The Innovators Faculty

“More and more business failures in traditional industries will not be failures of execution, but failures of imagination.” 

Charlie Ang is a venture investor, entrepreneur and speaker in the areas of future trends, innovation and disruptive technologies. He is also the Partner and Head for Singapore at Kiatt, a deep technology and commercial science global venture capital firm, based in London.

He was formerly the Chief Innovation Officer at First Media Group, a regional communications, design and educational group based in Singapore. As an entrepreneur, Charlie co-founded several start-ups, including a high tech venture that raised $ 5 million capital and grew to 80 staff. He has had a rewarding corporate stint; as the Chief Innovation Officer (CINO) of First Media Group and former regional Vice President of one of the largest environmental companies in Asia. As CINO at First Media Group, a regional communications, design and educational group based in Singapore, Charlie developed an innovative culture and experimented with breakthrough innovations in education, media, and marketing sectors. Charlie was previously a trade and commercial diplomat with the Singapore government, having diplomatic stints in Indonesia and the Philippines.

He received his MBA from the NUS Business School and BSc (First Class) Honours in Computer Science from University of Manchester, UK. Charlie completed futures and innovation executive programmes at Singularity University in Silicon Valley, Oxford University’s Said Business School and Stanford University.

“The worst effects of climate change can be averted. But first, we need large scale innovations in clean technologies, global governance, national economies, supply chains and consumer behaviours. There is no greater challenge and more noble endeavour for humanity today than to ensure we do not cross the point of no return.”

Ong Gin Keat is an accomplished  innovator and pioneer in the green economy. His innovation track records span various environmental sectors, including climate change, renewable energy, resource recycling, water treatment, and waste management. His firsts include: registering and implementing Singapore’s first UNFCCC-approved CDM project and sale of carbon credits (ERPA), setting up Singapore’s first aerobic thermophilic composting plant and pioneering vertical wind mills in South East Asia.

Gin Keat is highly motivated to nurture the next generation of innovators who can invent new solutions to alleviate the effects of climate change.

Steve Monaghan is Regional Director, Head of Edge AIA accountable for AIA’s innovation agenda.

Originally a commercial pilot, Steve has held a number of senior corporate and banking roles in product, marketing, operations and general management. He has worked for a number of leading corporations and financial institutions including Dell, Compaq, Citigroup, OCBC, Shinsei and DBS Bank.

Throughout his career, Steve has specialized in introducing new business models, businesses and products in all major markets in Asia and has filed 7 patents.Steve was on the startup team for Dell Computer, introducing Dell’s consumer business to Asia. Later he developed and executed the branded manufacturing and retail model catapulting Compaq to number one in the Indian consumer market. In banking Steve developed and patented the first mobile payments platform for Citigroup, developed a Consumer Finance Division for OCBC and lead the retail bank turnaround of Shinsei Bank in Japan growing revenues 16.3%, deposits 25% and improving net income by USD$100M during a 9 month transformation. As Chief Innovation Officer for DBS bank, Steve drove the innovation agenda focused on Intelligence, Big Data and Social culminating in the investment of DBS in Digital Banking.

Steve is a frequent presenter and lecturer around Asia on subjects including Innovation, banking, Working Capital, M&A and Investing in China. He co-authored a five year China IPO study and has been frequently published on topics including Working Capital, Investing in China and Capital Collaboration. Steve holds an EMBA with ‘first in class academic standing’ from the Helsinki School of Economics.

Armed with a deep understanding of the regional SME market, Luke and his team work with clients to build and rejuvenate brands based on their core strengths, replicating them via franchise or licensing modalities, and leveraging on intellectual property to push their growth regionally. He is instrumental in developing overseas client networks in regional markets such as China, Dubai, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and India.

With his extensive experience, Luke is highly sought-after by the media for his opinion on branding- and franchise-related issues. He is also a frequent guest speaker and lecturer at local tertiary institutions, notably the Nanyang Technology University (NTU), Ngee Ann Polytechnic (in its Franchise & Enterprise Management specialist diploma course), SIM University, MBA programmes and brand management diploma courses by education providers. Most recently, he was appointed as a trainer for the Certified Franchise Executives Course (USA). Luke was often invited to judge various business community and tertiary-level business awards and competitions. In 2009, he was appointed as one of the jurors for the World Retail Awards. Luke currently also serves on the board of advisors of Salvation Army Singapore.

Teck Sin is a serial entrepreneur and innovator who works at the intersection of life sciences, information technology and business.

He founded KOOPrime in 2000, one of the first companies that focuses on life science informatics. Since then, Teck Sin has set up a unit to provide pharmaceutical Validation and Compliance services, a bioinformatics centre that focuses on herbal genomics research in Hong Kong, a sales office in Malaysia, and a joint venture, iGATES BioInnovation, with Eu Yan Sang International to focus on food safety and traceability. A recent development is the launching of Robotic Medical Team initiative with SPRING Singapore to innovate new automation for the healthcare industry. He is also the co-founder of Adigencis and i3 Precision.

In recognition for the growth of KOOPrime, he was awarded the Best Entrepreneur, Science & SOC, and Centennial Entrepreneurship Awards by the National University of Singapore in 2005. Presently, Teck Sin also serves on the executive council of Association of Small & Medium Enterprise (ASME) and advisory committees of companies like SingTel and PharmaLogical Research.

Having won the Raffles/British Airways Scholarship in 1994, Teck Sin proceeded to complete his MSc in Computation at Oxford University.

Natalie is the Founder and CEO of The Entheo Network, an international innovation company and the Co-Founder of Women who Lead, a leadership development service that offers programmes and retreats for female leaders. She is also the inventor of The Six ‘I’s of Innovation™ an integrated methodology that gives individuals and organisations a consistent framework for assessing skills and managing innovation.

She has a background in innovation, leadership and organisational development and has worked for, and consulted with, some of the world’s leading organisations including Cisco Systems, Logica, Singapore Airlines, and LEO Pharma. Within Singapore, she has worked with organisations such as DBS, Changi Airport, the Economic Development Board, the National University of Singapore, and the Ministries of Health, Defence and Education.

Natalie is an international speaker on innovation, entrepreneurship and leadership at a variety of conferences, organisations and universities around the world. She possesses three degrees; a BA Hons in Politics & Legislative studies, an MSc in Economics and Social Psychology and an MBA. From the UK, she has worked extensively in Singapore, South East Asia and Europe. She is the Innovation Columnist in TODAY Paper in Singapore.

Dr Raimondo is a fellow innovator and corporate strategist with a rich history and a keen interest in helping corporations to successfully transform, penetrate new markets and enter new industries. He brings over 12 years experience in running transformation and innovation programs for global corporations facing market disruption and industry transformation. He has also advised senior executives from many of the top 300 corporations in Europe, Asia, Americas and Australia. In addition, he acts as coach for managers of Asian startups and provides expertise on growth and industry disrupting strategies. He is a sought after speaker on Innovation and Strategy.

Raimondo holds a PhD in Innovation and Competition (International Economics) from the University of Manchester (Manchester Business School) and Masters’ in Economics from Bocconi University. He is a certified International Risk Manager and Foresight Practitioner. He is also a visiting researcher at Manchester Institute for Innovation Research and Manchester Business School.

“Foresight identifies the future. Innovation is moving from now to the future. Design makes the future tangible. Entrepreneurship monetizes the tangible future. Branding humanizes them all.”

Jeffrey Tjendra is the Creator and Design Executive Officer (DEO) at Business Innovation by Design. As a designer, Jeffrey is passionate in designing disruptive products, services, and experiences that improve the human condition. As a strategist and consultant, Jeffrey guides organizations on what and how to innovate and grow. As a researcher, Jeffrey creates new knowledge models that disrupt the status quo.

Previously, Jeffrey held various roles as a designer, researcher, futurist, strategist, and consultant at NBDA Asia, Singapore Polytechnic, and Ambient Experience Lab working with startups, SMEs, and MNCs working with clients including MediaCorp, CapitaMalls Asia, Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, SickKids Hospital, and Schneider Electric. Jeffrey received his degree in Industrial Design from OCAD University.

Ted Chan is a professional speaker, facilitator and trainer who specialises in the areas of Innovation, Creativity, Change Management, Influence and Productivity. Ted’s unique understanding of various issues can be attributed to his 20 years of work experience at some of the world’s top companies such as Cisco Systems, Stanley Works and Singapore Technologies, where he has held senior positions in strategic planning, sales & marketing, and communications.

Ted earned his Bachelor’s of Business Administration (BBA) degree with Merit from NUS and his MBA from the Imperial College London in the UK. He is certified trainer and assessor with the Workforce Development Agency (WDA) and a Certified Master Practitioner in Neuro linguistic Programming (NLP).

Ted has conducted innovation, change and creativity workshops for various organisations including Brocade, Singapore Press Holdings, SAFTI, Land Transport Authority, Singapore Civil Defence, MINDEF. Canon, Ciba Vision, Keppel Integrated Engineering, GE Controls, ST Aerospace, Mapletree and Singmarine and etc.

