UCLA-NUS Executive MBA Program equips senior managers with skills to compete in a global economy

"The UCLA-NUS EMBA is a unique programme structured to equip participants with a solid foundation to operate effectively in a highly competitive global environment, "said Mr Lai Chong Meng, graduand and valedictorian for the first cohort of UCLA-NUS Executive MBA Program.

I am 60 this year, and like others from my generation, I witnessed the splendid transformation of Singapore.
As a child, I grew up amidst the poverty of family and friends.
The hard-work, determination, humility and gentleness of some of my closest kin and friends gave me the determination to succeed in my own life. I started as an apprentice in Singapore, did my studies in England, returned to Singapore and was subsequently sitting on several senior general management positions.

My wife Judy has been a very supportive partner; she gave up her job when our two children, son Wai Cheong and daughter Siu Yin were young. Now Wai Cheong (University of Western Australia - Economics), 29, and Siu Yin (National University of Singapore - Mechanical Engineering), 27, are pursuing their own successful careers.

Though I have achieved significant success in my career, I was not content to rest on these laurels. Singapore progressed from a third-world country to that of a first world in less than 40 years. In the context of a globalised economy, its success in going forward will depend on whether the population has the skills to create a sustainable value-add to its trading partners. Any executive who wishes to remain relevant to the needs of his organisation and its customers must continue to upgrade himself with the relevant skills.

That was why I decided to enrol in the UCLA-NUS Executive MBA (EMBA) Program, a rigorous 15-month journey that led me to classrooms in Los Angeles, Singapore and Shanghai. The UCLA-NUS EMBA is a unique programme structured to equip participants with a solid foundation to operate effectively in a highly competitive global environment.

Now, after graduation, I am like a seasoned carpenter with a new set of tools, or at least a set of well-honed existing tools! These tools have enabled me to be more structured in my thought process. I have acquired a much better understanding of the need to balance informed intuition with structured analysis in a decision-making process, and have become a much more effective manager as a result of the programme.

Mr Lai Chong Meng graduated with 17 other classmates in the first cohort of the UCLA-NUS Executive MBA Program at the Anderson School of Management in the University of California, Los Angeles, and was the valedictorian for the commencement ceremony. As a senior executive, he was instrumental in the start-up of the main core businesses of Brambles (a listed company on the Australian and London Stock Exchange) in Asia when he joined the company in 1995. Today, the core business units employ more than 700 people in Asia with revenue in excess of US$100 million. Previously, he held senior management positions in industries such as shipbuilding, manufacturing and construction.

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