In our Stars of the Accelerator series, we explore the transformation journey of the participants in the #Leadapreneur Accelerator.

Koe Huai Tan

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”, Leonardo Da Vinci famously said. In banking operations, complicated processes are often regarded as a necessary evil. Inward TT processing is notoriously tedious and time-consuming.

Seeing how her colleagues have been pouring precious energy and sacrificing their own time, Ko Huai (Service and Operations Manager) thought that the processes needed some drastic streamlining.

Before joining the Accelerator, Ko Huai was under the impression that one had to be working in Head Office to be a "change-maker". After talking to the alumni of the Accelerator and hearing about their positive experiences, she felt empowered to dream big!

Koe Huai's project is to identify the processes that are causing frustration and proactively find sophisticated solutions. The benefits are three fold:

1.       Koe Huai believes this will greatly enhance customer satisfaction as the bank will be able to get things done faster.

2.       The streamlining will bring relief to her colleagues in the centralized office, so that they can enjoy a better work-life balance.

3.       It's a win-win situation for the bank as this will save time and money.

Ko Huai is collaborating very closely with various stakeholders and the response from them has been has been largely positive. They have given constructive feedback on how to ensure the project is viable. Her mentor, Mr Phuah, has also offered valuable guidance and encouragement.  

Although she is an introvert, Koe Huai is discovering an ability to network with her cohort members as well as with the stakeholders involved with her colleagues’ project. So much so, she is now able to help her colleagues with their projects by suggesting potential collaborators.

A personal struggle that Koe Huai faces is the nagging inner voice that tells her that might be biting more than she can chew. Thankfully, she has a supportive manager who provides moral support in times of doubt. Koe Huai also credits her Leadapreneur Coach, Elaine, for helping her keep calm and organized, so that she could confidently approach stakeholders.

Congratulations Koe Huai for becoming a Star of the Accelerator!

​In our "Leadapreneur Stars" series, we explore the journey of the participants who are creating, leading & delivering agile projects during the Leadapreneur Accelerator.

Sunitaraj Kaur D/O Devraj Singh

Silver bullet: a simple and seemingly magical solution to a complicated problem. ​Senior Executive at Environmental Services Sunita, believes in cutting through complexity and finding silver bullet solutions. Her target? Sludge. Her company spends millions on sludge disposal. Sunita’s ambitious project is to take a shot at minimizing this cost.


The aim of her project is to reduce the weight of the sludge by removing 25% of its water content in order to make the disposal faster, easier and less costly. To dry out the sludge, a specialized dryer is required. Rather than purchasing a dryer like every other company, Sunita discovered a revolutionary opportunity to be a game-changer. She plans to build a sludge dryer from scratch based on her own design!


After much sketching and brainstorming, Sunita conceptualized a prototype design. It was brilliant enough to convince Management to get on board with the idea.


One of the major challenges she faced is the slow and lengthy procurement process. It can take up to three months to obtain the materials required to build the dryer. Nevertheless, Sunita has not allowed herself to be discouraged. She firmly believes that her project can not only generate massive savings for the company but also generate new business and profits.

Following her silver bullet philosophy, Sunita is working on revamping the procurement process by collaborating with the CFO of Alam Flora. This would speed up the materials delivery, thus fast tracking the project go-live.

Through DIA, Sunita has found the confidence and motivation to start executing her vision into reality. Her personal mission is to preserve the environment and improve people's quality of life. Her motto is: “Do what is right, not what is easy.”

Congratulations Sunita in becoming a Leadapreneur Star!

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In our "Stars of the Accelerator" series, we will explore the innovative projects and achievements of our Accelerator participants. 

Abu Bakar Mustafa Bamadhaj (AB)

A believer of “Adversity is the foundation of success”, AB was keen to join the Accelerator program to bring impactful and positive transformation to his company. On average, we spend about 56% of our waking hours at work. Therefore, fostering good relationships with our colleague is important. The best medium to do this is; to nurture empathy.

As Senior Executive of Organization Development, AB firmly believes practicing empathy benefits the company and contributes to staff well-being. His innovative project will allow staff to donate paid annual leave to their colleagues in need!

This leave donation system will be a welcome relief, especially if a staff member has exhausted their annual leave days or if they are experiencing financial difficulties. It also gives a chance to the donors to practice kindness and lessen the burden of their fellow colleagues.

Studies have shown that empathy in the workplace contributes to higher employee satisfaction and retention. AB plans to measure the effectiveness of the project via a satisfaction survey.
The Head of Rewards (Group Human Capital) is sold on the idea and offered his support. AB obtained precious data from HR system to analyze the leave trends, which will help to move the project forward.

 There are a few challenges to implement this project.

1. While leave donation exists abroad, there are currently no companies implementing it in Malaysia. Although there are no laws which prevent its implementation, which means there is no precedence to draw from. This makes AB a pioneer! He plans to reach out to foreign companies to learn the details of how they implement leave donation.

2. There was some skepticism from team members. They were concerned about ensuring that the system is not misused. AB appeased their doubts by explaining validation mechanisms will be in place as well as the benefits to staff morale and for the company.

