true test
is in their application.
For this reason, UOB Bullion & Futures has partnered SIM Global Education to set up a financial training centre
that promotes hands-on learning for students aspiring to enter the financial industry.
Besides learning from industry professionals, SIM students are given opportunities to analyse financial trends
and indicators, as well as experience virtual trading using real-time data feeds and historical information from the
CQG platform.
The bankers of today and tomorrow must have not only the right skills set but also the right attitude and a discerning mind to build and uphold trust in the industry.
As one of the three largest local banks, UOB is committed to help build a talent pool that can strengthen the
industry and also cement Singapore’s position as a regional banking hub.
From left: Mr Ronald Tan, Executive Director
of SIM, Dr Lee Kwok Cheong, CEO of SIM
Global Education and Professor Cheong
Hee Kiat, President of SIM University.
January – December 2014
News @ SIM
PAGE 9
January – December 2014
SIM50 CELEBRATIONS
THE STRAITS TIMES | Friday, November 28, 2014
A CAMPUS FOR
HOLISTIC LEARNING
SIM’s newly expanded campus on Clementi Road
is poised to support its bigger role in higher
education and lifelong learning beyond 2015.
The integrated campus is equipped with the latest
teaching and learning facilities, as well as
recreational and sporting facilities to support a
holistic education that develops competent minds,
caring hearts and healthy bodies.
Celebrating 50 Years of Fulfilling Aspirations
SIM Campus Development Phase 2
In 1964, on the initiation of the Economic
Development Board, SIM was set up to
Official Opening of
Message from Mr Lim Hng Kiang, Minister for Trade and Industry
develop professional managers and lead-
Singapore has come a long way since independence in 1965. Being
resource-scarce, people are our most valuable resource. We have built up
an educated workforce that possesses highly valuable knowledge and
skills, and reinforced this through continual training.
ers to support Singapore’s industrialisation
efforts. Since then, SIM has been empowering individuals to go further to fulfill their
To thrive in the future economy, we have to sharpen our critical thinking
skills and adaptability so as to react nimbly to rapid changes in our environments. SIM has played an important role in supporting the government’s
initiatives in building a competitive workforce for Singapore.
aspirations as they support Singapore’s economic development.
Performing Arts Theatre
I am confident that SIM will continue to play an important role in this regard.
My heartiest congratulations and best wishes to SIM.
With over 100,000 alumni, 36,000 current
Financial Training Centre
students and 50,000 members, the SIM
story is about helping these people fulfill
Phase 2 of SIM Campus Development
their aspirations through diverse learning
Message from Mr Tan Soo Jin, Chairman, SIM Governing Council
and upgrading pathways offered by SIM Uni-
SIM is proud to celebrate two milestones - our 50th year as a professional
institute that has made significant impact on the nation, and the official
opening of Phase 2 of our Campus Development Project.
versity, SIM Global Education and SIM Professional Development.
Seminar Room
Dance Studio
Many factors have contributed to our success and earned us the reputation
as a leading provider of private education and lifelong learning.
Today, SIM continues to take the lead in pri-
These include our commitment to delivering high quality and industry relevant programmes and continual investment in infrastructure and services
that support an all-rounded education. Most of all, we owe it to the support of alumni, students, members, faculty and staff; this occasion is also
a celebration of their passion and dedication to learning for a better future.
vate higher education and lifelong learning,
pioneering and innovating to fulfill its social
mission of training a competitive and futureready workforce.
Multi-purpose
Sports Hall
Heartiest congratulations to SIM on your 50th Anniversary
Congratulations to SIM on the Official Opening of your Campus Development Phase 2
Hitachi Data Systems
News @ SIM
PAGE 10
January – December 2014
News @ SIM
PAGE 11
January – December 2014
SIM50 CELEBRATIONS
BERITA MINGGU | Sunday, March 2, 2014
TODAY | Friday, March 14, 2014
Gelar diri tak pandai, tapi ada PhD
Six-time FIFA Referee of
the Year Collina to speak
at SIM event next month
Bekas pengawal kolam renang kongsi kisah mendaki tangga kejayaan dalam pendidikan dan kerjaya
by Haryani Ismail
S
DETIK MENGGEMBIRAKAN: Pada usia 44 tahun,
Dr Mohd Effendy (kiri), yang menyifatkan dirinya
tidak bijak tapi ada misi kehidupan, meraih
ijazah Doktor Falsafah (PhD) dalam pendidikan
daripada Dekan Bersekutu, Sekolah Pendidikan dan
Pembangunan Insan, Universiti George Washington,
Profesor Robert N. Ianacone. – Foto-foto ihsan
EFFENDY RAJAB
SEDIA BERBAKTI: Kegiatan
pengakap begitu dekat dalam
hati Dr Mohd Effendy sejak di
bangku Sekolah Rendah Kaki
Bukit lagi. Sebelum ini, beliau
pernah ditabalkan sebagai
pemenang Anugerah Pengakap
Presiden, yang tertinggi
diberikan kepada seorang
pengakap.
GITARKU, ‘ISTERIKU’: Sebagai penerima Anugerah
Pelajar Sepanjang Hayat, Dr Mohd Effendy tekankan
pentingnya menggarap kemahiran bahkan mengambil
kursus gitar klasikal di Yamaha, sedekad lalu.
INGAPORE - Pierluigi Collina (picture), arguably the world’s most famous football referee, will
be in Singapore next month to speak at the invitation of the Singapore Institute of Management
(SIM).
The 54-year-old Italian, a six-time FIFA Referee of the Year, is scheduled to deliver a talk entitled
“The Art of Decision Making: Transform and Stay on Top of Your Game” at the SingTel (Comcentre)
Theatrette on April 4.
He is expected to share the finer points of decision making via areas such as reliability and consistency, decision-making under pressure, and communication.
It is part of the SIM’s 50th anniversary learning series, of which SingTel is the event partner for
Collina’s talk, to help mark SIM’s 50th anniversary celebrations. The series features leading industry
or business figures who can translate their experiences into management principles that working
professionals can use.
Collina, who is currently a member of UEFA’s Referees Committee, was a FIFA referee from 1995
until his retirement in 2005.
Also widely regarded as the best referee ever, he is perhaps best known for officiating the 1999
Champions League final at Barcelona’s Camp Nou, where Manchester United beat Bayern Munich 2-1,
and Brazil’s 2-0 win over Germany in the 2002 World Cup final at the Yokohama International Stadium
in Japan.
The talk is the second of three in the SIM’s 50th anniversary learning series, after AirAsia X CEO
Azran Osman-Rani on Feb 28, with former Australian Executive Woman of the Year Catherine Devyre
the third speaker on June 27. Tan Yo-Hinn
THE BUSINESS TIMES | Monday, March 31, 2014
Meals for the needy
T
he staff and students of the Singapore Institute of Management joined
forces with the Student Advisory Centre to pack and deliver food to 120
needy families in conjunction with the institute’s 50th anniversary celebrations.
Meanwhile, soup-kitchen operator Willing Hearts had three extra pairs of
hands last Thursday – those of top chefs – to help their volunteers whip up close
to 3,500 meals for the underprivileged here.
Gelar diri tak pandai, tapi ada PhD
BELAJAR SEPANJANG HAYAT: Dr Mohd Effendy Rajab menghabiskan tempoh 11 tahun bagi
memburu sijil pengajian pengurusan, diploma, ijazah sarjana muda, sarjana dan akhirnya Doktor
Falsafah (PhD). – Foto TUKIMAN WARJI
A
pabila seorang pensyarah kelas malamnya mengucapkan selamat tinggal bagi melanjutkan
pengajian peringkat Doktor Falsafah (PhD) di Canada, hati kecilnya membentak lagi mempersenda:
“Bodohnya... buat apa bersusah payah merantau
jauh dan meninggalkan keluarga dan keselesaan
tugas, hanya mahu memburu segulung ijazah? Dah
ada ijazah sarjana, cukuplah!”
Namun, senario sekitar empat dekad lalu itu hanyalah sesuatu yang terpahat dalam fikiran Dr Mohd
Effendy Rajab, kini 59 tahun, sewaktu jiwanya masih
muda remaja dan tiada wawasan.
Tatkala itu, dengan setakat enam kelulusan Sijil
Am Pelajaran (GCE) Peringkat ‘O’, beliau bertugas
sebagai pengawal kolam renang sebelum beralih
menjadi pegawai bomba.
Berbanding kini, hati Pengarah Eksekutif di Persatuan Pengakap Singapura (SSA) itu mudah berbunga-bunga cinta setiap kali menyentuh tentang
News @ SIM
MENYENTUH HATI MASYARAKAT: Dr Mohd Effendy (berdiri, kiri) menghabiskan
masa selama lima tahun berbakti sebagai pegawai bomba dalam Pasukan Bomba
Singapura – tugas yang mendekatkannya dengan masyarakat.
pembelajaran sepanjang hayat.
Apa tidaknya, beliau yang juga pensyarah bersekutu di Institut Pengurusan Singapura (SIM) menghabiskan masa 11 tahun tanpa henti memburu sijil
pengajian pengurusan hinggalah ijazah Doktor Falsafah (PhD) dalam bidang pendidikan.
Dan pusat pengajian yang menjadi pilihannya
sepanjang lebih sedekad itu ialah SIM, institusi pengajian tinggi yang menyambut ulang tahun ke-50
tahun ini.
Bagaimanakah perjalanan cintanya dengan dunia
akademik tercetus sedangkan beliau dengan rendah
hati menyifatkan dirinya dahulu tidak pandai dan
ambil mudah soal pelajaran?
Sejauh mana pula penglibatan aktifnya dalam
kegiatan pengakap sejak di bangku Sekolah Rendah
Kaki Bukit memperkukuh misinya menyebar ilmu
dan menyentuh kehidupan orang lain?
Semua ini dikongsi Dr Mohd Effendy yang ramah
PAGE 12
lagi lucu bersama Berita Minggu dalam satu wawancara santai di SIM, barubaru ini.
Terbetik dalam hati penulis, mengapa tugas sebagai pengawal kolam renang menjadi pilihan bekas
pelajar prauniversiti di Sekolah St Patrick’s itu?
Sambil berseloroh, beliau berkata dengan wajah
selamba:
“Cool ’kan? Pakai kaca mata hitam, boleh tengok
perempuan cantik!”
Namun, beliau kemudian membuka cerita
bahawa beliau pernah memohon bagi mengikuti kursus pengajian marin untuk menjadi kapten kapal.
“Sayangnya, mereka kata daya penglihatan saya
tidak setajam mana walaupun saya sangka mata saya
cukup awas!
“Orang dah tak nak kita, kecewalah. Dalam hati
berkata-kata, ‘Tulah... main-main lagi. GCE Peringkat
‘A’ ‘hancur’ sebab hanya lulus dalam subjek Bahasa
Melayu saja!
“Kebetulan ada peluang jadi pengawal kolam renang. Saya pun mohon tugas ini
dan seronok mendalami cara menyelamatkan orang ataupun kemahiran belayar,
sesuatu yang dekat dengan dunia pengakap.
“Tapi, saya paling suka mengajar kanak kanak berenang,” ceritanya terus terang.
Dr Mohd Effendy juga mengikuti kelas malam pada waktu itu kerana kepingin
masuk universiti.
Sayangnya, beliau gagal ke menara gading dan melihat tugas sebagai pegawai
bomba di Pasukan Bomba Singapura sebagai satu tarikan.
Namun, pengalaman emas itulah yang sering dikongsi bersama pelajar jurusan
pengurusan sumber manusia dan modal insan.
Selepas lima tahun berjuang disaluti rutin tugas mencemaskan, beliau kemudian dilamar syarikat Petrochemical Corporation of Singapore sebagai pegawai
bomba dan keselamatan kanan – mata pencariannya selama 19 tahun.
“Ada ketikanya, dalam proses menyelamatkan mangsa kebakaran, saya tak
boleh lupakan imej kepala remuk atau rentung yang terpisah daripada tubuhnya.
“Otak berkecai sampaikan saya tak berselera makan sotong selama berbulan
lamanya,” ujarnya.
Namun, dalam beliau terasa nikmatnya setiap kali menyelamatkan mangsa
kebakaran, beliau juga mula memikirkan tentang masa depannya.
“Terus terang, saya katakan saya risau apabila jawatan dan tangga gaji saya
nampaknya ‘mendak’ kerana saya tiada ijazah, berbanding lulusan universiti.
“Saya terfikir, ‘sampai bila?’. Saya kemudian bulatkan tekad kembali ke bilik darjah pada usia 33 tahun. Dah dapat sijil dan kemudian diploma, saya kejar pula bagi
ijazah Sarjana Muda Perniagaan dalam Pentadbiran Perniagaan.
“Hari demi hari, semangat saya berapi-api nak buru ijazah Sarjana Sastera dalam
Pendidikan dan Pembangunan Insan daripada SIM-Universiti George Washington
pula. Saya mula seronok buat kajian dan mengulang kaji pelajaran. Orang baca
buku cereka, saya ketagih baca buku teks.
“Dan alang-alang dah dapat ijazah sarjana, apa kata ambil PhD? Saya fokus pada
kajian kepimpinan dalam pertubuhan pengakap. Lagipun, tekad saya mahu meraih
Celebrity chef Ian Curley of television’s Masterchef Australia fame, spent the
morning in the soup kitchen, helping Willing Hearts’ volunteers.
He was joined by Grand Hyatt Singapore’s executive chef Lucas Glanville and
the head chef from premium Australian Steakhouse Prime Society, Dallas Cuddy.
The trio are participants in this year’s 18th World Gourmet Summit in Singapore, which is on until April 5.
PhD sebelum usia saya mencecah 45 tahun,” tambahnya.
Tentunya, banyak pengorbanan masa, tenaga dan wang yang perlu dibuat
sepanjang 11 tahun itu.
Mujurlah, Dr Mohd Effendy yang beristerikan seorang jururawat, Cik Radiah
Koming, 60 tahun, akur dengan pegangan hidup seorang pengakap.
Sikapnya yang suka membantu nampaknya ‘berjangkit’ kepada anaknya, Encik
Mohd Ghazali, 29 tahun, pekerja sosial di Rumah Peralihan Jamiyah, Darul Islah.
“Seorang pengakap harus bersedia dengan kehidupannya – apa saja rintangan
yang dihadapi, usah putus asa. Kita tidak boleh takut gagal kerana tiada kejayaan
tanpa kegagalan.
“Hingga ke hari ini, pesan saya kepada pelajar saya, ‘Kalau nak lulus peperiksaan, jangan fikir cukup setakat rajin belajar saja tapi cintai ilmu pengetahuan sepenuhnya’.
“Dan pesan saya secara berseloroh kepada pekerja dewasa, khususnya abangabang kita ni, semaikan motivasi diri. Apa pasal apabila cakap bab belajar, terasa
dah tua dan otak berserabut? Kalau pergi Batam, amboi terasa muda... ada tenaga
pula tu!”
Sebagai penerima Anugerah Pelajar Sepanjang Hayat 2002, Dr Mohd Effendy,
yang pernah bertugas selama empat tahun sebagai Pengarah Sumber Manusia di
Pertubuhan Sedunia Pergerakan Pengakap di Geneva, Switzerland, akan terus belajar menggilap kemahirannya.
“Tengok ni kuku saya – panjang bukan? Orang kata, macam perempuan simpan
kuku panjang.
“Saya kata, sebabnya saya kaki main gitar. Bahkan, hampir 10 tahun lalu, saya
sanggup belajar gitar klasikal di kelas muzik Yamaha kerana kegilaan ini.
“Saya malahan sanggup beli gitar berharga $8,000 – satu pelaburan bagi alat
muzik yang saya anggap macam isteri pertama saya!
“Tapi, jangan khuatir... saya tetap hargai dan tidak abaikan isteri saya. Apabila
dah ‘tercampak’ di Geneva dan perlu masak, basuh dan berkemas sendiri selama
empat tahun, barulah saya terasa betapa pentingnya bakti seorang isteri,” katanya
penuh bermakna.
haryani@sph.com.sg
Continued on page 13
January – December 2014
News @ SIM
PAGE 13
January – December 2014
SIM50 CELEBRATIONS
THE SUNDAY TIMES | Sunday, July 20, 2014
THE STRAITS TIMES (LIFE) | Saturday, July 26, 2014
Saxophonist star shines bright
Review
Concert
PRESIDENT’S YOUNG PERFORMERS CONCERT
Singapore Symphony Orchestra, Jason Lai, conductor,
Samuel Phua, saxophone
Victoria Concert Hall/Thursday
(Above) Ms DeVrye (back row, far right) with her powder puff football teammates at the University of Calgary. (Below) Ms DeVrye at Everest Base Camp. To her,
nature is her balm and elixir.
Ms Devrye’s strict upbringing kept her grounded while growing up on the wrong side of the tracks in Calgary. Her go-getting
attitude has seen her taking on a spectrum of jobs – from waitress to political aide to corporate bigwig.
ST PHOTO: LIM SIN THAI
Extraordinary life
after double blow
by Wong Kim Hoh
Senior Writer
Adult advice – bad and good
“One of my principals once said: ‘You guys are nothing, your parents are nothing.’ He was a jerk. At that
age, you wonder what adults tell you was true. Luckily, I had a very good friend whose mother told me:
‘It’s not where you live but how you live that counts,
and that has always stuck with me.”
MS CATHERINE DEVRYE, on her formative years
Gift of life
“People asked me why I didn’t resent my biological
mother for abandoning me. What was there to forgive? I have a great life. Don’t give me credit for being
forgiving; she gave me the gift of life.”
MS DEVRYE, on how she felt about being abandoned by her biological mother
by Albert Lin
T
he annual President’s Young Performers Concert returned to the recently reopened Victoria Concert Hall this year, having been held at the Esplanade
Concert Hall since 2004.
Now in its 14th year running, the concert fulfils the ambition of every young
musician in Singapore – to share the stage with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. Led by associate conductor Jason Lai, the orchestra opened proceedings confidently in the world premiere of Bernard Tan’s Aspirations Overture, written to
commemorate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Singapore Institute of
Management.
Full of oriental influences, the overture was typical Tan – genuinely accessible
and unpretentious. Themes were simply presented and there was to be no complex atonal metamorphosis.
It was immediately apparent, though, that the biggest obstacle the musicians
faced this evening was to achieve a balance of timbre in their refurbished old
home. While the woodwinds and brass were pristinely clear, especially in the passages where the four flautists tackled frenetic running notes in unison, the upper
strings were too bright, and the basses sounded diffused.
This proved to be the same in Barber’s Adagio For Strings. Conductor Lai’s earnest approach shed the work of its usual hyper-romanticism and instead opted for
a more sincere, heartrending delivery. Although entries were at times tentative, it
was impossible not to be swept away by the purity of the harmonic texture the
orchestra conjured.
Debussy’s Prelude To The Afternoon Of A Faun is perhaps one of the most
dynamic works representative of the Impressionistic era being both visually stimulating and overwhelming in dramatic impact. Lai evoked the most contrasting
moods from the work, alternating between sensuous eroticism and nostalgia, and
obliged flautist Evgueni Brokmiller’s indulgent solos that sounded totally improvised.
The brass section was particularly impressive in Aaron Copland’s Appalachian
Springs, being both powerful and precise in execution.
Not to be outdone, the woodwinds responded with some playful and witty
dialogue that brought on the smiles. However, the shoebox acoustics of the hall
worked against the ensemble at times. The dramatic effects of rests and accents
were lost in lush reverberance and pianissimo sections sounded too thin.
The star of the evening was 16-year-old saxophonist Samuel Phua, currently a
student at the School of the Arts and the first wind player featured in this annual
concert. Exuding confidence from the moment he stepped onstage, he possessed
a calm persona that served him well in Jacques Ibert’s Concertino da Camera and
John Williams’ Escapades from the movie Catch Me If You Can (2002).
It wasn’t just his immaculate control of his instrument that struck one most.
The way he was completely involved in the music-making, leading and shaping
phrases, prompted a response from the orchestra that is missing in performances
far too often, and it was a pleasure seeing both soloist and orchestra communicating with each other fervently.
His lush tone was of the highest quality and he handled the trickier passages
faultlessly and with ease.
Confidence is a two-edged sword. Too much or too little of it can be detrimental, but in this case, Phua would be better served to ignore his age and have complete confidence in his abilities. As the saying goes, if you’re good enough, you’re
old enough. He is destined for great things.
THE BUSINESS TIMES | Monday, September 29, 2014
SIM funds for charities
AS part of its 50th anniversary celebrations, the Singapore Institute of Management
(SIM) organised a carnival which raised over S$38,000 for its adopted
charities – the Singapore Children’s Society and Student Advisory Centre.
Speaker Catherine DeVrye is one to seize the day, not wallow in grief
W
hen her adoptive parents died within a year of each
other in 1973, Catherine DeVrye was knocked out
by a tsunami of grief and sorrow.
Abandoned as a baby, she had been taken home by
the childless couple when she was just a few months old
and raised with much love in Calgary, Canada.
“My whole world was shattered. The people who were
always there were not there any more,” says Ms DeVrye,
who was then a 22-year-old physical education lecturer at
a college in Grande Prairie in north-west Alberta.
Her best friend, who was on a teaching exchange in
Australia with her husband, sent her a telegram asking
her to head Down Under to clear her head.
Her college would not grant her leave, so Ms DeVrye
quit, stuffed what she needed into a backpack and flew
to Melbourne with just $200 in her pocket. “What was
supposed to have been a three-month working holiday
turned into 40 years,” says the vivacious woman, now 63
and an Australian citizen.
That trip was also the start of a remarkable professional and personal journey. She worked at a dizzying
array of jobs – waitress, cook, sports director, political aide
and corporate honcho – before becoming a much-lauded
author and speaker. She dined with royalty, counted
Olympic athletes as friends, scaled Mount Kilimanjaro and
cycled across the Andes.
She got married and divorced, cheated death several
times, broke her back, survived cancer and tracked down
her birth parents.
“I guess I’m an ordinary person for whom many
extraordinary things have happened. I don’t have a perfect life, but I think I have a pretty damn good one,” says
Ms DeVrye, who was in town last month to speak at the
Singapore Institute of Management’s 50th Anniversary
Learning Series.
Sprightly with an athlete’s build, she says she grew up
on the wrong side of the tracks in Calgary.
Her adoptive father worked as a chef for a railway
company but lost his job when the company got rid of
its dining cars and he had to look for a job in northern
Alberta. Her adoptive mother worked as a stenographer.
“They were very strict and religious. I wasn’t allowed
to wear high heels or go to parties. In retrospect, it was
probably a good thing because I could easily have fallen
with the wrong company,” says Ms DeVrye, who found
out she was adopted when she was in her teens.
The news troubled her for a few days. “My mother
said she would help me look for my parents if I wanted
to when I was older. But I decided to look forward. I told
myself it didn’t matter what happened in the past,” she
says.
Although a smart child, she worked hard at dumbing
herself down in school. “It just wasn’t cool to be good in
school. It sounds pretty stupid now, but like every kid, I
craved to be accepted,” she says.
The boys liked her, though, because she was good
in sports and especially nifty in gridiron football and ice
hockey. “Playing sports helped me in
my working life later. A lot of women
who do not play sports say there is a
glass ceiling, but if you do, you learn
that you don’t always win, but there is
always the next game,” she says.
Her parents could not see the
point of her going to university, so she
worked part-time as a waitress, a grocery store clerk and
a lifeguard, among other jobs, to pay her way through
college.
A combined basketball and academic scholarship
allowed her to get her Master of Science at the University
of Montana in Missoula, after which she became a college
PE teacher in Grande Prairie.
The deaths of her parents were a big blow.
Upon arriving in Melbourne, she got a job as a teacher
at a school for underprivileged children.
Other gigs followed – chambermaid in Cairns, waitress in Surfer’s Paradise – before she ended up in a bauxite
mine in northern Queensland.
With a laugh, she describes the stint as an experience
because there were “2,000 men and just six women” in
the mining community.
Soon, she had earned enough for a ticket home to
Canada. But a flood caused her plane to be stranded in
Alice Springs and proved to be a game-changer in other
ways.
A newspaper advertisement caught her eye. The Victorian government was looking for female candidates to
fill a position as its director of sports. “I did the crossword
puzzle, but the plane was still stranded, so I asked for a
piece of paper and wrote out my application letter for the
position,” she says.
Back in Melbourne, she hand-delivered the letter. “I
told the receptionist I was only in Australia for a week if
they wanted to interview me,” she recalls.
The call came and in August 1974,
she started work with the Department of
Youth, Sport and Recreation.
Her job was to come up with a blueprint for sport and recreation in Australia
as Victoria was the first state to have a
department dedicated to these pursuits.
She did well, was sent on leadership
courses, made many friends with athletes and met royalty including Prince Charles, with whom she, inebriated,
had a tipsy conversation. The prince apparently asked her
which part of Canada she came from. Her reply? “Good on
ya. Most people think I’m American. No matter, you’ll be
king one day.”
A turning point came a couple of years later. Her Canadian boyfriend came out to Australia and the couple got
married.
Continued on page 15
News @ SIM
PAGE 14
January – December 2014
Extraordinary life after double blow
They headed back to Canada but finding a job
proved difficult.
“I became a cook on an oil rig in Alberta although I
was terrible in the kitchen. My husband became the bottle washer,” she says. “We hated our jobs and everybody
hated us.”
The couple headed back Down Under, where she
worked at her old job for a few months before a politician from the Liberal Party asked if she was interested in
becoming his press secretary and speech-writer.
She stayed three years, working for three different
ministers but lost her job when the Liberals lost the elections.
Ms DeVrye decided to approach IBM, which had
offered her a job earlier. “I had written to them saying
that computers had given people a lot of extra leisure
time and that they should give me a job to help these
people manage their extra leisure time.”
The computer company gave her a sales position.
Although she baulked at the offer, one of her mentors told her to take it. “He said it would be like getting
my MBA as IBM offered very good training. I went from
working with ministers and having a chauffeur to being
the most junior person in IBM.”
She surprised herself by doing well. “I guess I tried
not to sell computers. My approach was, ‘What is your
problem? Maybe the computer can help.’”
Her rise at IBM was fast. She was promoted to recruitment manager, which involved a move to Sydney and,
not long after, became human resource head of the company’s Asia-Pacific headquarters in Tokyo.
Her marriage, however, broke down.
In Tokyo, she fell seriously ill one day and landed
in hospital. Her inability to answer questions about her
next of kin and their disease profile prompted her to
track down her biological parents.
News @ SIM
“I only knew my mother’s surname was Bachman,”
says Ms DeVrye. She went to the Canadian Embassy in
Tokyo, borrowed its phone book and wrote to almost
200 people with that surname.
There were several replies, some nasty, some kind.
One couple wrote back giving her addresses of Bachmans living in small towns and not listed in the phone
book.
That was when she struck pay dirt. Her maternal
grandmother wrote back. That was how she came to
meet her biological father, Mr Harold Mandeville, an
eight-time Canadian rodeo champion, and her mother,
Trudy, in 1988.
Her mother told her that she bundled her off at three
months old to a welfare organisation during one especially severe winter. Other family members later told her
different versions, but Ms DeVrye says it does not matter.
“I don’t know how it was for a single mother in the
50s with two children. She had another child out of
wedlock before me,” says Ms DeVrye, who wrote her
memoir, Because I Can, which was nominated for the
Australian Biography Award in 2005. It was also released
as Serendipity Road in North America, where it became
a best-seller.
From having no other family members, she suddenly
became one of 98 grandchildren and great-grandchildren from both sides of her family. Both her biological
parents have since died.
After Japan, she returned to Australia, where she
took charge of education and communications for IBM,
including organising seminars and conferences.
Before one major conference, a speaker on stress
management pulled out at the last minute.
She volunteered to fill in as she was trained in the
area, but her suggestion was shot down by her colleagues, who told her they needed an expert.
“IBM had just sent me off to Harvard to do a short
leadership course, so I said a friend of mine, Professor
PAGE 15
Barbara Nickson, was out from Harvard and we could
get her very cheaply. There was no Barbara Nickson. I
just put on glasses, a wig and an American accent. No
one recognised me,” she says.
Her talk went down well, and IBM – quick to recognise her new talent – was soon sending her out to speak
on customer service to banks and other corporations.
Named Telstra’s Australian Executive Woman of the
Year in 1993, she decided speaking was her new calling
and struck out on her own. Ms DeVrye, who was Australian Speaker of the Year in 1999 and 2000, has since
spoken in five continents on topics such as customer
service, resilience and change.
Asked to explain her popularity, she says: “It’s easy
when you speak on something you believe in, but when
you speak to impress, that’s a different story. People
always want to look for the magic bullet, but I always
tell them they have to look at what’s inside them.”
It helps that she openly shares her trials and tribulations, including her brush with cancer – malignant melanoma – several years ago.
“It was scary. I just saw myself on my mother’s death
bed. I don’t have a belief system but I told myself that
this might be the only life I have so I have to live it fully,”
says the author of eight books. She donates all the proceeds of her books to charity.
Her balm and elixir, she says, is nature. That is why
Ms DeVrye – who carried the Olympic torch during the
Sydney Games in 2000 – has cycled over the Andes,
scaled beyond Everest Base Camp and trekked to Timbuktu.
She relishes life.
“An elderly gentleman once told me, ‘Every day above
the ground is a good one.’”
kimhoh@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
SIM50 CELEBRATIONS
THE STRAITS TIMES | Friday, August 1, 2014
TODAY | Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Arts and sports have pride of place at SIM
SIM celebrates its 50th year
(Clockwise from above) A member of SIM’s windsurfing club manoeuvring a sail at the SIM Atrium during an open house; SIM’s new Wellness
Centre, which students can visit at any time; and students rehearsing a dance at the new performance arts theatre. ST PHOTOS: STEFFI KOH
Students get new sports
and arts facilities with
$300m campus
expansion
by Sandra Davie
SENIOR EDUCATION CORRESPONDENT
S
tudents enrolled in private schools
are usually more focused on getting a degree than taking up sports or
other co-curricular activities (CCAs).
But surprisingly, 40 per cent of the
19,000 full-time students at Singapore’s
biggest private school do so.
Now the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) is hoping to raise this
participation rate even further, having
completed the expansion of its Clementi
Road campus which it shares with SIM
University.
The $300 million expansion has
doubled the campus size, with an additional 63,000 sq m and new sports and
performance arts spaces. These include a
multi-purpose sports hall, tennis courts,
a dance studio and a performance arts
theatre that can seat 460 people.
Mr Lee Kwok Cheong, who heads SIM
Global Education which runs degree programmes with overseas university part-
ners, revealed that besides a transcript
of the academic results, the school is
also looking into issuing students with a
record of their achievements outside the
classroom.
This will include his or her participation in sports, clubs and other activities
such as student exchange programmes
and internships.
SIM GE offers more than 70 sports and
student activity clubs ranging from basketball and dragon boat racing to singing
and photography. Its students take part
in the Singapore University Games and
Institute-Varsity-Polytechnic Games.
Mr Lee said employers are increasingly looking beyond grades at the
out-of-classroom activities of students.
“They are looking for leadership skills,
resilience, ability to work with teams,” he
said.
“We will continue to give students a
good academic grounding, but we hope
that students will also participate in
sports and other activities we provide.
Besides the fun and games, students
will have the opportunity to plan, organise and manage these activities, helping
them grow as leaders and develop organisational and people skills,” he added.
Mr Ronald Tan, SIM’s executive director, said the school strongly believes in
holistic education and does not hold back
on building sports facilities or hiring staff
to run student activities.
SIM GE has close to 60 staff who come
under the student life and services unit.
“SIM may be privately run, but from
its inception in 1964 it always had a
social mission as well, in manpower
development,” said Mr Tan. “So we are
not satisfied with just running degree
programmes. We want to offer a vibrant
campus environment with platforms for
leadership and personal development.”
Mr Daryl Seah, 26, chose to go to SIM
because of its co-curricular activities. The
final-year business management student
plays in SIM’s basketball team and is vicepresident of the singing club.
