Driving business success and excellenceApril-June 2015 Issue

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PRESIDENT MESSAGE

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Dear members & fellow practitioners,

The year has moved quickly and we are fast approaching mid-2015. Reflecting on the past few weeks, there have been several major national issues in the spotlight within the context of the Budget 2015.

One of the most important takeaways from the ensuing Budget discussions is that the Singapore labour market growth is expected to slow down significantly as we progress towards the end of the decade. It is one thing to feel the supply crunch taking place today, and quite another to learn that local employment growth may fall to about 20,000 yearly in the latter part of this decade, compared to a workforce growth of 95,000 in 2014.

This has immense consequences for all key stakeholders in society as it requires out-of-the-box, transformational thinking. In addition to training and staff development initiatives, leaders have to re-think their organisation’s future objectives in the context of lower staffing levels, moving forward. Staff, on the other hand, need to better grasp the demands of a dynamically changing work environment, especially understanding the skillset required to do the job in the future.

As HR experts, we need to play a strategic role in bridging the organisational aspirations and visions with the capabilities and productivity of staff. A better understanding of tools, processes and support mechanisms must come to bear.

Continuous skills training will certainly be at the heart of this matter as it is the answer to meeting Singapore’s future manpower needs. In this regard, the newly announced SkillsFuture is a transformational move because the aim is to achieve sustained innovation and productivity improvement in the workforce.

SkillsFuture is about developing a workforce which is relevant, sustainable and productive to meet our long-term manpower needs. As this is a multi-faceted programme, HR experts can be strategic supporters in recommending initiatives that would work for their organisations, while getting more staff to be part of the national drive.

SkillsFuture is here to stay and we – collectively as a group of experts – need to play our part in making this work.

Another major discussion that is of equal concern to us is one that cuts across all segments of our society. This relates to the unprecedented spotlight on low-wage phenomenon in Singapore. This is a national as well as an organisational concern and we need to adopt more creative approaches to enable low-wage workers to achieve sustainable salary increases through productivity improvements and skills training.

We are aligned with the national policy of helping our low-wage workers stay relevant and employable. In the simplest terms, addressing this matter helps alleviate the manpower shortage in the economy. There has been a drive to increase access to training by bringing continuing education and training opportunities closer to workers and workplaces, especially the lower income workers.

These are major issues and challenges that will continue to be in the spotlight and we need to be part of the national debate. I look forward to stimulating greater discussion with you on the topic and working together to propel the national agenda.

Erman Tan, MSHRIPresident Singapore Human Resources Institute

HR experts must play a part in Singapore’s transformation to meet

future manpower needs

2CONTENTS

PUBLISHERSingapore Human Resources Institute2 Serangoon Road, Level 6The Verge, Singapore 218227Tel: (65) 6438 0012 Fax: (65) 6299 4864www.shri.org.sg

SHRI PRESIDENT Erman Tan, MSHRI

SHRI PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEEEthan Tan, MSHRI (Chairperson)Yin Hong Shuen, MSHRIPrabhu Naidu, MSHRIJane Lee, MSHRIKao Beng Lee, MSHRIFalilah Mohd, MSHRISamreen Jabeen, MSHRI

PUBLISHING AGENTThinkFarm Pte Ltd3 Changi South LaneSingapore 486118Tel: (65) 6831 1299www.thinkfarm.sg

MANAGING DIRECTORChristopher Tay

EDITORIAL DIRECTORAudrey Perera

CONTRIBUTING EDITORSJoseph RajendranCasuarina Peck

CREATIVE DIRECTORAlex Goh

DESIGNERMelissa Poon

CLIENT RELATIONSHIP MANAGERJessie Kek

CLIENT RELATIONSHIP EXECUTIVEKit Leung

April-June 2015 Issue

HUMAN CAPITAL is published quarterly by Singapore Human Resources Institute.For enquiries, please emailAdvertising: cheryl@shri.org.sg/advertise@thinkfarm.sgEditorial: samreen@shri.org.sg/editorial@thinkfarm.sg Events/Membership: falilah@shri.org.sg

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONSAll rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the prior written permission of the publisher. The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and contributors and do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher. Although every reasonable care had been taken to ensure the accuracy and objectivity of the information contained in this publication, neither the publishers, editors and their employees and agents can be held liable for any errors, inaccuracies and/or omissions, however caused. We shall not be liable for any actions taken based on the views expressed or information provided within this publication. We occasionally use material we believe has been placed in the public domain. Sometimes it is not possible to identify and contact the copyright owner. If you claim ownership of something we have published, we will be pleased to make a proper acknowledgement.

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3CONTENTS

TAKING STOCK

Being talent competitiveSingapore is ranked the world’s second most talent competitive country behind Switzerland and this is due to its openness to trade, investment, immigration and ideas.

SHRI CONNECTION

The Singapore HR Challenge 2015

Human Capital speaks to the winning teams and the best presenters who have proposed innovation solutions on how companies can implement fair and progressive employment.

COVER STORY

Understanding portable medical benefits

The HR approach to healthcare planning has evolved from purely employee benefit schemes to portable medical benefit programmes. Human Capital takes a closer look at how HR leverages on healthcare planning as a strategic tool.

MY VIEWS

Retiring at 65Retirement age in Singapore is on the rise. What happens when an employee reaches 65 and he/she is willing and able to continue working?

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WORKPLACE STRATEGIES

Urgent HR Challenges!A shrinking and ageing workforce has fuelled the country’s battle for talent. The future lies in workplace flexibility and career development opportunities.

TECHTAKE

Social technologies for a smarter workforce

Industry experts say social and mobile technologies are becoming increasingly powerful tools for HR practitioners to recruit talent, facilitate on-boarding and scale up to enable learning and professional development.

TEAM CONNECTION

Looking for new venues?HR managers are constantly looking for good training venues to hold their regional meetings, corporate presentations and employee trainings. What are some of the issues that HR managers should look out for before planning for their next staff training?

QUICK TAKES

The IR Act: what the changes mean

Professionals, managers and executives can now be collectively represented as a group by rank-and-file unions after Parliament passed amendments to the Industrial Relations (IR) Act earlier this year.

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TAKING STOCK

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Singapore is ranked the world’s second most talent compet-itive country behind Switzerland, says international business

school INSEAD. Third on the list is Luxembourg.The business school recently released findings from its 2014

Global Talent Competitiveness Index which measured a nation’s competitiveness based on the quality of talent it can produce, attract and retain.

INSEAD Dean Ilian Mihov said: “We live in a world where talent has become the core currency of competitiveness – for businesses and national economies alike. Yet there is an all-too-frequent mis-match between education systems and the needs of labour markets.

“Businesses and governments need new kinds of leaders and entrepreneurs, equipped with the skills that will help their firms and countries to thrive in the global knowledge economy.”

The rankings are dominated by European countries, with only six non-European countries in the top 20: Singapore (2), the US (4), Canada (5), Australia (9), New Zealand (16) and Japan (20).

The 20 top-scoring countries are all high-income countries with better universities and a greater ability to attract foreign talent through higher quality of life and remuneration – making them more talent competitive.

But beyond this correlation of talent competitiveness with wealth, the report revealed six key factors affecting talent competitiveness across countries of different GDP per capita and development levels.The six factors are:

Openness is key to talent competitiveness Switzerland, Singapore and Luxembourg are open to trade,

investment, immigration and new ideas, embracing globalisation while leveraging on their human resources.

Fiscally stable countries need talent competitiveness for

sustainable development Mineral or oil-rich countries, or those with a context-specific

competitive advantage, should foster talent competitiveness to ensure sustainable prosperity.

Talent growth can be internal or external Countries like the US and those in Europe successfully focus

on developing talent within their own borders, while others such as China attract foreign talent or send their elites abroad for further education.

Countries must consider employability or risk high unemployment ‘Talent for growth’ means meeting the actual needs of a national

economy. Switzerland, Singapore and the Nordic countries have customised their education systems towards appropriate levels of employable skills.

Singapore’s openness to trade, investment, immigration and new ideas has played a role in making the country a leader in this aspect of economic success.

Being talentcompetitive

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Education systems need to reconsider traditional learning Talent development must go beyond traditional formal education

to develop vocational skills. Students are encouraged to choose the apprenticeship track rather than the university route so that they become employable early in life.

Technology is changing the meaning of ‘employable skills’ Technological advances in the form of big data and business

analytics will affect new segments of the labour market, impacting the 250 million ‘knowledge workers’ globally. Given the rapidity with which technological changes take place, employers have a central responsibility for adapting their labour forces to such challenges.

In Singapore, the talent hunt is set to intensify this year as employers increasingly seek to hire Singapore talent. Research from the latest 2015 Hays Asia Salary Guide reveal that hiring demand is expected to continue across most sectors this year.

The findings also show that salaries are unlikely to reflect this level of demand. This year, 54% of Singapore firms gave their staff a salary increase of 3 to 6%, compared to last year’s 59%.

1 Switzerland

2 Singapore

3 Luxembourg

4 United States

5 Canada

6 Sweden

7 United Kingdom

8 Denmark

9 Australia

10 Ireland

2014 Global Talent Competitiveness Index Rankings

TOP 10

HR executives working in small and medium sized companies (SMEs) can now seek help from govern-ment agencies in managing HR-related functions.

SPRING Singapore is ramping up its support to SMEs by creating a shared HR solutions platform which will gather a pool of HR solutions providers who will provide much-needed expertise in this area. This platform will enable micro enterprises and SMEs to outsource their administrative HR functions to this shared platform.

Minister of State for Trade and Industry Teo Ser Luck said: “Participating SMEs can benefit by outsourcing their administrative HR activities, so that they can focus their limited manpower on their core functions.”

The move is part of ongoing efforts to encourage collaboration among SMEs, Teo said. “Collaboration helps our SMEs build track records, pool resources, share best practices and create new business opportunities.”

SPRING Singapore aims to enrol 50 companies in the platform which firms were able to use from April 2015.

for SMEs

New HR platform

Smaller firms to receive help with HR activities.

TAKING STOCK

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Lifelong learning through SkillsFuture

Fresh Poly-technic and

ITE graduates in the Food Manu-facturing industry can look forward to a headstart in their careers.

Through the Workforce Development Agency’s (WDA) SkillsFuture Earn and Learn Programme, graduates will be given relevant training and opportunities to learn on the job, leading to industry-recognised certifications such as Advanced or Specialist Diplomas.

They can also enjoy skills-based wage increments and mean-ingful career advancement pathways when they complete the programme and achieve satisfactory job performance.

Designed in close collaboration with employers, this pro-gramme spans 12 to 18 months. It integrates on-the-job training, mentorship, facilitated learning, in-company projects and, poten-tially, overseas attachments to provide fresh polytechnic and ITE graduates with practical workplace learning, to better respond to evolving industry needs.

The SkillsFuture Earn and Learn programme will be rolled out first for the Food Manufacturing industry, followed by seven other sectors over the next few months. The other sectors include Food

WDA’s Earn and Learn programme promotes staff career advancement.

Services, Games Development, Logistics, Infocomm Technology, Marine and Offshore Engineering, Retail, and Precision Engineering.

Career advancementSpeaking at the programme launch, Senior Minister of State for Man-power and Health Dr Amy Khor said that this is a national effort to provide all Singaporeans with opportunities to advance in their careers through skills, regardless of their starting points and quali-fications.

“For SkillsFuture to succeed, employers have to value skills and be prepared to invest in helping workers achieve skills mastery,” she explained. “They need to offer meaningful and attractive career progression pathways that are built upon skills. This is particularly so in a tight labour market, in order to

attract and retain talent.”The SkillsFuture Earn and

Learn programme is created to support both individuals and

employers in developing higher skills and capabilities.

SkillsfutureEarn and Learn Programme offers:

Full-timeEmployment

Participants will be full-time employees

of participating companies

Structured Learning

Participants will benefit from structured

workplace learning, in-house mentorship, job rotation and talent

development plansCareer

Progression Pathways

Key Features of SkillsFuture Earn and

Learn Programme• Matching participants to employers which are related to

their disciplines, allowing them to deepen skills acquired in school through workplace learning and mentorship.

• Participants will undergo structured on-the-job training and mentorship, leading to industry-recognised certification.

• Assigning participants mentors and support in continual skills development in accordance with the company’s talent development plan.

• Participants will have a well-structured career development pathway in the company.

7TAKING STOCK

The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) is calling for a Skillsave

Account to allow workers to plan for their own training and to use the account to pay for unfunded portions of training courses.

NTUC Assistant Secretary-General Pat-rick Tay said that this initiative could also be supported by other Government schemes such as ASPIRE, SkillsFuture and CET2020.

Tay hoped that this initiative will empower workers to make their own learning decisions and address current gaps for some workers who do not have access to the Workfare Training Support (WTS) Scheme.

He explained that this proposed initiative can also be used to help workers pay for the unfunded portions of training, as well as to fund Continuing Education and Training (CET) programmes.

The WTS scheme encourages older low-wage workers to upgrade their skills through training so that they can improve their employability, upgrade to better jobs and earn more.

Recruitment firm Randstad’s Coun-try Director for Singapore, Michael Smith, agreed: “Upskilling and re-skilling are vital for employees to remain relevant in today’s competitive labour market. Having access to training opportunities is one of the driving factors leading employees to remain with their organisation.”

According to the 2014 Randstad World of Work Report, seven in 10 employees in Singapore cited the lack of opportunity for career growth and advancement as a major reason for leaving their current jobs.

Charting your owntraining path

NTUC moots idea for individual training account for Singaporean workers.

SkillsFuture Earn and Learn programme

• Matching Polytechnic and ITE graduates and employers for structured on-the-job training and membership leading to industry qualifications.

Targeted support For career progression

• SkillsFuture Study Awards for Singaporeans to develop deep specialist skills in future growth clusters.

• SkillsFuture will be introduced from 2016 to help Singaporeans achieve mastery in their respective fields.

• SkillsFuture Leadership Development Initiate for companies to develop Singaporean corporate leaders.

A new industry collaborationSectoral Manpower Plans (SMPs) will be developed in all key sectors by 2020.• Boost SMEs’ training capabilities

through a pool of SkillsFuture mentors.

