1. How do you keep employees engaged and motivated?
Keeping my team involved and motivated is a top priority for me, because it provides individuals with personal growth opportunities and contributes to the greater success of Tricor. I enjoy being a mentor for members of my team, sharing my knowledge as well as life experiences with them. Achieving success requires both sides to devote ample time and effort.
Yet, in return, I set high expectations for the team’s standards so we can all be invested and share in each other’s success. When my team reaches a new benchmark or achieves a goal we’ve set, I show them my highest regard and appreciation. We all celebrate our success together. When I notice that a troublesome performance gap exists, I work closely with the team and try my best to get them back on track.
Team engagement is only effective when clear communication and directions are delivered. In other words, I strive to communicate and manage my team with no ambiguity. This clarity is very important because it empowers my team with the confidence and motivation they need to achieve success.
2. What is the best career advice you’ve received and why?
Among the best pieces of career advice I’ve received is to remain highly curious. Be inquisitive and take interest what is happening around you, whether market trends, new services, peer group activities or company culture. Constant curiosity will help you to spot any emerging opportunities on the horizon.
Another piece of advice I live by is to never limit yourself just because of the functional title you were given. Innovation, collaboration and transformation aren’t meant to come from just a handful of leaders at the top. Everyone can and should play a part.
Also, be flexible and agile. As we enter a “new normal” era, we need to step out of our comfort zones more frequently and learn through taking risks, although we may see ourselves fail at some stages.
Empathy is also critical because it can help you understand your end-user. And the term end-user can be broad, whether it is your colleagues, boss, business partners, clients, vendors, etc. Putting yourself in other peoples’ shoes is the key to success.
All the above pieces of advice require effort and energy. There is no such thing as a free lunch, unless perhaps you are a natural genius. I am the type of person who is persistent and patient in learning to achieve results. Despite facing inevitable pitfalls at some stages, these suggestions will eventually lead you down the road of success.
3. When did you join Tricor & why?I have been part of the Tricor team for more than three years, joining just after the Permira acquisition and before the C-suite team was appointed.
This has been an exciting role from the very beginning, as I was hired to help build the financial planning and analysis function, which had not yet existed in the company in its twenty-year history. I am proud of the many key milestones our team has reached in the past three years.
It has also been rewarding to support multiple functions here at Tricor. When I first started my career here, I was supporting the Hong Kong Chief Executive Officer and her business team, which included functions such as the commercial pipeline design, business projection and finance operations.
