An Interview - to be published soon

We just replied an interview request with this write-up. When the article is published in proper, we'll post it here but we like to share some excerpts from the draft first - to our WIB members, no matter where you are.

"....

Running the club that counts several nationalities among its members has been a beautiful experience for us. Of course, it was not a bed of roses especially since we had no predecessors to rely for advice. The two co-chairs wear multiple hats. One is a full-time student and a full-time mother (mothers cannot take leave, can they?). The other is a part-time student with a full-time job. However, we share the vision to see the club take off and understand the servitude required from leaders. We are privileged to have help extended by club members to source for senior professionals and the school for supporting its activities in logistics and finance.

A special characteristic about our club is its inclusiveness. We recognize that men and women must learn to work alongside with one another. Hence many of our events are open to the guys too. Similarly, our club mentorship programme includes male mentors. Being a small organization with big dreams, we constantly seek collaborations to benefit our members, the school and even the society. A fine example is the Nanyang MBA Olympics which we jointly organized with the school’s CSR club. Ultimately, network is an asset and networking is an ability which we leverage heavily on to nurture this budding organization and its members.

The biggest challenge for women in business at the moment is making their presence known – seen and heard. The business setting has traditionally been male-dominated, even in the MBA class. As observed frequently, few women speak up. There has been even research that suggests women’s unwillingness to speak up is biologically influenced. We are not sure how useful this piece of information is but we do know one thing for sure - women who can overcome any inner doubts or fear are able to stand out more easily than others. Women have come a long way since our grandmothers’ and mothers’ time. With each generation, women have achieved milestones for themselves and our generation will not be an exception." 

Article from BusinessBecause: Nanyang Business School Launches A Women In Business Club!

Nanyang Business School Launches A Women In Business Club! | BusinessBecause

Clarie Kwa co-founded the first Women in Business Club at Nanyang Business School while studying part-time for an MBA, holding down a full-time job and being a wife. She and her partner hope the club will nurture more female business leaders and they've garnered some successes already!


Clarie, 30, is specializing in Strategy and is due to complete her part-time MBA from Nanyang Business School in 2013. She considers herself to have a varied background and is complementing it with an MBA. In 2004, she gained her undergraduate degree in Economics and Psychology from the National University of Singapore. Since then she has worked in operations, management, business and sales coaching and financial advisory and insurance. Presently, she is a senior executive in Prudential Assurance Company Singapore, involved in knowledge development where she trains insurance products and investment solutions.


When Clarie started her MBA in late July 2011, her and co-chair Filda Yusgiantoro noted the special constraints that women in business faced. They wanted to create a platform that could facilitate women’s successes in business. “We found it strange that there was no women in business club at Nanyang because all the top business schools have such clubs so two of us decided to start one”, says Clarie. By September 2011, the club was raring to kick off. It held its inauguration centred around the theme “Carpe Diem” a Latin phrase meaning "seize the day" on the 28th of September. Since then, the club has organized seminars on public speaking and workshops on networking and forming business alliances.


Nanyang’s MBA alumni and faculty have been very supportive. Clarie said that female alumni have been very happy to come in and speak or present at events. They’ve organized dinner dates where senior execs from top companies and private banks come to share their insight into the business world and they’ve also been involved with mentoring current MBA students. For Clarie, the most significant achievement of the club to date has been seeing club members believe that they can achieve what they came on the MBA for. She says, “standing out is a challenge, there are family women here who are working and studying at the same time but still manage to shine. My co-chair has a two-year-old son, I don’t know how she does it!” On the Nanyang MBA, Clarie has found the challenge to think differently as well as the additional satisfaction of being a pioneer of the Women in Business Club at Nanyang Business School.


Studying in one of Asia's most global cities lets her take notes on and compare the evolution of business strategies worldwide. This semester she is going on a business mission to China as part of her MBA to network and discover how global business is going to grow. She sees a lot of scope for development as a woman and as a future business leader, and you can follow the journey of the Nanyang MBA Women in Business Club on their blog.


