Monthly Archives: February 2023

Hearing from Brad Fraser MAP’18Apr
– Head of Prime Derivative Services Asia Pacific at Barclays

How did you determine which businesses demonstrated a strong commitment to being a force for good?

The criteria we used to differentiate particularly competitive and some really impactful companies was:

(1) the use of innovative solutions to a particular issue
(2) breadth of impact on a community
(3) but I think most importantly, the actual impact. How does the solutions impact the community?

For example, not just by providing internet access to a under-serviced community, but the impact access to the internet has on that community i.e. education, small business etc.

When evaluating how a company’s solutions impact a community, it’s important to consider both the intended and unintended consequences of their actions.

Intended impact refers to the direct and measurable results of a company’s solutions on a community. For example, if a company provides access to affordable healthcare to underserved communities, the intended impact would be improved health outcomes for those communities.

However, unintended consequences also need to be considered. These can include negative impacts that may arise from the implementation of a solution, such as environmental harm or unintended social consequences. For example, a company may introduce a new product that is meant to be environmentally friendly but it may end up using materials that are unsustainable, leading to negative environmental impacts.

To evaluate the impact of a company’s solutions on a community, it is important to take a holistic approach that considers both the intended and unintended consequences of their actions. This can be done through monitoring and evaluation of the impact of the solutions over time and engaging with the community to understand their needs and concerns.

Meeting our 2023 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Diana Gan – Founder of Elementary Capital

Post #2- Kaushik Burman – General Manager & Managing Director at Gogoro India Pvt Ltd)

Post #3 – Dr Vinika D. Rao – Executive Director, INSEAD Emerging Markets, Gender & Africa Initiatives; Asia Director, HGIBS

Post #4 – Mike Summers  – Defence & Security Director, Singapore (ASEAN); Australia Trade and Investment Commission; Australian High Commission, Singapore

Post #5 – Nadir Zafar – Chief Experience Officer, Human Capital Leadership Institute

Post #6 – Tan Han Wee – Partner at Ernst & Young

Post #7 – David Mair  – CEO at Republic Consulting & Secretary-General at INSEAD Alumni Association

Catch-up with 2022 Winners – Interview series

Post #1 – Michelle Woo, VP Venture Build, ENGIE Factory Asia Pacific (Corporate Winner)

Post #2 – Masami Soto, Founder of Buy One Give One – Empirics Asia

Post #3 – Gurpreet Singh, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at RightShip

Catch-up with 2022 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Li Lian Liew GEMBA’13 – Director, Corporate Planning at Tan Tock Seng Hospital & Central Health

Post #2 – Apo Ozkececi MCCC’19Dec-S – SVP Commercial & Regional Head, Asia Pacific, Accelya

Post #3 – Brad Fraser MAP’18Apr – Head of Prime Derivative Services Asia Pacific, Barclays

#iaasg

Hearing from Gurpreet Singh  – Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at RightShip

Can you tell us about your experience winning this award and what it means for your business?

Personally, I was humbled by the opportunity to be part of the BAFG nominees and then winning the award. What I found really insightful was to meet other business leaders in the BAFG community, and fellow-INSEAD alums as we got together and celebrate why BAFG matters. To me, this is core to what INSEAD does in advocating doing business as a force for good in this VUCA world. A sustainable business is one that is grounded on good and ethical business practices, hence it only makes sense that we as INSEADers champion such efforts. For RightShip, the recognition means that we have to continue to strive in what we do – our vision is about driving zero harm the maritime ecosystem. And we do this by leveraging on data and technology to provide insights around Environmental, Social and Governance to our customers, suppliers and other players in this diverse industry. For us, the quest towards driving towards zero harm in sustainability and safety hence continues.

Can you discuss any unique or innovative approaches your business has taken to be a force for good?

Absolutely. We continue to evolve our propositions as the industry evolves and as there is an increased awareness around sustainable business practices. For example – with global increased concerns around ship emissions, we have launched the RightShip Carbon Accounting tool. This tool empowers charterers and owners to measure, track and reduce their emissions footprint.

