a p r i l 2 0 0 5 i s s u e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .


THOMAS NG

President
I-Search Worldwide Philippines, Inc.
(Executive Search)

President
Genashtim Philippines, Inc.
Universitas 21 Global
(Global Online MBA Program)

Education:
B.S. Commerce, University of Auckland, New Zealand

CAREER PATH:

  • Chartered Accountant in Coopers and Lybrand in Auckland, New Zealand
  • Helped start up Asea Brown Boveri (ABB) subsidiary in Kuala Lumpur
  • Posted to ABB China, based in Hong Kong
  • Sent to Poland to join a team of specialists to restructure ABB’s substantial acquisitions in Eastern Europe
  • Managing Director for ABB China Investments Ltd., to start up ABB’s first manufacturing joint ventures in China.
  • Regional Director for Rexam - Asia Pacific, based in Hong Kong.
  • President and Country Manager for ABB Philippines.

Could you please tell us about your current business ventures?

First is Genashtim Philippines, Inc. This online MBA program is owned and put together by the top universities in the world, including University of Virginia, McGill University in Canada, University of Edinborough in Glasgow, Hongkong University, the National University of Singapore, Regis School of New South Wales, and Melbourne University. They approved the program and course content and put the university crest on the final diploma. It’s an MBA program recognized by the top universities in the world and by countries like USA, Canada, and Europe.

If you go to Australia, for example, an employer will see that you are recognized by the top graduate school in Australia.

The diverse culture of the business executives in the class is the biggest value to me. Unfortunately, a lot of these MBA brick-and-mortar classes don’t have that diversity.

Whereas in Universitas Global, we have 600 students from 32 countries. When you join the class, you will interact with Australians, Singaporeans, Malaysians, Sri Lankans, Filipinos, Middle Easterns, Americans. You have case studies and learn from each other.

The other joint venture partner is a company called Thompson Corporation, a $7.2 billion company in publishing and e-learning. They will ensure top-class delivery. It’s one thing to have good content but these other online MBA programs have slow downloading or other technical problems. We ensure that the online component works all the time. This is a different product from the other online educational programs.

Online education has its advantages. You have to consider the cost in taking MBA programs overseas. Then there are travel and accommodations costs and lost income. But with our program, you can take it on the job, you don’t need to travel for the classes or give up your work. Whatever you learn, you can use the next day when you go to work.

I’m also the joint venture partner and president of I-Search Worldwide. We are part of a Singapore group; we are the Philippine operations. We are a headhunter and recruitment firm.

After working in different companies all over the world, why did you base yourself in the Philippines?

I have a lot of friends here. I have grown to like this place and the people. After many years of corporate life, this is the place where I would try my hand on something of my own. I’ve been looking around for things to do, and then a friend asked me to set up I-Search in the Philippines. My wife and children are in Australia, my kids go to school there. They come up to the Philippines all holidays and love it here. We’ve gone to El Nido, Anilao, and Boracay. I’ve been to Davao, Boracay, and Cagayan de Oro many times.

I do have my criticisms and frustrations. This country has many squandered opportunities. It is so capable of so much more.

There’s still a lot that the government can do, but I don’t want to go into that discussion. I’m a small entrepreneur, and I can tell you that to set up a small company in the Philippines---had I known what I was involved, I would not have started. I’ve set up companies in Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand---somebody has to look up removing all these unnecessary obstacles [in the Philippines].

I’ll give you an extreme example. If I set up a company in Alberta, I go to my accountant and pay him US $2,000 dollars, and he gives me documents to sign. That’s it. Within one hour, I go home with the company seal and everything is set up. Here? To be perfectly frank I have not encountered any corruption. But to set up a company, you fill up a whole stack of forms. I don't understand Why does there have to be five directors in the company? The other four don’t know what’s going on anyway. What’s the point? You send someone to all over the town to have the documents signed. Then each director has to own one share in the company. Why? What significance is that? To change directors, it will cost you P20,000-P30,000 and a whole set of forms. Why?