Ted is a highly sought after and versatile speaker who has spoken to thousands of managers and leaders from private businesses, government and non-profit organisations.

Alex is the Managing Director of Spaze Ventures Pte Ltd, where he leads the investments in the right kind of startups to help entrepreneurs launch their idea and grow.

Alex has about a decade of experience from both the public and private sectors, where he helps companies grow. He was most recently the Vice President of Korvac Holdings, a regional technology company that specializes in payment processing and consumer data. He was responsible for corporate development, government relations, strategic alliances and regional business development, where he helped Korvac to expand into new markets and achieved the “Most Impactful in Asia” award at the 2012 ICT Awards. Prior to joining Korvac, Alex was Manager and Team Lead (Enterprise Technology) with International Enterprise Singapore, where he specializes in the e-government and financial services clusters to help companies expand beyond the shores of Singapore. He received the MTI Borderless Award in 2010.

Alex worked briefly as an engineer before starting his corporate career with a boutique private equity and venture capital firm, where he honed his skills and further developed his passion to help startups and companies grow. Alex started his first business in 2002, co-founded two startups and also won the inaugural “Innovation for Public Sector” award for the NTU Business Plan Competition while in school.

Alex holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) and a Master of Science (Technopreneurship & Innovation), both from Nanyang Technological University. He also attended the International Business Fellowship, Middle East Executive Management Program at University of Dubai.

“When we operate on the Creative Plane, Competition is literally non-existent.”

As the co-founder of Advocators Education Pte Ltd, a multi-million dollar company in the education sector of Singapore, Yew Kiin has impacted thousands of individuals, ranging from teenagers to working professionals, over the past 8 years.

His entrepreneurial experience to build a multi-million dollar company from scratch in less than 2 years attests to his business acumen and attitude towards making dreams a reality in a compressed duration. Advocating the philosophy of “梦想不能等待” (Dreams cannot be delayed), he is currently working closely with individuals with strong desire to live their dreams on an accelerated path, which he terms to be the “Compressed Success Path”.

He was interviewed and featured on Channel 8’s “Frontline” (August 2010) and in The New Paper (August 2013) for his entrepreneurial success. In the National Day Rally 2012, he was quoted in the closing speech of Mr Heng Swee Kiat, the Minister of Education of Singapore.

He is often invited by top universities in the region to share his knowledge and experience on entrepreneurship and career charting. These universities include Nanyang Technological University, Singapore Management University, Taylor’s University and Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR).

In addition, he had the honour of speaking at National Events such as The Singapore Education Summit 2010 and 2011, sharing with hundreds of parents the philosophy of building education based on dreams.

He did 3 years of his undergraduate studies in Engineering Science at Oxford, and the final year at Princeton. Jian Sim is also the recipient of numerous prestigious awards including the Advanced Leadership Award from the Royal Academy of Engineering (UK), fellowships from the International Telecommunication Union of United Nations and Kairos Society, and awards for innovation and enterprise from Oxford. In 2013, he founded a startup while studying at Princeton, and represented Singapore to attend the 2013 MobileBeat Conference in San Francisco.

Now, as the Co-founder and Regional President of Kairos Society (ASEAN), Jian Min is actively exploring new technologies and opportunities within the region. More importantly, he pushes the world forward by helping other entrepreneurs succeed, and hence contribute to the start-up ecosystem in Singapore and beyond.

“To science, not even the bark of a tree or a drop of pond water is dull or a handful of dirt banal. They all arouse awe and wonder” – Jane Jacobs

A vision in 2009 to deconstruct everyday traffic into its fundamental 5W1H roots sparked Chen Munn’s interest to bring out the essence of active mobility. Chen Munn is the Founder of kl:kk, an urban and active mobility consultancy, and is also a pioneer member with the Safe Cycling Task Force (SCTF). He believes that a city’s physical, mental, social and economic health revolves around an enhanced urban system that empowers movement in everyone and inclusive mobility for all.

With more than 14 years of experience in the built-environment, Chen Munn has helped many cities improve, particularly in the area of transportation and urban mobility. From advising governments in strategic master planning for Kigali and Iskandar, to recommending policies for retail developments in Beijing and slum redevelopment in Dharavi, Chen Munn has been involved in shaping cities and charting their sustainability while working in renowned consultancies. He is currently tapping into Big Data and analytics to rethink traditional urban
planning processes, especially focusing on walkability and bikeability solutions.