A biotech graduate turned HR professional

Graduated in biotechnology, spent one year in General Electric before discovering that life is beyond the walls of a laboratory. Still a passionate scientist at heart, I decided to join the banking industry as a Management Associate in Malaysia’s largest financial institution which also marked the beginning of my life as a banker.

Setting foot in the world of banking was rather daunting at first – imagine financial statements, overdraft, equities, debt market amongst many other strange words and definitely none of them sounded close to drosophila melanogaster, streptococcus, staphylococcus etc. I honestly thought my first month was probably the only month that I had with the Bank and fast forward, I went through multiple rotations and there I was, in my final rotation. Human Capital – never in my life has this crossed my mind.

My previous life taught me there was always a formula to everything and there was always science in everything however, I realised then, there was no science in managing talents – people. I totally underestimated HR as a function. 7 years in Talent Management – the opportunities, the blood, the sweat and the tears made me who I am today as a talent manager, a talent keeper, a talent hunter and a talent marketer.

One of my highlights, has to be the inception of Maybank Go Ahead. Challenge in 2012 and the opportunity to lead it for 5 years consecutively. The people that I worked with and the lives that I have impacted – I will never trade it with anything.

I must be honest with you that I may not have chosen to be in Human Capital at the onset but it’s definitely my choice to stay with it. Now that I look back, without the science, I don’t think I can appreciate the art of things and people. And this makes us scientists in the corporate world a little extra unique compared to others.