With developing environmental regulations by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) that are being introduced in 2023, we are also evolving our GHG Rating solution. This rating would thus be updated to incorporate an additional index, the Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index (EEXI) values, into its rating. At present, more than 46 000 vessels on our RightShip Platform have a GHG Rating, with around 180 chartering customers leveraging the valuable environmental rating in their due diligence processes in the last year alone. As regulations become ever more complicated, RightShip will continue to support more customers with their sustainability requirements.

To continue to drive fair and good living and working conditions of seafarers onboard ships, our Crew Welfare Self Assessment questionnaire continues to raise awareness of crew welfare, and driving its importance via a Code of Conduct that we have formulated in collaboration with the Sustainable Shipping Initiative (SSI) along with Institute for Human Rights and Business (IHRB). We continue to work with members in the shipping ecosystem to join us on this journey to make a commitment to improve welfare for seafarers. To share a recent development, we have also released a report (2023 Seafarer Abandonment Report by RightShip) on our website. This write-up provides some telling facts about the situation with our industry, with the intention to raise further awareness of this pertinent issue, and enroll interested parties to learn more and join us in the quest for zero harm.

Can you discuss any partnerships or collaborations your business has formed in order to have a greater positive impact?

In RightShip, we have a strong calling and a clear vision, in driving for zero harm. However, we recognize that we cannot do it alone. Hence partnerships, is a key enabler for us to reach out to create a greater positive impact. Late last year, we’ve announced a collaboration with Veson Nautical, a software company that enables commercial maritime freight. The integration with Veson allows subscribers to access RightShip data, and hence make commercial decisions that would also take safety and sustainability into account.

Meeting our 2023 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Diana Gan – Founder of Elementary Capital

Post #2- Kaushik Burman – General Manager & Managing Director at Gogoro India Pvt Ltd)

Post #3 – Dr Vinika D. Rao – Executive Director, INSEAD Emerging Markets, Gender & Africa Initiatives; Asia Director, HGIBS

Post #4 – Mike Summers  – Defence & Security Director, Singapore (ASEAN); Australia Trade and Investment Commission; Australian High Commission, Singapore

Post #5 – Nadir Zafar – Chief Experience Officer, Human Capital Leadership Institute

Post #6 – Tan Han Wee – Partner at Ernst & Young

Post #7 – David Mair  – CEO at Republic Consulting & Secretary-General at INSEAD Alumni Association

Catch-up with 2022 Winners – Interview series

Post #1 – Michelle Woo, VP Venture Build, ENGIE Factory Asia Pacific (Corporate Winner)

Post #2 – Masami Soto, Founder of Buy One Give One – Empirics Asia

Post #3 – Gurpreet Singh, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at RightShip

Catch-up with 2022 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Li Lian Liew GEMBA’13 – Director, Corporate Planning at Tan Tock Seng Hospital & Central Health

Post #2 – Apo Ozkececi MCCC’19Dec-S – SVP Commercial & Regional Head, Asia Pacific, Accelya

Hearing from David Mair  – Chief Executive Officer at Republic Consulting & Secretary-General at INSEAD Alumni Association

What were your key takeaways after graduating from INSEAD in relation to having a positive social impact on the community?
While Milton Friedman’s dictum from 1970 that “the social responsibility of business is to increase it’s profits” held sway for most of North American enterprise for close to half a century, being educated at INSEAD offered a far broader perspective. Businesses are a part of the communities they operate in and they need to contribute to society beyond the maximisation of profits to include a responsibility to their employees, communities and the environment. The concept of earning a “license to operate’ was far more prevalent in European business far earlier than elsewhere but as the recent US Business Roundtable’s Statement on the Purpose of a Corporation makes clear, the belief that companies must deliver value to all their stakeholders is now mainstream globally. That’s where I think INSEAD has long been at the forefront for responsible capitalism.

