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Across every division of EDB, you will find people with myriad of skills, personal interests and backgrounds. However, we are united by - a drive, passion, a focus on learning and a commitment to being part of a team that shapes the economy.
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Who has invested his career with us?
Find out who they are and what they do in EDB.
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I experienced my first road trip in my first year of college in the US.
Prior to that, the closest I ever came to a road trip was probably a drive from Tuas to Changi or the occasional trip to the friendly neighbor up north. While my first road trip was not exactly an epic voyage, it was a life changing journey for me and in most ways remains one of my most memorable experiences. Through braving mechanical failure, overcoming unforeseen delays, a minor accident and cursing at high gas prices, I encountered a new world out there on the road and learnt more about myself in the process.
Drawing an Analogy
Predictable as it sounds, I could find no better depiction for my overseas education experience than a road trip. I doubt many will dispute that leaving for years to study abroad represents a trip of sorts, and this trip is about the journey as much as it is the destination. For a road trip, preparation starts with the right rental car and the choice of the destination. Choosing a scholarship program is analogous to the preparation one makes prior to this road trip. The right scholarship program would ensure that your journey to graduate from college will be a smooth one, and that the eventual destination at the end of your trip will be an enjoyable one that fulfills the goal you set out to achieve. Understandably, it can be very tempting to jump at the first opportunity at support for one’s tertiary education. Nonetheless, my one advice to applicants is to think more deliberately about their fit into the organization which would be their trip’s end point.
Ups and Downs
Just like any road trip, even if you have decided on your destination, you still cannot be sure about what might happen in the journey you undertake in the next 4 years. Far too often, like sudden bumps or holes on the highway, the trip to your goal can also throw you the occasional curve ball. I found out things are hardly as straight forward as they seem. Snow IS fluffy and nice, but when you have 4 feet of it, against the backdrop of sub-zero temperatures, you begin to develop a love-hate relationship with it. The roads become slippery, the car tires vulnerable, your extremities frozen, yet the best cup of hot cocoa you had in life was drunk when it snowed, not to mention the immense fun of sliding down snow slopes. It is inevitable that you will miss Singapore food terribly throughout college, and yet you will have to battle the bulge as you try to steer clear of your freshman fifteen weight gain (from exactly what, I have yet to figure out).
First Encounters
I could not ask for a better college journey in my four years abroad. Undergraduate life in the University of Chicago, where I read economics was amazing – pedantic, scholarly, yet filled with wild adventurous and good times. I took up French, studied abroad in Paris, worked in an art gallery, all alongside taking classes with world class economists. Then I went to graduate school in Yale, which introduced me to a different life as an Ivy League institution student in a small town and made me feel like a Gilmore Girl. I made lifelong friends from around the world, whose names I can still barely pronounce. Studying abroad will represent many firsts - first time driving on the wrong side of the road, first time falling on icy grounds, first Thanksgiving dinner – as I am sure it will for you as well. Holidays were spent in interesting places, all around the US, and of course the occasional adventure-filled road trip, which even brought me all the way to Canada.
Wanderlust and Home
Your arrival destination will not necessarily be what you imagined it to be. Nevertheless, with some research, you are likely to form a more accurate picture of where you are headed. When I had to return to Singapore for work, bittersweet as it was leaving my home for the last four years, I felt comfortable knowing that I was returning to an organization I felt passionate to work for, and EDB represented a new exciting journey into the working world for me. The organization helps by providing their scholars with as accurate as possible a picture on their future workplace, be it through the summer internships or through conversations with future colleagues. I interned with EDB in Singapore my first summer, and in my second year, spent my summer working with the EDB New York office. I learnt a lot through these experiences and this prepared me for what I was heaI experienced my first road trip in my first year of college in the US.
Prior to that, the closest I ever came to a road trip was probably a drive from Tuas to Changi or the occasional trip to the friendly neighbor up north. While my first road trip was not exactly an epic voyage, it was a life changing journey for me and in most ways remains one of my most memorable experiences. Through braving mechanical failure, overcoming unforeseen delays, a minor accident and cursing at high gas prices, I encountered a new world out there on the road and learnt more about myself in the process.
Drawing an Analogy
Predictable as it sounds, I could find no better depiction for my overseas education experience than a road trip. I doubt many will dispute that leaving for years to study abroad represents a trip of sorts, and this trip is about the journey as much as it is the destination. For a road trip, preparation starts with the right rental car and the choice of the destination. Choosing a scholarship program is analogous to the preparation one makes prior to this road trip. The right scholarship program would ensure that your journey to graduate from college will be a smooth one, and that the eventual destination at the end of your trip will be an enjoyable one that fulfills the goal you set out to achieve. Understandably, it can be very tempting to jump at the first opportunity at support for one’s tertiary education. Nonetheless, my one advice to applicants is to think more deliberately about their fit into the organization which would be their trip’s end point.
