The Breakfast Grille

Phillip Karuppiah, CEO of The Malay Mail, says it will be competing head-on against The Star, NST and The Sun as a morning mainstream newspaper with star reporter, Terence Fernandez as the editor. On its online strategy, The Malay Mail will buck the trend and is likely to charge for online content to avoid cannibalising its print sales. The new Malay Mail will be launched nationwide on 30th January and a weekend edition may be launched 3-6 months later.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Dwight Adams discusses forensic science and new methods in crime scene investigation, and how realistic is CSI, the TV show. A pioneer in DNA testing for crime investigation and a former FBI director, he is now a director at the University of Central Oklahoma Forensic Science Institute. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Raymond Gan, CEO of Kelington Group (stock code: KGB), says the company is diversifying its customer base and proactively engaging fund managers to promote the company. Starting with Mox Linde, Gan's former employer, as its first client, the gas and chemical delivery company has since secured clients in the semiconductor, solar cells, pharmaceutical and bioscience sector. In terms of small caps, Kelington is one of the better performers. Dividend yield is about 3.3% but Gan says a policy will be announced in future. At the moment. the company is re-investing profits and want to balance between achieving growth and paying dividends.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Victor Lim, regional general manager of South East Asia at Shaklee, says the group would focus on healthcare products rather than over-expand its product range to third party and household products although it could multiply sales. In terms of market expansion, Shaklee prefers to expand by focusing on one market at a time before moving from Indonesia to Thailand and Vietnam. Indonesia is expected to be a significant market for Shaklee in the next five years. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Montree Sornpaisarn, CEO of Maybank Kim Eng Thailand, says Thailand is recovering and is expected to grow about 5%, and the political situation is expected to remain stable as Thaksin Shinawatra is likely to stay out of the country.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mark Chang, founder and CEO of Jobstreet.com and Malaysia's most successful entrepreneur from the dot com days, talks about his humble beginning and the importance of having humility and pragmatism in business. Mark is also an investor in BFM. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Barton Biggs, Traxis Partners hedge fund manager and Author of "Wealth, War and Wisdom", discusses: - His rather bleak views on the future of the global economy; - The possibility of a breakdown of the civilized infrastructure”; - His assertion that Mankind endures ``an episode of great wealth destruction'' at least once every century; - The connection between wars and markets; - His views for the prospects of US economic recovery - outlook for US stock market- Difficulty of gauging the prospects for the global economy and the market direction; - Views on the European debt crisis; - Whether he remains net long on the US economy; - Whether Asia has re-coupled with the Western economies - whether this is a concern; - Concern over a slowdown among Asian exporters; - Chinese central bank appearing to prop up the Yuan as well;- The survivalist message of 'Wealth, War and Wisdom: invest 5 per cent of income in creating a refuge "well-stocked with seed, fertiliser, canned food and medicine".See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

National Innovation Agency CEO Dato' Dr KamalJit Singh discusses: - How innovation can be government-led; - Whether examples exist where a global titan was created by a government; - A (BCG) commissioned study's three key recommendations to boost innovation;- 'Focused funding' - performance management system - comprehensive linkages within the innovation ecosystem;- How the success or failure of his work can be measured;- The programs it is running;- Quick wins - long-term initiatives; - Whether and Why he has encountered pushback in its plans; - Reports of the resignation of technical advisor N Danaraj (who was in charge of putting together the National Innovation Policy); - His desire to implement a competitive bidding system.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Datin Chan-Low Kam Yoke, group CEO and co-founder of HELP University, tells about the humble beginnings of HELP Institute when it was a college, and gives insights into its acquisition strategies, and about working with her husband Datuk Dr Paul Chan. Kam Yoke won the Ernst & Young women entrepreneur award in 2011. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Yen Siew San, the CEO of Continental Automotive Malaysia, tells the history of the company under different shareholders, the megatrends of the auto industry, what he thinks about the future of electric cars, and what he thinks the national auto agenda should be premised on. Continental Automotive accounts for two thirds of Continental's group revenue. In Malaysia, it supplies instrument clusters to Perodua, and the engine management system to Proton. Most of its production is for the export market.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Berjaya Food Bhd CEO Dato' Francis Lee discusses: - Update on number of outlets in Malaysia - number owned directly; - Number that are franchise owned - how the franchise model is working for BFood; - Outlet opening rollout plan; - Update on branches overseas; - Indonesia plan; - Expectations of M&A - brands that would suit the Berjaya Food model - re-position from fast-food to mid-casual; - Update of purchase of 50% stake in Starbucks; - Financial impact of Starbucks entry; - Whether Papa John’s pizza - Wendy's - Krispy Kreme - will also come under the BJ Food umbrella; - Growth outlook; - Plans for cash - 33 million ringgit on books; - Dividend policy; - Plans to be 1b market cap within five years.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ashok Rao, chairman of TiE Global, the entrepreneur network group, talks about the challenges he faced as an entrepreneur, how Malaysia can foster a stronger culture of entrepreneurship, and how TiE can connect entrepreneurs in Malaysia to the world. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Adrian Gore, the founder of Discovery, a medical insurance provider in South Africa talks about how his innovative schemes are lowering premiums and rewarding clients for staying healthy.    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

