TOH THIAN SER (MBA, National University of Singapore)

“TS”, as he likes to be addressed, is semi-retired and teaches Strategy and Entrepreneurship at the MBA level. He frequently teaches strategy-related topics for the Office of Executive Education at SMU.

Formerly serving as Vice-Dean of the Nanyang Business School, TS also had experience in the Investment Committee managing the Endowment Fund of Nanyang Technological University.

Prior to joining academia, TS was chief executive officer of two Singapore-based stockbroking firms and also lead the investment banking arm of a leading Singapore bank, amongst other senior editorial positions in the newspaper industry.

He has served as a member of several government organisations such as the Trade Development Board, Securities Industry Council, Medifund Advisory Council and the National Productivity Board.

His experience encompassed project consultations, including policy-related ones, with several institutes which includes the Economic Development Board, the Trade Development Board, the Department of Statistics (Ministry of Trade and Industry), the Singapore Productivity and Standards Board, Tuas Power, National Computer Systems and the Singapore Confederation of Industries.

He has also taught in firms such as Roche Pharmaceuticals, RGM International, Government Savings Bank of Thailand, Sun Microsystems, Yum! Restaurants International, GE Asia, Philips Asia, Singapore Airlines and Singapore Power.

This module encompasses Managing Professional Work Relationships and Managing in a Cross-Cultural environment.

MANAGING PROFESSIONAL WORK RELATIONSHIPS
Workplace relationships are complex. And in this changing economy, working with and alongside colleagues of vastly different needs and background means that the traditional styles of management and leadership are no longer effective. The human touch takes an added importance as this engagement of colleagues becomes the main leverage in how work gets done.

The first step to more effectively manage relationships and leverage engagement from others, involves understanding and managing oneself. In doing so, one would be able to adjust one's behaviour in relation to others (such as supervisors, peers and subordinates), leading to effective management of others as well.

• Managing Oneself – Self awareness and self regulation
  • The nature of perception, and how perception affects behaviour, human relations and performance
  • Attribution processes and biases
  • Personality profiles: How personality affects behaviour as well as perception and attitudes
  • Emotional intelligence and human relations
• Managing Others
  • Emotional intelligence revisited: Showing empathy and gaining trust
  • Persuasion – creating loyalty, improving outcomes and building strong relationships
  • Bosses, peers and subordinates – different strokes for different folks

CROSS CULTURAL MANAGEMENT

We will examine issues related to working in a cross-cultural environment, and in particular, manaing in a cross-cultural context. Working in a cross border environment has become a norm in most organisations. Therefore what should one do to enhance one's cross cultural management sensitivity and to work harmoniously with co-workers and stakeholders from different cultures and nationalities?

Through experiential exercises, we will work with participants on what it is like being in a different culture and having to interact with people from a culture that one is not familiar with. In doing so, we will highlight the need to adopt sophisticated stereotyping to enable us to better work with others. Further, we will introduce skills and competencies required to function in a cross-cultural environment. A case study will be used to explore management issues such as leadership, motivation in a cross cultural environment.

TAN HWEE HOON (PhD, Purdue University)

Having earned her PhD in Management from the Krannert School, Purdue University in December 1996, Hwee Hoon taught at the School of Business at the National University of Singapore from December 1996 to November 2005 and has been with the Lee Kong Chian School of Business, SMU since December 2005.

Her research interests are in the areas of interpersonal trust, cross cultural awareness and emotional management at the workplace. Hwee Hoon was also the Asia-Pacific Editor of the Journal of World Business from 2000-2004, having articles published in many international journals, including the Academy of Management Journal, Strategic Management Journal, Journal of Applied Psychology, Human Relations.

Hwee Hoon is actively involved in Executive Teaching, both in English and Chinese; and has trained for major organizations in Singapore and China - such as the Monetary Authority of Singapore, Motorola University, IMC Corp Limited, SingTel, Kerry Oils and Alcatel Asia Pacific. She also consults for organizations such as the Singapore Tourism Board, IE Singapore and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation.

Consumers, whether in a B2C or B2B situation, love brands. They give quality reassurance, make choices easier and allow them to express who they are or make them look good in front of their boss. Manufacturers love brands too - it allows them not to compete on price but to charge a premium.

