The China-India alliance, and what it means for your business
Suranjana Tewari, Asia Business Correspondent, BBC News
Lin Suling, Opinion Editor, The Straits Times

A year in from the Xi-Modhi handshake on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Tianjin, an alliance of convenience between China and India has the potential to radically reshape world trade. And of course, it has huge implications for multinationals operating in the Asia Pacific region. With China and India actively courting ASEAN, while Washington spurns the bloc; and with Japan and Australia moving even closer, the region as we know it is changing significantly. To help us understand what’s happening, and what the long-term impact will be, we’re joined in this session by two observers of the region: BBC Asia Business Correspondent Suranjana Tewari, and The Straits Times Opinion Editor Lin Suling. Suranjana reports regularly from around the region, and was previously based in Mumbai as the BBC’s India Business Editor. Her prior experience includes work with CNN and NBC, as well as a posting in Doha with Al Jazeera. Suling’s career includes a stint on The Straits Times’ Foreign Desk and as an Executive Editor at Channel NewsAsia. She has also worked in senior Singapore Government policy roles, as Head of the Ministry of Defence Policy Office, and Head of the Ministry of Finance Economic Policy Office. She was also Director of Economic Policy for the NTUC. Suranjana and Suling will translate the headlines into reality, and as part of the discussion we’ll look at what other multinationals are doing to address the risk factors.

How Finance leaders can use sales technique to win internal buy-in
Lana De Silva, Founding Partner, Growise Solutions

Finance leaders are frequently called on to drive business decision making, but too often they fall into the trap of simply presenting the numbers, without connecting those numbers to a business imperative What matters far more is the ability to shape conversations, win support, and ensure your insights land with impact. Often this is seen as a communication problem. But what if it was more than that? What if Finance leaders could win executive focus and resources using influence and persuasion. The encouraging news is that influence isn’t an innate talent; it’s a skill that can be built. With practical techniques, refined communication, and the right mindset, finance leaders can command attention and gain buy-in. To lead this session we’ve invited a sales leader to train us all on the art of influence. Lana De Silva and her team to Growise help corporate sales teams maximise the value of all their sales conversations. She’ll teach you how to use these sales techniques to win buy-in in your internal discussions. Lana brings almost 20 years’ sales leadership experience across Asia Pacific and Europe, and has worked with a range of MNCs in training and developing influencing skills.

Managing the multitasking mind: some tips for CFOs
Dave Pynt, Chef-Owner, Burnt Ends Hospitality Group
Additional panelists to be advised

If you’ve ever wondered how you can handle the multiple and often disparate elements of the typical multinational company regional CFO role, spare a thought for our panel, all of whom spend their days shifting between different elements of thinking and action to drive results for their organisations. Research clearly shows that multitasking doesn’t work, and yet all of us end up doing it just to keep up with our day jobs, never mind the multitude of side-projects that - in many large companies - tend to fall to Finance. Harvard Business Review urges ‘monotasking’ - completing different types of work sequentially but not simultaneously - but what happens in the real world? In this panel we’ll be joined by entrepreneurs and leaders in creative fields, who’ll share their multitasking secrets. Dave Pynt is the founder of Burnt Ends Hospitality Group, which manages two well-known Singapore F&B brands: Burnt Ends, a One-Michelin starred modern barbecue restaurant and Meatsmith, the wood-fired barbecue restaurant. An Australian, Dave has also worked as a chef in Denmark, Spain and the UK, and has led Burnt Ends in Singapore since 2013.

Members may attend with a member of their Finance team. Light refreshments will be served.