Orient Issue 71

Orient

THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE BRITISH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE SINGAPORE ISSUE 71 | APR 2019

BUILDING NETWORKS | CONNECTING BUSINESSES | CREATING OPPORTUNITIES

FUTURE OF WORK SPECIAL

30

A look at the activities in the first year of our Future of Work agenda plus read our members' thought leadership on the topic

MCI (P) 067/04/2019

34

IN FOCUS

Craig Considine, CEO, Tanglin Trust School

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President's Message Executive Director's Message BritCham Board Members 2019/2020 News New Members Upcoming Events Recent Events In Focus: Craig Considine, CEO, Tanglin Trust School Special Supplement: The Future of Work Chamber Activities Feature: Preparing for Tomorrow - STEM Education in the Energy Sector Matters of Opinion Feature: Are Employers and Workers Ready for the Future of Work?

Feature: People Power: The Role of Human and Cultural Factors in Digital Transformation Feature: Navigating the Future of Work Through Collective Intelligence Feature: Why Active Listening Is More Vital than Ever Feature: Can Robots Free Us to Be More Human?

Feature: Preparing Singapore’s Workforce to Be Future-ready Feature: Future Workforce: Reworking the Revolution Feature: The Importance of Education: Profile and Opportunities in Singapore Feature: Speed Despite Size: Leasing out Entire Start-up Teams Feature: Asia’s Businesses: Becoming Future-fit in the Human Age Let's Discuss...

Unlocking the Commercial Benefits of Green Buildings Member Offers

Editor: Lucy Haydon lucy@britcham.org.sg

Orient is a bi-monthly magazine published by the British Chamber of Commerce, Singapore.

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

© All rights reserved.

137 Telok Ayer Street, #06-03, Singapore 068602 Tel: +65 6222-3552 Fax: +65 6222-3556 Email: info@britcham.org.sg www.britcham.org.sg

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

Unsolicited transparencies and articles are sent at owner’s risk and the Chamber accepts no liability for loss or damage. Copy is not for sale and images belong to their respective owners. They are for illustrative purposes only, and no copyright infringement is intended.

@britchamsg @bccsingapore @british-chamber-ofcommerce-singapore

CONTENTS

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? An adventure to the stars and stripes. Over 240 destinations across the US, in collaboration with American Airlines.

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05

OUR PARTNERS PLATINUM PARTNER

SILVER PARTNERS

GOLD PARTNERS

BRONZE PARTNERS

SUPPORTING PARTNERS

BRITCHAM BOARD

COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSONS

MANAGEMENT TEAM

PRESIDENT:

BUILT ENVIRONMENT:

Executive Director: Olivia Widen

Bicky Bhangu, Rolls-Royce Singapore

VICE-PRESIDENTS:

Sian Brown, Barclays Bank PLC Richard Warburton, Arcadis

TREASURER:

David Fowler, PricewaterhouseCoopers

BOARD MEMBERS:

Andrew Pickup, Microsoft Asia Caroline Underhill, The Fry Group Damian Hills, The British Club Haslam Preeston, Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd James Hennah, BT Singapore Pte Ltd James Nesbitt, Standard Chartered Bank Michael Shearer, McLaren Applied Technologies Pte Ltd Paul Kelleher, Diageo Singapore Pte Ltd Shivkumar Seerapu, Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc

COMMITTEE CHAIRS BUSINESS COMMITTEES: Damian Hills

EVENTS:

Sian Brown

EXTERNAL AFFAIRS:

David Mackerness (Chairperson), Rhian Windridge (Co-Chair)

DIVERSITY & INCLUSION:

Head of Marketing & Communications and Partnerships, Deputy Executive Director: Lucy Haydon

ENERGY & UTILITIES:

Head of Member Relations: Nicole Wharfe

ENTREPRENEUR & SMALL BUSINESS:

Member Relations Administrator : Melissa Ng

FINANCIAL & FINTECH:

Head of Events: Helen Starr

Andrew Ashman (Chairperson), Alexander Harrison (Co-Chair)

Tim Rockell (Chairperson), Bree Miechel (Co-Chair)

Mark Florance (Co-Chair)

Ashley Jones (Chairperson), Francesca McKee (Co-Chair), Kalai Natarajan (Co-Chair)

INFOCOMM TECHNOLOGY: Magda Chelly (Chairperson), Hitan Mehta (Co-Chair), Faisal Parvez (Co-Chair)

Events Executive: Safreen Anwardeen

LEADERSHIP, TALENT & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT:

Senior Marketing & Communications Executive: Nicole Alison Lim

MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS:

Marketing & Communications and Events Executive: Samantha Nelson

Joe Tofield (Chairperson), Don Rapley (Co-Chair), David Gardner (Co-Chair)

Bicky Bhangu

Suzy Goulding (Chairperson), Andrew Clark (Co-Chair)

MEMBERSHIP:

SUSTAINABILITY & RESPONSIBILITY:

Richard Warburton

Events Executive: Gloria Teo

Sarah Cragg (Co-Chair), Simon Bennett (Co-Chair)

TRANSPORT, LOGISTICS & SUPPLY CHAIN:

Senior Trade Services Advisor: Sachi Duggirala Trade Services Advisor: Aisyah Ariffin

Simon Petch (Chairperson), Nicholas Potter (Co-Chair)

Finance Manager: Pauline Yeo

WOMEN IN BUSINESS:

Office Manager: Anna C Garciso

Angel Cheung-Horenfeldt (Chairperson)

CHAMBER INFORMATION

At Cycle & Carriage, we are driven by our passion to create people-focused experiences.

As we celebrate our 120th anniversary in 2019, we remain committed to serving those who have made this exceptional journey with us.

120 Exceptional Journeys to be won!

Journeys are not measured by the distance we travel but in the memories we acquire. To commemorate 120 years of Cycle & Carriage, we are giving away 120 Exceptional Journeys* to our valued customers across Singapore, Malaysia and Myanmar. Stand to win a specially curated trip to Mongolia, Nepal or Korea.

To participate, simply carry out any of the following eligible transactions and register on our website between 10 Jan and 30 Nov 2019:

Purchase a new car from Cycle & Carriage and receive 120 draw chances; Every $200 spent on Cycle & Carriage’s aftersales services will receive 1 draw chance, capped at 120 draw chances.

Register and find out more at cyclecarriage.com/120

Mercedes-Benz

Mitsubishi Motors

Kia

Citroën

DS Automobiles

*Cycle & Carriage reserves the right to increase the number of prizes and the prizes will be allocated across Singapore, Malaysia and Myanmar.

Other terms & conditions apply. Visit cyclecarriage.com/120 for more details.

Maxus

07

Message from the President

As we enter the second quarter of the year, the Chamber is driving a forward-thinking agenda. This month, we elected our Board for 2019/20 and I would like to take a moment to recognise the contributions of our Board over the past twelve months towards the strategy and performance of the Chamber. In particular, I would like to thank departing Board members Damian Adams and Andrew Vine who have been instrumental in the Chamber’s growth over many years.

On behalf of the Board, I would also like to take the opportunity to express our appreciation to Olivia Widen for her dedication, hard work and driving some of the instrumental transformation change in the Chamber during her time in the role of Executive Director.

Bicky Bhangu President, British Chamber Of Commerce, Singapore

We will also shortly be saying farewell to the British High Commissioner, His Excellency Scott Wightman, and I would like to personally thank Scott on behalf of the Chamber Board, executive team and our members for his tireless efforts to support the interests of the UK in Singapore, particularly in working with us to keep our members informed on the UK's exit from the EU. I look forward to thanking him in person alongside many of you at our Farewell Reception event on 15th May. For the past twelve months, we have been driving a Future of Work theme across all elements of our activities with our Official Partner for this project, Prudential. In this issue, we welcome the contributions of several of our members on the topic and look back on the events and activities we have completed. This theme will continue through the next twelve months with a skills perspective. Earlier this year, we reflected on the Future of Learning at a special forum held in collaboration with the Education is GREAT campaign, AVADO Learning, the British Council and Event Partner, JLT Asia. This unique half-day event was well attended by participants and speakers from both Singapore and the UK and continues to drive ongoing discussions on the strength and opportunities of the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and EdTech sectors in Singapore.

We will shortly be launching a Future of Trade theme, connecting with a selection of key stakeholders to strengthen the business community’s understanding of trade opportunities and to support the continuing relationship between the UK, Singapore and ASEAN, a bond highlighted by the recent launch of the SG-UK Partnership for the Future.

Our Senior Trade Services Advisor has just returned from a Roadshow around the UK with our Partner for the trip, Hawksford Singapore, and our regional ASEAN British Chamber and UKASEAN Business Council colleagues. This bi-annual Roadshow is a unique opportunity for us to highlight the export opportunities in Singapore to British companies interested in the region, working with the local British Chamber network. We look forward to continuing these conversations and welcoming some of the companies we met into Singapore in the future.

With Brexit negotiations continuing in the months ahead, the British Chamber network will continue to act as a reference of trusted information and access to Government stakeholders for our members throughout the region.

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

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09

Message from the Executive Director

Quarter one for 2019 has been a busy start for the Chamber, not least because of an anticipated key shift in the Brexit debate with the intended departure of the UK from the EU at the end of March. With the postponement of this date, our joint panel with The Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF) earlier this month explored the implications of Brexit in Asia, from the probable repercussions of the delay to the effect on existing and future trading relationships. Speakers nonetheless conveyed a positive standpoint with H.E. Scott Wightman, British High Commissioner to Singapore, highlighting the breadth and depth of the current Singapore-UK relationship.

Olivia Widen Executive Director, British Chamber Of Commerce, Singapore

Continuing to foster this relationship remains a priority for the Chamber and will begin to take on a focused agenda from May onwards of this year.

Watch this space as we drive key initiatives and activities, including our 20th Annual Business Awards (ABAs), which this year looks to recognise UK organisations who have made an impact in Singapore as we highlight the long-standing collaborative relationship between the two countries. I would encourage members to submit their nominations for this special UK Impact in Singapore award category, along with the other six award categories.

Our Diversity and Inclusion agenda was front and centre during March as we celebrated International Women’s Day, along with 332 Chamber members and guests. Celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women, the day marked a call to action for accelerating gender parity against the backdrop of this year’s theme #BalanceforBetter. The topic of courageous leadership was at the forefront of our panel’s dialogue, an important message that further resonated at our Kindness in Leadership event, organised jointly with the Women of the Future Awards Southeast Asia, where the additional dimension of kindness in the leadership context was discussed.

This edition of the Orient further recognises another key agenda that Chamber has been driving this past year – the Future of Work, exploring workforce and workplace transformation. As we come to the end of our first year, we reflect on what our members have been thinking around the subject through this special supplement and in our habitual Matters of Opinion section. We move into our second year with an equally focused plan of activities, starting with our SkillsFuture JumpStart! Workshop on 28th May, a practical session that will help you gain an overall understanding of the Industry Transformation Maps and SkillsFuture, as well as how to tap on government resources for skills transformation.

I also wish to take this opportunity to warmly welcome the 21 members who have joined us in the first three months of the year. The Chamber’s membership continues to grow from strength to strength and as an executive team, it is our job to be supporting you throughout your journey with us to ensure you are getting the best value and membership experience.

Finally, as this is my last message for the Orient, I wish to thank our existing members for all the support you have given to myself and the Chamber team. It has been a pleasure to work with so many of you and to learn so much from you throughout my own journey with the Chamber. I hope to continue engaging with you in the future, although in a different capacity. I also wish to thank my team for their outstanding work and to the Chamber Board, past Chamber Presidents, H.E. Scott Wightman and Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for Asia Pacific Natalie Black and their teams at the High Commission and DIT for their support. I wish my team, the new incoming Board and my successor all the best for this year and beyond as we continue to build up the Chamber, recognising that as an organisation, we are here to serve you and only through your engagement, can we be even better.

MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

D ET U R

P O N S MUN

DO

Moving to the UK? Plan ahead to get your tax ducks in a row

www.thefrygroup.sg The Fry Group (Singapore) Pte Ltd is authorised to act as a financial adviser by the Monetary Authority of Singapore - licence number FA100057.

International outlook, local perspective

Partnership Opportunities Available!

The Chamber is delighted to share details of our upcoming annual flagship events for 2019.

We have various partnership opportunities available for companies wishing to be represented at these events. Should you wish to discuss a partnership agreement, please reach out to Lucy Haydon (lucy@britcham.org.sg) at your earliest convenience.

Back to Work: Summer Social 22nd August 2019 | 6pm - 9.30pm | The British Club: Treetops Terrace Partnership Opportunities: Supporting Partner Rugby Dinner 12th September 2019 | 6.30pm - 10.30pm | Shangri-La Hotel Multiple Partnership Opportunities Available 20th Anniversary Annual Business Awards 3rd October 2019 | 7pm - 11.30pm | Shangri-La Hotel Partnership Opportunities: Photography Partner & Category Partners BritCham Fair 23rd October 2019 | 5.30pm - 9pm Multiple Partnership Opportunities Available The Great British Ball 7th December 2019 | 6pm - 2am | Shangri-La Hotel Multiple Partnership Opportunities Available

15

GET IN TOUCH

137 Telok Ayer Street, #06-03, Singapore 068602 Tel: +65 6222-3552 Email: info@britcham.org.sg Website: www.britcham.org.sg

British Chamber of Commerce Singapore (BritCham)

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BRITCHAM BOARD MEMBERS 2019/2020

BRITCHAM BOARD MEMBERS 2019/2020 We welcome the following board members who were elected at our Annual General Meeting on 24th April 2019

Bicky Bhangu President, S E Asia, Pacific & South Korea Rolls-Royce PRESIDENT

Sian Brown Director, Chief Controls Office, Barclays Bank PLC

Richard Warburton Executive Director, Head of Financial Institutions, Asia Pacific, Arcadis

VICE PRESIDENT

VICE PRESIDENT

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David Fowler Senior Manager, Asset & Wealth Management, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

Andrew Pickup Senior Director, Communications, Microsoft Asia

TREASURER

Caroline Underhill Commercial Manager, The Fry Group Singapore

Damian Hills President, The British Club

Haslam Preeston Regional Managing Director, Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd

James Hennah Managing Director South East Asia (ASEAN), BT

James Nesbitt Executive Director, Standard Chartered Bank

Michael Shearer OBE Managing Director, APAC, McLaren Applied Technologies

Paul Kelleher Corporate Relations Lead, Diageo

Shivkumar Seerapu CEO Asia Pacific & Regional head of Commercial Banking, Lloyds Bank Corporate Markets Plc

BRITCHAM BOARD MEMBERS 2019/2020

NEWS:

FROM THE CHAMBER

NEWS

Enter the 20th Anniversary Annual Business Awards!

