EMBA Class 30

Team: Titans

John Dominguez III

Brad Flauaus

Terence Fontaine

Debbie Gibbons

Jason Kilpatrick

Sara Song

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Table of Content

Page 2: Executive Summary

Page 3: Company Profile and Overview

Page 4: Vision, Mission and Strategy

Page 6: Core Values

Page 7: The organization and its Structure

Page 11: Subsidiaries and Associated Companies

Page 13: Globalization

Page 15: Infrastructure

Page 17: Conclusion

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Executive Summary

Singtel, a prominent leader in the telecommunications industry, has developed an extensive network of organizations throughout the globe that each offer the group an opportunity to reach out to the global community. Singtel’s largest challenge is that it

competes in a highly competitive market with consumers who are extremely brand loyal.

Singtel as a group must be able to create consistency and functionality across their

partnerships. This is important for the growth and enhancement of the organization.

Another important factor to consider is that Singtel must get these subsidiaries or

affiliates to adapt to the culture created by the organization. If they can achieve this task,

Singtel can definitely accomplish their goals. The cultural barriers can definitely be

broken if they receive executive commitment and execution while integrating their

businesses. The question at hand is whether Singtel will be able to develop brand loyalty

amongst its many consumers. The fact that they are partnering with domestic companies

will help with the cause and offer consumers in different markets the comfort of dealing

with an organization that is familiar with their needs. They have excellent products

available and with their continuous network expansion; Singtel will definitely continue

its global growth. In this report is an overview of the organization, global presence,

products and network capabilities.

Company Profile and Overview

Tracing its heritage back to 1879, Singtel has grown to become Asia’s leading

communications group with operations and investments in more than 20 countries and 3

territories around the world. In 1879, three years after Alexander Graham Bell patented his invention, Singapore became one of the first cities in the East to have Telephone

service. Until the mid 1950’s, British interests managed all telephone service in

Singapore. In 1955, the Singapore Telephone Board was incorporated which gave rights

to operate telephone service in Singapore. This board merged in 1974 with the

Telecommunications Authority of Singapore, which provided international services. In

1982, Telecoms and the Postal Department merged. Six years later in 1988, Singapore

Telecom International (Singtel) was formed. The company quickly became incorporated

in 1992 and became public in October of 1993. This became Singapore’s largest ever

IPO and marked the emergence of a global communications leader. It was from this

point in time that Singtel was able to develop a highly sophisticated international network

of organizations that provide direct connection to more than 100 countries. Now, serving

the corporate and consumer markets, the Singtel group has committed themselves to

bringing the best of global communications to Asia Pacific and beyond.

Singtel provides fixed and wireless voice and data communications services to

approximately 136 million consumer and business subscribers in Australia, Bangladesh,

India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. The company also operates

under its Australian subsidiary Optus, which is Australia’s #2 communications provider.

The organization’s primary business is to provide cellular telephone and broadband

internet services. They also provide IT and wireline telephone services along with the sale of cell phones.

Today, Singtel continues to lead the way in the Singapore market. They operate

approximately 2 million direct exchange lines which equals one line for every two 4

persons in Singapore. They are also the leading mobile operator in Singapore with a 43%

market share as well as the broadband internet leader with a 53% market share. The

group along with its affiliates serves eight different markets with about 19,000 worldwide

employees and sales toppling $10 billion.

Vision, Mission and Strategy

The Singtel group has a very goal oriented vision, mission and strategy that has led the

organizations philosophy since its inception. They are as follows:

Vision: To be Asia Pacific’s best communication group

Mission: Breaking barriers, Building bonds

• Enable communication by breaking barriers and building bonds.

• Help businesses and people communicate anytime, anywhere and in many ways

• Make communication easier, faster, more economical and reliable by:

o Breaking the barriers of distance, price, time, technology and the unknown

o Building strong bonds among ourselves, with our shareholders, customers

and business partners

Strategy: Our goal is to enhance our businesses and strengthen our position as a premier integrated communications services provider in the Asia Pacific region.

