A new Asia with a great
global role will emerge from the current economic crisis and Asian enterprises
would have to revise their leadership strategies to adapt to the situation,
said Don Lam, chief executive officer and co-founder of VinaCapital Group.
He was delivering the keynote address at the Asia
Leadership Dialogues 2009 held on July 21 by the Platinum Circle , a private, by
invitation group of global and Asian corporations each of which have an annual
turnover exceeding 100 million USD.
Lam said the crisis had brought the focus on Asia . “Asian governments and companies are investing
abroad at a pace never seen before,” he said.
“Even Vietnamese companies have started to invest
abroad, albeit on a small scale,” he added.
He said Vietnamese companies focusing on the
domestic market should prepare for greater competition as the Government
encourages more foreign investment. He decried the short-sighted strategy of
retrenching people during a crisis, saying it would catch firms napping when
the economy recovers. Lam noted that his own company had not laid-off any
staff.
“Vietnamese companies need to see that improving
corporate governance and engaging with broader society are a fundamental way to
achieve better business results,” he added. Shyam Prasad Baddepudi, chief operating officer of
SAP (Software Applications) Southeast Asia ,
said business leaders needed to innovate and strengthen their firms during a
downturn so they can easily grab opportunities in the post-crisis period. This involved building customer loyalty through
improved quality and reducing costs and financial risks, he added.
