Graduate Studies Blog

NANYANG EXECUTIVE MBA

EMPOWERING WOMEN LEADERS IN BUSINESS

Whether getting her hands dirty as a field engineer or a general manager setting up a hospital in China, Wu Choy Siong has overcome her fair share of obstacles as a woman climbing the corporate ladder. She learnt early that demonstrating the value she brings to the table was the best way to overcome hurdles that female executives typically face during their careers.

“I don’t deny that the journey of trying to prove yourself may be a bit harder for a female in a male-dominated space,” she says. “Looking at ways to contribute has always been the starting point for me.”

Wu believes that continuing to work with people rather than shying away from taking on tasks because of the way some colleagues may have treated you, and by demonstrating genuine care and empathy for teammates, one can win them over and earn their respect.

“If you make the effort and it is not reciprocated, then it is on the other person not you. Others will see that and you will win over those who see your true value,” Wu says. “I work alongside my team, [we] burned the midnight oil together and agonised over problems. Being there with the team and caring for each other is just instinctive.”

A Springboard for Career Growth

Wu started her career as an engineer, before moving into senior executive roles in the biotech and healthcare sectors. Today, she is an Operating Partner at global investment company Temasek International, where she hopes to help build enterprises in the healthcare sector. In 2008, after spending close to 10 years in biotech start-ups, she paused to consider the next phase of her career.

“My vision then was to either join another biotech start-up that I would take a stake in, or join an MNC where the runway is wider and longer,” she says.

However, she felt that an Executive MBA would give her the structure, knowledge, and networking opportunities to break new professional ground. She chose the EMBA programme at Nanyang Business School, part of Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, because it featured modules designed for senior corporate leaders and business owners.

“I felt that the Nanyang EMBA would give me an opportunity to learn from others not from my industry. The programme provides an environment that blends learnings from large complex corporations as well as insights into the running of small medium enterprises. The breadth of the programme fits well with how I wanted to explore my next 10 years.”

However, the decision to enroll in the EMBA wasn’t an easy one for the mother of two.

“It’s like having kids. It’s a lot of work, and it’s never a good time to start,” she says. “But many still choose to take on the challenges because we see the value of an EMBA investment: The experience, the knowledge, the insights, and most importantly, the friends you will get to keep long after graduation. I am constantly inspired by friends from the EMBA programme, whether it’s the changes they’ve made in their lives or in their careers, or how they have adapted to changes in the marketplace. Being in that community helps me to push myself to also make these kinds of changes.”

Wu’s decision to pursue the Nanyang EMBA paid off almost immediately after graduating. While attending her convocation dinner in 2011, a professor seated next to her happened to be on the board of Raffles Medical Group and asked Wu if she would consider working for the company.

That casual conversation resulted in Wu leaving the biotech sector to join the Singapore-listed hospital and health services company. She spent the next eight years at the company in various senior roles, including starting a Raffles Hospital in Chongqing, China.

“I felt it was an excellent marriage of being able to contribute my start-up experience, and at the same time getting to develop my skills in a much larger organisation,” Wu recalls. “So this was a bonus from the EMBA, and I didn’t expect it to happen so quickly after graduation!”

Structured Learning for Professional Growth

At Raffles Medical, Wu once again had to prove her worth. She demonstrated this by embracing the challenge of growing the business in Hong Kong, where the company was less well known.

“We failed to win a major contract. It was a big setback and morale was low. I rallied the team together and soldiered on,” she recalls. “A few months later we won a sizeable tender and set the business on a path of growth over the next three-and-a-half years.”

Wu’s learnings from the Nanyang EMBA also helped with her transition to Raffles Medical. In particular, she found segments on marketing and strategic planning especially relevant. For instance, she has used frameworks taught in the programme to assess business opportunities in China. “While the business landscape has changed drastically in the past 10 years, these principles and frameworks still hold true today,” she says.

Meanwhile, her interactions with other programme participants brought classroom learnings to life. “Our professors always said that they were here to facilitate conversations,” Wu says. “There is not much rote learning, but a lot of sharing of thinking and analysis. I found these softer learnings from the programme useful.”

Forging Ahead: Transforming an Industry

After a successful eight years at Raffles Medical, Wu was ready for a new challenge. In July last year, she joined Temasek International’s Enterprise Development Group.

“It was another big transition for me as I had never worked in an investment company,” Wu explains. “However, the Enterprise Development Group is not just an investor. We are actively involved in helping to build companies and developing new business enterprises that have the potential to be champions in their field.”

Among her goals at Temasek is to work with the industry ecosystem to improve efficiency and clinical qualities at sustainable costs. One area she is looking at is a migration from a fee-for-service payment model to a value-based model.

“Today, the healthcare financing system mostly targets episodic treatments with little incentive to provide long-term preventive care,” Wu says. “Under a value-based model, healthcare providers are also incentivised based on how well they keep an individual healthy, and not simply how many procedures or investigations are conducted. This will necessitate a major mindset shift for healthcare providers, payors, patients as well as regulators. This is one area where I hope to make a positive impact.”

The Healthcare Leader Scholarship offered to healthcare professionals including the pharmaceutical sector recognises the contribution of leaders in driving transformation for healthcare. To find out more about the scholarships available, contact us at execmba@ntu.edu.sg or schedule a chat for a 1-to-1 discussion on your postgraduate aspirations.
Register here for a chat: https://bit.ly/NanyangEMBAchat

A SPECIAL PROMOTIONAL FEATURE ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE AUGUST 2021 ISSUE OF FORBES ASIA DIGITIAL MAGAZINE.

The Nanyang Executive MBA is a part-time 13-months programme that is designed for senior leaders aspiring to innovate and transform the way they lead. The programme aims to embrace the connection between business, technology, and innovation to deliver a relevant curriculum to business leaders to excel in global environments and adapt to each new wave of digital change.