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Up Close and Personal featuring Nina Yang, SJ CityGlobal
For the fourth instalment of the Up Close and Personal Series, we spoke to Nina Yang, CEO of SJ City Global.
Inaugural WLI Singapore Commendation Award 2022
2 June 2022
The Urban Land Institute believes that diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) are the pillars of sustainable, thriving communities. Under its Women’s Leadership Initiative (WLI), ULI seeks to increase the visibility and professional development opportunities for women in the industry. The primary objectives are to:
- Promote the advancement of women, throughout their careers, as leaders in the real estate industry
- Increase the number of women who serve in leadership positions in the real estate industry and in ULI
- Increase the visibility of women leaders in the real estate industry and in ULI
- Increase the number of women who are active ULI Full members and support the development of young women members as leaders in ULI and in their positions.
Aligned with these objectives, ULI Singapore with funding support from the WLI Singapore Advocates aims to build the pipeline of women entering the real estate industry by engaging students and exposing them to ULI’s mission to shape the future of the built environment for transformative impact in communities worldwide.
On 2 June 2022, ULI Singapore hosted its inaugural Women’s Leadership Initiative (WLI) Singapore Commendation Award 2022. Three (3) outstanding graduating female students of the National University of Singapore (NUS) Bachelor of Science (Real Estate) received this prestigious award.
(L-R, alphabetical by surname) Valerie Chua Jing Yi; Rika Ogawa; Geraldine Yeh Yi Xiang
The Award includes
- Cash prize of SGD1,000
- 1 year membership with ULI which provides access to:
- Global research content
- Learning events and activities
- Peer-to-peer networking
- Leadership engagements
- Exclusive opportunity to observe WLI Singapore Steering Committee meetings
The intent of the award and its development opportunities is to further nurture their interest in the real estate and land use industry and equip them with the skills and knowledge that would support their career progression.
Tang Wei Leng, Co-Chair of the WLI Singapore Steering Committee presented the award and hosted a chat with each of the award recipients to find out more about their perspectives and hopes for the future of the built environment.
(L-R, alphabetical by surname) Awarded by WLI Singapore Co-Chair Tang Wei Leng to Valerie Chua Jing Yi; Rika Ogawa; Geraldine Yeh Yi Xiang
Chat with Valerie Chua, Bachelor of Science (Real Estate) with specialization in Real Estate Finance, who will soon start as a Portfolio Management Analyst at Blackstone.
Wei Leng asked Valerie on her experience interviewing for jobs in real estate. Valerie shared that the hiring company were looking for talents who possessed an appreciation of the breadth and depth of real estate and had the learning mindset. She also observed that there seemed to be a gender imbalance so when she had heard about the Women’s Leadership Initiative, she was heartened to know that such support was available to nurture women to progress and rise as leaders in the field.
Chat with Rika Ogawa, Bachelor of Science (Real Estate); Bachelor of Business Administration (Finance). Currently working as an Investment Analyst, BlackRock
Wei Leng shared with the audience that Rika was one of her mentees a few years ago and that she was happy to see how Rika has grown from a shy undergraduate to a confident executive. Knowing that Rika had been working a few months in BlackRock, Wei Leng asked her how she was settling in. Rika said that BlackRock operates with a flat hierarchy and she valued the ease of access to senior leaders in the firm. Admittedly, the work was tough but she found it quite enjoyable.
Rika expressed her gratitude to NUS who supported her throughout her time as an undergraduate. Her Real Estate professors were great mentors and the NUS Business school provided career advisory services which broadened her awareness of career choices and opportunities.
Chat with Geraldine Yeh, Bachelor of Science (Real Estate) and ongoing Masters in Urban Planning. Currently working as an intern at JTC.
Geraldine’s interest in urban planning was sparked by her studies at Ngee Ann Polytechnic Business and Social Enterprise course. During her studies she noticed that there were areas in Singapore with poorer living conditions. Fueled by a desire to create better living conditions for the less fortunate, she pursued real estate studies to build knowledge on housing solutions. She learned that it entailed more than just the building itself. Surrounding factors mattered such as facilities, infrastructure and road network. She said that even small things matter. For instance, accessibility to good parks would go a long way in making a person’s life a lot better.
In her wrap-up, Wei Leng remarked how each of the award recipients had distinctive interests in the built environment and ambitions, and that NUS did a commendable job in nurturing diversity in our next generation of talents.
The Award Ceremony was attended by the award recipient parents, NUS representatives, ULI Singapore Executive Committee and WLI Singapore Steering Committee members.
(Back Row, L-R) NUS Head of Real Department (Real Estate) Prof Sing Tien Foo; ULI Singapore Chair Benett Theseira
(Front Row, L-R) WLI APAC Chair Magdelene Chua, WLI Singapore Co-Chair Tang Wei Leng, Director of BBA Office Dr Helen Chai, Rika Ogawa, Head of Development Office NUS Business School Yvonne Ho, Valerie Chua, Geraldine Yeh
This Award was made possible by the funding support of WLI Singapore Advocates. ULI Singapore also wishes to thank Colliers for hosting this event and National University of Singapore for its support.
Read more about each award recipient: