M A N A G E M E N Thuman resource by tan nga kokthehumanfactorTHE WINNING TEAM“Your best qualities will surface in the presence of good people.”Today, in the new economy,what counts more than ever inthe success of many companiesis the quality of their workforce– the skills, knowledge,creativity and motivationthrough which they add valueto the raw materials withwhich they work. In short, itis the human factor.human resource • 63
FOR A FORWARD LOOKING COMPANY LIKE ST ENGG,this understanding is fundamental to our progress. All ourpeople are encouraged to believe in their ability to upgradeexisting skills and to master new ones.We aim to enhancethe skills and abilities that they possess through continuoustraining.We provide them with in-house training and alsosponsor them for courses provided by external bodies,including, where appropriate, at university level. By thesemeans, we aim to help all those who work with thecompany to realise their full potential.On the job, an attitude of beingopen to learning is welcomed: Itmakes good sense for the lessexperienced to learn from the moreexperienced, so we encourage peopleto seek advice from colleagues andexchange views with them about thebest ways to tackle a problem. It isalso important that our people learnfrom and benchmark against others,outside of the company.Career development at ST Engghas these two aspects: an individualhas the chance, and is encouraged, todevelop his skills and capabilities inhis existing job. Enhanced skills andproven talents also provide the basisfor individuals to assume greaterresponsibilities and broaden theircareer prospects. Either way, webelieve that good performance atwork should be recognised andrewarded accordingly.This not onlyencourages our people to contributemore, but helps us ensure that weretain their talents.We are trying to create anenvironment in which new ideas findencouragement.We have organisedcompetitions to foster innovationand ideas and implemented staffsuggestion schemes.We have made itclear throughout ST Engg that anyindividual or group coming forwardwith new product ideas or ways ofimproving our services will receivethe recognition they deserve.Webelieve that enlisting the activeparticipation of our people in developingour products and services is animportant avenue to the achievementof year-on-year progress and thegeneration of increased revenues,whether directly from our own operationsor from licensing patents.In the past year, we have intensifiedour efforts to expand computerliteracy within the company. Everyemployee was offered S$2,500 forthe purchase of computers or softwareand we have conductedInternet training for many membersof our staff. Our goal is for all to bee-literate.To boost our performance as aGroup further, we have embarkedupon the implementation of 6-Sigma,an organisational quality system thathas saved millions of dollars for manyof the world’s leading companies.Believing that we need more than asingle programme to enhance ourcompetitiveness in the global arena,we have also retained Kaizen whichwe have implemented over the pastthree years and which has brought ussignificant savings.SAFE AND HEALTHYAs a Group, we take the attitudethat we are like one family, whosemembers all contribute to ourcommon achievement.We care forour people’s welfare.We go to great lengths to ensurethe safety of the company’s employeesthrough safety inspections, rules andeducation. Health talks, exhibitions,screenings for specific illnesses andeven safety quizzes have all played apart in our efforts.Sports and social activitiesranging from football to the newlyintroduced line dancing are organisedwithin each group, andsometimes at a Group-wide level.They are fun, as well as being goodfor our health.A WIDER COMMUNITYOur employees have under-takenactivities such as visiting charitablehomes, donating blood, and holdingfund-raising events for charities,such as collections and sponsoredruns to do our bit for the community.Wenever forget that webelong to broader communities;and we seek to be good membersof them.SIOW KENG CHENGSENIOR VICE PRESIDENTAND GENERAL MANAGER,ST ELECT“When we first started in theearly ’70’s, we werestruggling for our living afterthe British pulled out and theVietnam war ended. Therewasn’t enough work andthere were even someretrenchments by the electronicsunit.But thereafter,it wasgrowth allthe way. Weadvancedtechnologically, innovated,developed our skills, foundnew customers and we wenton from being a two or threehundred man company tobecoming a 2000-mancompany today.”ANGEL COTTONEXECUTIVE SECRETARY,MAE, ST AERO“In the beginning I chose towork for ST Aero for a careerchange. I continue to work forST Aero because I feel that Iam part ofthe family.Regardlessof whether Iam workingwith someonein Mobile, Dallas or<strong>Singapore</strong>, I feel that we allhave the same goal in mind.Management makes each ofus feel that we are part of thesolution. None of us is just anemployee number. Our opinionsdo count.”LEE SIAK HOHASSISTANT PRINCIPALENGINEER, ST AERO“The company has growntremendously since I joined10 years ago, so there’s asense of job security here.With this behind us, we canlook forward to opportunitiesand challenges as thecompany expands. We havea good working environment.Also, the company hasalways rewarded us when itdid well orrewardedindividualswhen theydid well. Allthese factorsare incentives to stay for thelong-term: it’s the best place.”TOMAS EMMOTHTECHNICAL CONSULTANT,SES, ST ELECT“For me personally, it’s not somuch promotion that isimportant, like getting a longertitle or somethinglikethis, but it’smore yourown development,thatyou learn more things – what Icall personal development.That’s what’s most importantto me. I think there’s goodopportunities in ST Engg forthat.”CHEE CHEE KHIATHEAD OF DEPARTMENT,ST MARINE“I’ve been here 20 yearsalready. It’s a nice place towork. For me, promotion’s notreally one of the veryimportant things. The moreimportant thing is to get thingsrunning smoothly and to lookfor improvementon thejob. We’vedone thatthroughKaizen andsome of our staff are doing a6-Sigma course.”GERALDINE KOHTREASURY EXECUTIVE,ST ENGG“My colleagues are great. It’sa nice place to be in, like avery bigfamily. If youare youngand new,people helpyou andteach you what to do. I feelthat I have grown with thiscompany and become moreconfident.”YUNOSMOHAMEDSECTION HEAD OF PIPING,ST MARINE“Times have changed. When Iwas a draftsman in thecompany’s early days, I onlydrew with pencil and pen;now, the draftsmen haveCADCAM. All our technologyhas moved on a lot. Asanother example, everythingwas moved by hand in theearly days, but now we havemachines tomove things,includingtwo synchrolifts.Inmy owndepartment, the companyinvested in a machine to bendpipes in five minutes ascompared to what used totake an hour.”JOHNNY TANMACHINIST, ST KINETICS“Every now and then a newjob comes in and you think,‘I’ve never seen this before.’Then you think about it, youget assistance from a friendand you areable to do it.I can go onand makethe most ofmy abilitiesby training and upgrading myskills. Sometimes I think I canpush myself to the limit, butthen I find there’s morebeyond that: even the sky’s nolimit!”64 • visionhuman resource • 65
Change language