FAMILY VALUES
All it took was a book. Adeline Sim’s calling to help others was indirectly formed by her father, Peter Sim, founder of mainboardlisted recruitment agency HRnetGroup, when he gifted her The Trials of David Marshall at the age of nine.
“ The book really stuck in my head,” says Adeline. “The idea that you can stand up for people who cannot help themselves.” She would eventually practise law but cut her career short after becoming a mother. Joining the family business soon after, in 2009, was more a matter of good timing than a planned move. When she was asked for hiring leads by HRnetGroup’s HR director, a family friend, they both realised that an obvious candidate was Adeline herself. Her father asked her into his office for a “talk” a week after she stepped through the door as group legal counsel. Adeline recounts with a laugh, “He said, “Hello! You’re here to facilitate the business, not kill it!’” She had brought her policing frame of mind from her previous career, telling people what they were doing wrong. “He said, ‘You have to find solutions. Don’t just tell people, ‘No’.”
Now, 16 years into HRnetGroup, which has about 1,000 consultants and a presence in 13 cities across the Asia Pacific, she brings a next-generation perspective that aligns with the times and the company’s younger workforce. “I’m more authoritative and consultative than authoritarian,” say Adeline, on her leadership style.
“I am more aware of having to integrate work with life for my people, because whether it’s millennials or Gen Z’s, they want the experience of parenting their kids. It wasn’t so in my father’s time. As long as someone was looking after the children, it was okay.”
She sees the value in being accommodating. “People will need flexibility at different times in their lives, whether it’s caring for their children or their parents, but if we can find a way to make it work, it’s win-win. Every person hire is a six-month
investment. So, if they come and go, it’s my loss. I’d rather find a way to make it work.”
Now in her 40s and a mother of two teenagers, Adeline is still channeling the ambitions of her fired-up, nine-year-old self.
“It’s very meaningful when candidates we placed tell us how we made a difference in their lives. People who have a 70 per cent pay increase, they and their families enjoy a different quality of life. And the recruiting we do for our clients, when done well, is a gift that keeps on giving. Because when a well-matched talent works for a company for five, 10, 15 years, the contribution is continual.”
Here, Adeline reveals the lessons she’s learned from her family in navigating next-generation leadership, family dynamics and even parenthood.
WORKING IN A FAMILY BUSINESS
Both my father and my uncle (HRnetGroup executive director Sim Joo Siang) give me psychological safety; know that they have my back. Sure, there are times when we have differences in opinion, but fundamentally, I know they want me to succeed. Recently, when there were some resignations, my uncle told me, “Don’t second guess yourself. Just keep going and look for people who want to work and thrive with you.” At the end of the day, people want to work with a leader who is positive and moving forward.
LEADERSHIP BASICS: VALUE PEOPLE
One thing my father always told me was to be genuinely interested in people. If someone crosses your path, they should be the better for it. His core team has literally made millions by working with him. He really cares about each person. Once, when one of my colleagues was talking about a candidate in Mandarin, he said, ‘ Na ta qu mai (to sell the person).’ My father was furious. “How can you ‘sell’ a person!” Being deeply interested in people is a big thing for him. Sometimes it comes down to experiences.
After our family holidayed on Crystal Cruises, for example, he took 100 of our colleagues on it the next year. And when I told him that racing on the rooftop of the Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Centre at 80kmh was quite the experience, he straight away reminded me to include our colleagues.
CONTROL YOUR OWN TIME
My father does not ha ve a personal assistant. In fact, no one in our entire company does He manages his own calendar, which means he has a very agile schedule. If he wants to change an appointment, he just does it. I actually think it gives control back to the person. If my schedule was run by somebody else, I would have to turn up. Now I decide what to fit in.
COMMUNICATION WITHIN THE FAMILY
With my kids, I want to build the same relationship capital that my dad has done with me. There are times when he has to make decisions that are difficult and that I may not agree with. How can I be certain that he has my best interest at heart? That’s relationship capital. It’s partly due to the one thing that he did, without fail, as long as he was in Singapore: He would send me to school every morning. There was time in the car when we could talk about anything. I believe that’s what allows us to have easy conversations until today. Following his example, I, too, drive my kids to school.
TRAIN
KIDS BY PASS ING THE DECISION-MAKING BALL
My dad let me make decisions from young. When I was 13 or 14, I would plan the family holidays, and he would just follow. For me, that would involve a lot of ice cream stops! (laughs) He’s big on saying, “You do it, you are responsible, you live with the consequences.” Now, I let my children plan the family trips. Last year, my 17-year son did it with some help from my mum. He was responsible if we were not happy, (laughs) “Why is the bus ride so long?”