Singapore Business News_
November 2013
Innovation has found a home in Asia.
Accessing
AsiAn innovAtion
Shopping spree:
McKinsey opens
Consumer Insights Centre
Double digits: Biomedical Sciences powerhouse Biopolis turns 10
Hospital-to-Home: Royal Philips launches new healthcare business
Bigger data: IO opens regional facility in Singapore
3 Launch of the new McKinsey Asia Consumer Insights Centre
4 Biopolis celebrates 10
thanniversary
INDUSTRY FOCUS
5 Philips establishes Hospital- to-Home business for Asia Pacific
6 IO launches Singapore regional HQ
“It’s incumbent upon the rest of the world that wants to be in the competitive market to continue to innovate, to continue to invent”
7
SINgapORe SeSSIONS
November 2013
CONTeNTS
7 Tech & Meds Connect
on Innovation in Asia
singaporebusiness.com
INDUSTRY FOCUS
M
anagement consulting firm McKinsey & Company has launched a new centre to help companies understand Asia’s fast- growing consumer base.The McKinsey Asia Consumer Insights Centre (MACIC) will help businesses adapt their strategies to specific countries by developing new consumer and market insights into the beliefs and attitudes that motivate customer behaviour in Asia.
The centre, an initiative under the McKinsey Innovation Campus, is the latest addition to an ecosystem of global research agencies and businesses
like Ipsos, Nielsen and Kantar that have set up shop in Singapore. It also includes companies such as Procter
& Gamble, which has located its Asia-Pacific headquarters and
innovation centre for beauty, grooming and healthcare
products in Singapore.
“The establishment of the new McKinsey Asia Consumer Insights Centre underscores our commitment to
bring the best of McKinsey’s global expertise to Singapore and the region,” said Oliver Tonby, Managing Partner of McKinsey &
Company, Southeast Asia.
“Of the estimated 2.2 billion
consumers who will join the middle class by 2030, we estimate 1.7 billion of them will be in Asia. Our cutting edge consumer insights will help companies successfully navigate that tremendous opportunity for the future.”
Mr Quek Swee Kuan, Deputy Managing Director of Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), said that McKinsey’s Asia Consumer Insights Centre was an important addition to the network of global players centralising their Asian knowledge in Singapore.
“This centre will strengthen Singapore’s position as a thought leader in Asian consumer insights, and equip McKinsey’s clients with new capabilities to analyse and understand Asian consumers,” he said.
Launch of the new McKinsey Asia consumer insights centre
Research agency aims to help companies better understand Asian consumers
Second Minister for Trade and Industry S Iswaran at the launch of the new centre
“This centre will strengthen Singapore’s position
as a thought leader in Asian consumer
insights”
November 2013
INDUSTRY FOCUS
s
ingapore’s Biopolis biomedical research hub recently celebrated its 10th anniversary.In just a decade, it has established a reputation as a world-class research centre and put Singapore on the scientific world map.
It is also helping to turn Singapore’s Biomedical Sciences (BMS) industry into a powerhouse, generating economic wealth, creating jobs and improving human health and the quality of life.
Located in one-north, Biopolis anchors the development of the entire chain of BMS activities – from research and development (R&D) to manufacturing and healthcare.
It hosts nine research institutes under the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), and nearly 40 corporate research labs. These include facilities belonging to companies such as Novartis and Chugai, one of Japan’s
Biopolis celebrates 10 th anniversary
leading biopharmaceutical companies.
More than 2,500 scientists and engineers from over 70 countries work in Biopolis, which has 13 buildings and more than 3.5 million square feet of space.
While it has traditionally focused on supporting the pharmaceuticals and biologics industries, the hub is now diversifying into fast-growing new areas. These include medical technology (MedTech), personal care, and food and nutrition.
“Biopolis was
conceived as part of a bold vision to establish the BMS as a key pillar of Singapore’s economy,” said Lim Chuan Poh, Chairman of A*STAR and Co- Chair, Biomedical Sciences Executive Committee (BMS EXCO).
“That vision has become a reality.