SkillsFuture Helping businesses

enhance staff capabilities

TAKING STOCK

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Leadership development is viewed as critical to business success and a

key priority for companies in Latin Amer-ica, according to Mercer’s recent study on leadership practices.

Nearly three-quarters of organisations in Latin America have a defined leadership development strategy – significantly higher than companies in the Asia Pacific and the Middle East.

Mercer’s Leadership Practices Study comprised a series of research reports based on surveys conducted from 2012 to 2014 that compare current leadership trends in the Asia Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East from nearly 1,000 companies.

The study examined how companies approach leadership strategy, assessment, development and succession planning.

Kate Bravery, Mercer’s Growth Markets Leadership & Organisational Performance Practice Leader, explained: “To achieve long term success, a more strategic approach to nurturing the pipeline of leaders is required.

“This starts by translating core business objectives into a leadership strategy that defines the talent pool, competencies and the tactics required to build leaders from within. It continues with an execution plan that helps businesses identify, develop and accelerate the critical talent moves that will help them achieve real competitive advan-tage,” she added.

Improving leadership:key to growth

Defining the talent pool, the competencies and the tactics

required to build workplace leaders.

The research programme found that companies in the Asia Pacific are adopting effective practices for nurturing leadership talent by investing heavily in training and developing senior level and global leaders at the top of their organisations.

However, the studies also identi-fied critical gaps in current planning that potentially limit organisations’ ability to produce the multi-skilled leaders required in modern, rapidly-growing businesses, as well as differences in the leadership competencies that are deemed critical for success by companies in each region.

Key findings:• Companies can do more to plan and

prepare for the next generation of leaders. Fewer than half of the com-panies conduct regular pipeline projec-tions, and very few have specific plans for developing key segments of their workforce (e.g. women or grooming local talent) and even fewer have met-rics for tracking progress on pipeline management.

• Many businesses are not effectively identifying who is ready for the next move or position within their leader-ship pipeline. Some 15% of businesses in the Asia Pacific, 20% in Latin America and just 6% in the Middle East report that they have strong, “ready-now”

successors in place for critical leader-ship roles.

• Under-investment in the development of frontline leaders. Companies are spending less annually per person on training and developing middle level and frontline leaders than they do on global or senior level leaders. In the Asia Pacific, under-investment is even starker, with just 5% of companies achieving this level of spending for individuals at the earliest stage of the pipeline – the next generation of leaders.

• Companies view a leader’s ability to ‘create strategy’ as one of the most critical competencies for leadership success. Some 64% of companies in the Middle East, 52% in Latin America and 36% in the Asia Pacific prioritise strategic competencies above other operational, people or personal capa-bilities.

The Asia Pacific: Key insights• Leadership development strategies

may be in place, but execution remains a significant problem; per-formance management processes are not effectively identifying who is ready for the next move within the leadership pipeline.

• Systems and processes for executing talent management processes are inefficient.

• Organisations are not focusing leadership development efforts on women, despite them making up a percentage of senior management.

• Companies are still relying on expatriates rather than local talent for top leadership roles, calling into question the effectiveness of leadership development and localisation strategies.

• Inves tment i n l eadersh ip development is concentrated on top-level leaders.

• Leaders and managers are not accountable for grooming future leadership talent.

• People-related competencies are not among those seen as most critical for leadership success.

• There is a disconnect between development methods rated most effective (“stretch” assignments) and those most widely used (classroom training and individual development plans).

COMINGEVENTS

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10 JULY

SHRI’s 50th Anniversary Gala SHRI’s 50th Anniversary Gala celebrates SHRI’s 50 years of powering human capital in Singapore. Minister for Manpower Mr Lim Swee Say will be gracing this event as Guest-of-Honour. SHRI’s 50th anniversary commemorative publication will also be launched at this gala.

The Singapore HR Awards 2015 will also be presented to recipients. This Award celebrates leading organisations and HR practitioners in their drive for impactful human capital strategies. As one of SHRI’s signature events, it serves as an excellent platform to promote and recognise excellence within the HR profession in Singapore by highlighting leading organisational HR practices and individuals (CEOs, HR Leaders, HR Entrepreneurs, HR Professionals and HR Executives).

Learn how you can be a part of SHRI’s events! Please contact Marc Wong at marc@shri.org.sg, for enquiries on Singapore HR Awards 2015, Falilah Mohamed at falilah@shri.org.sg.

SHRI Global HR Seminar SHRI’s inaugural SHRI Global HR Seminar takes place, with the focus on Talent Analytics in HR. This topic was inspired by the observation that organisations today do not sufficiently consider big data that ultimately determines critical business decisions. As the business world is transformed by the sheer volume, speed, and availability of data, more emphasis must be placed on talent analytics as a must-have capability in HR. Besides building a case for talent analytics, the SHRI Global HR Seminar also aims to feature a sharing of thought-leadership in managing current and future HR challenges, not just in Singapore but regionally and internationally.

MARK THIS DATE!

THE RITZ-CARLTON, MILLENIA, SINGAPORE

SHRI CONNECTION

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Organised by Singapore Human Resources Institute, the Singapore

HR Challenge 2015 encouraged partici-pants to use their knowledge to address contemporary human resource issues, said winners of this year’s event.

The competition allowed young, aspiring HR and business leaders to provide insights from a fresh perspective.

“The HR Challenge encouraged us to be more innovative and either incorporate our ideas with other initiatives to achieve better synergy or ultimately choosing tested and proven solutions that were proven to be successful in many contexts,” said MarTeam (Nanyang Technological University) team leader Martin Tan, who led the winning team in the university category.

Engaging future leadersThe annual event seeks to engage future leaders, people managers, critical thinkers, and contributors of the new workforce. It aims to groom and develop the next gen-eration of future-ready people managers for the HR fraternity, showcase innovation

Singapore HR Challenge 2015

Students challenged to use classroom theories to tackle real-world issues.

and creativity and promote progressive HR. Organised in partnership with the Minis-

try of Manpower (MOM) and supported by the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progres-sive Employment Practices (TAFEP), the 8th HR Challenge was focused on “Building Fair & Progressive Workplaces in Singapore”.

Participants from various educational institutions were brought together to under-stand existing organisation policies, pro-grammes and practices in the area of fair and progressive employment, as well as how middle management in organisations are equipped with the knowledge and skills to implement such practices.

Effective solutions for implementationSome 30 teams took part in the 2015 com-petition, including students from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore Institute of Management, Nanyang Polytechnic, Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Republic Polytechnic, Sin-gapore Polytechnic, Temasek Polytechnic, Anglo Chinese Junior College, ITE College East and ITE College Central.

The key objectives of the Singapore HR

Challenge 2015 were for students to provide original and effective ideas for organisations to recruit, engage and retain key talents, hence, promoting good integration and multi-cultural diversity among its workforce.

Each team conducted interviews with HR representatives from two different organ-isations and two diverse industry sectors to understand their existing policies, pro-grammes and practices in various areas including recruitment and selection, per-formance management, grievance handling and capability development of managers and supervisors.

The results were then presented in a consolidated report, which included an analysis of the similarities and differences between the organisations/industry sectors as well as recommendations on how to overcome identified barriers and lever-age enablers to build fair and progressive workplaces.

Gaining new insights, experienceSpeaking to Human Capital, Martin said that “Prior to Singapore HR Challenge, our

SHRI CONNECTION

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whole team did not have any experience participating any case-related competition. We felt that participating in the challenge could help us gain new insights and expe-rience as participants of a national level competition.”

He added: “We wanted to develop our-selves in the HR field by gaining more prac-tical insights on contemporary HR issues, as well as analyse how local companies utilise their HR practices and its impact on their employees and stakeholders.”

Admitting that the competition was defi-nitely not easy, he said, “Our never-give-up spirit helped us pull through as we continu-ously improved our report and presentation up until the very last minute before the submission. We are glad that it paid off.”

Focus on retaining talentReflecting his team’s experience, Polytech-nic category winning team's leader Farrell Tham told Human Capital that his team “managed to provide certain recommenda-tions that were targeted at retaining talent, and improving the organisation as a whole.

“From the interview, we compared both organisations’ policies and how such poli-cies were suitable for their workplace. With the help from our mentor who has HR rele-vant experience, we ironed out the feasibility of our recommendations to suit company needs and that of specific industries,” said Tham, leader of Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s HiRe Me team.

Tham felt that the key takeaway from the HR Challenge 2015 is that “Every employee should be considered on equal and fair grounds. No employee should be overlooked based on perceptual or group biases”.

He explained that organisations should look towards integrating close bonds and harmony among staff, so that they can be open and expressive based on transparent and progressive policies. “This ties in with what our nation strives for – a meritocratic society,” he added.

Team Superhuman fom Anglo-Chinese Junior College won in the ITE/JC category.

Awarding best presentersTeams aside, the Challenge also recog-

nised three of the best presenters from the 2015 event – Benson Fan from Anglo Chinese Junior College for the ITE/JC category, Ngoh Man Hua from Singapore Polytechnic for the Polytechnic Category, and Mae Chong from NTU from the Uni-versity category.

Chong told Human Capital that “through this experience, I’ve learnt that while what we were taught in school can be put to use in the real world, these concepts must be handpicked and contextualised to situations for them to be effective.

“Since businesses differ from one com-pany to another, there is no textbook, one-size-fits-all solution that we can readily apply to any company. Importantly, this competition has encouraged me to ven-ture beyond prescribed curricular learning, because these challenges will provide enrichment in very many different ways than in an academic context,” she said.

“The HR Challenge was a great platform for such exposure, and I’m thankful that the SHRI had given us this opportunity to participate,” she added.

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Expert insights at SHRI Outlook 2015SHRI marks its 50 years of powering human capital in

Singapore through its first key event of the year.

Evolving developments in industrial relations and staying employable in

a tight labour market topped the agenda at the SHRI Outlook 2015 event.

This annual event, which brought together industry experts, has become a key forum for them to share valuable insights and advice on the current HR and labour trends, changes to the Industrial Relations Act and new approaches to managing people trends for tomorrow.

Organised in partnership with NTUC and sponsored by Ampersand, LexisNexis, Ayam Brand and EventXtra, this year’s programme included presentations on: • 'Industrial Relations 2015' by NTUC's

Assistant Secretary-General Patrick Tay• 'Staying Employable in a tight labour

market' by Employment and Employ-ability Institute (e2i) CEO Gilbert Tan

• ‘Labour market developments and the Challenges ahead’ by Ministry of Man-power's Divisional Director for Man-power Planning and Policy Division Adrian Chua,

• 'Navigating 2015’s challenging eco-nomic environment' by OCBC Bank's Head of Treasury Research & Strategy Selena LingSpeaking at the event, SHRI Presi-

dent Erman Tan said: “Many of us work in changing competitive environments. If we do not keep up with news and trends, we can miss key opportunities and can be caught unaware.

“Hence, it is crucial to keep-in-touch with news and trends in our industries which will reap many benefits not only for yourself but also for your organisations and give you a competitive edge. This is even more important if you contribute to shaping your organisation's strategy,” he said.

E2i‘s CEO Gilbert Tan, who was one of the speakers at the SHRI Outlook, said: "Companies can stay competitive by under-standing the market, responding to environ-ment and finding the right partners.”

He also called for employers to join the productivity push and turn to technology to ease their dependence on manpower.

NTUC’s Assistant Secretary-General Patrick Tay also commented: “There has been a string of legislative and policy changes to cater to a growing number of PMEs in our Singapore workforce.”

Hence, NTUC has been lobbying for PMEs to learn a second skill so they can increase their job opportunities, said Tay. He also commented that PMETs should try new job opportunities available in the marketplace.

Erman Tan laboured his point that “With the ever-changing trends in Singapore, it is important that we are receptive to the recent and impending changes to HR laws as well as leading HR trends, and proactively make informed business decisions.”

“With new insights and learning points, we can propel forward to a more sustainable future,” he added.

SHRI Connects with Members

SHRI organises various events, seminars and workshops for HR members and business leaders. Various networking and sharing sessions are held frequently to update CEOs, HR and senior executives on the happenings affecting the human resource and business climates.

For more information, check out www.shri.org.sg.

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SHRI 2014Book Prize

Interest in HR instrumental to learning, say winners. Stepping up efforts to recognise the excellent performance of students

pursuing higher learning in human resources, SHRI awarded two winners the 2014 SHRI Prize for Diploma in Business Studies. The prizes were presented by Ngee Ann Poly-technic's Director of the School of Business & Accountancy Mrs Anna Yap.

One was former Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP) student, Jordan Tan, who had started his HR route with one HR module in his second year and subsequently went on to specialise in HR in his third year.

The second winner was Leong Wee Leng, formerly a Ngee Ann Polytechnic (NP) student who signed up for the HR module each year as she believed that understand-ing HR matters would be instrumental in her pursuit of marketing.

Tan is now waiting to enter a Singapore university to pursue a degree which he hopes will further his HR learning, while Leong is in her final leg of securing her degree at Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) University.

Jordan Tan (top) and Leong Wee Leng re-ceiving their SHRI Book Prizes from Mrs Anna Yap, Ngee Ann Poly-technic's Director of the School of Business & Accountancy.

SHRI Celebrates HR Day: 1 March

Charity bowl to support SPD.

Singapore Human Resources Institute (SHRI) organised a charity bowl for its

members and partners in conjunction with HR Day on 1 March 2015 at the Orchid Bowl located at Downtown East.

HR Day aims to recognise the significant contributions of HR and people managers, as well as to foster and promote goodwill, comradeship and friendship amongst the HR fraternity. It encourages the HR and business community to reflect upon the critical role played by HR professionals in developing the building blocks of Singapore.

Among those who attended the HR Day Charity Bowl 2015 was Guest of Honour Mr Hri Kumar Nair, MP for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC. Organised for SHRI members, 32

teams formed by corporate organisations participated in the event.

The event was packed with various inter-esting activities to spur the innovativeness and creativity of HR practitioners, as well as an opportunity for members to network with SHRI's tripartite partners, trade and industry associations and representatives of leading HR organisations.

A donation of $5,000 was presented to SPD (formerly known as Society for the Physically Disabled), a voluntary welfare organisation that provides programmes and services for the disabled. HR Day Charity Bowl 2015 was sponsored by Neo Garden Catering, Ayam Brand, The Central Singa-pore Community Development Council and

Botak Jones, and the event was supported by SHRI Academy and SHRI Corp.

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NUH_Advertorial Ad9-FAp.pdf 1 3/20/15 1:26 PM

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HR leverages on strategic healthcare planning as a strategic tool to attract and retain talent while managing costs.

portable medical benefits

For many HR managers, the approach to healthcare planning has evolved

from purely employee benefit schemes to portable medical benefit programmes and now possibly, cross-border pooling of employee health and risk benefits.

This complexity indicates how today’s HR practitioners need to look beyond con-ventional offerings to develop valuable tools for human resource attraction and retention.

For this article, Human Capital spoke to several experts to find out what policies they need to grasp and what trends they need to look out for in the interests of their employees.

Slower economic growth, structural and cyclical unemployment, and unexpected risks related to pandemic viruses such as H1N1, SARS, Ebola or any number of growing epidemics that could affect the workforce, are realities that HR practitioners have to increasingly contend with.

Barely a generation ago, these factors were remote considerations. Today, they must be expected and planned for.

Within the Singapore context, there is now greater awareness of these macroe-conomic trends and micro developments.

Specifically within the context of HR healthcare planning, medical benefits are taken for granted at the employee level.

The Singapore Government has deliv-ered good healthcare outcomes for Singa-poreans through a mixed financing system, the use of market-based mechanisms to promote competition and transparency, and the adoption of technology to improve the delivery of healthcare services.

The issue lies in many employees assuming that should anything unforeseen take place, Singapore’s current health-care financing system – namely Medisave, MediShield, and Medifund – will tide them over.

While this may be the case in some instances, it is not necessarily true in others.

Reality check on healthcare costsHealthcare costs today are outstripping general inflation. Advances in medical tech-nology and drugs, the growing demand for quality and quantity of healthcare profes-sionals, and escalating administrative costs linked to insurance premiums, all contribute to escalating healthcare costs.

A 2014 white paper titled What Deter-mines the Goals of Healthcare Financing Policies in Singapore? by the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy addresses the leading question:

“Who pays for free healthcare? … The question of who pays for healthcare is

Understanding

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nevertheless an important one because the distribution of financial burden has a significant impact on access to quality care for low to moderate-income families, and on tax burden for richer families.”

Within this context lie the key questions relating to the role of how human resource experts need to take a strategic perspective to craft programmes that address health planning needs – present and future – of their workforce.

Providing benefits to staffFor organisations and human resource prac-titioners, healthcare benefits are increasingly becoming an “obligation and necessity – this is how many companies view the provision of healthcare for their employees,” ScienTec Consulting founder and CEO Karen Tok tells Human Capital.

“Although many go beyond providing the minimum that is required by law to include medical insurance coverage and dental reimbursements, there is more that they can do to differentiate themselves from the rest to attract the best talent,” she explained.

Towers Watson Asia Pacific senior con-sultant Rajesh Daswani said human resource

practitioners would do well to heed to the notion of multinational pooling, which combines a company’s group insurance contracts for employee benefits in different countries under one financing arrangement to create savings through economies of scale. (See story on ‘Cross-Border Pooling of Healthcare Benefits?’ on p23)

In PricewaterhouseCoopers’ HealthCast 2020 report covering countries including Singapore, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, the UK and the US, it was estimated that health spending for the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries will more than triple to US$10 trillion by 2020, consuming 21% of GDP in the US and 16% of GDP in other OECD countries.

Means testing frameworkWhile trying to keep healthcare costs low in Singapore, the Government is also steadily moving away from subsidies because this distorts the demand-and-supply equation.

Under the new means testing framework implemented in 2009, patients whose income is S$3,200 and below receive substantial subsidies while patients with higher incomes

A Portable Medical Benefits Scheme (PMBS) or a Trans-

ferable Medical Insurance Scheme (TMIS) is one where essentially, medical coverage and protection is customised by the organisation so that employees can enjoy continu-ous benefit.

It is a hospital and surgical plan that rides on the framework of an employee’s individual private shield plan, except that it is partly or wholly paid for by the company.

Such schemes can potentially offer affordable, better and more comprehensive medical coverage with guaranteed unlimited lifetime cover, a feature which individuals can retain for life regardless of their employment status.

Because of the portability, such schemes rule out underwriting diffi-culties to get any pre-existing illness covered when individuals leave their jobs and wish to apply for health insurance again. Designed for the provision of inpatient hospitalisation medical benefits, PMBS rides on the Medisave/Medishield framework.

What is a Portable Medical Benefits Scheme (PMBS)?

receive graduated, smaller subsidies.With expectations of quality health-

care services including medical services, technologies and better drugs increasing, it is even more critical for employees to be covered for the “what if’s”.

Most companies cover doctors’ visits for the common cold and flu. For catastrophic illnesses, employers are most likely – in cur-rent times – to provide only limited coverage.

The way to go is for HR practitioners to be more strategic and creative in developing human resource healthcare programmes that tightly integrate into their broader goal of staff acquisition and retention.

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Employee benefit schemesEmployee benefit schemes have been and continue to be the mainstay of what HR practitioners offer to potential employees entering a company.

In essence, employing organisations tie up with an insurer or its broking agent to develop a group medical insurance plan that covers their employees’ hospital and surgical expenses, emergency treatment expenses, as well as visits to general prac-titioners and specialists.

Some organisations may top up some of these benefits by offering their employees dental benefits and/or pregnancy-related benefits for female staff or their spouses.

As one major insurer told Human Capital: “These benefits are not very common and tend to be offered very selectively by companies that perform consistently well.”

In today’s context, most HR practitioners are well trained in selling the employee benefits schemes within the context of their employee attraction and retention efforts.

As a matter of fact, major players like AIA Sin-gapore have perfected their employee benefit scheme and have offered it to both small and MNC organisations alike.

AIA Singapore was the first-in-market to launch an online portal for clients to access their policy benefits, claim status, as well as implement other online transactions; first-in-market to make claim processing at hospitals easier and quicker; first-in-market to launch a flexible packaged employee benefits programme for small-and-medium enterprises; and first-in-market to launch a mobile application for clients to access their policy information and submit claims on-the-go.

Planning for the futureThese are all well and good as long as employees continue to stay with an organi-sation, experts say. However, there are many external factors which derail the thinking that these benefits will be sufficient for future needs.

The absence of longevity employment contracts and the growing incidence of unusual illnesses, among other factors, are also causes for concern.

Hence, there has been a growing move among HR practitioners to find ways to put the long-term interests of their staff at the heart of what they do.

For instance, to deliver an effective health plan requires the employee to have some element of portability in their health-care coverage.

Employers should consider taking up portable medical

benefits that ride on MediShield Life or provide additional

Medisave contributions to help their workers pay for

MediShield Life or Integrated Shield Plan premiums.

- Cham Hui Fong, Assistant Secretary-General, NTUC

Portable medical benefits schemeTo circumvent the limitations of group employee benefit schemes, continuous – portable or transferable – medical cover is the way to go, several experts told Human Capital.

The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), a big supporter of PMBS, has repeatedly said that flexibility under such a scheme lies in its lifetime coverage – regardless of the employment status of workers.

To cater for the additional Medisave contribution under PMBS, the govern-ment raised the limit of additional Medisave contribution to S$1,500 per year. Similarly, the tax exemption limit for employees for additional Medisave contribution has also been raised to S$1,500 per year.

The key issue here is that employers need to view robust medical benefits

as an investment in their staff, if not one of their talent retention

tools. Employers need to look at long-term benefits rather than focus on short-term costs reductions.

Cur ren t l y, med ica l expenses incurred by employers are tax deductible, up to 2% of their total payroll. For employers who choose not to implement PMBS, tax

deductibility in respect of med-ical expenses will be reduced

from the present 2% to 1% of the total payroll. Alternatively, compa-

nies and employees could consider co-funding the premiums for PMBS,

achieving a win-win for both sides.

Resilient insurance policiesOperating in the current challenging eco-nomic climate calls for prudent but well thought-out and resilient healthcare strat-egies, some experts said.

Insurance companies are of the view that policy makers need to mandate long sighted solutions to embrace beneficial health insurance products in the market. Employers should take a more creative look at their bottom line when managing cost cuts, and employees should start thinking about the basics and what really matters in such trying times, say these experts.

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NTUC recently reiterated its position on getting more companies onboard PMBS as a possible way of reducing duplication in medical insurance coverage.

“Employers should consider taking up portable medical benefits that ride on MediShield Life or provide additional Medis-ave contributions to help their workers pay for MediShield Life or Integrated Shield Plan premiums. We have earlier called on the Government and employers to review and find ways to remove duplication of coverage and are heartened that the MediShield Life Review Committee has heeded our call to review the potential duplication of medical insurance benefits,” said NTUC Assistant Secretary-General Cham Hui Fong.

The Medishield Life Review Commit-tee was convened in November 2013 as part of the Singapore government’s plan to provide universal lifetime MediShield coverage for Singaporeans. The commit-tee presented its report in 2014 with the key thrust of improving the health cover of Singaporeans.

With regard to the MediShield Life Final Report per se, Cham said that NTUC wel-comed the recommendation for the Gov-ernment to improve the existing regulatory and accountability framework for Integrated Shield Plans and their approved insurers. This includes enhancing responsible selling requirements, such as necessitating insurer representatives to explain how Integrated Shield Plan premiums increase with age.

NTUC held eight focus group discus-sions in March and April 2014 with over 300 participants from various communities such as union leaders, youth, families, active agers, women, the self-employed, freelanc-ers and pensioners. Their recommendations on MediShield Life were made public in April 2014 and the scheme is kicking into effect in late 2015.

“We look forward to the Government’s plans to step up outreach and public educa-tion efforts on healthcare financing. We will work with our tripartite partners to convey the full recommendations to our workers,” she said.

While the benefits of implementing PMBS in an organisation can be overwhelm-ing, experts say the benefits are compelling.

“Today, many companies which offer traditional employee benefits operate with

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structured and time-tested systems,” said one industry expert. “The insurance com-panies or their brokers who work with their customers have robust IT systems which can deliver on a consistent experience.”

By moving from an employee benefits scheme to a PMBS scheme, there will be challenges. These relate to the need to make changes to the payments to the various stakeholders and ensuring proper administration.

But the benefits supersede the short-term challenges, they added.

Qualifying conditions

Portable Medical Benefits Scheme

• Employer should implement PMBS for at least 20% of the local employees employed by him as at the first day of the financial year being assessed and all local employees who commence their employment during that financial year;

• For full-time employees, the additional monthly contribution to Medisave should be at least 1% of an employee’s gross monthly salary, subject to a minimum contribution of $16 per calendar month;

• For part-time employees, the additional monthly Medisave contribution should be computed based on at least 1% of the employee’s gross rate of pay for the calendar month.

Transferable Medical Insurance Scheme

• Employer should implement TMIS for at least 50% of the local employees who are employed as at the first day of the financial year being assessed.

Provision of Shield plan

• Employer should provide Shield plans for at least 20% of the local employees employed as at the first day of the financial year being assessed and all local employees who commence their employment during that financial year; and

• Employer should pay Shield plan premiums on behalf of their employees directly to the insurance company or reimburse the premium into their employees’ Medisave accounts.

HR practitioners understand well that company-based medical benefits

cease when an employee leaves the com-pany or retires from employment.

The employee may be subject to under-writing when he joins a new company, or seek to purchase his own medical insur-ance. The new medical insurance policy may also exclude any pre-existing illnesses from coverage.

Portable medical benefits arrangements provide continuous medical coverage for employees who are in-between jobs and after retirement. They minimise overlapping

or duplication of coverage, thereby reducing cost for employers and employees.

Hence, tripartite partners have rec-ommended that companies implement portable medical benefits arrangements.

According to the Ministry of Manpower, it has received feedback from employers. Some of them prefer to provide inpatient medical benefits in the form of Shield plans to their employees, instead of implementing PMBS or TMIS.

They will either pay the premium of such plans directly to the insurance company or reimburse the premium into employees’

Medisave accounts. As these arrangements can also achieve

the objective of enhancing portability of medical benefits, the Government, in con-junction with its tripartite partners, will extend higher tax deduction for medical expenses to employers with such arrange-ments.

To make it easier for companies to embark on PMBS, the Singapore gov-ernment has implemented tax deduction qualifying conditions for different portable medical benefits arrangements.

Here is the snapshot:

Source: Ministry of Manpower

Portable Medical Healthcare – How does my company benefit?

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Healthcare benefits are an obligation and necessity – this is how many com-

panies view the provision of healthcare for their employees, said Karen Tok, Founder and CEO of ScienTec Consulting Pte Ltd, an executive search, specialist recruitment, employee outsourcing and HR support services provider.

Although many go beyond providing the minimum that is required by law to include medical insurance coverage and dental reimbursements, there is more that they can do to differentiate themselves from the rest to attract the best talent, she asserted.

“As a recruitment and employee out-sourcing firm, we interact directly with thou-sands of active and passive candidates every year. We have found that in the past year, more of them are weighing healthcare benefits against their remuneration when making the decision to join or stay in a company,” she said.

“This is particularly so for middle to senior level candidates for whom personal and family health are more of a concern than for entry level candidates. Hence, when developing healthcare benefit pack-ages, companies should consider it as an important part of its talent attraction strategy, and not just as an obligation. Healthcare benefits if implemented correctly can be cost-effective, and more importantly, help build strong employer branding,” she added.

Putting the care into healthcare Existing healthcare benefits offered by employers that are less common but valued by employees include: Specialist consul-tation and treatment, healthcare benefits for the immediate family and/or parents of employees, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chiropractic and Osteopathic healthcare, and optical consultation.

In addition, there are various wellness initiatives that a company can invest in to stand out as being progressive and going the extra mile to demonstrate that it cares. These include: health screenings, employee group fitness regimes, subsidising gymnasium memberships, health challenge competi-tions, talks on nutrition, stress management, and ergonomics, among others.

Flexing your budgetOne of the options open to HR practitioners is for their companies to incorporate some or all of the above-mentioned benefits without getting into an over the-hill-budget.

