SMU participated in Economist Impact’s 3rd Sustainability Week Asia conference in Bangkok held from 11 to 13 March. It attracted leaders from the business sector, government, scientific and environmental experts, as well as representatives from international organisations and NGOs worldwide, with over 1000 participants. The University contributed experts who spoke on several plenary sessions.
Commenting on the disappearance of MH370 that happened 10 years ago, SMU Assistant Professor of Strategy & Entrepreneurship (Education) Terence Fan discussed the possible theories which could explain the plane’s disappearance as well as the search operations which have now been called off.
In the second part of a two-part interview, SMU Senior Lecturer of Organisational Behaviour & Human Resources Paul Lim shared his insights on organisational resilience in times of hardship. Stressing the pivotal role of leadership during tough times, he emphasised the need for proactive strategies to “buffer the organisation”. He suggested a possible approach is to enhance collaborative communication to foster a positive and supportive workplace.
Commenting on visa-free travel and China's travel recovery, SMU Assistant Professor of Strategy & Entrepreneurship (Education) Terence Fan acknowledged that visa-free deals are an important factor for Chinese travellers. He however noted another key consideration is the flight time and frequency, as longer flight times and lower flight frequencies would mean less time on the ground. Asst Prof Fan also commented on the theoretical and real benefits of the recent mutual visa-free agreement between China and Singapore for both countries.
SMU Associate Professor of Strategy & Entrepreneurship (Education) and Academic Director of SMU’s Business Families Institute Kenneth Goh said UOB’s milestones under UOB's Chief Executive Wee Ee Cheong’s leadership reflect the chief executive’s entrepreneurial instincts. “UOB’s smooth transition from Mr Wee Cho Yaw to Mr Wee Ee Cheong is a testament to the bank’s forward-thinking approach to succession planning,” said Assoc Prof Goh.
Comparing Singapore's public transport to other cities such as London, Hong Kong, Seoul and Tokyo, experts said there has been a global shift towards account-based ticketing systems in recent years, and this can be seen in the widespread use of account-based wallets such as digital payment apps as well as direct debit. According to SMU Assistant Professor of Strategy & Entrepreneurship (Education) Terence Fan, Singapore is relatively advanced in this aspect.
In an interview, SMU Assistant Professor of Strategy & Entrepreneurship (Education) Terence Fan shared his views on the attempted transition over to SimplyGo to facilitate payment for public transport and discussed possible reasons for the outcry.
Commenting on Land Transport Authority's (LTA) shelving of its SimplyGo plan, SMU Assistant Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship (Education) Terence Fan noted that this was the second time in recent months that LTA had changed course in response to a public outcry. Looking ahead, he said LTA would eventually have to move to a single ticketing system, but the authority should make tweaks to make the system more palatable.
Commenting on Lazada's layoffs coinciding with the changes at its parent company Alibaba, SMU Associate Professor of Strategy & Entrepreneurship (Education) Kenneth Goh said that if Alibaba is gearing up for an IPO for its e-commerce unit, it must highlight more than just profitability.
On people in Singapore seeming more open to other novel foods than elsewhere, SMU Professor of Communication Management (Practice) Mark Chong explained this with a concept called kiasu.