3. Getting colleagues on board was challenging but crucial; the success of this project relies entirely on teamwork. AB used storytelling to encourage them to empathize with their colleagues’ situation.
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Sharing his ideas with colleagues was intimidating for AB at first, but he sees it an opportunity to learn and improve. AB plans to pursue an MBA to become a strategic HR business partner.
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Congratulations AB in becoming a Star of the Accelerator!

In our "Stars of the Accelerator" series, we will explore the innovative projects and achievements of our Accelerator participants. 

Nadlatul Iylia Najihah Binti Mohd Rof

Corporate Strategy Executive, Nadlatul Iylia Najihah Binti Mohd Rof, considers herself fortunate to be part of Accelerator challenge because she believes that it will leave an exceptional impact on herself and her company. As a member of the company’s Environmental Services, Najihah’s vision is to bring game-changing green initiatives to the table.
Her motto is “To live is to learn and to learn is to live.”

Najihah saw an opportunity to be a pioneer in implementing renewable energy through the Accelerator program. Her innovative project is to reduce the conventional energy consumption by installing solar panels at the rooftop of the company’s building.

Harnessing solar energy is only one aspect of sustainable practices. Najihah foresees her project will be a stepping stone for other green initiatives, including but not limited to rainwater harvesting and certification of green building. This is yet to be explored by any other employees in the company, motivating Najihah to lead the charge.

Protecting the environment makes sense on an ethical level but it’s also a great business practice. Harnessing renewable energy saves costs and draws new business as the company is already certified as Energy Service Company (ESCO) by Energy Commission. Najihah hopes that this initiative will expand to the 83 company subsidiaries in the future! 

One of the challenges she faced was to get her direct supervisor on board. With determination and grit, Najihah managed to persuade her supervisor that she deserved a spot in the  Accelerator program.

Another challenge was that Najihah had no background in electrical engineering, a fundamental skill needed in designing a solution for solar panels.  Thankfully, she was able to learn from a few mentors in and outside the company who shared their wisdom with her and helped to network with subject matter experts in the field of sustainability.

Apart from sustainability, Najihah believes that a company should encourage emotional intelligence, teamwork and work-life balance in order to thrive.
Congratulations Najihah for becoming a Star of the Accelerator!
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​In this four part "Stars of the Accelerator" series, we will explore the innovative projects and achievements of our Accelerator participants. 
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CK HO

Banker CK Ho embarked on the #Turbocharge challenge because he believes that the key to growing relationships is to provide solutions that connect with the consumer on a personal level. As Head of Affluent Marketing, CK’s project is to change the way consumers view loyalty programmes, not just at his bank but at industry level! His motto is “Creating value through emotion.”

The bank’s loyalty programme, was re-branded last year in conjunction with the launch of several new features. Together, they revolutionize the way customers use the points and miles they have collected through their credit card expenses. 

Unlike other programmes, the bank’s loyalty programme allows customers to use their points or miles to redeem almost anything they choose to purchase in their daily lives, rather than just the traditional way of redeeming items from a catalogue. This means that consumers now have complete freedom in choosing what they want to do with their points or miles.

Despite these amazing features, the challenge was that customers were confused by the fragmented number of redemption options that are available to them. His solution: Connect with the customer via a digitally-led marketing campaign that served a targeted message via targeted digital media to specific segments based on their past spending behaviour. Also, he aims to effectively change the way points and miles are seen as currencies in their daily lives.

As a result, the bank will move to become more relatable and consumer-centric. CK's bank is the first in Malaysia to offer a loyalty programme with such a far-reaching features. The days of being a distant corporate giant are over!

CK has recently launched the full marketing campaign across all selected media, including a microsite. The marketing campaign success will be measured via digital media metrics.

CK credits outstanding teamwork and support he received from his team and colleagues as a whole. He appreciates the spirit of collaboration that went into this project. Congratulations CK for becoming a Star of the Accelerator! 

Part four of four

In this four part series, we will explore the innovative projects and achievements of our "Stars of the Accelerator". They are participants who embarked on a journey to become Leadapreneurs, with astonishing results!
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Michael Lim
Johor-based banker, Michael Lim embarked on the accelerator adventure because he has a drive to surpass his limits. His motto as a Leadapreneur is “do or die!”

In his role as Sales Head, he noticed that clients from Singapore often did not bring crucial documents with them. Hence, their bank card application could not be processed quickly and efficiently via the online system that allows bank card application within seconds. This led to loss of clients and business.

Despite this hurdle, Michael saw this as an opportunity to shine. He set out to find a solution that would benefit all parties. Hence his innovation project was born. His goal is ambitious to say the least. He wants to achieve 100% adoption rate!

To get to 100%, there were a few challenges to overcome:
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1. His team had to get the stakeholders on board. Efforts were made to encourage the clients to get involved. Clear, transparent and frequent communication was key.

2. The team had to be trained to uphold the business plan. iPad usage was promoted as an innovative and efficient tool.

​3. After the first few stakeholders were sold on the idea, he cheered his team on to enlist even more clients.

Michael efforts paid off. He is already at 70% adoption! Since the start of the project, the savings stack up to a whopping RM 23k+ per month! Thanks to his accelerator project, Michael has a new-found confidence to approach important stakeholders. He became empowered to kick start groundbreaking and interesting ideas. He credits his class mates and his coach for keeping him motivated to make his project a success!

Part one of four