“It makes university life so much
more interesting,” he said.
“For one thing, you get to meet people from all walks of life. As a leader you
learn to organise events and manage
people. Playing in competitions teaches
you to play hard and be a team player.
It also teaches you to bounce back from
failures.”
Ms Corrine Siew, 19, who is entering
SIM this year, hopes to take up netball
and dance.
“I thought I would not have as interesting a university life as my friends
entering the public universities, so I was
pleasantly surprised to see the spanking new sports hall and dance studios at
SIM,” she said. “It is great that SIM, despite
being a private institution, believes in
offering students a range of activities.”
THE Singapore Institute of Management
(SIM) has grown from a membership-based
management institute to a leading private
institution providing full-time and part-time
degrees. Recognising its quality, the Government gave it the charter to set up a university for part-time working adults in 2005
and SIM University (UniSIM) was born.
In 2012, the Government announced
that UniSIM would take in governmentfunded full-time undergraduates from this
year.
It has also been designated Singapore’s
third law school with a focus on social and
community law.
SIM Global Education, which runs degree
programmes with overseas university partners, also made its mark as the leading private educational institution.
Its student intake has grown from
16,000 in 2006 to 23,000 this year.
MILESTONES
1964: SIM is founded with funding from the Economic Development Board.
1965: SIM begins offering short courses,
seminars and lectures.
1972: SIM acquires its own premises at
Thong Teck Building in Scotts Road.
1973: SIM launches a two-year part-time
Diploma in Management Studies.
1986: A full-time degree programme is
launched – Bachelor of Science (Economics)
in Management Studies of the University of
London.
1989: SIM moves to Management House
in Namly Avenue.
1992: The Ministry of Education invites
SIM to run Open University degree programmes to give Singaporeans who missed
out on a tertiary education a second chance
at acquiring a degree.
1998: Phase One of the new SIM HQ in
Clementi is completed.
2005: SIM University is established as the
first private university for working adults.
UniSIM becomes known for its part-time,
flexible and practice-focused education.
2012: SIM University is designated by the
Government to be Singapore’s sixth university to offer full-time degree programmes.
2013: SIM University is chosen to host
Singapore’s third law school.
2014: SIM University launches three fulltime degree programmes in accountancy,
finance and marketing.
SANDRA DAVIE
sandra@sph.com.sg
Meet some of the
people behind
Project Intan who
helped to raise more
than S$190,000
ingapore — What do a swimmer,
museum guide, office cleaner and
educational institute have in common? Giving back to the community
through Project Intan, an initiative
started by entrepreneur Alvin Yapp to
raise funds for charity.
The 44-year-old director of
BusAds is also the owner of The
Intan, his homecum-museum which
showcases his personal collection of
Peranakan curations. The boutique
museum has also hosted several
open houses to create awareness
and encourage participation in Project Intan.
“Project Intan’s formula for fundraising is this: No advertisements
but one-on-one, personalised efforts
through open-house invitations to
The Intan,” said Mr Yapp. “Project
Intan isn’t all about fund-raising. It is
also about celebrating Peranakan culture and music.”
The OCBC-TODAY Children’s
Fundwas set up to help children from
distressed families who have suffered
the effects of neglect or even abuse.
Donations go towards the Singapore
Children’s Society (SCS) and its beneficiaries.
Since adopting the fund this year,
Project Intan has raised more than
S$190,000 with the help of over 160
individual donors and corporations.
One of the donors is Mr Lim Shyong
Piau, who combined his love for swimming with his wish to help the children.
嘉年华为慈善筹款近四万元
新 加 坡 管 理 学 院 50 周 年
新加坡管理学院提供照片
邓华贵／报道
新加坡管理学院上周六（20日）配合50周年庆，在校园里举办慈善嘉年华，为助养的
慈善团体新加坡儿童会（Singapore Children’
s Society）和学生咨询中心（Student Advisory
Centre）筹集了3万8000元。
这笔善款来自新加坡管理学院嘉年华的售票所得，以及上周六举办的“垂直竞
赛”（Vertical Challenge）。
57名参赛者在校园里一栋7层楼高的建筑物里上下来回跑，每跑完一圈，新加
坡管理学院就会捐出20元，以汗水换来善款。
上周六的嘉年华成功筹得3万8000元，加上今年配合校庆举办的其他筹款活
动，学院一共为慈善筹得7万6000元。
上周六的嘉年华会，吸引2000多人参与，大多为新加坡管理学院师生和家属。
除了“垂直竞赛”，现场也有多个游戏和美食摊位，让大人小孩在玩乐的同时，也为
慈善尽一份力。
PAGE 16
现场有多个游戏和美食摊位，让大人小孩玩乐
的同时，也为慈善尽一份力。
“垂直竞赛”的57名挑战者在一栋7层楼高的
建筑物里上下来回跑。
January – December 2014
Mrs Elizabeth Prakasam (holding The Intan sign) with the group, Museum Volunteers, volunteer their time at The Intan as museum guides.
PHOTO: THE INTAN
S
SWIMMING FOR THE CHILDREN
LIANHE ZAOBAO | Wednesday, September 24, 2014
News @ SIM
Charity’s
common
ground
At the Singapore Swimming
Club open championships held this
August, the 43-year-old managing director of an asset management company asked his friends to
pledge S$5 per person, and double
the amount if he won gold in the
50-metre freestyle event. He did and
his efforts pooled together more than
S$5,000 for the OCBC-TODAY Children’s Fund.
“Anyone and everyone can do his
part for charity. It doesn’t matter if
you contribute time or money, and
whether your effort is big or small, as
long as it’s for a cause that you deem
important,” said Mr Lim.
News @ SIM
Mr Lim Shyong Piau (left) combined his love
for swimming with charity to help Mr Alvin
Yapp (right), founder of Project Intan.
PHOTO: MR LIM SHYONG PIAU
EVERY BIT COUNTS
Mdm Tan Seow Tian, 61, shares Mr
Lim’s philosophy on giving. Working as a part-time cleaner, Mdm Tan
takes home less than S$800 a month.
Yet, she donated S$200 to the OCBCTODAY Children’s Fund through Project
Intan.
“I don’t make much but I have
enough for myself as my husband is
working and my children are financially independent,” she said. “I can’t
help the children directly, so this is
the best way for me to do so.”
Another contributor is Mrs Elizabeth Prakasam, who is part of The
Intan’s group of volunteer guides,
Museum Volunteers. At a tea hosted
by Mr Yapp for them, the 61-year-old
customer service consultant learnt
about the fund and, together with 19
other volunteers, raised S$1,445 on
the spot.
Said Mrs Prakasam: “OCBC
inspires the public to co-share the
responsibility of looking out for the
less fortunate.”
Indeed, OCBC has committed to
give S$1 for every S$2 raised. The
fund will cap donations at S$1.5 million each year, with S$1 million from
public contributions and S$500,000
from OCBC’s commitment.
PAGE 17
Children enjoying a game at one of the SIM Carnival game booths.
PHOTO: SIM
HELPING THE FUTURE
OF SINGAPORE
Organisations have also chipped in.
The Singapore Institute of Management (SIM), for instance, has donated
S$20,000 to Project Intan. The amount
was carved out of the S$100,000 SIM
raised this year as part of its 50th anniversary celebrations. The rest of the
money will benefit two charities — one
of which is the SCS — that SIM has
adopted.
The money was raised through
activities such as an anniversary carnival, sale of memorabilia and other
items as well as cash donations from
staff and students.
Said Mr Ronald Tan, SIM’s executive director: “As a not-for-profit
educational institution with a social
mission to support Singapore’s
manpower development, we see
our children as the future of Singapore.” PRODUCED BY THE TODAY
SPECIAL PROJECTS TEAM
Participants at the SIM Vertical Challenge,
which helped to raise funds. PHOTO: SIM
January – December 2014
DEEPENING OUR IMPRINT
THE STRAITS TIMES | Saturday, November 29, 2014
New extension at SIM
completes $300m revamp
by Cheryl Faith Wee
T
he new extension of the Singapore Institute
of Management’s (SIM) campus was officially
opened yesterday as part of the institution’s 50th
anniversary celebrations.
Two buildings were added to the campus in Clementi under the final phase of a $300 million development plan.
They house facilities such as a financial training
centre, a multipurpose sports hall and a performing
arts theatre.
SIM’s campus development plan was first
announced in 2009 and the first phase was completed
four years ago.
With the completion of this phase in September,
the institute’s campus now covers 110,000 sq m, double its previous size.
Said Mr Tan Soo Jin, the chairman of the SIM Governing Council: “Compared to this modern campus,
SIM’s first home was a very modest 2,000 sq ft office
on the second floor of a shophouse at South Bridge
Road... our expanded campus consolidates our position as the largest private education institution, in
terms of campus size and student population.”
Minister for Trade and Industry Lim Hng Kiang said
that SIM has played a critical role over the years in
developing Singapore’s workforce by providing flexible and sector-relevant education and training.
“Going forward, SIM must ensure that its programmes maintain their relevance to industry needs.
This is important as our economy restructures, creating new niches and new jobs,” said Mr Lim in a speech
at the event last night.
cherylw@sph.com.sg
by Michael Cox
FOR THE STRAITS TIMES
In a globalised era of “mutually
assured economic destruction”,
talk of countries rising and falling
is pointless
News @ SIM
THE STRAITS TIMES | Monday, January 6, 2014
More than good grades
needed for a place at UniSIM
Four-step selection process for its three full-time degree courses
RIGOROUS PROCESS
First interview: View a video online at
home. Interview question will be related to
video.
Group interview
Cognitive abilities test: 15-minute test
assesses reasoning and problem-solving abilities
Individual interviews before a panel
by Sandra Davie
SENIOR EDUCATION CORRESPONDENT
MORE generally, the emerging economies all face
a basic problem: Their rise has in large part been
dependent on conditions that cannot endure forever.
One of these is a constant rise in commodity prices;
the other is the economic rise of China itself.
New world order?
It’s sink or
swim – for all
T HAS become the new truth of the early 21st century that the West is fast losing its pre-eminence in
the world – to be replaced by a new international system shaped by either the so-called Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), the “rest” , a rising
China or even by that very broadly defined geographical entity known as Asia.
It is difficult to dispute some self-evident economic
facts about the changing balance of economic power.
Visit booming Singapore, walk around downtown Kuala
Lumpur, or spend time in Beijing, and you can just see
and feel the buzz. As influential economics journalist Martin Wolf recently observed in his new bestselling
book (The Shifts And The Shocks): If before the 2008
financial crash the West felt that it was the master of the
universe, afterwards it very much looked as if the baton
had been passed to a new generation of upwardly mobile
international players.
But why should we be so surprised? After all, change
has been going on since the beginning of time. And even
the most sceptical of Western pundits would have to concede that huge economic strides have been made – not
just in China or India, but in other booming economies
like Turkey and Mexico.
Even economies in some parts of sub-Saharan Africa
are booming, while high-end retailers around the world
are drooling as they survey a new world which, by 2020,
will be home to a cash-rich, consumer-savvy global middle class numbering just over three billion people.
Who first spotted this shift remains unclear. But perhaps one individual can lay claim to having been intellectually present at the creation: Jim O’Neill of Goldman
Sachs who, back in 2001, predicted a major turn away
from the old economies to Asia, energy-rich Russia and
the equally commodity-rich country of Brazil.
Indeed, Mr O’Neill invented the acronym, the Brics.
Born when the United States was riding high, and viewed
with utter indifference by more orthodox thinkers, his
DEEPENING OUR IMPRINT
Basic problem of emerging economies
THE STRAITS TIMES | Tuesday, December 9, 2014
I
do – open up its highly protected, state-owned economy
to global competition.
Second, while it is true that many new states are
assuming a bigger role, their rise needs to be looked at
more carefully than it has been so far.
In fact, a careful look at the Brics as a whole reveals
something crucial. Each faces some very big problems.
Russia is in the midst of an economic crisis caused by its
poor relationship with the West. Some analysts are now
even predicting a deepening Russian economic crisis
over the next few months – especially if oil prices continue to stagnate.
Brazil, meanwhile, is facing an uphill struggle to maintain its previous rates of growth. India is mired down by
poor infrastructure, corruption and mass poverty. And
China faces an uncertain future precisely because it can
no longer grow at the rate it has been for the past 25
years.
Furthermore, China’s rise has set off a series of tremors which bodes ill for the future stability of the region.
Making claims to the whole of the South China Sea and
confronting Japan over those islands might play well to
a domestic audience. And no doubt China has the muscle to impose its will over weaker neighbours. But if the
current situation continues or gets worse, then it will
undermine China’s position in a region that it has been
assiduously wooing since the beginning of the century.
It will also lead to the opposite of what China wants – an
even greater US presence.
prediction looked faintly absurd. Ten years on and his
central claim – that the world economy was changing
fast and would demand new forms of governance – had
almost become the new wisdom of the age.
Notable Singapore academic Kishore Mahbubani was
another significant voice in this debate. However, according to Professor Mahbubani, it would not be the big four
as such that could lay claim to the future. Rather it would
be Asia more generally.
What Prof Mahbubani defined as an “irresistible” shift
eastwards was underway, one that would not only turn
the world upside down, but would, in his view, return the
global order back to where it had been before the West
had momentarily taken over in the late 17th century. The
Western moment was fast coming to an end, he opined.
Prof Mahbubani was characteristically forthright. The
world was not just shifting from one place to another,
in many ways it was also returning to where it rightfully,
almost naturally, belonged – to Asia.
Too early to get carried away
BEFORE we get carried away, though, we need to take
stock. First, while we should be aware of what is obviously changing in the world, what has not changed quite
so much is the still enormous structural advantages still
enjoyed by the US and its Western allies. Let us not forget
that, taken together, the Americans and the Europeans
still account for around 50 per cent of world GDP, well
over 70 per cent of its military spending, most of its foreign direct investment, 80 per cent of its top corporations and nearly 90 per cent of its best universities. The
US and the European Union also happen to print two of
the world’s leading currencies.
Indeed, the US dollar still figures in 60 per cent of all
global economic transactions. While people might like to
talk up the new international role of a fully convertible
yuan, I suspect they will still be talking about it in 20
years – unless China does what it has so far refused to
PAGE 18
But as The Straits Times recently reported, China and
Chinese manufacturing are now at a six-month low and
look like remaining low for some time to come, unless
of course the government takes the economically risky
decision of rebooting the economy once again.
It is not just China that faces some tough decisions.
The world economy overall looks anything but dynamic
and healthy as we move towards 2015. Japan’s threeyear dash for growth has shuddered to a halt. The EU,
meantime, shows no sign of recovering any time soon.
Meanwhile, the US looks set to make a series of big
decisions that could cause problems for other countries.
Indeed, if the Federal Reserve in Washington cuts back
on quantitative easing and then does what orthodox
economists have been prodding it to do for ages – raise
interest rates – this could send shockwaves around a
world that for the last six years has been doing very
well because the US has been flooding it with liquidity at
almost zero rates.
Take away this life-support machine and the rising
“rest”, the Brics and indeed Asia as a region could be in
for some very rough times.
Finally, we would all do well to remember that we are
all in the same boat together.
Take China. There are many reasons why it has been
successful economically. But even its much discussed
(and sometimes exaggerated) rise would not have been
possible without a stable region, included within which
are several key US allies, and a willingness on the part of
the US – and the EU – to open their markets to Chinese
goods. China may not like to be reminded of the fact.
But the truth is that its prosperity depends on that same
Western-led economic order it now seems intent on challenging.
By the same measure, the West also needs a prosperous China, not to mention a peaceful and economically
dynamic Asia. This, after all, is what globalisation is all
about; and why globalisation renders all talk of one part
of the world rising while others fall, pointless and dangerous.
We all sink or swim together in an era of what I term
“mutually assured economic destruction”; an era defined
by close interdependency, in which decline and disorder
in one part of the international system can only make
matters worse for those living in others.
A failure to understand this simple truth could be
catastrophic.
Indeed, a failure to appreciate this most basic of facts
means there is at least a chance in these increasingly
uncertain times that the enormous economic strides we
have all made together since the end of the Cold War
could be squandered forever. There is a world to lose.
• The writer is professor of international relations at the
London School of Economics and Political Science. He was in
Singapore to give a public lecture on Nov 20 for the Singapore
Institute of Management’s 50th anniversary celebrations.
January – December 2014
Flexibility will be a key feature of the full-time courses. Students can crunch a four-year course into three years by taking more modules. ST FILE PHOTO
S
INGAPORE’S sixth university, SIM University
(UniSIM), will open applications for its three fulltime degree programmes next Wednesday.
But to secure one of the 200 places in accountancy, marketing or finance, applicants will need
more than good grades.
Students will be selected based on not just academic results, but also other attributes such as social
consciousness and commitment and creativity.
UniSIM provost Tsui Kai Chong said about 400
applicants will be shortlisted for the four-step selection process.
First, the students will be asked to view a video
online at home before turning up at UniSIM. There,
they will be posed a question related to the video.
Next is a group interview, where they will again
be posed a scenario and asked questions.
Applicants will then sit a 15-minute cognitive
abilities test that assesses reasoning and problemsolving abilities. This will then be followed by individual interviews before a panel.
The courses are targeted at fresh A-level holders
and polytechnic upgraders.
Professor Tsui admits that the selection, which
will take half a day, is rigorous. But he said the university is serious about looking for students with the
five Cs – commitment, consciousness, cognition,
News @ SIM
creativity and communication.
Although UniSIM is offering full-time degree programmes for the first time, he expects a good number of applications to come in as the three courses
are popular with those heading to university.
“Just going by the fact that some 5,000 enrol in
SIM global education arm every year gives an indication of how popular business-related courses are,”
he said.
“I am sure we will have a good pool of applicants.
The difficult part is getting the kind of students we
want.”
The university now offers over 50 part-time
degree courses, from counselling to aviation management, with a total enrolment of about 16,000
students, mostly working adults.
Separately, its global education arm runs degree
programmes with overseas university partners, such
as the University of London and Royal Melbourne
Institute of Technology. Over 80 per cent of students
are Singaporeans.
Full-time national serviceman Bertram Tan, 21,
said that despite the rigorous selection process, he
will still apply for the finance degree course.
The polytechnic graduate, who holds a business
diploma, said: “I like the fact that the degree route
will be flexible and allow me to do more internships.”
PAGE 19
Flexibility will be a defining feature of UniSIM’s
new full- time courses when they start in August.
Students can crunch a four-year course into three
years by taking more modules during a semester,
even via evening classes.
And if students land a job during their course,
they have the option of switching to part-time studies and taking up to six years to earn their degree.
The other emphasis will be on getting students
career-ready. They will be required to do longer and
more substantial work attachments, where they will
take on job tasks other employees perform.
UniSIM’s admissions will close in April, to accommodate A-level students who will be receiving their
results in March.
But Prof Tsui said shortlisted applicants who have
been through the selection interviews will know the
outcome in two weeks to a month.
The Singapore Institute of Technology, which is
also adding more courses and places, will open its
admissions on Saturday. It will offer three of its own
degree courses in infrastructure engineering, software engineering and accountancy. With the new
courses, its total intake will be about 1,600 this year.
sandra@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
DEEPENING OUR IMPRINT
THE STRAITS TIMES | Thursday, January 23, 2014
THE STRAITS TIMES | Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Adding diversity to the university scene
Keen interest in UniSIM’s flexible
full-time courses
First there were two. Then the third came along in 2000. Today, there are six universities. With stiffer
competition for students, each is now building up niche strengths, with some offering residential and
overseas stints to all students.
by Sandra Davie
Students can cut four-year course to three or switch to part-time if they work
SENIOR EDUCATION CORRESPONDENT
A
-level school leavers and
polytechnic
graduates
applying for a university place
this year are faced with the
difficult but happy problem of
having to choose from a range
of higher education options.
Parents are also struck by
the myriad of choices available. Madam R. Saroja, an
alumnus of National University of Singapore whose son
is applying for a university
place this year said: “When
I applied to university in the
80s, it was just NUS or NTU
(Nanyang Technological University), which was then Nanyang Technological Institute,
and did only engineering.
“And since I wanted to do
an arts degree, the only university I could go to was NUS.
“Compare that to my son
who wants to do engineering
or business, or combine both.
He has six universities and 12
different degrees to choose
from and all of them sound
good. I wish I was back in university.”
As recently as 14 years
ago, there were only NUS and
NTU. Singapore’s third university, Singapore Management
University, began taking in
students in 2000.
From the word go, SMU
competed as an upstart with
established players and got
them to rethink what they
themselves were doing.
Ironically, when SMU was
first conceived, it was modelled on the established NUS
and NTU.
The initial plan was for
NTU’s business students to go
to SMU, while NUS gradually
reduced its business intake.
NTU was to award degrees
to SMU students until the new
university acquired a charter
to grant its own.
New approach
But the Government did an
about turn in 1999, just one
year before its opening, and
announced that SMU, which
had tied up with the American Wharton Business School,
would award its own degrees,
and all three universities
would compete for students.
The thinking was that competition never hurt anyone,
and if SMU was successful,
the others would want to
change too.
Faced with the challenge
of establishing its own identity from the start, SMU chose
deliberately to differentiate
itself from NUS and NTU.
Unlike the two established
News @ SIM
universities, which then
admitted students based on
examination results, SMU
used a broad range of criteria when it admitted its first
batch of students.
This included panel interviews, a reflective essay, and
applicants’ other qualities and
achievements.
The new university also
moved to address the old
complaint from employers –
that local graduates could not
think on their feet and were
afraid to speak up.
It did this by adopting an
American-style of teaching
students in small seminar
groups and giving marks to
students for class participation.
It worked.
Five years later, in 2005,
when the first batch of SMU
students were out in the
workforce, companies were
already talking about the
“SMU difference”.
Employers interviewed by
the media said SMU graduates were indeed different
– they were articulate, confident and mature.
And it wasn’t just hype,
going by the results of the
university’s first graduate
employment survey.
Two-thirds of the pioneer
class of 309 students were
polled for the survey.
All landed jobs within six
months of graduation, with
more than half reporting that
they had found jobs even
before graduating. Threequarters received two or
more job offers. Their average annual starting salary
was $32,500.
Recruiters such as Mr
David Leong, who heads
People Wide Consulting, note
that more than a decade later,
employers still talk about
SMU students being different.
Even Attorney-General
Steven Chong, who attended
the ground-breaking for
the university’s law school
building earlier this week,
observed that SMU graduates
were “more engaging, more
prepared to speak up”.
It is not necessarily the
case that they are always
right, “but they probe, they
ask, they question”, he said.
The university started
off charging the same fees
as NUS and NTU but later
raised it, surpassing the two
more established universities.
Today, it still charges a premium.
Forced out of the box
With SMU posing a challenge,
NUS and NTU dons were
also forced to think about
how they could differentiate
themselves to keep drawing in the best students.
NUS used its high
worldwide ranking to its advantage and formed
university alliances to
offer its students exposure
overseas.
As it ramped up its
research, it also built overseas colleges in 10 locations
around the world, including
Silicon Valley, Stockholm and Israel to
nurture entrepreneurs.
Three years ago, NUS
opened parts of its University
Town at the former Warren
Golf Club site in Clementi to
give students a residential
college experience.
The Yale-NUS liberal arts
college commenced classes
last year.
NTU’s direction was initially less clear as it moved
to offer programmes in the
social sciences, digital media
and fine arts.
But more recently, NTU
has sharpened its science and
technology focus.
It has ramped up research
and set up several labs
including the Future Mobility Research Lab, set up with
BMW Group to study future
transportation.
As the world’s largest
single-campus engineering
facility, turning out more than
2,000 graduates a year, NTU
has also innovated in engineering education.
The
university
has
launched the Renaissance
Engineering programme,
combining the study of engineering with business and
liberal arts.
Students get to spend a
year at one of the partner universities before they take up
internships at start-ups and
companies abroad.
It is not surprising then
that NTU is fast climbing the
university league tables.
Seeing how differentiation
worked for SMU, the Singapore University of Technology
and Design, the Singapore
Institute of Technology and
SIM University all started with
a differentiated model.
SUTD’s unique selling
point was its partnership with
the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology in the US and
PAGE 20
China’s Zhejiang
University, combining the best
of East and West.
Another innovative feature is its curriculum, which
marries engineering, architecture and design training.
More recently, the Government announced the expansion of the Singapore Institute
of Technology and SIM University.
Their offerings too will be
different in that the focus will
be on applied hands-on learning.
Work internships will be a
big part of their curriculum to
prepare students well for the
job market.
The future
SMU, as it prepares to celebrate its 15th anniversary
next year, has come up with
new offerings in the humanities, including history, literature and philosophy to
broaden the undergraduate
education for all its students.
The university also wants
to offer a full degree course in
applied mathematics, a field
which trains students to apply
mathematical knowledge to
solve problems in areas from
finance to genomics.
Also on the cards is a
short-stay residential college,
or “SMU Village”, for students
to incubate their project
ideas.
The university wants all
its students to have the residential experience as it will
help to build the “SMU difference”.
Yet even as they grow
in slightly different trajectories, university officials have
stressed that they are not differentiating just to be different.
SMU chairman Ho Kwon
Ping admits that the “SMU difference” was a selling point
and the university used it to
its advantage.
But the larger objective
was to offer a business education with a difference and
in the process turn out a different type of graduate for
employers.
NTU provost Freddy Boey,
who recently announced the
university’s new course in
food science and technology, also had similar insights.
As Professor Boey
said: “So a chemistry
graduate who takes up
the food science course
as a second major will
not just have a good
grounding on chemistry, but will also be able to
apply it to food science and
find jobs in the growing food
processing industry.
“Similarly, a student from
the Renaissance Engineering programme will have a
grounding in engineering
and business and the entrepreneurial mindset honed in
Silicon Valley or the hubs in
Europe.”
A-level holders and polytechnic graduates who are
currently in the process of
weighing their higher education options welcome the different options.
Some like Madam Saroja’s
polytechnic graduate son S.
Raj confess to having to think
hard about their choices.
“I have pared down my
choices to seven courses in
three universities, but even
now I find it hard to choose as
each of them have something
unique about them,” he said.
From the Government’s
point of view, it makes sense
to encourage differentiation
and diversity in the higher
education sector as it focuses
public resources on what
institutions do best.
But this must be done
carefully to ensure that it
does not become an exercise in signalling differing
merit, value or worth to the
institutions – such as the simplistic classification of universities as research-intensive or
teaching universities.
No doubt this has led to
some friendly competition
and rivalry, but instead of
competing head-on in the
same area, it has spurred
universities to build on their
unique strengths and aim for
different peaks.
sandra@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
by Sandra Davie
SENIOR EDUCATION CORRESPONDENT
SIM University opened applications for its new full-time undergraduate degree courses in accountancy, finance and marketing just two weeks ago and has already received 137 applications
for the 200 places. ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG
T
he flexibility being offered by SIM University
(UniSIM), where students will be able to crunch a
four-year course into three or switch from full-time
to part-time study, is proving to be very attractive.
The university opened applications for its new
full-time degree courses in accountancy, finance and
marketing just over two weeks ago and already it has
received 137 applications.
It is offering 120 places in accountancy and 40
places each in the marketing and finance courses.
Of the 55 applications processed so far, 31
applicants have been picked for the next stage of
selection, which will be based on grades as well as
non-academic aspects such as social consciousness
and commitment, and creativity.
Seven students went through the four-step selection process, which included individual and group
interviews. They were also asked to write an essay on
a question based on a video they were told to view
before before turning up at UniSIM.
The three new courses are the first full-time undergraduate courses being offered by UniSIM, which runs
over 50 part-time degree courses for working adults.
UniSIM provost Tsui Kai Chong said the new
courses are open to both polytechnic and A-level
News @ SIM
holders, though the majority of applicants so far have
been polytechnic graduates. With admissions closing in April, he expects more A-level holders to apply
after they get their results in March.
He said the response was heartening and applicants were taking to the rigorous selection process
well. “The selection process gives applicants an idea
of the different teaching approach we will take. They
seem to like it.”
To stand out from other universities, UniSIM had
said there would be no lectures and tutorials. Instead,
students will read the material and listen to lectures
online before going to class ready to take part in discussions.
They will also study minor modules such as psychology and sociology in evening classes alongside
working adults on part-time degree courses.
A few applicants told The Straits Times this unique
teaching method is a plus, along with the flexibility
promised by the university.
Students can reduce a four-year course to a threeyear one by taking more modules and going for
evening classes. Conversely, students who land a job
during a course have the option of switching to part-
PAGE 21
time studies and taking up to six years to earn their
degree.
UniSIM also plans to get students career-ready
by requiring them to do longer and more substantial
work attachments.
One applicant, Singapore Polytechnic graduate
Tan Sheng Yao said she believed the university’s popular accountancy programme, which until now was
run part-time for working adults, was regarded highly
by employers.
The 21-year-old also liked being able to switch
from full-time to part-time. “Let’s say, I go for an internship and find it interesting and of value. It’s good to
have the option of being able to switch to part-time
studies if I wanted to extend it.”
Another poly applicant, Ms Leow Xin Yi, also welcomed the choice, as the 20-year-old comes from
a single-parent family and has to pay her own way
through university.
Meanwhile, A-level holder Sherman Low, 20,
is looking forward to the self-directed learning
approach. “It allows for more in-depth learning and
makes lessons more interesting.”
sandra@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
DEEPENING OUR IMPRINT
THE STRAITS TIMES | Friday, February 28, 2014
Earn and learn for life
LONG INTERVIEW | CHANGE-MAKERS
Susan Long meets Professor Cheong Hee Kiat, president of SIM University since 2005,
who is trying to blur the lines between work and study to create more alternative pathways to success.
by Susan Long
answer quizzes online, get instant feedback and even
real-time reminders if they skipped a section.
He hopes this will allow students to access knowledge at their own convenience and spell an end to the
harried part-time student negotiating traffic for two
hours to attend a two-hour lecture on campus.
Gap year advocate
WHAT Prof Cheong wants to address is the “sharp
dichotomy” between study and work. He observes
that people now study for 12 years, rush headlong to
do a degree that everyone else wants, then are funnelled to work in jobs they are unsure about.
But such a wasteful, linear sequence may soon be
a thing of the past. He thinks the
short cyclical nature of the economy and rising cost of university
education will soon bring about a
more “interlinked and enmeshed”
relationship between work and
study. This is already seen in the
West where youngsters often defer
university studies to earn the fees
or glean life experience.
The result, he feels, is more
motivation and ownership over
one’s education.
The future he envisions is one
where undergraduates will work
and study at the same time or take
a break to work. As such, UniSIM is
allowing its new full-time students
to add on evening classes to finish
their degrees faster, take a complete break from their studies, or
switch to part-time studies to work
midway.
He hopes that all these moves,
in time, will make it “more acceptable” for people to hit the job
market first before getting their
degrees, and for employers to see
value in that. “Different learning
paths will lead to people making
better learning and career choices.
Hopefully, it will create the happy
situation in Singapore where there
are really many pathways to success,” he says.
He yearns for the day when
UniSIM’s applicants are not just
those who had to go out to work
first because of family finances, or
those with poor grades who could
not get into other universities. He
longs to see more candidates who
see the value in “exploring what
they really want to do, finding their
niche and test-driving their careers
first”, who come by choice.
Taking the leap
THE bespectacled radical, brimming with ideas to improve the
world, is known as a nice guy who
Professor Cheong Hee Kiat, 60, hopes to make it more acceptable for people to work, explore what they want to do and find their niche before getting their degrees. ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN
B
RICK by brick, Professor Cheong Hee Kiat has
been breaking down the ivory walls of the university as the cloistered preserve of privilege. If
traditional universities have sought to keep out as
many as possible, he has opened wide its gates to
let in as many as possible.
The 60-year-old is the president of SIM University,
which has given some 15,000 working adults a second shot at obtaining a degree here over the past
eight years. From August, it will also offer local fulltime degree courses in accountancy, marketing and
finance, targeted at fresh A-level holders and polytechnic upgraders. Applications for its 200 new fulltime places, which opened last month, are already
twice over-subscribed.