What do you believe are the critical elements for a business to act as a force for good?
A critical element in my view is for companies, the executives and directors who lead them, and for every employee, to adopt a moral compass that is unwavering. It’s amazing what a clear lens of what is right and wrong can achieve. If you wouldn’t want your actions to be seen on the front page of a newspaper somewhere then you shouldn’t be doing what you are doing.

What key BAFG principles would you like businesses in Singapore to embrace?
Businesses in Singapore are already leading the way in many respects but I would like to see a more wide-spread adoption of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. The recent announcement of the inaugural Steward Leadership 25 is fantastic progress in recognising those enterprises leading the way, as are the INSEAD Alumni Association Singapore’s Business As A Force For Good awards. The more attention we can draw to these issues, and the more we can celebrate success, the greater the incentives will be for investors, employees and all stakeholders to continue to drive change.

What were the main reasons for accepting an invitation to be an IAA Singapore BAFG judge?
I believe recognition for those enterprises and individuals driving change is an important element to achieve society-wide transformation. The IAA’s BAFG initiative is a unique opportunity to celebrate these successes.

What would you like to see in the upcoming review of the companies who are nominated?
While brochures and corporate videos are nice, I would like to see evidence of real impact in the real world, and a road map to achieve even more.

Meeting our 2023 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Diana Gan – Founder of Elementary Capital

Post #2- Kaushik Burman – General Manager & Managing Director at Gogoro India Pvt Ltd)

Post #3 – Dr Vinika D. Rao – Executive Director, INSEAD Emerging Markets, Gender & Africa Initiatives; Asia Director, HGIBS

Post #4 – Mike Summers  – Defence & Security Director, Singapore (ASEAN); Australia Trade and Investment Commission; Australian High Commission, Singapore

Post #5 – Nadir Zafar – Chief Experience Officer, Human Capital Leadership Institute

Post #6 – Tan Han Wee – Partner at Ernst & Young

Post #7 – David Mair  – CEO at Republic Consulting & Secretary-General at INSEAD Alumni Association

Catch-up with 2022 Winners – Interview series

Post #1 – Michelle Woo, VP Venture Build, ENGIE Factory Asia Pacific (Corporate Winner)

Catch-up with 2022 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Li Lian Liew GEMBA’13 – Director, Corporate Planning at Tan Tock Seng Hospital & Central Health

Post #2 – Apo Ozkececi MCCC’19Dec-S – SVP Commercial & Regional Head, Asia Pacific, Accelya

Hearing from Han Wee Tan  – Partner at Ernst & Young, EMBA’16D

What do you believe are the critical elements for a business to act as a force for good?
For a business to be a force for good, I think there some crucial elements.
• First, the business needs to embed doing good as part of into its strategic vision, purpose and ethos. Doing good forms needs to be a core part of the management agenda, as opposed to being a “nice-to-have” topic.
• Second, a business needs to translate that vision for doing good into sustainable practice. This involves committing time and resources to executing relevant programs over the long-term.
• Third, through active engagement, a business should be a beacon or ambassador for its unique flavor of doing good, ideally marshalling other organizations to participate in the same mission for the good of employees, customers, and communities.

What are some specific actions employees should do to enable a positive social impact on our community?
It is often difficult to generate sustainable social impact given our day jobs. That being said, employees can dedicate their time to doing good via specific channels.
For example, I’ve seen client organizations where a fixed number of hours are set aside regularly for employees to volunteer and support local organizations or charities which align with their causes or values.
Advocacy is an equally important channel. For example, I’ve seen employees who encourage their employers to adopt sustainable practices, or create social impact through diversity, equality and inclusiveness (DEI) initiatives.

What key BAFG principles would you like businesses in Singapore to embrace?
There are a number of important principles to bear in mind.
The first principle goes to the heart of how businesses interact with society. Whilst technological innovation and globalization has been a force for good, it has also left many people behind. Rising economic inequality has caused a decline in public trust in institutions and businesses. It is now increasingly important that businesses focus on long-term value creation for all stakeholders, not just shareholders.
Second, with the definition of value pivoting from traditional, tangible assets to areas like culture, trust and governance, traditional financial reporting metrics are no longer sufficient. In fact, they may pose an impediment to companies’ ability to adapt, forcing institutions to adhere their ingrained mindsets centered on short-term, financial profits.

