FAM Postgraduate Colloquium 2019

Prof Michael Cheah, Clinical Associate Professor from Gabelli School of Business, University of Fordham, New York, USA giving his keynote address

The Faculty of Accountancy and Management (FAM) organised “Postgraduate Colloquium 2019” at UTAR Sungai Long Campus on 16 November 2019. More than 20 postgraduates were in attendance to present their research works at the colloquium.

Present at the colloquium was Prof Dr Michael Cheah, an accomplished Clinical Associate Professor from Gabelli School of Business, University of Fordham, New York, USA. Also present were FAM Dean Dr Sia Bee Chuan, R&D and Postgraduate Programmes Deputy Dean Dr Pok Wei Fong, Head of PhD and MPhil Programmes-cum-Organising Chairperson Dr Cham Tat Huei, Head of MBA Programmes Dr Ng Kar Yee, MBA students from Anhui University of Finance and Economics (AFEU), FAM academics and postgraduate students.

The colloquium aimed to provide a platform for the postgraduate students to present their recent works or findings in their research fields as well as for the postgraduate students and academic staff to exchange ideas and gather feedback on their research works.

Dr Sia thanking the audience for their presence at the colloquium

Thanking the audience for their presence, Dr Sia said that the colloquium was one of the initiatives taken by the faculty to bring the industry closer to the university. “The idea of the colloquium is to meet and discuss the existing knowledge. I hope this colloquium will be rewarding to the postgraduate students as they share their work and knowledge with each other,” she added.

Kick-starting the colloquium was a keynote speech by Prof Michael Cheah. His keynote speech was titled “Man in the Street vs Hedge Funds: Scope for Research from the Battle Field”. With more than 30 years of experience in the market, Prof Michael Cheah presented some crucial information on the investments in hedge fund from the American perspective. He also explained to the audience on the types of funds to invest and the various risks involved in the management of funds by the fund managers. He elucidated that the background of fund managers is very important and that they must have sufficient experience and knowledge in the investment market to be able to handle funds. He also gave a lot of examples on various fund management companies and their performance to help audience decide on which fund to take.

In addition, he also spoke about mutual funds, hedge funds and megatrends in investment opportunities. According to Prof Michael Cheah, investors will invest in opportunities in the future based on the Fourth Industrial Revolution. They will also take into consideration issues like global warming and renewable energy besides looking out for changes in the demographic. These gave some pointers to the audience on what companies look for in the future. Overall, the keynote address revealed Prof Michael Cheah’s vast experience and knowledge in the area of fund investment.

Prof Michael Cheah was the executive vice president of Capital Position, one of the financial industry’s premier positioning, growth strategy, and global marketing firms. Prior to that, he held the position as the senior vice president and senior portfolio manager responsible for all investment-grade fixed income portfolios at AIG SunAmerica Asset Management Corp. He was the head of the U.S. Bond Division, Markets, and Investment Department, and chief representative of the New York office for 17 years at the Monetary Authority of Singapore. His responsibilities at the monetary authority included managing foreign-exchange reserves and overseeing external relationships with financial and government institutions in the United States.

Prof Michael Cheah has also taught global finance and macroeconomics at New York University, where he was a senior adviser for the private sector concentration. He received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the National University of Singapore and a Master of Science degree in management from London Business School, where he was a Sloan Fellow and a Monetary Authority of Singapore postgraduate scholarship recipient. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst and financial risk manager. His current research interests are in the area of Global Financial Markets and Macroeconomic Policies.

 

Audience listening attentively

The keynote session was followed by postgraduate students’ presentations, which was divided over several sessions that took place concurrently. Session one saw Lok Bee Lan presenting on “Soft Skills Requirements in Malaysia Labor Market: A Study on the Manufacturing Industry in the State of Penang, Malaysia”; Keng Teck Ee presenting on “Science Communication  Model for Emerging Health Science in Malaysia”; Fok Kuk Fai presenting on “The International Mobility of Highly Skilled and Its Impact on the Economy: The Cases of Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand”; Bong Chong Sar presenting on “Determining Critical Success Factor for Effective Construction Waste Management in Power Utility’s Project Site”, and Tiong Kui Ming presenting on “Equity and Non-Equity Entry Modes: Location-Specific Advantages”. The session was chaired by Prof Dr Cheng Ming Yu.

Session two was chaired by Dr Sia. It saw Low Chin Kian presenting on “The Internationalisation Process of Born Global Firm: A Malaysia Perspective”; Tan Jui Aik presenting on “The Dáo of Knowing: Knowledge Creation and Strategy Innovation in a Malaysian Context”; Low Suet Cheng presenting on Acceptance of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) toward Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Lending in Malaysia”, and UTAR academic staff Farah Waheeda binti Jalaludin presenting on “The Relationship Between Mobile Commerce (M-Commerce) Adoption and its Impact on Organisational Performance: An Empirical Study of SMEs in Malaysia”.

Chaired by Dr Goh Hong Lip, session three saw Shelley Ong Tze Xien presenting on “An Integrated Approach towards Non-Revenue Water (NRW) Reduction in Urban Water System”; Lim Qiao Ming presenting on “Efficiency, Productivity, and Competitiveness of Insurance Industry”; Mfon Nathaniel Udo Akpan presenting on “Long-term Performance of Horizontal Mergers and Acquisitions in Nigeria”, and Poobalan Tana Shingam presenting on Shadow Economy: Tax Compliance, Prevention and Enforcement in Malaysia”.

The last session saw Lin Kok Leong presenting his research titled “Multi Pillar Pension: Alternative Retirement Savings for Retirement Planning in Malaysia”; Lim Hui Si presenting her research titled “Country Governance, Economic Complexity and Economic Growth”; Lee Yan Yin presenting her research titled “Examining the Role of Resources, Capabilities, and Digitalisation of Malaysian SMEs to Accelerate Internationalisation”, and Chua Chang Jin presenting his research titled “E-Wallet Adoption and Implementation in Malaysia”. The session was chaired by Dr Lee Siew Peng.

PhD student Poobalan Tana Shingam presenting his rePhD student Poobalan Tana Shingam presenting his research titled “Shadow Economy: Tax Compliance, Prevention and Enforcement in Malaysia” search titled “Shadow Economy: Tax Compliance, Prevention and Enforcement in Malaysia”

PhD student Lin Kok Leong presenting his research titled “Multi Pillar Pension: Alternative Retirement Savings for Retirement Planning in Malaysia”

Master’s student Chua Chang Jin presenting his research titled “E-Wallet Adoption and Implementation in Malaysia”

Master’s student Lim Hui Si presenting her research titled “Country Governance, Economic Complexity and Economic Growth”

Master’s student Lee Yan Yin presenting her research titled “Examining the Role of Resources, Capabilities, and Digitalisation of Malaysian SMEs to Accelerate Internationalisation”

PhD student Low Suet Cheng presenting her research titled “Acceptance of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) Toward Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Lending in Malaysia”

UTAR academic staff Farah Waheeda binti Jalaludin presenting her research titled “The Relationship between Mobile Commerce (M-Commerce) Adoption and its Impact on Organisational Performance: An Empirical Study of SMEs in Malaysia”

Master’s student Lim Song Huat presenting his research titled “Performance and Level of Motivation among Government Employees in Malaysia”

PhD student Keng Teck Ee presenting his research titled “Science Communication  Model for Emerging Health Science in Malaysia”

Master's student Louis Lim presenting his research titled “Mobile e-wallet”

PhD student Fok Kuk Fai presenting his research titled “The International Mobility of Highly Skilled and Its Impact on the Economy: The Cases of Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand”