Hindsight 2020: What Lies Ahead?

As the adage goes, "hindsight is 2020". Indeed, 2020 is a year of revelations and revolutions. We were tested on our ability to pivot in the face of adversity, challenged to rethink what constitutes normalcy, and confronted with devastating news on shortages, disasters, tragedies and socio-political and economic rifts.

Beyond it all, we were reminded of our mortality (with the mounting fatalities reported due to COVID-19), of how to tell apart what's a need or a desire (as evidenced by our reliance on essential services), and how to make our time in the world count (imparted by the acute sense of loss due to lockdowns and demise of loved ones).

Though onerous - trust me, it took such a long time for me to deliberate on what to pen in this article, I think it imperative for me to reflect on a monumental year that blazed by, to set myself up for the year(s) ahead.

At the same time, I hope that this sharing will inspire you to ponder over the magnitude of what has happened, and consider your role in the future that's right before you.

New role, new industry

Sometime in late 2019, I was presented with an exciting opportunity to join an e-commerce company as a Global Head of HR. The CEO (now erstwhile) impressed me with his earnestness to build a company culture that prizes empathy and kindness, and really moved me with his commitment to empowerment, autonomy and trust.

I would be frank: I had never imagined myself to be in e-commerce; startups, yes, but I have never ventured to think myself in a retail-related space. But then I thought, why not? The core ingredients of what matter to me at work: meaningful work that drives impact, management team who is aligned in terms of principles and values, empowerment and autonomy, were all there.

I knew I could only learn and stretch myself in this new role, which was definitely an appealing proposition to me. And so I signed on the dotted line just as I was in Beijing, China, for a holiday. That was 2019.

So came 2020, when I was ready to join the company and be onboarded. About a month before my official start date, the pandemic began to make global headlines and became serious. I was wondering what was going to happen: do I have a job to go into next? Is my role at stake?

That was not to be, however. Things went without a hitch, and I started my first week at work virtually. Yes, for the first time ever in my career, I did a remote onboarding. I believe it was the same for many others. I had no idea what to expect, but if my experience working in startups was anything to go by, I knew one expectation would serve me well in this regard: to have no expectations.

True enough, that 'no expectation' rule ensured that my remote onboarding experience went smoothly. I was able to settle in and get to know people in record time, primarily because everyone was welcoming and eager to connect.

That said, being privy to the whole process myself and being intentionally observant about it, I started to discover the many things that needed building and re-building. Very soon, I found myself busied with designing and rolling out many new and revamped plans, policies and processes across the region.

I also bonded really quickly with a dedicated team of Country HR Leads across Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam, no thanks to me being the only thorn amongst the roses.

Looking back, the adjustment period was certainly tough. Many pre-conceived notions of the ways of work, infrastructure and resources were blown out the window. Even the very space in which one works, and the communication style and expectations of HR as a function were very different. Calibration and collaboration did the trick in navigating most of the challenges.

To date, I still count myself privileged to be in this space, for e-commerce helps to promote contactless deliveries and reduce crowds in physical storefronts. I am thankful to my team for delivering on these propositions, day in, day out.

The company is continuing to grow, and is currently expanding to Malaysia. In case you're keen, you can check out all our regional openings at https://intrepidgroup.asia/en_US/careers/

New school, new skills

What drives me in all my endeavours at work and in life is the opportunity to learn. The bonus? If I can give back in some form or another, or touch another person's life through what I do.

That was what brought me into the field of People, and what connected me to the domain of professional life coaching. I wanted to help others develop and grow, to realise their aspirations and dreams, to figure out what's most valuable to them on their unique life journeys. To that end, I enrolled in a Professional Life Coaching post-graduate programme at SUSS (a local university) in 2020.

I was so eager to go back to school, after having completed my virtual MBA the year before in 2019. When I got the admissions letter and notifications email that I'd be back on campus, I was way over the moon!

My lessons in life-coaching were both illuminating and affirmative, in that they resonate dearly with me in terms of what I do at work and in my social life with friends and loved ones. I have always found joy in helping others get unstuck with their challenges, and help them find the inner will and motivation to move forward; coaching enabled me to do that, and more. Soon, I found myself moved enough to pursue a new role in life: to be a professional life coach.

