VISWA SADASIVAN Is Regarded As One of Singapore’S Influential Thinkers; an Opinion Leader and Advocate of Its Evolving Socio-Political Space

VISWAVISWA [SADASIVAN ] [SADASIVAN ]

VISWA SADASIVAN is regarded as one of Singapore’s influential thinkers; an opinion leader and advocate of its evolving socio-political space.

With over 30 years of media experience – as practitioner and policy maker - Viswa is best known to Singapore society as the face of the (then) Singapore Broadcasting

Corporation’s breakthrough news and current affairs programmes such as Talking Point, Feedback and Today in Parliament. As Senior Controller, he planned and directed coverage of the nation’s Parliamentary reports and General Elections. He has

interviewed Asia’s top business and political leaders, including Singapore’s first Prime Minister, the late Lee Kuan Yew, the first Prime Minister of Malaysia, the late Tungku Abdul Rahman and Dr Mahathir Mohamad, Malaysia’s longest serving premier.

A former Nominated Member of Parliament, Viswa has a strong appreciation for

public policy and ground sentiment. A firebrand and an astute communicator, he continues to champion economic, political and civic education through collaboration, advocacy and measured reform. He has served on several major national committees

on economic and policy matters, raising critical issues for collective, serious debate.

Viswa is an expert moderator and a seasoned chair of panel discussions and regional

forums on the economy, business, governance, leadership, strategy and innovation. He cuts through the clutter of abstracts with insight, incision and fresh perspectives

on changing ground realities.

A respected and accomplished entrepreneur, Viswa is the founder and Chief Executive

Officer of Strategic Moves, a specialist strategic and crisis communications consulting practice with a keen interest in policy issues. Over the last two decades, Viswa has trained thousands of senior leaders from the regional operations of Fortune 500

companies to government and quasi-government agencies in Singapore on crisis leadership, corporate strategy and public engagement.

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Some of his more public projects include consulting for national carrier Singapore Airlines

in the aftermath of the SilkAir MI185 crash in 1997 and for Singapore’s Ministry of Transport in 2002, coaching its senior officials to lead Singapore Airlines’ Final Report press conference following the crash of its flight SQ006 in Taipei.

He was appointed Strategic Advisor to Las Vegas Sands Corp in its successful bid for the Marina Bay Integrated Resort in Singapore, providing counsel for its 15 month-long high- profile bidding process. This is deemed one of the largest Integrated Resort and Casino developments in the world, constructed at a cost of over SGD 6 billion.

Viswa was the founder and Editor-in-Chief of IQ [Inconvenient Questions], a socio- political site that aimed to be the conduit for honest engagement between stakeholders and the government. The site was born out of a desire to raise the quality and depth of online discourse through reasoned analysis. In aiming to engage a difficult and reticent middle ground, the non-partisan site tackled current hot-button and potentially contentious topics, from freedom of speech to race relations. It was also Singapore’s first online site that curated a monthly studio-based debate with an audience and expert subject panellists. The lively, no-holds barred discussions were moderated by Viswa.

Viswa serves on the board of the Singapore International Mediation Centre, setting out to provide world-class mediation services for regional cross-border commercial disputes. He has been a principal mediator with the Singapore Mediation Centre for close to two decades. This is but one of several board member appointments he holds in the public sector.

Trained as an elite Guardsman, Viswa holds the rank of Colonel and in his National Service capacity, serves as Deputy Director, Joint Operations, Singapore Armed Forces (SAF).

After graduating from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Arts and Social Sciences (Political Science), Viswa proceeded to undertake a Master in Public Administration (MPA) at the Kennedy School of Government and Administration, Harvard University. Viswa topped his class in Negotiation and Conflict Resolution, and was awarded top honours in the same field upon graduation in 1992.

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WORK EXPERIENCE

Strategic Moves CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER From April 2007

The Right Angle CHAIRMAN Group 1997 - 2007

UTV International CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER 1996 – 1997

Singapore Press SENIOR MANAGER, CORPORATE PLANNING AND Holdings BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT 1995 - 1996

Singapore PRODUCER, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, EDITOR TO Broadcasting LAST HELD POSITION OF SENIOR CONTROLLER, Corporation / CURRENT AFFAIRS DIVISION Television 1983 - 1995 Corporation of Singapore

NATIONAL LEVEL APPOI NTMENTS (SINGAPORE) BOARD AND COMMITTEE COMMITMENTS

Parliament of NOMINATED MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT Singapore July 2009 – April 2011

Singapore RANK OF COLONEL (NS)

Armed Forces (SAF) DEPUTY DIRECTOR, JOINT OPERATIONS

ELITE ‘GUARDS’ OFFICER

COMMANDING OFFICER, 187 SINGAPORE INFANTRY REGIMENT (SIR) 1994 - 2001 (The battalion won the coveted “Best Unit” Award three times.)

MEMBER, SAF50 STEERING COMMITTEE

MEMBER, RECORD II (Committee to Recognise the Contribution of Operationally Ready NSmen to Total Defence – chaired by Deputy Prime Minister, Rear- Admiral Teo Chee Hean)

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VISWA [SADASIVAN ]

NATIONAL LEVEL APPOINTMENTS (SINGAPORE) BOARD AND COMMITTEE COMMITMENTS

Singapore Armed MEMBER, EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, NATIONAL DAY Forces (SAF) PARADE 2000 (Chairman of the National Day Concert @ The Bay, a four- day mega carnival that marked a first for National Day celebrations in Singapore.)

MEMBER, BOARD OF GOVERNORS, THE ARMY MUSEUM September 2008 - present

Singapore BOARD MEMBER International February 2015 - present Mediation Centre (SIMC)

Singapore ACCREDITED PRINCIPAL MEDIATOR Mediation Centre August 1997 - present (SMC)

Singapore Institute MEMBER, EXECUTIVE COUNCIL of International 2005 - 2007 Affairs

Media Development MEMBER, BOARD OF DIRECTORS Authority (MDA) 2002 – 2006 (Two terms)

MEMBER, PROGRAMME ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR ENGLISH PROGRAMMES (PACE) 2007 – 2009

SPRING Singapore BOARD MEMBER * Singapore’s April 2010 – March 2016 enterprise development agency MEMBER, MANAGEMENT POLICY ADVISORY under the Ministry COMMITTEE of Trade and Industry June 2010 – March 2016

COMMITTEE MEMBER, INTERNAL AUDIT April 2011 – March 2016

Government CHAIRMAN, POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT GROUP Feedback Unit 1996 – 2006

MEMBER, SUPERVISORY PANEL 1999 – 2003

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NATIONAL LEVEL APPOINTMENTS (SINGAPORE) BOARD AND COMMITTEE COMMITMENTS

Government RESOURCE PANEL MEMBER Parliamentary 2005 – 2009 Committee on Defence & Foreign Affairs

Ministry of MEMBER, INFOCOMM MEDIA MASTERPLAN Communications & (ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT), WORKING Information (MCI) COMMITTEE 3 July 2013 - present National Economic MEMBER, WORKING COMMITTEE ON Review Committee ENTREPRENEURSHIP

National Remaking MEMBER, ‘BEYOND CLUB’ SUB- COMMITTEE Singapore Committee

Singapore 21 Subject MEMBER, SUB- COMMITTEE ON CONSULTATION Committee AND CONSENSUS VS DECISIVENESS AND QUICK * National review ACTION of 21st century issues

and challenges

National Integration MEMBER Working Group June 2009 – October 2015 (Three terms)

National Media MEMBER Convergence Review March 2012 – Nov 2012 Panel

National Youth COUNCIL MEMBER Achievement Award April 2005 - present

Ministry of Social and MEMBER, RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING FORUM Family Development June 2013 – present

Central Singapore TREASURER, EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Community 2002 – 2004 Development Council

National GEMS SUB- COMMITTEE MEMBER Committee 2005 – 2007 * A national movement for service culture excellence

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VISWA [SADASIVAN ]

PUBLIC SERVICE

Singapore Indian VICE PRESIDENT, EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Development Association (SINDA) MEMBER/HONORARY SECRETARY, EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE March 1997 – March 2009

LIEN Centre for BOARD MEMBER Social Innovation December 2010 – December 2015 (Two terms)

National University MEMBER, ALUMNI ADVISORY BOARD of Singapore July 2006 – present

MEMBER, NUS EXTENSION ADVISORY BOARD June 2010 – May 2012

Singapore MEMBER, HUMANITIES@SMU TASKFORCE Management September 2014 - present University

Republic MEMBER, ADVISORY PANEL, CENTRE FOR CULTURE Polytechnic & COMMUNICATION March 2007 – September 2016

MEMBER, ADVISORY PANEL, CENTRE FOR INNOVATION & ENTERPRISE July 2007 – December 2009

Institute of MEMBER, ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON PROMOTION Technical Education OF VOCATIONAL TRAINING AND EDUCATION July 2014 – present

H aig Girls’ School VICE CHAIRMAN, SCHOOL ADVISORY COMMITTEE September 2008 – present

Spirit of Enterprise MEMBER, EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Organisation 2004 - 2005

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SCHOLARSHIPS • Awarded the Singapore Broadcasting Corporation Merit Post- Graduate Scholarship |1991

EDUCATION • Secondary and Pre- University education, Raffles Institution|1972 – 1977 • Bachelor of Arts and Social Sciences (Political Science), National University of Singapore |1983 • Master in Public Administration (MPA), Kennedy School of Government and Administration, Harvard University |1992 [ Top honours in Negotiation and Conflict Resolution]

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