ST Engineering’s CEO receives Asia Leadership Award
ST Engineering’s President and CEO Mr Tan Pheng Hock was named the Asia Business Leader of the Year by CNBC at its 12th Asia Business Leaders Awards (ABLA). In all, 62 Asian leaders of Asian corporations were nominated for the ABLA awards. Mr Tan is the first Singaporean to have won the Asia Business Leader of the Year award since ABLA's launch in 2001, the company said in its press release.
The ALBA recognises chief executives who "epitomise core values of a successful leader - strength, innovation, ingenuity, knowledge and foresight.” On winning the Asia Business Leader of the Year award, the judges credited Mr Tan "for developing a customer-centric culture and embracing a framework that motivates and inspires staff, making his vision for the company a reality.”
Mr Tan took on his current position at ST Engineering in early 2002, tasked to drive and realise the company’s vision of becoming a global defence and engineering Group. Over the last 10 years, ST Engineering grew from a Singapore-centric business to an organisation with a substantial presence in the US as well as in Asia and Europe. Its US business accounts for one-third of Group revenue and through its US headquarters, VT Systems, employs more than 6,000 people in 20 locations across the US, Canada and Central America.
ST Engineering today has also developed strong international defence and commercial businesses, with its aerospace operations being one of the largest in the world. Group revenue grew more than 2-fold from S$2.62b in FY2002 to S$6.38b in FY2012. Net profit after tax rose from S$331m to S$576m during that time, consistently delivering ROE in the region of 30% to shareholders.
“I always look at any success as the fruit of everyone pulling together. As CEO, I lead but I am but one part of the equation. To get to where we are today from ten years ago – in terms of expanded footprint, solid customer base and sustainable growth -- took commitment, determination and the passion of everyone in the organisation,” said Mr Tan. “I am aware that in challenging times, leadership becomes even more critical. I believe in the years ahead, the number of situations that will test the mettle of leaders will far exceed the number of situations that don’t. This is why we work hard at ST Engineering to create a culture based on professionalism, thinking ahead; and people who have shared ownership of our goals. ”
In earlier recognition for his leadership, Mr Tan also won the Best CEO Award in the Singapore Corporate Awards for companies of market capitalisation of $1 billion and above in 2012. In 2009 at the 8th ABLA, he received the Asia Talent Management Award.
The main criteria for the Asia Business Leader of the Year award included qualities such as innovation, community service, management skills and the leader's ability to formulate strategies and capitalise on key trends. Candidates go through a stringent three-phase judging process, which includes quantitative company data analysis to select the top performers from across Asia, followed by face-to-face interviews to assess candidates' leadership qualities, and the final selection of winners.
ST Engineering (Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd) is an integrated engineering group providing solutions and services in the aerospace, electronics, land systems and marine sectors. Headquartered in Singapore, the Group reported revenue of $6.38b in FY2012 and ranks among the largest companies listed on the Singapore Exchange. It is a component stock of the FTSE Straits Times Index, FTSE ASEAN 40 Index, MSCI Singapore and other indices. ST Engineering has more than 22,000 employees worldwide, and over 100 subsidiaries and associated companies in 23 countries and 41 cities.