This year, we are celebrating a very special anniversary - the 20th year of our Annual Business Awards which highlights the excellence of businesses in Singapore. We have been showcasing the best of business for the past 20 years and this year will include a special UK Impact in Singapore award recognising the long-standing collaborative relationship between the two countries.

This year's awards submissions will close on Thursday, 6th June 2019. The initiative will culminate in the Gala Awards Dinner on Thursday, 3rd October 2019 at the Shangri-La Hotel, Singapore, where we will be celebrating our 20-year anniversary among several hundred of our members and guests.

We are delighted to be joined in our awards

applying either as a Singapore registered enterprise or the employee of such (for the Future Leaders category). Membership of the British Chamber of Commerce is not a prerequisite and there is no fee to enter, so please do encourage your wider networks to participate. This is an ideal opportunity to nominate your team for their efforts and achievements throughout the previous year, or for a specific project.

To enter, please complete the short entry form on our website and submit your supporting document(s). You are also welcome to submit a video entry in addition, but it is not mandatory.

Submissions must be made on the British Chamber of Commerce website. All entries and information submitted to the Annual Business Awards are treated in the strictest of confidence by the shortlisting committee and judges.

campaign by Title Partner Prudential Singapore, and Category Partners Barclays, Standard Chartered Bank, Jardine Cycle & Carriage and Vistra. With special thanks to our Video Partner AsiaWorks.

To be eligible for the awards, you must be

Entries are assessed by our Judging Panel of leading experts on a number of factors. Our audience will also have the opportunity to get involved on the night by providing the final votes for the UK Impact in Singapore category. Full details, rules and FAQs can be found on the Awards webpage.

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This award recognises success in ASEAN. Judges will be looking for companies making an impact on the national economy and workforce in one or more countries in the region, demonstrating collaboration examples and achievements in ASEAN. With thanks to our Category Partner Jardine Cycle & Carriage This award recognises organisations that deliver exceptional experience through the customer journey, both online and offline. Judges will be looking for evidence that organisations have created and implemented a strategy that has benefited both the business and their customers with measurable and demonstratable results.

This award recognises an organisation's exceptional contribution towards improving diversity and inclusion within their industry.

Judges will recognise organisations that demonstrate a holistic and long-term commitment to equality and have delivered significant progress in both creating a diverse and inclusive workplace and pushing the inclusion agenda forwards. With thanks to our Category Partner Barclays

This award recognises organisations who were incorporated less than 5 years ago (from 1 April 2019). Judges will be looking for organisations that showcase vast development and achievements based on growth, innovation and impact with their products/services. With thanks to our Category Partner Vistra

This award recognises the transformation of talent either by an individual or an organisation.

Judges will recognise the cultivation and harnessing of the potential of the workforce to help them reach leadership positions and deliver the right skills for the future while achieving strategic business objectives for the organisation. This is the only category to be awarded to an individual (30 or under) or an organisation and may be entered through selfsubmission or by nomination.

This award represents the pinnacle of the digital revolution, encouraging and recognising those organisations who are pushing the limits of what is possible, making a difference in business, culture and society. Judges will be looking for best-inclass technology and entrants must show why their work is considered innovative. With thanks to our Category Partner Standard Chartered Bank

This award represents the important relationship between the UK and Singapore as we celebrate the 200th anniversary of the relationship between the nations and the 20th Anniversary of the Awards. Judges will be looking for UK organisations who have made an impact on Singapore's economy and society, contributing to the strengthening of the UK-SG partnership. This category will feature live voting by the audience during the Gala Awards Dinner evening. With thanks to our Title Partner of the awards and Partner for this special category, Prudential

To enter, visit www. britcham.org.sg/20ABA and complete the simple online form. For any queries relating to the awards entry process, sponsorship opportunities or gala dinner, please contact helen@britcham.org.sg.

NEWS:

FROM THE CHAMBER

NEWS:

MEMBER NEWS

Field International opens manufacturing plant in Singapore UK-based aerospace manufacturing company, Field International, have always had their sights set on conquering the global stage. This is why the recent opening of their manufacturing plant in Singapore has made such a splash in the industry.

Flanked by Singapore representatives from the British Chamber in Singapore, including the Deputy Director for International Trade, Justinian Habner, the opening ceremony took place on 15th February 2019 and marks a significant boost to the area’s employment and economy.

Located at the Singapore Industrial Zone, the new plant will provide Field International with a manufacturing and repairbased service that can supply South East Asia and beyond, giving the company an even stronger foothold in their worldwide expansion, and yet another opportunity outside of China.

Founded in in the UK in 1995 by David Booker and his wife, Marie, and with their son, Mark Booker, now at the helm, the family-run company has an impressive presence on the global stage. Employing 50 highly-qualified personnel in the UK and fast approaching 200 employees worldwide, this forwardthinking company boasts engineering and manufacturing facilities in the UK, Singapore, the US, China and Spain, and trades in over 50 countries around the world.

With their sights firmly set on continuing their worldwide expansion, Field International supports and supplies most of the major Airlines and MROs worldwide with licensed aircraft tooling and ground support equipment. They’re even able to lay claim to being one of the UK’s only official Airbus Tier 1 Aircraft Tooling suppliers and one of the top-selling Boeing tooling licensees.

This latest expansion in Singapore is testament to their ongoing success and growth, and, with plans to expand their reach even further, this UK aerospace manufacturing company is truly a global player.

For more information visit www.fieldinternational.com

SOAS University of London launches its first ever degree programmes to be delivered overseas SOAS University of London has recently entered into a partnership with Ngee Ann Academy to deliver SOAS Bachelor’s Degree programmes, with honours, in Singapore.

Ngee Ann Academy (formerly known as Ngee Ann-Adelaide Education Centre) has provided high-quality tertiary education in Singapore since 1998. Ngee Ann Academy is now a 100%-owned subsidiary of Ngee Ann Education Holdings which is, in turn, a fullfledged subsidiary of The Ngee Ann Kongsi.

Students will be taught at Ngee Ann Academy by experts from SOAS University of London in the subject area of International Management. The Degree programmes have been designed with the local and regional context and economies in mind, with one programme dedicated to specialising in International Development and Management in South East Asia.

SOAS University of London is world renowned for its expertise in Asian studies and particularly in areas of International Management and Development studies, with the University being ranked 4th best in the world in this area. The first SOAS degree programmes in Singapore are due to commence in June 2019 and enrolment has begun.

An added incentive for those wishing for a career in Management, particularly with an emphasis on International Management in a local context, the degree programmes can be completed in just 2 years. The degree programmes are approved by the Committee for Private Education (CPE) and all degrees will be conferred by SOAS, University of London.

For more information on these programmes and for information on enrolment please contact Helen Kelly at hk17@soas.ac.uk

21

Edrington: Investing in Legacy In as Edrington readies itself for a new financial year, Igor Boyadjian, the outgoing Managing Director Asia Pacific & India and incoming Managing Director for The Macallan, reflects on a great 2018 and looks boldly ahead at what promises to be an even more dynamic 2019. In this era of incredible opportunity for the company, faced with changing consumer trends and geopolitical disruptions, Edrington continues to invest in its brands and its people, delivering more to its consumers while staying true to its ethos of “Giving More” by supporting causes that change lives across the globe.

2018 was Edrington’s best-ever year, with the business showing strong performance across the world. Our premium spirits products – including The Macallan, Highland Park and The Glenrothes – continued to perform particularly well in Asia, where the well-known premiumisation trend gathered pace and drove decisions for an increasing number of well-informed consumers.

We have not rested on our laurels and, over the course of the past year, our commitment to investing in the long term growth of our brands was demonstrated most visibly by the opening of the remarkable new distillery at The Macallan Estate. As part of this, our consumers remain our primary focus. We continue to work on bringing the brand to life through innovative retail experiences as well as direct to consumer engagements that do not only meet but exceed their every expectation. This continued investment in The Macallan will deliver not only for the brand and our consumers, but also for Scotland, attracting international visitors – many of them from the Asia Pacific region – to the heart of Speyside.

While our sector is not new to economic headwinds and political uncertainty, we are operating in an age of unprecedented geopolitical disruption and rising trade tensions. This has brought an even stronger need to invest in the knowledge and skills of our people, equipping them with the tools to develop and deliver in an environment of constant change. Over the year ahead, we will also continue to invest behind the scenes, improving technologies and processes in our supply chain and operations so that these remain best-in-class.

Amid the change and dynamism that we foresee for 2019, a constant for Edrington, and its greatest competitive differentiator, is its ethos of Giving More. This commitment to charitable giving empowers employees to make a real difference in their communities by championing causes they feel truly passionate about. Last year, thanks to our many friends and Edrington’s generous double-matching, our regional flagship initiative raised USD $750,000 for Newborns Vietnam, a charity working to end infant mortality in that country. We are also proud that Edrington’s success continues to fund The Robertson Trust, Scotland’s largest independent charitable funder, which has given away more than £250 million to a variety of charitable causes since the 1960s.

In what is undoubtedly an era of enormous opportunity for Edrington, our confidence across the Asia Pacific region remains strong. As more people in emerging economies gain the means and the aspiration to explore premium brands, we believe that companies who can truly connect with consumers, offering them quality products and experiences, will thrive. In this regard, we are excited for what lies ahead and will continue to invest in our brands, our people and our communities as we look forward to another great year for Edrington in 2019.

For more information visit edrington.com

NEWS:

MEMBER NEWS

NEW MEMBERS

STERLING MEMBERS

FIELD INTERNATIONAL PTE. LTD Incorporated in 1995, Field International Limited is a privately owned independent global engineering company, with the founders of the company having decades of experience in the precision engineering sector and particularly within the aerospace marketplace. Field is proactive in the aerospace and defence markets and offer subcontract services covering precision machining and engineering in any sector. More at www.fieldinternational.com Representative Member: Annie Yap, Sales Support Manager

SINGAPORE CRICKET CLUB Established in 1852, the Singapore Cricket Club (SCC) is the premier sports and lifestyle club in the heart of the city. Framed by historic and modern buildings, the Club sits on the iconic Padang. It has a strong sports fraternity and hosts many sporting activities, including international level tournaments. With its range of local cuisine, fine dining options and many celebratory events, the Club is a choice meeting place for its distinctive community of members. Find out more at www.scc.org.sg Representative Member: Sean Boyle, General Manager / Secretary

CORPORATE PLUS MEMBER

GIBSON, DUNN & CRUTCHER LLP Founded in 1890, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is a full-service international law firm that advises on the most significant transactions and complex litigation around the world.

Consistently achieving top rankings in industry surveys and major publications, Gibson Dunn is distinctively positioned in today’s global marketplace with more than 1,300 lawyers and 20 offices. Find out more at www.gibsondunn.com Representative Member: Geraldine Chan, Business Development & Marketing Specialist

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SPORTSHUB PTE LTD The Singapore Sports Hub is a state-of-the-art, fully integrated sports, entertainment and lifestyle hub. Aside from its premier status as the region’s destination of choice for worldclass events, it also supports Singapore’s Vision 2030 sports masterplan to forge and bond communities through sports, and ensure sports are inclusive, accessible and affordable to all.

Find out more at www.sportshub.com.sg Representative Member: Benjamin Bartlett, Director

CORPORATE MEMBERS

BAKER & MCKENZIE.WONG & LEOW Baker McKenzie, founded as Baker & McKenzie in 1949, is a multinational law firm. The firm’s current Global Chair is former London Managing Partner Paul Rawlinson, who is the 15th chair of Baker McKenzie and the first British Chair of the firm. Visit www.bakermckenzie.com/en/ for more information.

Representative Member: Andrew Martin, Principal

INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE ORGANIZATION The IB offers an education for students from age 3 to 19, comprising of four programmes that focus on teaching students to think critically and independently, and how to inquire with care and logic. The IB prepares students to succeed in a world where facts and fiction merge in the news, and where asking the right questions is a crucial skill that will allow them to flourish long after they’ve left our programmes. We are supported by IB teachers and coordinators who develop and promote the IB’s curriculums in almost 5,000 schools globally every day, in over 150 countries around the world. Find out more at www.ibo.org Representative Member: Joe Tofield, Training Advisor

NGP UTILITIES LIMITED (SINGAPORE BRANCH) Northern Gas and Power works with businesses of all sizes to reduce their energy usage and costs. From global blue chip organisations to SMEs, we make significant energy cost savings for our clients while reducing their environmental impact. As a leading energy buyer, we can secure market-leading prices for the energy your business uses, because we have longstanding supplier arrangements with energy companies around the world. Find out more at www.ngpltd.co.uk Representative Member: Geoffrey Moses, Operations Director

NEW MEMBERS

NEW MEMBERS

CORPORATE SME MEMBERS CORO ENERGY PLC Oil & Gas Exploration & Production company, intent on building a portfolio of assets in Southeast Asia. Listed on AIM. Visit www.coroenergyplc.com for more information.

Representative Member: Harry Renshaw, Commercial Advisor

JUST AFTER MIDNIGHT We are a group of people who live and breathe digital, coming from both agency and brand background, we work hard to demystify technology and DevOps for end clients.

Our goal is to build true long term partnerships with our clients and put an end to project based thinking. We do not define ourselves through the services we offer, or the latest fad or buzzwords. We are here to provide our specialist knowledge for your needs and are dedicated to protecting your revenue and reputation. Find out more at www.justaftermidnight247.sg Representative Member: Freddie Heygate, CEO

SINGAPORE TRAMPOLINE ACADEMY - MINISTRY OF FITNESS A multifaceted training facility. The home of the Singapore Trampoline Academy, Bootcamps with a Military Influence, Fitness Suite and Studio. Prepare yourself to enhance your training or be battle ready for National Service. We will have the class to enhance your training or put you out of your comfort zone and ‘Be the Best’ YOU. Find out more at www.ministryoffitnesssg.com Representative Member: Jessica Hinton, Director

TEN FEET TALL When Ten Feet Tall launched three years ago our mission was to transform the way school shoes are sourced, measured, fitted and sold in Singapore. We imported 8,000 pairs from the top three European shoe manufacturers, providing a huge range of sizes and styles for children aged 3-18 years old. Since then we’ve also become the largest retailer of ASICS kids trainers, football boots and netball shoes in the market.

