Mr Peter Ong
Chairman, Enterprise Singapore

Keynote Title: COVID-19: Staying adaptable in an uncertain landscape
The Chinese word for “crisis” is a combination of two logogram signifying “danger” and “opportunity”. Amid the
worriment the COVID-19 pandemic has brought, opportunities for enterprises to reinvent themselves and emerge
stronger have also surfaced. Thriving in this uncertain landscape also calls for an open mind and continuous upskilling. This keynote seeks to outline a direction for enterprises moving forward, delve into the opportunities that such organisations should capitalise on, as well as highlight what young talents can do to prepare for the future.

About the Speaker
Officially appointed as Chairman of Enterprise Singapore since 1 April 2018, Mr Peter Ong Boon Kwee plays a key role in steering Enterprise Singapore’s efforts to grow stronger Singapore enterprises. He works closely with the Board of Directors and executive management team in providing greater support to Singapore companies looking to build new capabilities and internationalise. In January 2018, Mr Ong was also appointed Senior Economic Advisor at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, where he provides strategic advice on economic strategies and policies as well as champion efforts to enable robust enterprise growth. Mr Ong retired from the Administrative Service on 1 September 2017. Prior to his retirement, Mr Ong was Head of Civil Service, a position he held since 2010. In 2016, he was also concurrently appointed as Permanent Secretary (Prime Minister’s Office) (Strategy) where he oversaw the PMO Strategy Group to support the Prime Minister and his Cabinet in establishing priorities and strengthening strategic alignment across Government. Mr Ong also previously held the positions of Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, the National Security Intelligence Co-ordination Secretariat, Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Transport and Ministry of Defence. Other previous postings include stints at Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited – a Government investment holding company, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and Ministry of Home Affairs. Mr Ong currently sits on the Boards of the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Lee Kuan Yew Exchange Fellowship. He was awarded the Colombo Plan Scholarship to pursue his Bachelor of Economics at the University of Adelaide, Australia and graduated with first class honours. He graduated top of his Masters in Business Administration class from Stanford University, USA in 1993 as Henry Ford II and Arjay Miller Scholar.