Singapore appoints new govtech agency chief executive

Government Technology Agency (GovTech) of Singapore today announced the appointment of Kok Ping Soon as its new Chief Executive with effect from May 1, 2018.

Currently holding the position of Deputy Secretary (Development) in the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), Kok will succeed Jacqueline Poh. Under Poh’s stewardship, GovTech set up the Government Digital Services at Hive to develop citizen-centric digital products such as the OneService app, Parking.sg, and the National Trade Platform. She also led GovTech to further strengthen the government’s cybersecurity posture and resiliency of key government ICT systems and infrastructure. According to a press statement, her next appointment will be announced in due course. “The Board of GovTech would like to thank Jacqueline for transforming GovTech into an organisation that is bold and prepared to take risks in getting things done. Under Jacqueline’s leadership, GovTech has been able to deliver innovative and imaginative solutions that have taken Singapore forward in its journey to becoming a technology-enabled society. Her leadership in moulding this culture will be a lasting legacy,” said Permanent-Secretary (Smart Nation and Digital Government) and Chairman of GovTech Ng Chee Khern. Also Read: GovTech, NUS partner to train 2,000 public servants in data science annually He also said that Kok will build on “the strong foundation” that Poh has laid. “Ping Soon is a person who cares for people, and I expect he will continue to develop the most important capability in GovTech – the people and its culture – further strengthening and embedding the changes that Jacqueline initiated,” he added. As Deputy Secretary (Development) at MOM, Kok oversees national policies and programmes related to Workplace Safety and Health, Human Capital Development, and SGSecure for Workplaces, as well as initiatives on service excellence, digitalisation, people engagement, and future-ready capability building. Prior to his appointment at MOM, he was Senior Director, National Security Co-ordination Centre within the National Security Co-ordination Secretariat in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). He has also held various positions in Ministry of Trade & Industry, Ministry of Manpower, Singapore Tourism Board, and Economic Development Board. The Chief Executive is a graduate of the National University of Singapore where he majored in Economics. He attended the Advanced Management Programme by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), Stanford Executive Programme by the Stanford Graduate School of Business and was also awarded the Lien Ying Chow Legacy Fellowship to pursue a research project in China. The post Singapore appoints new govtech agency chief executive appeared first on e27. Source: e27