Lumia Creative Studio (1)

Ipoh, Perak.

KLCC, Ramlee Mall.

Plant.

Sunway Pyramid.

Flower.

Sunset

Sunway Pyramid and Mid Valley.

Taiping, Perak

Get Hired 2012 : Through the Looking Glass : CEO Insights

Hi, this is actually my report for the Get Hired 2012 : Through the Looking Glass : CEO Insights forum.

It was a privilege to sit down together with fellow accounting and business students whilst gaining exposure and advice from CEOs of Malaysia's famous companies.The CEOs of the forum were YM Tunku Dato' Ahmad Burhanuddin (CEO of Themed Attractions and Resorts), YBhg Dato' Gan AhTee (Managing Partner of BDO Malaysia), Pn. Zaiton Mohd. Hassan (Managing Director of Capital Intelligence Advisors Sdn. Bhd.) and Pn. Elia Talib (Managing Director of Biz Connection Sdn. Bhd.), and along present with the audience were Ms. Elizabeth Lee (Executive Director of Sunway University), Mr. Teo Ee Sing (Executive Director of Sunway College) and Mr. Lee Weng Keng (CEO of Education and Healthcare Division of Sunway Group).

Themed "Through the Thinking Glas: CEO Insights", I have definitely gained plenty of them. As the CEOs shared their experience on how they started out until the settlement in their current industries, I learnt that everybody was born equal, but it is the mindset and beliefs that they hold on and keep in practice that changed their lives. Taking Mr. Gan Ah Tee for example, he came from a rubber taping background. Since further studies were scarce in Malaysia, he decided to study accounting (ICAEW) in United Kingdom, which he considered it as the cheapest, fastest and "recession proof." From the looks itself, Mr. Gan is a rather optimistic person, though after all he had endured. His affirmative decision in pursuing his dream as a chartered accountant fruited him to be the managing partner of world's top five accounting firms - BDO International.

Pn. Elia Talib exhibited her innovative values in establishing GRADUAN, which its mission is to be the most comprehensive and reliable career guidance and employment resource for Malaysian graduates. Pn. Elia's creativity has helped many graduates in getting employed, especially once she saw the stack of application forms for a post from students through GRADUAN. Despite her today's position and achievements, she still remains humble, which is projected when she said: "I guess it is my turn to share now. Let's hope that I could match with the others (CEOs)." Mind you, Pn. Elia's speech turned out to be as interesting as the rest. Another lesson learnt here: never underestimate people's capabilities, specifically a woman's.

Equipped with 25 years of extensive working experience in senior financial and managerial positions, Tunku Dato' Burhanuddin talked on the importance of effective communication, when a member of the floor asked what qualities do employers look for from the applicants (graduates). Tunku Dato' emphasized that the ability to communicate is crucial in promoting one's self to stand out from the rest. The individual must be able to express his or her opinion, which requires confidence accumulated from experiences. Also, it is through communication that a leader is able to share his or her vision with others and guiding the employees to reach the goal. But, the most important value of all, is genuineness, as being one's self amplifies the honesty towards yourself, therefore earning trust from others. On the other hand, people (the CEOs, too) dislike people who pretends to be someone else and lies.

Pn. Zaiton's speech reminded me of Winston Churchill's simple yet remarkable quote "never, never, never give up", which is exactly what she demonstrated during the 1998 economic crisis in Malaysia. It was during that time she helped to establish a company after her resignation from Maybank and had to confront with one of Malaysia's most disastrous economic downturn. The CEO of Maybank persuaded her in returning to serve Maybank. Pn. Zaiton immediately saw through his motive, where she refused to play along, which is to abandon the company and watching it flounder. Instead, she did not give up on the company and successfully surged through the crisis. This proves another point for Pn. Zaiton, that she loves her employees. Every week, she would have a "pisang goreng" (coffee break) session with their employees and listen to their opinions, feedback and dissatisfaction. Her willingness to listen was her major reason why she is well-favoured and respected by her employees, who cried upon her resignation to set up Capital Intelligence Advisors Sdn. Bhd. (CIA).

We might be curious on what is it so great in becoming a CEO as there are challenging, risky decisions to make, being strictly scrutinised by the company and public. The 4 CEOs shared a common perspective that it is the sense of achievement that keep them striving forward. Mr. Lee of Sunway's Education and Healthcare department quoted: "it is the challenge that got us having sleepless nights, but the results ended up in us having more sleepless nights because of the success."  Pn. Zaiton stated that the CEO plays a crucial part for the community, in such a case that there are 40 families depending on you, who is the boss of 40 employees. It is the perception and values that nurtures a leader, hence making them an interesting model for us to learn.