But he wants to go much further. He wants to
“informalise” higher learning and blur the boundary
lines between work and study.
He has partnered some aerospace, real estate and
finance sector companies to offer relevant courses to
News @ SIM
help Singaporeans move on to their next-level job. “My
belief is that the university’s role is not to serve as the
fount of knowledge and a place where you come to
get knowledge from. Today, universities need to learn
from and be a part of industry so that it becomes a real
partnership in education.”
He sees the university’s role as working with companies to supply a theoretical framework for practical
training done on the job, and helping to accredit it.
He is now pushing out lifelong modular learning
– “bite size, on the go, just in time” modules that will
enable, say, an engineer, newly assigned to a supervisory role, to take a Fundamentals of Finance module for half a day once a week. If he passes the tests,
he will get course credits; otherwise, he gets just the
knowledge to do the job he needs to do.
Further down the road, when the engineer starts
handling contracts, he can do a primer in law, as a oneoff. Prof Cheong’s pledge is: “We will provide you with
continuing education that will enable you to progress
PAGE 22
in your career until you finish.”
For those who have retired, UniSIM offers over 200
general interest courses ranging from music appreciation and art history to traditional Chinese medicine to
keep Singaporeans learning and “doing the things that
they previously didn’t have a chance to do”. There is
no age limit. The oldest person to have enrolled is 75.
To enable all this to happen, Prof Cheong has
ramped up the university’s e-learning capabilities to
help students study as and when they need to. This
is important in an institution where the attrition rate
is 25 per cent to 30 per cent, as combining work and
studies is taxing for many part-time students.
Right now, a quarter of UniSIM’s courses already
have interactive study guides. Students can click to
access the relevant chapter in e-textbooks, view mini
lecture videos and share URLs. But Prof Cheong is
working towards an even more interactive learning
e-system where students can read and share materials, make annotations, take part in discussions,
January – December 2014
can deliver.
Prof Cheong was the eldest son of five children
born to an auditor father, who self-studied nightly to
improve his prospects, and a school teacher mother.
He attended St Gabriel’s Primary and Secondary,
Raffles Institution, then University of Adelaide to read
civil engineering on a Colombo Plan scholarship. He
returned to work as a drainage engineer before doing
his PhD in concrete structures at London’s Imperial
College. In 1986, he returned to teach at Nanyang
Technological University (NTU), becoming its deputy
president in 2000. He also headed its graduate studies department and the School of Civil and Structural
Engineering.
His takeaway after 19 years at NTU, where he
dealt with appeal cases of those who had failed their
courses, was: “Education is sometimes not really
about passing, failing or giving knowledge. It’s really
about coming alongside students, especially those
who are struggling, and need advice, encouragement,
News @ SIM
admonishment to get on to the next stage.
“If you make it that being out of course means
you failed and there’s no life after that, you’re doing
them a disservice. A person’s working life is over 40
years. Salvaging their self-esteem and giving encouragement is part and parcel of the education process,”
says the long-time church elder, who is now director
of Grace Baptist Church. He has two children in their
20s with his wife, Magdalin, a hospital chief dietician.
In 2005, when he was asked to helm the new SIM
University, he tarried. And he prayed. Pressed for an
answer, he looked up in a mall one day and these
words on a sports store banner leapt out at him: “Take
the leap. Challenge yourself.” So he did.
Prof Cham Tao Soon, 74, chancellor of UniSIM,
who has known Prof Cheong for almost 30 years,
says: “He’s an effective communicator; maybe his
skills were honed from preaching in church.” He adds
that his strength is in rallying people, team building
and institutionalising changes to ensure they outlast
him.
Doing good systemically
INDEED Prof Cheong has been embedding his quest to
do good into UniSIM’s systems and offerings. To date,
its suite of programmes span social work, counselling, early childhood education and gerontology, all
not exactly money spinners but with a strong social
dimension. When UniSIM was recently picked to host
Singapore’s third law school, it chose to focus on criminal and matrimonial law to meet social needs.
Recently, the private university made the news for
its full-time degree admissions criteria, which will look
beyond academic results, to attributes like social consciousness and commitment.
Applicants have to watch a video and talk about
how it impacted them in a series of interviews to suss
out their motivations and inclinations. “We are looking
for people who won’t just tell us ‘I went to the community centre to mingle with old folk’, but those who
say ‘I saw this, it impacted me and what else I went
on to do’... There is a meeting of the heart with what
they’re doing.
“Yes, academic grades are still needed to make
sure they can make it through university. But you
don’t need to be the brightest spark to be the person
who serves society best.”
He has also made service learning compulsory. To
graduate, UniSIM’s full-time students must clock 80
hours of community service, organised by themselves
in a cause that “fires their imagination so they take
ownership of it”.
Yes, he readily acknowledges that eight-year-old
UniSIM is a latecomer to the scene, with a less sterling
reputation than other universities here.
But he contends that such character-based criteria
are not onerous but a “competitive advantage”. Setting
out to do good, he believes, will tap nascent “youthful
idealism” and attract those “who want a more holistic
treatment of their discipline”.
While many universities have an obligatory module on ethics, UniSIM does not. Instead, ethics and
issues of sustainability crop up throughout the curriculum, case studies and assignments.
“From the time the student enrols, we will try to
show the relationship between what they are doing
and the society they are meant to serve, so that when
they finish their degree, say in marketing, they will
solve problems not just from a technical viewpoint but
also explore how, say, printing a lot of fliers impacts
the environment,” Prof Cheong said.
The veteran educator knows such an elevated consciousness is not something that “can be cooked” in a
mere four-year programme. But he sees it as “seeding”
the ingredients early to position students for learning
about life in all its fullness – for life.
He continues: “If a student goes through university
and doesn’t think about all these things, who’s going
to help him think about it later on? Later on, there is
no time – he will be chasing his career and all that. You
need to seed this at a formative age when he is receptive. Then he will carry it with him through life and
continue picking up what we weren’t able to teach.”
Prof Cheong on...
The e-learning system of
his dreams
“I imagine somebody going to Mars
and doing his studies there. This kind
of system will enable him to spend
months learning something in his
spacecraft in isolation and be able to
know whether he has done well.”
Why his character-based entry
criteria are so strict
“The graduates we turn out have the
opportunity to climb to the top of the
education ladder. So they must also
be imbibed with a sense of belonging
and obligation to society.”
His personal watchwords
“Character before career, testimony
before title. For me, the criteria for
my success are how successful were
my colleagues when I was their dean
or president? What did I bring to the
school, in terms of culture or enabling, during my tenure?”
suelong@sph.com.sg
PAGE 23
January – December 2014
DEEPENING OUR IMPRINT
TODAY ONLINE | Thursday, February 20, 2014
TODAY | Saturday, March 29, 2014
LIANHE ZAOBAO | Friday, April 25, 2014
UniSIM plans to
start programmes
in early childhood
education
1,000 more varsity
spots for S’poreans
this year
New chairman of
亚洲网颁发80奖项
SIM
governing
给获消费者认可品牌
council
The SIM University (UniSIM) has attracted more
than 300 applications for its full-time degree
programmes, with A-Level students making
up a quarter of the applicants.
by Ng Jing Yng
T
he SIM University (UniSIM) has attracted more than 300 applications for its
full-time degree programmes, with A-Level students making up a quarter of
the applicants.
The university will be awarding its own full-time degrees for the first time in
finance, marketing and accountancy. Applications in all courses exceeded projected
intake numbers, with the accountancy programme drawing about 210 applications. The finance and marketing courses each received around 45 applications.
For a start, UniSIM will offer 80 slots in the finance and marketing courses, and
120 places for accountancy when school begins in August. The institution also has
plans to launch new full-time programmes in early childhood education and social
work “in the near future”, said its spokesperson.
The application process for UniSIM includes writing a reflection essay on an
attribute that a student has acquired. After being shortlisted, the student will then
participate in activities such as responding to a current-affairs topic captured on
video, an interview, a group discussion and a cognitive exercise.
As with the Singapore Institute of Technology, UniSIM also expects students
to undergo work attachments, during which they have to identify a work-related
programme and complete a project. They can also choose to complete their studies
in less than four years by taking up more modules per semester or signing up for
evening classes. Ng Jing Yng
Goal to provide places for 30% of local students
achieved ahead of schedule; SIT, UniSIM to
provide bulk of extra places
S
ingapore — Another 1,000 university places will be offered this year, bumping up the total number of spots for local students at the six publicly-funded
universities to 14,000.
The increased number of places, the highest ever, also means the Government
has achieved its aim of providing university places for 30 per cent of Singaporean
students a year ahead of its 2015 target.
Most of the additional places will come from the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) and SIM University (UniSIM).
Education Minister Heng Swee Keat said this in a Facebook post yesterday,
along with an announcement that SIT has become the newest autonomous university, joining the National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University,
Singapore Management University, UniSIM and Singapore University of Technology
and Design.
SIT’s new status, he said, was part of efforts to steadily expand higher education
opportunities for young Singaporeans and the proportion of each cohort admitted
to the publicly-funded universities was being raised each year.
Although the university sector is being expanded, Mr Heng said it was important to note that it was “not just about numbers, it is about quality”.
“Even as we create more places, we want our students to be able to meet the
rigours of the programmes and at the same time, to make the best use of opportunities as our economy grows and becomes more diverse,” he wrote.
The Government will continue to work towards providing publicly-funded university spaces for 40 per cent of every cohort by 2020, he said, adding it would
take “hard work from the Ministry of Education, our universities and our partners,
but it is a most worthwhile goal”.
For young Singaporeans vying for those university spots, he had this piece of
advice: “Remember that higher education is not about chasing a piece of paper.
“What is more important is to build deep skills and have the right values that will
enable you to succeed in the long haul.”
TODAY | Thursday, April 3, 2014
Other Universities Do Not Plan To Change Fee Structure
UniSIM to charge full-time
students by module
Those in new Accountancy, Finance and Marketing programmes can also take a mix of full-, part-time courses
by Amanda Lee
S
ingapore — In a departure from the norm, students enrolling in SIM
University’s (UniSIM) first three full-time degree programmes could
pay different tuition fees each semester, depending on the modules they
pick.
At other universities, a fixed tuition fee is levied each semester, regardless of how many and which modules students sign up for.
UniSIM decided on the new fee structure for its Accountancy, Finance
and Marketing full-time courses — which take in their first cohorts in
August — to give incoming students more flexibility in charting their studies, university Provost Tsui Kai Chong told TODAY.
For instance, a student who, for personal reasons, has to take fewer
modules in a particular semester will pay lower fees.
Students are also free to mix and match full-time and part-time modules to fulfil the credit requirement for graduation. This means that those
who want to sign up for additional evening classes to gain practical experience from part-time students who are already in the workforce can do so.
Part-time modules also cost less.
To graduate from their four-year full-time degree programmes, UniSIM
students need to attain 200 credit units. A five-credit unit module will cost
S$815, while a 10-credit unit module will cost S$1,630.
News @ SIM
In response to queries, the Singapore Management University, National
University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University said they
have no plans to change their fee structure.
Providing an update on application figures for the three courses yesterday, UniSIM said there have been nearly 1,500 applications for the 200
places. Among these, three out of five applicants are diploma-holders,
while the remainder are A-Level-holders.
Applications for these programmes close on April 15.
Ms Jessica Abraham Daniel, who will be reading Accountancy at UniSIM, said she has not paid attention to the new fee structure and is more
concerned about receiving quality education.
However, the 21-year-old welcomed the opportunity to study with
working part-time students at UniSIM. “This allows us to (hear about) the
real examples and the real experiences that they go through,” she said.
leeguiping@mediacorp.com.sg
PAGE 24
Varying costs
To graduate from
their four-year
full-time degree
programmes,
UniSIM students
need to attain
200 credit units.
A five-credit unit
module will cost
S$815, while a
10-credit unit
module will
cost S$1,630.
January – December 2014
THE BUSINESS TIMES | Tuesday, May 20, 2014
新加坡报业控股旗下的门户网站亚洲网 (AsiaOne) 的 People’s Choice Awards前天
颁发超过80个奖项给消费者最认可的品牌和服务。为期三个月的投选活动征集到公众
超过20万张投票，为28个组别做出300个提名。
其中，史各士皇族酒店 (Royal Plaza on Scotts) 的自助餐厅Carousel今年是双
料赢家，不仅第五次夺得最佳自助餐厅奖，也因为五次拿奖，成功进入这个奖项的荣
誉榜（Hall of Fame）。
其他赢家包括最佳智能手机苹果iPhone5S、最佳航空公司新航、最佳私校新
加坡管理学院全球教育和最佳本地旅游景点新加坡环球影城等。
为了反映消费者的多元选择，今年的活动新增最亲家庭购物中心、最佳本地旅
游景点、最佳精品酒店和最佳咖啡座四个奖项。最亲家庭购物中心、最佳中餐馆和最
佳银行的组别则吸引最多人投票。
颁奖典礼前天在报业中心礼堂举行，中小型企业协会会长王崇健是活动嘉宾。
亚洲网总编辑郑扬德说：“这个奖项是个让消费者投选所好的平台，每年的活动日益
吸引更多投票说明它的成效。”
T
AN SOO JIN has been elected as the new chairman of the Singapore Institute
of Management (SIM) governing council.
Mr Tan is advisor of Amrop Singapore/Gattie-Tan Soo Jin Management Consultants Pte Ltd and a member of the NUS Business School Management advisory board.
He has also been a member of the SIM governing council since 2005 and was
elected vice-chairman in 2012.
Mr Tan took over from Gerard Ee. Mr Ee stepped down after serving the constitutional maximum of four consecutive years as chairman from 2010 to 2014.
TODAY | Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Gerard Ee succeeds veteran
professor as UniSIM head
New chair, chancellor hopes to bring fresh perspective
by Alfred Chua
S
ingapore — When Professor Cham Tao Soon helped establish
SIM University (UniSIM) in 2005, he had a hard time convincing faculty members to embrace online teaching.
“They were reluctant to use it to teach students, but I insisted
that e-learning was the way to engage students, many of whom
are IT-savvy,” recalled Prof Cham, 74, who also had a hand in the
formation of Nanyang Technological Institute, which later became
Nanyang Technological University (NTU), and the Singapore Management University.
Nine years on, with online learning a buzz phrase among top
universities here and abroad, Prof Cham’s persistence has paid off.
“I am not trying to boast, but I dare say UniSIM is quite
advanced now in providing online courses for students,” he said.
Yesterday, UniSIM announced that Prof Cham had retired with
effect from Friday as its chancellor and chairman. Former Public Transport Council (PTC) chairman Gerard Ee, who previously
headed the SIM governing council, has taken over the positions.
Looking back on his tenure at UniSIM, Prof Cham recounted
the challenge of gaining the confidence of employers in the university’s early years. It also took some effort to convince students
of its credibility, he said.
UniSIM relied on a large pool of part-time faculty members,
many of whom “have strong industrial knowledge, but may not
be able to teach as well”. Extra efforts were required to teach the
teachers, said Prof Cham. To that end, a teaching and learning
centre was set up for faculty members to learn from one another.
Prof Cham added that UniSIM’s efforts were vindicated in
2012, when Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced in his
National Day Rally speech that it would be granted national uni-
versity status.
“I was very happy,” he said. The good news did not end there.
A year later, it was announced that UniSIM would host Singapore’s
third law school.
Before helping to set up UniSIM, Prof Cham had been NTU
president for 22 years, during which he oversaw its transition
from Nanyang Technological Institute.
He noted that the challenges he had faced in NTU’s fledgling
years were similar to those at UniSIM. “When I was with NTU, I
thought about how we could differentiate ourselves from the others and that led to the creation of a more practice-oriented university. Likewise, with UniSIM, we started from scratch, so we had
to be different from the rest and establish ourselves as a credible
university.”
In contrast to Prof Cham’s extensive experience in education,
Mr Ee, 65, is relatively new to the field, despite having worn many
hats in public service over the years.
Having stepped down as PTC chairman at the start of the
month, Mr Ee is also president of the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants and chairman of the Council for Third Age.
Conceding that being chancellor and chairman of UniSIM,
which is taking in its first batch of full-time students this year, will
be “something new”, Mr Ee said he hopes to bring a fresh perspective and tap his experience in social services.
“Evolution happens by having new and fresh ideas and I think
I bring on board a better understanding of what the community
needs. It will definitely be a refreshing change,” he said.
alfredchuamf@mediacorp.com.sg
Professor Cham Tao Soon (top),
who helped establish UniSIM in
2005, retired on Friday, with
former Public Transport Council
chair Gerard Ee taking over as
the university’s chancellor and
chairman.
PHOTOS: SIM, DON WONG
BERNAMA.COM | Friday, May 23, 2014
RMIT honours SIM Global Education CEO
KUALA LUMPUR, May 23 (Bernama) — IT Hall of Fame member and higher education
CEO, Adjunct Professor Lee Kwok Cheong will be honoured by RMIT University today.
Professor Lee will be presented with a Doctor of Business Honoris Causa.
Professor Lee has been CEO of Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) Global Education since 2005 and is a member of its Board.
SIM Global Education is the entity under the SIM Group that is engaged in international educational partnerships. The SIM Group also comprises SIM University which is
Singapore’s only private university.
Professor Lee was instrumental in the development of SIM Global Education, making
it the leading private higher education institution in Singapore.
It is also the largest private tertiary institution in Singapore, with student numbers
more than doubling to over 20,000 students in the past 10 years, with much of that
News @ SIM
expansion in concert with RMIT University which is one of its many partner universities.
Prior to taking up his role at SIM, Professor Lee spent many years developing the IT
industry in Singapore.
He was CEO of National Computer Systems Pte Ltd (NCS), a subsidiary of Singtel, and
after stepping down as CEO, became Chairman of the NCS Board in 2005.
Under his guidance, the organisation became a regional IT and communications
engineering powerhouse, more than quadrupling revenues in the decade to 2005.
In 2011 Professor Lee became a member of the Singapore Computer Society Hall
of Fame in recognition of his contributions to the IT industry. He was also awarded the
Public Service Medal in the 2010 Singapore National Day Awards, in recognition of his
contribution to education and IT.
PAGE 25
January – December 2014
DEEPENING OUR IMPRINT
THE STRAITS TIMES | Friday, May 30, 2014
MY PAPER | Thursday, August 14, 2014
1,500 apply for
200 UniSIM places
spike
新跃大学首在外展 Enrolment
for SIM Global
训练中心迎新
Education
TODAY ONLINE | Wednesday, August 20, 2014
胡洁梅
According to the latest figures from the Council of Private
Education (CPE), there were 227,090 students on the
books of private institutions here last year. Of these, about
six in 10 are citizens or Singapore permanent residents.
Flexibility, work stints draw many to varsity’s first full-time degree courses
by Sandra Davie
SENIOR EDUCATION CORRESPONDENT
by Laura Elizabeth Philomin
A
这组新跃大学学生齐心合力改造这几艘皮艇，供队友乘坐出海完成挑战。（陈斌勤摄）
为培养学生的团队精神与软技能，新跃大学首次在新加坡外展训练中心主办迎新营。
新跃大学今年起推出全日制大学学士课程，这三项获政府津贴的课程包括会计、
金融与市场学科。这些新课程的学生都必须参加迎新活动，在乌敏岛的外展训练中心
度过三天两夜的群体生活，挑战攀岩与跳水等户外项目。
本地部分公立大学的迎新活动非强制性，学生可自由选择是否参加。而新跃大学
规定学生参加的迎新节目除了有外展训练中心的露营，也包括入学前的网上课程与讲
座。
新跃大学社会研究学讲师林志汉受访时说：“校方推出的网上课程与讲座旨在协
助学生在入学前做准备，为课业打好基础。迎新活动则是为学生提供体验式的学习，
ccording to the latest figures from the Council of Private Education (CPE),
there were 227,090 students on the books of private institutions here last
year. Of these, about six in 10 are citizens or Singapore permanent residents.
CPE figures showed that there were 319 private education institutions registered with the council as of last year. In comparison, there were 232,000 students in
2011, and 338 schools registered with the CPE. Nevertheless, SIM Global Education,
the largest private educational institution here, has seen its enrolment increase by
almost 50 per cent in the past five years — steadily growing from 11,000 in 2010
to 16,000 this year.
In comparison, statistics from the Ministry of Education showed that 59,748
students were enrolled this year in the five public universities — National University
of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore Management University, Singapore Institute of Technology and Singapore University of Technology &
Design. LAURA PHILOMIN
学习如何与他人合作来解决问题。
新加坡管理大学与耶鲁－国大学院也规定学生参加特定的迎新活动，活动包括游
览新加坡、群体游戏、学生才艺表演等。新大的新生则在林厝港的莎琳汶（Sarimbun）营地参加三天两夜的露营。
除了新大，新加坡理工大学也在莎琳汶主办迎新营，校方会鼓励新生参加，但会
让学生自由决定。新加坡科技设计大学也未规定必须参加迎新活动，它的迎新节目包
括到户外进行“极速前进”（The Amazing Race）等。
MY PAPER | Thursday, August 28, 2014
行行出状元
炎下之意
马炎庆
淡滨尼集选区议员
Ms Ng Wai Ling will study accountancy and is attracted to the work attachments that UniSIM offers. Mr Tan Jun Han will study marketing and looks forward to taking courses with working adults.
ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE
I
t may be offering full-time degree courses for the first time, but SIM University
is proving a popular choice among young people.
The university drew 1,500 applications for the 200 places it has in accountancy,
marketing and finance, and shortlisted 900 applicants for the four-step selection
process which included interviews and essays.
Close to six in 10 of those who applied were polytechnic diploma holders, while
the rest had A levels, said UniSIM.
The median grade point average for the polytechnic graduates offered places
was 3.4 out of 4, putting them in the top 20 per cent of the polytechnic cohort.
Students have up till June 2 to accept the offers. So far, close to 150 have already
confirmed they will be enrolling.
The three new courses are the first full-time undergraduate courses being
offered by the university, which runs more than 50 part-time degree courses for
working adults.
UniSIM officials said that course flexibility and emphasis on work attachments
have proven to be the main draws. For instance, it will allow students to reduce a
four-year course by a year, if they choose to take more modules and go for evening
classes.
Those who land a job while studying, on the other hand, have the option of
switching to part- time studies, and can take up to six years to earn their degree.
UniSIM will also partner companies to develop and supervise a 24-week work
attachment. Unlike traditional internships, its attachments will be longer and more
substantial, requiring students to take on work which other employees actually do.
Final-year students will have to complete a project based on a work-related
News @ SIM
PAGE 26
issue and will have to spend at least 80 hours organising a community service
project.
UniSIM provost Tsui Kai Chong described the response as heartening and said
students will likely take advantage of the flexibility to mix and match courses.
“Students see the advantages of taking some classes in the evenings with working adults as they can learn from them about working life and the industry they
want to go into,” he noted.
“They realise that with so many university graduates, they will need an edge,
and the intensive work attachments that we will provide will give them that advantage.”
He added that UniSIM will recognise online and certification courses that students take up.
“We are preparing them for a future where the boundaries between part-time
and full-time and work and study will not be clear-cut.”
National serviceman Tan Jun Han, 23, who will be studying marketing at the
university, said: “I think that it will be valuable to take some courses with working
adults because you get to network and see what opportunities there are in the
industry.”
Former Temasek Junior College student Ng Wai Ling, 19, chose to study
accountancy in UniSIM although she had two other offers from local universities.
One reason she chose UniSIM was the work attachments.
She said: “With more university graduates in Singapore, I have to think about
how I can stand out. I feel that the work attachments provided by UniSIM will help
me land jobs more easily when I graduate.”
sandra@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
星
期一，我受邀为SIM-RMIT今年度的毕业典礼颁奖。典礼共分8场，为期4天，毕
业生超过3500人。
毕业生来自不同科系，包括会计、经济、行销、物流、通讯和设计，修读全职和
兼职课程的学生都有。
本地其他大学都有开办这类科系，照理说，本地学生应该会优先报读学费比较便
宜的政府大学，如国立大学、南洋理工大学和新加坡管理大学，为何却报读学费较昂
贵的私立大学?
据好些学生告诉我，他们是因为学业成绩不够理想，不被政府大学录取，只好报
读私立大学，有些同学则出国留学。
报读私立大学这个选择虽然昂贵许多，但为了孩子的前途，也为了满足自己的期
望，一般父母还是会咬紧牙根，供孩子念完大学。大家都认为有一张文凭，将来的事
业前途会比较有保障。
SIM-RMIT是一所不错的学校，SIM和澳洲的RMIT在新加坡合作开办课程已有27年
历史，一般人对它都很熟悉，这些年下来，学校的毕业生已将近3万名。
但是，世界各地的大学林林总总，水准和名声可以相差很大，并非每一所提供大
专教育的学府都有一定的水平，所以在选择大学时，一定要谨慎。
除了要了解课程是否符合自己的兴趣和需要，也要充分查证它们所颁发的文凭到
底受不受承认，那所大学的毕业生就业前景如何等等。否则，不只浪费了金钱，也枉
费了青春。
政府了解国人考取大学文凭的欲望，近年来开办了新的大学，希望到了2020年，每
一批国人当中有四成享有在本地政府大学就读的机会。
政府新开办的大学当中，其中一所就是特别让理工学院毕业生继续深造的新加坡理
工大学。很多理工学院毕业生都想考取一张大学文凭。SIM-RMIT的毕业生很多也毕业
自理工学院。
求学时，固然要在学业上尽力，考取好的成绩升级，有能力晋升到什么程度，就应
该尽力让自己晋升到什么程度。
但是，实际上，知识不一定只能在学校里才能求取。总理在今年的国庆群众大会上
就花了不少心思，分享几位工艺教育学院和理工学院毕业生如何在工作时继续进修的
故事，证明了就算只有普通的技术学历，只要肯努力，工作表现好，事业还是前途无
量。
一名在SIM-RMIT考得优异成绩的学生告诉我，她毕业自理工学院后，选择先工
作，让自己更清楚喜欢什么行业，之后才报读大学。
这种想法非常成熟，并非每个人都适合或需要念大学，与其一窝蜂地追求一纸文凭，
甚至逼自己修读不感兴趣的科目，以致没心读书，或者无法应付，大学成绩不理想，
反而高不成低不就，倒不如把握机会去发掘和培养自己的长处和强项。
我的三个孩子当中，一个喜爱阅读，在语文方面有天分，她说以后想当作家；一个
对数理和大自然有兴趣，掌握学术概念很快；一个则喜欢做手工，平时在家里会主动
帮忙做家务，为人比较精明，会注意细节。
我们并没有给孩子上补习课，学业主要靠他们自己，我希望他们学习独立，以后自
力更生。他们以后进不进得了大学并不重要，最重要的是，他们努力和用心去做他们
想做的事情，吃得起苦，敬业乐业，我们始终相信行行出状元。
然而，我们都知道，有些国家的大学生在国内找不到工作，只好出国谋生，有些不能
学以致用，没办法之下甚至选择当家庭女佣。所以，政府在满足国人升大学的理想
时，也要避免大学生的人数泛滥，也要确保经济持续增长，以及制造适当的就业机
会。
News @ SIM
PAGE 27
Email: ykbaey@gmail.com
Facebook: Baey Yam Keng
Twitter: yamkeng
Instagram: baeyyamkeng
January – December 2014
DEEPENING OUR IMPRINT
THE STRAITS TIMES | Thursday, September 4, 2014
THE STRAITS TIMES | Thursday, November 20, 2014
More taking private
route to a degree
Get private schools into
push to build deep skills
Shorter paths at private institutes among reasons
Many students here are enrolled with private education providers,
which have an important role to play in transforming the workforce.
by Joanna Seow
M
ore students are taking the private route to a
degree, prompted by rising aspirations and
shorter pathways.
In 2008, 26 per cent of residents here who studied in Singapore got their degrees from private education institutes, according to Manpower Ministry data.
Last year, this proportion rose to 36 per cent.
Checks with four of the larger schools here – Singapore Institute of Management Global Education,
Kaplan, PSB Academy and MDIS – showed enrolment
has been generally rising.
“Over the last decade or so, there has been pentup demand for a degree which cannot be met by
the autonomous universities as there is a limit to the
number of places they can add,” said SIM Global Education chief executive Lee Kwok Cheong.
Another reason private institutes have grown
more popular is that degrees can be completed faster,
some students said. Private degree programmes can
be completed in as short as a year, compared with
three to four years for a typical degree at National University of Singapore.
But Mountbatten MP Lim Biow Chuan, who chairs
the Government Parliamentary Committee for Education, warned against the rush to get degrees.
For those who cannot meet the cut-offs for local
universities, or who want to upgrade themselves,
by Sandra Davie
SENIOR EDUCATION CORRESPONDENT
Mr Russell Tan, 24, got his degree from SIM Global Education. After a year at his job, he
was promoted to account manager. ST PHOTO: SEAH KWANG PENG
private institutes provide a chance to acquire more
knowledge, he said.
“But don’t do it on the basis that this is a guaranteed route to success,” he cautioned.
About three in 10 residents in the labour force
last year were degree holders, Manpower Ministry
data showed. The paper chase has come under scrutiny after the Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE
Review committee released its recommendations last
month. There are worries that Singaporeans are chasing degrees without getting the right skills for the job
market.
Recruiters say employers still make a distinction
between degrees from local universities and from private institutes. Fresh graduates from local universities may be offered salaries around 10 to 15 per cent
more than their private institute counterparts.
“(But) with a few years of experience and a proven
track record, this gap narrows quickly,” said Ms Linda
Teo, country manager at recruitment firm Manpower-
Group Singapore.
Bosses pay more attention to work performance
and attitude when appraising staff, said Association
of Small and Medium Enterprises president Kurt Wee.
This proved true for account manager Russell Tan,
24, who decided on the private route after not doing
well in his A Levels.
He graduated with magna cum laude honours and
a communications degree from the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, after his studies at SIM Global Education.
But out of 50 firms he applied to for advertising
and marketing jobs, only two replied. One of them,
digital marketing agency IH Digital, hired him. After a
year on the job, he was promoted and leads a team
of five.
“The course I took exposed me to a different style
of learning with more applicable skills and knowledge, rather than memorising things.” said Mr Tan.
joseow@sph.com.sg
THE STRAITS TIMES | Wednesday, November 19, 2014
More studying
part-time at UniSIM
Enrolment up 6% as working adults are keen to improve career prospects
by Sandra Davie
SENIOR EDUCATION CORRESPONDENT
T
he enrolment for part-time degree programmes at SIM University (UniSIM)
has grown by almost 6 per cent in the last year, reflecting working adults’
enthusiasm for pursuing further qualifications to improve their career prospects.
The university received 5,500 applications this year, about the same number
as last year.
But as there were more qualified candidates this year and the university
expanded its campus, it pushed up its enrolment to 13,300 this year from 12,600
last year.
This does not include the 200 places in its first three full-time degree courses
this year, which drew 1,500 applications.
UniSIM president Cheong Hee Kiat expects enrolment for its part-time degree
courses to go up further next year to 14,000, because workers’ interest in upgrading their skills is likely to grow.
“Working adults want to further themselves in their career. Some want to make
a switch. UniSIM offers them a flexible path to work and study for a degree at the
same time,” he said.
While this seems to go against the Government’s recent push to get Singaporeans to move away from chasing qualifications, starting with recommendations
by the Applied Study in Polytechnics and Institute of Technical Education Review
(Aspire) committee, he stressed that the Government is not dissuading Singaporeans from pursuing degrees.
Instead, it hopes that Singaporeans will pursue the qualifications relevant to
their jobs, which will help them further themselves, said Prof Cheong, who served
on the committee.
Most UniSIM students are not enrolled in the university just to chase qualifiNews @ SIM
PAGE 28
cations, he said. “They are the kind of working adults that the Aspire committee
wants. They have had enough experience and take up courses to develop themselves further.”
