Top 10 Global Pharma companies in 2019:

The global pharmaceutical industry reached unprecedented heights in 2018, being estimated at an astounding USD1.11 trillion. By 2020, this figure is set to rise to USD1.43 trillion. 

With rising pressure to develop drugs to meet ever increasing global demand, pharmaceutical companies continue to work tirelessly to bring the most innovative and cutting-edge treatments to patients.

Being a research-driven industry, approximately USD150 billion is spent by pharmaceutical companies every year on research and development projects. Out of thousands of compounds, only a small percentage gain regulatory approval to be used by patients to treat disease and improve quality of life. 

However, in 2018, a record number of novel drugs developed by pharmaceutical companies across the globe were approved by various regulatory bodies. A large proportion were approved by the US regulatory body, the FDA, which approved 55 novel drugs and smashed its record for generic approvals (781 up from 763 in 2017).

Although the USA’s market share of the global pharmaceutical industry is worth over USD 341.1 billion, the Chinese, South East Asian, Eastern European and South American markets are beginning to emerge. For example, the Chinese market is rich with preclinical and early-phase drugs, and is a growing nucleus of biotech activity. 

The next few years will see global growth thanks to the increasing wealth worldwide, as well as increasing demand to maintain high levels of innovation to combat unmet medical need.

Proclinical has ranked the leading pharmaceutical companies according to 2018 revenue from their pharmaceutical segment only.  

1) Pfizer  

USD 53.7 billion

2) Roche

USD 45.6 billion

3) Johnson & Johnson 

USD 40.7 billion

4) Sanofi

USD 39.3 billion

5) Merck & Co 

USD 37.7 billion

6) Novartis

USD 34.9 billion

7) AbbVie

USD 32.8 billion

8) Amgen

USD 23.7 billion

9) GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)

USD 23 billion

10) Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) 

USD 22.6 billion

/proclinical 20-03-2019

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IHH acquiring Prince Court Hospital

IHH Healthcare Bhd is planning to fully acquire Prince Court Medical Centre from Khazanah Nasional Berhad for RM1.02 billion in cash by March 2020.

IHH’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Pantai Holdings Sdn Bhd, inked a conditional share purchase agreement with Pulau Memutik Ventures Sdn Bhd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Khazanah, for the acquisition of 100 million ordinary shares and 35,176 redeemable preference shares in the private hospital company, representing the entire issued share capital of Prince Court.

“We are pleased to be adding Prince Court Medical Centre to our existing network of 15 hospitals across Malaysia.

“This is a rare opportunity to acquire an attractive and accretive asset in Kuala Lumpur’s ‘Golden Triangle’ that will strengthen IHH’s position in Malaysia while allowing us to capture the growing medical tourism market,” IHH CEO-designate Dr Kelvin Loh said in a statement today.

Prince Court owns and operates a 277-bed private health care facility that provides a wide range of medical, surgical and hospital services in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, such as burns management, cancer, gastrointestinal diseases, interventional cardiology, in vitro fertilisation, nephrology, occupational health, orthopaedic and rehabilitation medicine.

IHH currently runs 14 Pantai and Gleneagles Hospitals in Malaysia. The government-linked corporation’s 2018 PATMI (profit after tax and minority interests) excluding exceptionals increased 73 per cent year-on-year to a record high of RM1.03 billion, and paid its outgoing CEO, Dr Tan See Leng, RM34 million last year.

“This transaction is in line with our refreshed mandate and provides Khazanah with the liquidity for our future investment capital requirements,” Khazanah managing director Shahril Ridza Ridzuan said in a separate statement.

“In addition, Khazanah is confident that Prince Court will further benefit from IHH’s wealth of experience in providing premium health care, whilst solidifying IHH’s position as leading Malaysian health care provider, where we remain a substantial shareholder with a 26.04 per cent stake.”

codeblue/17-09-2019

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KPJ: To Expand locally before going Abroad

KPJ Healthcare Bhd will cap future dividend payouts at maximum of RM 80mil of its net profit to allocate more cash for the repayment of its borrowings, executive director Aminudin Dawam said.

“Our dividend payouts have always been around 40%-50% of net profits, so our Board has advised us to put a cap in absolute terms of up to RM 80mil payout,” Aminudin said on the sidelines of the Invest Malaysia conference.