From 2nd left: YM Tunku Dato' Ahmad Burhanuddin (CEO of Themed Attractions and Resorts), YBhg Dato' Gan AhTee (Managing Partner of BDO Malaysia), Pn. Zaiton Mohd. Hassan (Managing Director of Capital Intelligence Advisors Sdn. Bhd.) and Pn. Elia Talib (Managing Director of Biz Connection Sdn. Bhd.)

The layout for the "Get Hired" career fair at the foyer. 

If you would notice, En. Rauf Rashid was not present. 

Staying Alive

Watssup world. So, I'll be talking about how my week in college went.

English Presentation.

It's college and you were expected to act like one that is "smart". In fact, everybody has a different interpretation regarding the word. I could be sarcastic, or I would really mean it which could still be distinguished through the degree of "smartness". This is the 2nd time I'm talking to public this year, which I find not really a tough one...individually. See, synergy is an crucial element that sprouts from an effective team. Our group's presentation was straight-forward and simple, rather than "let's play a guessing game and the winner gets free chocolate!!!!",  I would say which what the lecturer disagree. In all respect, different groups have their own distinctive way in doing their presentation. 

When it was my turn, I thought of something 'special' which I presented via the Powerpoint and also, the whiteboard. You see, when presenting a point, (I think) people should be able to give elaborations and descriptions and go in depth, and not just narrating the statistics projected on the screen. I was presenting on the "environment survey findings" slide when I wrote "Enviroment = People + Ambience + Facilities" on the board. I know I stuttered my speech, but at least (I hope and I believe) the audience understand my point. 

Presenting the findings with Edmund and Boon Yoke. 

Photo courtesy of Chang Pui Ling 

The lecturer didn't comment on our presentation in front of the class, and asked us to see her afterwards. I find it obscure. If there is something that you would like to comment, what's the problem voicing up and let the whole class learn something they may find helpful? The comment on me was that my presentation was out of topic and why did I wrote on the board. Well, if you could just twist a little perception of yours...

1) Presenting could be in any form. It was NOT stated that I MUST use the projector during my presentation ONLY. Hence, I am eligible to use whatever relevant resources that may find helpful in my presentation. In this case, I have the right to utilise the whiteboard. 

Coming out with something new....or not.

Photo courtesy of Chang Pui Ling

2) Something wrong with my equation? "Environment = People + Ambience + Facilities" did not just explain that there are 3 factors contributing in the changes of the environment (how they manipulate the environment), therefore identifying the effects which at last, leading to recommendations and solutions. So, through this simple equation that I just made up (basically not from books), I think I managed to link other aspects. I don't see anything that is irrelevant till the extend of being labelled "out of topic" as everything is still in compliance with the theme : Satisfactory Level on the Student Centre.

3) You rated the "funniest" as the best presentation. I don't doubt, because I had a great time, too. But, as far I'm concerned, we were required to dress up formally, which I see it as a ain't-no-play-time presentation. Fairly, we were straightforward and serious. No offense. 

I have no intention on giving negative impact to whosoever related, nor I mean to back stab any parties or individuals. This is merely a piece of my mind that I would not like to waste time arguing because of some petty assessment. 

I found this interesting.

Progress Test 1 

I've been in this CFAB thingy for like just 3 weeks and there is already a test to scare away little children like me. Accounting, is something that I don't really comprehend (in such short time). I never had the fundamentals or basics of accounting, as I was a Science student, though I have to admit that the starting part is quite rough. But, slowly, as time goes on, things get stable and I will eventually understand. The problem is I have no time. 2 subjects (accounts and business finance) are enough to kill me. So, I asked mum for help and mum got pretty anxious when she heard me saying "I dun wanna attend accounting lecture tomorrow because I dun understand what the teacher is talking about." Mum taught me accounting, by all means, including waking up at 5 to study. I think I get a small grasp of the whole accounting picture...say 0.1%? I know there are still lots of improvements to be made in me. 

I woke up at 4 this morning to study Business Finance as I spent yesterday night revising accounts (again). And I got really nervous in the car, college, computer lab (oh...did I mention that our exams are computer-based?). Gosh...they are real butterflies...or it was like I heart is in my stomach. And, I passed the exam. 

Accounting was still ok, (some are tough) to me. But my marks (77.5%) were higher than business (72%). 

Praise Lord...I passed. 

Mum is relieved, I'm happy. But that doesn't mean I don't have to study. In fact, it's the opposite that I should be doing.

What no one tells you is that they're the most important for now. UPSR. PMR. SPM. IB. They're all the most important until the next one comes along.                                                                         ~jasryn.blogpsot.com

In 3 weeks time, I'll be sitting for Progress Test 2. Gosh, my college life could be made into an Oscar-winning horror film.

