20 December, 2006

Knowledge is Power


A good year keeps getting better ... last night the editorial team from Public Sector Technology & Management, Asian Security Review and Urban Development Asia swept all before it at Symantec's inaugural Trivia Night, organised by our friends at Text100. Jianggan "Nairobi" Li, Gerald "Titanic" Wang and yours truly finally managed to convert the trivia bouncing around our heads into ... three rather attractive lumps of perspex (pictured).

Of course we had a little help from the other members of our team, who were Greg Waldron (freelance writer), Edward Lim (General Manager, Symantec Singapore) and our team captain Gavin Lowth (Director, Online Channels, Consumer Products & Solutions, Symantec APJ).

Wish you were there to join in the fun? Well get a feel for it by answering the following questions:
1. Name Henry VIII's first two wives?
2. Who wrote the first dictionary?
3. What does Temasek mean?
4. What year did Kurt Cobain shuffle off his mortal coil?
5. Who has had the most number 1s in the UK Top 40 Singles charts?
6. When was GST introduced to Singapore?

13 December, 2006

A thing of beauty



The Transport Security Forum, our first conference of 2007, is looking like a little beauty, even if I do say so myself. It's a sad fact that the region's transport infrastructure has seen a rise in security risks - and an annual forum for senior transport operators and public safety officials has clearly been something that has gone down well with our speakers (see below), and amongst our government delegates. The event is in March, but we already have 25 registered delegates ... so I can't wait to hear what our speakers have to say.

Our confirmed speakers:
  • Tarique Ghaffur, Assistant Commissioner, Central Operations, Metropolitan Police, United Kingdom
  • BG Yam Ah Mee, Chief Executive, Land Transport Authority of Singapore
  • Donald R. Zoufal, Chief of Staff and General Counsel, Office of Emergency Management and Communications, City of Chicago, United States of America
  • Sh.S.R. Mehra, Commissioner, Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, India
  • Peter Benedict Lim Sin Pang, Deputy Commissioner, Singapore Civil Defence Force
  • H.E. Mattar Al Tayer, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Road and Transport Authority, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
  • Wong Hong Kuan, Assistant Commissioner, Director of Operations, Singapore Police Force
  • Zeev Sarig, Managing Director, Ben Gurion Airport, Israel
  • Iskandar Abubakar, Director General, Land Transportation, Ministry of Transportation, Indonesia
  • Kanputt Munglasiri, Vice President, Airport Security Department, Survarnabhumi Airport, Airport of Thailand
  • Lucas V. Cauton Jr, Director, Land and Rail Security Bureau, Department of Transport and Communications, The Philippines

09 December, 2006

Feed the Hungry




The relief effort managed to get through to the weary, half-starved hordes just in time. It looked touch and go for a while though; supplies had been running low in our pantry and people were resorting to ferreting through the piles of paper on my desk in search of some half-eaten carbs to give them that all important mid-afternoon sugar rush.

But thank God for Mercury and Avanade. Alanna (see earlier reports) told me about Mercury's chocolates that: "Mmmh, yummmh ... yes, they're good ... mmhhy, I'll try another one just to be sure."

And Avanade actually personally delivered their bundle of chocs through the worst monsoon to hit Singapore's shores in decades. It's that level of commitment I like to see from the regional solutions provider community. So come on everybody dig deep for the next big charitable cause -- our very own 'Hogmanay Whisky Appeal'.

08 December, 2006

Our best event ever?


I was pretty chuffed yesterday (as you could probably work out). And today we're still all as pleased as punch having learned that His Excellency Mattar Al Tayer (pictured), Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Dubai's Road and Transport Authority, is joining us for the Transport Security Forum. I've interviewed him before, as he was kind enough to share Dubai's experience of transport planning in the July issue of Urban Development Asia. I had high hopes for this event when we started planning it, based on the feedback we'd been getting from the readers of Asian Security Review magazine ... but to be honest, this is the best conference programme I've been associated with since coming to Asia nine years ago.

The range and seniority of the speakers, spanning security agencies, transport ministries and operators, combined with the relevance of the discussion in the present Asian context ... this is going to be a hard event to top. Congratulations to Melissa for doing such a great job reeling in the speakers.

06 December, 2006

Burp



Thanks are due to Business Objects for a rather lovely Christmas cake -- something which our resident garbage disposal unit Alanna (pictured), has managed to dispose of rather too quickly. In fact I'm not sure I got a look-in at all ... which seemed like the noble thing to do at the time. But now that my stomach is rumbling ominously, I'm beginning to regret.

05 December, 2006

Pikia Media


I'm out of the country for a few days, and some of my most demure colleagues turn into pikia [Hokkien for gangster], for which I evidently have to thank the corrupting influence of Nokia, courtesy of their end-of-year party for the media.

Although I'm more a 'short back-and-sides' man, I was surprised to learn that slacking can pay - Sachin 'Pimp Daddy' Satish won one of Nokia's latest mobile phones for his miraculous transformation.
Pictured (left-right): Jianggan Li, Koon Si Mink, Sachin Satish.