“Now we are paying about RM 70mil to RM 80mil a year and we will continue with this.“If our net profit is more than this, then it will still be capped at up to RM 80mil and the excess profit, which we are confident of growing, will be used to offset our debt,” he added.

The largest public-listed hospital group by bed-count in Malaysia said the employment of a high gearing strategy is to help it to grow further.

“This is how we expand and we have done this before. There have been some lean years too. For the last seven to eight years, dividends have been around 50% although there is no formal dividend policy by the company,” its general manager of investor relations Khairul Annuar Azizi said.

KPJ also plans to spend some RM 1.4bil in capital expenditure (CAPEX) within the next five years to increase its bed-count from 3,000 now.

“Our plan is to add another seven hospitals and these will add another 1,000 beds to the group. Meanwhile, some of our existing hospitals will expand their capacity and this will add another 500 beds,” Aminudin said.

The seven new hospitals will be located in Perlis, Johor, Sarawak, Negri Sembilan and Selangor.

“We are in the midst of an aggressive expansion in Malaysia and we don’t want to overstretch ourselves (abroad) at the moment,” he said.

Overseas expansion, if any, would be through brownfield acquisitions, with Indonesia being the main target market.

Total capex allocated for this year is RM350mil, he added.

On the weak ringgit, he said KPJ had to pass on the additional costs arising from higher prices of imported equipment to its patients.

“As a private profit-generating company, we have to do this but we also have economies of scale, so this amount is controlled. We are doing our best to be more efficient in other areas – in how we do business and in other processes,” he added.

/theSTAR 27-07-2017

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Body Language in Communication

When it comes to communication, body language counts a lot more than speaking the right words.

An American psychology, Professor Albert Mehrabian, stated that 7% is from the actual word, 38% tone of voice and 55% body language.

This means that no matter how hard one tries to convince others about his ideas, with his words, he may not be able to. However, if the individual leverages his words with his body language, it can help him to level up for success.

Thus the following should be considered for the effective use of body language:

1) Maintain Eye Contact 2) Have a genuine smile  3) A firm hand shake  4) Not fidgeting eg hair twirling, stroking your tie

5) Manage facial expression  6) Good posture eg standing confidently by looking up and straightening up

7) Use effective hand gestures to support ideas. It is to convey clear thoughts and descriptions to the other party.

/08-04-2017

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Mercer's 2017: Quality of Living Rankings

Kuala Lumpur has been ranked the second best city in South-East Asia in Mercer's 2017 Quality of Living rankings, with Johor Baru in third place.

The annual survey by consulting firm Mercer, used by multinational companies to design expatriate packages, ranked Kuala Lumpur as second for the city with the best quality of life in South-East Asia, with a global ranking of 86 out of 231 cities surveyed.

In terms of Asian cities, Kuala Lumpur is ranked at No. 10, while Johor Baru, which is 103rd globally, is ranked at No. 14.

The Quality of Living survey looked at 10 categories including political and social environment, economic environment, natural environment, housing, health services, and education.

According to Mercer's 19th annual Quality of Living survey, Singapore is the best Southeast Asian city in terms of quality of living and has a global rank of 25.

Other key South-East Asian cities in the Quality of Living survey include Bangkok, which ranked fourth in the region and 131 globally, Manila (ranked fifth in South-East Asia and 135 globally, and Jakarta in sixth place, with a global rank of 143.

Other notable cities in Asia include Hong Kong (ranked 71 globally), Seoul (76), Taipei (85), Shanghai (102) and Beijing (119).

Five Japanese cities, meanwhile, top the ranking for East Asia. These are Tokyo (ranked 47 globally), Kobe (50), Yokohama (51), Osaka (60), and Nagoya (63).

Despite increased political and financial volatility in Europe, many of its cities offer the world's highest quality of living and remain attractive destinations for expanding business operations and sending expatriates on assignment.

Vienna in Austria took the global number one ranking for the eighth year running.

Other European cities like Zurich (ranked 2 globally), Munich (4), Dusseldorf (6), Geneva (8) and Basel (10) also secured top positions in the survey.

The only non-European cities in the Top 10 are Auckland (ranked 3 globally) and Vancouver (5).

Mercer’s survey also includes a city infrastructure ranking that assesses each city’s supply of electricity, drinking water, telephone and mail services, public transportation, traffic congestion and the range of international flights available from local airports.

Singapore tops the city infrastructure ranking, followed by Frankfurt and Munich, both in second place.

  /theSTAR 15-03-2017

 

Disclaimer: Views or opinions expressed are solely those of the Author and should be used with discretion. The Author shall not be held liable for any acts or omissions arising from the use of the information. The user will be personally liable for any damages or other liability arising hereof.

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IHH goes into Chengdu, China

IHH Healthcare Bhd will set up a 350-bed hospital in Chengdu, China after leasing a space in Perennial International Health and Medical Hub. This will be Chengdu’s first foreign tertiary hospital and IHH’s first hospital in Western China.


The hospital, which will be operated by its largest operating subsidiary Parkway Pantai, is scheduled to open in the second half of 2017.

The Hospital would provide specialised care and clinical services including obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatrics, cardiology, orthopaedics, ophthalmology and internal medicine.

IHH managing director & CEO Dr Tan See Leng said: “The development of a new tertiary hospital in Western China is a significant milestone for us, and leverages our decade of experience in operating medical centres in China."

Upon completion, ParkwayHealth Chengdu Hospital will serve a total population catchment of 148 million residents in the region, and reinforce IHH’s commitment to expand into Greater China.

IHH is a major foreign-owned private healthcare operator in China with10 medical centres in Shanghai, Beijing, Suzhou and Hong Kong. Its 500-bed Gleneagles Hong Kong Hospital is on track to open in early-2017.

IHH operates a global network of 49 hospitals across nine countries.

/theSTAR 15-01-2016

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ASEAN Community -a Historical Moment!

The ASEAN Community (AC) will come into being on 31st December, 2015 a landmark achievement for the 48-year-old regional association whose member countries have wide diverse social, economic and political backgrounds.

The community will be larger in terms of population than the European Union or North America, and could rival India and China in the years to come. The 10 Asean leaders inked the historic declaration yesterday that entails greater integration of the region of over 600 million people.

The regional community is a monumental effort by every regional member country to bring their nations closer through greater economic integration and social uplift, while ensuring the region remains secure and stable.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said the idea of a community started in Bali 12 years ago, followed by blueprints and action plans.

“And today, on behalf of Asean member states represented at the 27th Asean Summit here in Kuala Lumpur, it is my solemn duty and privilege as the chair of Asean 2015 to pronounce the establishment of the Asean Community on December 31,” he said at the signing of the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on the Establishment of the Asean Community.

At the event, Malaysia and the leaders of the nine other Asean nations – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam – also signed the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on Asean 2025: Forging Ahead Together.

Six of the grouping’s eight dialogue partners – Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and Russia – as well as United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon were present.

The AC comprises three core pillars, namely the Asean Political Security Community (APSC), Asean Economic Community (AEC) and Asean Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC).

Najib said Asean would now have to ensure that a truly single market and production base was created with more free movement of goods and services, as this – having common product standards, greater connectivity and removal of trade barriers – would be one that was primed to expand.

“As it is, our combined GDP is expected to reach US$4.7 trillion (RM20 trillion) by 2020. According to one forecast, Asean has the potential to be the fourth largest economy in the world as early as 2030, which is only 15 years from now."

The AC goes beyond economy, said Najib, pointing out that it is also about recognising the special ties that bind the people and “making our citizens feel that Asean courses through their veins.”

“Our Asean Way has guided us and will continue to be our compass as we seek to realise a politically cohesive, economically integrated, socially responsible and a truly people-oriented and rules-based Asean,” he said.

“It is important that we list down some low-hanging fruits that can be delivered every year until we reach 2025, which is at the end of the 10-year blueprint under the Asean Community,” he said.

/theSTAR 23-11-2015

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Hard times like this: Part 2 ...

There are always opportunities in a gloomy economic situation for Companies that have established business plan, processes and strong management.

With the Malaysian Ringgit weakened against its trading partners, export oriented Companies will have more demands on their goods. The strong foreign currencies will make Malaysian goods very affordable and competitive for the importing Countries.

Depending on the percentage of the domestic components in the product content of the Malaysian exporter Company, the profit margin will vary.

A Company which have a high local content, which are purchased in the Ringgit, will definitely have a higher profit than those that have lesser when the payment of the goods are paid in the foreign currency particularly the USD!

The USD currency is the global dominant trading currency. Depending on the foreign currency traded Companies will enjoy different percentage/value of forex gain.

Companies may convert the foreign currency immediately upon realisation of payment. Some may "deposit" the receivables in forex account for future payments in foreign currency.