(article from: http://businessbecause.com/news/Executive-MBA/nanyang-business-school-launches-a-women-in-business-club-81309)

MBAs Fave Vacations And Hot Trends For 2012

Two of our Women in Business members are here:

MBAs Fave Vacations And Hot Trends For 2012 | BusinessBecause

Clarie Kwa - MBA at Nanyang Business School
"Next year, MBA students are going to be more interested to have a piece of the emerging markets in their resume via student exchange, international internships, research etc. Although we've been seeing the start of this trend in recent times, we expect to see a significant shift of attitude towards emerging markets from being "good to know" to "must know". MBA students will expect to spend some years of their career life in this market, especially if they are to graduate in the next few years."


Wei Fang Ng - MBA at Nanyang Business School
"This year I traveled only around the Asia region and I enjoyed visiting Sydney, Australia most. The night view of the Sydney harbor was mesmerizing. There is also the unforgettable tasty Deep Fried Mud Crab with Salt and Pepper from Golden Century Seafood Restaurant. It is a must try!"

"I think the hot new trend is how to drive sustainability in businesses rather than just doing CSR activities for CSR but embed CSR into the core business so that it is align to the long term strategic goals of the organisation."

(Article from: http://www.businessbecause.com/news/funny-MBA/mba-trends-travel-81234)

Elevenses with Sharon Sng (Interview)

Elevenses: Sharon Sng, Senior Vice President, Capitaland

Sharon spent 15 years in investment banking with Citibank, Lehman Brothers & BNP Paribas before joining CapitaLand in 2010 as Senior Vice President, Corporate Finance.  She is responsible for the group's access to public capital markets, M&A and strategic corporate initiatives/actions.

Married with a 2-year old son, she is an avid traveler, sports enthusiast (skiing, yoga, tennis, thinks toddler supervision should count too) and weekend cook/wine novice.

1. Describe your management style 

I strongly believe in a concise approach with minimal fuss, and maximum attention to the end goal. Regardless of whether it is a task oriented situation, or running a commercial team, the philosophy should remain the same. Always set the appropriate context for the team, provide people with the appreciation of the end goal and build commitment and buy-in from the team first. Thereafter it will be easier to formulate a strategy to execute, either together as a team, or if the team is more independent/experienced, they could propose an execution plan for discussion. 

2. What are your core values as a female leader? 

Core values should not differ based on gender. While women have the ability to be more sensitive, better at handling / striking a balance with difficult personalities, the basic values a professional brings to the job is definitely gender-neutral. 

3. Describe your ideal deputy 

A deputy should not be a clone of the leader. I would value someone who brings highly complementary skill sets with the right temperament to work with me, which means a good sense of humor and love for food are the pre-requisites! 

4. MBA or real life experience? 

Since I don’t have an MBA, I have no bias either way. This would very much depend on the individual and the opportunities or choices along the way. There is no right answer to this. I think going with the flow is best and trust your intuition, that is, if work is going well, no need to pursue an MBA unless a specific school or program is calling out to you urgently, you desperately want to tick the box, be it for an additional qualification, for the overseas experience, or for a career switch. 

5. Which business book have you found most worthy to read? 

Business books make up ~10% of the books I read within a year, and typically they are shaped by the industry I'm in or about to enter. In my early investment banking career I really enjoyed Lisa Endlich's the Culture of Success, which provided an excellent background to the Lehman Brothers & Goldman Sachs early partnership and Wall Street ethos. More recently, I read the First 90 Days and Sunday Emails from a CEO, because making a career switch to a corporate at a senior level meant a different type of transition, and the latter was written by the CEO - I needed to understand my new organization & CEO. Choose what you read wisely (be it fiction or non-fiction), and ask for recommendations from friends or seniors. 

6. Have you ever cried at work? 

No, never. Work is not personal, purely professional and thus, does not warrant tears. 

7. Which characteristic do you think is your Achilles’ heel at work? 

Demand for perfection & high standards. This may be perceived as being a taskmaster or being impatient on occasion, but it is a strong work ethic which is hard to shake. I try to soften it will a gentle touch these days :) 

8. What is the worst part of your job? 

Admin, admin, admin 

9. And the best part? 

Interacting with board members, senior management to influence strategic decisions 

10. What advice would you give your 25-year old self? 

Don’t be afraid to take risks, or the road less travelled 

11. How would you like to be remembered?

Strong, admirable professional lady who balances family and personal goals; Full of energy and life, personable and charming, a pleasure to interact with as a friend, colleague and professional.