Singtel has incorporated five elements to achieve this objective. These five elements are:

• Lead in Singapore: With a strong heritage in Singapore, Singtel can offer its

mother country a variety of communications services along with IT and

telecommunications solutions.

• Grow in Australia: Home to Singtel’s wholly owned subsidiary Optus, the

business hopes to become the leading force in Australia. 5

• Partner across Asia: With its strategic investments in several companies across

Asia Pacific, Singtel has been able to expand its services and grow their presence

across the Asian market.

• Connect Asia: Serve the needs of the many multinational corporations across the

globe. With a vast network in 19 countries and an extensive infrastructure of

satellite networks and submarine cable systems, Singtel is able to stay connected

across the region and to the rest of the world.

• Future innovation: An important plan for the organization is to meet the needs of

the always evolving customer. They view this as a core component of their

success and will continue to push their effort for future enhancements.

As an entire group, the mission and strategy of the organization is to grow their core

business and become the leader through innovation and development. This innovation

will permit them to break any international barriers that would otherwise restrict their

growth and allow them to provide their services outside of the Asian market. Much like

what is stated in their mission statement, breaking barriers and borders through alliances

and product development is going to be the key to their expansion into new markets across the globe.

Core Values

Aside from their mission, vision and strategy, Singtel has a set of five core values

that the organization has relied on for their growth and success. These five core values

are as follow: 6

• Customer Focus: Singtel has prided itself as a company that can anticipate what

consumers are wanting and making it readily available for their use. They focus

on providing quality service and treating all clients with dignity and respect.

• Challenger Spirit: Through their innovations, they have been able to set

themselves apart from the competition. Their value is to capitalize on all

opportunities and view every one of them as a challenge.

• Teamwork: Singtel has focused on creating an environment that is very team

oriented with open communication. They respect and value the ideas of others

and encourage involvement from all employees.

• Integrity: The organization is one of respect and honor. With this core value,

Singtel focuses on being responsible and ethical in the decisions of the

organization.

• Personal Excellence: Through strong teamwork and involvement, the company

focuses on staying committed and being the best that it can be. They encourage

all employees to strive for greatness and excel as an individual as well as an

employee.

It is through these core values that the organization has been able to fulfill their mission and strategies. The values have established the culture and play an important role of the everyday operation of the business.

The Organization and its Structure

Temasek Holdings is the parent company and majority owner of Singtel. The

Singtel group is comprised of subsidiaries, which offer a wide variety of products and 7 services that range from mobile phones to the sale of telecommunication equipment.

Below is a diagram of Singtel and its major subsidiaries, associates and joint ventures.

Through the subsidiaries and its several interests outside of Singapore, Singtel has been able to develop a true global presence. As this structure develops and grows, the organization plans to accomplish it mission and strategy of connecting Asia. With these strategic alliances across various borders, Singtel has been capable of providing service to most of Asia and beyond.

Singtel is managed and operated by highly qualified unique individuals all from various backgrounds and education. They are as follows:

Chua Sock Koong, Singtel Group CEO 8

Ms. Chua has been the group’s CEO since her appointment on April 1, 2007. She has

been a member of the group since June of 1989 when she was hired on as Treasurer. She

quickly moved up the ranks and became CFO in 1999 where she was responsible for all

financial functions. She is a Board member of Limited and JTC

Corporation as well as a member of the Council on Corporate Disclosure and

Governance. Ms. Chua is a Certified Public Accountant and CFA charterholder and holds a Bachelor of Accounting from the University of Singapore.

Bill Chang, Executive Vice President

With more than 15 years experience in the industry, Mr. Chang joined the organization in

November of 2005. He is on the Board of Workforce Development Agency and serves as

the Deputy Chairman of the Workforce Development Agency Lifelong Learning

Endowment Fund. Mr. Chang holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electrical and

Computer Systems Engineering from Monash University.