But how to build a brand? How to decide which idea you want to own in your target's mind? This module will give leaders and managers in the construction industry the tools to build strong brands - from the initial audit to the final positioning and communication to the business targets. Some highlights from the module include:

• What is a brand? The art and science of brand positioning
• Determining your Brand DNA
• Managing your touchpoints
• Global trends and trends in Asia - how can your business profit from them?
• Social responsibility and green building
• Internal branding - how to make your staff into Brand Ambassadors
• Brand Communication - what to say and how/where to say it

JORG DIETZEL (Masters, University of Bonn, Germany)

Having worked in Branding, Marketing and Communication for 20 years, the past ten in Asia, Jorg has run agencies and multinational accounts in London, Berlin, Beijing, Hong Kong and Singapore and worked with brands like FedEx, Visa, American Airlines, Pepsi, BMW, Audi, Volkswagen, Sony, Drypers.

Since opening his own brand consultancy in Singapore, he has worked with several SMEs on branding and communication, namely OPRC, Coffee Grounds, Raoul, Pageone, Binter.

He is an Adjunct Faculty at SMU where he teaches classes in Strategic Brand Management and Advertising.

Liberalisation of global trade and investment flows has created vast business opportunities. Consumer preferences and market demands are changing constantly, resulting in more intense pressure for firms to reinvent and grow.

One of the key to successful growth is prudent financial management. Often firms fail not because it has no business. On the contrary, many firms failed because they grew too fast without adequate financial support. In this module, Mr. Adam Wong, a seasoned banker, entrepreneur and consultant, will share with participants key issues in financing and managing business growth. Participants will:

• Learn necessary financial tools to make sound investments decisions
• Determine the cost of capital for various investment projects
• Learn why many firms use IRR and EVA to make financial decisions

• Understand the key building blocks of Cash Management
• Determine the level of financing required for your firm's growth
• Protect profit by mitigating foreign exchange risks
• Quantify the amount of credit risk a business is exposed to
• Prevent business losses by having a sound credit policy

• Gain an insight on how to determine the pulse of your firm's financial health
• Know the limits of your firm's debt capacity
• Understand the key information available from the various financial statements
• Use models to predict corporate distress

• Know the key fundamentals in successfully raising bank debts
• Gain an overview of the financing packages provided by various banks in Singapore
• Explore alternate sources of financing (REITS) beyond traditional bank debts

ADAM WONG (Fellow CPA)

Adam Wong is the Executive Director of Mayvest Asia Pte Ltd, a financial consulting firm. He is also an adjudicator of the Financial Industry Disputes Resolution Centre in Singapore. Prior to his current appointment, he was a General Manager with Standard Chartered Bank in both Singapore and Hong Kong. He has also held key management positions with other major banks, with 22 years of successful track record in Cash Management, eCommerce, Corporate Banking and Trade Finance and Small & Medium Enterprises.

Having strong strategic orientation and regional exposure in South East Asia and Hong Kong, he is credited with significantly growing global banks' SME assets by 450% and net profit by 140% over a three-year period in Singapore. He also started a new cash management business for a leading bank in Asia and grew it to a USD35 billion business annually.

Adam is a Fellow Certified Public Accountant, Certified Credit Risk Management Professional and a Certified Professional Trainer, Adam has contributed actively to the development and training of professionals in the financial services sector for the past 20 years by sharing his expertise regularly through The Institute of Banking and Finance, SMU and various other organisations in Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Vietnam and Indonesia.

Legal Issues

This session considers the conditions under which a binding contract may be formed, the obligations of the contractor to complete the works on time, remedies for payment defaults and the strategies relating to construction claims and dispute resolution.

• Construction Procurement Process
  • Problems relating to Tenders
  • Documenting the Contract
  • Contract Award
  • Dealing with Ambiguous Terms
• Time and Delays in Construction Work
  • The Obligation to Complete on Time
  • Extension of Time
  • Damages for Delay and Penalty
  • Concept of Concurrent Delay
  • Finance Charges and Interest
• Payment Disputes
  • Payment Certificates
  • Security of Payment Regime
  • Operation of Section 15(3)
  • Final Accounts
• Claims and Dispute Resolution
  • Contractor's Claim Strategies
  • Negotiations
  • Construction Litigation
  • Arbitration
  • Selecting Lawyer
  • Controlling Legal Costs

PRODUCTIVITY

Managing Just-In-Time Productivity in the Construction Industry

There is much concern over the low level of construction productivity. This lecture examines, in particular, the just-in-time philosophy to enhancing construction productivity. JIT can help to eliminate waste, reduce storage and inventory, plan for uninterrupted work flow, achieve total quality control, encourage employee involvement and foster closer supplier relations. The following topics will be discussed:

• Productivity Problems in Construction
• JIT Philosophy and Concept
• Objectives and Principles of JIT
• Application of JIT in the Construction Industry
• Implementing JIT to Raise Construction Productivity

CHOW KOK FONG (MBA, University of Hull; Chartered Arbitrator)