A UniSIM student is 28 years old on average. Most have three to five years of
work experience, and get their degrees in four years.
The students say the main attraction is that UniSIM courses are recognised by
the industry.
Many of its 55 courses, from counselling to aviation maintenance, are accredited by professional bodies. Its popular accountancy degree, for instance, is recognised by the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority.
Its Human Factors in Safety course is recognised by the Ministry of Manpower
(MOM) and meets a rising need for workplace safety and health professionals. By
2018, 19,000 will be needed, up from fewer than 5,000 now.
Mr Sadat Hassan, 33, said he picked this part-time course as it is relevant to his
job as a safety officer in a marine services firm.
“In the marine industry, human factors play a big part. So the course was very
relevant. On top of that, you have recognition from MOM, so it has quality,” he said.
Ms Corrine Tan, 28, who will start on a social work degree course next year, said
an additional pull factor is the 55 per cent government subsidy for Singaporeans
who pursue a part-time degree at UniSIM, like the publicly funded universities. This
means a student pays only $13,500, not $30,000, for a three-year course.
Ms Tan, who works in the retail sector and wants to be a social worker, said: “I
have to support my sister and retired parents. On my current salary, I cannot afford
the full fee. The subsidy halves the fee and makes it affordable.”
sandra@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
M
ore than a third of Singapore residents who
pursue tertiary studies here have degrees from
private schools, up from 26 per cent in 2008. Many
did not make it into local universities, but they have
set aside time and money, perhaps even while working, to upgrade themselves.
Yet, amid a new government push this year to
build a nimble workforce for a globalised knowledge economy and to emphasise job-oriented skills,
the importance of what the private education sector
is now contributing and can contribute in the future
seems to have been overlooked.
Take the landmark government report, the Applied
Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review, released in
August. The committee behind the 40-page report,
which took nine months to produce, made 10 recommendations including helping students make better education and career choices and acquire deeper
skills; and that more paths be built to allow polytechnic and Institute of Technical Education (ITE) graduates to progress in their careers.
Surprisingly, however, this significant study marking a cultural shift in the education landscape made
no mention of the role that the private education
industry can play.
True, it was soon followed up by the SkillsFuture
Council, which will spearhead efforts to develop deep
skills in workers.
Its chairman, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman
Shanmugaratnam, has since revealed that the Government is “reviewing” the private education sector.
Speaking two weeks ago on the sidelines of the
first meeting of the new council, he declined to give
details, saying that it was premature to talk about specific measures. But he added that the sector will be
part of the education and training landscape.
It is vital – and pressing – that the role of private
education institutions is brought on board.
At the most obvious level, this is because of the
large number of students enrolled in them.
Recent Ministry of Manpower figures had 36 per
cent of residents who studied for a degree in Singapore graduating with one from a private school.
Going by current enrolment figures for private
schools, the number is likely to go up in the coming
years.
The Council for Private Education (CPE), a statutory board that oversees the sector, said last year that
there were about 180,000 students enrolled in some
300 private schools, of whom 116,000 were Singaporeans.
No information is available on the courses that
Singaporeans are pursuing, but the estimate is that
about half are enrolled in degree courses, while the
remainder are taking diploma courses which will enable them to go on to degree programmes.
Just take the largest private school and the one
most preferred by Singaporeans – the global education arm of the Singapore Institute of Management
(SIM), which runs degree courses in partnership with
overseas universities.
It has 23,000 students, of whom 20,000 are Singaporeans. Of the Singaporeans, 16,000 of them are
pursuing degrees full-time.
And consider this: Its total student population of
23,000 is just a few thousand short of the number
of undergraduates at the National University of Singapore.
Consider also the role these private schools play in
the economy: the tens of thousands of dollars paid in
fees by the students or their parents and the three to
News @ SIM
four years spent studying for their degrees.
What the review should look at
CLEARLY, then, the push to transform the Singapore
workforce cannot ignore this important sector.
The Government needs to properly and thoroughly evaluate what role private education can play
in this new push to develop deep skills in workers.
It also needs to know what programmes to support and how.
To start with, the review team should look at who
are the students enrolled in private schools and what
prompted them to take the route.
It may find that it is more efficient to keep channelling those who are not superstars in grades but who
are talented and driven in particular interests into the
hands of private education providers.
The perception is that private school students are
mostly polytechnic and ITE graduates who turned to
the route after failing to land a place in the public institutions.
But they are far from “failures”.
Going by anecdotal accounts, an increasing number actually have good enough grades for entry into
polytechnics or universities, but just not into the
course of their choice.
Indeed, at leading private institutions such as SIM
and James Cook University Singapore, there is a substantial number of A-level school-leavers.
There is even a group of students from Integrated
Programme schools such as Raffles Institution and
Hwa Chong Institution.
Take Mr Daniel Ho Sheng, whom I first met two
years ago.
He was studying for a mass communications
degree offered at SIM by University at Buffalo, the
State University of New York.
He had attended Raffles Institution and scored A,
B, C and D grades for his A-level subjects and an A for
his General Paper, but could not land a place in the
local universities to pursue mass communications or
an arts and social sciences degree.
Last year when I met him again, he had graduated
top of his class and had gone on to enrol in the Master of Science (International Relations) programme at
Nanyang Technological University (NTU).
However, when weighing up the extent of private
educators’ participation in the skills-set push, there
are some negatives to consider too.
One is that of educational standards, or lack of.
The sector was once rife with dodgy providers.
Although it was cleaned up about five years ago by
the Government, the issue of uneven quality remains
a concern.
The subsequent shakedown of the industry saw
the number of schools whittled down from several
hundred to around 300.
Out of the 300, 49 hold the four-year EduTrust certification, the quality mark set by the CPE.
Still, some employers considering graduates from
the EduTrust-certified schools have doubts over the
rigour of their programmes.
Does this mean the bar was set too low and needs
to be raised further? The review team should take a
look at this.
The team also needs to look at the validity of the
schools’ claims of success. Many boast of students
graduating with first class and second upper honours
and going on to postgraduate degrees at top universities overseas, for example.
Partner universities also claim that exam papers
PAGE 29
and answer scripts are on par with standards in their
home campuses, so that students can transfer midway to the campuses abroad if they wish.
This should be verified too.
But most of all, it is important to look at whether
the students graduating from private education providers find it easy to get good jobs. After all, that is
the wider concern of the whole skills-set push.
Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin sounded the
warning bell when he said recently that Singapore
may be faced with graduate unemployment if more
young people enrol in institutions with questionable
standards.
It is therefore important to look at whether those
coming out of private schools land graduate-level
jobs, or is there underemployment? How do employers rate them and what are their starting salaries?
Most private schools now do not conduct independent graduate employment surveys. Or if they do,
they keep the results under wraps. They should be
required to conduct such surveys and make the findings public.
The only school that has done so is SIM.
Its survey of the class of 2011 showed that 90 per
cent found jobs easily, but with lower salaries than
graduates from publicly funded universities.
It is likely that graduates of some of the other private schools don’t fare as well as SIM’s in the job market. But if this is the case, it is better that prospective
students and their parents are made aware of this.
However, if – as is likely – the review finds there
are private schools that are well run and of quality,
then the Government should consider how they can
be co-opted into the skills-set push.
One potential good fit would be Lithan Hall Academy in Paya Lebar, which runs information technology courses.
It acts as more than a private school, as it works
with companies to identify their IT personnel needs
and launches courses to suit. For some courses,
it places students in full-time entry-level jobs first
and trains them in the evenings, according to their
employers’ needs.
It designs the courses based on the competency
framework drawn up for jobs in the IT industry, so 70
per cent of tuition fees for Singaporeans are covered
by subsidies from the Singapore Workforce Development Agency.
Private schools, especially the quality ones, should
not be ignored in the education shift to applied learning in the real-world workplace.
Instead, they should have their niche too, in
encouraging Singapore workers to build deep and
job-relevant skills in the new economy ahead.
sandra@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
PROVIDING GREATER OPPORTUNITIES
THE STRAITS TIMES | Tuesday, Febuary 11, 2014
PROVIDING GREATER OPPORTUNITIES
From engineer to manager
City Gas’ Tan Juay Hwa switches jobs and achieves award-winning success
THE STRAITS TIMES | Thursday, January 23, 2014
by Jamie Ee
Study missions to China and
Vietnam for working adults
The future of the energy
industry in Singapore
is going to be an exciting
and sustainable one, with
many new developments
taking place. It is an
industry that young
graduates and working
professionals considering a
mid-life career switch
should not miss during
their evaluation.
by Amelia Teng
C
ivil servant Guan Wen Long will
spend nine days in Beijing in March
– but it will be no holiday.
The 31-year-old student at SIM University (UniSIM), which caters to working adults, will visit university campuses
and study historical sites after taking
up one of two new overseas study missions it has set up. The other is to Ho
Chi Minh City in Vietnam.
Both continued education and training (CET) courses aim to give students
an insight into two of Asia’s fast-growing
economies.
The nine-week China and Vietnam
programmes start on Jan 29 and Feb
12 respectively. Enrolment closes on Jan
28. Seven students, with ages ranging
from 23 to 51, have already signed up
for each course. All are in full-time jobs
in sectors such as government, finance,
insurance, manufacturing and recreation.
Mr Guan works in heritage education
and is studying for a part-time UniSIM
degree in psychology, with a minor in
sociology. He wants to gain a broader
perspective of China.
“Instead of going there as a tourist, I
want to learn more about its culture and
history,” he said.
UniSIM deputy director of the Centre
for Chinese Studies, Dr Foo Tee Tuan,
51, said: “The trip can’t be too long as
our students are working adults, so we
want to make sure they learn a lot.”
The students will learn from professors at Beijing Normal University and
visit campuses of major institutions
such as Peking University and Tsinghua
University. They will also visit 10 historical sites, including Tiananmen Square
and the Forbidden City, and speak to
Singaporeans living in China.
UniSIM is also arranging visits to factories and offices of Chinese companies.
At the end of the course, students
must write a 3,000-word essay on a
topic of their choice on modern China,
using interviews and information gathered from the trip.
Each semester, UniSIM offers more
than 200 CET courses across its four
schools – arts and social sciences, business, human development and social
services, and science and technology.
Some 135 people took up the
courses last year, up from 62 in 2011.
Dr Teng Su Ching, UniSIM’s director
of CET, said students who take up the
two new overseas study courses “must
be familiar with and have insights into
the geopolitical and economic realities
of the region”.
She added: “There will be structural
academic work involved before and
after the trip to give students a strong
grounding on the background of the
destination countries, and to help them
analyse and reflect on their learning. It is
not just a tour.”
NO HOLIDAY
There will be structural
academic work involved
before and after the trip
to give students a strong
grounding on the
background of the
destination countries,
and to help them analyse
and reflect on their
learning. It is not just a
tour.
Dr Teng Su Ching,
UniSIM’s director of CET
ateng@sph.com.sg
TODAY | Monday, January 27, 2014
Windsurfer Ynez clinches
YOG qualifying spot
for S’pore
Sec 4 student nets third-place finish in youth girls’ division after shaky start
by Adelene Wong
S
ingapore — Her fight to qualify for this August’s
Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in Nanjing, China, got
off to a disappointing start by her own admission. But
at the end of the four-day SIM 33rd Singapore Open
Asian Windsurfing Championships (SOAWC) yesterday, national windsurfer Ynez Lim, 16, not only succeeded in her quest but also finished third.
“This is a huge win for me and for Singapore, as I
was up against some of Asia’s finest young windsurfers,” said the Secondary 4 student from St Anthony’s
Canossian Secondary.
The championships, which were held at the National
Sailing Centre at East Coast Park, also served as the continental qualifier for the YOG in the Under-17 Techno
293 class — and only the top three nations for the boys’
and girls’ events will qualify for Nanjing.
Ynez came in third in the 11-strong youth girls’ division after scoring 46 points. Thailand’s Duangkamon
Phongern took the gold with 16, while Hong Kong’s
Choi Wing Chi was second with 28 points.
As Hong Kong had already qualified for the YOG
during last July’s Bic Techno World Championships, it
meant that Japan’s Niijima Rina, who finished fourth
with 50 points, clinched the third qualifying spot at
stake yesterday.
Said a triumphant but visibly tired Ynez after the
competition: “I did not start off strongly and was worried after the first day when I came in fifth then.
“But my coach (Sakda Sakulfaeng) and I began a little log book and made many notes for the subsequent
News @ SIM
days of the competition, to put me in a better position
to predict the direction and magnitude of the gusts
expected each time. It worked.”
Sakda, who is the national coach in the Techno 293
class — felt that Ynez’s home advantage also played a
crucial role in helping her to finish third.
“Ynez is a fast learner and showed that she can be
among Asia’s best,” he said. “Pending her YOG qualification, I would also sit down with her to plan how we can
get a medal in that. It is possible.”
There are two more qualifying meets for the Windsurfing Association Singapore to select a representative
for the YOG. The selection will be based on the accumulation of points from the SOAWC, the Fish & Co National
Youth Sailing Championships in March and the YOG
Selection Trials in April.
Ynez will be competing for a spot with compatriots
Mildred Phang and Cheyenne Chan, who finished ninth
and 10th respectively yesterday.
“I am looking to first qualify for the YOG, and then
the Asian Games this year in Incheon,” said Ynez, who
won a silver in the RS:One class at last month’s Southeast Asian Games in Myanmar.
Over at the 26-strong youth boys’ division, Singaporean Wallace Gan finished 10th after 12 races and failed
to secure a YOG berth.
Singapore won a bronze medal in windsurfing at
the inaugural 2010 YOG in Singapore in the Techno 293
class via national windsurfer Audrey Yong.
adelenewong@mediacorp.com.sg
PAGE 30
Ynez Lim hopes to participate in the Youth Olympic
Games in Nanjing and the Asian Games in Incheon.
Photo: Wee Teck Hian
Singapore’s results at the SOAWC:
• Techno 293
(U-17 girls) Ynez Lim: 3rd,
Mildred Phang: 9th,
Cheyenne Chan: 10th (out of 11)
(U-17 boys) Wallace Gan: 10th,
Mohammad Izzaz: 21st,
Mark Wee: 26th (out of 26)
(Open class) Reynold Chan: 4th (out of 4)
• RS:One
(U-17) Nicholas Chang: 8th (out of 9)
• MOD
(U-17) Chuah Jun Ler: 7th (out of 8)
• RS:X
(Men’s) Leonard Ong: 3rd,
Merrick Phang: 6th (out of 7)
(Women’s) Audrey Yong: 7th,
Amanda Ng: 8th, Nicole Lim: 10th,
Ruth Mow: 11th (out of 11)
(U-17) Nicholas Wee: 6th (out of 6)
• Formula
Lo Jun Hao: 1st, Joshua Choo: 3rd, Harold
Ma: 4th, PJ Su: 5th, Goh Thye Hock: 6th,
Chong Tsung Wen: 8th (out of 9)
• Raceboard: Joe Chua: 5th (out of 8)
January – December 2014
— Mr Tan Juay Hwa (left), engineer, City Gas
M
idway through his 21-year career in the energy
sector, Mr Tan Juay Hwa switched to a new job
but within the same company.
In 2002, when town gas producer City Gas was
formed as a divested entity from PowerGas, the engineer was tasked to oversee the business development
and industrial marketing branch in the new set-up.
The transition from being an engineer overseeing
the installation of gas pipes in housing projeçcts to
a manager leading a team of people was difficult initially.
“It was challenging because there were new things
that I had to learn, such as manpower planning and
staff deployment,” recalls the 45-year-old.
His field of work also changed dramatically – from
working with nuts and bolts to developing the natural
gas retail business from scratch.
“Competition was very stiff at that time due to
excessive natural gas supplies in the market and City
Gas as a gas retailer was competing against the gas
importers,” he says.
The engineering graduate learnt the ropes of his
new job quickly, taking advice from his colleagues and
bosses. To ease him into his new role, the company
sent him for several management courses.
His previous training in business administration
also came to good use. He has a Master of Science
in industrial and systems engineering degree from
the National University of Singapore, and a graduate
diploma in business administration from the Singapore Institute of Management.
To his team’s credit, the natural gas business man-
aged to grow to “a sizeable one with years of continual efforts,” says Mr Tan, a registered professional
engineer.
In 2007, when the business was on track, he was
posted to his current role as senior manager of the
Utilisation Branch, Customer Services Division.
His 54-man team looks after the installation of gas
pipes and gas appliances in homes, the fixing of gas
meters and turn-on of gas supplies, as well as attending to customer service requests and enquiries on gas
billing.
Mr Tan says the internal moves haveenriched his
career. Not only has it widened his knowledge and
experience in different fields, it has also given him the
opportunity to learn new skills, such as developing an
IT system for the company and keeping proper documentation.
“The most satisfying part of this is the process of
acquiring new knowledge and sharing them with your
team, so that the entire team can grow and contribute
to the company in the future,” he says.
In the course of his work, he has travelled to Japan,
China and Italy, to meet with manufacturers and his
overseas counterparts.
“Such trips provide a good platform for me to gain
insightful knowledge on the overseas’ gas market
structure and our peers’ business operations,” he says.
He appreciates that the company is committed to
help aspiring individuals “develop, grow and contribute”.
Last year, he was part of a product development
team that was given the City Gas’ Eagle Award, which
recognises major breakthroughs by an individual or
a team.
His team was credited for expanding the company’s gas water heater business by introducing new
models of gas water heaters. This has increased the
sale of gas water heaters and greater piped gas utilisation.
Last year, he was also selected by his company
to participate in a 360-degree leadership multi-rater
assessment exercise, which helps participants understand their personality and management style.
“It helped me to develop more insight into my
strengths and weaknesses, so that I can understand
myself better and grow to become the person I want
to be,” he says.
He hopes other professionals will find a long and
satisfying career in the energy industry, as he did.
“The future of the energy industry in Singapore
is going to be an exciting and sustainable one, with
many new developments taking place,” he says. “It is
an industry that young graduates and working professionals considering a mid-life career switch should not
miss during their evaluation.”
THE BUSINESS TIMES | Friday, Febuary 21, 2014
SGX, UniSIM team up to educate investors
T
he Singapore Exchange (SGX) yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding with SIM University (UniSIM) to collaborate on providing investor
education to the public.
The collaboration, for an initial two years, will see SGX and UniSIM jointly develop
the content of financial and investment-related Continuing Education and Training
(CET) courses. Some courses will meet UniSIM’s academic requirements and will
carry academic credits which count towards a UniSIM degree. These courses are
News @ SIM
targeted at members of the public but are open to current UniSIM students in nonfinance related programmes.
Besides the CET courses, SGX and UniSIM will organise seminars, workshops
and other activities to increase the general public’s financial literacy. Over 3,000
members of the public and students are expected to benefit from these seminars
and courses.
PAGE 31
January – December 2014
PROVIDING GREATER OPPORTUNITIES
RED SPORTS | Sunday, March 23, 2014
THE NEW PAPER | Sunday, May 18, 2014
Tertiary Canoeing: Tan Chun
Leng of SIM claims double
gold in Men’s C1
Never too old
to go back to
school
Story by Zachary Foo/Red Sports. Photos by Lim Yong Teck/Red Sports
Dr Mohd Effendy Rajab is an associate
lecturer at the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM).
But if you had told him when he was
a child that he would grow up to be a
teacher, he would never have believed
you.
After all, he was not motivated as a
student, did poorly at school and had
hopes of becoming a sea captain.
When his dream was dashed by
a failed eyesight test, the 59-year-old
made a living as a lifeguard and fireman,
among other occupations. His on-the-job
experiences mean he is not simply teaching theories out of a textbook when he
is in class.
But the road to success was long and
winding, reveals Dr Effendy, who is also
the executive director of the Singapore
Scout Association.
“I was a scout all my life and my ambition was to be on a ship, to take care of
it,” says the stocky, grey-haired man.
“When my dreams were dashed
because my eyesight was not good
enough for the job, I became unmotivated and did not really want to study.”
He attended pre-university at St Patrick’s School but did not qualify for university.
So he put on his swimming trunks
and took on life-saving duties at swimming pools in Jurong and Yang Kit.
When there was an opening at the
fire service two years later in 1976, he
MacRitchie Reservoir, Saturday, March 22, 2014
— Tan Chun Leng of Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) bagged two gold medals over
two distances in the C1 class of the Tertiary
Canoeing Championships.
Chun Leng clocked 4:46.81 to win the
1000m race. He came back after the lunch break
to win the 200m in 49.53 seconds.
Yan Ze Xun of Temasek Polytechnic (TP)
clocked 51.80 seconds to finish second in the
C1 200m, while Alvis Ang of Singapore Polytechnic (SP) rounded off the podium with his
time of 52.77 seconds.
Tan Chun Leng of SIM in action. Chun Leng took home the Men’s C1
1000m gold medal with a timing of 4:46.81. He also won gold in the C1
200m to take the double over both distances. (Photo © Lim Yong Teck /
Red Sports)
Tan Sheng Yu of National University of Singapore (NUS) finished second in the C1 1000m
with a time of 5:03.83, while Clement Tan of
Nanyang Technological University was close
behind, clocking 5:07.34.
Men’s C1 200m Final
1st Tan Chun Leng (SIM) — 49.53
2nd Yan Ze Xun (TP) — 51.80
3rd Alvis Ang (SP) — 52.77
4th Tan Sheng Yu (NUS) — 53.30
5th James Lim (RP) — 53.95
6th Clement Tan (NTU) — 54.55
Men’s C1 1000m Final
1st Tan Chun Leng (SIM) — 4:46.81
2nd Tan Sheng Yu (NUS) — 5:03.83
3rd Clement Tan (NTU) — 5:07.34
4th Benny Tan (NTU) — 5:08.16
5th Janus Lee (NYP) — 5:17.39
6th Alvis Ang (SP) — 5:18.37
TODAY | Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Huge response for UniSIM
degrees in arts, sports
and music education
Applicants include MOE teachers professionals
ingapore — More than 250 applications have been received for
SIM University’s (UniSIM) three new
part-time degree programmes in arts,
music and sports education, surpassing the number of places available.
The university has only 30 places
for each programme for the July intake.
However, by the time applications
closed on March 31, it had received
more than 140 applications for the
Bachelor of Sports and Physical Education programme, more than 70 for the
Bachelor of Art Education programme
and more than 40 for the Bachelor of
Music Education programme.
Applicants include teachers in the
Ministry of Education school system as
well as those from the private teaching
sector, and professionals from relevant
fields.
Each degree, which has a practiceoriented focus, also comes with a Minor
component in either Management or
Psychology.
Dr James Ong, Head of Education Programmes at UniSIM’s School of
Human Development and Social Services, said the application numbers
showed there is a demand in the niche
areas of arts, music and sports.
These three industries are “increasingly vibrant and of vital importance
towards a vision for a cultured and
News @ SIM
robust society and building Singapore
as a renaissance city”, he noted. There
is also an increase in demand for quality education and teachers with relevant degrees as well as training in these
areas, he added.
The school hopes to raise the level
of professionalism in these fields by
providing non-graduate teachers with
an opportunity to upgrade themselves,
as well as reach out to aspiring practitioners.
It also wants to promote a greater
appreciation for the arts and enhance
overall physical fitness levels and interest in sports, said Dr Ong.
At the same time, the Management minor offers students skills to
function effectively as a member and
team leader within an organisation,
while Psychology is learning about the
behaviour of people, which can be useful in any occupation, he added.
Special facilities, such as a music
studio and a sports hall, will be available to students when the new extended
campus in Clementi is ready this year.
UniSIM will also collaborate with
institutions such as the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, Sport Singapore and
the Physical Education and Sports
Teachers Academy for the use of their
facilities.
Lecturers will be current practitionPAGE 32
ers as well as from other institutes of
higher learning.
Personal trainer Abu Bakar Abdul,
24, is among those who have managed
to secure a place in the coveted sports
programme. The fitness enthusiast
graduated from Republic Polytechnic
with a Diploma in Sports and Exercise
Sciences in 2011, and joined Anytime
Fitness Centre last year after completing his National Service.
He was an introvert in secondary
school and his classmates had called
him names for being skinny, he said.
When he was 17, he started going to
the gym.
“I became happier and gained more
self-esteem. I entered this business
because I hope I can help people who
are also facing these problems.”
Mr Abu Bakar said as his diploma
covered only the basics, at times he
feels he is not competent enough to
respond to his clients’ questions.
Through the programme, he hopes
to gain in-depth knowledge on subjects
such as physiology and nutrition to
help others and improve his own wellbeing.
“Hopefully I can progress in my
career, and someday, I hope to manage
my own club,” he added.
joyfangz@mediacorp.com.sg
jumped at the chance to lead a team of
firemen.
“I’ve always loved uniforms and taking on leadership roles, so that job was
exciting and fulfilling,” he says.
For six years, he braved grisly sights
such as smashed grey matter and dead
bodies while on duty.
“I was churning inside but in front
of my men, I could not show it,” he says
with a chuckle.
It was only when he was 33 years
old did the thought of pursuing a degree
cross his mind.
“I was then working in a petrochemical complex as a senior fire and security
officer. I saw others move up the ladder
and felt that my lack of qualifications was
hindering me from progressing in my
career.”
Hoping that a degree would better his
chances of being promoted, he enrolled
in night classes at SIM to obtain a certificate in management.
It marked the beginning of his 11-year
academic journey, which rewarded him
with a bachelor’s degree, a master’s
degree and a doctorate.
It was not easy, he says.
“Along the way, I failed. I had to retake the final exams of my diploma
course because while I passed the management part of it, I flunked the finance
bit. I was disappointed.
“But six months later, I gave it another
go and made the mark.”
TNP PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR
Balancing family and night classes
thrice weekly was also tough, says the
father of a boy, who is married to a nurse.
Dr Effendy counts receiving his bachelor’s degree in human resource management in 1993 as one of the proudest
moments in his life.
But his hopes that it would help him
advance in his company did not materialise.
“It was then my mindset started to
change – from valuing knowledge for the
papers to loving the process of learning
and discovery.”
He has been teaching for 15 years
and has no plans to stop teaching management-related courses and organisational behaviour.
“Teaching touches people’s lives. And
to hear the students say, ‘If a late developer like you can do it, why can’t I?’,
keeps me going,” says Dr Effendy.
“It’s all about having a positive mindset and making it happen.”
Along the way, I failed.
I had to re-take the final
exams of my diploma
course because while I
passed the management
part of it, I flunked the
finance bit. I was
disappointed
– Dr Mohd Effendy Rajab
(above), associate lecturer at
S’pore Institute of Management
THE BUSINESS TIMES | Saturday, June 7, 2014
by Joy Fang
S
by Benita Aw Yeong
SIM opens financial training centre
by Raphael Lim
U
Personal trainer Abu Bakar Abdul has
secured a place in the Bachelor of Sports
and Physical Education programme. He
hopes to gain in-depth knowledge on
subjects such as physiology and nutrition to
help others and improve his own well-being.
PHOTO: ERNEST CHUA
January – December 2014
GOING BEYOND :
SIM Global Education says the new financial training centre reinforces its aim to provide
an educational experience that expands outside the lecture theatre. FILE PHOTO
News @ SIM
PAGE 33
ndergratuate banking and finance
students at the Singapore Institute
of Management (SIM) will be able to
expand their knowledge and sharpen
their trading skills with a new Financial Training Centre opened yesterday by SIM Global Education (SIM GE)
in partnership with UOB Bullion and
Futures (UOBBF).
The centre is part of SIM’s $300 million expansion of its Clementi campus,
which is slated to be completed later
this year.
SIM GE said the centre – which has
30 computers and offers access to foreign-exchange quotes, exchange-listed
futures quotes and historical information – reinforces its aim to provide an
educational experience that expands
outside the lecture theatre. During the
launch ceremony, SIM GE chief executive Lee Kwok Cheong said: “It serves
to increase the quality of the learning
experience among SIM GE students by
enabling students to undertake analysis
of financial trends as well as technical
analysis of financial indicators, practise
their knowledge of financial issues and
further enhance their applied research
in financial market activities.”
Almost 2,500 undergraduate students will have access to the centre,
which will be integrated into the curriculum of the diploma in banking
and finance, and will also be available
to students from SIM GE’s bachelor’s
degree offerings in accountancy, economics and finance.
UOBBF chief executive Matthew Png
said: “As part of the UOB group, UOBBF
is committed to helping build the talent
pool for the financial services industry.”
UOBBF secured the involvement of
financial software company CQG and
Singapore Exchange, which will provide complimentary data and software
services for five years. Mr Png said
while acquiring knowledge and skills
was essential, the true test remained
in application. “Students will have the
opportunities to hear from industry
professionals and to learn about the
importance of having the right attitude and discerning mind to build and
uphold trust in the financial industry.”
raphlim@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
PROVIDING GREATER OPPORTUNITIES
SHIN MIN DAILY NEWS | Saturday, July 19, 2014
林丽丽
和导盲
犬一起
演出
不
向
命
运
低
头
THE STRAITS TIMES | Thursday, October 9, 2014
失明女苦读7年
考获大学文凭
Teacher gets
degree, thanks
to pre-school
陈婉琳 报道 | 陈佩敏 摄影
女郎自小双目失明，却不向命运低头，花7年时间考
获大学文凭，成为首名新加坡管理学院盲人毕业生，活
出精彩。
35岁林丽丽从小在学习上面对视觉障碍，学海生涯比
他人长，但她不放弃，坚持读完大学。
她的学业成绩，也不比其他同学逊色，曾在锦茂中
学考获全级第二名。
从锦茂中学高中部毕业后，她当了6年接待员，后来
申请进入新加坡管理学院修读英语文学。
林丽丽说：“我每年只选读一科，共花了7年的时间
完成七个科目的课程，考获学士的过程并不容易。”
她说，讲堂笔记必须由义工协助编入电脑，让她能
通过电脑语言系统，以听的方式读其内容。
7年苦读之后，她终获得文科学士文凭，并且尝到披
上学士袍的滋味。
昨晚，新达城会展中心举行的音乐盛会“Enabled!”
，她是本地表演者之一。
“Enabled!”集合音乐、歌唱、工作坊等，通过演出
将各阶层人士连接起来，希望提高人们对音乐诸多可能
性的认知，尝试从音乐中找寻快乐与自信。
林丽丽在演出中，控制6种音乐技术器材，并与她亲
爱的导盲犬Nice，表演“Way of the Butterfly”。
人生有目标才会精彩
女郎勇于挑战自己，曾于竞争激烈的保险业中工作。
林丽丽表示，人生一定要有目标，要活出自己的天
空，人生才会精彩。
她曾担任美国友邦（AIA）保险公司财经顾问，和其
他的同事一样，必须外出与客户接洽，但这些职务并没
难倒她。
工作时，她随身携带一台有语言系统辅助的膝上型
电脑，以方便她通过声音输入字母。
因为健康出现问题，并在医生的劝告下，她后来辞
去全职工作，转成自由业向导。
如今她是盲人体验中心“与黑暗对话”的兼职员
工，以及WhizHeartz业务发展教导员，继续过着她的充
实人生 。
tanwlin@sph.com.sg
THE STRAITS TIMES | Tuesday, September 9, 2014
UniSIM launches module
on Singapore literature
S
IM University (UniSIM) has launched a module on Singapore literature for its arts
and social sciences students.
It starts this week and covers poems, novels, plays, short stories, films and graphic
novels by local writers such as Haresh Sharma and Simon Tay and film-maker Han Yew
Kwang.
University administrators had planned for 90 students for the course, but received
about 180 applicants and ended up taking in 130.
The university had been looking to start a new course and its senior English lecturer
Khoo Sim Eng said:
“We thought, why not Singapore literature? It made perfect sense, and it is something
students can identify with.”
As UniSIM caters mainly to working adults, the module is written by local writer
Gwee Li Sui and is split into three online sessions and three face-to-face sessions. It
includes recorded interviews with the authors.
by Pearl Lee
T
hey say it takes a village to raise a child. In Ms Adeline Koh’s case, it took a
pre-school to help her look after three children and enable her to complete a
degree at SIM University (UniSIM).
