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Lien Centre’S Social Space Turns The Spotlight On Social Enterprise And Innovation, Knowledge@Smu Jul 2008

Lien Centre’S Social Space Turns The Spotlight On Social Enterprise And Innovation, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

The Lien Centre of the Singapore Management University was set up in 2006 with support from the Lien Foundation to serve as a catalyst for social innovation and change in Singapore. The Centre will launch an inaugural volume, Social Space, in August 2008. Lien Centre Board Chairman, Willie Cheng, talked to Knowledge@SMU about the book, the overall aims of the centre, and his own thinking on social enterprise, innovation and entrepreneurship. Cheng was formerly country managing director for Accenture and is actively involved in the nonprofit sector in Singapore.


Operation And Technology Roadmapping Gives Singapore Smes A Strategic Edge, Knowledge@Smu May 2008

Operation And Technology Roadmapping Gives Singapore Smes A Strategic Edge, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

In today’s increasingly globalised, knowledge-based marketplace, a company’s ability to exploit innovation and technology is fundamental to sustaining growth and staying ahead of the competition. To help local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) move up the value-chain, Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) runs the Operation and Technology Roadmapping (OTR) initiative. Michael Ferrill, who cofounded the programme, spoke on OTR and knowledge transfer at the Fourth International Research Conference on Asian Business held in March 2008 at the Singapore Management University.


Ych Chairman Robert Yap: Building The Logistics Superhighway One Step At A Time, Knowledge@Smu May 2008

Ych Chairman Robert Yap: Building The Logistics Superhighway One Step At A Time, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Robert Yap, chairman and CEO of YCH Group, was the featured speaker earlier this year in the Singapore Management University’s Wee Kim Wee Centre CEO Talk series. Over a period of 20 years, Yap led his family-owned business from a small transportation company in Singapore to a leading logistics and supply chain solutions provider in Asia Pacific. In recognition of his visionary leadership and industry expertise, Yap won the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2007. He spoke to Knowledge@SMU about YCH’s successful evolution and how the future looks for the company.


How Smes Can Leverage Innovation To Become Global Players, Knowledge@Smu Apr 2008

How Smes Can Leverage Innovation To Become Global Players, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) need to realise that being small is only an interim stage on the way to becoming larger enterprises. How SMEs can grow is to leverage on innovation opportunities to transition to the next stage, says Singapore Management University information systems professor Desai Arcot Narasimhalu, speaking recently on “Innovation -- The tracks that can transform SMEs into global players” at the UOB-SMU Entrepreneurship Alliance Centre.


The Source Of Competitive Advantage In A Family Business Is The Family, Knowledge@Smu Mar 2008

The Source Of Competitive Advantage In A Family Business Is The Family, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

When family businesses expand overseas, they do well to capitalise on their unique core values and cultures. But these inherent strengths should be tempered to fit into the new environments, advised Sanjay Goel, strategic management and entrepreneurship professor, University of Minnesota Duluth. Goel spoke on the topic, "Sources of competitive advantage in family business – bringing the family back in," at the inaugural Ngee Ann Kongsi annual lecture, Singapore Management University (SMU). He was joined for a panel discussion afterwards by Richard Eu, Robert Yap and Andreas Sohmen-Pao. The panel was chaired by SMU deputy president and provost Tan Chin …


A Tale Of Two Ngos: Bangladesh’S Grameen Bank And Brac, Knowledge@Smu Feb 2008

A Tale Of Two Ngos: Bangladesh’S Grameen Bank And Brac, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

How has Bangladesh managed to outperform other low-income countries by doubling per capita GDP growth from 1.6% in the 1980s to 3.3% in the 1990s and beyond? The World Bank cites several key factors including an active civil society and strong partnerships forged by the government with NGOs. Two visionary NGO leaders, Nobel Peace Laureate, Muhammad Yunus (founder of Grameen Bank), and Fazle Hasan Abed (founder and chairman of BRAC), co-winner of the 2007 Clinton Global Citizen Award, visited Singapore in August and Sept 2007 to deliver two lectures on their respective organisations.