Today, Biopolis is a thriving eco- system of public research institutions and corporate labs and a vibrant community of local and international biomedical scientists carrying out world-class R&D.”
Thien Kwee Eng, Assistant Managing Director,
Singapore Economic Development Board
(EDB), said that Biopolis represented the rich source of scientific talent and knowledge that
Singapore offers.
“We are confident the Biopolis
community will continue to conduct world-class research to help improve patients’ lives, and achieve quality economic growth with good jobs for Singaporeans,” she said.
Research hub is helping to turn biomedical sector into a powerhouse
JTC Corp Chairman Loo Choon Yong, President Tony Tan Keng Yam, A*STAr Chairman Lim Chuan Poh and Economic Development Board Chairman Leo Yip unveiling a commemorative artwork during a gathering at the St regis to mark Biopolis’ 10th anniversary
“Today, Biopolis is a thriving eco-
system of public research institutions
and corporate
labs”
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INDUSTRY FOCUS
R
oyal Philips, a global leader in healthcare, recently launched a dedicated Hospital-to-Home (H2H) business for Asia Pacific in Singapore.
Philips’ H2H business is seeking to introduce innovations to help health systems in Asia address growing challenges linked to a fast growing and ageing population.
The company hopes to improve
Philips establishes Hospital-to- Home business for Asia Pacific
healthcare transitions through re- admission management consulting,
telehealth solutions and a personal health portal for patients and
their families.
Frans van Houten, CEO Royal Philips, said that by realising Hospital-to-
Home solutions that were relevant to the local care ecosystem, the company would bridge the hospital and the home for a truly patient-centred care model.
“Together with the local stakeholders, we will develop patient
Company aims to create innovative patient care model and address regional healthcare needs
“This is a good example of how global companies like Philips find value
in Singapore as a partner”
care models for the region that will enhance patient outcomes beyond hospital,” he said.
“We are delighted that Philips has chosen Singapore as the competence centre and regional headquarters for its new Hospital-to-Home business,”
said Leo Yip, Chairman of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB).
“This is a good example of how global companies like Philips find value in Singapore as a partner and in our ICT capabilities to co-innovate and develop new healthcare solutions here, which can then be marketed to the rest of Asia.”
Frans van Houten, CEO royal Philips, presenting Leo Yip, Chairman of Singapore EDB with a token of appreciation
November 2013
INDUSTRY FOCUS
i
O, a global leader in software- defined data centres, has launched its regional operations for Asia-Pacific with a new facility in Singapore.Based in a former Seagate manufacturing plant, the site is IO’s first modular software-defined data centre outside the United States.
Goldman Sachs is the anchor tenant for the new facility.
IO chose Singapore as the location for the new site because of its robust partner ecosystem, business-friendly environment, global talent and advanced technology infrastructure, the company said.
The initiative advances IO’s expansion strategy to provide global customers with world-class data centre technology that allows enterprises to
migrate to the cloud with confidence.
Additionally, the facility will help build an ecosystem for the data management industry in Singapore, where data is expected to become a new natural resource.
“IO’s long-term commitment to the Asia Pacific markets and to Singapore is demonstrable by the significance of our presence in Singapore,”
said George Slessman,
IO Chief Executive Officer and Product Architect.
“The incredible growth of Singapore and the region is awe-inspiring
and we are proud to be a part of
New data centre to build capabilities in data management io launches singapore regional HQ
this extraordinary opportunity and community.”
Jayson Goh, Executive Director of Infocomms
and Media at the Singapore Economic
Development Board (EDB), said that IO’s new data centre and technology would add to the vibrancy of the infocomms ecosystem here, and reinforce Singapore’s position as a data management hub.
“We are confident that IO will be able to leverage Singapore’s market connectivity, global talent and business- friendly environment to enhance the delivery of technology to its clients.”
