Posts Under: Blog

Are Travel Fairs a Good Way to Sell Holidays?

February 7, 2012 • Blog • 4 comments

In the hypercompetitive travel trade in Singapore, merely putting together a compelling itinerary with an attractive price isn’t sufficient. With a plethora of online travel portals like Expedia, Travelocity, Zuji and Wotif muscling into their space, brick and mortar travel agents need to find new ways to differentiate themselves. With the help of online travel service providers, consumers are booking airline tickets, selecting hotel rooms, renting cars, arranging land transfers, and even making reservations for restaurants and shows in advance.

While some players like MISA Travel have gone on to develop a more e-commerce savvy website, others such as ASA Holidays have organised full-fledged trade fairs to showcase their various offerings. Together with other big outbound tour operators like CTC Travel and Chan Brothers, ASA Holidays is pre-empting the upcoming NATAS Travel Fair with their own pre-sales event (I told you it was competitive).

Are these travel fairs successful? Well, join me for a tour of ASA Holidays’ recent fair at Suntec City and decide for yourself.

Ways to Embrace a Kinder Economy

February 3, 2012 • Blog • no comments

Patagonia is the new yardstick for ethical and social businesses (image from Fortune Magazine)

Of late, I hear a common clarion call amongst leading thinkers for companies to pursue a more humane, ethical and sustainable business strategy. These proclamations allude to the fact that the current system of profit and GDP growth at all costs is broken, and that a more holistic and considered approach is needed.

The first is renowned management guru Michael Porter, who urged companies to adopt shared values when crafting their business strategies. Porter cites that the capitalist system which much of the industrial age economy is built on has been the cause of much social, environmental and economic woes, with companies (and their leaders) prospering at the expense of the rest of humanity.

How to Start and Sustain a Movement

January 28, 2012 • Blog • no comments

Student volunteer guides Jessie and Janet from Naked Hermit Crabs

By now, you’ve probably heard how social technologies can transform social, political and environmental movements. Globally, one can find numerous examples of causes given an online shot-in-the-arm through Twitter, Facebook, Youtube videos, shared photos, and other platforms. These channels have been further accelerated by the ubiquity of mobile apps on smartphones, tablets and other devices.

While the tools for making a difference have expanded tremendously, the core principles of creating and sustaining a cause are less well understood. Through a recent guided tour of Chek Jawa led by the Naked Hermit Crabs, I had the privilege of speaking to Ms Ria Tan, a passionate nature activist and founder of the Wild Singapore website. A close associate of my good friend Siva (another legend in nature circles), Ria provided useful insights on her journey.

What Dragons May Teach Us

January 22, 2012 • Blog • no comments

Courtesy of Hong Kong – a Visual Research Blog

As we celebrate the arrival of the Black Water Dragon this Chinese New Year, the fengshui masters and economists have given varying prognoses of what it’ll bring for the year.
Taking a different trajectory, I thought it’d be fun to look at the traits of this mythical beast and propose what it could possibly mean for us, with a few lessons by the side.

Fantabulous Fun at Phuket FantaSea

January 7, 2012 • Blog • 3 comments

The beautifully designed Palace of the Elephants Theatre at Phuket FantaSea

Claimed to be the “Ultimate Nighttime Cultural Theme Park”, Phuket FantaSea is Thailand’s first cultural theme park located close to Kamala Beach on Phuket island. Focusing on a motley mix of “Myth, Mystery and Magic”, Phuket FantaSea blends Thailand’s exotic heritage with a carnivalesque Mardi Gras like feel that is more Vegas than Vegas itself.

Occupying a sprawling 140 acres (or approximately 57 hectares), it features the “Fantasy of a Kingdom” show in the 3,000 seat “Palace of the Elephants” theatre, a huge cavernous 4,000 seat restaurant (Golden Kinnaree Buffet Resataurant), a Tiger Jungle Adventure, the Similan Entertainment Centre featuring carnival games, and a Carnival Village offering lots of specialty retail outlets.

Highlights of 2011 with 3 Wishes for 2012

January 1, 2012 • Blog • 1 comment

Courtesy of MarvinTM

2011 has certainly been an impactful year, both literally and metaphorically.

On the international front, environmental disasters like the devastating Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami and Fukushima Nuclear Plant Fallout has horrified many around the world. The flailing economies of Western nations continues, perpetuated by the EuroZone Debt Crisis while a flicker of hope arises with rising job growth in the US. Major political upheavals have also taken place, with the Arab Spring in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and other Mid-East regimes, Myanmar’s longstanding opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi getting back into politics, and election of former Thai Premier Thaksin’s sister Yingluck Shinawatra as the kingdom’s first female prime minister.

Why Advertising Mishaps Aren’t Funny

December 30, 2011 • Blog • no comments

As I was reading my copy of the daily newspaper yesterday (yes, my family and I are still traditional newspaper readers), a colourful brochure with coupons popped out. As I glanced through its content, I couldn’t help noticing this promotional message which appeared to be a wee bit ironic in my view:

For a start, using a glossy, printed coupon and distributing it on a large scale hardly counts as being environmentally friendly. Free canvas or drawstring bag giveaways are also so common that many of us have more “recyclable” bags than we’ll ever use in our lifetimes. This begs the question of whether these are truly as resource friendly as they claim or just another premium item.

Was Steve Jobs the Perfect CEO?

December 23, 2011 • Blog • no comments

As the head honcho leading an organisation, being a good CEO isn’t an easy job. Sure, they’ll probably pay you more (or much much more) than the average salary man down the food chain, but the expectations are often sky high.

For a start, a good CEO has to have vision, ambition and the ability to inspire and motivate the troops. She needs to be great with forging relationships with customers, employees, partners, board members, investors, suppliers, government regulators and other stakeholders. Functioning as a mentor, coach, drill sergeant, and referee, she wears multiple hats depending on whom she speaks to.

Should You Hire the Generalist or the Specialist?

December 13, 2011 • Blog • 1 comment

Should you hire a General (like Cao Cao) or a highly specialised Sniper? (courtesy of Rongwen’s blog)

In the Human Resource function of any organisation, an age-old dilemma commonly exists.

Should a company hire somebody with years of vertical expertise with deep and specialised knowledge in a niche area? Should it instead recruit somebody with horizontal expertise (ie a generalist) who may even hail from an entirely different profession or industry altogether? How about a candidate with a mixture of both horizontal and vertical areas of specialisation?

Why Leaders Should Embrace a Higher Calling

December 9, 2011 • Blog • no comments

Michael Beer (courtesy of Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute)

To rise above the vagaries of the uncertain economy, what should companies do? How can they manage the wrath of Wall Street and the severe backlash of a liquidity crunch?

Well according to Michael Beer from Harvard Business School, the answer is that companies should embrace a higher purpose. In an excellent podcast from HBR Ideacast, Beer shares some of the characteristics of these firms and the leadership styles that they embody.