Companies that are highly impacted by the USD may also consider that their future trading transactions should be a mix of  foreign currencies rather than on a single currency as each currency have different impact on the Ringgit.

For Companies that are not export driven, but have opportunity to do so, may have to embark to do so, in order to have a healthy revenue stream of domestic and foreign earnings.

With the dynamism and changing world economy and the expected introduction of the TPPA, whether the Country is a signatory to or not, in a short few years, the challenges of the world trading system will see great paradigm shifts and business behaviour.

Thus, this present situation, is a glimpse of what could be expected in the years to come where the geographies of the world are intimately linked and flattened with almost borderless, equitable and fair, may be deemed distorted in some smaller economies, trading environment.

Let all Malaysian Companies be prepared ...

/07-11-2015

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Hard times like this: Part 1 ...

In a difficult and challenging economic situation, whatever the reasons, there is an indeed a moral obligation, for organisations to reach out and help relief the economic burdens of the citizens of the Country to the best of their abilities.

There is uncertainty as to when this economic plight would come to a landing.

Malaysian consumers are burdened with price hikes for almost all of their basic needs with the introduction of  GST (Good & Services Tax) in April 2015. They are now more careful and selective in their spending. There is an erosion of their purchasing power. Many are now "buying when necessary and in smaller quantity", resorting to more "eating at home" and taking other measures to stretch and conserve their dwindling ringgit.

The business community is also facing difficult moments with revenues affected with the weakening of the Malaysian Ringgit against major trading currencies. Their cash flow is also affected with the  introduction of GST (Good & Services Tax) in April 2015.

The Country's economy is no better with low crude oil and commodity prices.

On the whole, everyone is adversely affected.

To be sustainable, importers and domestic businesses, must be able to generate adequate revenue, with decent profit margin, to keep afloat until the worse is over. The following, general and basic action plan, not exhaustive, could be adopted either singly or otherwise, on a temporary basis until a more permanent or better solutions be found:

1) business must absorb some incremental cost and thus accept a lower profit margin. If absolutely necessary, have a minimal price increase as well.
2) negotiate with foreign Suppliers for lower cost of goods to tie over this difficult moment. Or offer more "free goods" or price discounts with purchases.
3) review your other purchases of goods and services for efficient inventory and pricing control eg stationery, logistic deliveries
4) negotiate to share cost with your local trade partners by lowering their profit margin.
5) reduce or discontinue samples, free goods or bonus to your trade partners
6) get professional advice on hedging your purchases. Get close to your Bankers.
7) get additional financial facilities from your Banks if you have to.
8) improve on your account receivables ie reduce credit days. This will improve liquidity and reduce bank borrowings in order to enhance financial  performance.

Laying staff should not be in the equation. In fact they are great assets to help you go through this period of uncertainty. Effective leadership is the key to drive business continuity.

/06-11-2015

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IHH: Opens RM 400mil Hospital in Johore

IHH Healthcare Bhd will soon open its RM400mil Gleneagles Medini Hospital in Nusajaya, Johor.

The hospital, located on a 6ha land in Medini Nusajaya, is the 14th hospital in Malaysia by Parkway Pantai after Gleneagles Kota Kinabalu, which was opened in May 2015.

 

Parkway Pantai is a unit of IHH Healthcare and is one of the region’s largest integrated private healthcare groups with a network of 23 hospitals and more than 5,000 beds throughout Asia including Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, India, China, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates.

 

Gleneagles Malaysia CEO Datuk Amir Abdullah Firdaus said the opening of the new medical facility would put Iskandar Malaysia at the forefront of healthcare in South-East Asia.

 

“We have the latest medical equipment that can be found nowhere else in Johor except in Gleneagles Medini with 250 staffs including 40 consultants. Besides that, we will also be working closely with other agencies and our counterparts in particular from Singapore to attract foreign visitors to come here,” he said. 

 

With the medical tourism market growing rapidly, Malaysia as a whole stood to gain to meet the demand for better healthcare service. The current weakened ringgit, would be able to attract more foreign visitors to come here for medical healthcare.

 

“Our Gleneagles Penang has seen high number of foreign patients where 70% of those are Indonesians while Gleneagles Kuala Lumpur have a balance number of nationals as we are strategically located among various embassies and large number of South Korean community living within the area.

 

“The healthcare services provided by us also include plastic and reconstructive surgeries,” he said.

