Adele Hung is a global commercial director in one of the largest biopharmaceutical companies. Based in Singapore, she is also an international keynote speaker. Her professional journey includes founding a healthcare consultancy in China’s Greater Bay Area and working in investment banking. Adele has forged a successful career holding key leadership positions across marketing, digital and strategy functions.

Having lived and worked in the United Kingdom, Canada, Hong Kong, China and Singapore, Adele believes in cultural authenticity. She regularly speaks about diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace. Adele inspires people to overcome self-limiting beliefs by relating her transformational leadership stories and cultural experiences. In 2017 she established the Women Leadership Initiative in Singapore to support diversity and encourage active allyship in the workplace. 

Adele holds a BSc in Speech Pathology and Behavioural Psychology and an MBA with Strategy and Finance majors. She lives with her husband and their two young daughters.

Guru Vishwanath is a 30-year veteran in Technology who is currently the Head of Pre-Sales for South Asia with Telstra International Pte Ltd.

He has lived in Singapore for more than 27 years and has built a strong community network professionally and personally.

Guru is a champion of organisations that support and help women and children.

Guru is a mentor and helps career professionals transition into different fields. Professionally, he is known for his high energy, cheerful and positive attitude, empathy, and integrity.

In his personal life, Guru has participated in fundraisers and events like Hair For Hope for Children Cancer Foundation, White Collar Boxing for Children Surgical Centre, and many other notable events to raise money and awareness for those causes.

Ivan McAdam O’Connell is passionate about helping others break free of the prisons in their mind to live their true potential and a life they will remember.

Ivan lived the expat life for 16 years, living and working across four countries in leadership roles at a global bank, before taking a leap and travelling the world for a year and a half with his wife and young daughter.

Prioritising living, learning and family, Ivan then forged a different path. Building a new flexible portfolio career as a coach, advisor, investor, entrepreneur and writer.

Today Ivan and his family are based in Singapore and help people and organisations globally unlock the secrets to their success. Ivan works with a growing tribe of families who dream of more, as well as with leading consultancies, investors, startups and professionals, helping them to grow and make breakthroughs.

Karishma Samtani’s journey to be her best and bring out the best in others began with her grandma and mum, who were beacons of light that served the community tirelessly. Her building blocks for engaging in multifaceted approaches to making a difference are a testament to her unwavering commitment to serving others.

With Karishma’s blend of expertise in Financial Services, dedication to mental health, and passion for cancer prevention, she is a force to be reckoned with. Karishma’s impact reaches far beyond the confines of her profession, leaving a lasting impression on the lives of countless individuals she has touched.

Over the years, in her professional role and pro-bono basis, she has worked with over 3,000 students individually through universities, non-profit organisations, and social enterprises, helping them achieve their goals. Karishma’s struggles with prejudice and marginalisation as an ethnic minority catalyse her relentless drive to make a worthwhile progressive impact.

Neetha Sanjay is a Singapore-based, ICF Certified Life and Career Coach who is passionate about empowering women to achieve their life and career goals. A dental surgeon by training with more than a decade of experience in healthcare management, she enjoys sharing her learning by speaking on confidence, resilience, and positivity and helping women advance in life and career.

She previously served on the Board of PrimeTime Professional and Business Women’s Association, a non-profit organisation with a mission to help women to live their lives to their maximum potential. Being an advocate for women, Neetha is committed to working with organisations that help empower the next generation of female leaders, focusing on those from underserved communities. Neetha is also a member of the Communications Committee at SNM (Singapore) and a Mentor with Wedu Global, She Brilliance, and the National University of Singapore.

Chapter Title: Winning at Life: A Mindset for Success

Preeti Kurani is an experienced executive coach and leadership facilitator with 20+ years of corporate leadership.

In 2019, after an extensive stint in the luxury jewellery and diamond industry, she diversified into professional coaching in pursuit of her passion for people enablement and her purpose of fortifying humanised organisational culture and leaders.

Having held leadership positions across levels, Preeti partners effectively with leaders from the C-suite to individual contributors and leadership teams, for developing critical leadership mindset and skills, emotional intelligence and resilience, and cognitive and contextual agility for living wholly and leading courageously, driving sustainable and long-term growth and impact.

Preeti has partnered with hundreds of leaders and has held deep coaching conversations with leaders from a wide range of industries – finance, fintech, IT, consulting, pharmaceuticals, energy, and luxury among others.

She is an ICF Accredited PCC, CTI Certified CPCC, and Marshall Goldsmith Executive Coach.

Sagar Kinhekar is a professional working in the financial industry. He is also a qualified life coach. He has earned the experience of life through his extensive travelling across the world and by observing cultures and people. He has a special interest in history, philosophy and scriptures. 