They could be included in a flexi-ben-efits scheme where employees can pick and choose the most relevant benefits for themselves, said Tok.

The increase in costs stemming from better healthcare benefits can be justified if there is a talent acquisition budget in a company’s overall employer branding strat-egy; a budget that many companies today have set aside to market to potential talent.

Be resourceful and outsourceIt is a challenge, especially for smaller companies (with less than 50 employees), to secure attractive healthcare packages for their staff. One solution is to contract them out to an employee outsourcing firm.

Due to economies of scale, they will be able to provide enhanced healthcare for staff, in addition to the other key ser-vices such as looking after the employ-ee’s employment records, management

of salary and bene-fits, promotions and increments, claims reimbursement, reg-ulatory and statutory requirements and all performance man-agement matters.

For companies that depend heav-

ily on a contingent workforce, it is even more important to

ensure that the healthcare benefits are attractive, especially in Singapore where it is harder to find candidates who are willing to work on short-term contracts.

“Generally, they also have no or lower benefits when compared to full-time employ-ees. We are seeing a trend of employers who are offering either higher salaries or better benefits to attract such employees” said Tok.

In addition to employee outsourcing, there is also consultancy outsourcing and brokering services for healthcare benefits. The advantage of hiring a consultant lies in working with a specialist who is able to design various benefits package around a company's objectives and budget.

In addition, they are also in the ideal position to provide critical advice regarding compliance with government policies and regulations. Having a healthcare service broker also requires no upfront cost (they are paid by the insurance companies) and they are able to present a wide range of healthcare insurance plans to choose from, at highly competitive rates.

Towards becoming an Employer of ChoiceThere need to be concerted efforts in plan-ning for healthcare solutions that match employees’ expectations without deviating too far from the company’s cost structure.

However, offering attractive healthcare benefits demonstrates that an employer cares, which will go a long way in gener-ating outcomes that are beneficial to both parties – healthy and productive employees who are loyal, and a strong employer brand that continually attracts the best people.

...they also have no or lower benefits when compared

to full-time employees. We are seeing ...employers

who are offering either higher

salaries or better benefits to attract such employees.

Are healthcare benefits an obligation or a talent attraction strategy?

Karen Tok, Founder and CEO,

ScienTec Consulting Pte Ltd

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Cross-border pooling of healthcare benefits?

utilisation of employee benefit plans. In comparison, supply-side approaches apply financing strategies and leverage vendor relationships to create cost efficiencies, added Daswani.

“The companies that benefit the most from pooling and captives share several characteristics,” he explained. “In general, they systematically strive to actively manage their arrangements, expand their use of

Human resource practitioners would do well to heed to the notion of multi-

national pooling, which combines a compa-ny’s group insurance contracts for employee benefits in different countries under one financing arrangement to create savings through economies of scale. Sources of these economies of scale include risk reduc-tion and administrative efficiencies.

Towers Watson Asia Pacific senior con-sultant Rajesh Daswani said that the use of insurance pooling networks to finance employee benefits is a concept that is still in its infancy in Asia Pacific.

“With operational cost reduction and synergies still very much at the top of the corporate agenda, multinational pooling is an increasingly popular way for com-panies to use their global spending power to achieve savings, and at the same time, spread the risk of their employee benefit plans across multiple geographies and business areas,” he said.

“This signifies an untapped opportunity for Asian multinationals, especially those in expansion mode. Leveraging an organisa-tion’s size in financing its employee benefits can reap considerable cost savings with little downside risk.”

Economies of scaleHe added that new research by Towers Watson, a global professional services con-sultancy, found there may be significant savings to be gained from the use of these financing solutions.

Specifically, global companies that oper-ate multinational pooling arrangements were found to generate annual average returns of 6.1% of paid premiums.

He said that HR practitioners must manage these long-term costs if their com-panies are to remain competitive in the global war for talent and keep pace in their marketplaces.

Balancing both sidesAccomplishing this typically requires a combination of demand-side and sup-ply-side tactics. Demand-side approaches focus on increasing consumer awareness and financial participation in health care decisions.

Supporting healthier lifestyles for employees can eventually lead to lower

pools and captives, ensure balance and explore new opportunities, while ending arrangements that perform poorly.

“The best outcomes are achieved when companies eliminate distractions, such as decisions that are not in line with the global remit or preferred providers acting in undesirable ways, and make informed decisions based on their strategic priorities,” he said.

10 least profitable countries for all pooled business

Hungary

Canada

Denmark

France

Netherlands

Australia

Singapore

China

Thailand

South Korea

Source: Multinational Pooling and Benefit Captives Research Report (2015)

With operational cost reduction and synergies still very much at the top of the corporate agenda, multinational

pooling is an increasingly popular way for companies to use their global spending power to achieve savings, and at the

same time, spread the risk of their employee benefit plans across multiple

geographies and business areas.

- Rajesh Daswani, Senior Consultant, Towers Watson Asia Pacific

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Retiring at

Retirement age in Singapore is on the rise and this issue of an ageing workforce is certainly not unique in many advanced

economies. Some of the more mature countries like France and Germany are also witnessing a gradual rise in retirement age.

In Singapore’s case, it is even more compelling as the repub-lic’s older workers are increasingly being called upon to bring their expertise to bear for the benefit of the economy.

An ageing but more skills-focused workforce coupled with the slowdown in the inflow of foreign manpower have thrown the spotlight on the issue of rising retirement age.

In the past few months, there have already been calls from the likes of former NTUC Secretary-General Lim Boon Heng who suggested raising the retirement age to 70.

What happens when an employee reaches 65 and is willing and able to continue working?

We value our older workers who bring with them a wealth of

experience and knowledge which are invaluable to the bank.

- Jacinta Low, Head of HR Planning, OCBC Bank

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There are many other key stakeholders, including NTUC, which have come out openly to support re-employment up to the age of 67. Currently, Singapore’s statutory minimum retirement age is 62, but employers have to offer re-employment to those eligible up to age 65.

As Singapore’s labour leaders have said, there are benefits to individuals who want to continue to be employed. This move also benefits the Singapore economy as it offers a steady supply of manpower in the economy.

But some industry leaders feel that getting eligible workers to stay employed beyond the age of 65 is not the most productive solution for Singapore, and some employers may practice discrim-ination in favour of younger workers.

Singapore International Chamber of Commerce Chief Execu-tive Victor Mills noted that “we have to wake up and stop treating people of different ages as some kind of unique silo being alternately courted and condescended to.

“We are all human beings and the only things that matter when it comes to employment are character, health, values, skills and potential. Age is not important,” he stressed.

“Discrimination is bad everywhere. Here in Singapore, it is simply illogical given our tight labour market. We have a discrimi-natory attitude to anyone over 40, among other groups. It’s time to stop age discrimination at both ends of our lives and treat people equally. It is time to pay people the same salary provided they can perform,” he said.

Discrimination aside, most organisations are generally support-ive of raising the retirement age and trying to keep older workers in the workforce.

OCBC Bank Head of HR Planning Jacinta Low told Human Capital that “our employment terms have always been guided by prevailing statutory guidelines. Currently, we offer re-employment

We have to wake up and stop treating people of different ages as some kind of unique silo being alternately courted and

condescended to. We are all human beings and the only things that matter when it comes to employment are character, health, values, skills and potential. Age is

not important.

- Victor Mills, Chief Executive, Singapore International Chamber of Commerce

to our employees who reach the minimum retirement age of 62, taking into consideration factors such as their health and work performance.

“We value our older workers who bring with them a wealth of experience and knowledge which are invaluable to the bank,” she affirmed.

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She added that the bank has in place talent management programmes which cut across age groups and seniority to ensure succession bench-strength and a pipeline of leaders who will be ready to assume more senior roles.

In an effort to gain further insights into retirement age and employability, Human Capital spoke to Alexandra Health System’s Chief Human Resource Officer Lynn Gan, who is also a Council Member of the Singapore Human Resources Institute.

We discussed what raising the retirement age meant to Alex-andra Health System, which is a healthcare cluster that currently manages the 590-bed Khoo Teck Puat Hospital. As part of an inte-grated healthcare system to serve the community in the northern part of Singapore, Alexandra Health System will build and oversee the Yishun Community Hospital, Admiralty Medical Centre and the Woodlands Integrated Healthcare Campus.

Q: What does the impending rise in the retirement age mean to Alexandra Health System? Gan: Even before the recent discussion on raising the retirement age, the Alexandra Health System has been implementing a practice where we allow workers who reached the respective ages of 62 and 65 to continue working with us.

The healthcare profession is unique because it needs people who are passionate about the trade. If there are people who are actively seeking employment, we will welcome them.

Today, we have about 300 staff who are over the age of 55 years and who are cur-rently working with us – this is about 7.5% of our workforce. Of these 300 staff, about 50 of them are over the age of 65. There are also some staff over the age of 70.

Q: What has been the organisation’s experience in retaining and re-training older workers?Gan: The healthcare industry is an exciting industry because of the rapidly changing age demographics and higher demands by patients. Hence, we are looking for health-

care professionals who are not only passionate and have a sense of purpose, but those who are experienced and committed to working with patients.

We constantly look into re-training and re-skilling as well as up-skilling our employees especially the more matured workforce to keep them updated in the knowledge and skills. In our organ-isation, we have tie ups with various educational institutions and agencies to further healthcare innovation and improve patient care. We also engage staff in learning journeys, both local and overseas, to understand how organisations manage ageing-in-place strategies and programmes.

Lynn Gan, Chief Human

Resource Officer,Alexandra Health

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The Singapore Government has enhanced its Special Employ-ment Credit (SEC) scheme, which was launched in 2011, to

encourage organisations to hire older Singaporeans.In last year’s Budget (2014), the SEC for 2015 was enhanced

for an additional one year to help employers cope with cost increases associated with the increase in Central Provident Fund contribution rates.

With the 2014 enhancement, employers who hire Singaporeans aged above 50 years (between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2015) will receive an SEC of up to 8.5% of an employee’s monthly wage.

Recently, the Government said it would raise the SEC further to encourage employers to voluntarily re-employ older workers aged 65 years and above in 2015. Employers who hire Singaporean workers aged 65 years and above and earning up to S$4,000 a month in 2015 will receive an additional offset of up to 3% of wages.

With the enhancement, employers who hire such Singaporean workers between 1 January 2015 and 31 December 2015 will receive an SEC of up to 11.5% of an employee’s monthly wage.

Singapore has taken the position of supporting organisations to re-hire workers reaching 65 through the introduction of the Retirement and Re-employment Act in 2012. The bill requires employers to re-employ eligible employees aged 62 years, up to 65 years for now and up to 67 years later.

In September 2014, the government announced that it accepted the Tripartite Committee on Employability of Older Workers’ (Tricom) recommendation to take a promotional approach towards raising the re-employment age to 67 years.

Singapore: pro-older workers

The Alexandra Health System has been implementing a practice

where we allow workers who reach the respective ages of 60, 62 and

65 to continue working with us. Our basic philosophy is that, as long

you want to work, we will allow you to work with us.

- Lynn Gan, Chief Human Resource Officer, Alexandra Health System

Q: Are there specific programmes within Khoo Teck Puat Hospital that cater to the needs of older workers? Gan: As a healthcare group, we (constantly) look into improv-ing productivity and work ergonomics such as automation and motorisation – bearing in mind the patients’ needs and employees’ profile. Efforts like these raise overall productivity in our workforce.

All the staff, including the more matured employees, are guided by the principles of Toyota Production System to deliver healthcare that is cost-effective, efficient and patient-centric. This has helped us to deliver a hassle-free experience to our patients.

We also believe in eliminating waste (non-value adding pro-cesses, procedures, paperwork and the like) so that we focus on the value-added services that patients want (for instance, consultation time with the doctor, faster diagnosis, etc).

Staff are encouraged to be creative and innovative to solve problems and make continuous improvements visible so that we can resolve them as soon as we can. In the organisation, our staff are constantly encouraged to work on kaizen (Japanese for ‘continuous improvements’) to make their work more productive and enhance customers’ touch points.

We showcase some of the hospital’s innovations and kaizen by staff to improve the flow of work processes and increase productivity to agencies who are interested to learn through learning journeys.

In the interim, the Government will provide incentives to help manage employers’ overall costs and encourage them to voluntarily re-employ older workers aged 65 years and above.

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Rapid globalisation has drastically changed business oper-ations. As a result of intensified competition, the need for

companies to find their niche, make their operations lean and effi-cient, and derive value from innovation has amplified exponentially.

It is no wonder that organisational agendas today are cen-tred on these imperatives. In Singapore, the challenges faced by organisations are magnified because of the constraints we face as a market with limited resources.

Shrinking workforceThe direst problem Singapore faces is labour shortage, said Miranda Lee, Director of People and Change Management of KPMG Singapore.

The falling Total Fertility Rate coupled with an increase in life expectancy from 66 years in 1970 to 82 years in 2010 has resulted in a shrinking and ageing workforce.

The median age of Singaporeans is expected to increase from 39 years in 2011 to 47 in 2030. In addition, Lee believes that the tightening of foreign labour policies has affected companies reliant on foreign workers, especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which already face a labour shortage.

The slower growth of Singapore’s workforce was also evidenced in the White Paper on the population, which reported expectations of a 1%-2% growth from 2010-2020, compared to 3.3% growth in previous decades.

Lee noted that this labour shortage has been further challenged by the increased demand for workers in industries such as manu-facturing, pharmaceuticals and information technology.

As Singapore becomes increasingly recognised as a key tourism hub, demand for staff in customer-facing roles and service lines will also grow.

A recent report published by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM)

Urgent HR challenges

A shrinking and ageing workforce has fuelled the country’s battle for talent. KPMG Singapore’s Miranda Lee believes the future lies in

workplace flexibility and career development opportunities.

29WORKPLACE

STRATEGIES

indicated a 9% increase in job vacancies from 2013 to 2014, of which the majority were from the service sector and customer-facing roles.

The severity of Singapore’s current and anticipated labour crunch has fuelled the country’s talent war.