 

He added that the hospital would have five centres of excellence, namely cardiology, orthopedics, women and children, oncology and ophthalmology.

 

The hospital, according to Amir, is equipped and designed to meet Joint Commission International (JCI) and Malaysian Society for Quality in Health (MSQH) accreditation standards.

 /theSTAR 30-10-2015

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Malaysia as Regional Halal Hub

Malaysia has called on global pharmaceutical producers to consider the country as the new regional hub to cater for the expanding global halal market.

In making the call, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said local industry players should also keep track of the latest know-how and technologies.

"Local industry players should double their efforts to position Malaysia at the forefront of the global healthcare and pharmaceutical industry," he said when opening the Halal Initiatives in Healthcare Industry Forum here today.

Also present was Halal Industry Development Corporation Chief Executive Officer Datuk Seri Jamil Bidin.

Ahmad Zahid said the global demand for halal pharmaceuticals is estimated to be worth RM 349 bil (USD 82 bil) but the current supply is estimated at only RM 8.5 mil (USD 2 mil).

 "There is certainly a huge opportunity here with a very promising future and this is where Malaysia holds some of the keys. As at August this year, there were already 110 Halal-certified pharmaceutical manufacturers in Malaysia including 24 export-ready manufacturers."

 "There are also opportunities to capitalise on Malaysia's diverse natural flora and fauna to develop resource-based bio-generic drugs. Malaysia is one of the world's 12 most bio-diverse countries and offers high potential for sourcing active compounds for healing and wellness products," he said.

On Halal tourism, Ahmad Zahid said Malaysia is the top destination and as a leader, the nation could certainly complement the wider medical tourism sector especially for Muslims worldwide.

Malaysia expects to see overall arrivals of more than 930,000 medical tourists with estimated revenue reaching RM1 billion annually, he said.

/Bernama 28-10-2015

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Ease of Doing Business 2016 Report: Malaysia ranks 18th in the World.

Released recently in late October 2015, the "Doing Business 2016: Measuring Quality and Efficiency" Report finds that East Asia and the Pacific is the second most represented region, after Europe, in the world's top 20 economies.

For the 10th consecutive year, Singapore ranks number one in the world on the World Bank Group's annual ease of doing business measurement. Thailand ranked third place among ASEAN countries on the ease of doing business after Singapore and Malaysia.

Other economies in the Asia Pacific region among the top 20 economies are New Zealand (at No. 2), South Korea (4), Hong Kong (5), Taiwan (11), Australia (13) and Malaysia (18). Malaysia improved from the 20th spot in 2014. 

The report recognised Malaysia with the most business-friendly regulations, and acknowledged the country’s significant improvements in regulatory processes.

Among the 189 global economies, Malaysia is ahead of Switzerland (26th), France (27th), Netherlands (28th), Japan (34th), United Arab Emirates (31st), Thailand (49th), China (84th) and India (130th).

/Bernama 28-10-2015

 

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Non-Traditional Model to Product Launch-Dengue Vaccines

Reproducing, in relevant parts, herewith an interesting article, lifted out from a news article, by SURESH KUMAR, Executive Vice President External Affairs of Sanofi viz:

Innovative medicines are traditionally developed and launched first for at-risk populations in the US and Europe. Later, once innovation costs have been paid for, the new medicines are then made available to endemic nations.

This model works but it has some serious limitations: namely, a delay in access to innovation in these endemic nations. There is also the risk that unmet medical needs in these countries are left neglected as they are not driving the innovation agenda of the pharmaceutical industry.

As of today, dengue remains on the World Health Organisation’s list of neglected diseases, despite the fact that it threatens half the world’s population.

Clearly, a new solution is needed – particularly for emerging markets and middle-income countries that have the capacity technical expertise, as well as disease knowledge to participate in clinical development programmes and also approve and regulate new medicines for use by their citizens.

Dengue provides a particularly well-suited case in point, since it is not a public health threat in the US and Europe but it is a major priority in endemic countries in South-East Asia and Latin America.

About 20 years ago, Sanofi set out to develop an innovative vaccine against dengue, one that would be effective in preventing the illness caused by all four dengue strains. Since then dengue has spread from a handful of countries to being endemic in over 120 worldwide and is recognised by the WHO as the fastest growing mosquito-borne disease in the world today.

The WHO has also called for a dengue vaccine to be used in conjunction with other dengue prevention efforts like vector control and education to help achieve its objectives to reduce dengue mortality by 50% and morbidity by 25% by 2020.