Innovations In Philanthropy: The Rockefeller Foundation’S Perspective, Knowledge@Smu Feb 2008

Innovations In Philanthropy: The Rockefeller Foundation’S Perspective, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

For nearly 100 years, the mission of the Rockefeller Foundation, “to promote the well-being of humanity by addressing the root causes of serious problems”, has remained the same, even as the foundation continues to adapt its programmes to changing social, economic and cultural needs. It is also a leading proponent of innovation and change in the field of philanthropy itself. Jacqueline Khor, Associate Director, Rockefeller Foundation, delivered a lecture on new trends in philanthropy and the emergence of a new generation of “philanthro-capitalists” at a lecture organised by the Singapore Management University’s Lien Foundation Centre for Social Innovation.


Tennis, Anyone? Lessons On Innovation In A Mature Industry, Knowledge@Smu Dec 2007

Tennis, Anyone? Lessons On Innovation In A Mature Industry, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Tennis qualifies as the oldest racquet sport in the world. Since 1874, little had changed until the 1970s when the wooden racquet was phased out, followed by a succession of cutting edge designs. How did the classic tennis racquet lend itself to being so thoroughly reinvented? Wharton management professor J.M. Pennings, together with Hann E Kim, professor at the KDI School of Public Policy and Management in Korea, set out to find some answers.


Transforming A Region Into A Vibrant Entrepreneurial Economy: How To Create The Multiplier Effect, Knowledge@Smu Nov 2007

Transforming A Region Into A Vibrant Entrepreneurial Economy: How To Create The Multiplier Effect, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Sankaran Venkataraman is business administration professor at the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia, and visiting professor of entrepreneurship and business at the Singapore Management University. At a recent seminar in Singapore, Venkataraman explored the question, “What does it take for a nascent entrepreneurial region to create the multiplier effect necessary to transform itself into a vibrant entrepreneurial economy?” In his view, institutional specialisation, division of labour, the architecture of entrepreneurial sub-systems and intangible cultures all play critical roles.


The Power Of Social Media: Only The Tip Of The Iceberg?, Knowledge@Smu Oct 2007

The Power Of Social Media: Only The Tip Of The Iceberg?, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Social media is redefining the way people and companies around the world communicate with one another by dissolving geographical and cultural boundaries. Akanksha Goel, newly appointed Editor-in-Chief of Stuff Singapore -- a gadgets and technology lifestyle publication launched in the UK five years ago -- is a final-year marketing and corporate communication student at Singapore Management University. Goel talked to Knowledge@SMU about how social media compels us to rethink culture, and why companies should take advantage of these new channels to grow their businesses.


Games People Play: Can Singapore Power-Up Fast Enough To Claim A Share Of The Bounty?, Knowledge@Smu Jul 2007

Games People Play: Can Singapore Power-Up Fast Enough To Claim A Share Of The Bounty?, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

According to PricewaterhouseCooper’s latest "Global Entertainment and Media Outlook" , the Asia Pacific region is projected to top overall global spending on video games over the next five years. In Singapore, the government invested half a billion Singapore dollars (US$325 million) in 2006 in the interactive digital media (IDM) services sector. Singapore Management University professor of management Ted Tschang has been paying especial attention to the gaming and related industries, sub-sectors of IDM. In an interview with Knowledge@SMU, Tschang discusses the role of global culture as a critical success factor, and Singapore’s efforts to get into the game.


