| Foo Mee Har | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Singapore Parliament for West Coast Group Constituency |
|
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 7 May 2011 |
|
| Preceded by | S Iswaran |
| Majority | 36,070 (33.1%) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 10, 1966 Malaysia |
| Nationality | Singaporean |
| Political party | People's Action Party |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | University of New South Wales |
| Occupation | Global Head of Priority & International Banking, Standard Chartered PLC |
| Profession | Banker |
| Religion | Free-Thinker |
| Website | http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001805532310 |
Foo Mee Har (胡美霞, born January 10, 1966) is a Singaporean Member of Parliament for West Coast GRC.[1] She is a member of the Government Parliamentary Committees of both: 1) Finance and Trade & Industry; and 2) Manpower.[2]
Foo was elected MP in May 2011, standing as one of the five People's Action Party (PAP) candidates for the West Coast GRC, which garnered 66.6 per cent of votes, winning by a majority of 33.1 per cent or 36,070 votes.[3][4]
Foo Mee Har is the Global Head of Priority & International Banking, Standard Chartered Bank.[5] She joined the Bank in 1994 and has since held a number of senior roles across businesses & functions.[6]
Contents |
Foo joined the PAP in 2010, and was unveiled as PAP's first new female candidate for the Singapore general election, 2011.[7] Foo was the second batch of three new candidates being introduced at the PAP's headquarters in Bedok.[8] During her introduction, Foo said that living abroad gave her the opportunity "to really reflect on Singapore, its government, systems and its processes" and appreciate its unique strengths [9]
In her first rally speech, Foo called on Singaporeans to remember the PAP's track record, and asked Singaporeans to trust the abilities of PAP leaders to lead Singapore out of the many future challenges.[10]
Foo had taken part in various community events and Meet-the-People Sessions (MPS). Describing her first MPS session as "wonderful" and a "defining moment", Foo said she was inspired by volunteers who paid great attention while listening to the needs of the residents.[11]
In her 1st 30 days as MP, Foo wrote about setting up Ayer Rajah as a new division, since its merger with West Coast in 2006. She mentioned that she was most encouraged to have grassroots leaders & volunteers who came forward to help set up the new branch.[12]
Besides building the team, Foo mentioned that she also focused efforts on the training of volunteers, reviewing Ayer Rajah’s community outreach programs to ensure it reaches a wide spectrum of people in the constituency, forming task forces to resolve key local issues and continuing to refine Ayer Rajah’s weekly MPS process to allow for more personal and quality time for Ayer Rajah residents.[13]
Foo is the Assistant Secretary to the PAP Women's Wing. She was one of the two new office holders inducted into its executive committee, during the Women's Wing investiture in January 2011.[14]
In an interview with Channel NewsAsia, she said, "As a professional woman, I'm hoping that I can contribute to the women's agenda in Singapore. I'm a banker by profession, so hopefully this network can help me reach out to women, especially the professional women, and understand their issues."[15]
Foo was educated at Ava Maria Convent School, Ipoh, Malaysia (1973–1982) and Loreto Normanhurst, Sydney, Australia (1983–1985). In 1989, she was awarded with a Bachelor of Science (Psychology) degree by the University of New South Wales, Australia, graduating with First Class Honours.[16]
Foo is the Global Head, Priority and International Banking, Standard Chartered Bank.[17]
Standard Chartered’s Priority Banking has a presence in 26 markets across Asia, Africa and the Middle East, providing a total banking relationship programme to cater to the financial needs of affluent individuals.[18] Foo noted that “by taking a customer-focused approach”, Standard Chartered is “seeing customers voting with their accounts”.[19] Under Foo's leadership, Priority Banking relaunched in 20 markets, customers grew 39%, and customer satisfaction increased by 35% over a year.[20]
In March 2011, Foo was featured in Sunday Times’ Women At The Top series, an eight-part weekly series on successful women in Singapore.[21] In the interview, Foo revealed how she handled different roles with equanimity, with the writer noting that she had handled at least 10 different portfolios - from human resource to consumer banking to being chief executive officer (CEO) of the bank's operations in Thailand from 2006 to 2008.[22]
In the same interview, Foo spoke about her idea of leadership, which is 'having a vision, making people believe in that vision, and directing their energy into making that vision happen'. Foo added that “good leaders help people achieve what they want, great leaders bring people to achieve what they thought was not possible” and said she preferred the adjective 'achievement-oriented' over 'ambitious' to describe herself.[23]
From 2006-2008, she was President & CEO of Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) pcl with overall responsibility for the Bank in Thailand.[24] In the bank’s Annual Report for 2006, Foo mentioned that Standard Chartered Bank (Thail) had delivered a set of robust results, with a net profit of Baht 3,008 million, a 63 per cent increase from Baht 1,848 million. Foo also oversaw the successful integration of Standard Chartered Bangkok Branch and Standard Charted Nakornthon Bank to better serve its customers.[25]
From 2003-2005, Mee Har was appointed the Country Head of Consumer Banking in China, spearheading the growth of the Consumer Banking franchise in China.[26]
Mee Har started her career in 1990 as a Management Consultant with Coopers and Lybrand Management Consultants (now PricewaterhouseCoopers) and PA Consulting Group. She later joined Jardine’s shipping group as the Head of HR.[27]
Foo has been an active champion of employee volunteerism, spearheading participation in a wide range of community programs, including advocacy, outreach and fund-raising for causes such as avoidable blindness, HIV/AIDs and healthy living. She started the inaugural “Standard Chartered Bangkok Marathon”, which has become one of the largest sporting events.[28]
Married to Bernard Chan Teck Hock, an undischarged bankrupt [29] (Page 11, S/N no. 9), Foo lived in Singapore since 1989 after university graduation. They have 2 sons, ages 18 and 16 years.[30] She became a new Singapore citizen in January 2008 after her stint of overseas postings (2003–2008), when she was eligible to apply for citizenship.[31] Foo spoke about 'Singapore being home for the last 21 years' and that she 'want to make a difference to the lives of Singaporeans'.[32]
In an interview with The Straits Times on September 8, 2008, Foo mentioned that taking up overseas postings in her job was "always a family decision". When Foo was offered the China position in 2003, her husband, then a general manager of a multinational company, quit his job to take up a China post with another company so that the family could relocate together.[33]
Being a firm believer that the family should be together for overseas postings, Foo made it a point to help her subordinates when they relocate. Foo added that “given the growth of the business in China, there were many occasions while I was in China where I successfully placed spouses within the bank's China operations."[34]
When Foo was offered the CEO post in Thailand, her family rallied behind her again. Her family settled into Bangkok at a "historical time" when Thailand was undergoing political upheaval, including the bloodless coup that ousted then-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Foo said that "it was business as usual and our entire team stayed in Bangkok throughout the political transition.”[35]