Sanofi set out to do both, develop and launch its dengue vaccine first in endemic countries where it could have the greatest impact on disease burden and quickly achieve these WHO objectives.

To be able to realise this “flipping the model” approach to new vaccine access, the company invested 300mil euros to build a dedicated production facility for the dengue vaccine that would eventually attain a full capacity of 100 million doses annually.

The company made this investment in 2009, at considerable risk given that the results of its Phase III clinical development programme were not yet known. Now, the Phase III programme has successfully reached its efficacy endpoints and the dengue vaccine candidate is currently under regulatory review in a number of endemic countries both in Latin America and in South-East Asia.

This is in keeping with the company’s long-standing commitment to launch the vaccine first in these nations rather than in Europe or the US, where its traditionally done.

But forging a new access model is not something that a pharmaceutical company can do on its own.

In order to be successful, Sanofi has worked hard to collaborate with endemic governments and public health bodies, as well as the global development and vaccine policy community, to build acceptance and support for this new approach.

If the dengue vaccine introduction model is to succeed, it will be necessary for Sanofi to be able to make the vaccine available, upon approval, for a fair and equitable price that balances innovation costs against sustainable access in endemic countries.

New ways of funding access to such an innovation in these countries, as well as mechanisms to help strengthen their healthcare infrastructure to be able to successfully implement the vaccine, will be needed.

Sanofi intends to work closely with governments, funding bodies and the vaccine policy universe to broker the successful introduction of the dengue vaccine upon approval. We know that more is at stake here than the launch of the world’s first dengue vaccine.

If this model succeeds, industry as a whole may be more inclined to be proactive in addressing the unmet medical needs of low and middle-income countries as a priority rather than as a second phase of medical innovation access.

Diseases like dengue disrupt economic growth and development of endemic countries and investments in controlling and eliminating this disease burden can help to further the economic stability and growth potential of these nations.

/theSTAR 08-08-2015

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IHH - 10,000 beds by 2017

IHH Healthcare Bhd plans to phase in another 3,000 new beds in its hospital network over the next two years, said its managing director and CEO Dr Tan See Leng.

"It's a combination of new hospitals and the expansion of existing hospitals," he told a press conference after its AGM here.

This includes the construction of a 500-bed Gleneagles Hong Kong, the Gleneagles Medini in Johor that is expected to start operations later this year (150 beds initially), as well as a few hospitals under the Acibadem chain in Turkey.

Currently, IHH has 7,000 beds across 39 hospitals in 19 countries in its stable. It is on track to deliver 10,000 beds by 2017.

/theSUN 150-06-2015

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Physically or Mentally Ageing?

My friend often times, without second thoughts, said that he is old in age whenever we meet up for discussions.

I asked "How old are you?". He replied "late 60s'" ... I responded "... not that old, la". Well, we always laughed over it and moved to other more interesting subjects ...

Yes, we always hear that "age is just a number". It should not hinder us from healthy living and doing the things that we would like to do.

The body indeed aged physically in its 60s' and thus not as resilient and strong as before ... thus with much realisation and caution, and with the wisdom of age, regular physical exercise and eating right, I believe, life should be richer, fuller and satisfying ...

In fact when we meet up with the "80s+ years old", there are many of this age group living in the community as well, we are like "kids" before their eyes, which is motivating and encouraging!

In fact with today's science and technology, man are eating and living healthier, longer ... so the "new norm" has come in ... "60s'" are the "young-olds".

However, the 60s' need to accept the age limitations as well. We must learn how to enjoy the lives that we desire, however, within the physical capability and limits. We should continue to learn and earn respect from the younger ones and should not expect special treatments. We should also know how to lead and share knowledge, skill and wisdom and plough back, what the world had given us, back to the community that we live in. We should not be selfish and envy others ... we should learn to be contented as well! We should be thankful and grateful that we can still give ...

On the other hand, the younger ones, must understand that ageing is part of the process of life, as one day, they will be in the "same space". Thus, love, care, mercy and grace must be mutually practised between the generations living together.

Thank God for the 60s' and moving forward being the "young-old" is definitely "not out!"

/16-06-2015

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Sales drives Inventory

"Sales drives Inventory" and NOT "Inventory drives Sales"

I was driving this message across when I was leading a group of Managers on "stock ordering" for a new business venture.

