SINGAPORE: The search is on for Singapore's best entrepreneurs, as the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award for 2007 kicks off.
But this time around, there will be a key change in the way the nominees will be judged.
The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards, now in its sixth year, is shedding its industry categories.
"What we've done is try to be flexible this year. We're going to look at what an entrepreneur has done, what that person has achieved. And where there has been an extraordinary performance, we'd like to tailor the award to suit those achievements in order to better reflect what he has done.
"We might see this year, for example, the Woman Entrepreneur of the Year, perhaps an innovation prize for entrepreneurship, even social entrepreneurship," says Ong Yew Huat, Country Managing Partner, Ernst & Young.
Six to eight awards will be given to top individuals, one of whom will emerge as the overall Entrepreneur of the Year 2007.
Although the awards format has changed, Ernst & Young says the criteria for this year's awards remain the same.
The entrepreneurs are celebrated for their entrepreneurial spirit, innovation, vision, integrity, as well as their financial performance and national or global impact.
Over the years, the awards have recognised numerous entrepreneurs in Singapore.
But with globalisation, some business leaders say higher knowledge-based skills sets are required of today's entrepreneurs.
"To excel and to be highly competitive, we have to grow our knowledge of our industry, of our business, we have to grow our know-how, our IP (intellectual property) and create understanding of the global trend and so on.
So because of that, entrepreneurs coming into studying their own business or growing their own business have to be a slightly different breed from the old days," says Wong Ngit Liong, Chairman & CEO, Venture Corp.
"Last time, you can exploit what I term, "information deficiencies," that - you know something that people do not know that you can take a premium or take a cut out of it. But nowadays with Internet and that sort of thing, information is so easily available.
"So it takes additional things for entrepreneurs to thrive. For example, professionalism in terms of driving the company towards productivity and efficiency," says Kenny Yap, Exec. Chairman & MD, Qian Hu Corp.
The awards will be given out in November. - CNA/yy
Source: ChannelNewAsia, Singapore News
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