Bank Executive's Advice Focuses On 'Where You Want To Go'
Citigroup Singapore Chief Sees International Growth As Catalyst in Job Market
October 23, 2006; Page B7
Catherine Weir is Southeast Asia head for Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking and is responsible for its corporate banking, corporate finance, investment banking, global transaction services, equities, fixed income, and treasury activities in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam and Brunei. She is also country head for Singapore, where Citigroup employs 8,400 people in a variety of local and regional roles, up from 7,400 last year.
Mrs. Weir, an American, joined Citibank in 1988, a decade before the U.S. financial-services giant merged with Travelers Group to form Citigroup Inc. She assumed her current positions about two years ago and has overseen the U.S. lender's expansion into Vietnam and the broadening of its Islamic-banking business in Malaysia and Indonesia. In Singapore, she pays special attention to staff matters and has introduced dayrooms for new mothers, lunchtime talks on topics such as helping children with homework, and flexible benefits and hours to attract and retain staff.
Mrs. Weir holds a degree in business administration from John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio, and a masters degree in business administration from Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea, Ohio.
She talked with Kevin Lim in Singapore about management, and working and living abroad.
WSJ: What's your advice to new graduates?
Mrs. Weir: To those looking for building blocks in their careers, I would say take a deep look at the financial-services market. You can apply your skills in many different ways and in many different aspects. There is investment, consumer lending, corporate finance, of course, but there's also technology, project management, marketing, public affairs and communications.
The industry is growing, and there are very positive growth prospects in Asia for the next decade at least. Growth creates opportunity, and the industry will be an enormous developer of talents.
For those with some working experience, elsewhere or with one of our local competitors, joining an international group like Citigroup will be more interesting because there is scale, and the opportunity to work in a multicultural environment. You can see a bigger, global arena for clients as well as products and services.
Whether you studied in Singapore or elsewhere, where you come from isn't as important as where you want to go.
WSJ: Do you have any special advice for women entering the business world?
Mrs. Weir: The first thing I would say is seek advice and engage in mentoring. There have been ambitious people before you, including women. They are the wise sages who have done things ahead of us. Informal mentors have been some of my best advisers.
WSJ: What is the best business advice you've received?
Mrs. Weir: If something is good for the client, it would be good for Citi in the end; if it's not good for the client, then it cannot be good for Citi. Most of my work has involved client-facing work, and I've been taught to be straight and honest when dealing with clients. I follow the same advice when dealing with colleagues, vendors, and other stakeholders.
WSJ: Do you have a favorite business book?
Mrs. Weir: I don't have a favorite. Right now, I'm reading "Inside the House of Money: Top Hedge Fund Traders on Profiting in the Global Markets" by Steven Drobny. I'm interested in the difference between being in a bank and being part of the interesting development that is a hedge fund. Much of the industry is marked by new developments, and the last few years have clearly been marked by the creation of hedge funds and private-equity funds, and the part they play in the distribution of wealth and risk. I think they have been constructive.
One of the books that stands out in my mind is "Eat the Rich" by P.J. O'Rourke. It gives an insight into the development of societies and economies in an enjoyable and witty, light-hearted way. It shows that growth is about the energy and willpower of people who can make a lot out of what looks like very little, and that development and growth have to be carefully managed.
WSJ: What have you learned about working in Asia now that you've lived in Hong Kong, Manila, Shanghai and Singapore?
Mrs. Weir: While Asia is Asia, every community is different. We do the same products and services and the strategy is broadly the same. The great challenge is to calibrate to the different culture, environment, marketplace and client.
For example, I think there is a little bit of cerebralness in the way Singaporeans work. They will study very hard, fashion a strategy and take action. Hong Kongers are more tactical and action-orientated, and they will adjust along the way. I must say, the outcomes are both successful, though.
The one thing you must do is be engaged, stay close to your people and clients. You learn a lot from them and they are the ones who will actually help you achieve your assignment.
WSJ: What would you say are your most memorable experiences in Asia?
Mrs. Weir: We started microfinancing in the Philippines, where we didn't see it applied in any depth or breadth. [Microfinance refers to small, unsecured loans made to help people in poor areas start basic businesses and improve their livelihood. Such loans are usually administered by nongovernmental organizations or small communities to reduce costs.] It was most rewarding because you can see the job creation and skilling -- in particular, the skilling of women. Many of the entrepreneurs we speak to use the profits from their companies to invest in their children's education.
The experiences in the Philippines have affected my whole family. My children still identify with the Philippines. I have, with my children, built houses there for the homeless with Habitat for Humanity.
In Singapore, we are involved with something called Ideas and Action, which is essentially venture capital for young students. We provide the seed money, they develop and prototype, and they compete to get more funds to get their prototypes out to market.