Whether it is a manufacturing plant or a trading company, high stock inventory, locks up cash flow and thus liquidity resulting in a poor and unhealthy organisation. If it is not remedied, the organisation will definitely ends up as "toxic" and eventually insolvent.

Thus, there is a need to understand and practise the art and science of inventory management.

Healthy, effective, productive and high performance Company manages stock inventories well.

Thus it is important that Managers responsible for inventory management understand the total supply chain and align themselves with realistic sales performances and projections from the Marketing & Sales department to achieve optimal inventory level as defined by the Company Policy.

Companies should send their Managers for learning and training if there are inadequate knowledge and expertise. Relevant IT inventory software, tools and SOP must be in place and, unless specifically exempted, be strictly adhered to.

A healthy Company is a financially sound Company.

/11-06-2015

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An Entrepreneur in kopitiam

I was having lunch the other day in a family owned kopitiam (Chinese colloquial for coffee shop serving drinks and food). Like all "mom-and-pop" kopitiams around him, in rows of shop lots in many blooming housing estates around the city, the food menus are almost similar, including the prices as well. I was pleasantly happy that he differentiates himself by applying "marketing concepts" to gain customer share and therefore revenue volume.

This enterprising young man is a new player in the kopitiam business. The former "owner" of the kopitiam had decided to call it a day and this young man, whom I would like to call "M", decided to "take-over" and run the business.

Could he survive as the former "owner" did not do too well.

My last count was that, there were at least 10 food outlets within a 300 metres radius of him. A small numbers were jam-packed with customers, whilst a larger number barely hits half the numbers, even one third, of the former.

"M" was bold and creative. He even brought in a famous "laksa mobile" unit to display outside his kopitiam for a few weeks during the launch of his kopitiam. That attracted attention and brought in the crowd. Food prices were at competitive rates like the others around him. As for the food quality there is no great difference from the rest. However, the "advertising" of the "laksa mobile" unit worked for him.

He is now starting a random "once-a- week" surprise for his customers. When I was there the other day, I ordered a plate of fried rice and ... surprise, I do not have to pay for my glass of Chinese tea!

M intends to have "special price discount", "free dessert" etc as surprise for each week ... so, I would anticipate, customers looking forward to visit his kopitiam for food and waiting to be surprised as well!

M told me that he learnt about special surprises by observing other practitioners of other trades ... these are marketing ideas, I said to him ... common sense la ... he replied!

I believe he will quickly prosper!

28-08-2015

Disclaimer: Views or opinions expressed are solely those of the Author and should be used with discretion. The Author shall not be held liable for any acts or omissions arising from the use of the information. The user will be personally liable for any damages or other liability arising hereof.

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Malaysia: Top 15 in competitiveness

Malaysia retained its ranking among the top 15 nations in the latest World Competitiveness Yearbook 2015 (WCY) compiled by the Institute for Management Development (IMD), based in Lausanne, Switzerland.

International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed, in a statement yesterday, said the report ranked Malaysia 14th among 61 countries – ahead of countries such as the Netherlands (15), Ireland (16), New Zealand (17), Australia (18), the United Kingdom (19), Finland (20), Korea (25) and Japan (27).

“We were ranked 14th (from 12th previously), in a group that includes the United States, Singapore, Switzerland, Canada, Norway, Luxembourg, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, together with Hong Kong and Taiwan,” he said.

Although Malaysia’s ranking declined by two positions in the latest report, he said, being placed in the top 15 globally among the most competitive nations indicates the country’s economic resilience and competitiveness.

“Continuing fiscal reforms, initiatives to control the rising cost of living, diversification of the economy, upskilling of capabilities and expertise, review of the education system, reforming and modernising the tax system through GST will enable Malaysia to remain globally competitive,” Mustapa said.

The WCY listed Malaysia as first among 30 economies with gross domestic product (GDP) per capita less than US$20,000, retaining its previous position.

Among 28 countries with populations above 20 million, Malaysia was ranked 5th. In Asean, Malaysia remains in second position, and is ranked fourth among the 14 countries in the Asia-Pacific region.

Mustapa added that Malaysia’s achievement was all the more notable given the current global economic environment and testified to the efficacy of the policies and processes implemented under the Government Transformation Programme and the Economic Transformation Programme.

“We are totally focused on increasing productivity, encouraging innovation and facilitating the ease of doing business. These are the factors that can help sustain Malaysia’s economic performance in our aspiration to become a high-income economy by 2020."