As I continue to grow my repertoire, I'm open to helping my connections and those who are in need of academic, career and general life coaching to succeed. Ping me if you'd like to find out more!

New workplace, new environment

Literally. There was firstly the whole thing about working from home, which for me meant being hunkered down on the base of a bunk bed, in the room I shared with my younger brother. The Circuit Breaker (Singapore's version of a lockdown) broke my spirits and mental well-being, as it meant I needed to work in a highly unconducive environment and made sense of things in a new workplace while delivering results.

Then, when the government announced that we could return to work in a graduated fashion, I was tasked with the all-important duty to unearth the best possible co-working space/office out there, with optimal flexibility one can only imagine (no lock-in commitment, best rates, great location, awesome amenities etc).

I was lucky enough to stumble upon a new Mongolian company setting up shop in the CBD. The cherry on top? An amazing view overlooking the Marina Bay Sands. Everything else was put to rest after that; logistics of moving and communication of the move, setting up new workplace norms and rules for the employees etc.

Interestingly, life has come full circle: I went out of the CBD in a previous workplace, to the outskirts in Telok Blangah, before coming back in again with my new career. Truly, you've no clue where you could be next.

Therein lies my rude awakening from 2020, going into 2021: I know not what the future holds in store for me, but I do know that I want to stand ready to contribute and make a meaningful impact when the time calls for it. And for that to happen, I will embrace the unknown, and make the best of my deck of cards: learning new skills, forging new connections and growing my reservoir of knowledge, all while attempting to take down one challenge at a time.

For sure, it's no easy feat, and the journey is far from done. I am still trying to get a grip on myself, and juggle as many commitments as I can this day. I have so many people to thank along the way (you know who you are), and I can only hope I have the same support network going forward.

Now, there you have it. My Hindsight 2020 Reflections, summed up in an article I thought would never see the light of the day. How about you?

What's your 2020 story like?

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About Alex

Free-spirited yet fierce-willed, Alex is the intriguing blend of creativity and logic. He likes to innovate and experiment with new ideas, integrating them with data and observations he makes to pioneer new ways of work. He has had the privilege of working as a Rewards Analyst in a manufacturing company (Micron), a Marketing and HR Manager in a hospitality/aviation company (Singapore Airlines), and a People Culture and Employer Branding, Senior Manager in a fintech/transportation/logistics/tech company (Grab) managing a distributed team of six founded from scratch. Life then happened, which brought him to digital telco and lifestyle services company Circles.Life as the Global Head of People Operations and Employer Branding, Diversity and Culture. He's since gone on to helm one of the region's leading e-commerce companies Intrepid Group Asia as the Global Head of Human Resources, enabling the delivery of life's greatest inventions conveniently to end consumers by working with businesses that offer such services.

Under his leadership in the Employer Branding team, Grab has won the top honours in Influential Brands' Top Employer Award for Technology, 5 HR Awards in Best Candidate Experience, Best Regional Recruitment Programme, Best Employer Branding, Best Recruitment Advertising and Best Careers Website at the Asia Recruitment Awards. He has also led the team to win 4 HR Awards by Universum for being the Top 100 Most Attractive Graduate Employers in the Engineering, Natural Sciences/Humanities and Business categories. In just under a year at Circles.Life, he has paved the way for a team built in six months to win 2 HR Awards in Influential Brands (Top Employer in Digital Telco) and HR Excellence Awards (Excellence in Workplace Culture), as well as earned triple nominations in Asia Recruitment Awards 2020, beating the likes of industry titans such as Twitter, UOB, and AWS.

He is certified in Employer Branding, Inbound Marketing, Content Marketing and Email Marketing, and has attained his HR certification in IHRP at the Senior Professional Level and the US-accredited HR certification in SHRM at the Senior Certified Practitioner Level. He holds a Bachelors' Degree in Business from Singapore's Nanyang Technological University (First Class Honours), and a MBA from the well-regarded modern Quantic School Of Business and Technology. He is currently pursuing a full-fledged Professional Life Coaching certification at Singapore University of Social Sciences.