Building A-teams in Singapore for success in Asia and beyond

#1 in the world for doing business. One of the top 5 most innovative economies globally. 1st in Asia for talent competitiveness.

Singapore’s pro-business environment, strong  commitment to innovation, and diverse, highly-skilled talent base, have continued to attract global companies and founders from all over the world.

Here’s a look at the growth journeys of four multinational companies (MNCs)– Makino Asia, Procter & Gamble (P&G), Shimano and Thales – and how they have expanded their operations in Singapore and the region. 
 

Makino Asia: Almost 20 nationalities in its APAC hub in Singapore

2023 marks Makino Asia’s 50th anniversary in Singapore. The prominent provider of machine tools also has its Asia-Pacific (APAC) headquarters here, a diverse talent hub comprising 600 staff from 20 different countries.

The company has a long and fruitful history with Singapore. Since 1973, Makino Asia has grown from strength to strength here. Today, it is a leading provider of advanced machining solutions and services across various industries in the region, and is a key player in Singapore’s manufacturing sector – which makes up about 20 per cent of the economy – especially in precision engineering.

Some key milestones of the company here:

2009: Opened Makino’s International R&D Centre in Singapore.

2019: Launched Makino Global Group’s first advanced machining factory, achieving 60 per cent increase in output per employee by streamlining processes and automating repetitive tasks.

2020: Established an Additive Manufacturing Centre of Excellence in Jurong Innovation District, offering consultancy and prototyping services to support the adoption of 3D printing technology in production, driving R&D and innovation.

2022: Makino Asia achieved S$1 billion in annual revenue, contributing to more than 40 per cent of the Global Group’s consolidated revenue.
 

The company devotes effort to developing talent here, working closely with Singapore’s educational institutions, as well as local and global industry players, to nurture Singaporean talent.

Case in point: Makino Asia’s close partnership with the Singapore Manufacturing Federation and Singapore Precision Engineering & Technology Association, yielded the Precision Engineering Master Craftsmen course at Nanyang Polytechnic. Since 2013, the industry certification course has become a well-recognised scheme elevating the standard of precision engineering craftsmanship here.

“As part of its talent management programme, Makino Asia group of companies have provided talented individuals with opportunities to collaborate across departments and secondments across the countries, and to be exposed to multi-faceted issues. Through these experiences of analysing issues and challenges through different lenses, the talent pool is better equipped with not only the necessary specialist skillsets, but more critically the management and coordination skill aspects needed to work with a diverse talent pool across the Asia Pacific region,” shared Mr Neo.
 

Procter & Gamble: From a small sales team of fewer than 100 staff, to a 2,300-strong APAC hub

In June 2023, P&G celebrated its 35th anniversary of operations in Singapore with an announcement to invest over S$100 million to establish a new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility here. This comes on top of other key investments by the company, which includes its Singapore Innovation Centre (SgIC) launched in 2014, at a cost of S$250 million. As one of the largest corporate research facilities in Singapore, SgIC continues to be a key innovation lab for its global megabrands such as Pantene, Head and Shoulders, Ambi Pur, Vicks and Pampers, amongst others.

The consumer giant’s journey in Singapore began in 1987 with a small sales team of fewer than 100 employees. Today, P&G Singapore employs about 2,300 individuals from more than 40 nationalities. Singapore is also now home to the company’s Asia-Pacific headquarters and global headquarters for SK-II, and its Skin & Personal Care businesses respectively.
 

Besides tapping into Singapore’s diverse talent pool to set up its regional business here, P&G has driven meaningful causes through its Singapore manufacturing operations. Its Pioneer Plant in Tuas is home to P&G’s Children’s Safe Drinking Water (CSDW) manufacturing. This global CSDW programme, started in 2004, has since provided 21 billion litres of clean water to communities in need around the world.
 

The company is currently partnering the Singapore Economic Development Board to develop GrowthWorks, a venture-building programme that supports the company’s staff in creating new brands, new technology platforms and new business models.
 

Shimano: Singapore’s talent pool can communicate with factories globally 

The Japanese manufacturer of cycling and fishing equipment first established its presence in Singapore in 1973 with a plant at the Jurong Industrial Estate — the company’s first overseas manufacturing facility outside of Japan, and in Southeast Asia; and its third global site.

It did so to meet increased demand for its products and chose Singapore for its stability, connections to trading routes and geographic location in the heart of Southeast Asia.

In the 50 years since, Shimano Singapore has risen to become a key contributor to the manufacturer’s production and technology pipelines and has enhanced its operational efficiency to rival that of its Japanese operations.

In May 2023, Shimano unveiled its “Factory of the Future” — a significant investment of approximately S$250 million — in Jurong Innovation District. This new factory will utilise digital technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things, in addition to robot-based automation. The site will also house the company’s R&D centre with plans to develop special materials for cycling apparel products and research into the use of wearable technology. Shimano’s staff will be trained in operating in a smart manufacturing environment, with additional job openings for researchers, scientists, and engineers.
 

Locating this facility in Singapore is a strategic decision the Shimano team came to based on several factors, including access to a strong talent pool who can understand the nuances of operating in Southeast Asia. 
 

He added, “to further develop our plant, we will need highly skilled talent. Talent in Singapore has been meeting our needs and contributing to Shimano Singapore's growth. We intend to contribute to Singapore's industry not only in manufacturing, but also in R&D and design development. I am looking forward to continuing our relationship to secure more local and amazing talent.”
 

Thales: Expecting to create up to 1,000 local jobs over the next three years

Thales marked its 50^th anniversary in Singapore in 2023. In the last five decades, the global leader in advanced technologies has grown its footprint and operations significantly to support its business activities in the areas of aerospace, defence & security, and digital identity & security, among others. Amongst its 2,000 employees located across 4 sites in Singapore, over 500 are engineers involved in innovation and R&D.

Some facts and figures:  

• Thales’ Changi facility here houses one of the Group’s largest global aerospace repair hubs and service centre for airline activities. Key systems for the Airbus A320, A350 and Boeing 787 fleets are also produced here, with avionics equipment supplied to major regional airlines.
• It has established a S$30 million joint Aviation Innovation Research (AIR) Lab, to drive air traffic management innovation and adoption of new technologies, including Green Aviation.
• The company has a dedicated Singapore team for drone product R&D and has set up Centres of Excellence in air traffic management, radars, naval drones, and space.

Its strong partnership with Singapore has continued in recent years. In 2021, the company inked a Memorandum of Understanding with the National University of Singapore, starting a two-year partnership to jointly develop and test quantum technologies for commercial applications.

In 2023, the partnership between Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU), and Thales Research Alliance, for the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) International or the French National Centre for Scientific Research, NTU was renewed for the fourth time. The Centre focuses on researching carbon-based materials, nanostructures and nano-photonics to develop solutions from Singapore.
 

Talent development and retention are key priorities for Thales. By partnering with Singapore’s leading academic institutions, Thales is able to tap a pool of strong engineering and tech talent that are contributing to building new technologies for a safer and more secure society.

From drone identification to biometrics to discovering new materials, Thales provides opportunities for many of these Singapore-based talents to develop careers in technology, engineering, design and other related fields. Over the next three years, Thales will be recruiting over 1,000 people locally.