Average to Aces: Sharing Lives, Living Better Lives

By Janson Yap

Inbuilt in us all is the instinctive desire to become successful and respected. No one commences in life by aiming to be a failure. Yet many people fail to achieve their potential in life. This book is about how ordinary folks like you and I, regardless of background and heritage, can become successful and achieve significance in life.
The selected stories in this book reflect the inclusiveness and diversity agenda that has taken centre stage in today’s society. Our heroes are from diverse backgrounds and both genders are included in good balance. Each person featured has achieved their own success and transformation, and they should be proud of their achievements.
The more informed people are, the better prepared they are to take advantage of the future. They must continuously adapt and upgrade their skills to be relevant in the new world. Just as past generations have adapted to the changes from previous revolutions and the current generation continues to progress and expand, I hope that my readers will find these stories inspiring, learn from them and apply the lessons in their respective lives and be successful in tomorrow’s world.
The key to this is holding the ACES card, a passport of hope. ACES is the acronym of Accelerate, Creativity, Excellence and Significance. All are positive words and carry the meaning of hope. May you ace in life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Partridge Publishing Singapore
• Release date: Apr 9, 2020
• ISBN: 9781543756876

Janson Yap

Janson is a Management and Risk Advisory consultant providing guidance and assistance on strategic risk matters to the boards and senior management of a diverse range of institutions and business organisations. Contemporary issues have extended his expertise in research and solutions development in various risk categories including Brand and Reputation, Conduct, Cyber and Regulatory Risks. Embedding the innovation culture into the DNA of the Deloitte Southeast Asia organisation is also part of his business portfolio. He practised as a Management Consultant for over eleven years at Arthur Anderson, PWC and Deloitte prior to his focus on Risk Advisory services and consultancy in the past decade. His career in Professional Services spans over twenty-one years. Prior to joining the professional services industry, he held senior management positions in the corporate sector at Avon Cosmetics, CSR Group and Estee Lauder Australia Pty. Ltd.

Book preview

Copyright © 2020 by Janson Yap.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

www.partridgepublishing.com/singapore

Contents

About the Author

Foreword

Acknowledgements

Prologue

1. A Story to Be Told

2. A Decade of Digital and Applied Technology

3. More Personalisation in a Hyper-Connected Decade

Sharing Lives

4. Amazing ACE

5. Sisters’ Company

6. Painting Your Own Rainbow

7. All It Takes Is the First Break

8. Dare to Pursue

9. Copy Warrior Secrets

10. Purpose, Peace, and Progress

Living Better Lives

11. Average to ACES

12. I Am Ready for MORE

Appendix

References

Past learnings are good teachers for present-day decisions,

which set up future success.

—Janson Yap

Today’s hindsight can be judged against yesterday’s foresight.

Today’s foresight and insights may impact tomorrow’s hindsight. … Therefore, it is important to look ahead to stay ahead.

—Janson Yap

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A Gadwise Investments P/L Production

Executive Producer: Janson Yap

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Special appearance:

Rosyniah Wang is Noah Tan’s mother

Cover Design:

Rudy Tedja

About the Author

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Dr Janson Yap

Entrepreneur, business leader,

transformer, author, academic

Janson is a management and risk advisory consultant providing guidance and assistance on strategic risk matters to the boards and senior management of a diverse range of institutions and business organisations. Contemporary issues have extended his expertise in research and solutions development in various risk categories including brand and reputation, conduct, cyber and regulatory risks. Embedding the innovation culture into the DNA of the Deloitte Southeast Asia organisation is also part of his business portfolio.

He practised as a management consultant for over eleven years at Arthur Anderson, PWC and Deloitte prior to his focus on risk advisory services and consultancy in the past decade. His career in professional services spans over twenty-one years. Prior to joining the professional services industry, he held senior management positions in the corporate sector at Avon Cosmetics, CSR Group, and Estee Lauder Australia Pty Ltd.

