Reflections: James Kang, NTUC Income

CIO 1-on-1 Q. Which emerging technology in 2005 was over-hyped and why?
3G has been launched for sometime but so far, it has not demonstrated any killer application that would result in mass adoption. Hopefully, we will see better results in 2006. But new technologies like WiMax have emerged, and the jury is still out.

James Kang, CIO, NTU Income, wishes for greater integration and interoperability of products across the IT industry

What was your biggest lesson learnt or most memorable experience?
The most memorable experience is reinventing the company operations using the Internet. We've implemented paperless processing, where we've converted paper documents into electronic records and accomplishing what we see as end-to-end straight through processing. We've achieved cost savings and increased customer service levels through streamlined processes and seamless systems integration.

In terms of of the biggest lesson learnt, I'd say it is managing people, which include colleagues, customers and partners. Putting in a culture that promotes business innovation, risk taking and rapid deployment has been a difficult challenge but it's worth its weight in gold.

What is the one thing you would like to see from tech vendors in 2006?
With the Internet and the opportunity of a truely networked world, I would like to see more product integration and interoperatability across the entire spectrum of the infocomm industry.