CHOW KOK FONG is a Chartered Arbitrator and Chartered Quantity Surveyor. He was previously Chief Executive Officer of Changi Airports International. During his charge, the company was voted Airport Investor of the Year. Earlier in his career he was Chief Executive of the Construction Industry Development Board, now the Building and Construction Authority, Director of Projects with City Developments and Managing Director for the International Division with the Capitaland Commercial Group. At City Developments, one of his projects, the Republic Plaza was the first project in Asia to win the FIABCI Award. Professor Chow is the founder President of the Society of Project Managers and was Chairman of the Society of Construction Law. Currently, he is on the board of the Singapore Mediation Centre and Chairman of the Accreditation Committee for Construction Adjudicators. He has served as Construction Industry Specialist with World Bank Missions and also held adjunct professorial appointments with both the National University of Singapore and the Nanyang Technological University. Professor Chow has authored 8 books including the Law and Practice of Construction Contracts (which had gone into its 3 rd Edition 2004), Construction Joint Ventures (1985), Security of Payments and Construction Adjudication (2005) and Construction Contracts Dictionary (2007). He is currently also one of the General Editors of the Singapore Construction Adjudication Review .

LIM LAN YUAN (FSISV)

Dr Lim is Chairman of the Singapore Institute of Surveyors and Valuers, and has some 40 years of experience in the construction and real estate industry.  He has been involved  in the development and management of a large office complex.    He is joint author of a book entitled Just-In-Time Productivity for Construction.  In addition to his doctorate, Dr Lim holds an MBA, MSc (Construction Management), LLM (distinction), BSc (Estate Management), BSc (Economics) and LLB (Hons).

Leading people can be a tremendous challenge. Working across individual differences, persuading, getting the buy-in of your best employees, and moving the team towards a common goal can often be more demanding than the technical aspects of work.

Good leadership, however, is something that no organisation can do without. Getting the work done and meeting deadlines mean we must communicate effectively, persuade, retain the confidence of our best employees, and develop people who can then lead their team.

Additionally, leaders must possess the foresight to see issues coming down the pipeline, the confidence to speak up and be proactive, and an ability to act productively toward both employees and the project. These are not small demands within the context of tight deadlines, changing requirements, and a highly mobile employment market.

In this module you will learn about your current leadership capacities, how effective communication helps you get buy-in from your team, methods to develop your most talented employees, and also best leadership practices from a variety of industries.

Some highlights of the course include:

• Leadership self-assessment: what are your current leadership strengths?
• Communication skills: how can you plan your communication most effectively so that it has the desired impact?
• Talent retention: what are the most important factors that cause an employee to leave an organisation?
• Talent development: how can you develop your best employees and give them sufficient opportunity to learn the new skills and feel challenged?
• Taking action: why is inaction not an option for leaders?
• Dynamic learning: through discussion and debate, we will weigh competing leadership ideas and look for your personalised learning points.

MICHAEL NETZLEY (PhD, University of Minnesota)

Michael serves on the faculty of Singapore Management University where he teaches corporate communication, social media and executive leadership programmes. Previously, he served as the founding director of the Centre for Communication and Teaching Excellence.

Michael has also taught at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management and held faculty appointments in Slovenia, Finland, Japan, Germany and Argentina.

Michael's research and teaching focus on the corporate communication function and leadership in an Asian context. He is active with consulting and executive education. He has worked with clients such as OCBC, 3M, Intercontinental Hotel Group, IBM, Microsoft, SUN, UEM Group (Malaysia), Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Central Provident Fund, GIC (Singapore), Keppel Offshore and Marine, Neptune Orient Lines, Mettler Toledo, and CARE.org.

Currently Michael is authoring his fourth book which examines best practices in corporate communication and reputation management in South East Asia. Michael is an experienced case writer who has authored or served as managing editor of more than forty corporate communication teaching cases.

Taking your business to a whole new level invariably involves new challenges. One of the hardest to tackle challenges for Asian entrepreneurs and executives is communication - many have made their mark on the shop floor where actions often speak louder than words. And yet communication - specifically its professionalization - is de rigueur for organizations on the road to becoming world class. That means communication is planned, controlled and effectively delivered.

This two-day module focuses on communication with and via the media. How can you harness communications and the media to help the company go global? How do you work with media, both local and foreign, for win-win outcomes? Here are some module highlights:

•  'Packaging' your success story

•  Handling the media professionally and effectively

•  Using narratives (stories) to persuade

•  Refining the body language of Leadership to connect and engage

•  Using language to achieve a leadership purpose

Course methods include lecture, practice interviews and presentations, individual and group exercises, plenty of relevant examples and demonstrations .