DC Cordova, the global CEO and founder of Excellerated Business Schools and Money & You programme, talks about acquiring a wealthy mindset.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Edward Striebig, the regional manager for Southeast Asia and Australasia of Bentley, talks about the direction of the British marque.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

William Asprey, the chairman and founder of William & Son, a luxury goods store in London's Mayfair talks about the future of luxury brands - should they remain small and exclusive, or gain scale? William is a seventh generation member of the Asprey family of royal jewellers.    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Franz Linder, the preseident of Mido of the Swatch group, tells how the timepiece brand became a leader in the mid-tier segment in China. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Markus Miele & Dr. Reinhard Zinkann, Managing Directors, Miele, discuss: - Malaysia expansion; - Importance of Malaysia to ASEAN; - Biggest markets; - Number of "galleries" around the world -- locations, breakdown by region;- Upmarket positioning - reasons; - Why showrooms are called "galleries"; - Whether will ever go downmarket for a less wealthy but far more populous Asian market; - How design and manufacturing considerations differ for the high-end; - Extent of quality testing to justify sky-high prices; - Quality and longevity: feelings on short product cycles; - R&D issues; - Whether manufacturing has been outsourced; - Demand outlook; - Resilience; - Profits, revenues, margins; - Management styles; - Great grandsons of the founder - management has always passed to the male heirs - fourth generation to be in charge - challenges; - Succession plans; - Challenges of appeasing the 56 family shareholders; - How much longer can this structure be used - plans to institutionalise. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Count Anton Wolfgang von Faber-Castell tells how the company can stay in family hands for more than 250 years and the vision for the company for the next 10 years in view of competing substitute products like the iPad. The premium maker of writing materials sells more than 2 billion pencils a year and last year's revenue was 540 million Euros. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jebsen and Jessen Group of Companies (SEA) Chairman Heinrich Jessen discusses: - Explanation of business - Singapore / Malaysia origins; - Core businesses (Eight): Cable Technology, Chemicals, Communications, Life Sciences, Marketing, Material Handling, Packaging and Technology; - Challenges of managing so many (50) subsidiaries; - How the management structure works - pluses and minuses; - Whether plans to consolidate; - Growth strategy and plans; - Insights into some of the sectors and countries they are looking to invest in; - Goal of doubling revenues by 2015; - Acquisitions; - Graft, corruption and governance. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

HE Dr Guenter Gruber, the German ambassador, defends the European Union and the steps taken by the European Central Bank to resolve the debt crisis which are not sufficiently aggressive according to the market.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sally MacDonald, CEO of Oroton, explains how the Australian luxury accessories brandname will build its presence in Asia where it is lesser known. She also talks about the potential of augemented reality retail in Malaysia and the group's online plans, a core strategy of the group.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Nathan Myhrvold, former Microsoft CTO, co-founder of Intellectual Ventures and Author of Modernist Cuisine: The Art & Science of Cooking, discusses: - His gastronomic origins; - Former career as Microsoft Chief Technology Officer; - How science and technology applies to cooking; - Heat, water and the kitchen;- The basic biology of food­borne illnesses; - His ideas on eliminating global warming/climate change with 'geo-engineering'; - How such a configuration could "easily dim the sun by one percent, and even do it in a way that wouldn't be visible."; - How, together with Peter Rinearson, helping Bill Gates write 'The Road Ahead', a book about the future that reached No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller list in 1995 and 1996; - Intellectual Ventures, the patent portfolio developer and broker you co-founded in 2000 after leaving Microsoft; - Accusations of business practices that lead to IV being variously described by as a "patent troll"; - His bankrolling of SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute, the world's most prominent alien-seeker), and his search for extraterrestrial life as an intellectual challenge.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

