Anthony’s learning journey as a Singtel Management Associate began in 2016, full of challenges.

Under the guidance of supervisors, he pushed through and became one of Singtel’s Project Managers. His fulfilling experience included a trip back to his hometown, Jakarta, where he completed his international posting in Telkomsel.

As a Project manager involved in implementing 5G nationwide, Anthony’s role involves the delivery of million-dollar radio network enhancement projects. Challenges are part and parcel of his everyday work and Anthony valiantly battles his daily project challenges.

Anthony’s interest in the telecommunications and digital services industry was sparked during his university days when he took up an engineering specialisation in Radio Frequency (RF). Then, he hustled through his Electrical and Electronics Engineering Degree in the National University of Singapore with commendable achievements.

“I wanted to apply my RF knowledge while at the same time learn about people, project and vendor management. Given my career aspirations, I was naturally very attracted to join Singtel Management Associate Programme (MAP) which allows me to fulfil my career aspirations!’’ he shares.

The not-so typical day as a Project Manager

Taking on the responsibility for the delivery of 5G projects, Anthony discusses and solves project related issues with his team and potential vendors.

He also spends significant time with planners to strategise Singtel’s 5G base station rollout plan for the next year or future years. Currently, after the 5G tender, he ensures the smooth delivery of 5G contract such as making sure that agreed commercial agreements are translated to the contract in good faith.

Anthony’s favourite project was delivering one of Singtel’s biggest and extremely demanding 5G tender where he was tasked with business case preparation, tender requirement, negotiation and contracting.

“I had to learn new requirements and deliver results at a tremendous rate. The experience was exacerbated by Circuit Breaker as the key members were unable to meet face-to-face to find alignment and make decisions. Despite this being my toughest journey, I learnt and grew a lot in a short period of time,” he shares in a heartfelt manner.

Being quick, adaptable and sharp is extremely crucial for a project manager.

“I believe most of us have managed projects in our lives, be it planning an overseas trip or an event, project management does not come easy,”

He emphasizes that it is always important to have a ‘Plan B’ for projects because every action comes with a risk and it is how you effectively tackle the incoming challenges by coming up with alternative plans that differentiates you from someone that lets things loose.

“I have made a few mistakes along the way,’’ he acknowledges. ‘’However, those were also learning opportunities for me!”

Singtel accelerated his professional journey

Anthony’s first automation project was an unforgettable one - in 2017, he was tasked to pioneer an end-to-end automation solution to reduce man-hours spent on daily mobile network’s system monitoring, weekly dashboard creation and anomaly detection. It was his first “big” project where he had full autonomy.

“The project was completed well. It was a fulfilling experience, given that it was one of my first large-scale projects,’’ he shares.

From September to October 2018, Anthony went on his international posting to Telkomsel in Jakarta. It was his opportunity to travel down memory lane (because it was his home country) while at the same time learn and develop himself professionally as much as possible.

During his short stint, he participated in their nationwide strategy planning for mobile networks and performed a benchmark study to understand how to do radio planning on such a massive scale. The experience of learning something new in a different environment and language was a fun one for him.

Amazing People, Awesome Impact

“Resourceful”, “assertive” and “reliable”, were the adjectives commonly used by Anthony’s colleagues to describe him.

“There have been many who have helped me on my journey in Singtel. People from different departments have influenced my working style; the most important of them all being my team lead, Lim Kay Hong.’’

“He patiently guided me to be a better project manager and person. When I first joined this team, I felt overwhelmed by the amount of work and things to be learnt. He taught me how to juggle all these things,’’ he shares.

If there is one thing to take away from Anthony’s journey, it is that with the right guidance, support and effort, anything is possible.

His work inspires and his driven personality spurs many. Just like how he was inspired and supported by his colleagues and managers alike in both work and non-work-related aspects, to do great things and create an impact.

Here in the Singtel Group, we provide both support and opportunities to nurture our employee’s learning journey as it is part of our culture. If you are looking for the right head start to a fulfilling career, join us. Together, we can make an awesome impact.

Read more about our career opportunities here and follow us on our socials (@singtelcareers).