DECEMBER 2019 FEATURE:

As far as anniversaries go, there is just something extra special about hitting the 10-year mark.

In the blink of an eye, the training arm of SFIC had served the industry for a decade through its various programmes, from carpentry to design thinking courses and matching qualified staff to companies.

SFIC Institute (SFICI) has come a long way and for the council, the first day of November this year was certainly a day of celebrations – SFICI’s anniversary event during the day and its annual dinner & dance in the evening, both graced by MCI Senior Minister of State and SFIC Patron Ms Sim Ann.

Up-skilling the industry remains SFICI’s core mission and to keep up with the times, the tenth anniversary event was also a platform to announce its new direction going forward.

The fast-changing business landscape offers an opportunity for the institute to add more value to the industry:

“Today, as we continue to evolve, we need to tune ourselves to have a growth mindset. SFICI has to be “smarter” and come up with new strategies and courses to help our SMEs and our people become “smarter”, regardless of age, so that they can capitalise on new growth opportunities and take on new jobs which will be created to cope with the projected growth in e-commerce, logistics, as well as a whole lot of digital services needed in our digitalised world,” says SFIC Vice President and SFICI Chairman Mr Steven Chew.

Setting its sights even further, the newly revamped SFICI will offer development and digital courses for a wide spectrum of industries beyond just the furniture. Working with global and local partners, SFICI’s educational model will combine academic knowledge with applied experiential training, for a holistic learning system to better equip SMEs and their management teams with the skills and mindset to cope with the new market and industry challenges.

One such initiative is the new ASEAN Business Leadership Programme. The inaugural US/Europe edition was held in conjunction with the prestigious London School of Economics and Business (LSE) and well attended by 15 local and regional participants. An Asian edition has been slated for the first half of 2020. Receiving their graduation certificates from Minister Sim Ann at the Trade Association Hub, the batch of LSE alumni was a sea of beaming faces.

Another key event highlight was the MOU signing between SFIC Institute and the PACE Academy of Singapore Polytechnic to launch an Executive Masterclass on Contract Claims, Variations and Disputes for Built Environment. The one-day masterclass commencing on 10 January 2020 will enable senior management executives to gain in-depth knowledge on contractual issues arising from the tender process as well as during execution, to protect commercial outcomes.

Companies and key government agencies have helped the institute in its growth and an appreciation ceremony was held to thank these valued partners.

With the day event having ended, the real party in the evening is about to begin.

At the York Hotel, ‘students’ and ‘teachers’ of all stripes were seen gathering outside the Rosemarie Hall from 7pm, waiting for the ‘school assembly’ to start. Seeing guests dressing to the theme was a sight to behold.

With emcee Wayne Chua (in his faux school uniform) leading a make-believe pledge with some of our excos posing as various teachers, it didn’t take long for the crowd to get into the celebratory mood.

A celebratory toast by the excos with Guest-of-Honour Senior Minister of State Ms Sim Ann and a special MOU signing between Sembcorp & SFIC on Kendal Industrial Park in Semarang, Indonesia completed the formalities.

Impressive (and intimidating) at the same time, the mentalist performance segment saw many opened jaws and heads scratching. Theories abound among guests on how the performer managed to read minds so accurately. Although spooked, many were thoroughly entertained.

The night ended with lucky winners walking away with the latest iphone and other top prizes won at the Grand Lucky Draw.

Have a story to share in our e-newsletter? Submit your content here.

< BACK TO E-NEWSLETTER