The pre-school teacher, who is single, had worried if she could cope when she
signed up for the course in 2010, as she had to help care for her sister Maureen’s
two children, as well as a boy who had family problems.
But her colleagues at the PAP Community Foundation kindergarten in Tampines
East egged her on and went out of their way to help.
One colleague, fellow teacher Neo Hwei Mien, 39, would escort the children
to school or to take the school bus, so that Ms Koh could catch up on sleep in the
mornings.
Her principal, Ms Norijah Ahmad, 53, even went to her house to babysit the
children while Ms Koh attended night classes at UniSIM. Ms Koh, 43, said: “My colleagues are really like my family. I know that in times of need, they are people I can
turn to.”
Ms Koh, who completed an early childhood education and management degree
on an Education Ministry scholarship, is one of more than 2,000 students graduating from UniSIM this week.
Her zest for continual learning was a quality praised by Deputy Prime Minister
Teo Chee Hean yesterday at a UniSIM graduation ceremony, as he urged universities to support a “study while working approach”.
Addressing graduands at the university’s auditorium, he said universities should
create open pathways, have courses relevant to the industry, and maintain good
standards – three fundamentals that remain unchanged even as Singapore’s univer-
Ms Adeline Koh (seated) with (from left) her sister Maureen Koh, colleague Neo Hwei Mien,
principal Norijah Ahmad, and colleague Candy Soh PHOTO: MATTHIAS HO FOR THE
STRAITS TIMES
sity sector becomes more diverse.
“An open and flexible system provides attractive alternatives for acquiring a
degree while working, and keeps opportunities open for Singaporeans throughout
their working lives,” said Mr Teo.
He commended UniSIM for having an open admissions approach for its parttime courses, which is reflected in the wide age range of its students.
The youngest is 22, while the oldest was a 75-year-old who graduated in 2011,
said a UniSIM spokesman.
Mr Teo said the best proof of quality education is how graduates perform in
their jobs. “Seen in this light, getting a degree is not the end of the journey. It is a
milestone, albeit a significant and important one, in a continual journey of learning
and upgrading,” he said.
Ms Koh, who has worked in the same pre-school centre since 1990, thanked her
colleagues and family members. “Without them, I really won’t be where I am today.”
She intends to pursue a master’s degree in early childhood next year at the
National Institute of Education.
leepearl@sph.com.sg
TAMIL MURASU | Monday, October 13, 2014
Ms Khoo, who asked Dr Gwee to write the module, added: “I was looking for someone who appreciated the academic value of Singapore literature and who could also
make it accessible, and I think he’s done a great job.”
The National University of Singapore, meanwhile, has restarted an advanced course
on Singapore literature, called Singapore Literature in Context, after a three-year hiatus.
The module was stopped when its lecturer, Professor Philip Holden from the university’s English language and literature department, was seconded to another programme
and then went on a leave of absence.
Prof Holden said he is worried that younger assistant professors may not choose to
research Singapore literature, as many local works “don’t circulate outside Singapore”
and “research done in this area is sometimes more difficult to publish in major research
journals”.
PEARL LEE
VOXSPORTS | Thursday, September 11, 2014
SUniG 2014 (Floorball):
SIM clinches third successive win
Written by: Khalis Rifhan
S
ingapore Institute of Management (SIM) climbed to the top of the Singapore University Games (SUniG) floorball standings as they clinched a third straight win, the
latest being a 4-2 victory over Singapore Management University (SMU).
The match, played at SIM on Tuesday, saw the hosts pull out all the stops and put
on a solid and discipline performance to signal their intention of dethroning National
University of Singapore (NUS) in the competition.
Nanyang Technological University (NTU) won the men’s floorball title a year ago but
suffered a shock 2-1 defeat to SMU in their second match a week ago. NTU comfortably
won their other two matches, against Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) and Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) 8-1 and 12-0 respectively.
“Against SMU, it was a match we need to win and we really prove it on court the
court. We were calm and patient. We got the first goal and the subsequent ones it boost
News @ SIM
PAGE 34
our morale,” said SIM captain Rizal.
“Although we had some setbacks where we conceded a few goals, but we never fail
to put our head in the game and ensure a win for us.” added the 25-year old whose team
will next face SUTD and NTU in their remaining matches in the competition.
Starting the day equalled on six points with SIM and NTU, the defeat dealt a heavy
blow to SMU’s target of clinching the men’s floorball title.
“Our players took a while to warm up and in terms of wanting to win the game more,
they had the advantage. We did not play according to plan and we had to make some
changes at the end,” said SMU coach Ben Ow Jia An.
“SIM did well and our boys lacked the focus. They need to stick to the gameplay and
work as a team,” added the SMU coach.
January – December 2014
News @ SIM
PAGE 35
January – December 2014
PROVIDING GREATER OPPORTUNITIES
THE STRAITS TIMES | Monday, October 20, 2014
THE STRAITS TIMES | Friday, December 5, 2014
More men drawn
to social work
UniSIM to launch degree
in human resource
Helpful to have more men in some areas, say experts
Full-fledged course aims to fill gap in HR training
by Sandra Davie
by Priscilla Goy
A
teacher’s kind act during a difficult time in his
life sparked in Mr Loh Wei Hao an interest in
helping others.
His secondary school chemistry teacher, who
noticed he was looking tired and had lost weight,
gave Mr Loh a box of chicken essence.
It was during the Asian financial crisis and Mr
Loh’s father, a property agent, was not doing well, so
the family of five struggled with their finances.
Despite his circumstances, Mr Loh still felt the
need to help others; he started doing volunteer work
in junior college and also through his church.
“It became clearer what I wanted to do,” said the
25-year-old social worker at Pave, the leading agency
dealing with family violence.
“You get to enter people’s lives, their homes, and
help them.”
Mr Loh is one of the few men in the social services
sector. Data from the Ministry of Social and Family
Development (MSF) shows that only about 20 per
cent of the 600 social workers here are male.
But interest is slowly increasing.
SIM University (UniSIM), which offers a social work
degree, had 46 male students enter its degree programme last year, up from 35 in 2010.
The National University of Singapore (NUS), which
allows students to major in social work, could not say
if the number of men doing social work has increased
as many students try different modules and declare a
major only in their second or third year.
But Dr Rosaleen Ow, head of the social work
department at NUS, said she has noticed more male
students attending classes.
Help groups and voluntary welfare organisations
say having more male social workers would be helpful in certain areas of work.
Pave says some of its men clients prefer male
social workers. Of its team of 13 social workers, two
are men.
“Some male clients worry that female social workers may side with their wives when discussing their
marital problems,” said a Pave spokesman.
Male social workers tend to make men clients feel
more comfortable as they understand the male psyche better and clients feel they are empathising with
them.
“Male social workers can present their perspective
on common issues men face and their thought processes,” said Mr Edmund Wong, general manager of
Touch Community Services.
When dealing with teenage boys or even adults,
a male social worker can also sometimes become a
role model.
“Boys may feel more comfortable talking to male
social workers about growing-up issues, puberty and
their intimate thoughts. They can have a father figure
to look up to,” said Mr Trevor Xie, director (community partnerships) at Student Advisory Centre.
While male social workers are still in the minority, experts say efforts to improve pay in recent years
have helped to get more men interested in the sector. Under the MSF’s 2012 guidelines, a social worker
fresh out of university would draw a monthly pay of
$2,760.
Associate Professor Seng Boon Kheng, head of the
social work programme at UniSIM, said: “The profession is gaining more recognition and there are new
areas of interest like youth work which some men
are interested in.”
Clearer progression pathways also helped to
attract men to the sector, said Dr Ow.
While Mr Loh agreed that some men may be hesitant to join the social work sector because the pay is
low and they worry about not being able to provide
for their families, he said: “I don’t really feel the pressure to earn much now. My main reason for joining
social work is that I want to help people.”
Plus, he said, the rewards of social work are great.
“Many people think the relationship between
social workers and clients is just one-way, that we
just give out financial assistance.
“It works both ways actually – we get inspired by
our clients and learn from them as well.”
goyshiyi@sph.com.sg
Belajar lagi selepas 10 tahun bekerja
agar kekal relevan dalam kerjaya
by Haryani Ismail
S
News @ SIM
PAGE 36
S
IM University (UniSIM) will become the first of Singapore’s six universities to
launch a human resource (HR) management degree next year, to plug a gap
in the training of HR personnel.
Its provost Tsui Kai Chong said the programmes at the other local universities
are general business degrees with a specialisation in HR. Students typically take
between five and eight courses in HR.
In comparison, UniSIM’s course is a full-fledged one, offering 15 modules in
HR, he said. These include employment law and industrial relations, training and
development – which is being emphasised in Singapore – as well as human capital
metrics, or measurements used to determine the value and effectiveness of HR
strategies, he added.
The new degree will help meet a need: Surveys have shown that more than
half of HR managers here have qualifications in a non-related field.
Welcoming the new UniSIM course, Singapore Human Resources Institute president Erman Tan cited the institute’s 2010 survey where 40 per cent of HR managers polled said they lacked formal education in the field.
He said: “Traditionally, HR was seen as a support function in a business. HR
professionals were mostly concerned with hiring and firing, compensation, training, security, safety and so on.
“But now, companies see talented and committed employees as a key advantage, and knowledgeable HR professionals have an important role to play in ensuring that the most effective strategies are adopted to manage talent for companies.”
The degree, which will take in 40 students for the first year, is the fourth fulltime degree course offered by the university.
UniSIM, which received 1,500 applications for the 200 places in its first three
full-time degree programmes launched this year, also plans to increase its intake
for two of them.
The marketing degree course was oversubscribed by 14 times this year. The
university will increase its intake from 60 this year to 80 next year.
For accountancy, the intake will go up from 100 to 120. This will remain at 40
for finance.
The HR management course will be taught like the other three degree courses,
said Professor Tsui.
There will be no lectures and tutorials. Instead, students will be required to
read the material and listen to lectures online before going to class ready to take
part in discussions.
They will also study minor modules such as psychology and sociology in evening classes alongside working adults on part-time degree courses.
UniSIM also plans to get students career-ready by requiring them to do longer
and more substantial work attachments.
Singapore Polytechnic business graduate Philip Tan, 21, who just completed
national service, is keen to take up the new course.
“I think there is value in doing a specialised degree rather than a general business degree.
“I am a people person and I find human resource management an interesting
area,” he said.
sandra@sph.com.sg
THE STAR (METRO NORTH) | Monday, December 8, 2014
BERITA HARIAN | Saturday, October 25, 2014
ebagai lulusan Universiti Nasional Singapura (NUS) dengan pengkhususan
Sejarah dan Sains Politik, Encik Noriman Ali Salam bercita-cita menceburi
bidang ehwal antarabangsa setelah tamat pengajian.
Bagaimanapun, ekoran kegawatan ekonomi sekitar 2003, beliau berdepan
dengan kepayahan mencari pekerjaan.
Lantaran itu, beliau menerima sahaja tawaran bertugas sebagai pegawai bantuan kewangan di Majlis Pembangunan Masyarakat (CDC) Southeast.
Beliau yang lebih cenderung dalam tugas pembangunan belia, bahkan tidak
tahu-menahu langsung mengenai kerja kemasyarakatan.
Bagaimanapun, ada hikmah di sebalik setiap pemberian Tuhan buat Encik Noriman, kini 35 tahun.
Perlahan-lahan, beliau meniti tangga kerjaya sehingga akhirnya bergelar Timbalan Pengurus Besar di CDC Central.
Pemuda ramah yang sudah dua bulan beralih kerja, menerajui tugas baru sebagai naib dekan di Institut Latihan Kepimpinan Masyarakat (Nacli) pula kian jatuh
hati dengan amanah mendekati masyarakat setempat.
Berkat dorongan keluarga dan majikan lamanya di CDC Central, beliau mengikuti kursus Sarjana Kepimpinan Masyarakat dan Pembangunan Sosial daripada
Universiti SIM (UniSIM).
Baru-baru ini, Encik Noriman yang masih bujang meraih ijazahnya, mencetus
rasa gembira di hati bapanya, Encik Mohd Ali Salam, 69 tahun dan ibunya, Cik
Sabariah Mohamed Ali, 64 tahun.
Ketika ditemui di rumah kakaknya di Simei, Encik Noriman berkata:
“Setelah lebih 10 tahun bekerja, saya rasa masanya sudah sampai bagi saya
mempertingkatkan diri saya.
“Sekitaran sekeliling dan tuntutan pekerjaan kian berubah. Bekas majikan saya
pula menasihati saya agar menggarap kemahiran saya agar ilmu yang dimiliki relevan dengan keperluan kerjaya saya.
“Lagi pun, mereka kata, daripada saya setakat mengikuti sesi latihan atau kursus selama seminggu dua, lebih baik saya ambil ijazah sarjana.”
Sebagai naib dekan di Nacli, yang bernaung di bawah Persatuan Rakyat (PA),
beliau diamanahkan membangun program latihan dan pembangunan sekitar
3,000 kakitangan PA.
SENIOR EDUCATION CORRESPONDENT
NIKMAT BERGELAR SARJANA: Encik Noriman Ali Salam kembali ke dewan kuliah bagi
mengikuti kursus Sarjana Kepimpinan Masyarakat dan Pembangunan Sosial sebagai
memenuhi tuntutan tugas yang kian berubah suasana sekitarnya.
Tesis kursus sarjananya di UniSIM pula ialah mengenai keberkesanan institusi
CDC dalam memajukan masyarakat selepas wujud hampir dua dekad lamanya di
Singapura.
“Saya tidak menyesali segala jerih payah yang dilalui selama ini. Kalau tidak
kerana tugas-tugas di CDC, saya tidak mungkin dapat mendekati golongan yang
memerlukan dan memahami keperluan mereka.
“Saya dahulu sangka lebih banyak perkara boleh diuruskan di luar negara
tetapi nampaknya masih banyak lagi isu kemasyarakatan yang perlu ditangani di
Singapura,” jelasnya.
Pekerjaan beliau menjadi lebih bermakna kerana dirinya terlibat dalam lakaran
dan pelaksanaan bermacam projek, termasuk program berhenti merokok.
“Ada masanya program yang dilakar menemui kegagalan tetapi saya bersyukur kerana mendapat majikan yang sering membangun semangat saya agar
terus mencuba dan belajar daripada pengalaman,” katanya lagi.
haryani@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
Singapore team paddle to glory
by Jolynn Francis
T
he Singapore Institute of
Management dragon boat
team snagged the most number
of awards at the Penang Pesta
Dragon Boat Race 2014.
The 54-member team, which
took part in the 100m, 250m
and 250mx2 relay races, took
home six gold, six silver and two
bronze trophies out of 18 racing
events.
Team captain Teo Kian Hong,
23, said they trained hard with
the aim to win all their races.
He said they took part in five
major competitions in a year.
“We have up to six training
sessions a week and each session can last up to four hours,”
he said in an interview after the
races at the Teluk Bahang Dam
yesterday.
The team won RM7,800 out
of the total RM26,000 in cash
prizes.
Meanwhile, Iranian team
Avash Persian Gulf manager and
Participants from Singapore Institute of Management showing off their trophies.
coach Sara Zainalisomedel, 30,
said that they were definitely comraces is just beautiful and it’s all very exciting for us.”
ing back next year even though they are going home
She also said that her team would be participating
empty-handed this time.
in races in Singapore and China next year.
“Our team is relatively new as it was only formed
“Dragon boat racing is not a new sport in Iran, it
in October.
has been around since 2006. There are currently 15
“We had only two months to train and most of
women’s teams in back home,” she added.
our members are first-time paddlers,” she said, addDragons of North America team member Kristof
ing that the youngest member in her all-women team
Erkiletian said this race had “a little bit of everything”.
was 12.
“It’s got competitive athletes, really good entertain“The competition here is huge. The venue for the
ment ceremonies like the flag bearing, arm wrestling
News @ SIM
PAGE 37
and cold water dump, and it’s got food vendors.
“It is well-organised and the venue is fantastic
because you can get a really good view from all different points of the race course,” he said.
However, he said that there needed to be more
advertisements to attract more spectators.
“More can be done to promote this event,” he said.
January – December 2014
PROVIDING GREATER OPPORTUNITIES
THE SUNDAY TIMES | Sunday, December 28, 2014
Festive cheer on cafe owners’ menu
Me and My Money speaks to those who have embraced the
spirit of giving, in the lead-up to year-end festivities.
by Rachael Boon
work until he fell asleep,” recalls Mr Lee.
“It pushes me more and motivates me to go even
further as it tells me that I’m probably not working
hard enough.”
Q: Are you a spender or saver?
Both. Diana and I love to travel and we travel up to
five times a year.
We usually combine leisure with work on trips,
exploring the coffee cultures overseas and seeing
what we can learn from them to improve our ways
back in Singapore.
Some people ask why I would spend over $3,000
on an air ticket just to fly to the United States to compete. But I enjoy it, and to combine work and leisure,
that’s the best.
I do not spend on clothes and things like that, but
I did spend a substantial amount to set up a commercial barista workstation at home.
I spend only on what I really need, and I believe in
saving to invest.
Q: How much do you charge to your credit cards
every month?
I don’t use my credit cards as I’m more of a cash
person. Credit card rewards don’t appeal to me, but I
still carry credit cards as they create a line of defence
between fraudsters and my money.
I use them a lot when I’m overseas.
Q: What financial planning have you done for yourself?
You should not invest for the sake of investing,
but when the opportunity comes, you must have the
ready capital to invest.
I am not into stocks or properties at the moment,
but I intend to understand them better in the near
future before I get into them. There’s a lot of research
to be done.
My largest investment has been and will be 6oz
Espresso Bar, as I see this as a long-term investment.
6oz Espresso Bar co-founders Shane Lee and Diana Chew help out at different charities during Christmas. Two years ago, they visited Melrose Home, delivering meals, playing games and
singing with the young residents.This year, the venue was an old folks’ home, Peacehaven Nursing Home. PHOTO: DIOS VINCOY JR FOR THE SUNDAY TIMES
C
afe boss Shane Lee has more than enough to do
in his business dealing with festive cheer, but
each Christmas in recent years he has made it a
point to spend time helping out at various charities.
The idea came from his girlfriend Diana Chew,
26, and her family, and it is one that Mr Lee, 27, has
embraced.
They visited children’s home Melrose Home two
years ago, delivering meals, playing games and singing with the young residents.
An old folks’ home, Peacehaven Nursing Home,
was the venue this year. Family members prepared
Christmas carols and homemade gingerbread men.
On Christmas Eve, some of the cousins played the
guitar, and Mr Lee joined in on the violin while his girlfriend sang.
“Diana’s aunt organises it, so it’s more like a family thing. During Christmas, they visit orphanages and
old folks’ homes,” says Mr Lee, a co-founder, along
with Ms Chew, of 6oz Espresso Bar in McCallum Street.
“We’ll try to do it every year, at least during Christ-
News @ SIM
mas. I’m not sure if we can tie up with some organisation such that our staff can go down as well.
“It’d be good for them to see what’s going on outside.”
Mr Lee, who holds a bachelor’s degree in business (marketing) from SIM-RMIT University and is an
SIM Global Education scholarship holder, set up 6oz
Espresso Bar during his second year in university.
The cafe, which uses only Arabica beans, has
gained traction in those four years and opened its second outlet in Fuji Xerox Towers in September.
He is also a competitive latte artist and was second
runner-up at this year’s Singapore Latte Art Championship. He spares no expense to improve, visiting coffee cities such as Seattle, Chicago and Tokyo just to
compete.
When he’s not honing his coffee craft, Mr Lee conducts violin lessons on Sundays, having cultivated a
love for the instrument as a child.
He has always had a passion for music and business, and says he may set up a music school to marry
PAGE 38
the two loves.
“I like the sense of achievement I get when seeing my students enjoy the violin and achieving results
they worked so hard for – all of them scored distinctions this year.
“They remind me of how I was when I was younger,
like refusing to practise. Within the capability that I
have, I like to help people grow, including my staff.”
He pays above-market rates and tells his employees that he wants the salary to be the last thing on
their minds. He wants them to focus on improving
themselves and doing their best instead.
Despite his busy schedule, Mr Lee says that “I don’t
plan to ever stop teaching. I like what I’m doing. I usually conduct lessons on Sunday, for the whole day.
Diana calls me a workaholic because I don’t have time
to rest”.
The drive to succeed stems from his experiences
growing up, as Mr Lee watched his father build his
own engineering business.
“He worked till late every day, and sometimes he’d
January – December 2014
Q: Moneywise, what were your growing-up years like?
When I was younger, my family wasn’t extremely
well-to-do. I came from a middle-income family. We
lived in a five-room Housing Board flat in Bishan.
We received a fixed allowance, of course. Not as
much as other kids, but enough to spend on food and
save a little.
In primary school, bookstores used to sell coloured staples, and the colours were very limited. I
bought a few boxes of plain staples, coloured them
using markers and sold them to my classmates for 10
cents per strip. I even customised the colours to their
preference.
Demand was surprisingly high and it was quite a
lucrative business for a primary school kid (laughs).
What my parents instilled in me was that saving is
very important and if you want to buy certain things,
you have to work towards them and save up, instead
of asking your parents to buy stuff.
When that happened, we’d quarrel with them, but
now I appreciate a lot of what my parents did. I understand where they’re coming from.
It helps with my perception of business as well –
you have to work very hard if you want something to
happen.
These happened before my dad started his engineering firm, and he started to do well.
When I was 10, we moved to a private condominium, and I’ve been living there ever since. Even
though that happened, our allowances didn’t change.
My elder sister saves a lot, and I like to go out
while she likes to stay at home. We do share pointers,
like she’d ask me to save more and I’d ask her to play
more. We’re very different but it’s good in some ways.
News @ SIM
What my parents instilled in me was that saving is very
important and if you want to buy certain things, you have
to work towards them and save up, instead of asking your
parents to buy stuff.
Q: How did you get interested in investing?
My parents invested in me through music. When I
was younger, I didn’t see the point of learning music
because I wasn’t going to be a professional performer
and I knew that it was quite difficult to make it in Singapore.
There were times when I felt like quitting, but they
urged me to carry on. Now I realise it was a form of
investment in me.
I’ve been conducting violin lessons for close to
11 years now. It is a very practical skill, considering
the decent supplement income I am getting now. The
years spent practising through blistered fingers, broken strings and screeching sounds have been worth
every bit.
I started to realise that investing is a long-term
thing, I don’t believe in investing and getting back
returns or profits overnight.
It’s the same for our business. Everything that we
earn is invested back into the company, be it training,
upgrading equipment or operation flow.
I’m planning to invest back into the company for
the next five to six years. We are keeping most of the
profits and dividends in the company.
It’s good that we’re still young with no commitments, so we can afford to put everything back into
the company.
Q: What property do you own?
None, although we may be looking at a Build-ToOrder flat in the future.
Q: What’s the most extravagant thing you have
bought?
If you exclude the coffee work station, which cost
about $6,000, it would be the Emporio Armani watch
I’m wearing now, which I got when my family and I
were travelling in Europe.
It’s not very expensive, probably close to $1,000.
In Europe, everyone was buying stuff then. I walked
into the shop and that was what I could afford back
then.
I also bought a Chanel handbag for Diana that cost
close to $3,000 during the trip.
The workstation was something I wanted to have
at home, to experiment with different coffee ideas and
make coffee for the family.
It is being put to good use now for our mobile coffee service, even though we didn’t foresee it at the
time of purchase.
Q: What’s your retirement plan?
I hope to retire by 50 and travel around the world
with my partner. I’m striving hard to build the busi-
PAGE 39
ness into an industry leader; to be well respected
by consumers and competitors. We plan to expand
the company internationally and take it public in 10
years’ time.
Q: Home is now...
A private condominium in the Upper Paya Lebar
area.
Q: I drive...
Diana and I share a Honda Stream. We got it
because of the huge space in the back for mobile
coffee services, where we set up a barista station at
conferences and meetings. We were fully booked in
October and November.
WORST AND BEST BETS
Q: What is your worst investment to date?
I’m not sure if this is the worst. I bought a better violin because I thought that I was going to be a
professional performer. I purchased the violin from a
private dealer. It cost about $8,000. I had just started
teaching, and teaching grew on me even more.
Several years later, I took the violin to several
luthiers and they told me it was actually worth only
$3,000.
I was only 16 at that time and the $5,000 lost was
a lot of money. I learnt to never trust people so easily,
and to do my due diligence, which I apply a lot to my
business now.
I used the violin when I was at the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM). My friends and I performed
at graduation ceremonies and later founded the SIM
String Ensemble. It started to grow and we also performed at the Esplanade Recital Studio.
After that, I didn’t use it much, except for personal
enjoyment at home.
Q: What is your best investment to date?
Definitely the company, because it combines my
passion with business and is the best thing that can
happen to anyone.
Do what you really enjoy and focus on what you
do, instead of following what others are doing... It’s
how you do it, and who you want to focus on.
As long as you’re the best at what you do, it
doesn’t matter what you do.
Even if you’re a cleaner, but you have the best
cleaning company in Singapore, I think you can be
richer than some doctors and lawyers out there.
rachaelb@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
LEADING THOUGHTS AND TRENDS
TODAY | Tuesday, February 25, 2014
LEADING THOUGHTS AND TRENDS
Committing to productivity for the long haul
Latest budget a consolidation of this guiding philosophy
TODAY | Tuesday, January 21, 2014
The price of intervention
Impact of progressive wage model
As this scheme aims to
raise the wage of Singapore
cleaners, the jobs should be
given to Singaporeans first
before firms are allowed to
employ foreigners.
by Tan Khay Boon
T
he market for cleaners is highly competitive. On
the demand side, the cleaning companies compete for contracts using low prices, thus reducing
the benefits of the contracts. Hence, the demand for
cleaners is low.
On the supply side, there is literally no barrier to
entry as the job does not require much skill or physical strength. Hence, the supply is high, especially
among older and less-educated people.
In the absence of government intervention, low
demand together with high supply results in a low
equilibrium wage of about S$850 per month. This
has been deemed unacceptable by the Government
and paves the way for the progressive wage model to
raise the wages of cleaners.
This marks the first time the Singapore Government is intervening directly in the labour market to
set wages. It is important to analyse the possible
impact of this model in Singapore.
The first impact is Economics 101. The wage of
S$1,000, which is above the market equilibrium
wage, is an effective price floor. Other things being
equal, this will lead to more people willing to work as
cleaners, while firms will demand fewer cleaners. The
outcome will be a surplus of cleaners.
Firms will cease operations or downsize so that
ultimately, there will be fewer cleaners employed
at S$1,000 per month. The firms still operating will
retain those workers who are relatively more productive and lay off those who are less productive. These
workers are likely to be the relatively older and lesseducated ones, and this is not the outcome the Government would like to see.
PASSING HIGHER COSTS TO CUSTOMERS
The second impact is to make S$1,000 the new equilibrium wage by reducing the supply of cleaners. This
could arise from tightening the quantity of foreign
labour in the cleaner market to reduce the supply of
labour. This will result in Singaporeans, including the
older and less-educated ones, taking up most of the
cleaning jobs at higher wages, as the firms do not
have much choice in the labour pool.
The setback is that there will be fewer cleaners
employed in the market due to a shrinking cleaning
sector.
The third impact is to make S$1,000 the new equilibrium wage by increasing the demand for cleaners.
Classical theory states that in a competitive labour
market, the equilibrium wage is equal to the value
of marginal product of labour, which is the amount
of money that the worker helps the firm to earn. A
higher wage will require a higher value of marginal
product. In other words, the firm will only pay the
cleaner S$1,000 per month if the cleaner helps the
company to earn at least S$1,000 per month.
The value of marginal product is obtained by multiplying the marginal product of worker (productivity)
and the market price of output.
Since it is mandatory for all firms to pay their
cleaners a higher wage, the easiest way is to raise
the market price of the output. When all bidding firms
quote a higher price, the awarding companies will
have no choice but to comply. This means the higher
cost will inevitably be passed on to consumers. Consumers may end up having to pay a higher price for
all cleaning services and this contributes to a higher
News @ SIM
The Ministry of Manpower can help keep track of the workload of cleaners to prevent exploitation by employers.
TODAY FILE PHOTO
cost of living.
A higher value of marginal product can also be
obtained by increasing the marginal product of cleaners and there are two possible scenarios.
One is that the firm will increase the cleaners’
workload to justify the higher wage. The workload of
each cleaner will have to increase by 20 per cent to
justify the higher wage.
Although this will raise the productivity of the
workers, it will hardly increase their quality of life.
BOOSTING PRODUCTIVITY
The other scenario is to provide training to the workers such that their productivity increases to justify
the higher pay. This is the outcome that Government
hopes to see, but it is easier said than done.
First, cleaning firms may not know how to
increase the productivity of their workers. There is little scope to boost productivity in the cleaning sector,
other than using equipment such as vacuum cleaners to replace brooms, and dishwashers to replace
manual dishwashing. Sophisticated machines, even
if available, are unlikely to be deployed in low-value
places in a large scale which would not justify hawker
centres. The difficulty in training older and uneducated workers to command technology is a real one,
and most importantly, the competitive nature of the
industry means it is a luxury for the cleaning firms to
send workers for training.
The fourth impact is a dynamic one. The progressive wage model may set a benchmark for the other
sectors to follow. It is difficult for other industries that
PAGE 40
require similar skills as cleaners to offer wages of less
than S$1,000 per month.
With almost no barrier for workers to move from
the other industries to the cleaning sector, wages
will adjust until similar sectors pay their workers at
least S$1,000 per month. This may develop into a
segmented minimum wage. Whether it will spread to
other sectors besides the security sector remains to
be seen, but it will be difficult for employers to justify
why their workers are less deserving than cleaners in
earning higher wages.
As this scheme aims to raise the wage of Singapore
cleaners, the jobs should be given to Singaporeans
first before firms are allowed to employ foreigners.
Thus, the cleaning companies will need to provide
evidence to the Government that they have tried to
employ Singapore cleaners, but to no avail, before
they are allowed to fill up the vacancies by foreigners.
It is also good for the Ministry of Manpower
to keep track of the workload of cleaners after the
implementation of the progressive wage model. This
will prevent the exploitation of the cleaners by their
employers to make up for the higher wage.
• Dr Tan Khay Boon is Senior Lecturer at SIM Global
Education
January – December 2014
by Randolph Tan
LOOK INTO SUPPORT NETWORK TOO
Some of the Budget’s initiatives are clearly aimed at
encouraging long-term innovation. Hence they may
not yield productivity improvements in the short run.
Even basic productivity-enhancing practices take time
to show results.
There are still some quite basic challenges in introducing ICT that, if addressed, could yield large gains.
Consider the use of iPads to take and convey orders
in a restaurant.
In order for this to be a truly effective innovation,
not only must the service workers and food preparation professionals be comfortable with such a system,
there must also be adequate technological support. In
other words, there must be a network of technology
vendors to which the restaurants can turn to — if not,
early adopters may be frustrated rather than aided by
such a foray into innovation.
Some consideration should thus be given to analysing the extent to which such concerns prevent
firms from undertaking more sophisticated productivity-enhancing initiatives.
Since most people usually get better at their jobs
if they do it long enough, it
may be interesting to consider what could inhibit productivity growth, even given
the massive undertaking
of the past few years. The
most serious factor would
be a lack of preparedness
— the workforce may be
unprepared for changes that
would occur with greater ICT
penetration into their work
processes.
The fact that key productivity-related initiatives
are to take effect only from
next year indicates that the
changes are not meant to
The longer we put off the real changes that need to be made in embracing a
take anyone by surprise.
productivity-centred work culture, the further behind we will be compared with our
The lead time of almost two global competitors. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
years built into the next
new levy increases in the construction sector could
round of levy increases for
have been considered as it could make a difference in
the construction sector, for instance, should give
terms of substituting local for foreign workers.
employers enough reaction time to make the necesThe employment credits present a clear signal of
sary adjustments.
the Government’s concern about hiring costs. But getting the taxpayer to fund hiring costs is quite extreme
THE WORKER AT THE CENTRE
and may not be a good idea if it occurs with regularity.
