boardasia_summer06 5v.qxp 8/9/06 1:26 PM Page 3 SUMMER 2006 BoardA QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER FOR MEMBERS OFAsia THE CONFERENCE BOARD IN ASIA Inside Chief Information Officers Council 2 Recent Events Launches in Asia–Pacific 3 Council News 4 Recent Research he inaugural meetings of the new tives from respected global and large regional Asia-Pacific CIO Council were held companies an invaluable forum for exchang- 6 Events T in Singapore and Hong Kong in July. ing information, discussing current trends Participants at the two well-attended sessions and engaging in joint problem solving. included representatives from Bank of America Lynette Saldanha, who brings over 30 years (Asia), Bossini Enterprises Ltd., Chevron of experience working in the IT industry in (Singapore), Epson Precision (Hong Kong) Ltd., India, Singapore, New Zealand and Europe, Flextronics International Ltd., Golden Village is the program director for the group. In Multiplex Pte Ltd., Henkel Asia Pacific Limited, addition to positions involving technical Keppel Corporation Ltd., Microsoft China, management and running business units in Motorola Electronics Pte Ltd., MTR Corporation multinational companies, she has also been Limited, New York Life International LLC, an entrepreneur in the software develop- Philips Electronics Hong Kong Ltd., Shangri La ment and services arena. An independent Hotels & Resorts and a number of other promi- consultant based in Auckland and Mumbai, nent organizations. Saldanha’s areas of expertise include restruc- turing for growth, coaching top management Like all of the councils from The Conference and designing and implementing market- Board, this new group gives senior execu- entry strategies. Chief Information Officers Council Program Director The inaugural meetings, which were by invitation only, Lynette Saldanha (at right) talking with participants attracted senior information technology executives at the Hong Kong meeting. from across the region. boardasia_summer06 5v.qxp 8/9/06 1:26 PM Page 4 2 THE CONFERENCE BOARD BoardASIA SUMMER 2006 THE CONFERENCE BOARD RECENT EVENTS Offshoring: Setting the Stage to Make the Move In today’s complex global marketplace, decisions on how and where to manage key services and strategic initiatives involve far more than cost considerations. When it comes to outsourcing and offshoring, though, many companies fail to look beyond the potential savings to consider all the risks involved or recognize the requirements for long-term success. More than mere projects to be managed, outsourcing and offshoring often touch the heart of an enterprise’s production and customer relationships. Insufficient planning can have a negative impact on the initial stages of offshoring and, worse still, can establish poorly conceived practices that may prove difficult to change. Whatever the size and scope of an offshoring or outsourcing venture, companies must take into account security, risk, compliance, cost competitiveness, staffing, corporate social responsibility and a host of other factors. The Conference Board held a series of Executive Breakfast Roundtables across Asia in May that addressed many of these issues. The meetings, which were hosted in partnership with Unisys, were attended by CEOs and key decision makers. Moderator Ton Heijmen, senior advisor for outsourcing and offshoring to The Conference Board, reported on the From left to right: Petra Buchanan latest developments in outsourcing, both onshore and off. There were Vice President, Marketing and also presentations from Mike Ettling, vice president of global sourcing and infrastructure Communications, Unisys; Meg services for Unisys Asia-Pacific, and a number of senior representatives from major companies in Gottemoeller Director of Asia-Pacific the region, including Philip Jackson, managing director, JP Morgan Chase, who spoke at the Programs, The Conference Board; Hong Kong meeting; Jeral D’Souza, vice president and corporate controller for the Asia-Pacific and Ton Heijmen Senior Advisor, region for Cargill, who addressed the Singapore gathering; and Eberhard Schrempf, president Outsourcing and Offshoring, The and CEO, BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd., who delivered remarks at the Beijing session. Conference Board, at the Executive Breakfast Roundtable in Hong Kong. Hot topics discussed included: • Adapting to a rapidly changing environment • Deciding on a pricing framework • Financial and operational risks • Safeguarding your reputation • Testing the ethics of offshoring • Uncovering hidden costs Malaysian CEOs Share Top Challenges In the latest in an ongoing series of Executive Roundtables, Malaysian business leaders met in Kuala Lumpur in June to define and explore the global concerns top executives