PayPal Senior Vice President of Global Operations John McCabe discusses: - Updates on active accounts and transaction value handled; - Asia - Asia-Pacific details; - Update for international business versus US; - Open Malaysian global operation centre; - Hiring locals - skills sought; - English - Malaysians - tinkering by the government - whether problem going forward; - Incentives offered for setting up shop; - PayPal technology development centres: in Chennai in India, and in Singapore; - Mobile-commerce; - Freezing accounts - time taken to unfreeze, other challenges. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

John Chapman, the VP for Airline Group Asia Pacific at Amadeus, tells the new growth areas for the software company that supports hotels, travel agents, and airline clients like MAS, SIA and AirAsia. He also explains how the internet will not displace travel agents. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Suneet Singh Tuli, CEO of DataWind, talks about the $35 iPad-like tablet he is selling to the Indian government for college students. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

John Bruton, Former Irish Prime Minister and EU Ambassador to the United States, discusses: - Ireland's economic recovery:- In reducing its ‘country-specific’ bond risk premium;  - Strong export growth; - Goldman Sachs' identifying four key positive developments such as, > The EU Council granting Ireland a sharp reduction in the interest rate on the bailout funds, cutting the interest bill by 0.6%-0.7% of GDP from 2012 onwards; > The interest rate on the bailout package being cut dramatically (Ireland was seeking a reduction of around 1ppt on the original 5.8% interest rate but it has received a reduction of close to 3ppt); > Attitude of the European authorities towards Ireland shifting nearly imperceptibly, to the extent that Ireland is now presented as a country that has successfully implemented tough policy choices. (More below) He also discusses his recent presence in Malaysia at a breakfast seminar where he discussed: : The future of the Eurozone and Ireland’s Economic Recovery; - The Irish International Financial Services Centre - Islamic funds domiciled outside the Middle East; He then discusses: - The perceived disconnect between what the rest of the world believes about the Irish economic recovery and what is actually happening in Ireland; - Reports that retailers remain downbeat - still mired in recession; - Impact of steep cuts in public spending (as mandated under the EU and IMF bail-out programme) resulting in high unemployment and high levels of personal debt as stifling demand; - His views of forecasts by the Irish central bank, which expects real personal consumption to fall 2.6 per cent this year and a further 0.8 per cent in 2012, with the new austerity measures that were unveiled in the budget; - The perception of Ireland as a 'Jekyll and Hyde economy', where exports are strong, in contrast with weak domestic demand;He also talks about: - The chances of Ireland exiting its debt obligations on time, and meaningfully re-enter the market by 2013; - Whether Ireland needs further help from the European authorities to deal with its debt, since almost half of it is related to the cost of rescuing bank creditors following its banking guarantee in 2008; - Which of Goldman's six factors could be replicated in other European states; - His view on the breadth and extent of Europe's problems on the rest of the world; - His view on why Europe is under pressure when its total debt is still lower than that of the United States; - His recent writings of the need to outline a comprehensive solution, with a timetable for its implementation, at the level of each of the 17 euro zone member states and at Eurozone level; - The fact that the crisis in Europe is as much a crisis of belief, as it is a crisis of finance.--- Addendum: Goldman Sachs' 6 reasons for Ireland's recovery: - Ireland’s fiscal adjustment has focused on expenditure cuts rather than tax increases: growth has tended to fare better in fiscal corrections driven by reductions in current spending than in those driven by higher taxes or by cuts in investment. As part of Ireland’s expenditure-focused austerity programme, public sector pay has been reduced by around 15%, a development that has also contributed to an improvement in Ireland’s competitiveness.- Ireland’s labour market is relatively flexible: The flexibility of Ireland’s labour market, together with the sharp reduction in public sector pay, resulted in Irish wages adjusting relatively rapidly once the crisis struck. Competitiveness appears to have been largely regained, with rising export shares and a move into current account surplus.- Ireland has past experience of successfully implementing a major fiscal correction: Between 1986 and 1989, Ireland reduced its general government deficit from 11% of GDP to 3% of GDP. The establishment of fiscal credibility at that stage played an instrumental role in launching the 20-year ‘Celtic Tiger’ period (1987-2007). While the circumstances of the fiscal adjustment being implemented today are very different from those that existed in the late 1980s, the experience of having successfully accomplished a major fiscal correction in the past has reduced popular resistance to the austerity measures this time around.- Ireland’s main opposition parties have behaved ‘responsibly’: While the mainstream opposition parties (Fine Gael and Labour) were critical of government for its economic management, neither party questioned the need for a far-reaching austerity programme.In contrast with some other periphery states, the opposition parties did not offer the electorate any ‘quick fixes’ or easy solutions to the problems.Now that Fine Gael and Labour have been elected to power, the new administration has been able to continue with the austerity programme that began under the previous government and, nevertheless, maintain widespread popular support.- Widesprea

