APEC Appreciation

I have to keep next Friday free. Will be attending the above event.

Hmm..another opportunity to do more networking! Hehe.

 

 

 

 

[LATEST! - 12 December 2009]

I was at the APEC Singapore 2009 Appreciation Reception held at Singapore Expo Hall 3 last night.  Over 1,000 APEC Ambassadors attended the event.

 

When making an address speech to invited guests and volunteers, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said Singapore delivered a “memorable Singapore Experience”.

From February till last month, Singapore played host to 123 APEC-related meetings – big and small – attended by some 14,000 delegates and media personnel from all parts of the world.

PM Lee said all of them were a success because of the volunteers and officials who kept the Singapore flag flying. Many of them performed beyond the call of duty.

APEC organising officials also spent thousands of hours in planning and practising for the events to ensure that everything is executed accordingly to plans.

PM Lee also noted that overseas guests appreciated Singapore’s efficient and smooth operations.

It could be another 20 years before Singapore gets to host the next APEC Summit again, and to have memories of the items prepared for the future Singapore summit, the organising committee has decided to bury them in a time capsule.

PM Lee was asked to seal the time capsule.

Among them are DVDs for guests, the minister’s bag and collar pins used by delegates. The time capsule will be kept at the APEC Singapore Secretariat. It shall be opened when Singapore next hosts the APEC Summit.

It was nice meeting some of the fellow ambassadors whom I knew at my shift duties at Changi Airport. Some of us exchanged contacts.

 

亚太经合峰会 “未来之声” APEC Voices Of The Future 2009

这次前来新加坡参与亚太经合峰会(APEC)的各国领袖在与会期间，除了有机会互相交流之外，也可能会面对一些尖锐的提问。不过发问的可不一定是媒体记者哦，也几有可能是来自亚太区域的120名年轻代表。

过去几个月，40名年龄介于18－25岁的本地青年都在忙着为他们毕生难得的机会做好准备。他们都被挑选参加年度的亚太经合峰会未来之声(Voices of the Future)项目。这个活动的目的是要让年轻一代更深入了解亚太经合组织。这些青年将有机会访问与会领导人，而他们当中有的人已经设定好问题了。

参与者，黄雪娜受访时说：“我自己主要的一个目的，就是想了解这次的金融海啸里面，不同的国家和不同的公司对于人事方面的控制，裁员或者是重新栽培员工、员工培训或者是安抚员工本身现在的士气方面有做出哪一些行动。”

除了40名新加坡代表，参与未来之声计划项目也将集合其他亚太国家的另外80名年轻代表。

APEC Voices of the Future (VOF) 2009 is to be held from 9 to 15 November 2009 in Singapore, in conjunction with the APEC 2009 summit meetings hosted by Singapore this year.

Due to a holiday trip to Bangkok next week, I am unable to commit as one of the liaison officers for this APEC event.

It is an annual youth event meant for youth leaders or representatives in the 21 APEC economies. VOF aims to provide a platform for them to engage government and business leaders on issues relevant to APEC.

VOF 2009 brings together 120 youth delegates (out of which 40 are from Singapore), aged 18 to 25 years old from APEC economies to deliberate on and explore issues relevant to youths, with regards to the theme of APEC 2009, “Sustaining Growth, Connecting the Region”.

This theme reflects the continuing efforts of APEC to facilitate trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific region, efforts which have gained even greater importance in the face of a challenging global economic environment.

VOF 2009 is organised by the National Youth Council (NYC) in cooperation with the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) and the National Youth Achievement Award (NYAA) Council.

For further information on “Voices of the Future”, you can check out -> http://apecvof09.org/

 

Singapore Experience Awards

The inaugural Singapore Experience Awards honour people and organisations that have excelled in providing a holistic customer service to help promote Singapore as a tourist attraction. It replaces the annual Tourism Awards, Singapore Business Events and Singapore Education prizes.

Finalists in 28 categories – spanning 5 areas of events, experiences, marketing and media, service and outstanding contributions, were unveiled at a Singapore Tourism Board (STB) press briefing yesterday. Winners will be announced at the awards presentation ceremony held at Capella Singapore @ Sentosa on 9 Nov.

Best Shopping Experience:

1. Museum Shop (Banyan Tree)

2. Robinsons

3. Tangs

4. The Planet Traveller

5. VivoCity

Best Dining Experience (it’s not about food!) :

1. Min Jiang @ One North

2. My Humble House @ Esplanade

3. Straits Kitchen @ Grand Hyatt Singapore

4. The Cliff @ The Sentosa Resorts & Spa.

5. The White Rabbit @ Harding Road

 Best Nightspot Experience:

1. Zouk

2. St James Power Station

3. The Loof @ Odeon Towers (I go there on Thursday nights sometimes!)

4. 1-Twentysix @ East Coast Parkway

5. New Asia Club

Other award categories include Leisure Event of the Year, Best Business Event Venue Experience, Best Visitor Attraction Experience, Exhibition of the Year.

Heard that organisations can self-nominate but for customer service awards, it is a no-no, that’s for the members of the public who will nominate their favourite service staff.

These nominees will be judged on business excellence, strategic values and service excellence by a panel of judges who come from both private and public sectors.

So at the end of the day, it is all about providing customer-centric service, isn’t it? Be it internal or external customers, we should be polite and flexible, giving our very best, be a good problem-solver to provide a lasting positive impressions to consumers.

That translates into good branding awareness for the organisation through viral marketing, generates loyalty among frequent customers and attract new ones, which as a result will broaden the customer base. And that means earning more profits!!

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Come next week, I will be fulfilling my role as an APEC Ambassador at Changi International Airport, from 4pm – 12.30am.  I am required to report attendance one hour earlier. Pre-shift briefings will be conducted by the OIC.

 

 

 

Indirectly speaking, I am also a STB ambassador. Why?  It is because in a way or another, APEC Ambassadors also represent STB.

I will be in the restricted access area - at the aerobridge, to meet and greet APEC delegates who arrive in Singapore, directing them to the immigration area. Yes, I will be the first point of contact.

Hello. Welcome to Singapore. *Wave and bow, smile*