currently face. Rainer Schultheis, program director for the Asia-Pacific CFO Council, presented findings from The Conference Board 2006 CEO Challenge survey, which is based on the responses of more than 500 CEOs from around the world. The meeting, which was sponsored in association with Ernst & Young, also looked at a survey specifically designed to capture the major challenges of Malaysian CEOs. The results of this poll showed that their top concerns—the need for profit growth and consistent execution of strategy—were similar to those of their global counterparts. boardasia_summer06 5v.qxp 8/9/06 1:26 PM Page 5 SUMMER 2006 BoardASIA THE CONFERENCE BOARD 3 THE CONFERENCE BOARD COUNCIL NEWS Council Program Director Maura Fallon (fourth from right) with members and guests at the Baxter facility in Suzhou. Human Resources Council—China April’s meeting, which was hosted by Baxter Healthcare in Suzhou, gave members a chance to discuss a broad array of topics. Guest speaker Andreas Lauffs, a partner with Baker & McKenzie, spoke on China’s draft labor contract laws, which push the law back to a “lifelong employment” mode. Julia Wolage, vice president, head of human resources, for Japan, Asia–Pacific and Australia for American Express, and Lia Belilos, human resources director for Shell China Limited, led a session on compensation and benefits, during which members reached the general conclusion that the Asia–Pacific market is in confusion and employees currently have the upper hand. Members also examined retention best practices, including the finding that seasoned employees are critical for successful on-boarding (and retention) of new hires. Other topics covered during the meeting included avian flu and the “cafeteria approach” to compensation and benefits. Council member Elaine Lin, human resources director for China and Hong Kong for Baxter, also gave a tour of the company’s facility in Suzhou. Next meeting September 6–8, Chongqing Asia–Pacific Shared Services Council All of the sessions during July’s meeting, which was held in Melbourne at the premises of Cadbury Schweppes, were devoted to answering one central question: What role will shared services play within Asia–Pacific in the next five years? Ainslie Popplewell, general manager, shared services for South Australian Water, and Anders Ihr, managing director, Swiss Re Shared Services (India) Pvt. Ltd., moderated a panel on organizational and deployment strategies and Ricardo Manotoc, general manager, Henkel Financial Services SEA Ltd, conducted a forum on processes and technology. During their segment, Vivienne MacCarthy, shared business services manager, Cadbury Schweppes, and Arthur Skipitaris, general manager, shared services division, for Australia Post, looked at key triggers and primary enablers. MacCarthy also took council members on a tour of Cadbury Schweppes’s facility. Next meeting November 7, Singapore To find out more about these councils, please contact council manager Alice Lee at [email protected] or (852) 2804 1029. boardasia_summer06 5v.qxp 8/9/06 1:26 PM Page 6 SUMMER 2006 BoardASIA THE CONFERENCE BOARD 4 THE CONFERENCE BOARD RECENT RESEARCH Maximizing Rotational Assignments: A Handbook for Human Resources Executives Research Report 1388 The rotational assignment—an integral component of talent development plans at many leading corporations—creates an opportunity for companies to provide their executives with an accelerated learning experience that can lead to demonstrable results for both the executive and the company. This handbook, which explores the dynamics at play in identifying and executing business unit, geographic and staff-line rotations, is based on research conducted by The Conference Board Working Group on Rotational Assignments, which met from October 2004 to May 2005. The group examined the ways in which companies are using rotational assign- ments and the role HR can play in guiding a rotational assignments program. Maximizing Rotational Assignments is a practical handbook that contains pragmatic advice, guidelines and a set of tools that HR executives can refer to when launching or implementing a rotational assignments program. A CD-ROM accompanying the hard copy of the full report contains a PowerPresentation to aid in building executive commitment and a PDF of detailed worksheets, forms, checklists and samples that can be used to plan, execute and evaluate an effective rotational assignments program. Are Businesses Doing Enough to Prepare for a Pandemic? Executive Action 204 A significant majority of companies—nearly seven out of ten—participating in a comprehensive global survey by The Conference Board say that they are actively engaged in planning a response to an avian flu human pandemic, although large public companies have planned more than