From 2005 to 2008, the pressing needs of growth
Short of an emergency measure in a recession, such
had a negative impact on productivity. The problem
employment credits may actually lead to labour marwas that, contrary to the short-term imperatives of
ket distortions.
that period, which resulted in too heavy a dependSo, the 0.5 percentage points funding through the
ence on manpower, productivity is very much a longtwo employment credit schemes to ameliorate the
run challenge.
impact of the CPF increase is another indication, in
In contrast, by maintaining a more steady focus,
my opinion, that it would have been better to delay
the Budgets of the past few years as a whole will come
the CPF increase by a longer time.
to be seen as achieving a much-needed consolidation
Delaying the CPF increase to a later time would
in what had been an inchoate stream of initiatives tarhave concentrated our focus on the labour market
geting productivity over the past few decades.
changes that are meant to contribute to the producStill, based on experience to date, it is almost certivity-enhancement targets.
tainly clear that this Budget alone will not be enough.
Productivity is more of a guiding philosophy than a
• Associate Professor Randolph Tan is with the Centre for
pursuit: We should want it because it represents the
Applied Research at SIM University.
correct way to do things.
Indeed it is possible — as has been noted by some
economists — that fewer workers will be needed
once productivity is achieved.
This is the other prong that a long-term policy
on productivity must contain; this is why the focus
on elevating workforce skills is required. That this
Budget has sunk another S$500 million into the Lifelong Learning Endowment Fund, in anticipation of
expanded needs from a review of the Continuing Education and Training system, is reassuring.
In short, while technology is an enabler, the central figure continues to be the worker.
THE GRAVITY OF REALITY
The Government has made strong efforts over the
years to boost productivity. These efforts, originally
spearheaded by agencies such as the National Productivity Board and the Productivity and Standards
Board, exhorted our workers to work smarter and
faster.
In contrast to the colourful mascot and catchy
acronyms marking those initiatives (including WITS
or work improvement teams), this Budget’s tone is
more sombre. I believe that is a good thing, because
it injects a sense of gravity about the challenges we
face.
The longer we put off the real changes that need
to be made in embracing a productivity-centred work
culture, the further behind we will be compared with
our global competitors. One thing we should be careful to avoid is the over-optimistic expectation of a
spectacular improvement in productivity in a short
time.
BETTER TO HAVE DELAYED CPF CHANGES?
Given the urgent priority that the restructuring of the
labour market plays in the scheme of things, I believe
it would have been better to have delayed the Central
Provident Fund (CPF) changes.
For older workers, for instance, with the change,
employers will ultimately have to contend with a 2-percentage point hike for those aged 50 to 55, which is
more than half the 3.5-point difference between that
age group and the main one before the change.
It is unclear how the ongoing effort to increase
older workers’ labour force participation rates will be
affected by this.
More generally, while the 1-percentage-point
increase in Medisave contributions is important as a
long-term objective, I feel the timing could be better.
I would think it should not be more urgent than the
economic structuring still going on in the labour market.
Something similar to the two-year lead time for
B
udget 2014 could, in time to come, be seen as
cementing a trenchant reform for Singapore’s
economic policy that places productivity ahead
of growth. By fine-tuning and extending many of
the policies first promulgated in the aftermath of
the 2009 downturn, the message demonstrates
an unwavering commitment to the next phase of
national progress.
In line with its declaration of a focus on depth, the
Budget’s productivity message has coalesced around
three key challenges: Technological upgrading, the
resource constraints faced by small and medium
enterprises (SMEs) and the skills of the workforce.
In terms of technological upgrading, the focus is
squarely on infocomm technology (ICT). While ICT has
pervaded our society, the exploitation of ICT to serve
as a viable technological complement to employees
has a long way to go. Since we are starting from a
low base, the potential for productivity gains is significant.
For example, in the case of security companies,
using remote cameras instead of personnel on the
ground is a solution that has been available since
the advent of high-resolution digital cameras and
enhanced Internet bandwidth.
However, this technology has not been fully
absorbed by the industry for many reasons — including, possibly, the degree of comfort with industrial
applications of Internet technology. Industrial applications are different from casual usage in important
ways, relating to issues such as reliability, bandwidth
costs, online security and customers’ privacy.
News @ SIM
PAGE 41
Delaying the CPF increase to a
later time would have
concentrated our focus on the
labour market changes which
are meant to contribute to the
productivity enhancement
targets.
In contrast to the colourful
mascot and catchy acronyms of
earlier productivity initiatives, this
Budget’s tone is more sombre.
That is a good thing, because it
injects a sense of gravity about the
challenges we face.
January – December 2014
LEADING THOUGHTS AND TRENDS
TODAY | Tuesday, March 18, 2014
HRM SINGAPORE | Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Right time to step towards
a self-service society
SIM Professional Development
Award for Best Talent
Management Practices
Business and consumers can both benefit
by Guan Chong & Allan Chia
I
IMPROVING PRODUCTIVITY AND SERVICE
In the retail sector, as of the end of 2008, there were
92,600 self-checkout units deployed globally, where
customers can pay for purchases without any direct
input by a traditional cashier. The number is estimated to reach 430,000 units by the end of this year,
according to a report by Retail Banking Research.
However, the report also indicated that in 2008, there
were 74,000 self-checkout terminals in North America
and 15,000 in Western Europe. But only 3,000 were
deployed in the Asia-Pacific region. In fact, NTUC FairPrice in Singapore started to invest in self-checkout
counters only between 2011 and 2012.
Despite this, local consumer receptivity seems
rather encouraging. A survey conducted by FairPrice
on about 600 customers found that 99.4 per cent of
customers who used the self-checkout system were
satisfied with it, while 83.5 per cent said it was an
effective and fast alternative method to pay for items.
SST has the potential to be a major force for
growth in productivity and improvements in quality
of life. As SST continues to become more acceptable,
more convenient, and more efficient, companies will
embrace it to operate more productively and to better
serve their customers. This is particularly so in countries such as Japan and Singapore, which have low
fertility rates and an ageing population.
SST can also make service encounters more accessible for individuals with different language backgrounds, which is particularly important in Singapore.
Kiosks and Internet-based applications can offer features such as multilingual interfaces to make services
more user-friendly. For example, a ticketing office of
a tourist attraction may use a multilingual kiosk to
serve its local consumers and international tourists
with different language backgrounds, thereby offer-
News @ SIM
“
Winning this award will
only drive us to further
innovate the way we
manage our people
“
n his recent Budget speech, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam outlined a threepronged approach for Singapore’s next phase of
economic restructuring. This includes the need
for a change in social norms, including consumers
accepting self-service as a norm. How can we move
towards a self-service society and what are the benefits of doing so?
Over the years, self-service technologies (SST)
have transformed many industries in Singapore and
worldwide, from automated teller machines (ATMs) in
banking services to e-commerce in the travel industry. Advances in information technology have created
numerous opportunities for SST to provide significant
gains in efficiency and convenience. This has resulted
in savings for businesses, which are passed on to
consumers in the form of lower prices and better service. According to the Information Technology and
Innovation Foundation in the United States, the average estimated cost for an online transaction is only
S$0.25, a fraction of the estimated cost of S$5.39 for
a transaction at a physical branch.
SSTs come in many forms, including electronic
kiosks, Internet services and mobile applications.
Among the public in Singapore, receptivity towards
SST initiatives varies greatly, depending on the type
of service. For example, the e-Government Customer Perception Survey conducted by the Ministry
of Finance and Infocomm Development Authority of
Singapore last year indicated that 88 per cent who
visited government websites chose to do their transactions electronically via online services in the past
12 months and 96 per cent were satisfied with the
quality of government e-services.
T
Only 3,000 self-checkout terminals were deployed in the Asia-Pacific region in 2008, compared with 74,000 self-checkout
terminals in North America. PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
ing a more effective service than any single employee
could possibly provide.
Asian cultures place high value on interpersonal
relationships in business. In Singapore, this focus on
relationships is particularly prominent, as part of a
fundamental element of Singapore’s “kampung spirit”.
Even in the West, some research has found that technology cannot fully replace such relationships in highlevel financial services such as investment consulting.
At the very least, it is important for companies to
understand what is the trade-off between interpersonal and SST service encounters.
Consumers choose SST for a variety of reasons
including faster service, convenience, accessibility
and ease of use, rather than waiting in line or being
limited to traditional working hours. Price can also be
a factor, when there are savings with using the selfservice option such as online shopping. The customer
can control the service encounter and not feel rushed
or pressured. For service encounters that require a
high level of standardisation and accuracy, such as
cashier or airline check-ins, it is advisable to provide
SST options. Such customers tend to consider the
functional aspects of the transaction and value the
convenience that SST provides. However, for services
that are more complex, assume higher perceived risk
and require high customisation (or personalisation),
especially for professional services such as legal services or financial investments, the current SST service
models are still rather limited.
and use of SST. They should continue to support prosumer technologies adoption in business such as
e-services and mobile payment systems. For example, they can incentivise the use of SST through subsidies or grants such as those under the Productivity
and Innovation Credit scheme.
Local institutions can set up research centres to
look into IT-enabled self-service from both the design
perspective as well as the user-experience perspective. Community leaders and businesses should
educate consumers through campaigns and communicate the benefits of SST. Providing stronger safety
nets for the local workforce that is adversely affected
by technological change is also important. The Government can perhaps provide more support and
workforce training, to help workers find alternative
employment in a tight labour market.
SST can offer a range of benefits to both businesses and consumers. Even though the use of SST is
quite pervasive, it is still relatively new in Singapore.
It needs to be embraced and promoted before it can
become a norm, as Mr Shanmugaratnam has envisaged. This is the right time to take action.
• Dr Guan Chong is a Marketing Lecturer and Mr Allan
Chia is the Head of the Marketing Programme at SIM
University.
EMBRACING SELF-SERVICE
To move towards a self-service society, policymakers
and government agencies must proactively create
conducive conditions that encourage the adoption
PAGE 42
January – December 2014
Ronald Tan, Executive Director, Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) & Mark
Leong, Asia-Pacific Business University Lead – Leadership, Talent and Professional Development, UBS AG
And the nominees are…
A*Star (Agency for Science, Technology
& Research)
Keppel Land International
Building & Construction Authority (BCA)
Keppel Offshore & Marine
DBS Bank
Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD)
DFS Venture Singapore
SingTel
Immigration & Checkpoints Authority
(ICA)
UBS AG
Johnson & Johnson
Unilever Asia
News @ SIM
he new SIM Professional Development Award for Best
Talent Management Practices celebrates the way HR
manages the entire lifecycle of High Potential individuals.
Finalists were judged on everything from recruitment and
on-boarding programmes to training and development
and performance appraisal schemes.
Bagging the prize was UBS AG. According to judges, the
bank’s talent management strategies are well-known and
also equivalent to the industry’s benchmark. “Their approach
is thorough and investment of time and effort by the organisation is obvious,” said one judge.
Together with the UBS Business University, the senior
leadership team designed “Creating our Future”, a transformational leadership programme for the bank’s wealth
management business in Asia-Pacific. It aimed to engage
the organisation in a ‘leader-led’ way, ensuring a competitive
advantage both for the employees and the bank.
“We are very honoured to win this. In the field of HR
in Singapore, it is very competitive and to be recognised
amidst that is certainly an accolade,” said Mark Leong, AsiaPacific Business University Lead – Leadership, Talent and
Professional Development, UBS AG. “While we are proud of
our win, we also recognise all our friends and competitors
within the industry as well.”
Leong dedicated the award to the clear strategies that
the bank has regarding what it wants to achieve. “We’ve
largely been successful in doing that.”
“At UBS, we have always been driven by our principles.
One of them is sustainable performance,” he added. “Winning this award will only drive us to further innovate the
way we manage our people.”
Leong also hopes that going forward, UBS AG can also
help people in the financial industry understand that they
need to be skilled in areas beyond just managing client’s
wealth.
This was the very first time the Singapore Institute of
Management (SIM) has partnered with HRM to present this
award. “It is very timely, as SIM celebrates its 50th anniversary this year,” said Ronald Tan, Executive Director, SIM. “It’s
been a great experience for us so far and it augurs well for
us to carve out a new chapter in support of human capital
development.”
WINNER
PAGE 43
January – December 2014
LEADING THOUGHTS AND TRENDS
HRM ASIA | Thursday, March 27, 2014
THE STRAITS TIMES (RECRUIT) | Saturday, May 17, 2014
Keep on learning
Right connection
Educationist Zhang Jianlin believes that he must have a heart to share,
a passion to teach and an ambition to help students transform their lives
by Sumathi V Selvaretnam
C
ompanies that focus on continuous learning are
expected to reap rich rewards in 2014. They
will see not only improved skills in a tight labour
market, but also improved engagement from their
workforces. HRM looks at what’s on offer in the year
ahead
The new year signals an opportune time for HR to
take stock of their organisations’ learning gaps and
come up with new and relevant programmes that will
keep employees energised and inspired.
According to the Bersin 2014 Predictions report,
one of the biggest challenges facing companies globally is a shortage of up-to-date, technical and professional skills. Innovations such as electric cars, new
sources of energy, software-driven products and services, and regulatory changes are all driving the need
for new skills.
The new year will also see the “training department” being renamed as “capability development,”
the Bersin report predicts. As it takes years to develop
leaders and functional experts, the report urges companies to focus on building global supply chains for
capabilities. This logistics approach to HR should ideally spot gaps before they appear and develop people
over time to deepen their skills.
With this in mind, the report says that companies
need to partner with universities, establish apprentice programmes, create developmental assignments,
and focus on continuous learning to attract the best
and brightest.
In Singapore, providers such as SIM Professional
Development are focusing their professional development courses more on bringing experienced executives and management professionals back. These
senior leaders are re-inventing themselves and contributing constructively and innovatively to organisational business goals.
“Leadership training with coaching elements is
becoming more popular to cater to the sophistication needed in developing human capabilities in an
uncertain global economy, says Peggy Lee, Director, SIM Professional Development. “Other important
and relevant short duration programmes involve the
provision of know-how in talent management and
retention, building of employee loyalty and labour
productivity, as well as the management skills needed
to manage a multi-generational workforce.”
According to Rexanna Kok, Vice President, Kaplan
Professional, most organisations are still keen on
embarking on soft skill training where they are able
to see an almost immediate effect or improvement at
the workplace.
Benefits of professional development
Employee development gives the workforce a good
chance to realise its potential and eventually work
at the highest possible level, says Kok. “When an
employer realises the potential in a staff member, and
then sends that employee to class to improve his or
her skills, the trained staff will be more willing to work
at their best level of ability.”
Apart from the benefit of gaining knowledge,
attending professional development courses enable
participants to interact and network with peers and
‘like-minded’ people, says Lee of SIM Professional
Development.
These platforms also aid learning. For example,
SIM Professional’s “The Job of the Chief Executive”
(JOCE), programme allows CEOs and top-level managers to spar with other participants and lecturers, and
share their experiences. The five-day programme also
organises an alumni dinner for past and present participants to come together and share how they have
been able to apply the learnings in their day-to-day
roles.
Opportunities like these extend the value of training into the long term. “We believe the opportunities
provided to the CEOs to interact amongst themselves
will provide them with the necessary knowledge and
inspiration in bringing their businesses to the next
level of competence and viability,” says Lee.
News @ SIM
Courses run by the British Council are fun and
interactive, allowing participants the opportunity to
practice new skills, says Simon Carrie, IT Coordinator, British Council. “Participants leave refreshed
and energised, and keen to put into practice the
new tools and knowledge they’ve learnt back
in the workplace. Our public workshops have a
broad range of participants from many diverse
sectors in Singapore so it’s also a great opportunity for people to share ideas and
new ways of working.”
Popular programmes
In today’s highly competitive environment,
attracting, developing and
retaining talent remains a
key challenge for most organisations, says Lee. “It is the ‘right’ people – not
just people – who are a company’s most important
asset,” she says. “Therefore, training programmes
that cater to the development and retention of key
talents within an organisation will be much sought
after by businesses.”
At SIM Professional Development, 2012 and the
first half of 2013 saw a slight resurgence in the market for programmes related to people management
skills – especially in the subject areas of ‘communications’ and ‘change management’.
Leadership and general management programmes were much sought after as well. “Popular
programmes for this level generally centre on supervisory management, cross-cultural management,
productivity and innovation categories,” Lee says. “We
foresee this trend continuing in 2014 and beyond,
given the heightened need by organisations to attract
and retain their talent pool,” Lee says.
According to Kok, Kaplan Professional is seeing
a spike in the number of participants keen on leadership-based programmes focused on areas such as
empowering leaders, championing change, and team
performance building.
Over at the British Council, there is very high
demand for writing skills courses, especially for more
senior level employees. “Traditionally, more executive
level staff come to writing workshops as organisations recognise that good business writing is a key
skill and the foundation of a successful organisation.
With managers setting the example for their staff, it’s
important they can walk the talk,” says Carrie.
Another trend observed by the British Council
is greater demand for programmes that help participants work more effectively with their colleagues,
says Carrie. Its “Handling Difficult Colleagues and
Customers” course is particularly popular. “Participants attending this workshop often have individual problem situations at work they find difficult to
resolve,” he says.
“These are encouraging trends for us as we see
people taking a more proactive approach to their personal professional development by identifying long
term skills that will be useful throughout their career,”
adds Carrie.
Funding that you can tap on
• Skills Development Fund
Open to all Singaporeans who are wanting to embark on WSQ-funded programmes. Students are able to receive up to 90% funding.
• Enhanced Funding Support for SMEs
SMEs are eligible to receive up to an additional 20% funding (capped at 90%)
• Workfare Training Support Scheme
95% funding on all WSQ programmes
by Suresh Nair
C
Business Advisors Programme by Spring
Singapore
Unsure about where your organisation’s talent gaps
lie and what skillsets your employees would benefit
from? The Business Advisors Programme by SPRING
Singapore could help.
The programme matches qualified professional
business advisors to small and medium enterprise
(SME) projects. Companies can draw from the advisors’ experience, expertise and business contacts, to
improve their own businesses and processes.
In one example, an SME tapped onto an advisor’s
extensive experience as a HR director for a large multinational to improve its understanding of recruitment
and retention strategies for key staff. The relationship
also helped plug gaps in the SME’s HR compensation
and performance management processes.
As of May 2011, Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) has been appointed by SPRING Singapore
to administer the Business Advisors Programme. The
advisory projects typically last up to six months with
specific deliverables, and the advisors’ fees are cofunded between the SME and SPRING Singapore.
Visit http://bap.sim.edu.sg/BAP/index.asp for
more information
The right fit
When it comes to choosing the right professional
development programme, it is often helpful to begin
with the end in mind.
The trigger for a training intervention is usually
a performance gap (based on current or future capability requirements) that a particular employee has,
resulting in areas for improvement, says Peggy Lee,
Director, SIM Professional Development “This performance gap can be due to what we can simplify into
‘knowledge’, ‘skills’ or ‘attitudinal’-related causes,” Lee
explains.
Once this causal factor has been identified, the
next step is to identify the appropriate intervention to
help overcome this performance gap. For example,
an employee with high potential identified by senior
management for succession planning, may lack the
financial know-how required in a more strategic and
general role due to their specialised technical expertise. “However, to simply send him for a formal financial accreditation might be overkill. In such cases, a
learning and development business partner within
the organisation might help the employee to jointly
assess and identify how this performance gap can be
overcome,” Lee says
Lee also adds a word of caution: While an appropriate training programme, developed and delivered
by good trainers, can make a real difference in covering some performance gaps, it is important to recognise that not all performance gaps can be effectively
or efficiently covered through training alone. “Some
performance gaps are better addressed through other
interventions, including organisational development.”
For more information, visit www.wda.gov.sg
PAGE 44
January – December 2014
onnectivity plays such a premium
role in the life of China-born educationist Zhang Jianlin that he feels he is
on the move 24 hours every day.
“The biggest challenge I face in my
work life is to make sure that I’m deeply
connected with so many happenings with
students, lecturers and the education
landscapes in Singapore and the region.
“Literally, this makes my job a 24-hour
activity. I’m still in the process of learning
how to strike a balance between my work
and life,” says the 40-year-old, who joined
the Singapore Institute of Management
(SIM) in 2002 as a lecturer.
Today, he is the head of programmes
in the institute.
Qualities to excel
Dr Zhang says: “I see myself as someone
who connects three very important entities of this lifetransformation profession.
They are the students, the lecturers and
the knowledge domain.
“As in any other profession, a thorough understanding of each is fundamental. I found that the best way to delve
deeper into them is to have empathy with
them and to look at things from their perspectives.”
To excel in this role, Dr Zhang believes
he must have “a heart to share, a passion
to teach, and an ambition to help students
transform their lives through knowledge
empowerment”.
He adds: “These qualities are exactly
the things that make this job very exciting and rewarding.
“In the very long term, I’m confident
that the experience gained from this role
will enable me to contribute more in the
provision of transnational education as an
alternative root for top quality undergraduate education in Singapore and elsewhere.”
Dr Zhang, who was from China, came
to Singapore for undergraduate education in 1998.
He studied in SIM and graduated with
a Bachelor of Science in management
offered by the University of London (UOL)
in 2001.
He says: “I was given a full scholarship by the London School of Economics
(LSE) to do a Master of Science in accounting and finance. Upon graduation, I joined
SIM as a lecturer.”
In 2004, he enrolled in a research
degree at the National University of Singapore Department of Economics and graduated with a PhD in economics in 2009.
Setting academic directions
Now as SIM’s head of programmes, he
provides academic leadership to the provision of UOL degrees in accounting, economics, finance and social sciences.
He says: “Specifically, this includes
working closely with the LSE External Studies Office to set academic directions for the
degrees, conducting academic supervision in teaching, learning and assessments
related to the degrees as well as providing
academic supports to my colleagues from
the administrative arm.
“We strive to offer a top quality education experience at SIM.”
He views his transition to the role of
head of programmes in November last
year as a major milestone in his career.
He says: “It allows me to fully utilise
my experience as a UOL student at SIM;
my teaching experience gained at two
alma maters, the LSE and SIM; and my
experience as a research economist to
improve the provision of UOL education
at SIM.”
He was also recently decorated as
adjunct scholar by Shandong University,
accorded to him based on his research
qualifications.
He intends to be a role model to the
younger generation in pursuing academic
proficiency as they move on in an education-related career.
“I hope my students understand that
we are living in a world where creative
destruction is very much part and parcel
of everyday life,” he says.
“To stay competitive and relevant, we
Mr Zhang intends to be a role model
to the younger generation in pursuing
academic proficiency as they move on in
an education related career.
PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG
will need to keep learning new things that
will be useful in our life and career.
“The experience for this process need
not be stressful and hectic so long as students have cultivated a curious mind and
a habit of enquiry.
“This is also one of the key elements
that enable students to excel in their
undergraduate education. It is one of the
key characteristics that I hope to instil in
the minds of our students.”
I see myself as someone
who connects three very
important entities of this
life-transformation
profession. They are the
students, the lecturers and
the knowledge domain.
— Dr Zhang Jianlin, head of programmes,
Singapore Institute of Management
THE STRAITS TIMES | Wednesday, June 4, 2014
PTC has to set expectations right
by Park Byung Joon
FOR THE STRAITS TIMES
A
S a long-time advocate of the
implementation of a full operating
subsidy model for the public bus services in Singapore, I was delighted to
read that the Government is moving
to a bus-contracting model.
Under this model, the Government
takes over the ownership of buses and
assets, and contracts the running of bus
routes to private bus operators for a fee.
Fare revenue goes to the Government.
This is different from the current
public transport model where the Government pays for and provides the
infrastructure, such as railways and bus
depots. The Government thus subsidises
capital spending in public transport,
especially for the MRT train system.
But these assets are held by the public transport operator, which has to pay
operating expenses and the cost of depreciation for trains and buses. The operator
recoups these in the form of fare revenue.
In this way, it is ultimately the commuting
public that pays these costs.
But commuters could expect only
a level of service that the fare revenue
could pay for. It has become increasingly obvious that the public demands
a higher level of service than what is
available with the current fare levels.
The concept of public transport has
also evolved. No longer regarded sim-
News @ SIM
Under the new contracting model, the Government
takes over the ownership of buses and assets,
and contracts the running of bus routes to private
bus operators for a fee. Fare revenue goes to the
Government. ST FILE PHOTO
ply as a service for people who do not
own private vehicles, public transportation is also vital for the nation’s economy and social integration. Once this
latter concept is accepted, the idea that
the Government should fund public
transport whenever necessary should
be embraced.
There are many ways that taxpayers’ money can be used. One is to simply inject public money into private
operators and hope, or pray, that they
will spend the money wisely.
Another way is to nationalise public
transport. In this model, the Government does not just own infrastructure
and assets. It also takes on the respon-
sibility of operating public transport on
a daily basis.
Among the models available to policymakers, I believe the full operating
subsidy model – known in Singapore as
the government contracting model – is
the best approach.
Under a nationalised public transport scheme, the Government must
prepare daily operation plans, maintenance schedules, the recruitment of
bus drivers and so on.
Some criticise this model on the
grounds that it leads to the undesirable intrusion of Big Government. An
equally important issue, perhaps, is
whether it is practicable. It is always
better if the relevant minister does not
have to worry about whether there are
enough bus drivers to run the system
on a daily basis.
Under the government contracting
model, however, the Government only
needs to set the desired service level for
the bus service and to evaluate the chosen operator based on the pre-specified
quality standard. The details of running
bus services will be the responsibility of
the operator which offers the best price
for delivering the service level specified
by the Government.
If we believe in the power of the free
market, we can be reasonably confident
that competition among operators from
all over the world will give the Government, and eventually Singaporean taxpayers, the best service and best price
PAGE 45
(or at least, something very close to it).
At the same time, however, it is
important that local officials have the
tools necessary to ensure that the system works smoothly.
The role of the Public Transport
Council (PTC) may need to be expanded
beyond setting fares. After all, the service level required of bus operators will
be higher than what can be afforded
by fare revenue alone. The difference
between the two will have to be borne
by the Government.
If commuters pay lower fares, taxpayers will have to pay more to cover
higher public subsidies. Through the
fare adjustment exercise, the PTC will
determine the portions recovered via
fare revenue and taxpayers’ top-up.
A fundamental truth in life is that we
get what we pay for. The bill that taxpayers have to pick up could be huge.
There must therefore be a mechanism
by which a consensus can be reached
on the desired level of service and how
it will be financed.
In addition to the fare adjustment
exercise, the PTC may have to take
on the vital role of striking a balance
between the desired service level and
the price people have to pay.
stopinion@sph.com.sg
• The writer is head of the master’s programme in urban transport management at SIM University.
January – December 2014
LEADING THOUGHTS AND TRENDS
TODAY | Wednesday, July 16, 2014
LIANHE ZAOBAO | Tuesday, August 19, 2014
How education starts with child’s play
受访艺术界人士：华族艺文
富南洋风 走出国门广获接受
by Sirene Lim
胡洁梅　黄伟曼　杨萌／报道
Pretend play and self-initiated talk help children make sense of the world
trying to figure out how adults around
her/him behave and make decisions
on a daily basis. Even if they do not
tell us what they are thinking (for they
may not always know how to articulate
what is in their minds), we can be sure
that they are constantly interpreting the
world.
Thus, when groups of young children get the chance to gather to talk,
think, share, pretend and fight, they are
actively processing the constellation of
sounds and actions that they see and
hear. They do not merely imitate the
world around them; they juxtapose
incredible ideas and situations to create
something entirely their own.
Lev Vygotsky, who studied human
development as a sociocultural process, was a strong advocate of pretend play in the early years of a child’s
growth because he believed that such
play provided a rare opportunity for a
young child to be bigger than herself/
himself, to stand taller and be stronger.
Pretend play allows a child to be a doctor, a Formula 1 driver, a chef, a fairy, a
villain or a heroine.
Young children’s play actions reflect
a lot of our adult society — the good,
bad, and ugly of how we function and
relate to one another. If we ever needed
a mirror to look at ourselves, take a
peek in a pre-school classroom’s free
play space or hang around your child’s
play date.
If we observe children’s play and
I
nitiatives launched this past month
to broaden pre-schoolers’ education
— namely, KidsSTOP and the National
Arts Council’s Artist-in-School Scheme
for pre-schools — are laudable. Broadening young children’s exposure to the
sciences and arts is good, and encouraging them to learn through play-based
activities is undeniably beneficial.
However, can we do more than just
providing paid learning spaces and
experiences for children?
When adults overly structure children’s time and tasks, children are less
likely to take the initiative, explore,
dream and experiment. There is therefore a need to balance adult-structured
activities with child-initiated and childled ones.
One easy way to do so is to provide children with the time, space and
opportunity to generate and sustain
their own ideas for free play. Such selfinitiated play is usually pretend play.
But this is no kiddy stuff. As a
teacher and researcher, I spend much
time watching young children play and
interact. The main lesson I have learnt:
Children’s pretend play and self-initiated
talk are necessary for their learning and
helping them make sense of the world.
Pretend Play Mimics Reality
A four-year-old has very limited experience of the world and so is constantly
THE STRAITS TIMES |
make that the starting point for how we
educate our young, schooling would
look very different from its existing proliferation of mere academic hothousing.
Education is More than Schooling
John Dewey, Dr Howard Gardner and
countless other scholars have repeatedly talked about this over the past century, that education is more than just
schooling — the former is about creating active citizens to live and participate
in a world; the latter is unfortunately
often about fact-learning and honing a
narrow set of academic skills to satisfy
short-term test requirements.
In our impatience, though, we feel
better with a finite checklist of tasks
that can be accomplished within a finite
time frame (number of worksheets,
books, classes). It is just too arduous
for us to journey with young children to
see them develop character traits and
habits of mind that are to last a lifetime.
And yet, character might just be the
single most important factor in building
success.
Mr Paul Tough’s latest book concludes: Young children’s secret to success is the ability to deal with failure,
develop self-control and build character while managing adversity. Adults,
then, play the crucial role of facilitator, encourager and guide (not mollycoddlers). This is tough since most of
us want to protect and shield our children from difficulties. And the more
resources we have, the more we tend to
want to over-protect our children from
having to face the real world.
What does this mean for teachers
and parents working with young ones?
It means we need to live with them. Let
them show us what they know, so we
can provide them with opportunities
to act upon what they see and think.
Be there when they are interpreting the
world, figuring out what to think, feel, or
say. It means no less than focusing on a
child’s ability to calm himself or herself,
to get over disappointments, to keep trying even though a task is frustrating, to
generate alternative possibilities, to be
curious and motivated to try new tasks
even if they seem difficult or strange.
Character traits are not likely to be
learnt through an enrichment class, but
developed through daily interactions
with peers, parents and other adults.
If we see our children as creators of
a better tomorrow, we can help them
learn as early as possible to navigate an
unpredictable world. They don’t need
to know how to spell the word “intelligence” while sharpening their own, nor
the words “irresponsibility” and “discrimination” to know that such behaviours are not okay in this world.
• Dr Sirene Lim is a senior lecturer at
SIM University
工作与进修应更紧密结合
Off-peak cars lose
shine with pricey COEs 学者：要鼓励在职学习
Fewer weekend cars
registered as cost of
ownership rises: Experts
by Royston Sim
T
HE population of red-plated off-peak
cars has fallen by nearly a fifth in the last
four years as the increased costs of owning
a car have made them less of a draw.
Land Transport Authority (LTA) figures
showed that there were 40,438 off-peak cars
as at June this year, from 50,040 in December
2010.
Only 61 new off-peak cars were registered in the first six months of this year, down
from 81 in the same period last year and 304
in 2012.
Experts said the scheme, which offers
rebates but restricts cars from the road
between 7am and 7pm on weekdays, has to
be revised to be attractive.
Currently, a buyer can get a rebate of up
to $17,000 on a new off-peak car, and a $500
discount on annual road tax. Those who convert their normal cars can get a cash rebate of
up to $1,100 every six months. An electronic
day licence to drive during restricted hours
costs $20.
