SMU’s team – The Amazing Life – did the University proud (again!) by coming in first in the Singapore HR Challenge 2013.  This is SMU’s fourth win in the competition since its inception six years ago.

The mixed-School team comprising Foong Tai Yong and Kellie Tedjo (Lee Kong Chian School of Business), Anna-Therese Lim (School of Accountancy), and Boon Guo Ping and S Bhuvaneswari (School of Social Sciences) competed against four other teams in the university category.

A Shrinking Workforce and Better Work-Life Practices in Singapore - What should be our National Agenda? - this was the theme for Singapore HR Challenge 2013.  Through this topic, the organiser, Singapore HR Institute, wanted students to examine the current national challenges and scenario, as well as the various strategies that leaders and organisations can adopt to overcome the challenge of building up a high-skilled, productive and innovative workforce.

SMU’s The Amazing Life proposed solutions at the national and company levels as it tackled the challenge, which was based on the case of a small seafood restaurant.  The team displayed determination, great teamwork and sharp analyses, not to mention excellent presentation skills and a very engaging delivery approach.  Kellie Tedjo also clinched one of the four Best Speaker Awards.

Already into its sixth year, the Singapore HR Challenge 2013 serves to engage future leaders, people managers, critical thinkers, and contributors of the new workforce, and is a platform to showcase innovation and creativity as we as promote progressive human resource strategies and practices to students.  This year, the competition was judged by a panel of five industry practitioners who hail from companies including MediaCorp Pte Ltd , Neptune Orient Lines Ltd and SingTel Group Digital Life.

[Photo: Team SMU wins SHRI HR Challenge 2013 (University Category). From left to right: Boon Guo Ping (BSocSc), Kelly Tedjo (BBM), faculty advisor Professor Thomas Menkhoff, S Bhuvaneswari (BSocSc), Anna-Theresa Lim (BAcc) and Foong Tai Yong (BBM)]