Setting the stage for greater success

Winners of SOBA 2023: (Front row, from left) Star Media Group (SMG) chief business officer Lydia Wang, RHB Bank Bhd head of SME Banking Yip How Nang, PKT Logistics Group Sdn Bhd group chief executive officer Datuk Seri Dr Michael Tio, SMG group CEO Chan Seng Fatt, Credit Guarantee Corp Malaysia Bhd president and chief executive officer Datuk Mohd Zamree Mohd Ishak, Matrade strategic planning division senior director Raja Badrulnizam Raja Kamalzaman, CelcomDigi Bhd enterprise sales (SME) department head Steven Soon and SMG chief content officer Datin Paduka Esther Ng together with platinum, gold, silver, bronze and meritorious award winners at SOBA 2023 held at One World Hotel.

Petaling Jaya: Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) the world over have undergone significant changes within a relatively short span of five years.

Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, talks about migrating business operations fully towards a digital landscape was a move that many did not deem necessary.

Then the global lockdown forced many to consider that as a vital course of action in order to survive.

As the nation transitioned into the pandemic stage in early 2022, there was clear signs that digitalisation was here to stay.

While the business world adjusts towards normalcy, the rise in world temperatures hastened yet another set of requirements to adopt – ones that align with the needs of the environment, social and governance (ESG) standards.

Despite facing such new compliance needs and the uncertain global outlook, Malaysian SMEs have shown tremendous resilience. This was mentioned in a recent survey by the 2024 Malaysia SME Sentiment Report conducted by employment services company Employment Hero (The Star, Feb 8).

Based on input from a sample of 500 local SMEs, the report showed that an average of 79% were confident about their growth prospects in 2024, especially those in the medium-sized business segment.

About 50% felt somewhat confident, while 33% were extremely confident. This is a positive note for many as they traverse the convoluted geopolitical landscape of world economics today.

Honouring SME excellence

This confidence was also reflected in this year’s Star Outstanding Business Awards (SOBA), held in Petaling Jaya on March 7, which recognises SME excellence and contributions to the Malaysian economy.

Amid the struggle of gaining better footing post-pandemic, the challenge of digitalisation and adoption of more sustainable standards, Malaysian SMEs have not only shown their mettle in persevering but also emerging victorious.

StarBiz reached out to winners of the Entrepreneur of the Year awards in the male, female and youth subcategories for both RM25mil-and-above, as well as the up-to-RM25mil tiers in terms of revenue.

For UAV Academy Of Asia Sdn Bhd’s director Erin Hoo, who won the par excellence award for Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the up to RM25mil tier, said that business owners tend to get caught up in ideation, and get excited about new ideas.

UAV Academy runs the Drone Academy Asia, which provides comprehensive certified training and technology solutions, shaping the future of the drone industry.

She emphasises the importance of execution and answering to a clear objective.

“I’ve learnt that when faced with numerous possibilities, I have to align and prioritise ideas with [the company’s] overarching strategy.

“A clear focus on key deliverables and maintaining accountability, consistency and adaptability are essential for successful execution, but they must align with clear organisational objectives,” she advised.

G Daily Supply Sdn Bhd founder and managing director Elva Koh Hui Shan, who won the par excellence award for Female of the Year award in the up to RM25mil tier, shared that the food distribution company leverages distinctive competitive advantages to sustain its enterprise-market position and excel.

The company does so thanks largely to the growing interdependence between markets and increasing competition.

“[Through] persistence in providing quality products, continuous research and development towards innovation, adherence to Jakim and HACCP standards, as well as providing 365-day support to nationwide customers, we have managed to anchor our Samonyu brand in a market position that specialises in supplying salmon.”

Making a mark of distinction

For Empire Sushi chief executive officer Nicole Lim Xui Jhi, her aim of “localising sushi to Malaysian taste buds” won her the Young Entrepreneur of the Year par excellence award.

She explained that Empire Sushi instils 360 degree innovation in its “grab-and-go” concept, products, operation and service to achieve optimised customer satisfaction.

“We leverage technology-based analysis of customer behaviour and strategic branding to escalate our innovative business model, with a paradigm shift to 100 of our directly owned outlets nationwide.”

To ensure employee retention and to build a cohesive team, Lim said Empire Sushi employs some of the best talent practices in the market, inculcates a cohesive company culture and fosters career advancement opportunities.

“Through these, we have achieved a 94% employee retention rate since 2018.”

Elite Entrepreneur of the Year award winner and founder of Peoplelogy Development Sdn Bhd Allen Lee explained that the company follows three principles.

The first involves market sophistication, which is to create value in the service for the customer. The second concerns achieving the company’s business objectives, or “funnels” as Peoplelogy calls them.

“For example, the customer service funnel refers to achieving 100% customer satisfaction, while the operations funnel refers to cost efficiency,” explained Lee.

Third principle is the company’s culture: “We always believe that in any company anyone works in, happiness is very important.”

Lee was also the par excellence winner for Male Entrepreneur of the Year.

Ready for future success

For par excellence winner of Male Entrepreneur of the Year for the RM25mil and above tier, Woodpeckers Group Sdn Bhd director Tan Kai Young shared that besides popular Spanish yoghurt brand Llaollao, the company is set to bring in more brands into Malaysia.

“We have a lot of new brands, like Cha Tra Mue and Shae.Co,” he added. “We are very happy to win the SOBA awards. It is the biggest award in Malaysia and it also tells us that [after] operating [for] 10 years, we are doing what is right, that all our hard work is being appreciated and we are doing everything we can to answer to the market’s needs and wants.”

Woodpeckers Group also won the Malaysian Business of the Year award for RM25mil-and-above tier.

Aniljit Singh Hari Singh, managing director of Winner of the Malaysia Business of the Year award Juara Partners Sdn Bhd, is looking towards the future by exploring the field of artificial intelligence (AI).

“We will be working on an AI system in-house, we are moving towards that,” he said.

Another winner of the Female Entrepreneur of the Year award, this time for RM25mil-and-above tier, is Complete Human Network Sdn Bhd founder and chief executive officer Teh Chai Peng.

SOBA 2023 is organised by Star Media Group with CelcomDigi Bhd, Credit Guarantee Corp Malaysia Bhd, PKT Logistics Group Sdn Bhd and RHB Bank Bhd as main sponsors, and Malaysia External Trade Development Corp as official trade promotion partner.

Supported by Bursa Malaysia, SOBA is audited by BDO while radio stations 988 and Suria are official media partners.

For more information, call SMG Events (017-231 1789) or go to www.soba.com.my.