Going Organic In Singapore: Kemena Enterprise Ltd And The Uob-Smu Entrepreneurship Alliance, Knowledge@Smu May 2007

Going Organic In Singapore: Kemena Enterprise Ltd And The Uob-Smu Entrepreneurship Alliance, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

According to British business research company Organic Monitor, the market across Asia for organic food is set to hit US$1 billion this year. Singapore, too, has been swept up in this organic wave. Last year, the country’s share of the Asian organic food market reached US$40 million. Kemena, a two-year-old company which supplies a range of health products in Singapore, has become the first to introduce organic infant formula into the Singapore market. The company was recently involved with the United Overseas Bank (UOB)-SMU Entrepreneurship Alliance which provides funding for small and medium-sized enterprises to hire student consultants. Knowledge@SMU interviewed …


Learning How To Innovate: Standard Chartered Bank's Ilab@Smu Challenges Students To Bridge Technology And Business, Knowledge@Smu May 2007

Learning How To Innovate: Standard Chartered Bank's Ilab@Smu Challenges Students To Bridge Technology And Business, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

"The future of banking is in Asia and the key driver is innovation," according to a statement from Standard Chartered Bank and the Singapore Management University, which together established an innovation centre -- the Standard Chartered iLab@SMU -- in early 2006. Students can work with iLab on projects where they are exposed to a corporate environment and issues relating to managing intellectual property. As an example, several students were recently given the challenge of investigating the viability of voice biometrics authentication technology at the bank. Knowledge@SMU interviewed both the students and bank executives for their views on how the process …


Mike Mccue's Vision For The Convergence Of The Phone And The Web, Knowledge@Smu Feb 2007

Mike Mccue's Vision For The Convergence Of The Phone And The Web, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

When Mike McCue founded Tellme in 1999, its initial product was a voice-driven information service, what might be termed a "voice portal." Today, the company's voice-recognition systems power directory assistance services from AT&T, Verizon and Cingular along with automated 800-number customer help lines at companies like Merrill Lynch and Federal Express. But McCue still harbors dreams of a broader voice-driven web, one which will provide consumers with new ways of using the phone to interact with the universe of information. He discussed this vision, and others, during a recent interview with Knowledge@Wharton in Tellme's Mountain View, Calif., offices.


What's In A Name? For Apple, A Focus On The Digital Living Room, Knowledge@Smu Jan 2007

What's In A Name? For Apple, A Focus On The Digital Living Room, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Apple's name change from Apple Computer to Apple on January 9 highlights the company's new reality: CEO Steve Jobs' strategy today revolves around converged consumer devices much more than around personal computers. How successful will this new strategy be in the face of competition from Microsoft, Sony, Motorola, Samsung, Nokia and others who are looking to dominate the digital convergence domain?


Opportunity Missed: A Brief Look At Entrepreneurship In The U.S. And China, Knowledge@Smu Jan 2007

Opportunity Missed: A Brief Look At Entrepreneurship In The U.S. And China, Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

The promise or threat of China’s economy has fired the American imagination ever since the first Yankee clipper ship captains voyaged there in the 1780s. Whether perceived as a limitless market for American goods or as an intimidating rival, China is indeed a force to be reckoned with. At first glance, Reed Hundt’s In China’s Shadow is another in a recent spate of books probing the nature of China’s startling rise over the last 30 years. Yet Hundt, former chairman of the FCC during the presidency of Bill Clinton, has written a book whose subtitle is more indicative of his …


Netcore Ceo Rajesh Jain: 'In India, The Future Of The Internet Will Be Built Around The Mobile Phone', Knowledge@Smu Oct 2006

Netcore Ceo Rajesh Jain: 'In India, The Future Of The Internet Will Be Built Around The Mobile Phone', Knowledge@Smu

Knowledge@SMU

Seven years ago, Rajesh Jain ignited a dot-com storm in India when his portal, IndiaWorld, was sold to Sify, an Internet service provider, for $115 million. Today, he is CEO of Netcore, a Linux-based messaging software firm, and also maintains an active blog, emergic.org. Jain met with Knowledge@Wharton at his offices in Mumbai to discuss how mobile phones could hold the key to the Internet's evolution in India and other emerging economies.