Francis Heng, Chief Financial Officer

Joining the organization in March of 2007, Mr. Heng is responsible for the financial and

corporate affairs of the company. He has an extensive background that ranges from

international business conglomerates, banking and financial institutions. Mr. Heng holds

a Bachelor of Business Administration degree form the National University of Singapore.

Allen Lew, CEO Singapore Division of Singtel

In February of 2006, Mr. Lew was appointed CEO of Singapore Singtel and assumed

responsibility for the operations of the Singtel business in Singapore. He has a long

standing history with the organization which began in November of 1980. Throughout

his career he has held various senior management positions including several senior 9

management positions with many of Singtel’s associates. Mr. Lew holds a Bachelor of

Electrical Engineering from the University of Western Australia and a Master of Science

(Management) from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Lim Chuan Poh, CEO International, Singtel

Mr. Lim joined the group in October of 1998 and assumed the CEO International position

in October of 2006. He oversees Singtel’s regional associates and promotes growth

through strategic investments in the region. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering Science

from Ballioli College, University of Oxford and a Master in Public Health Engineering

from the Imperial College of Science and Technology, University of London.

Paul O’Sullivan, CEO, Singtel Optus

Mr. O’Sullivan joined Optus in 1996 and served as the Managing Director of its Mobile

Division. After the acquisition of Optus by Singtel, he was appointed COO which he

served for three years. From here he became the CEO in September 2004 and assumed

the responsibility of the performance and operations of Optus in Australia. Mr.

O’Sullivan holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Trinity College, The University

of Dublin and is a graduate of the Harvard Business School’s Advanced Management

Programme. 10

The diagram below portrays the role and responsibility of these individuals.

Subsidiaries and Associated Companies

The expansion of Singtel has occurred primarily because of its strategically

placed subsidiaries and joint ventures. In the on going battle to gain market share in the

highly competitive telecommunications industry, Singtel has been able to push themselves forward from the rest of the competition by these partnerships. As they strive to gain a larger global presence, one of the greatest achievements of the company was the acquisition of Optus, which was Australia’s leading integrated communications company with a customer base of approximately 6 million consumers. They offer a variety of communication services ranging from mobile, national, local and long distance service, business network service and internet, satellite and television service. Aside from the products it offered, the group has also invested around $7 billion in the development of satellite networks which include central business district and suburban local access 11

networks. This expansive network allows Optus to offer communication, information

and entertainment services to the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.

Another important subsidiary of Singtel is Singtel Mobile. This wholly owned

company provides mobile service to approximately 1.9 million customers. The company

has offered great mobile products and works with Optus in Australia, Advanced Info

Services in Thailand, Bharti Group in India, in the Philippines and

Pacific Bangladesh Telecom and Telkomsel in Indonesia. These alliances are a portrayal

of Singtel’s global expansion. They are partnering with organizations that these countries are familiar with and providing them a service that otherwise would not have been offered. This has proven to become a strong force for the Singtel group’s global expansion and formation.

NCS Pte. Ltd., a leading regional information technology and communications

engineering services provider is another important wholly owned subsidiary that Singtel

has acquired as it attempts to gain a stronger global presence. With over 12 locations in

10 countries across Asia Pacific and the Middle East, NCS offers services such as

consulting, development and integration, managed services and technology solutions.

With a staff of 3,000 employees, the company has provided value to its customers and

service to many sectors including education, financial services, homeland security,

telecommunications and utilities. NCS has given Singtel another avenue to venture into

new territories and cross borders that the company may have not been able to if not for

their existing presence. Like Optus, NCS is an organization that is known and respected

in their respective country. With these acquisitions, Singtel has been able to break any 12

cultural barriers that may have existed in their global expansion to provide services to

these areas.