Dr Park Byung Joon, who teaches urban
transport management at SIM University, said
people do not think the scheme is worthwhile, given the restrictions on usage and
News @ SIM
high certificate of entitlement (COE) premiums that are now hovering above $60,000.
COE prices used to be around $20,000 in
January 2010.
Said transport academic Lee Der Horng
from the National University of Singapore:
“Since COEs became more expensive, there
has been a very clear trend that this kind of
price is beyond what those who would use
off-peak cars can afford.”
Dr Park believes the amount of rebates
offered should be reviewed, along with the
restricted hours, so that the scheme is more
attractive.
Roads are most congested between 7am
and 9am, and 5pm and 9pm, so that is when
restrictions should be in place, he said.
Prof Lee reckons that the scheme is
becoming irrelevant.
He noted that it was meant to limit usage
and still fulfil Singaporeans’ car-owning
dreams, which somewhat contradicts the
policy of encouraging people to take public
transport.
With options such as car sharing, car
rental and taxis available, it may not be that
necessary to have a weekend car, he said.
Manager Adam Tan, 47, hopes the
restricted hours can be extended to 7.30am
so parents have more time to ferry their children to school.
He bought an off-peak car with a COE of
$13,000 five years ago, but said he would not
have done so if prices were at today’s level.
“It’s not worth it.”
roysim@sph.com.sg
PAGE 46
亲严众莲（聚舞坊创办人）敏
锐的触觉和坚持来突出文化特
色。
严众莲在网站上发表感言，
感谢总理肯定，她说：“华族舞
蹈艺术有空间让新加坡人用我
们独特的文化来把它发挥得更
有本土风味。这是我坚信的，
我一定不放弃。”
总理也提到新加坡华乐团
的“全民共乐2014”。华乐团总经
理何伟山说，他们最近去上
海、南京和苏州演出时，本地
爵士乐泰斗蒙特罗(J e r e m y
Monteiro)也随团演出，帮助开
拓国际视野。
他说：“华乐团每年通过委
约、改编和移植演奏的新曲目
多达50部，相信是世界上华乐
团中最多的。这些新曲目都注
入了本地元素，引起观众共
鸣。这些投资都很值得，是我
们重要的文化遗产。”
总理前晚哼唱了一段新谣代
表人物梁文福的《细水长流》
，借用歌词“年少时候、谁没有
梦”鼓励国人无论老少都可以做
梦并努力实现梦想。
梁文福昨天受访时说，新谣
李显龙总理前晚在国庆
群众大会上以华语发表演
讲时，提到新加坡的华族
文化经过多年酝酿已逐渐
形成一种南洋特色
结合南洋华人特有的音乐调
性，甚至演唱时用到本地华人
特有的词汇和语气，使某些作
品具有新加坡华族文化特色，
比如《麻雀衔竹枝》。
“新谣是和国家一起诞生、
一起成长的一代人所创作和共
同传唱的民歌，建构了国人的
身份认同，具有浓浓的本土感
情。新加坡的华族文化的包容
性和结合性很强，可吸收不同
的文化特色来丰实自身的文
化。”
新跃大学新跃中华学术中心
副主任符诗专副教授指出，从
以先驱画家刘抗为代表的南洋
画派到戏剧家郭宝崑的多语
剧，再到近期陈哲艺和梁智强
的电影，都充满南洋特色，也
一直都有人在做，只不过有时
国人因为太过熟悉，反而没什
么感觉，在外国人眼中看来却
非常特别。
“新加坡华人再纯粹也不可
能像中国和台湾的华人那样纯
粹，所以南洋风说白了就是多
元文化。总理这次在英文演讲
中穿插一些方言来拉近距离，
也是一种南洋风的体现。”
THE STRAITS TIMES (RECRUIT) | Monday, September 1, 2014
LIANHE ZAOBAO | Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
新
加坡的华族文化中极富特
色的南洋风，是联系国人
重要的纽带，也是让本地艺术
文化得以走出国门，受到国外
观众接受的重要原因。
李显龙总理前晚在国庆群众
大会上以华语发表演讲时，提
到新加坡的华族文化经过多年
酝酿已逐渐形成一种南洋特
色，他点名好些艺术和文化工
作者及群体，称赞他们努力树
立起新加坡文化品牌。
其中，以华族舞蹈起家的聚
舞坊，上个周末就呈献一部土
生华人舞蹈作品《风织歌》，
以歌舞剧的形式讲述一名娘惹
穷家女嫁给华人布庄富商后如
何振兴布庄生意的故事。剧本
由聚舞坊创意总监蔡适吉的先
生黄鼎翔撰写，舞衣是黄鼎翔
哥哥、本地知名娘惹服装设计
师黄俊荣设计。
蔡适吉说：“以前记者问我
们演出的特色在哪里，我们会
有些心虚，但现在如果我们去
中国演出，就能坦荡荡地说这
是新加坡文化。”
蔡适吉认为这次的尝试走出
了华族舞蹈的框框，多亏了母
MY PAPER | Friday, August 29, 2014
Engage your customers
Keeping them satisfied is crucial in today’s competitive marketplace
陈紫筠　胡洁梅　游润恬／报道
制
定能结合教育、培训和职业发展的有效框架，企业的支持至关重要。
受访的教育工作者与企业建议，教育机构可更灵活地规划课程，方便
工作人士进修。政府也可通过一些奖励计划，支持企业的栽培计划。
新加坡管理学院全球教育学术处处长陈伟权博士指出，每个行业的要求
不同，对学位的重视程度也不一样。其实，目前的工教院与理工学院生有更
多的学习机会，发展前景不一定亚于大学毕业生。
比起在籍学生，他更关注如何鼓励工作人士去进修。陈伟权博士说：“工
作与进修之间应更紧密地结合，例如允许工作项目列为课堂作业的一部分，
使半工半读的过程不那么吃力，以照顾工作人士在课业与工作的要求。企业
方面也应调整心态，改变‘让员工进修等于失去生产力’的想法。劳资政委员会
相信能更有效地协调与推动改变。”
制造业者牧野亚洲公司（Makino Asia）总裁莫壮涛博士也说，政府可通
过奖励来鼓励雇主，并与不同行业的商会共同制定适合且灵活的培训项目。
他指出：“文凭只是个人能力的一个参考指标。各教育背景的职员起点可
能不同，但只要证明实力，公司都应提供相等的发展机会。”公司聘用的职员
约一半是工教院与工院毕业生，公司会赞助表现好的职员进修。
家长：雇主若仍重视学位
难鼓励学生先工作再进修
兴隆建筑（HSL Constructor）发言人也指出，政府的支持也很重要，改变
企业心态不是一朝一夕的事。
他也说，建筑业面对的问题不是擢升渠道不足，而是年轻人对这个行业
缺乏兴趣。他希望劳资政三方能合力提高年轻人对这个行业前景的认识。
家长钟莉萍（46岁，会计助理）的儿子目前就读理工学院，她支持政府提
倡为非大学毕业生提供机会。“但雇主的心态也很重要，如果它仍重视学位多
于经验，将很难鼓励学生先工作再进修。”
全国职工总会秘书长林瑞生昨天在职总活动上受访时鼓励企业为职员规
划一个共同的擢升渠道，这道“梯子”应同个人的能力挂钩，而非学历。
人力部受询时说，劳资政委员会的细节将在日后公布，它会由工会代
表、雇主、教育工作者与政府机构代表组成。
January – December 2014
Customer engagement is a business strategy the entire
organisation should adopt.
P
icture this in your shop
front: A customer service
employee easily makes small
talk with a prospective buyer,
keen to uncover her needs.
Showing
empathy,
your
employee patiently listens to
the customer’s objections and
concerns while nodding to
show her understanding.
Fifteen minutes later, the
smiling customer checks out
at the cashier with a large purchase of products.She also
cheerfully asks to be placed on
the mailing list for future promotions.
That customer experience
is crucial for consumer brands
today. How are you claiming
your share of the customer’s
pocket? What else can you do
to create defensive differences
from the competition? What
is the opportunity that lies in
the retail or consumer sector
today?
Today’s retail landscape is
an arena comprising long-time
players challenged by daring,
News @ SIM
young upstarts, some bricksand-mortar but others that
operate on a lean baseline cost
to fight for the customer’s share
of the wallet. And the customer
is spoilt for choice.
So how can your business
thrive amid the mighty torrent
of intense competition in the
retail and consumer industry?
How do you maintain your
competitive edge against the
avalanche of new players in
the market place? Where is the
value proposition when customers are swamped with a
plethora of similar offerings?
Some would say that companies must look inwards to
reinforce their strengths while
others would opt for a brand
revitalisation initiative. Yet
others believe that more staff
training is in order for employees to master their company’s
product features and benefits
effortlessly.
Moving from good to great
But if you are already doing all
of the above, what can your
business do to move from
good to great?
It is worth noting that a Gallup survey revealed that “customers who are fully engaged
represent an average 23 per
cent premium in terms of share
of wallet, profitability, revenue,
and relationship growth over
the average customer”. In the
recent Budget 2014 debates,
Singapore’s ministers advocated the need for higher productivity through job mastery,
especially in sectors such as the
retail sector, one of the sectors
that is pulling down Singapore’s
average productivity level.
From our work with companies, we have seen how they
can increase productivity, gain
sustainable competitive advantage and build a mindset of job
mastery through service excellence and customer engagement.
Customer engagement is
a vital business strategy the
entire organisation should
adopt because this is a compelling and defensive key to
sustainable competitive advantage.
Why focus on engagement?
We have observed that companies stand to gain sustainable
competitive advantage through
premium pricing, continued
sales, customers’ brand loyalty,
customer insights and feedback on products and services.
Engagement allows organisations to unearth customers’
needs and leverage insights to
propel ideas for improvement.
How is this so?
In the classic 1995 management bestseller, The Discipline
Of Market Leaders by Michael
PAGE 47
Bosses here eye rosier
future, says SIM study
by Mindy Tan
S
ingapore managers are
more optimistic about
their organisations’ business
prospects compared with two
years ago, according to the
latest Singapore Institute of
Management (SIM) Management Monitor.
Of the more than 1,000
Singapore-based managers
polled in June, 39 per cent said
that they were optimistic about
the global economy, a marked
increase from 16 per cent in
2012. Those with negative sentiments fell from 53 per cent in
2012 to 17 per cent.
In relation to the local
economy’s impact on their
businesses, almost half of
the managers (48 per cent)
remained positive, comparable with 2012’s 45 per cent.
“The US economy seems
to be on track for growth
after very sluggish growth
in the past few years. The
European economy is also
improving after the debt crisis. China is showing better
growth and there is hope that
the Indian economy will grow
after the elections and with
(Narendra) Modi as the prime
minister,” said Sundaram Janakiramanan, finance professor
at SIM University.
“In Singapore, the Government is taking steps to
increase productivity that will
increase growth. Thus, from
all angles, there is optimism
about global as well as Singapore economy.”
Separately, this is the first
time the study looked at the
management of a different
generation of workers.
Notably, almost 70 per
cent of the managers polled
said that they were not effectively managing millennials
(those born between 1980
and 2001).
Scenarios cited include
millennials leaving the company within two years of
starting on the job (79 per
cent said that they were inef-
fective in dealing with such
situations); younger employees managing older employees (68 per cent said that they
were ineffective); and millennials challenging established
ways of doing things in the
organisation (72 per cent said
that they were ineffective).
“Managing millennials
is an increasing challenge,
perhaps, due to changing
expectations and outlook of
career progression among
the younger workforce,” said
Jeffrey Tan, director, strategic
plans and research, at SIM.
“Many seem amenable
to pursue a short stint and
springboard to the next perceived better opportunity.
This is manifested in the concerns polled in the survey.”
Separately, more than half
of the managers (65 per cent)
said that while training is an
important tool to better manage and develop staff, close to
50 per cent said that training
is not effective.
The issues raised ranged
from training being more of a
cost than an investment; skills
not being effectively applied
after the training; to limited
types of relevant and useful
training available within the
industry.
“Compared with the previous year’s survey, this year’s
survey shows that a higher
percentage of managers
believe that the effectiveness
of training has been poor,”
said Prof Janakiramanan.
This year’s SIM Management Monitor Survey is the
third edition following previous editions conducted in
2009 and 2012.
A total of 1,018 managers based in Singapore were
surveyed. About one third (33
per cent) of the organisations
were small- and mediumsized enterprises, and 30 per
cent were multinational companies. THE BUSINESS TIMES
Treacy and Fred Wiersema, one
of the keys to sustainable differentiation that creates enduring competitive stamina was
what they termed “customer
intimacy”.
This is the degree to which
the customer is emotionally
connected to your organisation, your brand and your products.
Tomorrow: How to tap on
“customer intimacy”
Article by Regina Chua,
managing partner and founder
of Discipline Dynamics, a customer engagement strategist.
She has more than 25 years
of corporate and consultancy
experience. She will speak on
creating stronger stakeholder
relations with the Firefly model
at the Singapore Institute of
Management on Sept 25. For
inquiries and registration,
e-mail euniceling@sim.edu.sg
or call 6248-6136. Closing date
for registration is Sept 18.
To send article contributions, comments, views and
story ideas, e-mail recruit3@
sph.com.sg
When you contribute to The
Straits Times Recruit, we take it
that you agree, at no charge, to
allow us to use, archive, resell
or reproduce the letters and
contributions in any way and in
any medium.
January – December 2014
LEADING THOUGHTS AND TRENDS
THE SUNDAY TIMES | Sunday, October 19, 2014
Cycling out of mediocrity
Bike trip puts
average
Englishman on the
adventurer’s path
The trip, he says, was relatively event-free.
“It was 1997, and there
were no strong anti-Western
sentiments then like now.
There were valleys with more
fundamentalist sects but we
would not stay the night at
these places; we would just
cycle through.”
Danger, if any, came in the
form of massive landslides.
“You just had to pick your
bike up and run through rivers,” he says.
In fact, the duo completed
their expedition a couple of
weeks earlier than planned.
Because they had time, they
decided to fly to Istanbul and
from there bike home to London.
Mr Humphreys, however,
developed problems with one
of his legs in Rome so Mr Lilwall ended up biking his way
through Europe home to London on his own.
Big adventure over, Mr Lilwall thought he would buckle
down to the business of finding himself and charting a
direction for his future.
He spent his next two
university vacations as a volunteer worker for charitable projects; he worked on a
rehabilitation project for street
children in Mexico City and in
a poor area in Glasgow.
In his final year, he took off
for Nashville to undergo training to become a door-to-door
by Wong Kim Hoh
G
rowing up, Rob Lilwall
was a pretty average fellow.
He was mediocre in his
studies, not particularly good
in sports, listened to middleof-the-road music and led
quite a humdrum existence.
But when he was in his
first year at the University of
Edinburgh, something happened which changed his life.
Bored by a droning lecture
on quantitative biology one
day, he flipped open an atlas.
His eyes fell on a page on
South Asia and a little red line
running through the mountains from Pakistan to China.
The little red line – which
had him fixated for months –
was the Karakoram Highway,
a 1,200km road which follows
an ancient network of trade
routes connecting South Asia
with West and Central Asia.
He tore a piece of paper
from his note pad, wrote
“Do you want to come and
cycle across the Karakoram
Highway this summer?” and
passed it to an old school
friend, Al Humphreys, seated
in front of him.
The latter did not know
where it was, so Mr Lilwall
scribbled a reply. A scratch of
the head and a pause later, his
friend scrawled something on
the note and passed it back to
him.
“Ok,” the note said.
That trip was the first of
several epic journeys Mr Lilwall was to undertake, turning him from a run-of-the-mill
Englishman to an adventurer
and explorer quite extraordinary.
In 2004, he embarked on
a 50,000km cycling trip from
Siberia back home to England,
a 3½ year expedition which
took him through the jungles
of Papua New Guinea, the wartorn passes of Afghanistan
and the desolate sub- zero
landscapes of Siberia.
In 2011, he set out on an
arduous six-month 5,000km
trek through China, from the
Gobi desert to the South China
Sea.
His adventures have
spawned two books and two
television series by National
Geographic. Now based in
Hong Kong, the 37-year-old is
also a popular corporate and
motivational speaker.
News @ SIM
Mr Rob Lilwall, 37, notes that he was not an exceptional child but that each adventure helped him to grow up a little. His trips have spawned two
books and two television series by National Geographic. ST PHOTO: CAROLINE CHIA
couple of months.
The same success eluded
him when he went back to
London, and he found a job
selling exhibition space for a
trade show.
“I was awful. I didn’t
make a single cent after eight
weeks,” he recalls with a grimace. “I tried a few other jobs
but I wasn’t confident about
launching a business career.”
So he applied for a grant
to get trained as a teacher
instead.
He spent two years teaching in a secondary school in
Oxfordshire.
“It was a baptism by fire. In
the first year, I couldn’t control
those kids at all.”
He found his rhythm by
the second year.
“I learnt not to take myself
too seriously. I learnt that even
if you are totally failing at
something, it’s not the end of
the world. So I learnt to enjoy
myself more.”
But just as he was settling into his job, his cycling
companion sent him a fateful
e-mail.
The lives of the two friends
had diverged after their big
adventure on the Karakoram
Highway.
Like him, Mr Humphreys
also did his teacher training
after Edinburgh, but instead
of teaching, he went on more
bike trips.
He set out on an ambitious
Harrowing moments
The trips have not always been easy for Mr Lilwall. His bike had a puncture when he was in Australia (left), and he experienced temperatures of -40
degrees when cycling in Siberia (right). Now, he gives motivational talks and uses stories from his travels as metaphors to explain things like goal
setting and resilience. PHOTOS: ROB LILWALL
He especially enjoys it
when his audience is schoolchildren and teenagers.
“I always tell them: ‘You
may not be the cleverest or
the sportiest or the most popular, but you shouldn’t let that
contain you in what you aim
for in life.’”
Fit and ruddy-cheeked,
the congenial adventurer was
born in London and is the
younger of two children of a
chartered surveyor and a parttime secretary.
He was, he says with a
laugh, an unexceptional kid.
“I was not particularly
good at sports although I
enjoyed it. I also enjoyed the
outdoors although I was not a
super proficient survival kind
of guy,” says Mr Lilwall who
was in town recently to speak
at the SIM Interest Group Convention. The event, organised
by the Singapore Institute of
Management, featured talks
on industry trends, best practices and inspiring experiPAGE 48
ences by an array of speakers.
His mediocrity was compounded by a crippling shyness.
“I was always not the kid
to put up his hand in class. In
fact, I was very conscious of
my self-consciousness. I didn’t
like it and was always trying
to overcome it.”
To become less socially
awkward, he took a gap year
and flew to Zimbabwe to
become a volunteer teacher
with a charity when he turned
19.
“I’d never been outside
Europe and it was a magical
year. I taught classes of 50
or 60 students in villages. At
that time, Zimbabwe was still
beautiful and peaceful, just
before it went downhill,” he
says, referring to the landlocked country in Southern
Africa now grappling with a
litany of troubles from political
strife to an economy in deep
crisis.
The eight-month sojourn,
January – December 2014
he says, awakened an interest
in adventure, one which he
had been nursing after reading the books of adventurers
such as Ranulph Fiennes and
Benedict Allen. Fiennes was
the first person to reach the
North and South Poles and the
first to cross the Antarctic and
Arctic Ocean; Allen has gone
on solo expeditions through
the Amazon jungle, Namibia’s
Skeleton Coast and Mongolia’s
Gobi Desert.
It culminated in his decision to traverse the Karakoram Highway in 1997. For
that trip, Mr Lilwall and Mr
Humphreys forked out £400
each for good bikes, and did
a training trip cycling around
Scotland.
They then flew to Islamabad before getting on their
bikes to cycle to Kashgar, in
the westernmost corner of
China.
News @ SIM
The times when I felt fear were usually the night or
week before I went to someplace scary. The night before
I went to Papua New Guinea, I received an e-mail from
a guy who told me he’d been robbed 16 times since he
started living there. But actually, once you’re actually in
a scary place, often the harrowing moments happen so
quickly that before you know it, they’re over.
MR ROB LILWALL on what scared him the most on
his expeditions
Making the most of life
It’s given me a clear sense of my own mortality. You can
take all the precautions you want but sometimes you may
not make it. It’s struck me that one day I might die and it
might be very soon. It brings your whole life into focus
and you start thinking about how to make your life more
meaningful.
MR LILWALL on what his adventures have taught him
salesman with a company selling educational books.
“I thought my shyness still
really needed getting rid off,”
he says.
He returned to London
after making US$10,000 in a
trip around the world, cycling
from London to Cape Town,
to South America, Alaska and
Asia.
On his vacations, Mr Lilwall would fly out to places
like Ethiopia and La Paz to join
PAGE 49
his friend.
One day, he received an
e-mail from Mr Humphreys
asking him to cycle with him
across Asia.
The e-mail included a
quote from an Eminem song:
“Look, if you had just one
opportunity, just one shot,
to seize everything you ever
wanted, would you take the
chance ...?”
That struck a chord.
“I was a geography teacher.
I told myself that teaching
jobs were not hard to get and
it would not be too bad for my
CV if I took 1½ years off teaching to explore the world. And
as Al said in his e-mail; ‘If not
now, then when?’”
And that is how the duo
ended up in Magadan, in
north-east Russia in September 2004.
“We looked at the map and
it was really the end of the
road. So we said: ‘Let’s start
there, some place end of the
world-ish.’”
They had some crazy
– many good, some bad –
adventures along the way. The
conditions were often punishing. In many places, the temperature was -40 degrees.
Coal miners and indigenous tribes in Siberia would
invite them into their homes,
feed them, sometimes with
exotic fare like pony liver, and
offer them respite from the
cold.
“One night, while we were
riding alongside the TransSiberian railway line, some
guys in a car pulled up beside
us and robbed us of all the
money we had,” he recalls.
On another occasion,
a kindly couple who ran a
trucker’s cafe in the middle
of nowhere in Russia offered
them a hut near the cafe to
rest for the night.
“In the middle of the night,
we woke up and saw that the
cafe was on fire. We ran out.
The couple ran out in time
but the man who was helping
them run the cafe did not. The
cafe exploded and killed him,”
he says.
When they reached Japan
a few months later, he and Mr
Humphreys parted ways.
“Al wanted to do northern
China and then head back
home. I had it in my head that
I wanted to go to Australia. I
also realised I needed to do
this trip alone because I was
relying a lot on Al and hiding
behind him to fix things, to be
the problem solver.
“I saw how much he had
grown and I told myself I
should try and do this too.”
He cycled and sailed
through several places includ-
ing Busan, Tianjin, Hong Kong,
the Philippines, Indonesia and
Papua New Guinea – before
ending up in Australia. After
Australia, he cycled home to
Britain, through South-east
Asia to China and Tibet as well
as India and Pakistan.
Over the course of the
trip – which lasted three years
and two months – he kept a
blog and shot videos of his
adventures. Publisher Hodder & Stoughton offered him
a deal to write Cycling Home
From Siberia, and National
Geographic used his footage
for a six-part TV series of the
same name.
While the trip has given
him memories and adventures to last a lifetime, Mr
Lilwall says his biggest coup
was meeting his wife Christine
– a lawyer turned non-governmental organisation worker –
in Hong Kong.
The two had a longdistance relationship – with
Christine occasionally flying
out to meet him in different
places – before they tied the
knot in 2009.
The couple now live in
Lantau Island in Hong Kong;
both of them work for a charity called Viva helping children
at risk.
In 2011, the intrepid
adventurer embarked on
another challenging expedition.
“Instead of cycling home
from Siberia, I thought we’d
walk home from Mongolia,”
he says.
With a cameraman, he flew
from Hong Kong to the Gobi,
trekked through the desert
before going down the Yellow
River.
The result was another
book and another documentary series.
Each adventure, Mr Lilwall
says, has helped him grow up
a little. He has plans for a few
more expeditions but is not
ready to talk about them yet.
“There is a lot of can-do in
me now. I’ve learnt so many
things through my experiences. We are all strong
enough to make it through
life. And people will help
you along the way,” says the
explorer who now gives at
least two talks a month to
establishments ranging from
multinationals to schools.
“I use my trip as a metaphor to explain things like
goal setting, resilience and
problem solving. The power
of the message is in the story.
Stories are far more powerful
than just bullet points.”
kimhoh@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
LEADING THOUGHTS AND TRENDS
THE STRAITS TIMES | Friday, September 5, 2014
THE STRAITS TIMES | Friday, September 5, 2014
Aspire to develop skills
Growing concerns over
graduate employment
It’s better to develop skills-based, hands-on training than
churn out more graduates who can’t get good jobs, say two academics.
by Randolph Tan
FOR THE STRAITS TIMES
by Wilson Wong
FOR THE STRAITS TIMES
T
he recent call for greater
emphasis on vocational
training and education has
drawn considerable interest
in paper-chase-driven Singapore. The Applied Study in
Polytechnics and ITE Review
(Aspire)
committee
has
released a well-thought-out
report on this matter.
Raising vocational skill
levels and making education more applied are likely
to benefit Singapore’s overall
economy more than by simply
increasing the number of university places.
Merely raising the number of university places could
result in negative externalities such as significant underemployment. For example, in
Britain, where 40 per cent of
each school cohort attends
university, the labour market
has been flooded with more
graduates than it can absorb.
It is not uncommon for
fresh graduates to spend
extended periods waiting on
tables while clinging on to
fading hopes of finding the
elusive dream job in keeping
with their university education. Currently, an estimated
1.2 million youth (between
the ages of 16 and 24) in Britain are in jobs for which they
are overqualified.
The call for a culture shift
in Singapore to one where
people pursue education and
skills that are relevant, and not
chase a degree at all costs, is
thus welcome.
But changing world views
will take time. The muchvaunted success of the German apprenticeship model did
not come about overnight and
is, in fact, the culmination of a
centuries-old tradition of master craftsmen imparting their
skills to their apprentices.
About three-fifths of German school-leavers embark on
these apprenticeships, which
typically last for 31/2 years.
Today, these skilled craftsmen
form the core of Germany’s
renowned Mittelstand (with
its 31/2 million SMEs) which
accounts for about 50 per cent
of Germany’s US$3.6 trillion
(S$4.5 trillion) GDP. The Mittelstand employs 60-70 per cent
of the German workforce.
This model has to some
extent buttressed Germany
from the ravages of the global
economic downturn, which
has left the rest of the euro
News @ SIM
zone with staggeringly high
unemployment of 11-12 per
cent.
However, it is no easy task
to replicate this model successfully.
Britain has tried to do
this, from the 19th century,
with little success. Britons
remain wedded to the societal expectation that bright
young people do not become
apprentices to work with their
hands, but go to Oxbridge or
skills employers need.
Take one example in
manufacturing. Increasing
global competition has led
leading original equipment
manufacturers (OEMs) to position themselves as “systems
integrators”, leading them to
outsource lower-value work to
their suppliers. For instance,
in the aircraft-manufacturing industry, suppliers now
account for more than 70 per
cent of the value of any given
Higher pay
The second thing Singapore
must do to replicate the German success in vocational
training is to give tangible
recognition to the efforts and
contributions of skilled technicians via higher salaries.
Currently, the starting
salaries of degree holders
can exceed those of diploma
holders by approximately 50
per cent. This gap tends to
widen as their careers pro-
an apprenticeship programme
does not mean that a person has to give up his or her
chance of securing a university education later.
In Germany, Mittelstand
companies send their master
craftsmen for further training
to universities that emphasise
applied learning and the development of job-relevant skills.
A similar approach could be
incorporated into Singapore’s
apprenticeship programmes.
T
HE report by the Applied Study in Polytechnics
and ITE Review (Aspire) committee has sparked
much debate. Some have lamented the apparent
reduction in emphasis on the need for a degree. But
the committee’s main objective was to strengthen
vocational and skills training, not decry academic
training.
In an ideal world, skills of graduates will perfectly
match those required by employers. But some emerging employment trends of graduates are of concern.
For a few years now, there have been increasing
signs that the academic training of university graduates has not rendered them immune to the problems
facing other workers in the job market. As more from
each cohort go to university, it is incumbent upon policymakers to confront the problem at an early stage.
In Singapore, the number of unemployed residents with degrees is now higher than for groups of
any other educational level. For last year, the reported
figures show 18,600 degree holders unemployed,
making up close to a third of the overall 59,800. The
numerical gap has been widening, with the figure
overtaking those of the groups with secondary and
below-secondary qualifications in 2010 and 2011
respectively.
One reason for the increase in numbers is that
there are more degree holders, and they make up
an increasing share of the workforce. But even after
accounting for that, degree holders still have a cause
for concern. Their unemployment rate used to be the
lowest before 2012, but has since overtaken those of
groups of other qualification levels. Last year, it was
2.8 per cent, compared with 2.7 per cent for the group
with diploma and professional qualifications and 2.4
per cent for the below-secondary group.
To worsen matters, the long-term unemployed
number and corresponding unemployment rate of
resident degree holders display the same worsening
trends. Last year, there were 5,100 degree holders
among the long-term unemployed, translating to a
rate of 0.8 per cent.
The group with the second-largest number –
diploma and professional qualifications – was way
behind at 2,500, with a rate of 0.6 per cent. The postsecondary group had the second-highest long-term
unemployment rate, at 0.7 per cent.
The evidence on unemployment rates tells only
part of the story. The other part comes from the fact
that the increase in the number of economically inactive residents possessing a degree exceeded the rate
at which degree holders increased in the population
over the last decade.
In other words, the ranks of non-working graduates are growing faster than the rate at which new
graduates are being minted. This suggests that some
degrees are not being converted into employment.
But, fortunately, Singapore does not have high
youth unemployment. Last year, the unemployment
rate for residents aged below 30 was 5.2 per cent,
which is not high by developed countries’ standards,
where double- digit rates are common.
The age profile of unemployed graduates is also
interesting: Among graduates aged below 30, 7.9 per
cent are unemployed. The figure falls to 1.9 per cent
for those in their 30s, but rises to 2.5 per cent for those
in their 40s and further to 3.1 per cent when they hit
their 50s. This suggests that for some degree holders
at least, the return on investment in a varsity education may fall after the first decade, or that graduates
are finding it difficult to keep up with the demands of
the labour market when they hit their 40s and 50s.
This suggests a need to boost in-employment training, not just pre-employment training.
While the overall number of economically inactive
residents rose a mere 8 per cent, the number of economically inactive degree holders surged 124 per cent
over the last decade to last year.
Since economically inactive people are those who
chose not to work – including housewives – there is a
paradox here in that degree holders should not only
be more employable, but they would presumably also
avoid not working because of the higher opportunity
cost involved. Yet the numbers show disproportionately more of them being economically inactive. This
raises the question why more people are earning
degrees, if the frequency of not converting them to
employment has risen.
Hence, rather than ramp up university places, it
makes sense to develop more pathways to allow students to deepen skills relevant to employers. In this
respect, the Aspire committee’s recommendation for a
place-and-train scheme is a good one. This allows students graduating from polytechnics and the Institute
of Technical Education to be attached to firms that pay
them and send them on work-study stints.
• The writer is deputy director, Centre for Applied
Research, SIM University.
stopinion@sph.com.sg
THE STRAITS TIMES | Thursday, October 9, 2014
London for a degree and then
find lucrative jobs in the “City”
(London’s financial district).
More recently, the United
States has also been trying to
adopt this system in a bid to
bridge the gap between the
industry-relevant skills desired
by employers and the training
provided by universities and
community colleges.
There are three things Singapore must get right to replicate the good practices of the
German system.
Identify desired skills
The German system sees a
tight nexus between employers, industry associations
and training providers. Often,
the companies themselves
are involved in designing the
training.
Singapore, too, needs to
strengthen links between
industry and training institutions. This requires training
planners to get out of the
classroom and keep close tabs
on rapidly changing industry
trends that determine what
plane. This outsourcing strategy enables OEMs to free up
more resources for highervalue-added activities such
as next-generation R&D and
marketing.