The WCY 2015 assessed countries based on four competitiveness factors - economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency and infrastructure.

Among the four factors, Malaysia recorded improvement in the economic performance indicator, moving three positions up to sixth from ninth in 2014.

This is supported by the significant improvements recorded under the domestic economy, 15th (2014: 19th) and employment, 7th (2014: 12th) sub-factors, as well as sustaining top ten positions in Prices, 3rd (2014: 3rd) and international investment, 8th (2014: 7th).

Dato’ Sri Mustapa added that this year’s WCY shows that Business Efficiency is a critical determining factor in enhancing competitiveness. “As emphasized by IMD, business efficiency requires greater productivity and the competitiveness of countries is greatly linked to the ability of enterprises to remain profitable over time. Increasing productivity remains a fundamental challenge for all countries,” he said.

 /theSUN 28-08-2015

Disclaimer: Views or opinions expressed are solely those of the Author and should be used with discretion. The Author shall not be held liable for any acts or omissions arising from the use of the information. The user will be personally liable for any damages or other liability arising hereof.

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Dispensing Separation - the Community must be involved!

The Health Minister had recently made an announcement that the Pharmacy Bill will be on hold until all relevant stakeholders had been consulted.

Dispensing Separation - Who are these stakeholders the Minister is referring to? In my mind, they are the Medical doctors, Dental surgeons and the Veterinary Surgeons. They all "diagnose and treat ailments" and are prescribers of medicines and collectively called "Doctors".

In fact these three professions had lately jointly signed a Memorandum expressing their displeasure and unhappiness over the Pharmacy Bill.

The Bill does not explicitly mention "Dispensing Separation". The Bill, defines the role, function and requirements for storing, delivery  and dispensing of medicines. Thus, once the Bill becomes an Act passed by Parliament, by default, "Dispensing Separation" kicks in.

All parties, the doctors and the pharmacists, in their arguments "against and for" Dispensing Separation respectively, had given the reasons or concerns for costs, convenience, better health delivery and patient outcome.

Yet, in my opinion, nobody had asked the patients whether they are for or against "Dispensing Separation". Yes, there are "sporadic and fragmented responses" and views from various consumer groups, political representatives etc BUT do they represent the patients at large? All parties claim to be "experts" of the subject matter!

In fact, the individual patient and consumer or the lay public at large, are confused with the arguments of the professionals or consumer associations, who claim to represent their interest ... or they are swayed by prejudices by whom they chose to listen and believe...

Is there a solution? I propose that stakeholders, including patient groups, be brought together in a organised manner, to understand the rationale for "Dispensing Separation", have a good debate in order to understand, map out options and agree on the best way forward or drop the idea for Dispensing Separation! Or even having a public survey to educate, gauge or gathering responses ... This could be done  through traditional or, in today's technology driven age, social media.

A structured, organised and methodical approach will minimise confusion and direct the way forward. Someone must take the lead!

 /19-05-2015

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IHH: Buys 51% stake in India’s Continental Hospitals for RM167mil

Malaysia’s largest private healthcare provider IHH Healthcare Bhd acquired a 51% stake in Hyderabad, India-based Continental Hospitals Ltd (CHL) for RM166.73mil.

The acquisition comes on the heels of the Competition Commission of Singapore’s blocking of a deal by IHH to acquire Radlink-Asia from Fortis Healthcare Singapore Pte Ltd for RM346.5mil.

 

The competitions regulator had blocked the deal as the acquisition would have resulted in a substantial lessening of competition in the area of radiology and imaging services for private outpatients in the island-republic.

 

IHH said in the filing with Bursa that it had acquired 71.09 million shares in CHL, which owns a 750-bed hospital with involvement in “delivering primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary healthcare services.”

 

It said the acquisition would not have any effect on its issued and paid-up capital and substantial shareholders’ stakes.

 

There would also be no material effect on the company’s earnings and net assets for the current financial year ending Dec 31, 2015, it added.

 

Last week, the company announced the acquisition of five nursing homes in Japan via the injection of RM182.62mil into Godo Kaisha Samurai.

/theSTAR 24-03-2015

Disclaimer: Views or opinions expressed are solely those of the Author and should be used with discretion. The Author shall not be held liable for any acts or omissions arising from the use of the information. The user will be personally liable for any damages or other liability arising hereof.

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