Ethical issues

Dear Mr Tan,

Hi, I was just wondering, in your 30 years as the CEO of NTUC income, have you ever encountered any ethical issues or dilemmas? How did you try to resolve these issues in the best possible ways?

I am an undergraduate in Nanyang Technological University. I need this information for my project.

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My reply:

We have to face ethical issues all the time. We have to address the question of what is right or wrong. Sometimes, it is quite difficult. Do we make more profit for the company by giving less to the customers (policyholders)? While it may be legal, it is ethically wrong.

There are many occasions when the competitors find new ways of developing their business, that are not fair to customers. Do we follow them? Are we prepared to lose out by not following them?

In my case, I decided that we have to be ethical, and do what is fair for all parties. We should give good value to our customers, and still make a fair profit for the business. By operating efficiently and at low cost, we can achieve a result that is good for the policyholders and the shareholders (of our cooperative society).

You can read about more of my views in
my talk