In the last year we’ve expanded into school uniforms and are proud to have become the uniform provider for SJI Elementary International so now we’re Ten Feet Tall from top to toe. Find out more at www.tenfeeettallshoes.com Representative Member: Samantha Shorten, Co-founder

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UPCOMING EVENTS Visit our Upcoming Events page at www.britcham.org.sg/events to find out more about the following events, or contact the events team at events@britcham.org.sg

NAME

TIME

VENUE

03 May 2019

Sky Scenario: Paris Agreement

8:00 AM 10:00 AM

Sheraton Towers Singapore 39 Scotts Road Level 2, Ballroom 4 S 228230

07 May 2019

Problem Solving through Innovative Design Thinking

7:30 AM 11:00 AM

British Chamber of Commerce 137 Telok Ayer Street #06-03 S 068602

09 May 2019

Investing in Wine

6:30 PM 8:30 PM

Cult Wines 9 Battery Road #09-01 MYP Centre S 049910

15 May 2019

Farewell Reception for H.E. Scott Wightman

6:30 PM 8:30 PM

Singapore Cricket Club Connaught Drive, S 179681

16 May 2019

Storytelling: The Secret to Engagement

8:00 AM 10:00 AM

British Chamber of Commerce 137 Telok Ayer Street #06-03 S 068602

07 Jun 2019

Closing the Employee Experience Gap for Working Parents

8:00 AM 10:00 AM

British Chamber of Commerce 137 Telok Ayer Street #06-03 S 068602

DATE

EVENT SPONSOR

UPCOMING EVENTS

RECENT EVENTS

RECENT EVENTS The City of London's Ambitions in Asia ft. Lord Mayor Alderman Peter Estlin 21 February 2019 Co-Organiser:

Event Partner:

Part of the SG-UK Partnership for the Future:

International Women's Day 8 March 2019 Title Event Partner:

Supporting Event Partner:

Official Book Partner:

BritCham Open House 19 March 2019 Catering Partner:

Raffle Prize Partners:

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Women of the Future - Kindness in Leadership 22 March 2019 Title Partner:

In Collaboration With:

Brexit and Asia: Economic, Political & Business Implications for the Region 3 April 2019 Co-Organiser:

Title Partner:

Creating a Future Ready Business Through Artificial Intelligence 16 April 2019 Leaders in Business Lunch Series Partner:

Annual General Meeting 2019 24 April 2019 Raffle Prize Partners:

RECENT EVENTS

TRADE SERVICES SPECIAL EVENT: THE FUTURE OF LEARNING

The Future of Learning 28th February 2019, Eden Hall

The Future of Learning forum was held on 28th February 2019 at Eden Hall, Singapore. This event was organised by the British Chamber of Commerce Singapore in partnership with the UK’s Department for International Trade (DIT), the British Council in Singapore, AVADO Learning, and generously supported by Jardine Lloyd Thompson Asia. The forum forms part of a wider regional Education is GREAT campaign

by DIT and key partners in order to promote the UK’s excellence in education and secure the UK as an education partner of choice in ASEAN. The event was also part of the SG-UK Partnership for the Future as Singapore and the UK celebrates its Bicentennial.

The forum featured interactive sessions with Guest of Honour – Ms. Alexandra McKenzie, Deputy British High Commissioner, Ms. Mei-kwei Barker, Country Director of British Council and a keynote address from Dr. Michael Fung Jin Lung, Deputy Chief Executive of SkillsFuture Singapore.

The forum took a deeper look into how companies, institutions and the government are pushing the boundaries of learning to adapt and shape the rapidly changing nature of knowledge acquisition, skills and work in an increasingly digital world. It also brought together high-level global experts in The Future of On-the-Job Learning (TVET) and Technologyempowered Learning (Ed-Tech) sectors as part of the Future of Learning

29 The interactive sessions included panel discussions and presentations by: • Ruth Beattie, Head of Industry Programmes, Google Singapore • Professor John Chudley, Vice-Chancellor, BAU Global • Kelly Crouch, Head of JLT University Asia, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Asia Pte Ltd • Dr Matthias Dorrzapf, Director of International Programmes at St John’s College, University of Cambridge • Samantha Grainger, Director Digital Product Development, British Council • Edward Houghton, Head of Research and Thought Leadership, CIPD • David Jones, Managing Director, CMI Singapore • David Kelly, Director of Asia Pacific, The IMAREST • Cindy Lee, Director of Excellence in Learning & Teaching (Singapore), Newcastle University • Mark O’Donoghue, CEO, AVADO Learning • Simon Prior, Global Talent & OD Director, iProspect • Ben Rowland, Client Solutions Director, AVADO Learning • Ching Ching Tan, The Sandbox, Ngee Ann Polytechnic • Esther Thng, Head of Education, ASEAN & ANZ, ACCA Panel Discussion Key Focus: “Building competencies from the bottom up: Apprenticeships and graduate programmes that focus on delivering critical skills for the future” – Ruth Beattie, Ben Rowland, and Mark O’Donoghue “Delivering practical workplace skills to equip the workforce of the future” – David Jones, David Kelly, Esther Thng, Professor John Chudley “Opportunities and Challenges for the future if higher education, as underpinned by technology, globalisation, and the changing workplace” – Cindy Lee, Ben Rowland, Dr Matthias Dorrzapf Presentation Key Focus: • How are we preparing students to launch into the ‘real-world’, acquire skills and learn to adapt to a working life? – Ching Ching Tan • The future of organisational learning and development - what do individuals expect, and how should businesses prepare/react?

– Edward Houghton • How businesses are adapting to deliver effective, measurable and scalable learning that works – Mark O'Donoghue • Case study from a global business that has adopted digital learning: the successes and the watch-outs – Simon Prior and Kelly Crouch • Digitising our enterprise and engaging audiences in a digital world – Samantha Grainger

TRADE SERVICES SPECIAL EVENT: THE FUTURE OF LEARNING

IN FOCUS:

CRAIG CONSIDINE, CEO, TANGLIN TRUST SCHOOL

In Focus:

Craig Considine, CEO, Tanglin Trust School

By Craig Considine & Tanglin Trust School In a break from our traditional In Focus interview format, we invited Craig Considine to share his thoughts after 100 days in his role as the new CEO of Tanglin Trust School.

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IN FOCUS:

CRAIG CONSIDINE, CEO, TANGLIN TRUST SCHOOL

IN FOCUS:

CRAIG CONSIDINE, CEO, TANGLIN TRUST SCHOOL

I feel very fortunate to be CEO of Tanglin Trust School. In moving from an established school in the United Kingdom, I was keen to move to a school with a sense of history, with a record of success and importantly, a school that was not-for-profit; in my experience, this gives parents great confidence in the mission of the school. Tanglin Trust School will celebrate its centenary in 2025. This longevity places the school central to the expatriate community and as such, central to the success of Singapore.

Relocation to Singapore is a welltrodden path. I am in the fortunate position of meeting many expatriate families. Education of children will always be a critical aspect of every family decision to relocate to another part of the world.

Families must assure themselves of the quality of education in whatever city they move to. This decision is often exacerbated by the absence of extended family. The role of the school and its international community therefore takes on a more significant standing, especially when children are young and equally when they enter public examination years.

After 100 days in post, I have observed how the school ensures a richness of

educational experience that is hard to match. This is about the quality of the broad educational provision, but particularly in the enrichment of the curriculum and learning experiences, and the human interactions that occur on a day to day basis. This addresses concerns and provides every family with insights into how to extend and support their children.

I am privileged to meet with children of all ages on a daily basis. They are inquisitive, articulate, thoughtful and interested, exhibiting a voracious appetite for knowledge and learning.

We measure their progress against benchmark data, but we also know this intuitively because their teachers know them so well.

This quality is validated by the British Schools Overseas inspections (Ofsted). The Junior School was recently rated Outstanding in all categories. This follows Outstanding ratings for both the Infant and Senior Schools over the last two years.

Tanglin Trust School is the only school in Singapore to utilise this robust framework and it reflects wonderfully on the excellent work that takes place here.

I have recently enjoyed working with talented and committed school leaders and Governors, to develop a

new iteration of the school’s strategic plan. Tanglin Trust School is successful because of its culture, the way we do things, and the strategy requires evolution rather than revolution. These changes will be organic, building on successes, recognising changes in educational expectations and understanding the desire of all families to provide the best for their children.

I have been impressed at how Tanglin Trust School ensures that our young people and their parents realise that the ennobling elements of drama, music and sport are not ‘opportunity costs’, but lifelong learning opportunities. Far from stifling life chances, they create opportunities to flourish. This is a central plank of our work. Academic achievement assures young people of their future education, but they must build a portfolio of future ready skills.

Schools that assist millennials to explore their humanity will guarantee their future in an emerging world of artificial intelligence, big data and technology driven solutions. A Tanglin Trust School education recognises and explores each individual’s humanity, and long may it continue!

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ABOUT THE COMPANY Established in Singapore in 1925, Tanglin Trust School provides a world class education, through British based learning with an international perspective, for students aged 3-18 years. Student enrolment stands at over 2,700, with 49 nationalities currently represented. The school is run as a not-for-profit organisation. At Tanglin responsibility, enthusiasm and participation are actively encouraged and integrity is prized. The Tanglin Trust Sixth Form College offers both the A Level and International Baccalaureate pathways to top universities. Find out more at www.tts.edu.sg

IN FOCUS:

CRAIG CONSIDINE, CEO, TANGLIN TRUST SCHOOL

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT: THE FUTURE OF WORK

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Our Future of Work Agenda: The First 12 Months For the past year we have been driving conversations under the umbrella of our Future of Work agenda with the support of our Official Partner, Prudential Assurance Co Singapore. In this special supplement we invited our members to share what the Future of Work looks like for them, and what they would recommend that businesses be doing now to prepare.

The contributions we have received include an abundance of internal process and training recommendations to provide employee support, how our members are working in different ways to improve efficient or to meet new customer needs, and how they are adopting new technologies.

We would like to thank those who have contributed to this special supplement and our Business Committees who have organised events and published content as part of the agenda in the first year. We will be continuing the conversation for the next 12 months on a deeper level.

OFFICIAL PARTNER:

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT:

THE FUTURE OF WORK

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT: EXAMPLE CHAMBER ACTIVITIES

The Race Towards Smart Spaces: The Future of Working and Living 23 May 2018

In May 2018 the Information and Communications Technology & Built Environment Committees jointly brought together a distinguished panel of leading architects, technology and real estate corporations to discuss what our future working and living spaces will be like. The event was held in Funan’s one-of-a-kind experiential showsuite.

our health and well-being, and the discussion turned quickly to what we can do to encourage others to value our natural surroundings in the same way.

Cai Bingyu, from the GroundUp Initiative shared that a large proportion of young Singaporeans had little to no exposure to nature whilst growing up, which led to many feeling afraid when exposed to nature or wildlife. He shared the exciting work that his team are doing to encourage more Singaporeans to experience nature first-hand and how to get involved in their community projects.

Changing Landscapes: The Brain without Nature 5 September 2018

This event, organised by our Sustainability & Responsibility Committee, began with a short walk through Singapore Botanic Gardens, led

by Caroline Essame of Create:CATT and Nigel Taylor, Director Singapore Botanic Gardens, to encourage everyone to destress after the working day. Of the 54% of attendees who reported feeling stressed or very stressed in our poll before the walk, none were feeling at all stressed after.

The conversation moved to a lively panel-led discussion which covered topics such as the level of exposure to nature during our childhoods; whether we feel we are getting enough exposure to nature in our lives currently; and after a general consensus that we are not, what we can do to change this for the future.

Overall it was felt that the level of exposure to nature during our childhood was in direct correlation to how strongly we feel about the need to protect the nature around us now, and the level of comfort we get from our natural surroundings. We soon realised that the group were all in strong agreement on the benefits of nature on

Nigel Taylor shared insights into the work that Singapore Botanic Gardens is doing to safeguard species and essential knowledge for future generations in Singapore’s Ethnobotany Garden. He also detailed some of the government initiatives to ensure that nature areas are protected or recreated elsewhere during city redevelopment projects.

Gennadij Kreukniet from DNV GL gave the group some examples of how other cities around the world have introduced nature to enhance the lives of citizens.

Caroline Essame’s experience as an Occupational Therapist added a clinical angle to the discussion. She explained some of the real disadvantages to being underexposed to nature and shared some top tips on how we can incorporate nature into our lives a little more each day.

OFFICIAL FUTURE OF WORK PARTNER:

Mental Resilience: The Future of Work and Education 16 October 2018

In this panel discussion our Diversity & Inclusion Committee addressed a range of mental health topics relevant to working and educational professionals today and for tomorrow’s generations, including the importance of early recognition and engagement, issues around isolation, and action points, with a discussion incorporating expertise from mental health professionals and corporate responsibility practitioners.

Jade Camps-Douglas, Head of Wellbeing at Rolls-Royce, shared how Rolls-Royce Singapore had led and developed a customised wellbeing program. Jade explained the support provided to employees from the perspective of mental health, and explained the importance of “selling” the programme to senior managers in order to ensure its effectiveness and to enable investment in corporate wellness programs.

Colyn Chua, Programme Manager at Mindset Care Ltd, introduced Mindset Care Ltd as an affiliate of Jardines, and it is through this vehicle that they organise their mental wellness programmes. Colyn also explained that they had come to the realisation that technology can play a role in improving mental wellness, especially for children and youth.

On the subject of the younger generation, Cho Mingxiu, Founder of Campus PSY, shared the work that their youth-led organisation has done with schools and community partners to bring peer support to campuses and communities. He shared some of the common barriers to socialisation of youths, especially in during their education, and how his team has worked to facilitate effective partnerships with schools to improve mental wellness outcomes across Singapore. He stressed the importance of technology in reaching today’s youth, and explained how Campus PSY uses technology to reach out and contact isolated younger people where in the past this may not

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have been possible.

This led to an interesting discussion on the pros and cons of technology, especially for younger people. Many in the audience had experience of technology being a hindrance for younger people that isolates rather than brings together. However, it was agreed that technology can also be an enabler for socialisation. Today, we have access to an abundance of apps and digital health platforms for mental health support. Technology has its upsides like improving access to services and downsides like replacing person-to-person interactions.