What were the main reasons for accepting an invitation to be an IAA Singapore BAFG judge?
I am looking for a more active way to contribute to INSEAD post-graduation. The Business as a Force for Good Award is a good avenue for me to contribute, since it allows me to tap into the diversity of client experiences and social impact initiatives I’ve seen in my consulting work.
I also hope that my stepping forward encourages others to do the same, so that our community as a whole will benefit from an increased recognition that businesses should drive purpose and not just profits.

What motivated you to be an advocate for businesses to act as a force for good?
I have always been motivated to help the underprivileged in society. In our daily lives, many of us interact only with those living in mainstream society, but what about those on the fringe? It is these people who need the most help, whether they live in poverty, have unmet needs or lack access to basic necessities.
I believe businesses can do so much to help this segment, and often it is not mutually exclusive to their fundamental purpose of generating profits. It is my hope that all businesses step up and aspire to do good beyond profits, improve their social license to operate and help uplift humanity as a whole.

Meeting our 2023 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Diana Gan – Founder of Elementary Capital

Post #2- Kaushik Burman – General Manager & Managing Director at Gogoro India Pvt Ltd)

Post #3 – Dr Vinika D. Rao – Executive Director, INSEAD Emerging Markets, Gender & Africa Initiatives; Asia Director, HGIBS

Post #4 – Mike Summers  – Defence & Security Director, Singapore (ASEAN); Australia Trade and Investment Commission; Australian High Commission, Singapore

Post #5 – Nadir Zafar – Chief Experience Officer, Human Capital Leadership Institute

Post #6 – Tan Han Wee – Partner at Ernst & Young

Catch-up with 2022 Winners – Interview series

Post #1 – Michelle Woo, VP Venture Build, ENGIE Factory Asia Pacific (Corporate Winner)

Catch-up with 2022 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Li Lian Liew GEMBA’13 – Director, Corporate Planning at Tan Tock Seng Hospital & Central Health

Post #2 – Apo Ozkececi MCCC’19Dec-S – SVP Commercial & Regional Head, Asia Pacific, Accelya

Meeting with Nadir Ali Zafar  – Chief Experience Officer, Human Capital Leadership Institute, MBA’09J

What do you believe are the critical elements for a business to act as a force for good?
It means focusing on impact more than profitability.

What are some specific actions employees should do to enable a positive social impact on our community?
Volunteer work which can be facilitated by the company. Donate to good causes. Advocate for issues that are important to the community. Reduce waste at the office. Create awareness at work on important social issues.

What are some examples in your profession/ company where you’ve experienced BAFG first-hand?
Focusing on impact to customer rather than on the profit margin.

What key BAFG principles would you like businesses in Singapore to embrace?
Reduce carbon footprint. Introduce sustainability measures in the office.

What were the main reasons for accepting an invitation to be an IAA Singapore BAFG judge?
To serve the community and network.

What motivated you to be an advocate for businesses to act as a force for good?
Governments alone cannot be responsible – businesses must act as they are the major influencers in this field.

What would like to see in the upcoming review of the companies who are nominated?
More diversity in terms of countries where they are coming from, and also industries.

Meeting our 2023 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Diana Gan – Founder of Elementary Capital

Post #2- Kaushik Burman – General Manager & Managing Director at Gogoro India Pvt Ltd)

Post #3 – Dr Vinika D. Rao – Executive Director, INSEAD Emerging Markets, Gender & Africa Initiatives; Asia Director, HGIBS

Post #4 – Mike Summers  – Defence & Security Director, Singapore (ASEAN); Australia Trade and Investment Commission; Australian High Commission, Singapore

Post #5 – Nadir Zafar  – Chief Experience Officer, Human Capital Leadership Institute