Singapore, with its significant expertise in precision
engineering, is well placed to
capitalise on this outsourcing trend. The potential of
Singapore’s workers has been
recognised by multinationals such as leading jet-engine
maker Rolls-Royce. Since February 2012, Singapore has
hosted RollsRoyce’s first training centre in Asia, at Seletar.
Since its inception, the centre has trained more than 10
intakes of technicians.
But this is just one sector,
and Rolls-Royce is just one
employer among many in
manufacturing.
Replicating the German
model of vocational skills
training means many more
partnerships being forged by
industry groups and training
stakeholders.
PAGE 50
gress. In Germany, it is not
uncommon for highly skilled
and experienced technicians
to draw annual salaries as
high as €70,000 (S$115,000),
figures that their Singapore
counterparts will find hard to
reach. Good salaries should
not be the sole arbiter in
deciding one’s career, but they
would help to draw more local
school leavers to apprenticeship schemes. In Singapore,
the low salaries associated
with technical jobs have a
lot to do with the entrenched
mindset of the “scholar” being
at the top of the pecking order,
while those who “work with
their hands” are placed further
down. This cultural hurdle to
promoting the vocational path
to career success is not to be
underestimated.
Local universities that
advocate applied learning
(such as the Singapore Institute of Technology and SIM
University) are already making their presence felt in our
education sector. Graduates
from Singapore’s apprenticeship programmes, with support from employers, could
upgrade their skills at these
institutions.
Once key stakeholders see the recognition and
upward mobility available in
apprenticeship schemes, their
chances of achieving acceptance and long-term success
would be greatly enhanced.
• Dr Wilson Wong, a senior
lecturer at SIM University, has
worked as an analyst and
consultant in the global automotive and financial services
industries.
Advancing to a degree
The third thing Singapore
must get right is to emphasise
unequivocally to key stakeholders (such as parents and
students) that the pursuit of
stopinion@sph.com.sg
January – December 2014
Alibaba the
hot topic
at investing talk
T
HE potential of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba is tremendous, but will it be driven largely
by the vision of just one man, founder Jack Ma?
Or can it become an institution in its own right?
That was the main topic of discussion among
speakers at the Young and Savvy talk yesterday, after
a student asked for the views of the speakers on the
world’s largest initial public offering.
About 130 people attended the two-hour seminar
held at the Singapore Institute of Management.
Dr Zhang Jianlin, head of academic programmes
at SIM Global Education, said the proportion of Chinese people shopping online is still relatively low, but
more are expected to use the platform.
“I am very optimistic about Alibaba, I think the
company has huge potential,” he said.
Senior correspondent Goh Eng Yeow from The
Straits Times offered a different take. Investors are
“buying into the dream” of one man, Mr Ma.
“The thing about Alibaba is that it’s a company
set up in a communist country,” he said. “I can imagine Mao Zedong rolling in his grave now that one of
China’s citizens has become one of the richest men
on the planet because the company was successfully
listed on Wall Street.”
He said the firm was listed on the Hong Kong
bourse at HK$13.50 in November 2007 and soared
to HK$39.95 shortly after. But just a year later, it sank
to a low of HK$4.30 and was eventually privatised
News @ SIM
at its IPO price of HK$13.50
(S$2.20).
Mr Goh said this shows
that confidence in the firm
will fluctuate depending on
how investors feel about
the company and Mr Ma,
whose dream was to take
China into the Internet age.
Mr Vasu Menon, head At the Young and Savvy talk yesterday were (from left) Ms Lee Su Shyan, who was the
of content and research moderator, Dr Zhang Jianlin, Mr Goh Eng Yeow, Mr Vasu Menon and Ms Cheryl Ong.
for wealth management PHOTO: MATTHIAS HO FOR THE STRAITS TIMES
at OCBC, drew a parallel
Journalist Cheryl Ong was also a speaker in the
with the time investors thought shares of computer
panel discussion, which was moderated by money
giant Apple would tank after founder Steve Jobs died.
editor Lee Su Shyan, both from The Straits Times.
“Steve Jobs created a culture, an institution, which has
It was the fourth in a series of five talks on percontinued to thrive despite his death,” said Mr Menon.
sonal finance and investing, organised by The Straits
“I think if Alibaba is able to do the same and conTimes with sponsor Frank by OCBC, and held in partvince investors that it has gone beyond Jack Ma, then
nership with SIM Global Education.
I think it has huge potential because it is leveraged
The final Young and Savvy talk will be held on Oct
into one of the biggest markets in the world.”
14 at the Nanyang Technological University.
But Dr Zhang also noted that much of Alibaba’s
Participants will get a goodie bag and have more
success could be due to the Chinese government
chances to win a lucky draw prize of $10,000 by
not having much involvement with the e-commerce
entering a financial literacy contest sponsored by
industry.
OCBC.
Once the government becomes familiar with the
For more Young & Savvy stories, visit: www.straitindustry, regulations might follow, he said. “There will
stimes.com/youngnsavvy
be some kind of constraints on growth, and this is
one of the potential risks.”
PAGE 51
January – December 2014
LEADING THOUGHTS AND TRENDS
THE STRAITS TIMES | Wednesday, September 17, 2014
TODAY | Monday, October 13, 2014
It’s all about feeling respected
Using technology to
improve mental
well-being
Our Singapore Conversation, Pioneer Generation Package, skills training:
They are all ways to meet citizens’ psychological need for respect
by Ng Wei Ting and Kang Soon-Hock
FOR THE STRAITS TIMES
W
HAT is important to our well-being?
This question was raised in a recent symposium
on well-being organised by the School of Arts and
Social Sciences, SIM University.
Research suggests that what influences happiness differs for different facets of well-being. When it
comes to a more cognitive assessment of well-being,
such as one’s satisfaction with life, material factors
matter more.
When it comes to affective well-being, to do with
one’s feelings about life, fulfilment of psychological
needs – such as having control over one’s life, being
respected and having family and friends to rely on –
are more important.
A recent study published in the Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology used data from the Gallup
World Poll of more than 830,000 respondents from
158 countries. It found that financial satisfaction and
income were the strongest predictors of life evaluation, or cognitive well-being.
Feeling respected was the strongest predictor of
positive feelings, or affective well-being.
The research shows that respect is important to
feelings of happiness across the world, from the most
affluent to the most impoverished nations.
Whether or not a person feels respected is a universal predictor of affective well-being, regardless of
wealth.
The need to be respected stems from innate psychological needs that are essential for well-being,
social functioning and psychological growth.
Respect, autonomy and social support are fundamental psychological needs. Being respected is
conducive to feelings of competence, an innate psychological need. The need for respect can thus be
said to be a basic human need.
Similarly, the importance of social support derives
from the innate need for relatedness, that is, the
desire to love and care, and to be loved and cared for
by others.
Autonomy refers to the extent that people can
self-direct their behaviour and experiences, such that
their behaviours are concordant with their integrated
sense of self.
Satisfying these three innate needs promotes
growth and positive functioning and leads to
enhanced well-being. Contrary to popular belief,
these needs are not post-material: that is, they do not
become important to people only after a society has
met financial and material needs, but are salient for
societies at any stage of economic development.
The Gallup study cited earlier found that the
importance of respect to well-being is universal, and
also more important in wealthier societies.
The fundamental psychological needs (respect,
autonomy and social support) have stronger effects
on well-being in richer nations than in poorer ones.
In nations with higher gross domestic product, these
psychological needs play a bigger role in determining
people’s affective well-being.
Why do psychological needs affect well-being
more strongly in affluent societies?
This might be due to what experts call the cultural
norm hypothesis. When an attribute is validated by a
No clear link between internet use and depression
Participants at an Our Singapore Conversation session on education last year. Through the national dialogue, the
Government has created a greater sense of autonomy and feelings of being respected in the people. ST FILE PHOTO
society as one that is desirable for happiness, having
that attribute makes people happier, in a positive selfreinforcing cycle.
In wealthier nations, more people feel respected,
have autonomy and social support. When people follow rules and lead orderly lives, they expect to meet
these needs, and enjoy having them met – because
society expects it of them.
What are the implications for social policies in
the light of research findings showing that meeting
psychological needs are vital to affective well-being,
especially in affluent nations like Singapore?
Overall, the findings suggest that economically
developed societies need to strike a balance and
focus not only on sustaining economic growth but
also on fostering values that facilitate people meeting their psychological needs. This requires nurturing
societal conditions that promote respect, autonomy
and social support.
Singapore is at a juncture in its development when
it is trying hard to strike a new balance between creating growth and fostering values that meet people’s
needs. At risk of simplification, one might say it needs
to balance between meeting head needs and heart
needs. Initiatives in Singapore, such as “Families for
Life”, demonstrate that the Government recognises
the role that social support plays in people’s wellbeing, and is actively encouraging its citizens to focus
on these non-material aspects.
Similarly, the continued emphasis on the importance of respecting the different practices, beliefs and
values of the different ethnicities in Singapore’s multicultural society suggests that the Government recognises the crucial role of respect in social harmony and
well-being.
More recently, through the “Our Singapore Conversation” exercise, the Singapore Government has taken
on the role of facilitator and enabler of its citizens’
well-being, creating a greater sense of autonomy and
feelings of being respected in the people.
More social support is evident in the strengthening of social safety nets, and in the recognition of
the contributions of older Singaporeans. The Pioneer
Generation Package does not just cover health-care
benefits – it is a tangible sign of the respect the Government recognises should be accorded to the generation who helped build Singapore. In this year’s
National Day Rally, there was a similar emphasis on
fulfilling psychological needs, when the Prime Minister emphasised opportunities for Singaporeans to
deepen their skills in vocational and technical training, apart from academic training.
It is important to make available more education
pathways for Singaporeans over the life course. This
is not just about creating jobs or amassing skills.
More centrally to one’s core, education and lifelong
learning help satisfy innate psychological needs for
competence and respect.
In the end, government cannot just be about economic growth, but must also improve citizens’ sense
of psychological well-being. This requires governments to focus on meeting material needs as well as
psychological ones.
stopinion@sph.com.sg
• Dr Ng Wei Ting is senior lecturer in the School of
Arts and Social Sciences (psychology programme)
and Dr Kang Soon-Hock is head of the Social Science
Core, both at SIM University
Singapore is at a juncture in its
development when it is trying hard
to strike a new balance between
creating growth and fostering values
that meet people’s needs. At risk of
simplification, one might say it
needs to balance between meeting
head needs and heart needs.
THE STRAITS TIMES (LIFE) | Friday, October 3, 2014
SIM Interest Group Convention – Come Alive
T
his Singapore Institute of Management group
convention features trend-spotting topics
helmed by prominent industry leaders. It aims to
inspire and motivate, stimulate collaborations and
News @ SIM
foster innovative business solutions. Motivational
speaker and National Geographic adventurer Rob
Lilwall heads the line-up of speakers.
PAGE 52
Where: Marina Mandarin Singapore, 6 Raffles Boulevard
MRT: Raffles Place When: Tomorrow, 8.15am - 5pm
Admission: $150 for SIM members, $180 for public
(inclusive of lunch & two tea breaks) Tel: 6248-9445
Info: E-mail siminterestgroup@sim.edu.sg or go to
www.sim.edu.sg/igc to register
January – December 2014
The Internet, as a facilitator of online communication, has tremendous potential to enhance mental well-being.
PHOTO: BLOOMBERG
by Jonathan Ramsay
R
ecently, the Singapore Coroner’s Court ruled out
foul play in the tragic death of American technology entrepreneur Autumn Radtke. State coroner
Janet Wang found that the young CEO of First Meta
— a bitcoin exchange start-up — had intended to
end her life by jumping from the 16th floor of Block
8 Cantonment Close in February. Radtke was facing
severe work-related stress and financial difficulties,
which might have ultimately driven her to suicide.
When a young person chooses to end his or her
life, people are immediately inclined to ask why. What
could have caused a successful and previously happy
individual to take such drastic action? With the number of suicides among young people (below the age
of 29) having risen by 76 per cent between 1993 and
last year, as shown by the Samaritans of Singapore’s
July 2014 national statistics, we often wonder whether
contemporary society is pushing young people too far.
The rise of the Internet often features prominently
in this particular manifestation of the blame game.
Accounts of Radtke’s death indicated that she had
researched suicide methods online. Several high-profile suicide cases, such as the death of British teenager
Tallulah Wilson, have been linked to social-networking
forums, while former The New York Times editor Bill
Keller has blamed the Internet for making young people more antisocial. But is there any evidence that the
social Internet is harming our mental health?
This is a complex question, but the balance of evidence suggests that claims about the harmful effects
of the Internet are usually based more on irrational
mistrust rather than hard evidence. On the contrary,
the Internet, as a facilitator of online communication,
has tremendous potential to enhance mental wellbeing.
News @ SIM
RIGHT USE OF TECHNOLOGY
Technophobia is nothing new. In the 16th century,
Swiss scientist Conrad Gessner warned that the printing press would unleash a harmful torrent of information that would corrupt and confuse the mind, while
more recent technology such as the television and
video games has been blamed for everything from
lowering attention spans to promoting youth violence.
When faced with hysteria, it is best to take a
rational approach, and the work of scientists can provide a healthy sense of perspective. A lot of research
has been conducted since the birth of the Internet, the
sum total of which points to a more complex set of
relationships between Internet use and mental wellbeing.
One of the most infamous early studies of Internet
use was conducted by a team of researchers from Carnegie Mellon University, who found small correlations
between Internet use and increases in loneliness and
depression, and with reductions in the average participant’s social network. The American press lapped
up the findings. The New York Times declared a “Sad,
lonely world discovered in cyberspace” on its front
page and the pervasive notion of the isolating Internet
was born.
Yet, a more detailed look at the results painted
quite a different picture. Two psychologists from New
York University pointed out that average levels of
depression actually decreased during the study and
the size of the participants’ extended social networks
actually went up.
Since then, researchers have gathered plentiful
evidence of a more positive role of online activity in
promoting connectedness and well-being. One psychologist from the Open University found that computer-mediated communication encouraged people to
talk more openly, while researchers in the Netherlands
found that the extent of online communication among
PAGE 53
Email befriending services
appeal to those who do not
feel ready to speak to a
counsellor in person, while
online discussion and
support groups have been
found to greatly help those
suffering from common
mental issues such as
depression and anxiety.
adolescents predicted the closeness of their friendships.
Nonetheless, as the Internet has become progressively more social, the focus on possible negative
effects has shifted to social media. Again, the evidence
is mixed. Some researchers have documented associations between Facebook use and increased loneliness,
while others have found that higher social network
use is associated with enhanced life satisfaction,
larger and more varied real-life friend networks and
more frequent communication with friends.
Most people will have felt the occasional pang of
jealousy when seeing their Facebook friends’ holiday
photos and many will admit to reflexively checking
their phone during lulls in conversation. Still, that is no
reason to conclude that the social Internet is inherently
bad, and there are many ways in which online communication and social media can actually help those
in need.
Lack of awareness and social stigma are two of
the biggest barriers to help-seeking. As such, support
organisations are increasingly turning to online tools
that help overcome these obstacles. Email befriending services appeal to those who do not feel ready to
speak to a counsellor in person, while online discussion and support groups have been found to greatly
help those suffering from common mental issues such
as depression and anxiety.
These are only two examples of the myriad ways
the Internet can potentially enhance mental wellbeing. As people increasingly turn to online resources
when seeking medical advice — it is estimated that
5 per cent of Internet searches are health-related —
mental health providers can assist those in need by
providing high-quality information and opening channels of communication.
The Internet offers the possibility of more effective
treatments. Trials of online cognitive-behavioural therapy programmes for the treatment of depression have
yielded encouraging results and preliminary evidence
suggests that such intervention may also be viable for
treating anxiety disorders.
The promise of technology is the power to improve
lives. Change often makes people uncomfortable, but
we should be glad that social Internet affords us more
opportunities to nurture relationships and access valuable information. By harnessing these powers in the
right way, there is hope that more tragedies such as
the death of Autumn Radtke can be avoided.
• Jonathan Ramsay is a psychologist and lecturer at
SIM University.
January – December 2014
LEADING THOUGHTS AND TRENDS
THE BUSINESS TIMES WEEKEND | Saturday, January 3, 2015
Doyen of ‘disruptive innovation’
Clayton Christensen talks about
how newcomers disrupt an
industry, creating jobs and
growth, and what incumbents
can do about it.
Misleading data
US$250,000. That could have growth potential.”
Dr Christensen’s theory has had its critics. Writing
in The New Yorker magazine in June 2014, for example, the historian Jill Lepore suggested that much of
it is based on hand-picked case studies and circular
arguments. “If an established company doesn’t disrupt, it will fail, and if it fails, it must be because it
didn’t disrupt,” she pointed out. She also noted that
disruption can reliably be seen only after the fact.
But Dr Chistensen has convincingly defended
himself and claims the predictions have, by and large
been accurate. He talks about his book Seeing What’s
Next, which he co-authored with Scott D Anthony
and Erik A Roth in 2002. “We took a look at the future
of eight different industries. We really nailed it in
higher education, in healthcare, telecommunications,
semiconductors and the development of emerging
nations. We were very bad in airlines, but getting it
wrong also gave us new insights.” His theory is still
evolving; “it is not an event, it is a process”.
He also missed the “disruptions” caused by the
iPhone. When Apple launched its first iPhone in 2007,
he suggested it would not threaten incumbent leaders such as Nokia. He admits his mistake. “What I
missed,” he said in a later interview with Bloomberg
Businessweek, “is that the smartphone was competing against the laptop disruptively. I framed it not as
Apple disrupting the laptop, but as a sustaining innovation against Nokia.”
But again, he learnt something from his error,
which enabled him to refine his theory.
by VIKRAM KHANNA
I
N OUR furiously-paced world where once-iconic
companies fall by the wayside and even disappear, entire industries are reinvented and countries
lose their competitive mojo with frightening speed,
probably the most compelling business idea is
what has come to be called “disruptive innovation”.
As a phenomenon, this is not new. The motor car
disrupted the horse-drawn carriage, the telephone
disrupted the telegraph, the word processor disrupted the typewriter.
But in the age of globalisation and the Internet,
disruptive innovation has accelerated and spread
with an unprecedented ferocity. Among its victims
are companies in industries as diverse as travel,
aviation, publishing, telecommunications, consumer
electronics, retail, financial services and even parts of
manufacturing.
The intellectual pioneer of the mechanics of disruptive innovation is Clayton Christensen, who is
Kim B Clark Professor of Business Administration at
Harvard Business School. In a rare accolade, Thinkers50, a biennial ranking of the world’s most influential management thinkers, named him the top
“thought leader” in the world for the second time
running in November 2013. Among many CEOs, he
has a cult-like status.
Sixty-two-year old Dr Christensen’s life has been
rich in both variety and adversity. He has been a
Christian missionary in Korea, worked as a management consultant with the Boston Consulting Group,
and as a special assistant at the White House. Even
as he taught at Harvard, he founded startups, ran a
consulting business, co-founded a boutique investment firm and a think-tank, was active in church
work (he is a devout Mormon), wrote nine books and
hundreds of articles and served on corporate boards.
Astonishingly, he has done all of this despite facing a series of life-threatening health challenges. He
has had Type 1 Diabetes, viral pneumonia and has
survived a heart attack, cancer and a stroke. As a
result of the stroke, which he suffered in 2010, he
temporarily lost his speech; he had to go through
speech therapy and re-learn his vocabulary.
Dr Christensen was in Singapore in September
to deliver the Singapore Institute of Management’s
Annual Management Lecture on the occasion of its
50th anniversary. A towering figure – he is 194 cm
tall – his movements are deliberate and his speech is
measured but lucid. He has the teacher’s gift for simplifying complex concepts and making them vivid.
He explains: “Disruptive innovation is an innovation that can transform a complicated and expensive
product into something that is cheaper and more
accessible” – such as free e-mail which disrupted
postal services, cellphones which disrupted landline telephony, and phone cameras which disrupted
low-end digital cameras, which in their time had disrupted film cameras.
While incumbents dominate battles within existing industries, new entrants typically win at disruption. Typically, these newcomers enter at the bottom
of the market and then work their way up. Example:
the personal computer which disrupted the minicomputer, which had earlier displaced the mainframe
computer. The PCs of the early 1980s were weak on
computing power and convenience and were not
seen as a threat to the minicomputer makers such as
Wang Laboratories and Digital Equipment Corpora-
News @ SIM
We’re surrounded by nonconsumption. If you can see the
world through a non-consumption
lens, you’ll find opportunities.
since exited the PC business and is moving deeper
into software and services – yet another business unit.
“These business units did not evolve,” he explains.
“Just like in biological evolution: individual organisms
don’t evolve. They are born, they die.” And it’s the
same with companies. “Business units were born to
do one thing. A corporation can evolve by creating
new business units and shutting down old ones.” But
there are very few successful cases.
What job do you want done?
PHOTO: ARTHUR LEE
tion. But the PCs kept improving, both in hardware
and software and their prices kept dropping. By the
1990s, Digital and Wang, which sold their products
for as much as US$500,000, were in deep trouble.
Another example: in the 1990s, Lucent and Nortel were giants in the telecom industry. They made
circuit switching technology which established
connections between callers. Then came a small
company called Cisco, which made routers, using
a different technology called packet-switching to
establish communication links. Initially, these were
not good enough for voice communication, so they
were used only for data. But over time, the routers
improved and became more powerful. Meanwhile,
Lucent and Nortel kept doing what they knew best
– making circuit switches, bigger and better. But the
routers eventually took over even voice communication, at a fraction of the cost. Within a decade, Lucent
and Nortel had disappeared.
“Non-consumers”
One of the key insights of Dr Christensen’s thesis
is that as new entrants come into an industry, they
attract new consumers, who had never bought the
old, “high-end” products. Households, for example,
never bought minicomputers and millions of firsttime buyers of mobile phones never had landlines.
Thus, the companies that are disrupted find themselves competing for “non-consumers”.
As the disruptors improve their quality – as happened with both PCs and cellphones – they win over
even more consumers, including those who previously consumed the “high-end” products; eventually,
even companies started buying PCs and people with
landlines switched to cellphones.
PAGE 54
Dr Christensen calls such innovations “marketcreating innovations”. They are different from “efficiency innovations” which enable companies to do
more with less. Efficiency innovations free up cash
flow but they don’t create jobs or growth. But marketcreating innovations do, because they expand the
market by converting non-consumers into consumers. “Think of where you can find ‘non-consumers’,”
says Dr Christensen. “It’s easy to see consumption.
Seeing non-consumption is harder. But actually, we’re
surrounded by non-consumption. If you can see the
world through a non-consumption lens, you’ll find
opportunities.”
Singapore might have missed some, he suggests,
citing the example of the disk-drive industry, which
he has studied in depth. In the 1980s, this industry
was one of the engines of Singapore’s growth and in
its time, the disk drive was a “market creating” innovation. But then as technology evolved, disk-drive
makers in Singapore had two choices. One was to
move upmarket by creating even higher capacity
disk drives, the other was to make other products or
services that do the same job as disk drives – that is
provide storage solutions, such as flash memory and
cloud computing. But the companies chose to go
upmarket. “It’s not clear that this has been an engine
of growth,’’ says Dr Christensen.
There are other opportunities that Singapore
could yet tap – for example in the CT-scanner industry. He explains: “Companies like Siemens, Philips
and GE make CT scanners very well, which cost
US$250,000 or more. But around you there are nonconsumers of CT scanners, for example in Indonesia
and the Philippines. The technology exists to make
simple CT scanners that cost US$25,000 instead of
January – December 2014
The big insight that he gained was that simply “understanding the customer” is not enough. “What you
need to understand is the job the customer wants
done,” he says. For example, the iPhone did some
of what laptops used to do; it was more than just a
phone. Customers don’t always buy what a company
thinks it’s selling; they buy things to “get a certain
job done”. The jobs to be done tend to be very stable – people want to achieve certain goals with the
things they buy, but the means of doing those jobs,
of achieving those goals, can change dramatically. For
example, the consumer wants to read a book – that
is the “job to be done”. But the means of delivering
books has changed from physical books to e-books.
Companies should look carefully at “jobs customers
want to get done”, says Dr Christensen, rather than
simply delivering the products and services that they
have historically delivered or are good at delivering.
The classic dilemma
The classic dilemma for companies in industries being
disrupted is how to deal with the disruption without
cannibalising themselves. For example, if a traditional
publisher wants to get into the e-book business, how
can it do so without killing its traditional publishing
business?
“The way to do it is to set up completely different
business units to go after the disruption because that
is where the growth is going to come from,” says Dr
Christensen. “It’s not a threat, it’s growth. It has to be a
completely different business unit to support the core
business, organising it around the job to be done.
“They can report to the same CEO, but the important thing is that those responsible for the core business should not run the new business. If those in the
core business have responsibility for it, they will force
it to conform to the business model of the traditional
business, which will kill it.”
He explains that IBM survived the disruption of the
mainframe computer by setting up a different business unit in Rochester. “Then their PC business – that
too was a different unit, they did it in Florida.” IBM has
News @ SIM
One reason why managements have found it so difficult to deal with disruption is that they typically
rely on data to make decisions. But when it comes
to understanding disruption, data can be not only
unhelpful, but even misleading, according to Dr
Christensen. He points out that in the 1990s, the film
and camera company Kodak was doing very well and
enjoying high margins. All the way up to 2001, people kept buying film – that’s what the data showed.
But from then on, the disruption of Kodak proceeded
at high speed and in 2012, it filed for bankruptcy.
Mobile phone maker Nokia was another case in
point. “In 2007, on the eve of its disruption by Apple’s
iPhone and Google’s Android platform, Nokia’s stock
was soaring.” There was no data on the disruption to
come. Nokia’s stock later collapsed and the company
was bought by Microsoft in 2013. It is now a shadow
of its former self.
Instead of relying on data, what managements
need to do to is understand the theory, according
to Dr Christensen. “You have to understand the process and how it works. It’s like a disease. There are
processes going inside of every industry that cause
disruption. Early on, the symptoms don’t manifest
themselves. But later on, they do – when it’s too late.”
The theory “helps you to predict with a high
degree of probability what the future is going to look
like”, he says. “But a lot of managers are too busy to
read the theory.”
Disruption by economies
Dr Christensen claims that his theory also helps
explain disruptions caused by economies. He
explains: “The nations that have become prosperous
over the last 60 years were first, Germany and Japan.
The engine of that was market-creating innovations,
mainly in automobiles. In Japan, there was Toyota and
Honda, and then Sony and Canon. For Germany, the
Volkswagen Beetle did the same thing. The next wave
were Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong. Each
one tapped into a fundamental market-creating innovation – electronics. In Korea, Samsung was a big part
of the story – it came in at the bottom of the market,
and later, there was also Kia in cars.
“Most recently, China has been disrupting Korea,
Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong. Of all the Latin
American nations, the only one that has gone through
the transition has been Chile. And their disruption has
been by making fresh fruit available around the world
to people who didn’t have access to fresh fruit.”
“How do you measure your life?”
Later in his life, after facing down a series of health
challenges, Dr Christensen started to produce more
philosophical work – most prominently in his 2012
book How will you measure your life?. He extended
his theory of disruption to how we live our lives – and
what we can do to improve them. It’s essentially about
the importance of making long-term investments in
the quality of our lives and relationships – or face the
possibility of having our lives disrupted.
“The basic observation is this,” he explains. “People have a high need for achievement. When we have
an extra minute of time or extra ounce of energy,
we will invest our time and energy in activities that
give us the most immediate and tangible evidence
of achievement. Our careers provide immediate and
tangible achievement: we finish an article, we ship a
product, we make a presentation, we get paid, we get
promoted.
“But our investments in raising good children –
they don’t pay off quickly. On a day to day basis, our
children misbehave. And it’s really not until 20 years
later that we can put our hands on our hips and look
at our son and say, ‘what a great young man’. But on
a day to day basis, being a parent doesn’t provide any
PAGE 55
signals of achievement.”
Marriage is another area where people suffer
because they set the wrong priorities, he points out.
Sometimes marriages collapse because the partners
don’t invest for the long term in their relationship;
they’re too busy pursuing immediate and tangible
achievements. He explains: “When people get married, nobody plans to get divorced. But because of
the strategy they implement, a lot of people end up
getting divorced.”
Companies get into trouble for basically the same
reason. “They’re run by people like you and me and
they have the same problem: they have short-term
horizons and need to invest in things that provide
immediate and tangible evidence of achievement.”
How then should people measure their lives? Dr
Christensen summed it up in a TED talk he delivered
in Boston in 2012. “It’s actually really important that
you succeed at what you’re succeeding at, but that
isn’t going to be the measure of your life.” He elaborated in his acceptance speech after receiving the
Thinkers50 award the following year. “The happiness
in our lives won’t come from our achievements in the
professions we have chosen,” he said. “Our happiness
will come from intimate and loving relationships with
our families and our close friends. Put first things first,
and you will be blessed, in every way.”
vikram@sph.com.sg
Clayton M Christensen
Kim B Clark Professor of Business
Administration, Harvard Business School
Born: April 6, 1952, Salt Lake City, Utah,
United States
Married to Christine Christensen, five
children
Education: B.A. Brigham Young
University; MBA and DBA, Harvard
Business School; MPhil, University of
Oxford
1979-84: Consultant and Project leader,
Boston Consulting Group
1982-83: White House Fellow and
assistant to US Transportation Secretaries
Drew Lewis and Elizabeth Dole
1984: Founded CPS Corporation
(advanced materials company)
2000: Founded Innosight (innovation
consulting firm)
2005: Launched Innosight Ventures
(venture firm)
2007: Co-founded Rose Park Advisors
(investment company)
2007: Founded Clayton Christensen
Institute (non-profit think-tank dedicated
to improving the world through
disruptive innovation)
Author and co-author of nine books
Board Directorships: Tata Consultancy
Services, Franklin Covey, and Vanu, Inc
January – December 2014
ABOUT SIM
SIM Headquarters
The Singapore Institute of Management
(SIM Group) is the leading provider of higher
education and professional training in Singapore, reputed for its dedication to lifelong learning and high standards and quality. Founded in
1964 under the initiation of Economic Development Board to support Singapore’s economic
development, we are today a diverse and
vibrant organisation with a wide range of programmes and services.
We are also a membership-based organisation
with close to 50,000 individual and corporate
members. Our extensive range of membership
programmes, activities and resources provide
an important nexus for students and members
to network and learn.
The SIM Group offers its core services through
three educational brands:
SIM UNIVERSITY
SIM University is Singapore’s only private university and its mission is to create excellence in
lifelong education through a uniquely-designed
learning experience that equips learners for a
better future. Home to more than 14,000 students, SIM University adopts a flexible and practice-focused learning approach and offers more
than 50 academic programmes in various disciplines. Eligible students taking SIM University’s
undergraduate programmes enjoy government
subsidies and access to government bursaries,
tuition fee and study loans. SIM University is a
not-for-profit university and the SIM University
Education Fund has been a Singapore ‘Institution of a Public Character’ (IPC) since September
2005.
SIM Management House
SIM GLOBAL EDUCATION
Students can choose from a wide range of highquality overseas degree programmes made
available through SIM’s partnership with established international universities and institutions from the United Kingdom, United States,
Australia and Switzerland. Most of the students
are full-time students, but SIM Global Education
also offers part-time programmes that cater to
working adults. Offering over 70 academic programmes, its enrolment stands at 21,500, with
about 3,500 foreign students.
SIM PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
Over 11,000 professionals benefit annually from the vast selection of short executive training programmes offered by SIM
Professional Development. Its customised in-company training programmes
help companies optimise effectiveness in
various fields of management and human
resource development.
For more information, visit our websites at: www.sim.edu.sg, www.simge.edu.sg and www.unisim.edu.sg
Singapore Institute of Management, 461 Clementi Road, Singapore 599491 | Tel: 6468 8866 | Website: www.sim.edu.sg
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PAGE 56
January – December 2014