Other important companies to Singtel are Singnet and Singapore Post. Singnet

has grown to become the leading Internet Service Provider in Singapore. With 438,000

broadband lines and 49,000 dial up customers, Singnet offers a variety of attractive plans

for residential and business users. Being the first ISP in Singapore, the company has

become a strong force in their home country of Singapore. The other important associate

is Singapore Post which is a provider of domestic and international postal service in

Singapore. It is a one stop mail, logistics and retail distribution network with strong

brand recognition and loyalty within the country of Singapore. Singapore Post has

provided yet another opportunity to grow their domestic business as well as their cross-

border development.

Globalization

Founded in Singapore, Singtel has grown over the years to become a prominent global player by crossing borders to serve numerous countries in various parts of the

world. Through their extensive network, Singtel has been able to break any and all

cultural barriers that may have existed by associating themselves with businesses familiar

with the area they were attempting to venture into. Now serving more than 100

countries, Singtel has been able to operate efficiently through submarine cable and

satellite systems that have provided links to most major business centers in the world.

The company has also expanded globally through ∑xpan, a pan-Asian chain of 12 data centers in Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, and Singapore. This product has also been able to deploy into areas such as China, India, US and UK through several 13

marketing alliances. The presence that Singtel is offering its consumers has made them

become a one stop telecommunications provider. With these offices, the consumer’s networks do not have to be based in Singapore as they did in the past and have opened up the gates for the international market. It has been through this global infrastructure that

the cross border barrier was broken for Singtel. They can now meet the growing

demands of their clients and offer flawless service to its customers in all regions.

Expansion into overseas markets is an important aspect of Singtel’s long term

growth and through many of their investments they have been able to secure future development. According to Singtel’s financial information, proportionate EBITDA outside of Singapore is 72 percent. Below is a chart from the company’s website

portraying overseas companies Singtel has invested in, their respective country and the percentage of Singtel’s stake.

Company Country SingTel's Stake Advanced Info Service Thailand 21.4% APT Satellite Hong Kong 20.3% Bharti Group India 30.5% Globe Telecom The Philippines 44.5% Pacific Bangladesh Telecom Bangladesh 45.0% Telkomsel Indonesia 35.0% Warid Telecom Pakistan 30.0%

Each company is unique of one another and services a particular market with various

products. The only similarity these businesses have is that they are all fulfilling the

mission and strategy of the Singtel group. This is a perfect example of the dedication the

company has toward its global growth. Each of these companies is carefully selected

based on the market they serve and the services they offer. They each represent an 14 important link of the chain that Singtel is creating around the globe and as these links are connected, Singtel is truly becoming a global telecommunications provider.

Singtel Infrastructure

The Singtel infrastructure is a very well organized and efficient network that covers almost all of Singapore and Australia. With this type of system the company is able to provide coverage to 100% of the Singapore population and 94% of the Australian population. Aside from this they have established over 50 points in various parts of Asia to serve as landing destinations for their 50 submarine cables. Through these sophisticated submarine cables, the group is able to stay connected to over 100 countries.

Of the many cables that the company has created, one of the newest is the SEA-ME-WE

3. This cable is a $1.5 billion investment that spans 38,000 km and has approximately 39 landing points. With 70 Gbps Wavelength Division Multiplexing technology and SDH transmission, Singtel is able to serve the Pacific Rim, South East Asia, the Middle East,

North Africa and Western Europe.

The second largest cable is the SEA-ME WE 4 which is a 20,000 km long cable that spans from Singapore to France via the Middle East. Costing approximately $500 million, the system is able to handle one million Internet users simultaneously. The next important cable is the APCN2 which was a $1.1 billion investment that connects China,

Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Singapore. These cables support the global presence of Singtel which is crucial to their development.

Aside from their eastern presence, Singtel has also placed some emphasis on expanding into the western market through a series of submarine cables. The first of these is the $1.4 billion China-US cable. Offering diversity for their international users, 15

the 29,000 km cable serves the needs between Asia and the US. The next system is the

$1.32 billion, 640 Gbps cable that stretches 21,000 km known as the Japan-US cable.