Falling productivity growthAnother issue magnified by the labour crunch is Singapore’s falling productivity growth rates. Despite the Government’s emphasis on productivity, Singapore’s workforce has experienced declining productivity growth (refer to chart below).

The initiatives are underpinned by a lifelong SkillsFuture Credit, which aims to optimise the full potential of Singaporeans by encour-aging them to acquire a broader set of skills relevant to their jobs through education.

Together with the introduction of the SkillsFuture Study Awards and SkillsFuture Fellowships to promote the deepening of skills, the Government hopes to address the challenges of a shrinking labour market with this up-skilling of the workforce.

To successfully develop a manpower-lean economy, both employees and employers must cooperate to identify the knowledge and skill sets needed so that the organisation can grow.

As the custodian of the human capital asset, HR functions will play a pivotal role in facilitating this process, said Lee.

Opportunities for HR professionals to help grow the capabil-ities of the organisational workforce lie in areas such as active career management, creation of flexible work arrangements and a mobile workplace, and the development of tailored learning and development plans.

12

8

4

0

-4

-8

H1 H2 H1 H2 H1 H2 H1

manufacturing

services

construction

overall

Productivity Growth by Sector

2011 2012 2013 2014

While targets for productivity growth were set at an optimistic 2%-3% in 2011, the figure has consistently remained below 1% since 2012. SMEs have been badly affected by both stagnant productivity and labour shortage.

According to the Association of Small & Medium Enterprises (ASME)’s National Business Survey in 2012, 1% of SMEs were forced to close down due to these constraints.

Differences in Singapore’s past, current and future workforce have also brought about another unique set of considerations.

According to the MOM, current employees in Singapore search for workplace flexibility and career development opportunities. This is different from past generations who were motivated by continuing employment for financial reasons.

The management of such a multi-generational workforce will be challenging for the traditional HR department when it comes to attraction, engagement and retention of crucial talent.

HR professionals will need to bridge the differences between different generations and step up on retention strategies to cope with employee turnover rates.

SkillsFuture for SingaporeansThe recent Budget 2015 emphasised investing in people through the SkillsFuture initiatives.

WORKPLACE STRATEGIES

30

The future of HR Beyond performing operational tasks effectively, HR in Singapore needs to become a value-driver for the organisation, an enabler to organisational flexibility and a partner to both the business and employees.

Lee said the key tenets for a successful HR function include:

• Getting management buy-inBoardroom conversations together with active and visible spon-sorship from the leadership are critical in creating the mindset shift to enable HR to play a greater role in the organisation.

Business leaders and senior management must be enlightened on the new role of HR and its value – both tangible and intangi-ble – that can be created through well-crafted policies, targeted programmes and engineered processes.

It is crucial that leaders empower the HR function to take ownership in driving value for the organisation. The perception that HR creates a limited impact needs to change so that the shackles preventing HR from unlocking the human capital potential of the organisation can be removed.

However, this mindset shift will take time to take place in Sin-gapore, where most local enterprises are SMEs. SME business owners typically assume multiple roles and it will not be easy to persuade them to relinquish decision-making pertaining to a certain aspect of the business to another individual within his or her team.

Nonetheless, Lee believes that this is a worthy endeavour. Gaining management buy-in will engender a corporate culture where HR is viewed as a partner across the organisation.

• Leveraging on technologyKPMG has conducted several studies which identified how the HR function could deliver a differentiated strategy.

HR professionals must first be freed from transactional activ-

ities before they can focus on developing a strategy aligned to organisational goals.

Many businesses fall into the trap of assuming that the simple implementation of a technology platform immediately achieves a lean and high-performing HR function.

The reality is that leveraging on technology is not just about implanting the systems; it is about making the systems and data analytics yield results. Only then can profound change result.

Besides easing administrative work, technology and data can help HR become more empirical. It provides the hard evidence for their opinions, creating credibility at the highest levels of the business.

For instance, deep human capital knowledge about the demo-graphics between different generations enables HR to design tailored recruitment, retention and engagement programmes.

The use of workforce analytics should also allow the demon-stration of the return on human capital employed.

A well-designed, predictive workforce analytics could very well become as important to the CEO as the balance sheet and the P&L statement.

Recognising the importance of technology and the support SMEs require, the Government launched an online HR solutions platform that enables SMEs to outsource administrative HR tasks. This initiative driven by SPRING Singapore was open for sign-ups from this April.

Such a platform can also help to tackle productivity concerns. According to the Hunter Group’s HR Self-Service Survey, companies spend 7 to 50% of their time handling employee-related paperwork.

Re-thinking HR elementsAs the labour market and manpower demands change, HR elements such as performance management or employee engagement will need to be re-considered.

For example, the new models of contracting are a response

31WORKPLACE

STRATEGIES

to the need to be more flexible and mobile.

The rising trend of hiring free-lancers and contract workers allows organisations to meet manpower needs during business peaks and troughs. At the same time, such contracting models also enable leaders to work around the con-straints set by cost pressures.

A recent survey conducted by HR consulting firm Hays Group revealed that two-thirds of Singa-pore employers who took part in the poll said that they engage temporary or contract staff. About 43% of these employers use such workers for special projects or workloads, and a further 24% employ them on a regular ongoing basis.

Ninety-seven per cent of Singapore job-seekers polled recently said they would consider leaving

Singapore to work overseas.According to a poll conducted by recruiting firm Hays

Group, 85% of job-seekers said they would leave for better job opportunities, career development or exposure. Twelve per cent said they would leave for lifestyle factors.

However, three per cent said they would not consider leaving Singapore to work overseas.

The significant number of job-seekers willing to work overseas makes Singapore’s workforce the most globally mobile ones in Asia. This is according to the poll of 2,553 job-seekers across Hays’s network in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, China, and Japan.

Looking at this trend, companies must, therefore, make it clear to job seekers during interviews if they require them to travel for work. In addition, companies must have clear human resource policies regarding overseas pay packages.

IE Singapore’s Young Talent Programme is one of the ways in which the agency is looking to match firms with undergraduates whom they feel can be groomed for international roles.

Its Young Talent Programme comprises two compo-nents: A market immersion opportunity through overseas exchanges and internships or a mid-term IE-Industry scholarship. The market immersion programme will be extended to students from Polytechnics and Institutes of Technical Education (ITE) from the third quarter of this year, said an IE Singapore spokesperson.

Globally mobile workforce?

Beyond performing operational tasks

effectively, HR in Singapore needs to become a value-driver for the

organisation, an enabler to organisational flexibility and a partner to both the business and employees.

Miranda Lee, Director of People and Change

Management of KPMG Singapore.

In the face of an increasingly mobile and transient workforce, Key Performance Indicators and the performance management process are examples of HR elements which need to be re-evaluated.

The increased use of a contingent workforce comprising a diverse mix of individuals has also resulted in diversity management emerging as an area of focus.

The increase in the resident labour force participation rate for women and older workers aged 55 to 69 since 2004 is another lead-ing indicator of the rising diversity in our workforce. This translates into a slew of new focus areas for HR:

- How does HR manage this diversity? - How can HR provide the appropriate incentives to the mul-

ti-generational, multi-cultural and multi-racial workforce to engender both productivity and employee loyalty?

With the current climate, HR must rise to the challenge and harness the opportunities that lie ahead to create change.

During this journey, organisations must take care not to blindly pursue best practices and benchmarks. They must understand that the start of HR creating real value begins in the boardroom, where focus is placed on aligning HR goals to the priorities of the business.

TECHTAKE32

When HR deploys social technology, it’s easier to find, develop and keep the right talent.

Social technologies for a smarter workforce

Social and mobile technologies are becoming increasingly powerful tools

for HR practitioners to recruit talent, facilitate on-boarding and scale up to enable learning and professional development, says industry expert UBM Tech.

Today, social, mobile and analytics tech-nologies are intersecting with behavioural science to reshape what it means to be a productive worker.

Companies are investing in solutions that help employees become more engaged, more collaborative, more productive — in short, a smarter workforce.

The challenge lies in figuring out how to harness the power of human capital effectively.

One key way employers are beginning to build a smarter workforce is through the use of social technologies, says UBM Tech. These help ensure that candidates are matched with the right employers and positions.

They allow employees to connect with others in new ways that help them become more efficient and innovative, and improve job satisfaction, retention and the bottom line.

HR departments play an essential role in helping their organisations capitalise on this workplace transformation. They can begin to build a smarter workforce by applying social technology in five key areas: recruiting, employee on-boarding, knowledge sharing, mergers and acquisitions, and learning and development.

• RecruitingHR experts have observed that workers, particularly younger ones, hold different expectations than workers in decades past.

Today’s workers expect an environment

33TECHTAKE

that promotes personal growth and recogni-tion, often over and above a desire for higher wages. They want tools and capabilities that will get the job done.

Hence, employees are increasingly demanding social business tools that let them connect with their peers to find the information and resources to do their jobs.

A high proportion of working adults now use social networking sites regularly and companies that invest in social business solutions may find it easier to attract the top talent.

HR can also use social technology to reach out to potential job candidates through online communities. These communities take many different forms and may include blogs, forums for asking questions, content about the corporate culture and opportuni-ties for prospective employees to interact with HR personnel or others at the company.

When executed well, these communities give candidates a taste of what it will feel like to work for the organisation. They help to weed out candidates who might not be good matches, which reduces turnover.

• On-boardingIn some cases, online communities for job candidates can carry out some of the preparation for on-boarding new employees. Through these tools, new workers can learn what to expect in their first few days on the job and find answers to common questions.

HR departments can also build internal welcome communities that ease the process of getting started with a new employer. An IBM study found that these types of social business tools can reduce the time required for on-boarding by up to two days.

As these are only available inside the company firewall, welcome communities can provide more detailed information about corporate policies, as well as give workers an opportunity to complete necessary forms online. They can provide introductory train-ing, such as workplace safety information and instructions on the use of social busi-ness tools and other enterprise applications.

Most importantly, they can provide an interactive experience that allows new workers to engage with management and co-workers.

One of the most critical points in the first few days of employment comes when HR hands a new employee off to his or her manager. This interaction can affect the decision to accept employment.

Some social business tools, such as

IBM Connections, use templates to ensure a positive experience for new hires at this important point. This technology helps set employees on a path toward higher engage-ment and job satisfaction, ultimately result-ing in greater productivity and retention.

• Knowledge SharingAfter on-boarding, the next important step in the new-hire process occurs when the new worker receives a first assignment. At this point, the worker usually lacks the institu-tional knowledge necessary to accomplish tasks quickly.

New employees do not know what information and resources are available, and they often do not even know who to ask or where to look for help.

Social business tools that encourage

knowledge sharing can make a big differ-ence at this point. If recently hired employees have access to technology that makes it easy to ask questions, find experts and locate important resources, they are much more likely to succeed at their first projects. That early success can start a positive feedback cycle that yields greater success in the future, benefiting the employee and the employer alike.

Of course, social collaboration tools are not just beneficial for new hires. They enable everyone in the company to find information and work together in new ways.

The insights provided by Constellation Research show that engaged workers who were actively sharing knowledge using social technologies are “37% more likely to report job and employer satisfaction.”

TECHTAKE34

In addition, social knowledge sharing platforms also make it easier for HR to communicate with the workforce. Instead of distributing lengthy group email messages, HR can pique interest with short posts on the enterprise social platform, provide information via blogs or videos, or interact with employees through surveys and forum questions.

These techniques can improve the likelihood that workers will consume the information HR is disseminating and take appropriate action as a result.

• Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A)M&As pose many of the same HR challenges as new hires — but those challenges play out on a much larger scale.

Complicating matters, the two joined entities may have very different cultures, which can result in retention problems. And if the M&A process isn’t handled well, duplication of effort can make the new company less productive and efficient than the two separate organisations had been.

HR can address these issues with the same sorts of welcome communities available for new hires. These tools can calm fears, disseminate information and begin to integrate employees into a cohe-sive whole. Similarly, social knowledge sharing can speed the process of getting

This feature was contributed by UBM Tech, a company that leverages a variety of technologies to enable different business and consumer communities to work together.

employees from the two organisations to work together.

One study found that using social tools through the M&A process increased employee retention by 20%. It also reduced integration costs and resulted in higher productivity due to better employee engage-ment.

• Learning and DevelopmentTwenty years ago, most corporate learn-ing and development involved classroom instruction. Over time, online learning, or e-learning, became more prevalent. Now the dominant model is shifting again, with social learning and just-in-time learning rising to the forefront.

According to research firm Bersin by Deloitte, three times as many companies deployed social learning technologies in 2013 compared with 2007. These organi-sations understand that learning new skills and information from co-workers is not only a more natural way to learn, but it improves knowledge retention.

Social platforms also encourage men-toring and coaching, which can further strengthen the workforce and improve an organisation’s ability to retain top talent. In addition, social business platforms can help companies identify and cultivate leadership potential.

Smarter = HappierThe workforce of today is much more inde-pendent than in the past. Workers do not just want a job that pays the bills; they want a job that leads to greater personal satisfaction. Social technology enables enterprises to find the workers who are a good fit for the organisation.

When HR deploys social technology, it’s easier to find, develop and keep the right talent. Social technology can help create a smarter, happier workforce that is highly engaged. That means more job satisfaction for workers and more productivity and income for employers.

Ultimately, a smarter workforce is just good business.

1 Social analytics is the practice of measuring and analysing interactions across social technology platforms to inform decisions. SOURCE: Mckinsey Global Institute Analysis

Social technologies include a broad range of applications that can be used both by consumers and enterprises

One recent report by McKinsey & Company, a global manage-

ment consulting firm, revealed that social technologies encompass a variety of collaborative tools.

These tools include internal knowledge sharing networks, col-laboration tools, social networks, shared workspaces and more.

Even the ability to share and col-laborate on files is a social technology that is transforming not only how we work, but our processes and efficiencies.