“The incredible growth of Singapore and the region is awe-
inspiring and we are proud to be a part of this extraordinary
opportunity and community”
Jayson Goh, Executive Director, Economic Development Board with George Slessman, CEO and Product Architect, IO
io launches singapore regional HQ
singaporebusiness.com
SINgapORe SeSSIONS
challenge topic: Innovation has found a home in Asia. Has the West settled in yet?
t
he burgeoning needs of Asia’s middle classes are giving the West an opportunity and even a mandate to innovate for a new market.As Asian companies break out of the workshop role and start to innovate for themselves, the race for relevance to the consumers of tomorrow will depend in no small measure on the
ability of companies to sharpen their competencies and compete in a marketplace that will be increasingly crowded. The greater a company’s capacity for innovation, the greater its chance of success will be.
How should a firm that is looking to capitalise on such opportunities build its power and agility to innovate in a market that is diverse and robust,
and navigate through challenges such as inconsistency in infrastructure development and a complex regulatory environment? This episode of
Singapore Sessions brought together two C-suites from different business sectors to discuss these issues, and share insights on how Asian innovation is driving change in global markets.
For Dr William (‘Bill’) Haseltine,
tech & Meds connect on innovation in Asia
‘‘ You cannot be global without big growth in Asia-Pacific
Stephan Scholl
Co-President, Infor
In Asia, you have ‘‘
to run like heck to stay in place
Dr William Haseltine Chairman and CEO, Haseltine Associates Ltd and Senior Advisor at Global Virus Network
November 2013
SINgapORe SeSSIONS
graduates to service the local needs.
That’s innovation,” he said.
The localisation of products in multiple markets is becoming more important as Western businesses seek business strategies that will satisfy the needs of a new and extremely diverse group of customers. Conducting the search for innovative solutions in or close to the markets themselves is
key. Building research collaborations with local institutional partners and companies can help firms to ‘re- imagine’ products and brands in ways that are more suited to local tastes.
“For us, at the end of the day, we couldn’t take homegrown American or European solutions and just transplant them overseas and believe that they would sell,” Stephan said.
If you’re going to operate in Asia, you have to know your regions, and have people who are real experts in [each]
local domain. It’s not one size fits all by any means
Dr William Haseltine
DrB-HICOM built a university – a company built a university! And that provides hundreds of engineers and graduates to service the local needs.
That’s innovation
Stephan Scholl Chairman and CEO, Haseltine
Associates Ltd and Senior Advisor at Global Virus Network, the world’s innovation energy is clearly shifting to the East.
“I’ve been involved in a couple of different industries in Asia – healthcare and pharmaceuticals – and it’s been really encouraging to see the changes over the past 10 years,” he said.
“It used to be that Asia was a place to do low cost acquisition, either in materials or information … [but now]
people in those countries realise that innovation is the way to growth.”
Stephan Scholl, Co-President of Infor, a leading enterprise technology company, agreed, pointing to
the example of Malaysia’s DRB- HICOM Group. The automotive conglomerate recently established its own university, the International College of Automotive (ICAM), in response to the need to produce better quality professionals in the automotive industry.
“DRB-HICOM built a university – a company built a university! And that provides hundreds of engineers and
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SINgapORe SeSSIONS
“You have to build your products for your local markets … and you have to build local leadership to get as close to the customer as you can, and give the empowerment to run the business the way they need to … if all we do is provide them with the proven backbone but then they automate it and do what they need to do to make it specific to their geography, then that’s the secret sauce.”
As homegrown companies increasingly introduce their own innovative ideas, capitalising on local skills and capabilities through co-development projects can play a major role in speeding up product and process innovation.
As Stephan explained, “Infor has invested more in research and development (R&D) in China and in Asia-Pacific because what we’re finding is that a lot of companies want to do co- development type work. They want to bring their thoughts and their ideas to our application development cycle.”
The experts also revealed some valuable lessons about what makes accessing innovation in some Asian nations a straightforward process, and what holds it back. For both, understanding the differences among regulatory guidelines has been a key challenge.
With a regulatory environment that
is highly country-specific, no single approach works for all of Asia. Even within China itself, the regulatory environment differentiates between products for Chinese use and those for export.
Stephan described how Infor has been working with leading French hotel group Accor as it grows its business in China and the rest of Asia-Pacific: “Accor’s approach in Asia represents a tremendous opportunity for our company – we’re its standard of record for revenue management systems there.