Janson’s journey of continuous learning has helped him understand and contribute his insights on business strategy and operations through the closed-loop learning of how researched knowledge (theory) informs practice and in turn how actual practice refines theory. His tertiary-learning journey is totally Australian, leveraging the country’s rich and proud heritage in education. Beginning in Victoria, Janson completed his Bachelor of Science and DipEd qualifications from Monash University. He subsequently completed his company-sponsored executive MBA from the prestigious Australian Graduate School of Management (AGSM) at the University of New South Wales. He has always been concerned about the high-failure rate of strategy implementation in businesses and went on to conduct advanced research into strategy implementation, earning him a doctorate of professional studies qualification from the University of Southern Queensland. He completed a programme conducted by INSEAD on Strategy in the Age of Digital Disruption to prepare for the impacts of Industry 4.0. He frequently shares his work at seminars, media interviews, and keynote addresses at various international forums. He has authored many articles on business transformation, medical tourism and more recently co-authored a book with Professor Luke van der Laan on Foresight and Strategy in the Asia Pacific. He has authored other publications including ‘Wow! How did you know that?’ and his autobiography.

His passion outside work is in property development, musical compositions, and film. For exercise and relaxation, he jogs and plays badminton. Janson’s understanding of the Christian faith is enhanced by his Diploma of Biblical Studies from Moore Theological College, Newtown, New South Wales, Australia.

Foreword

Leesa Soulodre

Entrepreneur / business leader, academic

There is a Chinese saying, ‘Tai Shang Yi Fen Zhong, Tai Xia Shi Nian Gong’ (台上一分鈡，台下十年功). The translation states that a single minute on stage often needs ten years of preparation. Clearly, the minute of fame when accolades of success resound are often preceded by years of diligent effort, perseverance, and resilience.

In my career as a serial entrepreneur, venture capitalist, management consultant, and adjunct professor, I have observed thousands of students, entrepreneurs and executives across the world that aspire to transform themselves professionally and grow rich. However, richness is a term, not denoted by money.

Nursing palliative care patients in my youth, I learned quickly that it never matters how much money we have. At the end of our lives, we only care about the quality of the relationships we have or have had with those we love and the impact of our legacy borne from our individual significance. I have also learned from my students, my founders, my clients, and in my very own journey, that the most powerful motivator in our lives is never money. Rather it is that opportunity to learn, to grow in our careers and responsibilities, the opportunity to contribute to our families, our communities, to serve others, and to be recognised for our achievements.

But too often in an Instagram world, society focuses us on what we need to have, rather than what we need to be in order to do. Within these chapters, Janson has captured the significance of those within our communities, who personify those years of diligent effort, perseverance, and resilience. Stories like those of Ken, Noah and Dr Lim, or the celebrity Cheah sisters, and indeed, Janson’s very own journey, serve to refocus us on the correct formula – that of pondering who we should be and what that gives us the social licence to do and thereby to have – the riches that we receive. These champions have rich lives and through the telling of their tales, both enrich and humble our very own.

Janson and his selected contributors are indeed role models in our community, that amidst a tidal wave of information, and in only 1,440 minutes in a day, often go unnoticed or underappreciated. Their daily journeys as educators, mentors, visionaries, muses, and champions provide a platform for recognition through sharing their stories.

Janson’s many books are a product of his passion for research, learning, and insights gained both as a practitioner and academic, and this one is no different. Janson shares his accumulated wisdom of operating in the business world and stories that share the integrity and empathy that comes from his servant leadership. Janson’s insights shared through the pages of ACES are the result of deep technical expertise and relevant international experience, key characteristics of a valued professional in any environment of providing trusted advice to clients’ needs.

‘Be Yet Wiser’ was the motto of Janson’s secondary school, a mantra that he has lived and served others by, throughout his illustrious career. Without doubt, one needs to be wiser than ever before in this constantly changing, friction-free economy.

ACES is an outstanding result of Janson’s ambition to realise his lifelong dream: that of being a valuable contributor and a successful and authentic leader. ACES serves as a book of our time, and as a role model to remind us of all the real reasons why.

Leesa Soulodre MBA MiM

General Partner, R3i Ventures LLC

Managing Partner, RL Expert Group Limited

Adjunct Faculty Member, Singapore Management University, IE Business School.

Singapore, 2020

Acknowledgements

First and foremost, I wish to acknowledge the cast of this Average to ACES production. Dr Lim, Lyddia, Soniia, Noah, Kent, Daphne, Ange and Gao form the main cast, and I thank them for their willingness to share their stories. Knowing them personally adds to the authenticity and richness of the details penned in these stories. Their lives have encouraged me in one way or another.

The support and encouragement of our families and friends have been crucial and sustaining presence since we embarked on this project. It has given us the much-needed motivation to continue researching and writing the various chapters when other demands on time have been equally pressing. Their unstinting and sustained commitment is gratefully acknowledged.

Maintaining physical wellness has become a very important topic for all workers of all ages in these uncertain times. I am grateful to my medical coach, Dr Alvin Ng, who guides and helps me maintain my wellness so that I can continue my daily activities across the various continents. Thanks also are due to Kenny Goh, my physical coach, who has faithfully discharged his duties to help me enjoy and relax at our weekly badminton sessions while improving my fitness throughout these years.

A book is incomplete without a proper foreword. I am honoured that Ms Leesa Soulodre agreed to pen the foreword for this book. She has found time in a busy schedule to gracefully read the manuscript and pen the words.

The last mile of this project is to take this manuscript through to publication. My thanks to Ms Ange Dove who doubles up as editor for bringing this book to life in addition to sharing her story.

This book is dedicated to all who are thinking about their life journeys and working towards their success and significance. Last but not least, I wish to thank my God and Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who has enabled me to live a fulfilled lifestyle, balancing many demands on a daily basis.

Prologue

In chapter 3 verse 1 of the holy book of Ecclesiastes, it says that there is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens. I have written books previously about business, strategy, and the evolution of risks management. I also wrote my autobiography, which was published for private circulation only. Now I feel it is time for an inspirational book – a book that promises hope for all and encourages readers to reach their own North Star and live a full and complete life up to retirement and beyond as ACES.

Inbuilt in us all is the instinctive desire to become successful and respected. No one commences in life by aiming to be a failure. Yet many people fail to achieve their potential in life. This book is about how ordinary folks like you and I, regardless of background and heritage, can become successful and achieve significance in life.

The selected stories in this book reflect the inclusiveness and diversity agenda that has taken centre stage in today’s society. Our heroes are from diverse backgrounds, and both genders are included in good balance. Each person featured has achieved their own success and transformation, and they should be proud of their achievements.

The human race is resilient. Human civilisations have progressed through the ages, overcoming forces of change that have brought about technological advancements and social progress. The world has seen four industrial revolutions to date. The era of the First Industrial Revolution, commencing in 1760 to about 1820–40, moved production methods from hand to machines. The Second Industrial Revolution, beginning in 1850, championed new types of innovations and manufacturing methods for mass production. This involved the steel manufacturing industry and the chemical, petroleum and automotive industries in the 20th century. This confluence of centralised electricity, the oil era, the introduction of the automobile and suburban construction during the 20th century marked this revolution. Beginning in the 1950s, the Third Industrial Revolution brought semiconductors, mainframe computing, personal computing and the Internet to bear, marking the era of the digital revolution. Academics and researchers point to a new era and another industrial revolution. The Fourth Industrial Revolution, which made its debut in the second decade of the millennium, builds on leveraging the power of the Internet era and enters into a new phase of cyber-physical systems. The world is at a crossroads once again.

Each era features its own complexities and challenges, but with that comes opportunity. The uniqueness of this present era is the rapid advancement of technological developments and how humans can cope, work, coexist, and benefit by collaboratively working with the technological-digital revolution.

The more informed people are, the better prepared they are to take advantage of the future. They must continuously adapt and upgrade their skills to be relevant in the new world. Just as past generations have adapted to the changes from previous revolutions and the current generation continues to progress and expand, I hope that my readers will find these stories inspiring, learn from them, and apply the lessons in their respective lives and be successful in tomorrow’s world.

The key to this is holding the ACES card, a passport of hope. ACES is the acronym for Acceleration, Creativity, Excellence, and Significance. All are positive words and carry the meaning of hope. May you ace in life.

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ACES and My World Stage

My good friend penned these four Chinese words平步青 云 (Píngbùqīngyún) when writing this book. The phrase means small and ordinary steps (even steps). Those I have taken over the years have helped propel me to ACES and prominence (clouds). In order to assess whether achievements are ACES, I developed a set of criteria to assess them:

• Do they fulfil dreams and passions?

• Do they create or capture value as per life’s mission?

• Can the values and benefits be shared for the greater good?

• Do others judge the achievements as great? (Wow, you aced this!)

• Will they create a better future – legacy?

In the chapters that follow, there are examples of our heroes who have conquered their failures and limitations and aced in their endeavours. The tables you will find after each of their stories will help you to appreciate how they have applied the