The VIP Skybox at the Royal Selangor Golf Club was the hotbed for valuable information and dissemination of knowledge as GE presented a noteworthy forum on Health and Innovation@Work.
After a brief video screening, Malaysia’s first Formula One driver, Alexander Yoong took to the floor to moderate the enviable discussion panel which was made up of former World No 1 and The BMW Malaysian Open top seed Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, InstitutSukan Negara’s (ISN) CEO Dato’ Dr. Ramlan Abdul Aziz, former CEO of Caterham Group RiadAsmat, and GE’s Regional Medical Director for ASEAN Dr. Abed Onn.
Dato’ Dr. Ramlan stressed that society at large stood to benefit from ISN’s various research programs and on-going strategies, approaches and initiatives that are aimed at contributing positively towards both health and fitness. “ISN faces many challenges along the way in our quest to improve on not only athletes performance, but also in getting society at large, especially youngsters, to be active and healthy, while deterring them from picking up bad habits such as smoking which is detrimental to ones health,” said Dato’ Dr. Ramlan.
Wozniacki credited her family for her successful foray into professional tennis. “My parents have been my greatest supporters and pillars of strength. I started playing tennis at the very young age of 7, and it was my parents who influenced me to take up the sport and they supported and encouraged me all the way. Because I grew up in a sporting family, it was always a priority to stay healthy and keep fit.”
She added, “Even now as a professional tennis player, I have a small but dedicated team behind me who help keep me in tip-top shape. I work closely together with my fitness coach, physiotherapist and my hitting and sparring partner to stay in the best shape possible so that I am able to perform to the best of my abilities when I take part in various different tournaments all over the world.”
Yoong echoed Caroline’s statement, relating his experience back when he was a young, up and coming racing driver. “Yes the support of the family network is very important as it provides a vital source of mental and psychological strength for a young athlete. The support I had from my family was tremendous and it helped a great deal to come up through the ranks.”
Dato’ Dr. Ramlan also highlighted the importance of performance management and how scientific and psychological elements can play pivotal roles in shaping the successful athletes of future. “Understanding the importance of performance management is very important, and everyone involved has to do their part and work cohesively with one another to facilitate the nurturing and development of athletes for the future. Proper planning, teamwork, getting processes and procedures right, and a clear path towards long term vision and goals are just some of the many elements that are required to reach the top.”
Riad related his time as the CEO of Caterham Group, where performance and innovation were requirements on a daily basis. “During my time with Caterham, we were fortunate that we had GE as a strategic partner. It was a crucial relationship that enabled us to speed up various processes and consolidate our expertise and resources for optimum results and performances. Working closely together with GE enabled us to tap into their vast expertise and services which were very valuable to us as it brought about a positive impact in almost immediate results.
Dr. Abed from GE then highlighted how GE promoted health and innovation at work. “We used word of mouth and other channels of disseminating information to pass around good and positive messages. We carried out joint activities involving both employees and their families on weekends, introducing good programs with good values such as working together and forging good, mutually beneficial relationships be it at work or at home. Preparation for a healthy lifestyle is very important and it should not be neglected.”
After the panellist took questions from attending members of the floor, Alain Gerbeau from GE’s Healthahead Initiative came forward and shared more valuable thoughts and insights on health before the forum came to a close.
About GE
GE investments in Malaysia has exceed RM1 billion. GE works closely with local infrastructure providers in Malaysia, supplying equipment and services to TenagaNasionalBerhad, Petronas, Keretapi Tanah Melayu and local water authorities. GE’s Healthcare division supplies private and public hospitals with the latest diagnostic imaging equipment and healthcare information systems, while GE’s lighting division provides support for key stadiums and ports. At present, more than 1, 000 Malaysians work for GE within Malaysia and throughout the world.
GE is an advanced technology, services and finance company that readily takes on the world’s toughest challenges head on.
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