“However, we’ve had to build an
entirely new system that’s applicable to the local markets, because of the need to negotiate all the local regulations and requirements. That was certainly a huge amount of costs for us, and a huge hurdle.”
Finding local providers to partner up with who are familiar with on-the- ground processes and policies and who can provide infrastructure is another important part of the jigsaw puzzle.
Bill put it this way: “If you’re going to operate in Asia, you have to know your regions, and have people who are real experts in [each] local domain. It’s not one size fits all by any means.”
When you look for examples we here in the United States could learn from, I found that possibly the best and most effective healthcare system in the world is in Singapore
Dr William Haseltine
We couldn’t take homegrown American or European solutions and just transplant them overseas and believe that they would sell. You have to build your products for your local markets
Stephan Scholl
November 2013
With low defences against corporate fraud in many parts of Asia, and few companies having anti-bribery and corruption policies in place, both experts have also experienced issues with corruption.
“It’s a serious problem,” said Bill.
“Singapore is the exception – and I think it’s one of the reasons people love to do business there, the fact that it’s probably one of the least corrupt places in the world.”
Stephan concurred: “There’s a reason why Singapore is, for us, the Asia-Pacific hub. The truth is because we rely on the regulation, the consistency, and predictability.”
Along with a business-friendly governing philosophy, Singapore is also home to some of the world’s most innovative new products and ideas – including a top-tier health system.
“When you look for examples we here in the United States could learn from, I found that possibly the best and most effective healthcare system in the world is in Singapore,” said Bill.
“For each dollar they spend, they get better results. They thought it through – the fundamental basis of their system is that there has to be a good healthcare system to ensure social harmony. So they have created a balance between individual responsibility, where you pay for some things, and social responsibility, which makes it possible and affordable for you to pay. And those are two key ideas that I don’t think exist in many other parts of the world.”
To conclude, both experts in this Singapore Session agreed that companies looking to reach the emerging middle class from the ground up have to look beyond the core product and service to succeed in Asia. The challenges of penetrating this vast market are forcing many to rethink the way they develop and deliver their offerings. In many cases, a new approach to innovation is required, involving joining the right homegrown networks that will support their plans.
Companies also need to find the
Scholl’s leadership and passion in helping customers modernize and transform their business has allowed Infor to emerge as the third largest enterprise software company in the world. Prior to joining Infor, Scholl established Oracle Corporation’s Tax and Utilities Global Business unit as the market leader with responsibility for sales, consulting, development and marketing.
Dr William Haseltine is Chairman and CEO of Haseltine Associates Ltd and President of the William A. Haseltine Foundation for Medical Sciences and the Arts. His active business career includes establishing seven biotechnology companies including Human Genome Sciences Inc, Verenium Corporation and Dendreon Corp.
“ “
stePHAn scHoLL Co-President, Infor
DR WiLLiAM HAseLtine
Chairman and CEO, Haseltine Associates Ltd and Senior Advisor at Global Virus Network
You can’t bring in Made-in-America solutions and think they’ll be successful
There has to be a good healthcare system to ensure social harmony
SINgapORe SeSSIONS
right local research partners that will help them redesign products and processes from a ‘clean slate’
perspective.
Both experts acknowledged that while many challenges for companies remain – in some parts of Asia, corruption is a major issue, along with inconsistent infrastructure and cultural barriers that might constrain growth –
nothing dimmed their optimism about the region’s potential.
Looking to the future, with Asia’s manufacturing sector maturing and moving further up the global value chain, both agreed that the new challenges for invested global players lay in scaling up to increase volume but also continuing to focus on innovation to remain competitive.
“It’s incumbent upon the rest of the world that wants to be in the competitive
market to continue to innovate, to continue to invent,” said Bill.
“It’s going to be a lot harder [in the future] just to stay where you are. You’re going to have to run like heck just to stay in the same place.”
Want to see how the experts’ discussion unfolded? Get an insider’s view at Singaporesessions.com
Singapore Business News_
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