Twenty-seven prominent entrepreneurs and business leaders from Singapore were named awardees of the Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards 2016 at a glittering gala dinner at Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel.
Over 300 attendees were present at the by-invitation only event, comprising of industry leaders, leading entrepreneurs and dignitaries including Mr. Seah Kian Peng, Member of Parliament, His Excellency Mr. Nimal Weeraratne, High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to Singapore, Mr. Victorio Mario M Dimagiba, Jr., Consul General of the Philippines, Tan Sri Dr. Fong Chan Onn, Chairman of Enterprise Asia, and Dato’ William Ng, President of Enterprise Asia.
The Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards, or APEA, is a regional recognition program organized by Enterprise Asia, the region’s foremost association and think-tank for entrepreneurship. The Awards are presented to a handful of entrepreneurs across Asia Pacific each year, with award ceremonies held in over twelve countries every year.
The Awards are often compared to the Olympics for the stringent entry criteria and highly competitive judging parameters. Nominations of the Awards itself is by invitation, either by past and current awardees, a supporting trade association or the executive committee of Enterprise Asia. Nominees are then subjected to a series of rigorous tests, including financial verification by an appointed audit firm and a compulsory physical site audit and interview, culminating in a secret balloting process by Enterprise Asia’s executive committee.
Awardees are expected to be torchbearers of entrepreneurship and business leaders in their representing industries of respective countries, and adhere to a strict standard of personal and business ethics.
“We can say with certainty that the recipients of the APEA are like none others. Not only do they have to prove their entrepreneurial skills and experience in one of the toughest contests in the world, they also subject themselves to a pledge to uphold the highest standards of entrepreneurship, which includes allegiance to the two founding pillars of Enterprise Asia, namely Investment in People and Responsible Entrepreneurship”, says Dato’ William Ng, President of Enterprise Asia.
Recipients join over a thousand other alumni from across Asia Pacific, including Indonesia’s Ciputra, Chairul Tanjung and Mochtar Riady, Singapore’s Sam Goi and Yao Hsiao-Tung, Malaysia’s Teh Hong Piow and Yeoh Tiong Lay, Hong Kong’s Lui Che-woo and Lawrence Ho, China’s Jiang Xipei, Thailand’s Rit Thirakomen and India’s Adi Godrej, Rahul Bajaj and Brijmohan Lall Munjal.
Mr Joselito D. Campos, Jr. of Del Monte Pacific, who was named Entrepreneur Of The Year, said, “I am very honoured to be bestowed the APEA in recognition of our efforts in entrepreneurship and nation building. To harvest good fruit, we need to sow good seed and nurture it.”
“Receiving the APEA award is a recognition of our past efforts; a sign for trying even harder in the future”, said Mr Su Chung Jye, Executive Chairman, Regal International Group Limited.
“APEA lights the path to a healthy entrepreneurial spirit in Asia”, shared by Dr Jau- Fei Chen, Founder of E.Excel International Group.
“To take the company to another level, you need a bold vision, an ambition or even a dream. The dream has to be big and exciting enough and requires your full commitment. Then you will put your whole heart into achieving it”, said Dr Andy Adhiwana, Group CEO of Auric Pacific Group Limited.
“Success is not final. For continued success, a successful company must innovate everyday”, said Ms Shalini Kamal Sharma, Group MD of Formula One Furniche Pte Ltd.
The recipients in Singapore were selected from among 100 shortlisted candidates, ranging from talented young entrepreneurs to experienced industrialists.
Ng explained, “The APEA is aimed at promoting entrepreneurship. Beyond recognizing the efforts of these entrepreneurs, we hope to encourage them to continue taking their businesses to the next level, and in the process, providing more job opportunities to the people in the region, and help to drive the economy forward”.
RECIPIENT LIST OF ASIA PACIFIC ENTREPRENEURSHIP AWARDS 2016 SINGAPORE:
Consumer Goods
- Dr. Andy Adhiwana, Group CEO, Auric Pacific Group Limited
Education & Training
- Dr. Jau-Fei Chen, Founder, E.Excel International Group
- David Kwee, Chief Executive Director, Training Vision Institute Pte Ltd
- Png Bee Hin, Chief Executive Officer/ Founder, LDR Technology Pte Ltd
Engineering
- Eric Phua, Managing Director, TEE International Limited
Financial Services
- Dr. Tan Chong Koay, Founder/CEO/Chief Strategist, Pheim Asset Management (Asia) Pte Ltd
- Andrew Au, Founder & CEO, AG Delta Pte Ltd
Food & Beverage
- Entrepreneur Of The Year
Joselito D. Campos, Jr., Chief Executive Officer/ Managing Director, Del Monte Pacific Limited - Aillyn Ang, Director, 320 Below Pte Ltd
Healthcare & Pharmaceutical
- Anuj Khosla, Founder/ Chief Strategy Officer, KK Labs Pte Ltd
Hospitality, Food Service & Tourism Industry
- Arun Madhok, Chief Executive Officer, Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre
Industrial & Commercial Products
- Shalini Kamal Sharma, Group Managing Director, Formula One Furniche Pte Ltd
- Philip Lee Tze Yong, Chief Executive Officer/ Managing Director, RAM SMAG Lifting Technologies Pte Ltd
- Kenny Liu ZhenQi, Managing Director, The Super Group
IT. Internet & Telecommunications
- Johnny Huang Shih Chia, Group MD, MAKA GPS Technologies Pte Ltd
- Shashank Dixit, Chief Executive Officer, Deskera Holdings Ltd
Media & Entertainment
- Giulio Dorrucci, Founder and Group CEO, PGK Media Group Pte Ltd Oil & Gas
- Jonathan Lee, Managing Director, McPEC Marine and Offshore Engineering Pte Ltd
Professional & Business Services
- Teo Jin Lee, Managing Director, ODE Consulting Pte Ltd
- Ravi Arumugam, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Partner, RT LLP & RT Group of Companies
Property Development
- Su Chung Jye, Chief Executive Officer/ Founder/ Executive Chairman, Regal International Group Limited
- Dato’ Colin Tan, Group Managing Director, Hatten International Pte Ltd
Retail
- Dr. Michael Tien, Founder & Chairman, Atlas Sound & Vision Pte Ltd
Trading & Wholesaling
- Shu Setogawa, Director, MTG Pacific Pte Ltd
- Doris Wee Hui Cheen, Chief Executive Officer, Wendell Trading Company
- Peh Yeng Yok, Chairman, Yok Impex Pte Ltd
Transportation & Logistic
- Danny Lo, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Watt Wah Petroleum Haulage Pte Ltd
