Dear Friends

The SME Consulting Programme (SCP) has benefitted many SMEs and SMU students in the past 5 years. It has helped participating SMEs to enhance their understanding of their markets, customers, employees, processes and operations. In doing so, it has enabled them to develop more effective marketing strategies; streamlining internal processes; validating business plans with facts and figures; or discovering new business ideas. At the same time, the SMU student consultants are exposed to real business issues as well as acquire hands-on experience through the opportunities to work closely with business owners, senior management and their project advisor, in the consulting work.

In perspective, the essence of SCP is learning and discovery. We, at USEA, hope that the learning and discovery does not stop once projects are completed. Hence, it is with this objective that the idea of a quarterly bulletin is born. In each issue of the bulletin, we hope to share selected case studies of projects USEA has commissioned for the benefit of other SMEs. We earnestly hope that as readers, you will grow through learning and discovering from the concise write-ups, key issues faced by other SMEs and the possible solutions to those problems. We aim to feature three to four case studies in each quarter.

I hope you will find the content of the bulletin as enjoyable and meaningful for you as it has been for us in publishing it for you. Please enjoy in partaking this journey of growing through learning and discovery with us.

Warmest regards
Ang Ser Keng
Centre Director