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The Can Do Spirit of Keppel
At the Enterprise 50 (E50) Leader's
Talk co-organised by The Business
Times and Accenture on 17 May
2005, Keppel Offshore &
Marine (Keppel O&M), Mr
Choo Chiau Beng shared with
over 150 business leaders the
factors that lead to Keppel
O&M's global leadership
in the offshore and marine industry.
Keppel O&M aims to be the
Provider of Choice and Partner
in Solutions to our customers
in our three offshore and marine
business units, namely offshore,
shiprepair and conversion and
specialised shipbuilding,"
Mr Choo in his opening statement.
Shedding light on the Company's
roots, he lauded the pioneering
and entrepreneurial spirit as
well as the bold vision of its
founding fathers including Keppel
Shipyard's first local Managing
Director, Mr Chua Chor Teck
and the late Lee Khim Chai,
known fondly as KC Lee.
Near Market, Near Customer
"At Keppel O&M, we
adopt a strategy we call "Near
Market, Near Customer".
We believe that in the long
term, our customers' interests
would be best served if our
yards are located near our customers
and near the target market,"
said Mr Choo.
He went on to chronicle Keppel's
venture from Singapore to the
Philippines, Middle East, Norway,
Azerbaijan, Brazil, the Netherlands
and Kazakhstan.
And in all these, what has
kept Keppelites going? "Our
Can Do spirit!" Mr Choo
was quick to emphasise.
"It is this spirit that
has been pivotal to our growth,
and brings us towards our goal
of becoming the Provider of
Choice to the offshore and marine
industries and in the segments
we choose to be in," he
continued.
Ingredients to success
Having a strong core business
at home, understanding the environment
you operate and possessing the
right resources, Mr Choo said,
are vital to overseas expansion.
He shared on the importance
of strengthening businesses
at home through innovation and
product development.
"In this aspect, Keppel
O&M has three main divisions
driving this focus, namely Offshore
Technology Development (OTD),
Deepwater Technology Group (DTG)
and Marine Technology Development
(MTD). We also selectively invest
in Intellectual Property that
we identify as having commercial
viability," he said.
He continued, "It is also
important to understand the
specific overseas environment
that we are operating it. We
must understand the market,
customer, competition and local
regulations.
"Thirdly, to succeed,
the company will also need critical
resources namely the right people,
time and money."
As he wrapped up the session,
Mr Choo had these words of encouragement
for the audience, "Building
a winning company is a team
effort. It is undoubtedly hardwork
with many challenges but it
must also be FUN!"
"Looking ahead, the world's
energy demand will continue
to see steady growth. Keppel
O&M will continue to provide
the best products and services,
cheaper, faster and better,
and create more value to our
customers.
"We believe in not just
being the best in Singapore,
or the region, but the world
and I firmly believe we Can
Do it."
For a full transcript of Mr
Choo Chiau Beng's presentation,
click
here.
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