Singapore, 25 November, 2010 – CNBC, First in Business Worldwide, pioneered the Business Leader Awards to acknowledge exceptional CEOs globally. Recipients of the awards are stellar individuals, who are visionaries behind today’s outstanding businesses. They epitomize core values of a successful leader - strength, innovation, ingenuity, knowledge and foresight – values that are imperative to carving out powerful businesses in the global economy.
During an award ceremony that was hosted by award winning anchor, Maria Bartiromo, and broadcast LIVE around the world from Singapore, CNBC announced the winners of the 9th CNBC Asia Business Leaders Awards.
Asia Business Leader Award – Mr. AM Naik, Chairman & Managing Director of Larsen & Toubro Ltd. for inspiring growth for his company, while keeping in step with global trends.
Lifetime Achievement Award – Sir Gordon Wu, Chairman of Hopewell Holdings whose vision and management abilities have helped steer his company successfully both regionally and in the global marketplace.
Asia Innovator Award – Mr. Yancey Hai, CEO of Delta Electronics, Taiwan for his leadership in an organization that has innovation at its very core.
Asia Talent Management Award –Mr. Jaime Augusto Zobel De Ayala, Chairman & CEO of Ayala Corporation for his personal involvement in supporting and nurturing leadership within the company.
Corporate Social Responsibility Award – Tan Sri Dato’ (Dr.) Francis Yeoh, Managing Director of YTL Corporation BHD for his ability to translate the company’s success into benefits for the community.
Asia’s Viewers Choice Award – Mr. Ajai Chowdhry, Chairman & CEO of HCL Infosystemswho received the most votes by CNBC’s viewers in Asia Pacific.
"The 9th annual CNBC Asia Business Leaders Awards is our way of celebrating and recognizing business leaders who have shaped the Asian economy, and who will continue to lead corporate Asia forward,” said Satpal Brainch, President and Managing Director, CNBC in Asia Pacific. “Congratulations to all of the winners and finalists for their outstanding achievements throughout the year."
For more information on the 9th ABLA winners please see appendix below or visit our website at www.abla.cnbc.com
9th Asia Business Leader Awards is hosted by:
CNBC in Asia Pacific
CNBC is the recognized world leader in business news, providing real-time financial market coverage and business information to more than 380 million households worldwide. In Asia Pacific, CNBC is distributed to over 70 million households and is uniquely positioned to speak to viewers from across the region. Headquartered in Singapore, the network provides nine hours of live Asia-produced programming every weekday, which is complemented with coverage of live market action from Europe and the US. CNBC Asia Pacific's channels, which include CNBC Asia, CNBC-TV18 (India), CNBC Awaaz (India), CNBC Pakistan, Nikkei-CNBC (Japan) and SBS-CNBC (South Korea) are available in more than 21 countries across the Asia Pacific region. CNBC also has a strategic alliance with Shanghai Media Group, which wholly owns a subsidiary, China Business Network and a collaboration with China Central Television (CCTV). In China CNBC reaches 400 million homes via CCTV’s Business Channel programme, Global Connection Show. The channels are distributed via satellite, cable and terrestrial broadcast networks, as well as through digital platforms.
CNBC Asia Business Leaders Awards (CNBC ABLA)
CNBC’s Asia Business Leaders Awards acknowledge exceptional CEOs regionally. Recipients of the awards are stellar individuals, who are visionaries behind today’s outstanding businesses. They epitomize core values of a successful leader - strength, innovation, ingenuity, knowledge and foresight – values that are imperative to carving out powerful businesses in the global economy. ABLA contributes to the development of the business community in Asia as it salutes exceptional regional business leaders for their accomplishments and gives the Asian business community the opportunity to learn valuable lessons from them. The CNBC ABLA not only recognizes these outstanding individuals, but is a platform in which they are able to engage with the business community at large.