Richard Macey, Global Vice President of Kipling, says the handbag brand is able to grow quickly to over 65 countries by flooding the market with its own stores, store in store, airport outlets, selling online, and working with the right partners. That coupled with maintaining brand authencity. With this, it has established itself as one of the leading casual European handbag brand in China. Well known for its nylon handbags and the Monkey logo, Kipling was founded in the 1980s by a group of young Belgian entrepreneurs and the company was subsequently sold to VF Corporation that also owns other mid-range fashion brands.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joey Yap, bazi expert, gives his predictions for business and politics in 2012. He expects the general elections to be held in March or April, and Barisan Nasional is likely to return to power. On business, he predicts that global economic growth will be higher than 2011 contrary to economists' expectations.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

MATRADE CEO Dr. Wong Lai Sum discusses: - Malaysia's top five export destination in 2011; - Insight on intra-ASEAN trade in context of decoupling; - Reports of her saying that export growth could slow in 2H; - New export hubs; - Malaysian exporters - innovations and R&D as percentage of revenue; - Low-cost producers based in China - Vietnam - Cambodia; - Natural gas shortages; - Malaysia's place on the value chain; - Gender: Being Chinese, and female; - MATRADE's new - and Free - convention centre - Naza TTDI - connections; - Operational budget - staff size. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dato' Dr Mohd Nazlee Kamal, CEO of Biotech Corporation, gives an update on the biotech industry in Malaysia and its challenges. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Diligent Board Member Services Inc Chairman, David Liptak, discusses: - Beginnings of the business; - Reasons for listing in NZ; - How and why it is regulated by the US' SEC; - Value of Industry; - Proliferation in the US and penetration - opportunity in Asia; - Spring Street's investments - focus - role of Corporate Governance; - Whether CG focus is profitable; - Reasons behind investing in health care and food safety; - Eurozone -- extent of contagion - Greece- default risk -- recession; - Germany's potential exit - survival of the Euro; - QE3 - jobs creation - deficit; - Currency implications.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Konstantin Guericke, co-founder of Linkedin, says the social network is still relevant in the face of competition from Facebook. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Scientist and Pulitzer-prize winning Author, Jared Diamond: - Born September 10, 1937- Is an American scientist and - Author, whose work draws from a variety of fields. He is currently Professor of Geography and Physiology at UCLA.- He is best known for the award-winning popular science books 'The Third Chimpanzee'; 'Guns, Germs, and Steel'; and 'Collapse of Civilisations'.- He has an assortment of prizes for his books, including the Pulitzer and the Rhône-Poulenc. - Diamond has been called a polymath.For 'The Third Chimpanzee: The Evolution and Future of the Human Animal (1991)', he discusses: (Applies insights from biology, anthropology, and linguistics to questions such as why one species of big mammal (humans) came to dominate its closest relatives, such as chimpanzees, and why one group of humans (eurasians) came to dominate others (Indigenous peoples of the Americas). It also examines how asymmetry in male and female mating behaviour is resolved through differing social structures across cultures, and how first contact between unequal civilizations almost always results in genocide.The book ends by noting that technological progress may cause environmental degradation on a scale leading to extinction.) - Reasons as to how and why humans came to dominate its closest relatives, the chimpanzee; - How and why one group of humans, the Eurasians, came to dominate another group, such as the Indigenous peoples of the Americas; - Suggestions that first contact between unequal civilizations almost always results in genocide; - How technological progress may cause