花旗经理的海外工作体验
韦嘉 (Catherine Weir)是花旗(Citigroup)企业与投资银行集团东南亚区总裁，主要负责在新加坡、印度尼西亚、马来西亚、泰国、菲律宾、越南和文莱的包括公司银行、公司金融、投行、全球交易服务、股票、固定收入和国债交易活动在内的业务。她还担任花旗驻新加坡负责人，该公司在这里拥有员工8,400人，分别从事本地及地区性业务，去年这里的员工总数为7,400人。
韦嘉 是一位美国人，1988年加入花旗银行(Citibank)，十年后，这家美国金融服务巨头与Travelers Group合并，组建了现在的花旗集团。两年前韦嘉 就任目前的职务，她曾负责将花旗的业务扩大到越南，并使该行在马来西亚和印尼的伊斯兰银行业务不断扩大。在新加坡，她尤其关注员工事务，她为刚刚生产的母亲开辟了休息室、定期举行包括如何帮助孩子做作业等多种话题的午间讲座，为了吸引和留住更多员工，她还安排了灵活的工作时间，并灵活发放福利。
韦嘉 持有俄亥俄州John Carroll大学的工商管理学位，此后又获得该州Baldwin-Wallace学院的工商管理硕士学位。
日前韦嘉 在新加坡接受了《华尔街日报》记者凯文?利姆(Kevin Lim)的采访，谈到了有关管理、工作以及在海外生活的一些感想。
《华尔街日报》：对于新毕业的大学生你有什么建议吗？
韦嘉 ：对于那些希望在事业上作出一番成就的人，我想说的是，首先要对金融服务市场有一个深刻的了解。你可以在很多领域、以很多不同方式施展你的才华，比如投资、消费信贷和公司金融，当然，还包括技术、项目管理、营销、公共事物和沟通等。
这个行业发展迅猛，亚洲的增长前景至少在未来十年内都非常广阔。增长必然带来机会，这个行业将成为大量有识之士施展才华的舞台。
对于那些有着其他行业的工作经验，或者在我们的本地竞争对手那里工作的人，我想说的是，加入像花旗这样的跨国集团会更有意思，因为这里为你提供了一个在多元文化环境下工作的机会。你将接触到全球各地的客户，并能见识到面向全球市场的金融产品和服务。
你是否在新加坡就读，你来自哪个国家，这些都没有你选择哪家就职公司重要。
《华尔街日报》：你能给进入商界的女性提些建议吗？
韦嘉 ：首先，要多听听别人的建议，认真向他人学习。你周围有很多志向高远的人，包括一些女性。他们都是你的良师益友，有很多经验可以传授给你。我一直非常珍视那些不经意间学到的东西。
《华尔街日报》：你得到的最好的商业忠告是什么？
韦嘉 ：如果有什么事是对客户有利，那么最终也将对花旗有利；如果对客户无益，对花旗也不会有益。我的大部分工作都在与客户打交道，我渐渐学会了坦率、真诚地对待客户。我与同事、经销商和其他股东交往也一直遵循着这一原则。
《华尔街日报》：你最喜欢的商业书籍是什么？
韦嘉 ：很难说我最喜欢哪一本书。最近我在读史蒂文?德罗布尼(Steven Drobny)的《黄金屋：顶级对冲基金交易员如何从全球市场获利》(Inside the House of Money: Top Hedge Fund Traders on Profiting in the Global Markets)。它阐述的在银行业工作和参与到对冲基金发展中的不同感受很吸引我。这一行业的很多方面都出现了新的发展，特别是过去几年中对冲基金和私人资本运营基金日趋成熟，并在资金分配和分散风险方面发挥了重要的作用，我觉得它们很有建设性。
欧鲁克(P.J. O'Rourke)的《吃掉有钱人》(Eat the Rich)给我留下了深刻印象。它以一种轻松、诙谐的方式对社会和经济的发展进行了深入的分析。它说，增长是人类能力与意志力的结晶，人类可以从细处创造出伟大的成就，我们必须精心维护目前的发展和增长。
《华尔街日报》：你在香港、马尼拉、上海和新加坡都曾经生活过，在亚洲的工作经历给你带来了什么？
韦嘉 ：虽然都是在亚洲，但每个区域却有着不同的特点。我们在各地的产品、服务和经营战略大同小异。最大的挑战就是要迎合不同的文化，不同的环境，不同的市场及客户。
比如，新加坡人的工作方式较为理性，他们仔细研究、制定策略，然后再付诸实施。而香港人则更加善于随机应变，他们以行动为出发点，随时对策略进行调整。不过我必须说，两种风格都是非常成功的。
你必须做的一件事就是用心，与员工和客户保持密切的接触。你会从他们那里学到很多东西，事实上他们是真正能帮助你完成使命的人。
《华尔街日报》：你在亚洲最难忘的经历是什么？
韦嘉 ：我们曾经在菲律宾率先推出了小额信贷，当时我们并没有想到它会发展到怎样的程度。（小额信贷是指向贫穷地区的居民发放的小额、无担保贷款，帮助他们创立基本业务，改善生活质量。为了降低成本，这种贷款通常由非政府组织或小型团体管理。）当你看到就业增长、技术被广泛推广（特别是在女性中间推广）时，你会感到特别有成就感。很多创业者把自己公司产生的利润用于子女的教育。
在菲律宾的这段经历已经影响到了我的整个家庭。我的孩子现在还对菲律宾有着特殊的感情。我和我的孩子们参加了人类家园(Habitat for Humanity)为无家可归者开展的建屋活动。
在新加坡，我们参与了一个名为Ideas and Action的项目，事实上这是一家专为年轻学生创办的风险基金。我们提供种子资金，他们去开发、创立模型，并相互竞争来获取更多资金，将他们的模型推广到市场上。