Ups and Downs
Just like any road trip, even if you have decided on your destination, you still cannot be sure about what might happen in the journey you undertake in the next 4 years. Far too often, like sudden bumps or holes on the highway, the trip to your goal can also throw you the occasional curve ball. I found out things are hardly as straight forward as they seem. Snow IS fluffy and nice, but when you have 4 feet of it, against the backdrop of sub-zero temperatures, you begin to develop a love-hate relationship with it. The roads become slippery, the car tires vulnerable, your extremities frozen, yet the best cup of hot cocoa you had in life was drunk when it snowed, not to mention the immense fun of sliding down snow slopes. It is inevitable that you will miss Singapore food terribly throughout college, and yet you will have to battle the bulge as you try to steer clear of your freshman fifteen weight gain (from exactly what, I have yet to figure out).
First Encounters
I could not ask for a better college journey in my four years abroad. Undergraduate life in the University of Chicago, where I read economics was amazing – pedantic, scholarly, yet filled with wild adventurous and good times. I took up French, studied abroad in Paris, worked in an art gallery, all alongside taking classes with world class economists. Then I went to graduate school in Yale, which introduced me to a different life as an Ivy League institution student in a small town and made me feel like a Gilmore Girl. I made lifelong friends from around the world, whose names I can still barely pronounce. Studying abroad will represent many firsts - first time driving on the wrong side of the road, first time falling on icy grounds, first Thanksgiving dinner – as I am sure it will for you as well. Holidays were spent in interesting places, all around the US, and of course the occasional adventure-filled road trip, which even brought me all the way to Canada.
Wanderlust and Home
Your arrival destination will not necessarily be what you imagined it to be. Nevertheless, with some research, you are likely to form a more accurate picture of where you are headed. When I had to return to Singapore for work, bittersweet as it was leaving my home for the last four years, I felt comfortable knowing that I was returning to an organization I felt passionate to work for, and EDB represented a new exciting journey into the working world for me. The organization helps by providing their scholars with as accurate as possible a picture on their future workplace, be it through the summer internships or through conversations with future colleagues. I interned with EDB in Singapore my first summer, and in my second year, spent my summer working with the EDB New York office. I learnt a lot through these experiences and this prepared me for what I was heading towards in the future as well. Discovering that your destination meets your expectations is as gratifying as the fun journey in getting there. Your wanderlust fulfilled, you can settle in to taking in the sights and the different set of experiences the destination can offer. I am still enjoying my working experience up till today. Racing against global competition in a bid to secure foreign direct investments in the IT sector provides me with the adrenaline rush and a great sense of achievement.
The road is not always smooth or predictable, but the trip is about the destination as much as it is about the ride. A scholarship supports and assures you of the arrival destination, but it is definitely still up you to make the most out the journey there.
So get behind the wheel, buckle up and enjoy the ride ahead. Do make sure you have a legal driving license though. Happy Landings!
ding towards in the future as well. Discovering that your destination meets your expectations is as gratifying as the fun journey in getting there. Your wanderlust fulfilled, you can settle in to taking in the sights and the different set of experiences the destination can offer. I am still enjoying my working experience up till today. Racing against global competition in a bid to secure foreign direct investments in the IT sector provides me with the adrenaline rush and a great sense of achievement.
The road is not always smooth or predictable, but the trip is about the destination as much as it is about the ride. A scholarship supports and assures you of the arrival destination, but it is definitely still up you to make the most out the journey there.
So get behind the wheel, buckle up and enjoy the ride ahead. Do make sure you have a legal driving license though.
Happy Landings!
-as featured in Scholarship Guide 2007 |
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Mr Kiren Kumar
Centre Director, Stockholm Centre
Global Operations
Master in Management Science
Stanford University
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Kiren is an EDB (Economic Development Board) scholar, formerly from Victoria Junior College. He graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering degree from the University of Illinois, and went on to pursue a Masters in Management Science at Stanford University. He started work at EDB in 2001, and is now the Assistant Head of EDB’s Infocommunications and Media (ICM) Cluster Development Group. In a few months time, Kiren will be posted to Sweden as Director of EDB’s Stockholm office. Tall and lanky, he greeted me with a firm handshake and a ready smile.
“I took up the EDB scholarship because I felt that it is very closely knit to the private sector, even though it is a part of the Government. And you’ll get an opportunity at a very young age to interact with senior executives from within a company.”
The business of creating industries
“The way I look at it, EDB is in the business of growing world-class industries that generate high value-added jobs,” says Kiren. “We focus on the manufacturing and related services sectors, from precision engineering and electronics, to chemicals, biomedical, engineering & education services, and finally to infocomms and media. Our client base encompasses global and local enterprises, and innovative start-ups.”
“We are moving up the value chain,” Kiren points out. “For instance, Singapore no longer manufactures simple PCs. We are designing and producing cutting edge high value products such as computer servers, networking equipment, mobile phones and semiconductors.”
In other words, EDB is focused on developing industries with jobs that the country’s highly-educated workforce actively seeks today. To maintain Singapore’s leadership position, EDB works to enhance Singapore’s pro-business economic policies and infrastructure, as well as identify and nurture new growth industries such as digital entertainment, alternative fuels, and nanotechnology.
Singapore Inc.