Increasing productivity with social technologies

Social analytics1

Upload, share, and comment on photos,

videos and audio

Keep connected through personal and business profiles

Connect with friends and strangers to

play games

Harness collective

knowledge and generate

collectively derived answers

Co-create content; coordinate joint

project tasks

Discuss topics in open communities;

rapidly access expertise

Search, create and adapt articles; rapidly access stored knowledge

Purchasing in groups, on social platforms, and sharing opinions

Evaluate and rate products, services, and experiences share opinions

Publish and discuss opinions and experiences

Media and file sharing

Shared work-

spaces

Crowd-sourcing

Ratings and

reviews

Social networks

Social gaming

Social commerce

Discussion forums Wikis

Blogs/microblogs

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• UTAP Funding** ** UTAP Funding Available for SHRI Plus! & NTUC Members. For selected courses. T & Cs Apply

Programme Title No of Days JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC

A Practical Approach to Payroll Administration (with Legal Compliance) 2 11 & 12 2 & 3How to Interpret and Apply the Employment Act 2 21 & 22 22 & 23 17 & 18Contract Law for HR Practitioners 2Industrial Relations Legislation and its Practical Applications 1The Central Provident Fund Act and its Practical Applications 1Employment of Foreign Manpower Act and its Practical Applications 1Work Injury Compensation Act and its Practical Applications 1Retirement and Re-Employment Act and its Practical Applications 1Employment (Part-Time Employees) Regulations and its Practical Applications 1The Law of Dismissal of Employees in Singapore 1Understanding the Employment Act with Latest Changes (Mandarin version) 1 5Interpreting & Implementing Personal Data Protection Act 1 17 2Fundamentals of HR Management for Non-HR 1 9 16Compensation & Benefits Management 1 25 12Conducting Effective Performance Appraisals 1 12 6Conducting Effective Exit Interviews 1 15 9 7Coaching for Performance 1 12 7Counselling Skills for HR Professionals 1 5 2 2Managing Conflict and Mediation for a Better Workplace 1 29 3 5Understanding Personalities: The Secret of Working Successfully with Employees 1 9 18 14Competency-based Interview & Selection Techniques 2 15 & 16How to Develop a Business-Driven Training Plan 2 9 & 10 11 & 12Talent & Succession Planning Management 2 14 & 15 25 & 26Growing Future Leaders: Coaching & Mentoring for Success 2 21 & 22Enhancing Human Resource Critical Reasoning Skills 2 8 & 9 22 & 23

Workshop on SATURDAY (Alternate week) No of Days JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC

Unlocking HR Capabilities #1 Manpower Planning 1 5 12Unlocking HR Capabilities #2 Recruitment & Selection 1 6 19 26Unlocking HR Capabilities #3 Legal Compliances & Regulations 1 20 3Unlocking HR Capabilities #4 Compensation & Benefits 1 11 17Unlocking HR Capabilities #5 Performance Management 1 25 31Unlocking HR Capabilities #6 Learning & Development 1 8 14Unlocking HR Capabilities #7 Career Management 1 22 28

Workshop on TUESDAY (Alternate week) No of Days JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC

Unlocking HR Capabilities #1 Manpower Planning 1 30 6Unlocking HR Capabilities #2 Recruitment & Selection 1 14 20Unlocking HR Capabilities #3 Legal Compliances & Regulations 1 28 3Unlocking HR Capabilities #4 Compensation & Benefits 1 11 17Unlocking HR Capabilities #5 Performance Management 1 25 1Unlocking HR Capabilities #6 Learning & Development 1 2 8 15Unlocking HR Capabilities #7 Career Management 1 16 22 29

School of Human Capital Management

to our graduates55th Joint Graduation In-absentia 30 April 2015

Basic Certificate in Human Resource Management

105th IntakeChan Sing May

107th IntakeDe Castro Diana RivarezDharmaraj DenialKoh Chew Wen KathyLeow Ai LianMa Ei Ei KhaingNimali Samanthi Dharmawansa FernandoPang Hui Ling CatherineSiti Munirah Binte SahatTan Shui LiTan Yan Lin Evelyn

108th IntakeAshlyn May TeoChan Chuen Li WinnieChee Ying SingKapschanow MichailKumari DeeptiLeonard LaganMasturah Binte AndiOoi Szee SzeeSiti Zulaiha Binte Abdul AzizTeo Bee ChingWang Jinyan LynetteWang Xinyi CindyWong Kit FongYeo Yan Ting

109th IntakeDhakshnamoorthi VinothLee Zi XuanLim Hui Xin JaniceLuo XianLuo YuqingNurhaizah Binte NawawiShameela Begum d/o Mohamed Mohamed AliSinthiya d/o SelvamaniTay Qiao Wei FeliciaTaw Swee Ling

Certificate in Human Resource Management

85th IntakeWai Wai Hlaing @ Isabella

87th IntakeEsther Dorothy Chng Shu Yan

88th IntakeChew Jack KeeChua Hong LengEugenia Luh Li TzienGoh Wee LingLam Xin YiLi Shi WeiSeow Yan LingTiong Chiew LinYeak Siew LumYeo Siew Choo

40SKILLS DEVELOPMENT

Certificate in Payroll Administration

40th IntakeChang Sok YanHellen TanHong Mei Chen ElizabethKoh Bee HeongLee Pei YuNancy Soh-Lim Lee Gek@Lin LiyuNeo Siew PingTan Siew GekTee Chai ShangVijai Raman

41st IntakeAng Weizhen, AnnieArynn Al’fira Binte MazlanBinny Elza MathewChai Yit LanChen Jiayi, FionaGitanjaliKeerti Geethakrishnan KaithavanaKoh Chen ChiaLai WenminLee Mui FongLeong Bih SheanMeta MahendraNeo Jie Lin, JeslinNg Huey TiangNorimah Binte Abdul RahmanNurul Mehraaj Binte Asharaff AliRaziea Bivi Binte Basheer MohamedSaaz’liana Binte Mohd Halim AbdullahSharma MonikaSharonlyn Tan Yarn ShingTan Mei HaoTeo Lay KuanToo Chiew YenWang YingWee Shi YeeYeo Koon HongZhu Jun

Certificate in Payroll Administration

42nd IntakeChan Lee PengChang Xiao YuanChen Yueh FoongChoo XiuziFoo Yen FunGottivedu Aruna SreeJenny Agatha Tong Wei NiaJoseph George HenistaKoh Ai Ni HeleniKow Pei ChengKue Pei SenLau Hui YeeLiew Shi HuiLim Cheng Li

43rd IntakeChan Sze HweeChan Chi Siang, KingtonChiang Hwee ChinChong Fui PengEugenia Luh Li TzienGoh Sze Yuan, GabrielNg XumeiTan Si Ying, Clara

Diploma in Business & Human Resource Management (Part-Time)

90th IntakeOng Seok Khim

93rd IntakeSabariah Bte Nordin

94th IntakeHarbans Kaur A/P Santoo Singh

95th IntakeKoh Guat Li, LindaOng Wei KiatSeah Siew PengTan Sin YeeTnay Chong KiangWang Ling Ling

96th IntakeAlicia Anthonette Tan Swee KimAng Hui MinAng Siew KiangBavetra A/P RajanBong Shin YeeChong Shi Ling, MichelleGarcera Janice TolentinoHo Lay Chin SerenaLim Ai King AileenLo Hsuen TingNg Sou NeeShahnaz Begum Binti Sadir MohammedSon Pit YinTan Guo XiongTan Mei Ling, Karen

57th IntakeHu Jia Yun

Diploma in Compensation & Benefits Management

24th IntakeChia Miao Fang, JessamineHaliyah Binte SupardiLoo Chiew PengOng E-Lynn

25th IntakeChee Ah HockChoy Yoke PingGan Bee LanKoh Lih MinKoh Ying Xi, AlvinLoei Lay SeeMelinda Oh Tze ShingSaw Siew CherChristy Tan Chiew JunTan Jue Hui, GinnyYam Wai Mun, Desmond

Certificate in Organisational Psychology

6th IntakeLim Lian Mei, Lina

Diploma in Organisational Psychology

8th IntakeTan Suan Hwa

School of Financial Services & Risk Management

Diploma in Investment

19th IntakeChen Youmiao

Diploma in Banking and Finance

23rd IntakeChoong Chee FongGoh Yu TingTan Siew Choo Jane

41SKILLS

DEVELOPMENT

9th IntakeGoh Boon YuanKok Chun Wai VincentMayline Rivera Baes

10th IntakeMarliah Binte AmanWee Siew Ming Jeannie

Postgraduate Diploma in Human Capital Management (Intensive Weekend)

57th IntakeCheng Chee KwongChern Ling Fei Phil

58th IntakeLim Wee Hiok

59th IntakeFong Khai Yan

60th IntakeLee Min MinTan Lee Tuan

61st IntakeAlvin Wong Chee KeongJayashri SrinivasanLim Jin RuSoh Bee Ting, AliciaWong Man Di, Amanda

62nd IntakeLim Hui IngValentine Vikram Veloo

63rd IntakeAngeline Ang Swee LengChan Poh FongChoo Bao Ling, LorraineLiu HuanMoke Yin YoongPang Mui JeeSoh ShaunaTai Wee ChingTeo Pin Ngoh

64th IntakeChandrakumaran KeerthaniGan Shing LingGoh HuiniJaime Carol ChinKam Ee VonneLim Yan YongLow Sze Ping, FionaNaleine RamasamyPeh Pei Yan, Angela JaniseQiu JieRei Ong ShuhuiTan Pei GeeTan Xiu YeToh Soh Tin

Postgraduate Diploma in HR and Talent Management

30th IntakeChen Xiuru, Cindy

32nd IntakeChua Lin NaLow Siew SuanSaadia JawaidTan Ngiap Ee

33rd IntakeChan Siew Wan Yvonne

34th IntakeJelene Tan Tiang LinWeng Renfeng

35th IntakeChan Keng LengOng Wei Zhen

Postgraduate Certificate in Talent Management

35th IntakeAng XiaoweiTan Soon

Postgraduate Diploma in HR and Organisational Development & Change

31st IntakeCheng Tsuang ChihJill Tan Gek ChooNeo Mei Ling

32nd IntakeSoon Liwei, AdelineWang XinyiWong Enling

33rd IntakeKwon JaehyunSeo Jia Li, Shelby

34th IntakeChua ElinPhua Qing Quan

Postgraduate Diploma in HR and Organisational Psychology

29th IntakeLim Pek Chen, CelestinaTong Jia Hui, Muriel

30th IntakeLow Xinyi, Sherry

31st IntakeTee Ping Ping

Postgraduate Diploma in HR and Training & Development

9th IntakeSushma Kumari Gupta

14th IntakeSiti Nuradilah Binte Adnan

15th IntakeAng Cheng Sim

16th IntakeFoo Chun Meng AloysiusHeng Pei Shan ThaliaJustin Loh Jun YuanTse Wing Tung

17th IntakeTeo Eng Hin

18th IntakeHo Seih LingPon Siew Ping

19th IntakeCheong Wai KeenPhua Ying Fang, Shenn

Postgraduate Diploma in HR and Reward Management

14th IntakeLeong Wei De, Victor

15th IntakeChieng Siew HungHo Loo FongLee Yee LingSibyl Lim Lu Chin

16th IntakeChan Hooi WenNg Swee Horng

17th IntakeToh Lee May

18th IntakePhua Shi Ya SophiaTanabe-Kuang Makiko Monica

Postgraduate Diploma in HR and Employment Relations

10th IntakeKeerti Geethakrishnan Kaithavana

11th IntakeLee Huiyi, VickyTan Candy

13th IntakeDe Guzman Francis Carlo Cristobal

42SKILLS DEVELOPMENT

SHRI Welcomes New MembersSHRI is celebrating its 50th Anniversary, together with Singapore. To commemorate five decades of Powering Human Capital,

we are offering a 50% discount on the entrance fee for Individual and Corporate membership applications. Please email ivy@shri.org.sg or julia@shri.org.sg for more details.

1. Teo Tsuey Ling, MSHRI HR Manager FRP Products Co Pte Ltd2. Herly Diana Dwi Andayani, MSHRI HR Manager Mun Siong Engineering Limited3. Vincent Lim, MSHRI HR/Administration Manager Yeo Hong Construction & Engineering Pte Ltd4. Shelley Uzzell, MSHRI HR Manager Blue Umbrella Limited5. Melissa Thomas, MSHRI

1. Lau Shyue Ling Admin Manager Addcel Engineering Pte Ltd2. Chong San Sang HR Executive FRP Products Co Pte Ltd3. Yeo Yueyi, Yvette Consultant Peoplenet Associate4. Szilvia Gajda5. Marhaini Sakimin Admin Officer A&M Engineering Pte Ltd

1. Yayasan MENDAKI

NOVEMBER 2014PROFESSIONAL

DECEMBER 2014PROFESSIONAL

ASSOCIATE

1. Dr Kon Sen Choeng, Derrick, MSHRI Director The Conference Board2. Ong Pei Pei, Angeline, MSHRI HR Manager Drill-Quip Asia-Pacific Pte Ltd3. Goh Chee Hwa Eric, MSHRI Group Manager, Human Resource and

Talent Development Minor Food Group4. Diana Daud Abdul Wahab, MSHRI HR Manager Soilbuild Construction Group Ltd5. Pauline Loo, MSHRI Head of Talent Management Property Guru6. Merrian Liew, MSHRI HR Manager Anderco Pte Ltd

1. Teh Chia Hui Esther2. Erica Diane Lim Mui Kian Group Director3. Lu Jia (Charlotte)4. Lyen Meng Yi Janice Claire Management Associate Great Eastern Life Assurance Co. Ltd.5. Wan Yanqing, Eunice Customer Affairs Manager Singapore Airlines6. Cabell Ng Hsiao Ling Project Manager - Organisational

Survey Insight Towers Watson7. Jessica Chia Kah Mun HR Assistant Balanced Engineering & Construction Pte Ltd8. Lam Lee Lee HR Functional Coordinator CSC Technology Singapore Pte Ltd