Catch-up with 2022 Winners – Interview series

Post #1 – Michelle Woo, VP Venture Build, ENGIE Factory Asia Pacific (Corporate Winner)

Catch-up with 2022 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Li Lian Liew GEMBA’13 – Director, Corporate Planning at Tan Tock Seng Hospital & Central Health

Post #2 – Apo Ozkececi MCCC’19Dec-S – SVP Commercial & Regional Head, Asia Pacific, Accelya

Hearing from Mike Summers  – Defence & Security Director, Singapore (ASEAN); Australia Trade and Investment Commission;
Australian High Commission, Singapore

What were your key takeaways after graduating from INSEAD in relation to having a positive social impact on the community?
Future-ready businesses that deliberately balance socially responsible impact with short-term financial gain can capture a competitive advantage over the long term. An integrated environmental and social value strategy is critical to today’s business decision-making. Employees, customers, and investors have evolved with more agency and engagement and increasingly expect a company’s values to align with being a force for good. In a post-pandemic world, socially responsible companies that positively impact their communities can differentiate and take advantage of new market opportunities that lead to greater market share and company profits.

What do you believe are the critical elements for a business to act as a force for good?
A company must stand for its beliefs and establish and articulate a higher corporate purpose that embodies a vision, mission, and strategy and shows its employees, customers, suppliers, and community that it can be trusted to live up to its promise to be a force for good. A company that prioritises sustainability and other important ESG issues in its communities can turn the dial on value creation and outperform the competition that only focuses on maximising profits. The days of businesses taking resources and profits without giving back to society are ending.

What actions from companies have you seen which have been a force for good?
Australia is the largest non-NATO contributor of bilateral military aid to Ukraine’s war. Australian defence companies are providing military and humanitarian assistance, including medical equipment and crucial ballistic body armour for the personal protection of Ukrainian soldiers and civilian first responders on the front lines of the conflict. Their patent body armour protects the user from artillery, grenade fragmentation, and impact from firearms, which saves lives. Australia continues to stand with the people of Ukraine and will provide additional support measures in response to Russia’s ongoing violation of international law.

What are some examples in your profession/ company where you’ve experienced BAFG first-hand?
During COVID-19, the Australian High Commission in Singapore focused on training its leaders to understand their pivotal role in fostering well-being within their teams and the ability to observe and act when their team members were struggling. Educating and empowering our leaders through proactive support programs on mental health and well-being have been key elements of a successful Well-being Strategy. Good business leaders recognise that creating a mentally healthy workplace is no longer a peripheral concern but is at the heart of any successful business strategy that connects productive employees with productive communities and a profitable business.

What were the main reasons for accepting an invitation to be an IAA Singapore BAFG judge?
It is a pleasure to be a BAFG Judge on the IAA panel that champions Singapore business leaders that inspire others to be a force for good and have taken action to solve urgent societal problems that enrich communities while creating profitability and responsibility to shareholders. I am grateful to be a part of a cohort of thought leaders who value giving their time to share their outlook for the future of social and economic responsibility.

Meeting our 2023 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Diana Gan – Founder of Elementary Capital

Post #2- Kaushik Burman – General Manager & Managing Director at Gogoro India Pvt Ltd)

Post #3 – Dr Vinika D. Rao – Executive Director, INSEAD Emerging Markets, Gender & Africa Initiatives; Asia Director, HGIBS

Post #4 – Mike Summers  – Defence & Security Director, Singapore (ASEAN); Australia Trade and Investment Commission; Australian High Commission, Singapore

Catch-up with 2022 Winners – Interview series

Post #1 – Michelle Woo, VP Venture Build, ENGIE Factory Asia Pacific (Corporate Winner)

Catch-up with 2022 Judges – Interview series

Post #1 – Li Lian Liew GEMBA’13 – Director, Corporate Planning at Tan Tock Seng Hospital & Central Health

Post #2 – Apo Ozkececi MCCC’19Dec-S – SVP Commercial & Regional Head, Asia Pacific, Accelya