#LiveJEN and Thank you 2021

It’s the first time that I’m spending Christmas in Hong Kong. I’m far away from home but I’m glad that I have my second family with me -- the JEN team. In the middle of our team’s holiday gathering, they suddenly gave me an award: LiveJEN mastermind and best JEN team member – I was speechless and out of words, mostly because I’m still in pain after my injury, but it was a heartwarming way to sum up this year.

LiveJEN is a gameboard and a way of life that we are building for the JEN brand of the group. I’ve been with JEN for many years, and so I know what it feels like when we roll a plan out or when we execute a new procedure. 2021 marks my 10th work anniversary with Shangri-La, and I wanted to create something unique and sustainable – something that people on the ground would fall in love with, something that would bring hope and excitement in their daily work. I foresee what our work culture would be like by the year 2030 or 2050, and this initiative and all the programs we rolled out as a team brought results and were reflected in our JEN community.

My contributions to the group would not have been possible without a lot of people, and I want to thank and acknowledge them:

To my big boss, Kevin, whose been there for me since the beginning, thank you for honing me to the best of my abilities. Kevin is a leader with a strong vision – he knows the path that we need to take to reach our goals, and he could always bring the team together to be united in our efforts. Through the years that I’ve worked with him, I’ve felt empowered to do my own craft, but at the same time have also felt guided by his expertise and positive influence in bringing great results. We created loads of innovation, new playbooks and have brought the brand to the next level. Kevin is a great commander, and I’m a grateful soldier, still growing and progressing under him.

To my trainer at JEN, Shuping, thank you for bringing out the best in me. Shuping is a marketing god who dazzles me every time we catch-up (I seat beside her in the office so every day is like a brainstorming session); she has this magic of creativity, and her brain is beyond what one could imagine. She showed me how to execute projects in the best form and shape. If you want to learn the best-in-class quality and consistency, Shuping’s expertise would bring out the best in you.

To the wizard of numbers, Ming, thank you for helping me fall in love more with numbers. Ming can present the most delicate and on point figures to whomever is asking in just a snap. Before, I only embraced labor costs as part of my HR role, but now, Ming showed me how the world of analytics and formulas can change the game that I’m also learning to grasp.

To the leader of technology and operations, Daniel, thank you for showing me how to be a person who can manage, plan, and execute. Daniel, my brother, my GWC seatmate in Singapore, and my lunch buddy (we both love rice & noodles), whom I look up to so much, is a man of dedication and perseverance.

This award is just a reminder that we did something great for the JEN brand in the year 2021. I share this to all the JEN hotels that we governed, to Tiff, Ben, Charissa, Betsy, the HRs who I’ve worked with, the people whom I collaborated with, my mentors and the community which we are progressively growing. The JEN brand is now ready to take center stage and I’m very happy to see it evolving.

We, the JEN HQ team, will forever be grateful that once upon a time, there was a united, creative, fun, crazy good, chill, excellent, and fantastic team who handled the brand and raised the flag to #LiveJEN.

Thank you 2021 and happy New Year to all! We are excited for the year 2022 and how we would continue to unfold the circle of never-ending possibilities.