CORPORATE

ASSOCIATE

9. Lam Ping Oie Sharon Sourcing Recruiter Visa International Onsite)/Talent Insight Executive Search10. Song Wan Yan (Connie) Human Resource Manager - APAC Allegro Development Asia Pte Ltd11. Karen Toh HR Executive ISP Asia Pacific Pte Ltd12. Tan Lee Lee Sales Administrator Sanshin Engineering (S) Pte Ltd13. Victoria Yim Jia Yi Senior HR Executive YHS (Singapore) Pte Ltd14. Chieng Siew Hung (Jasmine) Senior Admin and HR Executive Fascina Pte Ltd15. Ho Loo Fong (Joyce) Assistant Manager Chanel Pte Limited16. Lee Yee Ling (Eileen) HR/ Recruitment Administrator Pharmaceutical Research Associates Singapore Pte Ltd17. Sibyl Lim Lu Chin HR Executive Ingram Micro Asia Pacific Pte Ltd18. Sun Songlei Assistant HR Ops Globalfoundries Singapore Pte Ltd19. Foo Chun Meng Aloysius Head of Department Ministry of Education20. Heng Pei Shan Thalia Assistant Training Manager Takashimaya Singapore Ltd21. Tse Wing Tung (Joyce) Executive, Learning & Development Rohde & Schwarz Asia Pte Ltd22. Lim Sin Yee (Gladys) Human Capital Manager Guardian 23. Ng Sin Yee, Angela Executive CIMB Bank Singapore24. Lim Lye Chuan John Deputy HR & IT Manager Chang Cheng Group Pte Ltd25. Mah Wan Qi, Regina

HRSS Associate The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC26. Lim Xiao Fen Research Assistant National University of Singapore27. Ng Wei Xiang Roger Hr Officer EPCOS Pte Ltd28. Pang Bee Yen (Giovann) HR & Administrative Executive Harris Pye Singapore Pte Ltd29. Cheung Tai On Tony Marketing Manager Whyze Solutions Pte Ltd30. Kwan Li Yin (Lynn)31. Leong Jialing, Michelle HR Executive Singapore Airlines Cargo Pte Ltd32. Tan Boon How (Janson) Regional Training & Development Manager Tesa tape Asia Pacific Pte Ltd33. Tan Cher Ling Head (Youth Movement) People’s Association34. Alexeykina Eleonora Manager Uniglobal Holidays Pte Ltd35. Keng Song Boon (Patrick) HR Administrator Transas Marine Pacific Pte Ltd36. Lee Mei Jie HR Executive Allinton Engineering & Trading Pte Ltd

37. Li Jieqiong (Jess) Executive, Human Resource Development Transit Link Pte Ltd38. Chew Hwee Yong Administration Director Menicon Singapore Pte Ltd39. Dexter Toh Jin En Senior Manager, Leadership Development Prudential Assurance Company (S) Pte Ltd40. Lin Nuqin (Nikki) Senior HR Executive Continental Automotive Singapore Pte Ltd41. Jiang Yuanlin (Lynn) HR Admin Secretary Adeka (Singapore) Pte Ltd42. Hirman Bin Abdullah Manager The Ascott Limited43. Yang Shun Hua (Belinda) Senior Recruitment Consultant Manpower Staffing Services44. Tan Ngee Eng (Jean) Office Manager BAE Systems Detica45. Chan Jiali, Melisa Assistant Resourcing Services Manager The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC46. Felicia Lee Su Ping Senior Officer, Human Resources Marina Bay Sands47. Law Chung Kiat (Darence) Talent Acquisition Specialist Mitsui Chemicals Asia Pacific Ltd48. Simeon Gilles49. Wong Xin Xin Zanda Senior Recruitment Consultant 8hunters International50. Lee Yi Dian, Esther HR Executive i-Admin (Singapore) Pte Ltd51. Sarika Khurana52. Tan Shao Jing (Dawn) Assistant Manager Republic Polytechnic53. Wang Yanhan (Elsa) Assistant Manager Civil Service College54. Ang Jing Mei Manager Singapore Workforce Development Agency55. Yong Ka Jun (Desmond) Recruitment Executive Singapore Prison Service56. Lee Jia Ying, Melinda Senior Land Resource Analyst JTC Corporation57. Lee Li Yin (Giselle) Assistant, Human Resource Management Changi General Hospital58. Lin Yi, Beryl HR Advisor Franklin Templeton Investments59. Chen Xiuru, Cindy60. Huang Jingjing (Eva) HR & Admin Manager Jangho Group Co., Ltd Singapore Branch61. Gideon Ignatius Ying Jian Zhong HR Executive (Business Partner) Siemens Medical Instruments Pte Ltd62. Ng Chen Kiap HR Business Partner Citco Fund Services (Singapore) Private Limited63. Safraz Hakamali Assistant Vice President, HR Business Process & Coordinator Swiss Reinsurance Company Ltd64. Chua Lin Na (Linna) Recruitment/ Consulting Manager Faro Recruitment (Singapore) Pte Ltd65. Low Siew Suan (Corin) Account Manager iqDynamics Pte Ltd66. Saadia Jawaid

67. Tan Ngiap Ee (Abby) Senior Admin Executive Advantest (S) Pte Ltd68. Chan Siew Wan Yvonne Senior HR Specialist Multi-Fineline Electronix Singapore Pte Ltd69. Lee Min Min70. Seah Wei Liang71. Tan Lee Tuan Workforce Development Section Manager Micron Semiconductor Asia Pte Ltd72. Alvin Wong Chee Keong Recruitment Consultant SGS Testing and Control Services

Singapore Pte Ltd73. Foo Hsien Loong (Alex)74. Jayashri Srinivasan75. Lim Jin Ru (Alethea) HR Officer Temasek International Pte Ltd76. Soh Bee Ting, Alicia Consultant Recruit Express Services Pte Ltd77. Wong Man Di, Amanda HR Advisor Baker Hughes (Singapore) Pte Ltd78. Berlyn Lo Seow Yean Senior Executive MOH Holdings Pte Ltd79. Guo Wenya (Wendy) Consultant Recruit Express Pte Ltd80. Manocha Veerta81. Teng In Ing HR & Admin Assistant Asian Electronic Technology Pte Ltd82. Lee Jia Jun, Benjamin83. Lacaste Mary May Necesito Assistant Manager - Human Resource Embrio Consulting Pte Ltd84. Lee Yew Wah (George) Deputy Director, Corporate Affairs Competition Commission of Singapore85. Lew Li Yue, Amelia HR Officer - Recruitment Arrow Electronics (S) Pte Ltd86. Lim An Qi, Andrea Senior Executive Republic Polytechnic87. Loh Mei Yuen Anya Human Resources Manager Ezra Holdings Ltd88. Yeo Zhi Xiong, Rayner89. Tan Yi-Lin, Jolene Senior Executive Public Service Division90. Arynn Al’fira Binte Mazlan HR Executive Petro-Diamond91. Goh Hwee Nah HR Representative Cisco Systems (USA) Pte Ltd92. Leong Mee Yen Confidential Secretary Cum Payroll Exec Valle Verde Pte Ltd93. Lim Qiu Ting HR Executive St James Pte Ltd94. Mohamad Faris Bin Omar HR cum Admin Officer Muhammadiyah Association95. Nurul Shafiqah Binte Norhadi Admin Officer Digipen Institute of Technology S’pore96. S Stella Maria (Mrs Stella Maria Lucias Jeraled) Senior Manager, HR Cherie Hearts Holdings Pte Ltd97. Tan Lay Leng HR Executive Cisco Systems (USA) Pte Ltd98. Tan Sok Cheng Nancy Group Manager - HR & Admin Eurosports Auto Pte Ltd

43SKILLS

DEVELOPMENT

SHRI Welcomes New Members

99. Tee Wei Kian Admin Assistant Sing & San Construction Pte Ltd100. Thilagavathi d/o Chettiar Rajoo Payroll Analyst GE Pacific Pte Ltd101. Upadhyay Apurva102. Yeap Eng Thong Admin Executive Nanofilm Technologies International Pte Ltd103. Yeo Mui Ling HR Executive Wah Loon Engineering Pte Ltd104. Chew Ker Sien Contract Staff (Service) DBS Bank105. Kew Kung Fong Office Manager Ogawa Flavors & Fragrances

(Singapore) Pte Ltd106. Leow Mei Mei Recruitment Administrator Moody’s Singapore Pte Ltd107. Li Jingbo Administrative Senior Executive SMT Mgmt Pte Ltd108. Lin Yuling Learning Coordinator Deliotte & Touche LLP109. Loh Guan Ding HR Admin Executive Energy Market Authority110. Ng Chor Cheng Elaine Office Administrator Perception Asia Pte Ltd111. Rabinder Kaur HR & Admin Executive Bagadiya Brothers Singapore Pte Ltd112. Tan Chee Keong Team Leader (Commercial Cards & Payment Solutions) Citibank Singapore Ltd113. Tan Gim Choon Pearlyn114. Chew Wan Ling GSI Executive Search115. Jamie Fong Clinic Assistant Fullerton Healthcare Group116. Lim Chu Li Consultant Kelly Services (Singapore) Pte Ltd117. Ng Soo Li Senior HR Assistant Alexandra Health Pte Ltd118. Wong Shi Hui Khoo Teck Phuat Hospital119. Lily Suryani Ramlan Admin Assistant A & M Engineering Pte Ltd120. Huang Yan Juan HR Manager Aztech Heat Exchangers Pte Ltd121. Lucy Lim HR Manager Bright Vision Hospital122. Jasmine Zhong Office Manager Fang Zheng Valve International Pte Ltd123. Lim Lili HR Officer Huationg (Asia) Pte Ltd124. Poh Peck Hun HR Officer Huationg (Asia) Pte Ltd125. Toong Yee Ting HR Officer Huationg (Asia) Pte Ltd126. Angela yiu Directory IXAR Singapore Pte Ltd127. Lim Sijia HR Payroll Executive KCS Payroll Express Pte Ltd128. Shivani Jain Directory IXAR Singapore Pte Ltd

129. Ivy Wong HR Loonglobal Engineering Pte Ltd130. Loong Chay Wan Director Loonglobal Engineering Pte Ltd131. Stella Koh Director Presco Scaffolding Pte Ltd132. Sunder Vellasamy HR Executive Presco Scaffolding Pte Ltd133. Sylvester Chng HR Assistant VinDes Engineering Pte Ltd134. Lawrence Toh Chief Operating Manager VinDes Engineering Pte Ltd135. Linna Lim HR/Payroll Executive VinDes Engineering Pte Ltd136. K Ashok Kumar Managing Director Win Shine Tech Pte Ltd137. Keith Chua WIT Engineering Pte Ltd138. Aloysius Pillai WIT Engineering Pte Ltd139. Jolyn Wong HR Administrator Wood Group International Services Pte Ltd140. Benjamin Sng HR Co-Or Hiap Seng Engineering Ltd141. Low Kheng Thor HR Director Rotary Engineering Limited142. Pang Rosalin HR Executive Project Nine Pte Ltd143. Jesus Jovan S, Medrano Director Engaged Marketing Pte Ltd144. Neeta Kapoor Sole Proprietorship Healthpoint Homeopathy &

Counselling Centre

1. Cape East Pte Ltd

CORPORATE

FEBRUARY 2015PROFESSIONAL

JANUARY 2015PROFESSIONAL

1. Mr Kwek Kok Kwong, MSHRI CEO NTUC LearningHub Pte Ltd2. Mr Bryden Toh Wei, MSHRI Head of Human Resources NTUC LearningHub Pte Ltd3. Mr Chio Tan Beng, MSHRI HR Manager Guntner Group Asia Pte Ltd4. Mr Jacob Lieu, MSHRI Managing Director Premium Staffing Pte Ltd (AYP Asia Group)5. Mr Christopher Bennett-Taylor, MSHRI Head of HR, Middle East, India, Caspian, AP Sparrows Group6. Dr Anand Shankaran, MSHRI Group HR Director Inchcape Australia Limited7. Mr Edwin Y. Lim, MSHRI Regional Account Director NGA Human Resources8. Mr Tan Hock Lye, Lawrence, MSHRI Director, HR PUB9. Mdm Nellie Yeoh, MSHRI Senior Consultant, Employee Research,

Asia ORC International

1. Megan Chalmers, MSHRI Director/Consultant Chalmers Human Resources2. Ho Meng Khoon, MSHRI HR Manager Texas Instruments3. Ong Ah Fang Sally, MSHRI HR/Admin Head China Construction Bank Corporation4. Wong Pui Wan (Lisa), MSHRI Freelance Trainer5. Tan Hock Lai, MSHRI, HRP Asst. Manager, Human Capital Dairy Farm Singapore6. Krishnasamy Jayaprakash, MSHRI7. Lai Mun Fatt, Roy MSHRI Director Roy & Associates Pte Ltd8. Martin John Hill, MSHRI Head of Recruitment Links Recruitment Singapore Pte Ltd

1. Scott Wong Director, Business Development CXC Global2. Joyce Yong Sales Executive DTZ Property Network Pte Ltd3. Loh Chooi Leng Director, HR TEE International Limited4. Lee Qiao Xin HR & Admin Executive Pacificlight Power Pte Ltd5. Lee Chee Leong ADAC Business Development Manager

Talent2 Services Pte Ltd6. Lee Ho Cheung, Livio Asst HR Manager

ES Group (Holdings) Ltd

10. Mr Sriram lyer, MSHRI Associate Director, Staffing Cognizant Technology Solutions Asia

Pacific Pte Ltd11. Mr Eugene Tai Senior Manager - HR Business Partner Jones Lang Lasalle Property Consultants Pte Ltd

1. Mr Fu Zhonglong, Gideon HR & Adminstrative Executive PSL Holdings Limited2. Mr Ganeshkumar S/O Kamaraj Business Acquisition Manager Citibank Singapore Ltd3. Miss Ting Wang Senior HR Research Analyst Singapore Management University4. Mr Khairul Abbas Art of Marriage5. Mr Steven Lock Director, HR FutureTHINK! Training & Consultancy LLP6. Mr Justin Chua Boon Hun Founder JCBH Corporation (Pte. Ltd.)

