Words & photo: Aulia R. Sungkar Originally was published in The Jakarta Post on May 23, 2015. Veteran banker Herwidayatmo focuses on openness and firmness in capitalizing on his leadership savviness to take his team to the next level. With an avuncular smile, PaninBank president director Herwidayatmo welcomed The Jakarta Post into his office in South Jakarta’s CBD. “I have high confidence in the future of Indonesia. The country’s favorable macroeconomic condition has greatly … [Read more...]
Creating values through horizontal leadership
By Aulia R. Sungkar. Originally published in The Jakarta Post on May 2, 2015 Ricky Afrianto is strengthening brand positioning and boosting sales by saying 'no' to bureaucratic management constraints. Simplicity seems to play a role in how Ricky Afrianto devises his informal approaches to what he calls an unbureaucratic management style. For Ricky, bureaucracy limits individuals from developing their talents and skills. In many cases, this rigid system shackles the creativity and innovation … [Read more...]
Forging a new future
By Aulia R. Sungkar. Originally published in The Jakarta Post, on April 4, 2015 Gunawan Susanto adopts participative leadership to drive his team to reach new heights. Learning is a never ending process is a powerful philosophy that helps build a strong business team, as demonstrated by Gunawan Susanto along his journey to the top post at IBM Indonesia. 'I started my career with the company as a management trainee. I didn't know much about IT, so I had to learn. Later, I found my … [Read more...]
Neeltje Sutandjati: Managing teachers for a better future
By Ruth Ninajanty. Published in The Jakarta Post. Childhood educator Neeltje Sutandjati puts emphasis on teacher development to improve her schools. Early childhood education is more than just teaching young children about words and numbers but also introducing them to every aspect of life. When School Director Neeltje Sutandjati started iSmile in 2007, she wanted the school to make a difference for society and the nation. 'Setting up a school should be founded foremost on a passion … [Read more...]
Hans Leo: People are key to company’s growth
By Sudibyo M. Wiradji. Published in The Jakarta Post. Logistics company executive Hans Leo believes in the power of people engagement in growing a logistics company. Hans Leo believes that a one-man show was not an appropriate managerial style, especially when operating a large company with an expanded network, given that a CEO had limitations in terms of expertise and time. The president director and CEO of Linc Group disclosed that engaging more people with their respective expertise … [Read more...]
Redmer Schukken: Informality stimulates creativity and innovation
By Sudibyo M. Wiradji. Published in The Jakarta Post. Redmer Schukken, CEO of Ice House, adopts participatory management in a fun and informal working environment. An office on the third floor of a building in Jakarta has an open-air space where people can view some of the city's skyscrapers and also the traffic flow below. On certain days, people gather there to take a break from spending hours facing their respective laptop screens. 'This evening we are having a barbecue … [Read more...]
Ng Chee Soon: Painting a clear picture
By Prasiddha Gustanto. Originally published in The Jakarta Post, Dec. 6, 2014. Sennheiser Asia president and managing director Ng Chee Soon is a strong believer in the values that passion can bring to leading a company, especially one as deeply involved in emotion-driven industries as Sennheiser. Every CEO of a company expects his or her employees to perform their best. How they approach their employees differs from one CEO to another, with regard to the line of business they are engaged … [Read more...]
How personality plays a role in effective leadership
When executives identify admirable leaders, they often underestimate their struggle with certain elements of their personality. In truth, the majority of effective leaders even “naturals” like Richard Branson or PepsiCo’s Indra Nooyi had to work hard to manage their personality traits to get where they are today. There are countless personality traits that distinguish us from one another, some inherited while others are learned. But recent research has converged toward five broad dimensions, … [Read more...]