Amidst much uncertainty in the global environment, the tenth edition of Influential Brands® Awards was a timely reminder of the importance of good leaders and their ability to steer companies through a volatile landscape.

As a regional company, Influential Brands celebrated the Best in Class in Singapore and Thailand with a presence of more than 300 C-suite executives from leading companies from across the region such as Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and China.

Some of the esteemed Awardees recognised in Singapore include prominent Brands, such as NTUC FairPrice and Changi Airport Group.  

Elaine Heng, Deputy Group CEO, FairPrice Group, said: “FairPrice Group is delighted to receive three accolades including the Supermarket, Online Grocery Retailer, and Supermarket Private Label awards at the 2022 Top Influential Brands Awards. This is a strong testimony of our dedication and commitment to our customers. As a progressive retailer with a social mission to moderate the cost of living, we will continue to innovate and serve the needs of the community, while keeping the price and supply of daily essentials stable for all” 

Kelvin Ng, Vice President, Corporate & Marketing Communications, Changi Airport Group said:  “Changi Airport Group is humbled to receive this affirmation from travellers. This is only made possible by the strong support of our airport partners, who keep our Changi flag flying high every day. We endeavour to work hard and innovate to deliver the best airport experience to every traveller that we serve.”

 Guest of Honour, H.E. Mr. Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, Minister of Tourism and Sports and Awardees at The Grand Chatrium Hotel in Bangkok 

Influential Brands and its Thailand partner, Neo Target, held the 2022 Asia CEO Summit & Award Ceremony in Thailand to recognise the efforts from prominent companies and business leaders including Central Retail Food, Grab Thailand among other distinguished awardees. 

Stephane Coum, Chief Executive of Food Group, Central Food Retail (CFG), said: “I am grateful to my team for doing their best for our customers, colleagues and community.  Together, we will continue to take “Tops” to greater heights as a Food Discovery & Destination with the goal of being truly a Green & Sustainable Retailer that delivers the greatest shopping experience to all.”

Worachat Luxkanalode, Managing Director of Grab Thailand, said: “Grab Thailand is deeply honoured to receive this prestigious award. Being recognized as Thailand’s Top Influential Brand truly reflects the trust and support gained from everyone in our ecosystem that includes users, merchant-partners and driver-partners.” 

Backed by a robust anonymous employee survey with the participation of more than 10,000 employees, eight companies are crowned “Top Employers”. The Awardees are: Canon (Hi-Tech), Siemens (Technology), Watsons (Health & Beauty Retailer), NUHS (Healthcare), PKF (Public Accounting Firm), PropertyGuru Group (Technology), APB (Brewery) and JustCo (Co-working) are lauded by their own employees through anonymous surveys as excellent employers.

These eight companies were awarded the title “Asia’s Top Employers” for scoring above international benchmarks. They surpassed industry standards in having meaningful employee engagement, strong alignment between employee & company culture and relevant HR practices in this digital age. The company culture and employee engagement assessment were conducted in collaboration with aAdvantage Consulting firm, Influential Brands’ research partner.

Backed by a robust market survey in Asia with the participation of 10,000 consumers, 49 companies are named the “2022 Top Influential Brands”. 

The Awardees by category are Hospitality & Travel: Changi Airport Group, Frasers Hospitality, Gojek, Grab, Klook, Retail: Chow Tai Fook, Lotus’s, Makro, NTUC FairPrice, The Mall, Tops Market, Banking & Insurance: Muang Thai Life Insurance, Thai Life, SCB, Food & Beverage: Auntie Anne’s, BreadTalk, Café Amazon, Din Tai Fung, Harry’s, Krispy Kreme, Mister Donut, Toast Box, Fast moving consumer goods: Bio-home, Canesten, CP, EB, Holistic Way, Kratingdaeng, Lifree, Meiji, Naturel, Playmore, POKKA, Refresh, Sadia, Suu balm, Zappy, Education: MindChamps, NTUC LearningHub, Health: AOX (Hall of Fame), Beijing Tong Ren Tang, Eu Yan Sang, Beauty: Caring Skin, Jean Yip, Others: AIS, Ecovacs, IG, Major Cineplex, PTT Station.

In view of their ongoing efforts for more than a decade to provide the best health products to customers, AOX was inducted into the Hall of Fame. 

Finally, based on their branding efforts to engage customers and provide an excellence experience, four companies were recognised as Outstanding brands. The Awardees are EX Style and Zansan representing Singapore and FWD Insurance and Government Housing Bank representing Thailand.

The main highlight of the summit in Thailand was the recognition of the Top CEOs who were assessed based on their capacity to expand their business (local and international), financial performance, innovation and personal integrity. 

Panote Sirivadhanabhakdi, CEO of Frasers Property Limited received the top accolade of the night when he was named Top CEO in Asia. He shared, “It is a privilege to be recognised as Asia’s Top CEO by Influential Brands. I share this honour with our people who support and deliver for our customers and communities across the world. Real estate is a people business and it’s important the work we do serves a meaningful purpose. My purpose is to try to improve the overall quality of life for people around me and then to use the platform I have to make a positive difference in society. That’s why as a leading multinational real estate investor-developer-manager operating across five asset classes, we strive to not only create lasting shared value for businesses, communities and planet, but also deliver inspiring experiences for all”.

Together with Sirivadhanabhakdi, 7 business leaders from Thailand were recognised as Top CEOs in Thailand, namely, Stephane Coum, Chief Executive Officer of Food Group, Central Food Retail Co. Ltd, Sara Lamsam Chief Executive Officer of Muang Thai Life Assurance PCL., Chai Chaiyawan, Chief Executive Officer and Director of Thai Life Insurance PCL., Vitoon Sila-On, Chief Executive Officer of S&P Syndicate PCL., Chatchai Sirilai, President of Government Housing Bank, Chayaphon Hunrungroj, Chief Executive Officer of Altitude Development Co., Ltd., and Channapa Saisamorn, Chief Executive Officer of Techno-sell (Frey) Co., Ltd. 

Based on their outstanding leadership capabilities and performance, the Outstanding Leaders Award has been given to four business leaders in Thailand, namely: Pavarisa Chumvigrant, Chief Branding and Communications Officer of FWD Life Insurance PLC., Siriporn Dechsingha, Chief Corporate Communications Officer of Siam Makro PCL., Prettaya Sutchasila, President of Southeast Life Insurance PCL., and Voralak Tulaphorn, Chief Marketing Officer of The Mall Group. 

Vannee Leelavechbutr, Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Neo Target, added: “The CEO Summit & Award Ceremony is more than just an event for celebration. We aim to make it a platform for prominent executives and brand owners across Asia to collaborate and grow beyond national levels.”

Jorge Rodriguez, Managing Director of Influential Brands, said, “It is our honour to recognise C-suite executives who are highly respected in their industries and are committed to embrace new business models with a great sense of responsibility. We are also committed to recognise Top and Outstanding Brands that have been able to delight consumers, gaining their trust and loyalty. Finally, the accolade of Top Employer is a true testament of companies’ efforts to implement best-in-class HR practices and build a great culture, making them the best employers to work for. We are looking forward to a greater engagement with ASEAN business leaders in 2023.”