If talent development isn’t already at the top of your agenda, it soon will be. The Singapore Government has put in motion plans to emphasise HR and leadership throughout the island; making the country a hub for all human capital expertise in Asia. While such talk has been in the air for some time, actions are now, some might say finally, set to follow.Early last month, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced the establishment of the Leadership Initiative for Building Networks and Knowledge (Singapore LINK is the convenient acronym). A collaboration between the Ministry of Manpower, the Singapore Economic Development Board, and the Singapore Management University, Singapore Link will call on other business schools, institutions and corporations to combine in a cluster of HR intelligence at its One North site in Buona Vista.
Lee says the future of the Singapore economy, and indeed all Asian economies, will depend on making the full use of all available talent. Given that skilled talent is essentially mobile – seeing Asia as “one playing field” – it is important to develop best practices for their attraction, retention and development.
“The Singapore LINK will bring together business schools, corporate universities and professional services firms in a single campus devoted to leadership and talent development,” he said. “This clustering will strengthen the links between research, management and training.”
Singapore companies and organisations say they are keen to take advantage of the new setup; giving Singapore LINK an early promise of success in its training arm at least. “We, like many other companies, are hungry for talent, so any channels or approach that can improve our chances are welcome,” Jeffrey Kwek, Group HR director at JTC Corporation, said.
Suntec Singapore is planning on going one step further. Jacqueline Goh, Director, HR and Administration, says the convention and exhibition centre won’t just be sending its HR team for training at LINK; but also its senior leaders and leadership potentials. She says the initiative should prove an ideal training ground for new management techniques and approaches.
That the Singapore Government has taken a strong interest in HR as a business tool is undeniable. This latest initiative is a manifestation of its desire to make the island-state, as Lee puts it, “a Home for Talent”. But is it too little, too late?
Kwek says definitely not. As he says, HR in Singapore has been evolving over the last 10 years, but there is still room for improvement and benchmarking against practices in the West.
Goh says the Singapore Link initiative is a welcome breath of fresh air. “It is about time that we realise HR is a profession, just like law, medicine or engineering. It involves significant thought leadership and knowledge,” she said.
“The current practices of HR still ruminate from when Singapore started herself as a young nation – focusing on the manufacturing and electronics industries. It is an opportune time (through the establishment of the HR Hub) that the practices now Singapore’s transition towards that of a knowledge based economy.”