“EDB is the one-stop shop for investors who want to do business in Singapore,” says Kiren. “What do they need? What are the issues? We will help the investors solve them. We will be their account manager and ensure a smooth ramp-up of their operations in Singapore.”
It’s challenging work to shape an industry, as such, work at EDB involves extensive coordination with multiple sister agencies. “It’s not about who did the job and who collected the credit,” says Kiren. “That’s not the intention. At the end of the day, we’re [part of] the Government. If you look at it on the higher level, it’s all about Singapore. The Singapore Inc. approach is really the way I see it.”
Infocomms and Media
Kiren’s day-to-day work at the Infocomms and Media Cluster Development Group involves working closely companies such as Nokia, Siemens and Ericsson. “These are the companies that actually manufacture the equipment for fixed and wireless networks that make up the backbone of the telecoms industry,” he explains. “I work closely with them to understand their business strategies, and try to see what possibilities there are to use Singapore as their base to do business globally. Ultimately these activities will strengthen Singapore’s industrial capabilities.”
When I asked how a mechanical engineer ended up dealing with the infocomms sector, Kiren replies with a laugh, “Back when I was 18 and naïve, I was fascinated with science and numbers. I was also very interested in economics. So I was a half techie, half business-oriented person.” This ability to bridge two different disciplines helps Kiren assess the many business models he sees everyday.
But he remains very much in tune with the latest developments in technology, his first love. “We need to understand it even if we’re not practitioners. Hence the engineering background helps too,” he explained.
It is clear that Kiren is passionate about his job. “When you look out of your building, and see a factory that you know you’ve helped turn into reality, and when you know that 2000 people now have a job in that factory, you’d realise that it’s beyond money, beyond immediate remuneration. It’s a vision. Everyone needs that guiding light,” he says with a smile.
- as featured in Career Central
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Ms Candice Wan Shu Ting
Scholar studying in Japan
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Although a disbelieving look is usually the first sight that greets me whenever I tell people of my acceptance of the EDB scholarship to Japan, to study Economics, I remain optimistic and excited about the opportunities that lie ahead.
“Why Japan?” is the first question that people ask.
Well, why not?
Studying in Japan will surely be an immense challenge juxtaposed against the backdrop of an abundance of opportunities for personal development. Its culture remains relatively distinct from most globalised or ‘westernized’ countries, its strength in innovation is world-class, and the national pride of its countrymen is admirable. But over and above the physical environment of where I pursue higher education is the more pressing issue of what I hope to accomplish in my life.
Shaping the Economic Landscape
Being awarded, and then accepting the EDB scholarship is not an end in itself. My underlying motivation for applying for the FIREfly scholarships was grounded in my desire to play an active role in shaping the landscape of Singapore’s economic future. Cliché as it may sound, we have, and will always be living in an era of fast-paced and unprecedented change. However, amidst all these transformations, my dream to contribute not just to the survival, but the success of Singapore in the long run, still holds true. Thus, EDB’s track record of helping Singapore effectively adapt to global and regional conditions, and even pre-empt change by setting new trends, identifying and nurturing new industries, made this organization a compelling choice.
The Business of EDB
Furthermore, being given the opportunity to do a 4 month internship with EDB in the Strategic Planning department has allowed me to observe and more importantly participate in the type of work that EDB does.
My main portfolio was to undertake the scenario planning and strategic review for the electronics industry in Singapore. I was tasked to conduct detailed research and analysis of global and local electronics companies, future technology trends, as well as the global business environment. But in addition to reading industry journals, I also joined the EDB officers as they engaged their client companies to understand first-hand the competitive challenges of the industry.
The close partnerships with the private sector allowed us to develop a comprehensive strategy for Singapore to compete in the sector. EDB is also directly involved in the execution of this strategy. One of EDB’s key roles is to understand the business needs of the global and local enterprises that make up its client base, and architect investment projects and activities that can be based out of Singapore. In turn, these activities generate important high value-added jobs and enhance our industrial capabilities.
Multiple Roles, Multiple Tasks
I quickly realised that in EDB, multi-tasking is a norm, even for interns! Scenario planning aside, I also worked on the analysis of Singapore's macroeconomic environment for the Competitiveness Report board paper. Throughout the internship, I had to engage and pitch my ideas to fellow colleagues and senior management. My professional development had already started during the internship. Through guidance from fellow EDB officers, I have picked up important skills like facilitating [scenario building] workshops, marketing and communication, and the rigourous analysis of fundamental assumptions.
Due to the length of internship, I also had the opportunity to better understand the culture of EDB and the work ethic. Over all, I have been most impressed with the dynamic, unspoken “never-stop-learning” culture that is prevalent among all EDB officers, both the young and the mature.
Why EDB?
There is a saying that goes: In this world, there are 3 types of people. Those who watch things happen, those who make things happen, and finally, those who wonder, “What on earth is happening?”
Because we are all unique individuals, each of us will experience a different calling in life. Some are content to observe from afar; others may still be struggling to make sense of the goings-on in this world. As for me – together with the dedicated and passionate team players in EDB – I aspire to be a part of the second group that makes things happen in, and for, Singapore.
- as featured in Scholarship Guide 2006 |
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