How would you assess the Filipino worker?

The biggest problem I faced with my Filipino managers when I first came here is that they were not open with their opinions. They liked to tell me what I liked to hear. I hate that. I like to hear the raw, dirty truth. How they view[things] and how they think. But once you have their confidence, when they know what they say will not be held against them, then there’s a lot of creativity.

In general, the Filipino worker should be a bit more hardworking, if I compare with the early days in Singapore, Malaysia, and China. The Filipino has a taste for the good life, they like to enjoy. I employ a lot of young graduates. I keep telling them that there is so much time to enjoy. But to build up a career, that’s important. Grab opportunities. When I started out, 100-hour workweeks are common. You work 7 days a week.

In the Philippines, you need to move so much and so fast that you need to catch up. You need to put your nose to the grinding stone.

What factors would you attribute to your success?

To be very frank and honest, I’m not sure this is a good lesson to pass on – in the early years, I would credit it to my good command of the English language. In a multi-national company, if you can speak well and present your arguments well, you impress them. But at the end of the day, what made a difference was my command of the English language. Growing up in Malaysia, my first language was English. For most foreigners, they don’t understand that. They see this Chinese-Malayan who speaks perfect English!

Second is my ability to put forward one’s opinion. Very often, we Asians don’t do that well. We don’t present well. It comes across flat. My American and English colleagues really do it well. That’s very important.

Intelligence and hard work are a given. But that’s not enough. To get up there, you have to show that flair.

One of the good things about ABB is that it is truly a global company. In attending a meeting in Zurich, eight of us had six different nationalities. There was I, an Indian, a Yugoslavian, a Norwegian, an American, a couple of Swiss. It’s funny because the Europeans tended to fight among themselves. And I’m the neutral element that everyone gets to talk to. I developed great friendships. I never felt that I was an outsider because everybody seems to be an outsider, too.

Where do you go from here? What are your plans for the future?

When we started the Online MBA program September of last year, we sold only to corporates. I know a lot of CEOs and company owners. We were in fact successful. We go through a lengthy process in selecting the students. Now with these companies on board, we are launching the retail side.

I hope this Universitas 21 will be a big thing. Branding will be very strong, I think I can take this brand very far in this country. I have to keep the Exec Search slim, nice, and"sexy."

These two businesses were not what I intended to do when I left my corporate life. My area of competence is in the energy sector. I was hoping to play in the role of deregulation and privatization of the National Power Corporation’s assets. To be a consultant. But things are not really happening. Things are kinda slow. The real kick for me would be to involved in the industry.

What advice would you give your supervisors and managers who would want to become high-level executives?

I came from nowhere. My father was a schoolteacher, my mother was a housewife, I was not connected to any prestigious family. I did not have enough to do my college. I got my father’s retirement fund. It was enough for six months’ living cost in New Zealand and my air ticket.

I had to work the rest through. Fortunately, I didn’t have to pay for my school fees. New Zealand was supporting Malaysia in the education of its people. I was among those accepted. I only paid exam fees.

We never owned a house, car, or motorcycle when we were growing up. We weren’t living in poverty, we were comfortable, it was a simple life.

Anybody is capable of doing what I do. Some people ask me how they can work so hard when they are only paid P10,000 or P20,000, but work is something that you learn. Given this job and do this bit of extra---you learn something new and it’s yours. And because you are in this company, you have this opportunity to try something else. While having coffee with your colleague, ask him about his job. Train all over the place.

As an accountant, I used to read technical catalogs. I help with the delivery and the unloading of the products. If you rose through the ranks as Finance but did not go beyond that, how can you know all these things [about infrastructure, costing, set-up]. How can you rise to the top? Because on top, you have to see everything and base your decisions on everything.

Learn everything. Be a dry sponge and soak up everything.

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