CFAB / ICAEW 

Weird Accounting of Life

 

REWARD = SIN + KARMA 

I know...that I've done some wrongs yesterday. So, today I have received the recoil effect after what I've done (I ain't telling you), some would refer it as Karma, or in my words : hurting myself for hurting God. I thought today would be nothing, but a normal school day. As the alarm went off, I lazed on the bed about 10 minutes, but not enough to get me late for college. Everything went on pretty well, until dad decided to use the Bukit Jalil Highway, instead of the KESAS Highway, which got us trapped in the traffic jam for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Obviously, I'm late for class. Maybe it's the weather's fault, or I've drank too much water today, or I forgot to put off the fire before leaving the house, my kidney produced more water than it is supposed to, which my bladder was about to burst, but probably won't get as bad as a woman on labour. 

I arrived at college at 0830. 30 minutes. wow. I entered the class. The class was having a listening practice. Except for the speakers, absolute silence from everyone. I grabbed a chair. I sat. The chair was broken. But not enough to make me fall of the chair. The seating "cavity" is broken and is slanted. You know the feeling of maintaining your position while going down the slide? Yea, That's how it went for 1 hour. Everything went on pretty well since then....until (again), the lecturer checked on our progress regarding our reports. Ironically, we haven't started doing it...yet. The worse part, powerpoint presentation on the report is on this Wednesday....

Purify my heart and mind today.Lord, I forgive MYSELF for my sins, faults and failings,for all that is bad in myself or that I think is bad, I forgive myself; and I accept Your forgiveness. I furtherforgive MYSELF for taking Your name in vain, not worshipping You by attending church, for hurting my parents, getting drunk, for sins against purity, bad books, bad movies, fornication, adultery, homosexuality. Also, for abortion, stealing, lying, defrauding, hurting peoples’ reputation. You have forgiven me today, and I forgive myself. 

Also, mum explained to me that how important accounting is in our live. Imagine that one day, your parents give you $1mil to further your studies abroad. To keep track on your performance and rising to their expectations, you need to prove to them that you are on par. You show them your "accounts" and "financial reports", meaning your results, class attendance, bank statements....

We are just the accountants of our lives....and also the entity.

09/4/12 : Run & KL Relish :

Sunway Pyramid

Sunway Pyramid

Hello. So, I'll be updating on the first activity that I've participated in college : Charity Run themed "A Child at a Time", which aim is to collect tuition fee for orphans that are sitting for SPM this year. A registration fee of RM20 and you'll get a free T-shirt and a certificate of participation. The best part is, you could do some exercising while you pay contribute in the name of charity. Seriously, I've not been working out since I came back from National Service. So, I guess that's a price that I would pay to get me fit again.

I thought I could run through the 5km route, but, in fact, and pathetically, I can't. I started at a petty pace of jogging, together with Yew Jin. And then I dumped him. sorry. I tried to catch up with the others, unaware that there's still a long way to go. Accompanied by the morning traffic and construction exhaust gas, I think I would get lung cancer or something. Perhaps it is the cause afterall, I had chest pain (lower part of right lung), for I've never encountered before, although I still have enough breath and strength and of course, determination. So, it's kinda weird for me. Good news, I didn't finish last. Damn good news, I've burned some fats and got my packs back...well, 4 of them, at least.

Morning traffic....??

 So, today is the day, that I shall try to get back home using public transport. In my case, the only mode is by bus (maybe until 2014 after the completion of the new MRT), and I've never taken a bus alone. First, I went into the (wrong) bus which is heading towards the wrong direction. Though pretty embarrassed, still the driver's smile shred off some of these awkwardness. This time, I've to do things really carefully or I could push my luck and smile off if I get into the wrong bus (or I could use a foreign accent where people may think that I'm a silly foreigner who is not familiar with Malaysia's public transport). I changed my destination to Kelana Jaya, which is in the right course and turned up sitting beside one of my classmates...which I dumped her waiting (I know I'm being rude, and I'm sorry) for another bus to One Utama, while I board on the train to Masjid Jamek  KLCC (Since I've got the whole weekend all to myself, why not pay KLCC a visit?) And, oh gosh....the journey was a long one. At least,  LRT is something that I'm really used to. 

You can know by the scent of Mexican Buns from Rotiboy the moment you step into Suria KLCC. Finally! Civilization! But apart from shopping, and browsing the shops, whereby the salesperson would harass your shopping privacy (the eerie feeling when the salesperson follows tightly on you while you're browsing the items) and also, your wallet. there's really nothing I could do in shopping centres. So, I spent 1 hour in the Petronas Gallery to stand and look at pictures (remember the Mr Bean's movie? XD where he sits and looks at paintings?). The gallery was exhibiting some great snapshots extracted from the Star newspaper, which some of them are really great.