The discussion shifted towards the cultural aspects of mental wellness.

Jade was noted to have been involved in bringing wellness initiatives in different countries with different cultures, and she shared many of the challenges this presents.

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

EXAMPLE CHAMBER ACTIVITIES

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT: CHAMBER ACTIVITIES

The Evolution of Work for SMEs 23 October 2018

The simple way for companies and individuals to prepare themselves for change is to upskill themselves in futurecritical skills that are relevant to their industry. This could be around Innovation, Agile Methodology, Cultural Intelligence, Critical Thinking, Complex Decision-Making, Artificial Intelligence, or Emotional Intelligence.

Governments and policymakers definitely have a large role to play in the future of work. They need to strike a balance between companies striving for flexibility and ensuring employees’ rights are still protected and companies are being held to account. You only need to think of how certain companies are working the system to pay no-to-little tax, or allegedly selling consumer date, to see where tighter regulation is required.

There are several new jobs we’ll see in the future, some more obvious than the others. They could include commercial space pilot, alternative energy consultant, flying car instructor, or even a drone traffic controller!

There have been many doomsday scenarios posts about how many jobs will be replaced through automation.

Some of the more obvious jobs we might see disappear include telemarketers, bookkeepers, receptionists and even couriers.

Leading Millennials in a Multi Generation Workforce 26 November 2018

A small working group from our Leadership, Talent & Professional Development Committee visited several companies to conduct a research piece to understand the current market trends around the needs of millennials.

Over many visits and group meetings, this eventually led to the creation of a very different kind of event that followed a ‘world café’ format. Based on the detailed research piece, three questions were asked to 10 roundtables where small groups discussed and then shared their ideas with the rest of the room. In-between these discussions, organisations such as Prudential also shared their own initiatives and thoughts to the room. This gave members a chance to hear from the ‘big players’ in Singapore, as well as discuss how they could implement some of these ideas in their own businesses, big or small. It was a different type of event for the Chamber that attracted new members and allowed people to leave with some practical tips and ideas.

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OFFICIAL FUTURE OF WORK PARTNER:

Matters of Opinion: The Future of Work

This month the Chamber is taking a closer look at the conversations we have started over the past year under the umbrella of our Future of Work initiative. Thinking of this broad topic, we asked members what the Future of Work looks like for them, and what would they recommend that businesses be doing now to prepare?

Ian Kloss, Head of Region (Southeast Asia) & CEO Singapore, Old Mutual International

John Bittleston, Founder, Mentor & Executive Chair, Terrific Mentors International Pte Ltd

“Old Mutual International (OMI) has always been a huge believer of innovation. Only with innovation can we, as an organisation, continuously deliver good client outcomes and value to our shareholders. In the past year, OMI Singapore has adopted an open innovation approach in which the organisation taps into external networks to collaborate and co-create new solutions and services. A good example was when OMI partnered with a regional bank’s expertise and resources to co-create a bespoke offering for high net worth clients.

The new product taps into OMI’s expertise in offering cross-border insurance solutions and the regional bank’s expertise in discretionary investment portfolio management. OMI is also looking to upgrade to a more robust knowledge management system.

Knowledge is often overlooked as a resource and being a global company, inadvertently sometimes knowledge does not get shared or passed on, causing ineffective allocation of resources. Hence, to future proof the organisation and increase operational efficiency, knowledge management should be a key business strategy.”

“Relationships between authority and those who are expected to comply with authority are changing. This arises from speed of transmission of information, access to data, lowering of social barriers and better education of employees. To prepare for the major changes thus caused management needs to promote (rather than resist) transparency, to abolish all useless procedures that are predicated on the assumption that employees will cheat or sabotage the organisation, to engage employees more meaningfully, giving them scope to participate as much as possible in the business. When I built Cerebos Pacific, I saw that all employees’ wages, bonuses, stock options and terms (including mine) were displayed. Employees appreciated this transparency. Formal meeting times were strictly limited, and employees were helped to feel that our company was a family.

This is not soft, touchy-feely rubbish. It is practical management. I know because I have done it. Successfully.”

Nick Freeman, General Manager, PizzaExpress Singapore “Cost pressures are driving change in the restaurant sector, with an increasing need to automate processes to save on manpower. Equally, real concerns about the environment have led to innovations in the realm of “Food 2.0”, with plant-based proteins introduced to reduce meat consumption and a growth in vertical farming to minimize impact on the land. A restaurant experience could look very different in ten years. Customers may select a dish on a mobile phone, sending the order directly to the kitchen, where a robot prepares the food. This seems hard to conceive – and a little impersonal – but some companies have already opened semiautomated restaurants. I see this becoming the norm. Menus will change too, containing less meat than today as meat becomes costly and more diners adopt a flexitarian diet. We are embracing these changes at PizzaExpress, undertaking the “Future Express” project to guide us into the future of food.”

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

MATTERS OF OPINION

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT: MATTERS OF OPINION

Dr Paul Bell, Founder & Clinical Director, The Osteopathic Centre

Lee Tze Shiong, Director, Transformation and Quality & Principal, Assurance, Nexia TS

Kevin Coppel, Managing Director, Asia Pacific, Knight Frank

“The allied health industry in Singapore has huge potential for growth but there are some major challenges to be faced, especially for SME's that are relatively resource poor compared to larger healthcare organisations. Recognition and regulation still requires a lot of development when compared to countries such as the UK and Australia.

Only a small proportion of professions are currently regulated by the Ministry of Health. Without regulation it is sometimes difficult to raise awareness within the broader Singapore population, with many of the community stakeholders unsure of how to implement these professions and unaware of the potential benefits they may provide. In addition, recruitment can also be challenging as these professions often require nonSingaporean practitioners due to a lack of suitably trained and skilled local talent. To address this shortfall the educational development of these allied health specialities needs to be progressed within South East Asia.”

“Digitalisation and business transformation are the way forward as the firm forms new core team to move the needle! On the digital front, upgrading of IT systems is vital for businesses to integrate work processes and facilitate efficiency from resource management, tracking of recovery to billings. The firm is in the process of adopting electronic work papers fully thus eradicating hard copy documents.

With changing expectations of millennials, menial tasks are no longer the work scope which they aspire to perform. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Robotic Process Automation (RPA) are emerging tools to streamline processes and maximise productivity, in our instance, the application of Data Analytics, and potentially AI, in audit methodology. As a mid-tier accounting firm, we need to reinvent our value proposition to stay relevant. In our recent partnership with a leading homegrown technology company that builds business solutions powered by blockchain, our clients can now transact safely and efficiently with technologies.”

“As the nature of work shifts, so our workspaces will alter irrevocably. For businesses, real estate should be viewed as more than a cost – it is also a strategic option that can drive productivity and growth, giving them a real edge. As the battle for a skilled workforce intensifies, businesses must quickly adopt workspaces that help to attract and retain talent and which encourage collaboration.

These workspaces are generally located close to talent pools, have ample amenities, have up-to-date technology and infrastructure, and offer a variety of workspaces which appeal to a diverse and multigenerational workforce. For landlords, the evolution of work means that space is viewed as a business service, rather than a product. Increasingly, they are expected to provide soft services, offer opportunities for community building and sharpen their focus on the occupiers’ well-being.”

TenantCS “A few years ago, the future of our industry looked bleak.

Technology was disrupting the working environment and the demand for office spaces was reduced as companies embraced co-working spaces and remote work. We had to review our core business model if we wanted to sustain in the face of disruption. The business shifted from being quantitative to qualitative. The team mindset had to change to focus on service delivery and like our clients, we embraced technology with a centralized CRM system and we partnered up with Proptech companies for lead generation. As the nature of work continues to evolve, technology created new business opportunities. The centralised CRM enabled us to reduce our turnaround time, to remain nimble and provide faster quality data to our customers. The key to sustainability remains to offer a personalised service that would differentiate us from generic automation.”

Mark Stuart, Head Trainer, Anagram Group Winners of the Chamber’s Future of Work award at last year’s 19th Annual Business Awards “The future of work for Anagram Group is not about how we operate, but more about how we help our clients prepare for it. We view the future of work as one that requires greater transparency and collaboration, sharing and optimum usage of data, and empowering employees to help drive change. It’s about taking advantage of digital opportunities and equipping your staff with the necessary tools and skills. For businesses to meet these future demands, they can’t stand still and wait for it to happen naturally. Firstly, the company needs to take action, and it needs to come from top management to ensure buy-in from across the company.

Secondly, it needs a strategic plan to implement a culture change, otherwise focus tends to drift and it becomes an afterthought. If a company successfully implements these, then it stands a chance of leading the race in the future of work.”

Chris Burton, Managing Director, Vistra Singapore “The corporate services industry is highly fragmented. It consists of a few global players; some larger, regional businesses; those operating from a small number of countries; and finally, single jurisdiction businesses. Even the largest players do not have the critical mass of other financial service businesses yet have thousands of staff spread across multiple jurisdictions dealing with different regulations.

Some local practices still require manual interventions. The industry lacks the substantive scale required to invest heavily in technology across different, sometimes exotic, markets, hence is responding very slowly to technological change. But disruptors are emerging, usually in single jurisdictions where there is a deeper technological DNA, such as Singapore.

Incumbents are eyeing disruptors with some nervousness. Large scale operations are difficult to change quickly where administrative practices are entrenched, and staff do not always envisage the potential of technology solutions. This is further complicated by frequent acquisitions that bring together different working practices.

Vistra is investing heavily in a Digital Lab, using external business analysts to break down and standardise common workflows, then deploying business process management software to slicken processes. This will improve the client experience through more automation and accessibility and drive internal efficiencies. It is a long journey, but we are making good progress.”

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OFFICIAL FUTURE OF WORK PARTNER:

Graham Silverthorne, Head, UWCSEA East

Stephen McNulty, President, APJ, Micro Focus

“The future of schooling is a hot topic. We have been using the same basic model for well over a century and disruption is coming; indeed it is already here.

There are many views of what might and what should happen. My view is that our industry will fragment at the margins around the school leaving age. I believe that there will be a very blurred line between senior high school and undergraduate learning within the next 30 years, unrelated to a learner's age, and a move away from place-based institutional learning. The drivers here are technology, cost, market competition and demographics. There is too much resource tied up in school buildings that are unused for significant periods of time and more evidence available that there are effective ways of ‘bypassing’ traditional schooling and higher education routes without penalty to the learner. Increasingly, traditional linear pathways do not meet the needs of our time, nor will they meet the needs of our future workers or their employers.”

“As mobile, big data and cloud continue to impact the modern enterprise, the gaps in the skills required continues to be a significant constraint towards businesses’ growth. Moving forward, companies will need a degree of workforce flexibility in their strategy – in the form of upskilled current staff or new hires trained with the requisite skills. In areas such as cybersecurity, which face a skills shortage, an adequate level of foundational knowledge can help employees to adapt to a variety of different job roles and functions. It’s key that both multinational corporations (MNCs) and small and mediumsized enterprises (SMEs) have equal opportunities to find efficient and innovative ways of attracting and retaining talents while accelerating training to uplift skillsets and reduce costs. Government initiatives must also remain committed to giving SMEs an added boost in embracing digitisation to ensure Singapore continues advancing towards its Smart Nation goals. As an African proverb states, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together."”

Richard Warburton, Executive Director at Arcadis Singapore

Matthew Lempriere, Head of Asia Pacific and Middle East, BSO

“Digital transformation is changing the business landscape, especially in terms of the required skill-set, ways of working and building a community. This requires everyone to re-think their business strategy and invest in their people and the workplace. For Arcadis, these are three critical areas that have been considered:

“We see technology playing an increasingly important role in the future of work, particularly as cloud-based technologies become more widely adopted. The growth of cloud computing is leading to more flexible work structures, which can benefit both employers and employees. Having information stored on the cloud and providing workers with the functionality they need through native or web-based apps, allows employees to work from home or other remote locations while still enabling collaboration with coworkers or interaction with customers. We see more and more firms now taking this approach.

1. In construction, digital will improve productivity and enhance efficiency. Technologies such as BIM, drones, AI and data analytics not only requires project application, but investment in people. At Arcadis, we actively train and develop our people and now have four certified drone pilots to conduct façade inspections, site and volumetric surveys.

2. The workplace of the future is about embracing new ways of working, promoting a culture of collaboration, wellbeing and delivering sustainability in everything it does – this is embodied by our new Singapore office.

3. Community is essential to success. When done well it can enhance learning, elevate innovation and creativity, and enable people to be responsive to challenges. With more break-out and collaboration spaces for staff, internal initiatives that promote a sense of belonging and diversity, our new office space creates an open and inclusive environment that showcases the future of work."

To capitalise on the growing opportunities that cloud offers, firms will need secure and reliable infrastructure that allows them to maintain control without compromising on performance or availability.

And as every business is different, firms will need access to the right combination of public, private or hybrid cloud solutions to support their mission-critical workloads, security concerns, uptime requirements and management demands."

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

MATTERS OF OPINION

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

ARE EMPLOYERS AND WORKERS READY FOR THE FUTURE OF WORK?

Are Employers and Workers Ready for the Future of Work?

By Ralph Haupter, President, Microsoft Asia The age of artificial intelligence is creating an invisible revolution and is changing the nature of work. As every interaction is becoming digital, organisations must set the pace for transformation for AI to complement, rather than disrupt work.

The Artificial intelligence (AI) revolution is happening today and is undeniably transforming the way we work. From leveraging chatbots to improving customer and stakeholder interactions, to reducing menial tasks for frontline workers, as well as providing greater insights such that workers can make better decisions – AI is driving an invisible revolution within the workplace.

There are often two camps of thought about the impact of AI on the workforce.

One group believes that AI will impact the workforce negatively, where jobs will be lost. The other believes that AI will serve as a complement to human labour, enabling workers to move up the value chain to deliver higher value work.

But one thing is for sure: AI will disrupt the future of work, and organisations need to act now.

In Hong Kong, real estate organisation Ricacorp has turned to AI to better understand their customers’ property requirements. By integrating AI with existing data such as property valuation, recent transaction history, listed price offered by sellers and internal records like customer

preferences, Ricacorp’s agents are better able to identify buying trends and patterns. In fact, the company expects AI to help raise profits by 40 percent.

