Since gaining his MSc from WMG back in 1998, Ian Wong has forged a highly successful career that has seen him work with a number of world-leading businesses. Now Managing Director of a fast-growing international company, we asked him to describe his progression to date – and how his experiences at WMG have helped him to achieve his professional goals.

“Once I’d gained my first degree, I was unsure whether to study for an MSc in Malaysia or the UK,” said Ian. “But the IT for Manufacturing course offered by Warwick at the time fitted my interests and ambitions perfectly, plus I liked the idea of experiencing a new culture and mixing with people from around the world.”

After his year with us, Ian travelled back to Malaysia, but his timing was far from ideal as he explained: “South-East Asia was gripped by its worst ever recession. Not the perfect situation for job-hunting, though I carefully targeted companies whose activities matched the subjects I had studied at WMG. Pretty soon my CV was picked up by Siemens Malaysia, and they offered me a role as Senior Engineer.”

Combining technical skills with business leadership

Ian was initially involved in developing and implementing IT applications within a manufacturing environment. “This whole concept was very new in Asia at the time,” he said. “What I studied at Warwick had already given me a solid grounding in the area, and as my role at Siemens moved forward, I was quickly seen as an expert in the subject.”

That role quickly grew into project management, then to business development. As well as designing solutions, Ian was writing proposals, making presentations and overseeing major accounts.

“The sales and marketing side of the industry really appealed to me,” he said. “It allowed me to combine my technical skills with business management, strategic leadership and commercial development.”

Within just two years, Ian was promoted to Manager of Industrial Projects, leading a small business unit to create and implement engineering projects for clients across a range of sectors. Then in 2003, he was made Manager of the company’s Kerteh branch, taking responsibility for business growth within a region of Malaysia.

Growing responsibilities

“At the time, this role was absolutely perfect for me,” he explained. “We were close to a major oil and gas facility, so a principal aim was to develop solutions that would support them. Since I had experience of managing O&G projects, I was able to really hit the ground running.

“As my responsibilities included generating new business opportunities and ensuring the branch’s profitability, it also helped me to take my commercial skills to another level. ”

After just a year though, Ian was approached by Johnson Controls Malaysia to join them as Country Manager. It was a huge step, as Ian described: “The opportunity to take on a country-wide role, develop a larger market and manage a bigger team was too good to miss. It was my responsibility to start up the entire technical solutions business, then drive its ongoing growth.”

Under Ian’s control, the company went from strength to strength, and within two years he once again had the chance to progress his career still further. The COGEBI Group, a world-leading manufacturer of mica-based insulating materials, asked him to become Managing Director of their Asia business unit.

“Now I had to think outside of just Malaysia to the whole Asia region,” he said. “My task was to start the company from scratch: creating a high-performing multinational team, overseeing the building of factories and warehouses, developing new business and driving growth across markets as diverse as China, India and Australasia.”

Meeting the challenges

Since Ian launched COGEBI Asia in 2005, the business has grown at a rate of around 20% a year, and it is continually moving into new markets. “It’s been a big challenge for sure,” said Ian. “Well, there are new challenges all the time, of course. But it’s massively rewarding too - watching a company that you started become so successful, as well as leading a team to drive that success.”

Having brought his journey up-to-date, we asked Ian to reflect on his time at WMG, and whether he feels that it has helped him in this career.

“Definitely,” he answered. “The course itself to start with: I didn’t realise it at the time, but my MSc programme was very much future-focused. It enabled be to see five or ten years ahead, to the way industry would develop and the kind of new thinking and new solutions that those developments would demand.

“Although WMG’s programmes have obviously changed since my year there, I can see that the courses they offer today do exactly the same thing. They’re empowering students to succeed in tomorrow’s marketplace.”

Ian also pointed out the advantage of working with fellow students from around the world: “It was a great experience to be exposed to so many different cultures. More importantly though, it equipped me to work in an international environment. At every stage of my career, that has been invaluable.”

_{Note: The IT for Manufacture course mentioned in this profile is no longer offered by WMG.}