United Overseas Bank’s Greater China CEO Christine Ip took two students from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology under her wing as part of the Shadow a CEO programme. They were risk management and business intelligence student Charles Wong and Ho Ho Yan, studying operations management.
Ip found the shadows intelligent, dependable and willing to learn. “They had creative ideas about techniques for managing people – a skill which is crucial for a leader – and they did not hold back from sharing their views with us. It was also an enlightening experience for me to engage with the younger generation and to hear their thoughts on how they feel a banking business could be run,” she said.
For shadow Charles Wong, attending the programme proved to be something of an eye-opener on family-run businesses. “With UOB’s emphasis on regional presence and family culture, it came as a surprise that strong family bonds can also have a significant impact on shaping the work ethic and corporate culture. The fundamental essence of being a team is integrity and honesty, which helps explain why UOB has maintained its competitiveness.”
Wong recently attended an entrepreneurship “boot camp” at Stanford Graduate School of Business and is developing a business model for his start-up on decentralised crypto-currency exchange. He found Ip to be an approachable, down-to-earth leader.
“We talked about family life, our educational backgrounds and career choices. I also shared with Christine that I’d experienced three consecutive rejections from the Shadow a CEO programme before this successful attempt. The door finally opened on my fourth try and being a shadow partner with UOB is something that means a lot to youngsters like me.
“Most importantly, I realised that having a business degree doesn’t mean you can automatically get a job in the banking industry: determination and resilience are the more important qualities that a future banker should be equipped with,” he says.
The stand-out moment for Wong was spending a day shadowing Aloysius Lai, UOB’s executive director, head of technology and operations (T&O). “Years ago as a fresh graduate without any programming abilities, Lai’s determination and dedication earned him a job at an international bank where he worked for ten years. Being a change agent in the T&O department isn’t an easy mission, as every project involves management discussion, comforting those who have underperformed, and motivating the high achievers to continue with the mission. Lai has a strong sense of obligation towards his colleagues, and he is definitely one of my role models.”
Armed with a better understanding of wholesale banking, the transaction process and client management – and how UOB maintains its edge over other banks – Wong has set his sights on being a fintech accelerator. His experience at UOB confirmed for him that he is on the right career path.
