Two women entrepreneurs who blazed a trail in men-dominated industries have received the top awards given annually by Her World magazine to outstanding women.
Ms Susan Chong, 49, founder and chief executive of eco-friendly packaging company Greenpac, is named Her World Woman of the Year, while Ms Annabelle Kwok, 26, founder and chief executive of artificial intelligence start-up NeuralBay is Young Woman Achiever.
Ms Chong, who is married with four children, started her company in 2002, when her youngest child was four years old. It was not easy juggling home and work, she said, as she had to prove herself among a sea of men who had been in the business longer than she had.
Ms Chong recounted a time when she found a forklift obstructing an exit. She asked some workers to move it but they ignored her. So she climbed onto the forklift to move it, surprising them. “After that, everyone knew not to mess with the boss,” she said, chuckling.
Despite her tough exterior, she has a warm heart. She ensures that her company has an inclusive culture, and employs former convicts as well as people with disabilities.
One of her workers, who has been with the company for about 10 years, is deaf.
Ms Chong, along with about 20 members of her staff, picked up sign language from the employee and learnt to communicate with her.
They have become so proficient that “sometimes I can see them quarrel in sign language”, she said.
She set up her company 17 years ago when she noticed that few businesses actively cared about being environmentally friendly and sustainable.
While Ms Chong has made waves in the packaging industry, Ms Kwok is establishing herself in the artificial intelligence (AI) community globally.
Recipients of the Her World Young Woman Achiever award are women younger than 35 years old who have shown potential for attaining a higher level of success in their fields.
Her company, started in 2017, offers AI-driven solutions for multinational companies, and she aims to “recycle” some of the technology to benefit smaller tech companies by repurposing certain aspects to suit different clients.
She hopes to do social good through technology and improve the technical disparity because smaller companies struggle to keep up as technology advances.
“I hope people will pause to think about how they can do things differently to optimise their existing role in their companies for social good,” said Ms Kwok.
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Source: The Straits Times, 17 August 2019