Microsoft recently completed a study with IDC Asia/Pacific entitled Future Ready Business: Assessing Asia Pacific’s growth with AI, which revealed that AI will nearly double the rates of innovation and employee productivity improvements by 2021.

Almost 80% of organisations polled agreed that AI is instrumental to boosting their competitiveness in the next three years. There are clear benefits in adopting the technology, but the bigger question about whether employers and workers are ready for an AI future remains.

Most conversations we have with business and government leaders are focused on building a future ready workforce that can harness new technologies, especially AI. While 62% of business leaders and 66% of workers polled feel that AI will help augment jobs, one of the top challenges faced by organisations today is still their staff’s dearth of

knowledge on how to work with AI. No real impact can be created without skilled employees who can develop, deploy and even monitor AI for their work. But despite acknowledging the benefits of AI, 64% of organisations have yet to implement plans to develop an AI-ready workforce.

One key issue for business leaders to address is their mindset to embrace transformation. What is worrying is that the number one challenge identified in the study is the lack of thought leadership and leadership commitment to invest in AI. In addition, the study found that a significant number of business leaders and more than half of workers surveyed believe that cultural traits and behaviours that contribute to AI adoption are not being demonstrated today. For example, more than half of the workers surveyed did not feel empowered to take risks, or to make decisions autonomously, or even to act with speed and agility – all traits required for agile development and deployment of AI to complement existing processes.

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Fig 1: Business leaders and workers in Asia Pacific feel that AI will augment jobs

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

ARE EMPLOYERS AND WORKERS READY FOR THE FUTURE OF WORK?

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

ARE EMPLOYERS AND WORKERS READY FOR THE FUTURE OF WORK?

Fig 2: Cultural traits required for AI adoption are lacking in organisations, according to business leaders and workers surveyed

This is akin to some offices which I’ve visited a couple of decades before, when the PC was first introduced.

Despite the promise of the technology making work more efficient, there were workers who still worked predominantly

with paper. Transformation starts with mindsets, not the tools at our disposal.

So, how should business leaders prepare their workforce? AI advancements mean that millions of

workers will need to upskill and reskill themselves to meet the requirements of the future workforce. Business leaders must have an empathetic mindset when introducing change. They need to lead with an inspiring vision, as well as

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vision, as well as retrain and reskill as many people in their teams as possible.

Building an AI-ready workforce also does not mean recruiting workers with technological skills only. The top future skills identified by business leaders include a very important soft skill needed to create new AI-led innovations – adaptability and continuous learning. AI is an everevolving technology and will require workers that are able to work along and adapt accordingly.

As a start, Microsoft is democratising access to AI by embedding the

technology in our products. For example, intelligent technology in Outlook can help employees find the best room for a meeting based on the number of attendees, time, availability and other preferences. This reduces the number of back-and-forths between different parties just to schedule follow-up meetings.

AI can be strategically implemented.

In addition, business leaders can tap

We firmly believe that AI will augment human ingenuity and we are excited about its life-enhancing possibilities.

The promise of AI is that knowledge gained from analysing the wealth of data available today will augment decision-making processes with additional intelligence, helping produce quicker and more effective outcomes.

on our recently launched AI Business School to help them lead with confidence in the age of AI. Through a series of virtual masterclasses, the initiative shares insights and practical guidance from top executives on how

Business leaders and workers have all the incentives to work together to lay the foundation for an AI-centric, future ready workforce. They should take the first step towards that vision today.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ralph Haupter is a global technology industry leader with over 25 years' of experience managing regions, functions and industry verticals. As the President of Microsoft Asia and Corporate Vice-President of Microsoft, Ralph leads a region comprising 17 subsidiaries in 42 territories and countries, over 20,000 highlydedicated employees and more than 100,000 invaluable Microsoft partners.

Ralph is passionate about empowering Asia’s digital ambitions, where he

envisions a near future where AI is accessible and valuable to every individual and organisation, making us work, live and play better and smarter.

ABOUT THE COMPANY Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every organisation on the planet to achieve more. Find out more at news.microsoft.

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ARE EMPLOYERS AND WORKERS READY FOR THE FUTURE OF WORK?

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

PEOPLE POWER: THE ROLE OF HUMAN AND CULTURAL FACTORS IN DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

People Power: The Role of Human and Cultural Factors in Digital Transformation By Ram Lakshminarayanan, Partner, People and Change Consulting & Tim Rockell, Director, Operations Consulting KPMG Singapore

Digitalisation is impacting the workplace from an operational and a customer perspective. The Business-toBusiness world is demanding a Business-to-Consumer experience.

Price comparison, procuring, contracting, logistics and order tracking have all been transformed through seamless mobile applications in the B2C context. Gen Zs won’t expect anything less in the workplace.

The transformation of work over time has in our view regularly occurred in silos. Corporations fit for the 21st Century need to become connected organisations.

New technologies are already shifting the paradigm of work. Here are some examples: a) Claims managers in the insurance sector are finding that a large part of routine workflow is becoming automated; allocated and delivered using artificial intelligence. b) Applying cognitive automation, the back-offices of companies are being transformed. Mundane and

repetitive tasks are completed without human participation. c) Machine learning is enabling complex task handing. Chat-Bots in a Customer Contact Centre are going beyond standard responses and understanding human emotions during a telephone call or text-based communication.

The workforce itself – the human component, will be impacted by new challenges. With better primarythrough-to-tertiary healthcare, people globally are living longer and more healthily to boot. A 50-year old could have 25-year active career and contribution to the workforce ahead of them. The notion of a retirement in the sun is not for everyone, nor can governments afford to support aging populations through welfare.

Organisations have been grappling with retaining corporate knowledge as the older workforce retires; conversely, retaining an aging workforce may hinder knowledge transfer to the rising ranks. Robotic Process Automation is

slated to remove more of the mundane.

Machine learning may retain the capability for institutional decision making.

Balancing an older, experienced workforce and a now not-so-younger millennial workforce (the oldest Millennial is now 40-years old) and preparing for the entry of Gen Z requires a shift in culture to accommodate at least three generations in a digital workplace.

An SMU study on Digital Culture cosponsored by KPMG1 focussed on the human and cultural aspects of the technological transformation. It found that most businesses are failing to transcend the gap between knowing what is needed and doing what is required to combine emerging technology with new processes and skills in order to remain competitive.

This presents a significant risk to the organisation, its operating model and the talent it acquires and retains.

Whilst technology such as artificial intelligence and robots open doors to opportunities for the organisation, it

OFFICIAL FUTURE OF WORK PARTNER:

also stokes fears of redundancy amongst existing employees. Create a people-led transformation and then include digital initiatives. Move away from functional-boundary-based models and enable your workforce to better-connect with customers.

In the past, role specialisation allowed for effective and efficient work. But that involves a hand-off, or handshake, to the next link in the chain.

When not successful, these handshakes become handcuffs. Bring people together in the spirit of a truly

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connected enterprise. It is a connected journey for all and organisations need to focus on human and cultural factors to make a digital transition. PeoplePower now has a totally different meaning!

CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION IN THE DIGITAL WORLD RESEARCH REPORT 2018, Singapore Management University.

1

ABOUT THE AUTHORS Tim has worked with energy and governmental clients at KPMG for 21 years; 6 years in Singapore leading the KPMG Global Energy Institute Asia Pacific. He was previously based in KPMG in the Middle East for 7 years; originally from the United Kingdom. Tim is Chairman of BritCham’s Energy & Utilities Business Group.

Ram is the partner and Head of People & Change Advisory for KPMG Singapore. A passionate people leader, Ram advises boards and C-Suite on the organisational and cultural impact of digital transformation. An expert in business and operating models, organisation development, he is a trusted advisor for CHROs in transforming the future of

Organisations and HR function. With three decades of experience having worked across multiple continents, Ram, is well regarded as a visionary leader.

ABOUT THE COMPANY KPMG in Singapore is part of a global network of professional services firms providing Audit, Tax and Advisory services.

The independent member firms of the KPMG network operate in 152 countries and have more than 145,000 professionals worldwide.

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

PEOPLE POWER: THE ROLE OF HUMAN AND CULTURAL FACTORS IN DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

NAVIGATING THE FUTURE OF WORK THROUGH COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE

Navigating the Future of Work Through Collective Intelligence

By Nicole Scoble-Williams, Director, Centre of Excellence (CoE) for the Future of Work, Deloitte Driven by accelerating connectivity, new talent models, and cognitive tools, work is changing.

We have entered a new digital age where the adoption of automation, robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) is accelerating dramatically, bringing a shift from job design to work architecture and creating the “augmented workforce” where humans work side by side with their emerging machine co-workers to drive business value. This new world of work is having a profound impact on business and societal changes.

The Future of How Work Gets Done According to Deloitte’s Readiness Report, only 14% percent of senior executives are highly confident in their ability to harness the changes associated with the modern digital age and only 25% are highly confident that their workforce has the skills needed for the future. Despite 86% of business leaders reporting that they are doing all they can to build the right workforce for the future, less than 20% of business leaders regard talent and HR issues as a high priority.

Radical change is needed for business leaders to ready their organisations for

the new realities of work. It has been estimated that 57% of all jobs across the globe are at risk of being automated within the next five years.

However, the likelihood of an entire profession disappearing due to automation is low.

Deloitte Global and the Global Business Coalition for Education predict that, by 2030, more than half of the almost two billion youth worldwide will not have the skills or qualifications needed to participate in the workforce.

Collective intelligence is the fundamental design principle for the emerging augmented workforce and requires business leaders to think in new and different ways about how to harness the best of what human talent can do and how to combine that with the extraordinary capability of exponential technology, in order to

optimise the balance between the relevant business drivers such as productivity, profitability, brand and culture.

The Future Workforce The digital age demands new talent structures and enabling mechanisms to engage the collective intelligence of the augmented and untapped workforce.

This has resulted in a rapid rise of the open talent economy with more than 40% of the workforce estimated to be contingent by 2020.

The traditional employer-employee relationship is being replaced by the emergence of a diverse workforce ecosystem—a varied portfolio of workers, talent networks, gig workers, and service providers that offers employers flexibility, capabilities, and the potential for exploring different economic models in sourcing talent.

This provides business leaders with new opportunities to engage workers across generations and create pathways for more meaningful, productive multistage and multidimensional careers.

OFFICIAL FUTURE OF WORK PARTNER:

Skills – The New Currency of Work

participate in the workforce.

The modern digital era has brought emerging technologies to the forefront at a rapid pace, not experienced before.

This has led to growing concern from business leaders that the global workforce is not able to keep up with the current rate of change and effectively harness the collective intelligence of the augmented workforce.

The skills challenge is compounded by the fact that some skills learned today only remain relevant for as little as two years, with many in the workforce today being left behind and unprepared for the future. According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs report, reskilling is the top priority for organisations looking at their future workforce strategy.

Deloitte Global and the Global Business Coalition for Education predict that, by 2030, more than half of the almost two billion youth worldwide will not have the skills or qualifications needed to

The model of “learn at school” and “do at work” is no longer sustainable and continuous reskilling and lifelong learning must be integrated into the flow of work as a strategic imperative

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Nicole leads Deloitte’s Future of Work Centre of Excellence and is a passionate pioneer driving transformational disruption and sustainable organisational change.

With more than twenty years of crossindustry experience in Information Technology Services, Talent Strategy and Advisory, and Mergers & Acquisitions, Nicole works with individuals, businesses and governments, helping them to reimagine their future vision and adapt to the new realities of work in today’s

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in the interest of future proofing careers and businesses.

Activate Future Readiness Today Business leaders who take a long-term view of technology investments in order to activate the collective intelligence of the augmented workforce are leading in driving business value at an unprecedented speed. Their organisations are growing faster than their counterparts and they are more capable and confident in their ability to mobilise the collective action necessary across the internal and external ecosystem to succeed in today’s digital world of work.

digital age by activating new work, workforce and workplace models.

ABOUT THE COMPANY Deloitte is a leading global provider of audit and assurance, consulting, financial advisory, risk advisory, tax and related services. Our network of member firms in more than 150 countries and territories serves four out of five Fortune Global 500® companies.

Learn how Deloitte’s approximately 286,000 people make an impact that matters at www.deloitte.com.

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

NAVIGATING THE FUTURE OF WORK THROUGH COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

WHY ACTIVE LISTENING IS MORE VITAL THAN EVER

Why Active Listening Is More Vital than Ever By Liana Attard, Partner, Mercer & Richard Smith-Bingham, Director, Marsh & McLennan Insights In their eagerness to address new competition, rising customer expectations and technological opportunities, companies shouldn’t lose sight of a key component of productivity; a well-aligned and well-motivated workforce.

According to Mercer’s recent study of Global Talent Trends, a staggering 73% of business and HR executives anticipate significant disruption for their firm over the next three years, up from 26% in the 2018 edition. But in their eagerness to address new competition, rising customer expectations and technological opportunities, companies shouldn’t lose sight of a key component of productivity: a well-aligned and wellmotivated workforce.

Many firms actively analyse capability demographics to assess whether they have the right skills in the right places – and whether to build, buy, borrow or automate to meet future needs. Fewer, though, pay the same level of attention to workforce psychographics – the influence on personnel engagement of corporate culture, values, protocols, inclusivity, and brand – which inform not only employee behaviour but also firms’ longer-term ability to attract and retain the best talent.

Two broad issues As companies navigate through anticipated disruptions, two key issues

demand consideration in the workplace.

First, as captured in the World Economic Forum’s 2019 Global Risks Report, modern life has had some markedly negative consequences for individual wellbeing, spurring higher levels of anxiety, unhappiness, loneliness and anger. For example, depression and anxiety rank numbers two and seven on the global burden of disease, and the prevalence of mental health issues in young people has risen sharply in recent years.

In many parts of the world, persistent inequality and fractious politics are key drivers of concern, often amplified by social media echo chambers. Digital addiction is a separate (but not unrelated) factor, not only due to personal dependencies but also in the form of workplace applications of technology that lead to an increasing blur between work and life and the loss of privacy from increased employee monitoring.

Second, generational cohorts have differing expectations and

requirements. Personal performance ratings and flexible working arrangements, which are valued by older workers (especially those with caring responsibilities), have little currency with Millennial and Generation Z employees, who are more base-pay oriented and generally place higher value on the mission, values and ethics of their firms.