Previous CNBC Asia Business Leader Award winners include:
Frank Ning CEO, COFCO Corporation(2009)
Hirokazu Yoshikawa CEO, Dowa Holdings(2008)
Harish Manwani CEO, Unilever, Asia / Africa(2007)
Anand G. Mahindra Vice Chairman & Managing Director, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd(2006)
Chen Feng President, Hainan Airlines Company Limited (China)(2005)
Gerardo Ablaza Jr CEO, Globe Telecom Inc (Philippines)(2004)
S. Ramadorai CEO, Tata Consultancy Services (India)(2002)
KV Kamath CEO, MD, ICICI Ltd (India)(2001)
Appendix:
Asia Business Leader Award 2010
The Asia Business Leader Award goes to A. M. Naik of Larsen & Toubru Ltd for inspiring growth for his company, while keeping in step with global trends. Larsen & Toubru, founded in Mumbai in 1938, began as an importer of machinery from Europe. Today, it sets global engineering benchmarks in terms of both scale and complexity. With over 50,000 employees and more than 60 subsidiaries in over 25 countries, the company serves customers in more than 30 countries throughout the world. Mr. Naik joined the company in 1965 as a junior engineer, climbing through the ranks until he was ultimately appointed Chairman in 2003. He has since restructured the company into sharply focused operating divisions and led a transformation process aimed at enhancing value for shareholders. Mr. Naik emphasizes HR and IT as the twin engines of growth for the company as he successfully defines a strategic direction for Larsen & Toubru. His corporate growth mantra is “Grow the Core, Grow to Sell, Shrink to Grow, Discover and Grow.”
Lifetime Achievement Award
The Lifetime Achievement Award goes to Sir Gordon Wu, Chairman of Hopewell Holdings whose vision and management abilities have helped steer his company successfully both regionally and in the global marketplace. Sir Gordon is one of the founders of the Hopewell group and is the Chairman of Hopewell Holdings Ltd and Hopewell Highway Infrastructure Ltd, both companies are listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Hopewell’s major businesses include PRC infrastructure, property letting, hotel operation and property construction. Sir Gordon graduated from Princeton University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering and received Honorary Doctorate Degrees from Hong Kong Polytechnic University, University of Strathclyde UK and University of Edinburgh UK. He personifies the driving ambition behind East Asia’s rapid economic rise in the latter part of the 20th century and is a major force in Asian infrastructure. He is lauded as a visionary and a builder of power plants and superhighways that he is known by the media as “Asia’s Mr. Fix-It”. Also, dubbed as “the man who turned the lights on “ by former Philippines President Fidel Ramos.
Asia Innovator Award 2010
The Asia Innovator Award recognizes Mr. Yancey Hai of Delta Electronics for his leadership in an organization that has innovation at its very core. Mr. Hai sees innovation as the most important part of Delta’s corporate culture, and consistently encourages new ideas and expansive thinking. In recent years, he has led in the company’s change in business models, a shift from OMD to DMS, and has been a key player in marketing the Delta brand in China. Mr. Hai has worked hard to bring a new mindset to his employees, both by recruiting fresh talent and retraining veteran workers, often even bringing engineers overseas to meet clients face to face, allowing exposure to new ways of thought to expand the horizons of all of Delta’s work staff. As Mr. Hai works to challenge the mindsets of his employees, he also hopes to challenge society to dare to change long-held views about energy sources and usage, hoping through this change to bring about viable energy options for the years to come.
Asia Talent Management Award 2010
The Asia Talent Management Award goes to Mr. Jaime Augusto Zobel De Ayala of Ayala Corporation for his personal involvement in supporting and nurturing leadership within the company. Ayala Corporation, with more than 175 years in existence, is one of the oldest and largest companies in the Philippines. Ayala began as an agriculture, distillery, and trading company. Today, it is the holding company for a wide array of groundbreaking enterprises, many of which are leaders in their respective fields. Mr. Zobel identifies and mentors key leadership talent within Ayala. His personal philosophy toward leadership development is that he has “a direct responsibility as a leader to see others after us succeed in developing our institutions, keeping them relevant in changing times and making them progressive forces that contribute to the nation’s welfare.” In the past two years, Mr. Zobel has implemented a group-wide talent review process and established a leadership acceleration program in conjunction with Harvard University.
Corporate Social Responsibility Award 2010
The Corporate Social Responsibility Award acknowledges Mr. Francis Yeoh of YTL Corp. Bhd. for his ability to translate the company’s success into benefits for the community. YTL has grown from a domestic construction company, established in 1953, into a global integrated infrastructure developer. Mr. Yeoh leads the way in recognizing opportunities by which YTL’s work can have a positive impact on society, making societal impact a corporate priority. YTL, under Mr. Yeoh’s leadership, offers scholarships promoting higher education for Malaysians, and undertakes initiatives aimed to promote education, health, and environmental improvements. YTL is also a major supporter of the Arts in Malaysia.
Asia Viewers Choice Award 2010
TheAsia’s Viewers Choice Award goes to Mr. Ajai Chowdhry, Chairman & CEO of HCL Infosystems. This award is determined by CNBC’s viewers from across the Asia Pacific region, and Mr. Chowdhry received the highest number of votes from CNBC’s viewers.