Sagar believes one can understand real people beyond the representational facade only by going beyond transactional relationships and developing deep empathy. In his writings, he draws heavily from this rich personal experience and represents it with fictional characters. 

Anindyo Naskar’s passion lies in developing people’s capabilities and careers. This endeavour collaborates with people at the core as designers and strategic thought partners for facilitating leadership and organisational transformation.

Anindyo is technically savvy and thrives on driving his initiatives to improve performance using the latest technology. He effectively leads change in times of uncertainty and ambiguity and is an effective generator of innovation and enablement.

Currently, Anindyo leads a global retail organisation as the Head of Learning and Development and is a multiple award-winner in HR, Learning. Talent and Leadership Domains. He is a Certified CIPD, ATD and ILM Professional and a Certified Coach in Resilience and Execution Excellence.

Anindyo lives with his wife and daughter in Dubai and loves reading, listening to music and travelling. Anindyo aspires to be a Learning Consultant and a Performance technologist in the near future.

Lina El Assaad is an Executive, Leadership, Team coach and a corporate facilitator with over 20 years of corporate experience in senior leadership positions with multinational Fortune 500 companies. 

She holds a PCC certification from the International Coaching Federation. Lina’s coaching practice is known for its tailored solutions that help clients achieve their goals and attain higher levels of success. She has a strong track record of assisting C Suite executives, ministry cabinet advisors, and business professionals in overcoming challenges and navigating complex situations. 

Beyond her coaching work, Lina is dedicated to creating social impact through mentoring and her role as an ambassador for the Female Wave of Change. She actively empowers young women in areas like self-confidence, career development, and transitions. Lina’s extensive rounded experience and passion for making a difference make her a highly respected and sought-after expert in the coaching field.

Nayla Hage is a compassionate and determined individual devoted to personal growth and assisting others. Obtaining certification as a Clinical Integrated Hypnotherapist has brought immense pride, enabling her to harness the incredible potential of the subconscious mind.

Through her own personal development, Nayla has gained valuable insights into the importance of self-love, achieving work-life balance, and establishing boundaries. This newfound consciousness has motivated her to embrace her full potential and strive to be the best version of herself in every moment.

With privileged exposure to diverse cultural backgrounds, Nayla profoundly admires individuals from all walks of life. Each person’s unique qualities captivate her, and she approaches every interaction with empathy, curiosity, and respect.

Nayla’s journey is one of self-discovery, empowerment, and gratitude. She eagerly seeks connections with others, open to learning from their experiences and growing together as they navigate the intricate tapestry of life.

Soha Chahine is a renowned corporate coach and trainer with over a decade of experience in the field of human resources. As the founder of Forward Training and Consulting FZE, Soha specialises in emotional intelligence, resilience, and leadership coaching and training. She is a Chartered Institute of Personal Development (CIPD) qualified professional with a master’s degree in human resource management and training and certifications in CHRMP, Diversity & Inclusion, NLP, Team Coaching, Lego Serious Play facilitator and many psychometric assessments.

Soha is a multi-award-winning coach and trainer committed to helping organisations and their employees achieve their full potential by nurturing a thriving workforce that can contribute to the success of the organisation.

As a forward-thinking coach and trainer, her approach focuses on the skills and competencies needed for the future of work, making her an expert in developing individuals and teams who are resilient, determined, and committed to overcoming life’s challenges.

Nomaxesibe Yolanda Mzuzu-Madikizela is the founder and Managing Director of Kumyolz Investments (Pty) Ltd, a company founded in 2013 that is 100% black female owned. She is the only young black female in the revenue enhancement space who is a 100% shareholder.  

Yolanda has worked in the ICT industry for local and international companies. She has also worked as Operations Director in an accounting firm (Zenzo Trading & Projects) where she acquired extensive financial experience. 

Through leadership and women’s empowerment, Kumyolz Investments received an award from Standard Bank Top Women and the award for “Top Gender Empowered Company 2021”. 

Yolanda is sustained by my uncompromising adherence to her strong moral and ethical principles and values. She believes “in ethics, integrity is regarded as the honesty and truthfulness of one’s actions”.

Amrita Mukherjee was born a Bengali and raised in Chennai. She lived there for 19 years and called it home until she married. 

Amrita has now lived in the USA for over a decade and works for a private recruitment firm as a Senior Human Resource Executive and an entrepreneur for her start-up home business “Knitted with Love” – a hobby that turned into a passion and has become a growing business in the last year. 

Amrita loves to sing, knit and write. She is a voracious reader and an avid traveller. She suffers from a perpetual Fernweh – a craving for travel.

The two mantras that Amrita has followed all her life are: “Giving up is not an option” and “Be kind”.