Redesigning workspaces and support tools (even exoskeletons for factory workers) can boost the motivation, productivity and therefore the longevity of older workers. Conversely, a strong corporate purpose is vital to deter younger workers from drifting away.

Customising solutions Company leaders should be alert to the potential disconnect between employer and employee expectations. For example, companies often assume that, for their employees, career and job opportunities are paramount. They often fail to appreciate the importance that workers place on overall satisfaction in life, with access to friends, family and a reliable support

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Of course, firms need to align workforce strategies to the creation of future corporate value. But it is also vital to have in place an enabling environment that helps talent thrive.

Singapore may not have experienced the febrile societal conditions that can be seen elsewhere in the world.

Nonetheless, its talent pool exhibits many of today’s workforce trends. Due to an aging population and restrictions

on foreign workers, more than half of employers report that they are struggling to fill their open positions.

At the same time, university graduates face difficulties in finding work – the rate of graduates in full-time positions fell to a ten-year low in 2017, with a majority engaged in freelance, parttime, or temporary jobs. Moreover, analysis suggests that older workers

automation – endangering their potential productiveness and long-term financial security.

By approaching the workforce challenge holistically rather than mechanistically, and by looking hard at their own data, companies will be able to position themselves most effectively for the disruption they anticipate.

are disproportionately employed in low-skill work that is susceptible to

ABOUT THE AUTHORS Liana Attard is a Partner and Multinational Consulting Leader at Mercer, with over 17 years of experience in dealing with multinational organisations including global relationship and project management and strategic planning with respect to designing, financing and providing benefits to a global workforce.

Richard Smith-Bingham is a Director in Marsh & McLennan Insights, where he explores the evolving macro-level risk landscape and how companies and governments can better anticipate and negotiate rising threats.

ABOUT THE COMPANIES At Mercer, we make a difference in the lives of more than 115 million people every day by advancing their health, wealth and careers. We’re in the business of creating more secure and rewarding futures for our clients and their employees. Find out more at www.asean.mercer.com

Marsh & McLennan Insights uses the unique expertise of our firm and its networks to identify breakthrough perspectives and solutions to society’s most complex challenges.

Find out more at www.mmc.com/ insights.html

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

WHY ACTIVE LISTENING IS MORE VITAL THAN EVER

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT: CAN ROBOTS FREE US TO BE MORE HUMAN?

Can Robots Free Us to Be More Human?

By Dr. Gitanjali Ponnappa, People Advisory Services Partner, Ernst & Young Solutions LLP Automation can help to take the “robot” out of humans and enable employees to extend their uniquely human qualities by adding value to tasks that are not easily and effectively accomplished by algorithms. Realising its potential will require all employees and leaders in organisations to challenge

OFFICIAL FUTURE OF WORK PARTNER: Robots and artificial intelligence (AI) are increasingly a common enabler. They provide financial advice to bankers, planning advice to manufacturers, and customer insight to marketers. As the adoption of robotic process automation (RPA) across every sector and every business picks up speed, this is revolutionising not just the consumer experience but also the work experience. In most cases, RPA is far removed from the idea of a physical “‘robot” manually carrying out work – it is not a metallic humanoid with a digitised voice. Instead, a robot in this sense is the technology allowing organisations to configure computer software to complete various tasks.

With RPA and AI, some jobs will disappear, others modified but new work opportunities will also be created. Most employees will either manage or work with AI and data.

These changes may not be comfortable for both leaders and employees, and signals change.

Firstly, employees need to focus on responsibilities rather than tasks.

Consider the mundane routine tasks that consume so much of employees’ time every day, distracting them from strategic responsibilities such as planning, client relationship building or ideation.

Outsourcing low-value and highvolume tasks to robots to liberate capacity in undertaking highervalue tasks sounds attractive but it will not take place “automatically”.

Current workflow processes will need to be enhanced for RPA to successfully create value.

Organisations will need to galvanise their workforce into automation design work groups to achieve their automation objectives, as well as to encourage employees to take ownership of their future work processes.

Secondly, employees need to value wisdom instead of knowledge. In a future where robots can process data at scale and volume in real time, what leaves desktop research, consuming reports and massive repository of facts and figures?

Leaders will need to leverage on AI to analyse data to generate solutions, while assimilating critical information updates that are provided in real-time into their decisions. Organisations need to support employees and train them in using data analytical tools, as well as other skills such as leadership and business acumen, as employees elevate themselves into higher-order value-adding roles.

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formidable change of all, is for leaders to “unlearn” trusting their instincts. Instinct-based decisionmaking is based on experiences, which are valid but often subject to the efficacy of the human memory and emotions. The alternative – data-driven decision-making – is based on collected data on the results and factors of each action, which will only grow as machines continue to generate data.

While employees recognise that data or facts are unbiased sources of truth, where it conflicts with their instinct, the temptation to ignore the facts is real. This leads to an erosion of trust, digitally or otherwise. Therefore, organisations will need to hold employees accountable, which will involve reviewing risk management controls and rewarding employees that consistently practice data- and fact-based decision-making.

Automation can help to take the “robot” out of humans and enable employees to extend their uniquely human qualities by adding value to responsibilities that are not easily and effectively accomplished by algorithms. Realising this potential will require all employees and organisations to challenge existing mindsets today.

Thirdly, and perhaps the most

The views reflected in this article are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the global EY organisation or its member firms.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Dr. Ponnappa advises clients on their People Agenda, particularly on how companies can use digital to drive workforce enablement and transformation. She has extensive experience in leading business transformation programs across the Asia-Pacific, CIS, Europe, South Africa, Middle-East, US and she is currently based in Singapore. She has deep exposure to the full life cycle of transformation management from the strategy to deployment aspects.

ABOUT THE COMPANY EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In so doing, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities. Find out more at www.ey. com/sg/en/services/advisory/peopleadvisory-services

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT: CAN ROBOTS FREE US TO BE MORE HUMAN?

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

PREPARING SINGAPORE’S WORKFORCE TO BE FUTURE-READY

Preparing Singapore’s Workforce to Be Future-ready

By Martijn Schouten, Singapore People & Organisation Leader, PwC South East Asian Consulting Intelligent automation, digital disruption and the need to move more transaction work to lower cost hubs are reshaping the global workforce. We have highlighted three critical areas below which must be addressed in order to address the changing needs in the workplace.

OFFICIAL FUTURE OF WORK PARTNER:

Upskilling It’s been widely recognised that the 4th industrial revolution will be accompanied by mass re-skilling of the workforce, unlike anything we have seen before.

The pace of both job displacement and creation is accelerating, and traditional policies and practices such as redundancy, severance and outplacement related to displacement as well as recruitment, on-boarding and induction related to job fulfilment will slow industries down from swiftly anticipating on changing market circumstances.

PwC’s 22nd CEO survey revealed that a multitude of factors including the shortage of skilled talent are behind global business leaders’ pessimism in growth prospects this year. Upskilling employees is a solution that allows efficient and quick redeployment, and will significantly impact employee morale and employee loyalty.

For instance, successful pilots in Luxemburg have proven to be effective and initial data indicates that end-toend upskilling is only a fourth of the total cost of making an employee redundant to look for new employment - taking into consideration social welfare, unemployment benefits and loss of income tax.

Leadership

The role of leaders is becoming increasingly complex. Take upskilling for example; the complex nature of dealing with the displacement of existing jobs and the creation and fulfilment of new jobs has a big impact on running business as usual.

Leaders need to be able to navigate through this complexity and lead their teams through large scale transformations. This is not something that one picks up overnight; leaders need to have the ability to deal with ambiguity, establish deeper emotional commitment and have astounding resilience.

What Singapore needs to deal with the complex workforce challenges though are ‘strategist leaders’; leaders that are able to lead complex transformations. Strategist leaders bring different capabilities to the table as opposed to individual contributors and subject matter experts. For instance, the ability to reframe complex problems in order to find multi-disciplinary solutions, the ability to quickly shift between articulating strategy and supporting execution.

We are pleased to see various parties in the ecosystem coming together to deal with the challenges of our future workforce. For instance, the education industry is working closely with industry associations and

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Martijn SCHOUTEN is the Singapore People & Organisation Leader at PwC South East Asian Consulting. His expertise is in various aspects of transformational and organisational change, such as operational change management, cultural and behavioural change, communication, training & development and organisation (re) design.

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professional services firms to design, develop and roll out the ‘Industry 4.0’ programmes, focused on supporting leaders of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).

Such initiatives are timely as developing leadership capabilities - in particular developing the so-called strategist leader capabilities - are comprehensive ‘journeys’ that leaders have to immerse themselves in.

Growth mindset Core to both the upskilling challenge as well as the development of strategist leaders is the awareness and understanding of individuals that learning is not a one-off exercise, but a dynamic process that requires opening up to new and different experiences.

A ‘growth mindset’ must be inculcated in individuals to accept that failure is not something shameful; it provides opportunities to learn and grow and develop new skills and capabilities which is exactly what is required to confidently upskill oneself or develop the ability to deal with ambiguity.

Against the forecast of 21% of Singaporean full-time workers’ jobs being displaced by 2028, we need to address this now in order to be ready for the future.

ABOUT THE COMPANY At PwC, our purpose is to build trust in society and solve important problems.

We’re a network of firms in 158 countries with more than 250,000 people who are committed to delivering quality in assurance, advisory and tax services. Find out more and tell us what matters to you by visiting us at www.pwc.com/sg.

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

PREPARING SINGAPORE’S WORKFORCE TO BE FUTURE-READY

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

FUTURE WORKFORCE: REWORKING THE REVOLUTION

Future Workforce: Reworking the Revolution By Ellyn J. Shook, Chief Leadership & Human Resources Officer, Accenture & Mark A. Knickrehm, Group Chief Executive, Accenture Strategy While businesses are successfully using Al to improve efficiencies, many are struggling to use it to drive growth. The ability to create new customer experiences lies at the intersection of humans and intelligent machines.

OFFICIAL FUTURE OF WORK PARTNER: In the age of artificial intelligence (AI), business success will increasingly depend on people and machines collaborating with each other. AI will elevate people’s capabilities as workers help intelligent machines to learn and improve. This will not only drive efficiencies but create new forms of growth and innovation. To succeed, organisations must reimagine work, pivot their workforce to new growth models and ‘new skill’ their people to do more valuable work.

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3. Businesses recognize that value creation lies at the intersection of humans and intelligent machines

While businesses are successfully using Al to improve efficiencies, many are struggling to use it to drive growth. The ability to create new customer experiences lies at the intersection of humans and intelligent machines. Our economic modelling and extensive research of more than 1,200 business leaders and 14,000 workers shows that there is an urgency to act.

Key Findings: 1. Al investment will boost revenues, profits and employment If companies were to invest in AI and HumanMachine Collaboration at the same level as the top performing fifth of companies, they could boost revenues by 38% and lift employment levels by 10% between 2018 and 2022. That equates to an average of US$7.5 billion and 5000 jobs for an S&P500 company in that time.

2. Revenue and employment boost by industry

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

FUTURE WORKFORCE: REWORKING THE REVOLUTION

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

FUTURE WORKFORCE: REWORKING THE REVOLUTION

4. Workers are impatient to work with AI

5. Their employers underestimate their willingness

6. There is a rare opportunity to reconfigure work and invest in skills to work with Al

OFFICIAL FUTURE OF WORK PARTNER:

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Next Steps: Business leaders should consider the following steps to create a future workforce in which humans and intelligent machines work together to improve productivity, innovation and growth:

For more on this research and related Future Workforce topics, please see www.accenture.com/futureworkforce

ABOUT THE AUTHORS Ellyn Shook is responsible for helping the 469,000 people of Accenture succeed both professionally and personally. Her global team of HR experts is re-imagining leadership and talent practices to create the most truly human work environment in the digital age, fuelling Accenture’s differentiation in the market and ability to improve the way the world works and lives.

Mark Knickrehm is group chief executive of Accenture Strategy and a member of Accenture’s Global Management Committee. Prior to assuming his current role in 2013, Mark served in several key leadership positions in Accenture’s Health and Public Service practice areas. He focuses on solving clients’ most pressing challenges at the intersection of business, technology and operations.

ABOUT THE COMPANIES

Accenture PLC is a global management consulting and professional services company that provides strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations services. It serves clients in more than 120 countries, across more than 40 industries. Visit www. accenture.com for more information.

Accenture Strategy looks to shape its clients’ future, combining deep business insight with the understanding of how technology will impact industry and business models. It focuses on issues related to digital disruption, competitive agility, operating and business model, as well as the future workforce, helping clients find future value and growth in a digital world. Visit www.accenture.com/sg-en/ strategy-index for more information.

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

FUTURE WORKFORCE: REWORKING THE REVOLUTION

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

THE IMPORTANCE OF EDUCATION: PROFILE AND OPPORTUNITIES IN SINGAPORE

The Importance of Education: Profile and Opportunities in Singapore

By Shabir Aslam, Director of Education, British Council Singapore The starting point for many conversations on the future of work begin with looking at the future of education and learning and how education will support the future work landscape.

Research and innovations cannot be separated from their beginnings as academic concepts with academic institutes, particularly in Singapore, often at the forefront of critical ideas that could and would change the nature of future working environments.

Education is Singapore is and has always been a government priority, 2nd only in budget spend to Defence. The UK has a good position in Singapore taking advantage of a high-quality education sector in which our top institutes from Schools to Universities perform well.

Opportunities for the UK predominately exist in the Higher Education space, but this should not discount the market for opportunity for UK’s schools and the vocational and training sector.

British Council’s education work in Singapore advises and leads on market strategies and market intelligence particularly for UK Institutes wishing to enter into the market. British Council’s role includes the development and maintaining of relationships with key stakeholders such as the Ministry of Education, local Universities/ Polytechnics and Schools and other organisations working towards the

shared promotion of UK Education interests and opportunities in Singapore, which would include the British Chamber of Commerce and the Department for International Trade (DIT). One of the key responsibilities for the British Council is to identify market opportunities which would include research partnerships and collaborations, collaborative provision and trans-national Education partnerships, and ensuring we provide the advice/channels/strategies to enable the UK to maintain it’s market share of the overseas student recruitment and trans-national education markets in Singapore.

For Higher Education, the UK is still the preferred choice for Singaporeans wishing to study overseas with around 8000 Singaporeans studying in the UK in 2017 (HESA). UK universities are still seen as a preferred choice for quality programmes and career progression.

The market also remains strong for the UK when looking at transnational education (TNE). The number of students studying for UK qualifications in Singapore is nearly 50,000, making Singapore the third largest market for UK TNE offers anywhere in the world. In

relation to this, there are over 50 UK universities delivering programmes in partnership with local providers in Singapore.

UK Schools and Schools delivering UK based curriculum are doing extremely well with Dulwich College (Singapore), Tanglin Trust School and Dover Court International School amongst the institutes leading the way, whilst not forgetting that the United World College South East Asia was the second institute to become part of the United World College movement which began in the UK in 1962. The North London Collegiate School will launch in Singapore in April this year with enrolments due to begin in 2020.

Singapore’s education system is becoming more and more cited as an exemplar model around the world.

Singapore is top of the PISA rankings for Science and Maths, with the UK’s Department of Education adopting Singapore Maths in many Schools in England and Wales. Singapore has 2 Universities in the top 15 of the QS world rankings. Singapore’s local education context is a competitive and

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innovative environment for engagement for not only UK Universities and Schools but also UK Industry sectors.

Opportunities exist for UK education institutes and industry in areas that the local government has highlighted as priority areas towards the success of the future economy. Areas such as Digital/Computing, particularly Cyber Security and Data Science, Healthcare (Ageing Population, Allied Health and Nursing), Engineering, and Smart Nation infrastructures and connectivity where expertise and innovation from UK

industry and academic institutes would be welcomed.

occupational standards.

Continuing education and training are also a priority for the Singapore government with the government funded Skills Future movement being launched in 2014, where a subsidy is provided to every Singaporean over 25 years old to continue training, learning and updating their skills and careers.

This presents opportunities for UK providers to be involved in the development of accredited vocational training programmes and national

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Shabir Aslam, Director Education, British Council Singapore

The British Council in Singapore will continue to play a leading role in maintaining, enhancing existing relationships, providing opportunities to build new relationships and further establishing the British Council as a facilitator of collaboration, the provider of vital and accurate market information and a thought leader in education policy, strategies and education process.

ABOUT THE COMPANY The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. We create friendly knowledge and understanding between the people of the UK and other countries. We do this by making a positive contribution to the UK and the countries we work with. We also connect with audiences beyond the classroom through our online platforms. Please visit www. britishcouncil.org.sg for more

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

THE IMPORTANCE OF EDUCATION: PROFILE AND OPPORTUNITIES IN SINGAPORE

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

PREPARING FOR TOMORROW - STEM EDUCATION IN THE ENERGY SECTOR

Preparing for Tomorrow STEM Education in the Energy Sector

By Peter Godfrey, Bree Miechel and Tim Rockell from the Energy & Utilities Committee In this article, members from our Energy & Utilities Committee discuss the importance of STEM education for a future ready workforce, as well as the implications of new technologies and automation in the energy sector.

The United Kingdom’s Energy Institute Singapore branch held a panel discussion in August 2018 at BP’s regional headquarters in Singapore.

Hosted by Peter Godfrey, EI Managing Director for Asia, the panel comprised leaders from government, academia and industry with representatives from BP Learning and Development, Singapore Economic Development Board’s Energy & Chemicals, Reed Smith law firm and Singapore Management University. Quotes are from the panellists and audience.

Why is STEM education so valuable in the energy sector? Mainly because it instils a critical thinking skill set.

Singapore’s agencies have been catalysts in driving a diverse pipeline of talent in the sector since the establishment of the Global Trader Program, drawing in many commodity trading companies in parallel with the development of Jurong Island’s integrated refinery and petrochemical hub, now hosting over 100 companies.

Development of a physical hub created an eco-system of finance, legal, technical and consultancy professionals including industry analysts; establishing Singapore as one of the world’s key energy cities and a leader in Asia. Profession firms in themselves have created a demand for

likeminded technical thinking; “I think I missed out by only studying law!

Professionals need to understand the sector”. This requires open-minded HR and recruitment professionals with an education system producing graduates to match demand. The corollary being that engineers are traditionally not so open minded in their approach.

“I only saw engineering as an exciting career path after I started my career.”

Law, banking and corporate roles in finance, legal and human resources seem easier choices versus the ‘hardhat’ professions. Of Singapore’s near 70,000 university undergraduates, around 45% are reading a STEM subject. Female enrolment in Science and Technology has plateaued at around 3,300 students, with the share of women dipping below 40 per cent.

Even then, not all go into engineering.

Selling insurance is still an attractive career path for those with scientific and technical degrees. There is clearly a gap in engaging students and equipping teachers to link the application of STEM into the real world.

Curriculum updates in finance needs consideration, example being the introduction of a commodity trading track; courses endearing greater understanding of risk management are

required. A diverse curriculum should lead to a diverse talent pool. Finance majors have been shrinking following the major disruptions in banking since the financial crisis. Now more undergrads are following information systems syllabuses.

Singapore’s universities are adapting and displaying an understanding of the type of graduates the job market is demanding. Students are graduating ‘python-ready’. Today, International Oil Companies still take on a lot of in-house training; and retraining to make graduates career ready and build leaders of the future.

Whilst we can take a good guess, we don’t know what the jobs of tomorrow will be in an energy sector undergoing what will likely be a decades-long transition from the traditional fossilbased system to new fuels, automation, sustainable energy and circular economy developments.

A Vuca world (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity) needs Vuca skills. Three C’s of this world include Capabilities, Cultures and understanding of Civilisations. This entails lifelong learning. Continuous Professional Development (CPD) needs to adapt to incorporate these 3C’s too.

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Academia has to become more committed. There are a lack of alternatives to the well-trodden graduate path undertaken in a person’s late teens and early twenties. Are there opportunities for retraining? A worker in their forties can have a fulfilling future by contributing through a 25 year career ahead of them. Companies are putting integration into new businesses and reintegration or re-entry courses in place for existing employees who are seeking to shift focus or have undergone milestone events such as taking a career break or raising a family.

Some programmes in Singapore have now been running over a decade including those focussed on bringing women back into the workforce.

The energy sector should constantly review the industry’s attractiveness.

Even though it is undergoing an energy transition, for many, the perception is it’s old and dirty; not digital and clean.

There are also perceptions of safety.

Today’s energy sector, like high-end manufacturing undergoing automation, is seeing impacts of Human Factors. Latest robotics and digitalisation innovations to be learnt by today’s senior plant operators – not just at the graduate level. Increasing numbers of the workforce are looking at more and more screens. This will raise workforce issues around decision making and behaviours.

The sector enjoys high remuneration per worker and in Singapore a career as an energy professional is exciting and is a major contributor to GDP – even more if the trading sector is included. Energy is 70% of Singapore’s

large manufacturing sector. Change is quick. Nimbleness and openmindedness is required and universities and schools have a collaborative role to play with industry.

The future is bright. Singapore remains attractive to those seeking an exciting career encompassing upstream, downstream and the board services sector. The country is well placed to outpace rivals with a combined approach involving the energy industry, government, academia, technical institutes. The professions will all play a part in developing STEM for future worthwhile value-driven careers.

Change in the energy sector is future job creation and security - if tackled in a collaborative approach.

Peter Godfrey, Bree Miechel and Tim Rockell are part of the British Chamber's Energy & Utilities Committee:

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Peter is the chief representative of the prestigious UK Energy Institute (EI) here in Singapore. In addition to his work with the EI, Peter provides customised executive advisory services through his own company Merlenergy Pte ltd. He has gained an international reputation as a leading independent energy strategy and business development consultant with an executive-level international clientbase that has included the world’s leading national and international energy and mineral resource companies as well as a number of governments and regulatory agencies.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Bree has lived in Asia for over 15 years and is a specialist projects and construction lawyer and partner of international law firm Reed Smith. She advises on renewable and conventional power, energy efficiency, oil and gas, transport and water and waste, and commercial development projects worldwide. She is recognised as a thought leader in clean energy and leads a work stream for a global solar energy standardisation initiative launched by IRENA and a Paris based NGO.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Tim Rockell relocated to Singapore to launch the KPMG Global Energy Institute for Asia Pacific in November 2012. He has extensive experience of emerging markets. He was based with KPMG in the Middle East from 2005-2012 where he focused on Energy clients, particularly in Saudi Arabia.

Previously he was based in KPMG’s London office as the Global Energy & Natural Resources Sector, Executive Director.

THE FUTURE OF WORK SUPPLEMENT:

PREPARING FOR TOMORROW - STEM EDUCATION IN THE ENERGY SECTOR

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Speed Despite Size: Leasing out Entire Start-up Teams

By Stefan Sarbach, Director & Partner & Jonas Trindler, Managing Director Zuhlke Engineering Pte Ltd If you want to be innovative, you must move. Global players have the capital and resources to set up their own innovation labs or buy existing start-ups.

However, SME's often do not have these options. To become agile nevertheless, they need to break new ground and secure competitive advantages through rapid innovations.

FEATURE:

SPEED DESPITE SIZE: LEASING OUT ENTIRE START-UP TEAMS

FEATURE:

SPEED DESPITE SIZE: LEASING OUT ENTIRE START-UP TEAMS

Anyone who talks about really big innovations today immediately thinks of start-ups. Young, unconventional companies that are putting the established market players to the test: From Airbnb to Grab to Tesla - the examples are always the same.

Even if the perception is misleading and still an essential part of the innovative products and services is generated in "big companies", it shows that established companies find it difficult to completely question their services and products and thus ensure that new developments are made. When it comes to innovation, start-ups have a decisive advantage. They have no past. They don't have to stick to complex processes, and they don't have to pay attention to existing customers. They are simply flexible and mobile per se.

But this plus in agility goes hand in hand with a minus in experience, capital and awareness in the market.

The question therefore arises: Why can't established companies make better use of their strong starting position? What do they have to do to ensure successful innovations with the same agility as a start-up? Agility in a company means that while it has a vision and a clear goal, it remains flexible on the way there, moves forward in stages, tries out and learns. This step-by-step approach is not planned down to the last detail. In this way, it contradicts roughly everything that can be done in large

companies. From the budgeting processes to the official purchasing to the target agreements of the employees, very little is geared towards agility. The culture and rhythm of a large company have grown historically and have been optimised for specific processes and are not flexible. This cannot be changed overnight and hampers innovation especially in the area of digital transformation. Being innovative means consistently questioning what already exists. Companies must observe the environment and learn from other industries. And it needs speed - at a horrendous pace. And thus, the well-known waterfall thinking of many companies being doomed to failure. Companies should not waste valuable time judging hypotheses.

Today, direct feedback from the market is in demand, a market that is changing more and more rapidly. It therefore needs the first prototypes quickly, with which the idea can be tested by the customer and immediately improved or even discarded.

Buying Start-up DNA Implementing all this in an existing organisation is extremely challenging.

But there are numerous ways to increase agility in your own company.

For example, some companies are setting up "Innovation Labs" internally or are setting up a new organisation at

the same time. However, this does not really protect against industry and company blindness. External innovation partners can help. You buy the DNA of a young company on the market. Zuhlke has launched "Rent a Startup" for this purpose: Companies can rent a complete start-up team for a certain period of time, detached from day-today business and outside their own organisation. Together with selected customer experts, Zuhlke experts from a wide range of disciplines work on future products and services. The innovation services provider also offers the appropriate infrastructure and an inspiring environment. The Goal: After a short time, the first prototype is ready for testing by the user. The company took inspiration for this offer from its Ventures team and from existing startup customers who have successfully established such environments in the Zuhlke buildings. Being innovative means staying on the ball. An innovation can still be the ultimate today and be outdated tomorrow.

Companies must learn to learn continuously. All innovation projects especially in the digital field - should be designed in such a way that they can be further developed and expanded as flexibly as possible.

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The five phases of "Rent-a-Startup" lead you quickly and safely to your destination:

But despite all agility, innovation management is a systematic process and anything but haphazard.

There are proven methods for coming up with ideas, evaluating them and ultimately implementing them. Agile development methods are also based on a clear process control plan.

Learn more about how this works in practice - here's a video of our latest AI Innovation for Thyssen Group:

ABOUT THE AUTHORS Stefan Sarbach is Head of Business Development Singapore and co-owner/ partner of the Zuhlke Group. He has a background in Business Administration (Master’s Degree).

Jonas Trindler is Managing Director Asia and responsible for the company’s locations in Singapore and Hong Kong.

He earned a Master of Computer Science.

ABOUT THE COMPANY Zuhlke is a service provider for innovation projects. By combining both business and technology expertise, we create solutions that satisfy our customers. The engineers develop financially successful products, services and business models for today’s digital world – from coming up with the initial idea through to the implementation and operation. This can be achieved by drawing on the experience of more than 10’000 successful projects. The group has 1’000 highly skilled employees with local teams in different European countries, Singapore and Hong Kong. In the UK, Zuhlke operates in two locations (London, Manchester) and employ around 100 engineers. Find out more at www.zuehlke.com/asia/en/

FEATURE:

SPEED DESPITE SIZE: LEASING OUT ENTIRE START-UP TEAMS

FEATURE:

PEOPLE POWER: THE ROLE OF HUMAN AND CULTURAL FACTORS IN DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

Asia’s Businesses: Becoming Future-fit in the Human Age By Kate Bravery, Partner, Career Solutions Leader, Career Global, Mercer & Puneet Swani, Partner, Career Business Leader, International Region, Mercer According to Mercer’s 2019 Global Talent Trends Study, almost all organisations are taking action to prepare for the future of work, thus creating an urgency of rethinking the people agenda to unlock potential. One of the main drivers of all this activity is the surge in awareness of disruption – 71% of Asian executives are predicting significant disruption in the next few years.

When Prudential Hong Kong automated some of its front and back office systems, they expected transformational results. But the anticipated savings didn’t materialise.

To discover why, the insurer used an activity survey and employee interviews to quickly identify what work was being done and by whom. The insights led to better informed work designs and enabled HR to suggest where resources could evolve into future roles.

Prudential’s story reveals the urgency of rethinking the people agenda to unlock potential, particularly as almost all organisations are taking action to prepare for the future of work, according to Mercer’s 2019 Global Talent Trends Study. One of the main drivers of all this activity is the surge in awareness of disruption – 71% of Asian executives are predicting significant disruption in the next few years.