“…Photography as I conceive it, well, it’s a drawing. Immediate sketch, done with intuition and you can’t correct it. If you have to correct it, it’s with the next picture. But life is very fluid; sometimes the pictures disappear, and there’s nothing you can do. You can’t tell the person, ‘Oh, please smile again. Do that gesture again.’ Life is once, forever and new all the time.” 

  ~Henri Cartier-Bresson 

Then I used the new link bridge to get to Pavilion. Then I had lunch...Ipoh Kuey Teow with chicked shreds. After that, I visited Starhill gallery. Ya' know...everything inside there is quite unique, expecially in the Feast floor. Here are some pictures that I've edited for a fresh impression from...you... Another thing is my phone's camera is only 5 MP : (not in particular order

 KLCC Ramlee Mall Entrance and Tea Lounge @ Starhill Gallery

 Pavilion Centre Court and Shops.

Lightings in Feast @ Starhill Gallery.

Unique design, Feast @ Starhill Gallery.

 The "Village Bar" entrance, Feast @ Starhill.

The Village Bar, Feast @ Starhill.

 Bamboo ornaments placed on the ceiling at the back entrance, Feast @ Starhill Gallery. 

 KLCC (edited and original)

 Suria KLCC shops enbounded by the logo and structure in Starhill Gallery.

"Don't leave me"  @ Starhill Gallery 

 

Polis Diraja Malaysia (PDRM) head quarters @ Bukit Aman, Kuala Lumpur.

Then, I walked and walked in Lot 10 and I went home. One more thing, they upgraded the Hang Tuah LRT station which is attached to the Hang Tuah Monorail platform!

Evening jam.

Some more pictures and lemme know watcha think.

Ipoh new Dim Sum restaurant. 

Dataran Ipoh.

PDRM Bkt Aman, KL.

You figure it out.

I've no idea what is this.

Escalator goes up...I mean down....

Have you realized
how fast life is?
So, why run? XD

So, take a sip of tea and contemplate your past to sketch your present and understand the future. 

Poker~faced

OWWHhhh...shuckzzz....
Maybe I just had a heavy doze of "Calvin and Hobbes", where Calvin was so rebellious about studying, but he made a good point : Knowledge is paralyzing. With just 2 core subjects (Business Finance and Accounting) is enough to make my head slightly heavy. It's like I could feel more neurons are being made and inter-connected. Still, I don't feel smarter, because everyone else is still smarter than me.

English was a casual one. Not those kind that would leave you breathless while the teacher goes on and on like freight train with a break-neck speed. I'll get to that part later. English is still ok to me. It's more to ice-breaking for the first 2 weeks, like intro-you and your partner session, impromptu speaking etc. But, I must admit, that I'm pretty awkward when I'm dealing with a new environment and people. The good news (also the bad news) is, everybody speaks English with an interesting accent.

"Take out a piece of paper and give me the definition of an "organization"..."stakeholders" ..."3 Primary objectives of a business"..."4 Secondary Objectives"..."8 Objectives by Peter Drucker"....etc..." 

That's what happened and somehow got me thoughts going blank when the lecturer for Business & Finance came in for the 2nd lesson. See, how high the expectations are from the lecturer? Totally incompatible with my style of learning.  His lecture is totally an exhausting one, for the brain. At least there's a good thing, when he gives us a toilet break in between for 15 minutes. He is like Justin Hitchcock from Cecelia Ahern's "Thanks for the Memories", just that he has a neat hairstyle and is fairly fit. Something interesting about his add-ons : Victor Vroom's Expectancy , where F = V x E. Somehow, I think, everything involves Science! F is force of motivation, V stands for valence (how valuable is the outcome) while E represents the expectancy (probability of the effort will succeed).

Accounting is fairly OK. Still, it is a damn-whole-new subject to me, which, the teacher emphasizes a lot, I have to work harder and faster in order to match myself with those who has the basics from previous studies, eg SPM, A-levels. I have to get myself familiarized with new terms, eg realization value, historical value, Net Realizable Value etc... I doubt myself will I be able to prepare a Statement of Financial Position and Income Statement  in time. Afterall, I started with zero, compared to the others.

Maybe I should stop comparing myself and the rest, and start looking at the similarities we share. Back to prime prob : Ice breaking.... they are kinda hard to break when we don't have the right skills and tools.
So, refer this : http://www.wikihow.com/Start-a-Conversation-When-You-Have-Nothing-to-Talk-About

 oooo...look at what my Lumia could do with the pictures taken.

I won't give up by Jason Mraz

Life is just like juggling 5 balls when you're an adult. 2 are made of rubber which are "Wealth" and "Career", but the other 3 is made of glass which are "Health", "Religion" and "Family".

                                                                                                                    ~Kale Lau W.K.