Completed in 2001, this cable offers reliable service across the Pacific Ocean. Now that they have connected Asia to the US, they were also able to connect Australia to the US through the Southern Cross. Installed in 2000, the cable secures the bandwidth requirements for the next five years. With innovative technology, the cable boasts the ability of transferring 3 km high of stacked paper or eight full length motion pictures every second.

Each of these cables opens up the avenues for their global growth in a positive

way, but none of them can compare to the Network i2i. It is classified as the world’s

largest cable network in terms of bandwidth capability, with a facility of 8.4 Tbps. The

$220 billion cable uses the latest Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing technology

and links to the rest of the world through Singtel’s already established cable networks.

Formed as a 50/50 private cable development company with the Bharti Group, the

advanced technology was completed in 2002.

On the other side of these submarine cables are the advanced satellite capabilities the company possesses. These satellites play an important role in providing access to the

countries that can not be reached through submarine cables and gives Singtel more

options when servicing their broad market. Singtel has three satellite earth stations that

offer direct transmission to more than 80 countries. Beside these three satellites, the

company also partnered with Chunghwa Telecom to launch its own unit in 1998. The

ST-1 satellite covers the majority of Asia and up to the borders of Russia. They have also

partnered with APT Satellite and Inmarsat and Iridium satellite services to broaden their 16

coverage. Singtel’s coverage was greatly enhanced with the acquisition of Optus who

boasts over 20 years of experience in satellite services. Optus can not only deliver

service to the major metropolitan areas but is known for their excellent coverage to the

rural and remote areas of Australia. The company owns five satellite systems that cover

Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Hawaii, Norfolk Island, Papua New Guinea, Lord Howe

Island, Cocos Island, Christmas Island and McMurdo Sound.

Staying above the competition with regards to technology, Singtel also has great

mobile and broadband networks that they have perfected over the years. Through their

mobile networks they are able to offer excellent coverage by the support of

approximately 1,000 base stations in Singapore and 4,000 in Australia. Singtel also

offers 400 roaming networks in more than 200 locations throughout the world. The

company also offers an advanced $50 million broadband network known as SingTel

Meg@POP that offers great speeds and coverage for their consumers.

Conclusion

Singtel has proven its global presence through its various affiliations and

partnerships that they have formed throughout the world. With their precise decision

making, the company has been able to expand domestically as well as across borders and

even oceans. They are a company of great determination that is constantly searching for new pathways to achieve a greater global existence. A perfect example of this is a recent

agreement that the organization has made with five international telecommunications

carriers to build an ultra high-speed cable system that will link the United States to Japan.

It has been through these affiliations that the Singtel group has been able to expand

rapidly. They are not only creative in their own products but also the companies with 17 which they associate. By standing firm behind their values and mission, the group will definitely continue its rise of global expansion.

1. How difficult has it been to implement the culture of Singtel to the affiliates

and/or partners the company has throughout the globe?

2. Has the organization had a difficult time creating brand loyalty in the

respective countries it services?

3. How much did the recent loss of the Australian government contract affect the

business?

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References

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Reuters. 2008. Australian contract loss bad for SingTel-JP Morgan. http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssTechMediaTelecomNews/idUSSIN112949200 80403, April 2.

Hoovers. 2008. Singapore Telecommunications Limited. http://www.hoovers.com/singtel/--ID__42973--/free-co-profile.xhtml, April 10.

BusinessWeek. 2007. SingTel scouts for more partners in India. http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/oct2007/gb20071031_009583.ht m?chan=search, October 31.

Newsweek. 2006. The New State Capitalists. http://www.newsweek.com/id/47614/page/1, May 1.

Nelson, R. 2008. Singtel forms alliance for scale-but is it enough? http://www.ovum.com/go/content/c,51937.

Singtel. 2008. About Singtel. http://home.singtel.com/about_singtel/company_profile/default.asp.