1. Glides Consulting Partners Pte Ltd2. NTUC LearningHub Pte Ltd3. JCBH Corporation (Pte. Ltd.)4. Denis Asia Pacific Pte Ltd

ASSOCIATE

CORPORATE

1. Mdm Er Chye Har, MSHRI Senior Deputy Director, Human Resource

Singapore Land Authority2. David Kwee, MSHRI CEO Training Vision Institute Pte Ltd3. Chan Shen Yin, MSHRI Deputy Director, HR Strategy & Planning

Dept. National Environment Agency4. Mark Chen HR Manager Argon Critical Care Systems Singapore Pte Ltd5. Claudia Yaap, MSHRI HR Manager ST Electronics (Info-Comm Systems) Pte Ltd6. Ker Bee Bee, Florence, MSHRI HR Generalist Fortune 5007. Ang Hock Kheng, MSHRI Director HR Business Partners International Pte Ltd

1. Ang Bee Choon2. Chan Lee Peng Ada3. Eng Cui Fen4. Goh Boon Yong Matthias5. Lam Wai Yee6. Lim Hsing Ping Grace7. Mary Lucy d/o Lazarous D’Silva8. Norhafizah Binte Othman9. Tan Ai Hua Serene10. Tan Lee Lee11. Tan Ying Jie Celeste12. Tang Hui Siang Alicia13. Uma Mageswari D/O Balasubramanlan14. Lau Jin Wei Alwin15. Ramano Binte Redzwan16. Razinah Binte Abdul Aziz17. Toi Kah Poh18. Quek Gek San Director, HR & Corporate Services Dyslexia Association of Singapore19. Kathleen Lim Assistant Manager (Corporate Training) Aventis School of Management20. Alysha Ng Li Ann HRD, Assistant Manager Trichokare Pte Ltd21. Sarah Tate Supply Chain Controller/Manager Rio Tinto Alcan APAC Singapore22. Vivian Tan HR Business Partner Wieland Metals Singapore Pte Ltd23. Sim Ching Ching Cecilia HR Business Partner Support Specialist BlackBerry Singapore Pte Limited

1. Alkas Kitchen Pte Ltd

MARCH 2014PROFESSIONAL

ASSOCIATE

CORPORATE

CORPORATE

ASSOCIATE

1. Links Recruitment Singapore Pte Ltd2. ACME Corporate Services Pte Ltd3. Talent2 Services Pte Ltd

AA International Consultancy Pte LtdAasperson (S) Manpower Pte LtdAberdeen Asset Management Asia LimitedAccenture Pte LtdACE Talent Consulting Pte LtdACME Corporate Services Pte LtdAchieve Career Consultant Pte LtdAdecco Personnel Pte LtdAdept Manpower Solutions Pte LtdAdval Brand Group Pte LtdAedge Services Pte LtdAgency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA)Air Products Singapore Pte LtdAIRINC Asia Pacific LtdAlexandra Health Pte LtdAlkas Kitchen Pte LtdAlimak Hek Pte LtdAlliance Integrated Group (Private Limited)Ampersand Associates Pte LtdArup Singapore Pte LtdAsian Women’s Welfare AssociationAspire! Group Pte LtdAtlas Sound & Vision Pte LtdAustralian Trade CommissionAvanta Global Pte LtdAventis School of ManagementAvnet Asia Pte LtdBanco Santander S.ABeautyfresh Pte LtdBecton Dickinson Critical Care Systems Pte LtdBishan-Toa Payoh Town CouncilBlack Mountain (Singapore) Pte LtdBorneo Motors (S) Pte LtdBritish Council (Singapore) Limited BTI Consultants Pte LtdBuilding and Construction AuthorityHamilton Sundstrand Pacific Aerospace Pte Ltd Cape East Pte LtdCapitaland LimitedCartus Corporation Pte LtdCelergo Pte LtdCentral Provident Fund BoardCerebos Pacific LtdCertis CISCO Security Pte LtdChangi General Hospital Pte LtdChevron Singapore Pte LtdChina Jingye Engineering Corp LtdCitibank N.ACity Developments LimitedCivil Aviation Authority of SingaporeClarins Pte LtdComfortDelgro Corporation LtdConvergys Singapore Pte LtdCoperion Pte LtdCosmo Gourmet Pte LtdCredit Suisse AG, Singapore BranchDaimler South East Asia Pte LtdDell Global B V (Singapore Branch)Denis Asia Pacific Pte LtdDHL Water & Environment (S) Pte LtdDimension Data (Singapore ) Pte LtdEADS Singapore Pte LtdEcom Agroindustrial Asia Pte Ltd EFG Bank, Singapore Branch

Eli Lilly (Singapore) Pte LtdEnergy Market AuthorityEnergy Market Company Pte LtdEntheos Consulting Pte Ltd Epson Singapore Pte LtdExperian Singapore Pte LtdFlexecute Pte LtdFlextronics International Singapore Pte LtdFresh Start Bakeries Singapore Pte LtdFuji Xerox Singapore Pte LtdForum Asia Pte LtdGlides Consulting Partners Pte LtdGlobibo Pte LtdGMP Recruitment Services (S) Pte LtdGreensafe International Pte LtdHamilton Sundstrand Pacific Aerospace Pte LtdHeraeus Materials Singapore Pte LtdHiring Boss Pte LtdHitachi Plant Technologies (Asia) Pte LtdHOF Consulting Pte LtdHPO International Institute Pte LtdHR Quest Singapore Pte LtdHRMS Consulting Asia Pacific Pte LtdHSR International Realtor Pte LtdIBM Singapore Pte LtdImpact International (Singapore) Inavab Fumigation & Pest Ctrl Mgt Pte LtdInfocomm Development Authority of SingaporeInland Revenue Authority of SingaporeInstitute of Certified Public Accountants of SingaporeInstitute of Mental HealthInstitute of Technical EducationInternational Hospitals Construction Co LtdIQ Dynamics Pte LtdJason Electronics Pte LtdJCBH Corporation (Pte. Ltd.)JobOne Pte LtdJobs DB Singapore Pte LtdJohnson & Johnson Pte LtdJTC CorporationJurong Port Pte LtdJurong Health Services Pte LtdK&E Associates Pte LtdKelly Services (Singapore) Pte LtdKeppel Land International LtdKingsforce Management Services Pte LtdKK Women’s & Children’s HospitalKong Meng San Phor Kark See MonasteryKorn/Ferry International Pte LtdKPMG Services Pte LtdLevi Strauss Asia Pacific Division Pte LtdLey Choon Constructions & Engineering Pte LtdLiberty Insurance Pte LtdLilly-NUS Centre for Clinical Pharmacology Pte LtdLinks Recruitment Singapore Pte LtdLithan Education Pte LtdLucasfilm Animation Singapore BVLundbeck Singapore Pte LtdL&RUI Concept Group Pte LtdMandarin Orchard SingaporeManpower Staffing Services (Singapore) Pte LtdMapletree Investments Pte LtdMatador Systems Pte LtdMaximum Employment Marketing GroupMcDonald’s Restaurants Pte LtdMegaZip Adventure Park Mendaki Sense Pte Ltd

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Corporate Friends & Members of SHRIThe SHRI Corporate Friends scheme is a unique and innovative way for your company to enjoy an active partnership with SHRI. It enables member companies to derive maximum benefits and value for their employees through SHRI’s varied services, programmes and seminars. And, of course, being an SHRI

Corporate Friend signifies the affiliation to Singapore’s professional HR body.

44SKILLS DEVELOPMENT

Powering Human Capitalyears of

Powering Human Capital

Ideal facilities for training workshops, examinations, seminars and group meetings

SHRI offers well-equipped rooms to meet your rental needs and budget

• Conveniently located in Serangoon just outside the CBD area and easily accessible via public transport. - 5 minutes’ walk from Little India MRT station (NE7) - 10 minutes’ walk from Bugis MRT station (EW12) - Close to bus stops located along Serangoon Road, Sungei Road and Jalan Besar

• 8 newly furnished rooms with seating capacity up to *100 pax • Layout options: boardroom, theatre, cluster, U-shape and classroom• Includes a complimentary set of flip chart with stand, white board with markers and LCD projector usage • Complimentary access to WI-FI connectivity and filtered water• Catering services available for lunch and refreshments• Open for rental between 9am to 10pm, Monday to Sunday, excluding public holidays• Affordable rental rates with special discounts for bulk bookings

*Default room setting is in classroom style*Number of pax varies with table arrangement*

Contact our dedicated support team at 6438 0012 from Mondays to Fridays (9am-6pm) Location: 2 Serangoon Road, The Verge Level 6 Singapore 218227Website: www.shri.org.sg

Contact & Location:

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Book Now!

4646TEAM CONNECTION

HR managers are constantly looking for good training venues to hold their regional meetings, corporate presentations and

employee trainings. Many organisations hold regular staff trainings which are aimed at increasing product knowledge, skill-building or leadership boot camps.

Whether these events are conducted by in-house or external trainers, HR managers want to host them in easily accessible venues with ample space, the right equipment, good service staff and incentive group packages.

Such training opportunities could be as low-key as a two-hour presentation at a staff meeting, or as formal as a presentation or workshop by an industry expert, depending upon the organisation’s resources.

Although the nitty-gritty of arranging everything may not be the most exciting part, it is absolutely critical to plan the logistics. How well a HR manager takes care of the details has a lot to do with the success of the training programme.

So what are some of the issues that HR managers should look out for before planning for their next staff training?

Location, location, locationDo you want to hold training or staff development sessions at your workplace, or would it be better to go elsewhere? The number of staff involved and the amount of space needed are two determining factors when deciding where to hold the training event.

In a recent HR survey, the Singapore National Employers Fed-eration, Hotel Novotel Clarke Quay and Parkroyal Hotels & Resorts were voted as three of the best venues chosen by HR professionals to hold staff training in Singapore.

Layout & capacityOnce you have determined the number of staff to be involved in the training event, you need to consider how formal or informal the event is going to be, and then the type of setup needed. For instance, should the chairs be arranged in rows or in a circle? Do you need tables or desks to write on? Think about these room layout options:• Theatre: Chairs are arranged in several rows facing the stage.

This arrangement is most suitable for a forum-style or pres-entation setting.

• Classroom: Designed for a smaller crowd, the classroom-style setup is suitable for an informal and activity-filled training method.

• Boardroom/U-shaped: Chairs are arranged around a large table to facilitate collaborative discussions.

• Banquet style: Chairs are arranged around smaller tables to allow for better interaction during small-group discussions.

Extra services A good training venue will offer a full range of training facilities and support services. Such support services can range from greeting and signing in participants to photocopying and printing training materials.

Looking fornew venues?

What are some of the issues that HR managers should think about before planning for their next staff training?

47TEAM

CONNECTION

In addition, there are other essentials such as the in-house technical equipment and a dedicated onsite technical support team to handle technical problems.

Some training venue providers offer:• course material handling• secure high-speed internet connections • 24/7 onsite technical support • portable PA with microphone• projectors, white boards and flip charts• network printer • swipe-card security• catering for breakfast, lunch, tea and post-event drinks.

Going that extra mileImagine: On the day of the event, you run short of training material or the projector stops working!

A fundamental requirement for running an excellent training event includes the staff behind the training room setup. A dedicated venue provider will always do its best to manage your request quickly and efficiently, saving you money, time and potential problems.

And that is what makes the difference – going that extra mile to make the event a success!

Training venuesHere are some of the suggested training venues which some HR practitioners prefer:• Hotel Jen Tanglin Singapore• Hotel Novotel Singapore Clarke Quay• NTUC LearningHub• Orchid Country Club• ParkRoyal Hotels & Resorts• Raffles Marina• Singapore Management University • Singapore National Employers Federation

Training methodologyWhen conducting corporate training, vary presentation methods to keep your staff interested and motivated. This is true whether the training is in-house or conducted by external presenters. Some of the methods include:• Discussion/study circles• Group activities: small-group problem-solving and

collaborative projects• Multimedia: audio-visual presentations (videos, audio

tape, overheads), use of computers and the internet• Physical activities: movement, manipulation of materials• Individual problem-solving• Role plays and simulation• Journals or other writing activities• Arts activities as individuals or in groups• Individual or group research• Lecture

48QUICK TAKES

The IR Act: what the changes mean

PMEs can now be represented as a group by rank-and-file unions.

• Extending the scope of union representation on a collective basis for executives

This allows rank-and-file trade unions to represent exec-utive employees for collective bargaining, excluding those in senior management positions and/or those with substantial responsibilities for hiring, firing, promotion, dismissal and disciplinary duties.

• Expanding the scope of limited representation on an individual basis on re-employment matters

This makes it possible for rank-and-file trade unions to represent executive employees on an individual basis in disputes relating to re-employment after retirement.

Currently, rank-and-file unions can represent executives on an individual basis in four limited areas, namely breach of individual contract of employment, retrenchment benefits, unfair dismissal and victimisation.

The two main changesProfessionals, managers and executives (PMEs) can now be collectively represented as a group by rank-and-file unions

after Parliament passed amendments to the Industrial Relations (IR) Act earlier this year.

The amendments will provide PMEs, except those in senior management positions, with wider union representation. Before now, PMEs were allowed to be represented by the same unions on an individual basis and only for limited matters. But the profile of Singapore’s workforce is evolving, with PMEs today constituting 30% of the country’s labour force. This percentage is expected to increase with more Singaporeans pursuing tertiary education, and the changes to the IR Act reflect this changing reality.

To prevent a conflict of interest, executives in senior manage-ment positions or those with responsibilities related to hiring and promotion will be excluded. The amendments will also allow PMEs to turn to unions for representation if they face re-employment issues. All this means more union representation options for executives.

In 2013, there were more than 630,000 PMEs, which is about 31% of the resident workforce. And with many new jobs requiring knowledge workers, these changes to the IR Act are timely.

So even as companies are putting in place sound and effective labour management practices, HR directors and hiring managers must familiarise themselves with the changes and their implications, and be ready for new challenges.

Powering Human Capital

SHRI Employment Agency

As a not-for-profit professional HR body, our mission is to enhance people management capabilities in Singapore.

We offer you a full spectrum of recruitment and selection services, from manpower planning to on-boarding, with the prime focus on HR roles.

SPECIALITIESApprentice in Talent Management

Executive Search PlacementsPermanent StaffingContract Staffing

Employers and Job-seekers, please contact talent@shri.org.sg for more information.

SHRI - EA License No: 01C5963

2 Serangoon Road, Level 6 The Verge, Singapore 218227 Tel: +65 6438 0012 | Fax: +65 6299 4864 | www.shri.org.sg

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