Backed by a reputation forged through 90 years, respected by contemporaries and renowned for its comprehensive syllabus encompassing both management and accountancy disciplines, CIMA stands out as a brilliant choice for leaders and professionals to get ahead and become a leader in their career.

By Azhar Jalil

“I think it’s important to have varied experiences, so that you come across as an interesting and well-rounded person during interviews,” Xie Jiayin says.

As a finance professional with Barclays Capital, the 23-year-old believes in higher and broader learning level to upgrade and improve both her practical skills and knowledge.

Hence, in a workforce environment where experience counts, it’s not difficult to see why she chooses to take up the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) qualification as part of her company’s graduate programme.

Accounting for more

While many accounting qualifications focus specifically on external audit and tax management training, CIMA prepares its students for a career in business by teaching skills in managing strategies, project and risk management, analytics that would assist in making important and key decisions.

As the voice of the government, MICA’s Information Officers stand at the frontline dealing with both the media and public.

By Azhar Jalil

“As communicators, the challenge is not just communicating policies, but also getting the public to appreciate the reasons behind the policies, the trade-offs that have to be made, and the greater good that we hope to achieve,” says Soffy Hariyanti about her role as an Information Officer.

As the lead agency for the Singapore Government Information Service, the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (MICA) and its Information Officers play a critical role in the chain of governance. This process begins with obtaining public feedback on planned policies, communicating their deliveries to the public, and finally managing the issues arising from their implementation.

The job has been made all the more challenging in this current day and age, where technology has changed the way people communicate and obtain information. Public expectations of the government are also higher, thus calling for having Information Officers who are not only adept at managing the myriad of communication issues in an increasingly complex environment, but are also passionate about what they do.

Podiatry is not just about healing feet; for one MOH scholar, it’s also about touching lives.

By Azhar Jalil

“To me, podiatry is not a healthcare profession where there’s a strict ‘patient-clinician’ relationship,” says podiatrist Chelsea Law, 28.

“In many ways, patients often refer to us more personally – as a friend, a listening ear, a shoulder to cry on, and even a confidante,” she reveals.

Given that many of her patients are diabetics seeking treatment for debilitating foot ulcers, such rapport is undeniably a valuable crutch for effective treatment.

“In my position, I have the opportunity to make a difference in patients’ lives by providing my concern and care for them,” she says.

The road to success
Chelsea has always had an interest in medicine and wound care. As such, the MOH Health Science Scholarship (aka previously known as the PSC-MOH Overseas Specialist Award (Paramedical) in the past) served as the perfect vehicle for pursuing her ambition to be in healthcare. Why the study of feet in particular? “My mum’s heel pain spurred me to take up podiatry,” she explains.

Imagine delving into what makes our soldiers tick or connecting Singaporeans with Singapore – all in a day’s work for these Defence Executive Officers.

By Azhar Jalil

Serving alongside their military counterparts of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF), MINDEF’s Defence Executive Officers (DXOs) – the non-uniformed cornerstone of MINDEF/SAF – are a corp of dedicated professionals steeped in high service that supports Singapore’s sovereignty.

DXOs see possibilities beyond everything familiar to society and self, define new frontiers and shape the organisation of tomorrow. Through various specialised capacities in human resource, finance, office administration, defence policy, logistics, public affairs, counselling and psychology, DXOs play critical roles in preserving Singapore’s sovereignty.

Defence Psychology
As a Psychologist in the Applied Behavioural Sciences Department (ABSD) in MINDEF, 30-year-old Stephanie Phang enhances the psychological readiness and performance of our troops as well as employees of the organisation.

For Stephanie Fang, developing critical technologies for the SAF is not just about “guys and their gadgets”. This female engineer isn’t daunted by a predominantly male field, and is ready to get her hands dirty for Singapore’s defence.

By Azhar Jalil

As a Research Engineer with DSO National Laboratories, Stephanie Fang is to the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) what Q is to James Bond.

Her mission: to develop cutting-edge technologies that will force multiply the military’s combat capabilities, rendering potential threats irrelevant.

First impressions
The 28-year-old first encountered DSO during a field trip as a polytechnic student, when she explored the think tank’s laboratories and facilities, as well as interacted with its engineers who showcased and explained their work to the students.

“I was impressed from then on,” she recalls.

Before embarking on her career at DSO, Stephanie had worked as a Development Engineer for multimedia products, and also applied for an engineering position with another renowned research institute. However, the lure of a career with Singapore’s national defence R&D organisation proved ultimately irresistible.

Here’s what usually happens at an interview: You enter the room, answer some questions, talk about yourself, smile, and leave. Sounds simple? Unfortunately, that is hardly ever the case.

By Azhar Jalil

Job interviews are an entrenched part of the hiring process and considered the key step for deciding which candidate is best suited for a particular position.

At the same time, however, job interviews are also often highly subjective. Interviewers, being human, are naturally biased and thus discriminatory, whether explicitly or not. Also, interviews are frequently unstructured and therefore rather limited in terms of comparing candidates objectively.

Moreover, traditional face-to-face interviews demand substantial resources from employers but do not always effectively forecast a candidate’s actual working performance.

These factors have caused employers to take up alternative interview methods which are more valuable as predictive tools, so as to better assess potential hires in a more effective and holistic manner.

Growing from strength to strength, Joy Koh has carved out a dynamic and fulfilling career promoting entrepreneurship and enterprise development in Singapore. Eloquent and driven, the self-starter began her journey with a SPRING scholarship.

By Azhar Jalil

Candidate description
Joy Koh
FIREfly Scholar (SPRING Singapore)
Designation: Head, Management Development, Enterprise Capabilities Group, SPRING Singapore
Studied: Electrical Engineering, Cornell University
Master’s in Electrical Engineering, Cornell University

”It was the diversity that attracted me,” says Joy Koh. “When I was looking at the different scholarships, I felt SPRING had the diversity, the flexibility within the company where I knew I would have the opportunity to try out different things.”

For many, buildings go beyond concrete pillars and mirrored glass, taking on identities of their own – homes, not houses; schools, not institutions. CapitaLand takes this notion a step further by developing property that positively affects its occupants.

By Azhar Jalil

Candidate description 1
He Yun
BCA-CapitaLand Built Environment Scholar
Studying: Real Estate, NUS

While many would consider working in the security industry to be a thankless job, the officers on the frontline know that it’s when nothing happens that people are the most grateful.

By Azhar Jalil

Unassuming yet stoic, Nurshahidah is the new face of security. The girl-next-door has always had a passion with anything police-related and is now chasing her dreams with AETOS Security Management Pte Ltd.

At 21, Bum Ariffin has come a long way from being the teenage delinquent. He still roams the streets but these days, with a camera to bring out the unseen beauty of Singapore. We find out what makes his shutter click.

By Azhar Jalil