Yet as executives focus on making their organisations future-fit, there is growing sensitivity to the human capital

risks that can impede transformation efforts. In today’s uncertain climate, employees seek stability; HR is concerned that with uncertainty comes low engagement, employee apathy and change fatigue. Mercer’s study finds that job security is one of the main reasons employees in Asia joined, and stay with, their company. Addressing people concerns is paramount, given that only one in three executives rate their company’s ability to mitigate human capital risks as very effective, dropping to just one in five in Japan.

The way to help employees feel secure is to foster engaging human connections so individuals can thrive in their careers, even if their job is evolving around them. The key is ensuring individuals feel they have a career for life, not a job for life.

Mercer’s study identifies the following four trends that leading companies are addressing in 2019.

Aligning Work to Future Value

Agility remains a critical organisational competency. But agility alone is not enough. Further, as more companies move to flatter work structures and embrace agile work models, new value creation opportunities are needed to stay ahead.

Leading firms are aligning change efforts to a few anchor points where they believe future value will be created — be it new products, new critical skills, or new operating models. Key to success will be redefining the “jobs to be done”, as Prudential did, and uncovering ways to optimise current roles. This year, the C-suite across the world named job redesign as the area of talent investment with the highest ROI potential. Yet, the picture is more mixed in Asia with executives in China, India and Hong Kong proclaiming the need for job redesign while few Japanese and Singaporean executives have this on their radar. The challenge for HR across the region is to deliver an

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integrated people strategy that can execute on these priorities (an approach deployed four times more by high-growth companies globally1) and to get creative about to how reward future valued behaviours.

Building Brand Resonance Attracting top talent remains a global priority. What has changed, however, is employees’ perceptions of what makes a desirable employer. Job seekers today care as much about the way a company conducts business and upholds its values, as the business it is in.

In a transparent and socially connected world, one way to build a sustainable talent pipeline is to ensure a company’s brand and its talent value proposition (TVP) resonate with all workforce segments, contingent workers included.

Companies in Singapore and China are already making headway; indeed, in China over four in five high-growth

organisations differentiate their TVP to different groups, compared to fewer than one in four in modest-growth companies. Part of delivering on the value proposition is advancing the diversity and inclusion agenda locally.

In Asia, thriving employees are seven times more likely to work for a company that ensures equitable pay and promotion, but only 12% of companies in Asia actively measure pay inequities. Clearly, this is an area that warrants more attention in 2019.

Curating the Work Experience Making work simple, intuitive and digitally enabled helps people grow and thrive. Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) are opening a new world of benefits, training and career offerings tailored to each individual’s needs and preferences – although implementation varies by geography.

In the US, for example, HR is investing mainly in chatbots and AI tools to

enhance the employee experience; in China meanwhile, companies are focused on AI for talent matching and delivering automated talent management. This will deliver a differentiated work experience.

What we found interesting is that employees’ curation preferences largely map to geographical differences, too. Employees in North America and Australia prefer the curated approach to learning, while those in Asia prefer having a training budget to spend as they like. The delivery method may partly explain the difference — 70% of employees in Asia say their company offers state-of-theart digital tools to support their training and development, compared to only 51% in North America. This data highlights the importance of nimble, adaptive knowledge sharing platforms such as that offered by New Zealand’s

FEATURE:

PEOPLE POWER: THE ROLE OF HUMAN AND CULTURAL FACTORS IN DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

FEATURE:

PEOPLE POWER: THE ROLE OF HUMAN AND CULTURAL FACTORS IN DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

Spark. The internet service provider uses an automated platform to suggest learning based on an employee’s KPIs on which skills they perform well, and which need improvement.

Delivering Talent-led Change High turnover, low engagement and change fatigue all appear to be stalling progress. One in four of Asia’s executives are asking for employee metrics on burnout, while attrition is one of HR leaders’ top concerns when it comes to implementing change.

To ensure the Human Agenda is front

and centre, HR should have a stronger voice in business transformation. It is encouraging that so many of Asia’s HR leaders get involved with planning the roll out of major change – the highest of the regions studied; 80% of China’s HR leaders do so and 62% in India, for instance. Yet, only two in five HR leaders say they currently participate in the early stage of transformation when ideas are scoped out. This needs to change. Mercer’s global data reveal that when HR is bold, the business benefits: 53% of high-growth organisations say HR is involved in kick-starting major change, compared

to 39% of modest-growth organisations.

What is apparent throughout this year’s study is the need for connectivity – whether individuals feel connected to each other, to their work or to the brand.

Successful organisations will be those that engage in active and generous dialogue with their people and seek to understand and inspire them in the year ahead.

High-growth companies self-reported revenue growth of 10% or more in the last three years, while modest-growth companies self-reported revenue growth of 5% or less during the same period.

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ABOUT THE AUTHORS Kate Bravery is a Partner and the Global Practices Leader for Mercer’s Career business. Her role involves strategizing growth opportunities for Human Capital Consulting, bringing new products to market and supporting the business’ professional practices; Talent Strategy, Mobility, Workforce Rewards, Executive Rewards, HR Transformation and Communication.

Puneet Swani is a Partner and the Career Business Leader for Growth Markets. During his 18+ years of consulting experience, Puneet has provided advice to leading local and multinational organizations across more than 25 countries in Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa.

ABOUT THE COMPANY At Mercer, we make a difference in the lives of more than 115 million people every day by advancing their health, wealth and careers. We’re in the business of creating more secure and rewarding futures for our clients and their employees — whether we’re designing affordable health plans, assuring income for retirement, or aligning workers with workforce needs. At Mercer, we say we Make Tomorrow, Today. Find out more at www.asean.mercer.com

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Let's Discuss...

Unlocking the Commercial Benefits of Green Buildings Contributed by the Built Environment Committee Investors and developers of commercial real estate may benefit from an increasing body of evidence showing that green buildings have a positive impact on the cognitive ability of their occupants. This has the potential to enhance workforce productivity and, in turn, generate occupier demand for green buildings.

This article will provide smart, actionable insights into how you, as an investor or developer of commercial real estate, can use the tangible, sustainable benefits of green buildings to drive new market growth. It will help you make informed decisions about your potential investment in green buildings.

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Focusing on positive impact

into sharper focus.

Green buildings have a lower carbon footprint, or generate a smaller amount of waste, when compared to other buildings. Accordingly, the discussion around green buildings often revolves around limiting these types of negative impacts on the external environment.

The World Green Building Council has adopted an even broader definition, which emphasises the role that green buildings play in achieving the 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development (the “SDGs”) pursuant to the UN’s 2030 Agenda, which include the promotion of global prosperity and well-being. The linkage with the SDGs could, among other things, unlock attractive financing for green buildings under the various integrated financing platforms which have been developed to fulfil them.

The above approach is reflected by the Urban Land Institute, which defines green buildings based on the efficiency with which they use resources while reducing their impact on human health and the environment during the building's lifecycle, through better siting, design, construction, operation, maintenance and removal.

Rather than solely focus on reducing negative impacts, however, the discussion must evolve to focus on the positive aspects of green buildings too.

Positive impacts include, among others, improved internal air quality and water specifications, through self-energy generation or conservation, increased productivity, improved health and wellness and better customer experience.

By focusing on the positive impacts, the tangible benefits of green buildings – and their central role in a dynamic and evolving workplace – can be brought

Improving workplace productivity According to Harvard’s Center for Health and the Global Environment, we spend about 90% of our time indoors.

As such, green buildings have a unique ability to positively or negatively influence our health.

Through a study in an environmentally controlled office space, participants were exposed to enhanced ventilation and artificially elevated Co2 levels, among other things. As a result, cognitive function scores were 61% higher in green building conditions, and 101% higher in enhanced green building conditions.

The researchers concluded that the findings have far-reaching implications for worker productivity, student learning and safety. These results are highly promising and in line with previous studies, many of which have been carried out in the US. The industry needs to get behind this line of research and conduct further analysis on consequential enhancements to strategic performance and organisational success through enhanced occupant productivity, so as to ensure that occupiers can be fully convinced of the potential. This will require all relevant built environment stakeholders to get behind the initiative, ideally on a global scale.

Some researchers, such as Dr. Judith H. Heerwagen, suggest that one way to conceptualise green building benefits is to adopt a framework used by organisations to evaluate their performance, such as the “Balanced Scorecard”. Using the BSC framework, the links between sustainable design features and organisational performance outcomes can be characterised in terms of financial outcomes, business process outcomes, stakeholder relations and human resource development.

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Addressing the valuation problem Outside of the US and the UK, there are limited amounts of data available regarding the financial performance of green buildings. In the UK, it was shown by one study that that environmentally certified buildings tend to command premiums, with effects on market rents and selling prices1.

At the front end, however, large numbers have been cited for the construction of green buildings. This can make development forecasts a poor investment decision for today’s future forecast. The costs of operating sustainable features during the lifecycle cost of the building also needs to be considered.

One way to establish a positive investment decision may focus on the net present value of future savings due to energy efficient features. However, unless hedging is in place, the exposure to fluctuating energy prices can have a considerable impact. Green buildings will likely have to go beyond conserving energy to make the additional capital expenditure on sustainable features worthwhile.

Ultimately, it has not been conclusively shown that yields are positively affected by sustainable features. New

approaches to green buildings – such as the positive impacts on their occupiers – therefore need to be considered to ensure that the sector enjoys a prosperous future. In the long run, green buildings must be economically and environmentally sustainable, eventually moving away from government subsidies or other indirect support.

According to Harvard’s Center for Health and the Global Environment, we spend about 90% of our time indoors. As such, green buildings have a unique ability to positively or negatively influence our health.

Muddied interventions in a changing world Investors in green buildings often take advantage of various forms of market interventions that have been introduced by local governments to

encourage further green building development. These include pilot projects, tax incentives (for example, offering tax breaks for installing energy efficient equipment), new regulations and licensing procedures, and information campaigns.

The tools have generally been around for a long time. But in light of ambitious Paris Agreement targets, the regulations applying to green building are in a state of flux, often tailored to local conditions with variable and inconsistent approaches across the world’s most significant real estate markets.

Whilst the regulatory environment for green buildings is generally favourable in the world’s main financial centres, too many changes to existing policies and regulations may also have a detrimental effect. To counter the potential regulatory uncertainty, there is an opportunity for the industry to get ahead of the curve in terms of selfregulation, without the need for draconian laws.

The level of tweaking to existing policies, or the introduction of new ones, suggests that some

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governments may be struggling to find the right balance between the imposition of interventions (which can be controversial) and the introduction of an effective portfolio of incentives to spur development. In 2017 alone, for example, 31 countries introduced new green building policy changes2.

Benefiting from evolving compliance pathways As a form of compliance pathway, assessment often revolves around formal green building rating systems, such as the WELL Building standard, which is the world’s first building standard focused exclusively on human health and wellness. Other tools to achieve a global standard include a common global Green Building rating tool, a global set of international standards for Green Buildings and a standard international valuation system for Green Buildings under the IVSC. The WELL Building standard is particularly relevant, with its focus on how the built environment can be harnessed as a vehicle to support human health and well-being. For other benchmarking tools, the UK was the first to adopt BREEAM in 1990. BREEAM laid the original foundation for the

development of rating schemes such as LEED in the US, Green Star in Australia, and BCA Green Mark in Singapore.

All the above efforts are starting to bear fruit, with 1.24 billion m2 of global green building space being certified by Green Building Councils in 2017.

Nevertheless, many market participants continue to remain on the side-lines, with an eye on the value maximisation equation as demanded by their shareholders.

A Changing Workplace The office model has undeniably been shaken up in recent years. Numerous headlines focus on the new players in the market, particularly those who offer a flexible, co-working approach.

Increasingly, occupiers are looking for smart buildings where comfort systems are linked together by the connective tissue of code to create a high functioning product that is greater than the sum of its parts; and in which greater control is devolved to the individual user3.

These changes in the market present an opportunity for the green building sector to move away from being

viewed in isolation as extraordinary pilot projects, supported directly or indirectly by the host country. Instead, sustainable features could be aligned with the future of work. Proponents of green buildings could be seen to embrace occupier aspirations and to deliver improved user productivity, alongside the improved efficiency and the reduction of costs promised by other forms of smart buildings.

Tools such as international standards could support global consistency and would, as a result, promote the benefits of green buildings Conclusion The relationship between green buildings, and the strategic performance of their occupiers, has the potential to drive market demand for green buildings. But how can the industry address issues of standards, valuations, industry definitions and regulatory uncertainty and complexity?

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This article has suggested various actionable solutions. Tools such as international standards could support global consistency and would, as a result, promote the benefits of green buildings. Adopting a consistent and broader definition of green buildings which focuses on positive impacts, rather than negative ones, could help to kick-start the conversation. Investment in more research and analysis could

definitively establish the potential for cognitive enhancement in the workplace. Embracing self-regulation may assist to foster good working relationships with host governments, helping to avoid ever increasing regulatory complexity and red tape.

stakeholders from architects, engineers, surveyors, manufacturers, owners, occupiers and local administrators. But if this can be achieved, it may well bring the future closer than we think.

Moving to a new beat will be no easy task and would involve the cooperation of a diverse range of

[Eichholtz, Kok and Quigley (2010)] 2017 Annual Report, World Green Building Council 3 “Future Focus: The Real Estate Market in 2018 and Beyond” by Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP http://www.blplaw.com/expert-legal-insights/articles/new-report-think-smart-the-future-of-office-space 1

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This article was contributed by the Built Environment Committee.

The Built Environment committee aims to provide a forum for member to member communications, to build relationships with, provide inspiration, encouragement and support to members within the sector, to promote the Built Environment sector and opportunities for member companies through education, best practice & awareness of opportunities, and to encourage diversity and gender equality within the committee and the sector as a whole. The term “built environment” encompasses real estate, architecture, facilities management and all other relevant business functions.

For more information visit www.britcham.org.sg/committees/built-environment

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10% off at Sasha's Fine Foods

TRAINING & CERTIFICATIONS Discounts on 1 hour and all day training workshops from Anagram Group

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

10% off ISO certification and more from BSI Group

Up to 75% off the Sustainable Maritime Operations degree courses at the Institute of Marine Engineeering Science and Technology

5% off Singapore Management University's Executive Development Programmes

Discounts on Change Management training and certification from CMC Partnership

Your Conversations 10% off project management training and services at Premier Group

5% off the International Corporate Coaching program at Progress-U

10% off postgraduate degrees and CPD courses at Newcastle University 10% discount on 1 or 2 day performance management programmes from Transform

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