environmental degradation on a scale leading to extinction.For 'Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies (1997)', he discusses: - Reasons for the success of Eurasian civilizations (including North Africa) in terms of having survived and conquered others- How success originates in environmental differences - not intellectual, moral or inherent genetic superiority; - How these gaps in power and technology between such human societies originate are amplified by various 'positive feedback loops'; - How cultural or genetic differences have favored Eurasians; - How these advantages occurred because of the influence of geography on societies and cultures, and were not inherent in the Eurasian genomes; In 'Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed (2005)', Diamond discusses: - His examination of societies in collapse which have used a  "framework", five "sets of factors": environmental damage, climate change, hostile neighbors, loss of trading partners, and the society's own responses to its environmental problems; - His view of countries in Southeast Asia when framed against your five factors; - Some examples of societies which has collapsed: Angkor Wat - the Mayans; - How environmental damage seems to be a recurring theme in your examination of societies in decline; - In modern societies, his view on the challenges facing a developing nation like China - and how water and its shortages are major issues; - And the challenges facing a developed nation like Australia - how its size negatively prejudices it; - The kinds of attributes Malaysia needs to adopt in order to avoid collapse and whether historical precedent exists for this country as a means of instruction; And, in 'Why is Sex Fun? (1997)', he discusses; - The evolutionary development of human sexuality and their peculiarities; - The reasons why humans have sex in private rather than in public, as is the case in all other mammals; And personally: - As a scientist, the (seeming anomaly of the) importance of religion in his life.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

SEDA Malaysia CEO Badriyah Abdul Malek discusses: - Qualifications for the role - experience brought to the table; - Reasons SEDA missed June deadline; - Achievability of increasing renewable energy from 1% to 5.5% of electricity supply by 2015; - Whether job more urgent - Tenaga two straight quarters of losses; - Reasons for target for clean energy production having been revised downwards; - The lessons Malaysia has learnt from seeing other countries such as Spain - mistakes - clean energy programs (politics, corruption et al); - Self-sustainability of FIT - the RE fund; - Status of FiT guideline and regulations; - Reasons for imposing RM10/kW for application fee; - Reasons for cap to Renewable Energy production; - Reasons for introducing a 5MW limit for solar PV - no limit - other RE technologies; - Reasons why no FIT for solar thermal, wind and geothermal - nor for Sarawak, which governs itself in energy matters; - Government soft loan 300 million ringgit - terms of repayment; - How public may view SEDA finances - expenditures; - KPIs - CEO re-appointment. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lim Chin Han, CEO of  Towers Watson, talks about navigating cultural issues in mergers and acquisitions, and the hot jobs in Malaysia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mike Mayo, CLSA Bank Analyst and Author of "Exile on Wall Street: One Analyst's Fight to Save the Big Banks From Themselves", discusses: - Prospects for another Global Crisis; - Shareholder voice (or lack thereof);- Problems of: compensation being out of whack - excesses - ratings agencies fees - over-authorised regulators - vote-hungry politicians - whistleblowers who were ignored; - Earnings that aren't inherently believable - famously accusing Citigroup of cooking its books; - Advocating a return by the banks to low-risk, highly capitalised profile that characterized financial institutions in the 1950s and 1960s;- Banks are "not meant to be growth stocks";- How low-risk low-risk should be;- Risk being taken out of the system; - Mayo's solution to the banking crisis:    : Better Accounting    : Allow bankruptcies    : Increase shareholder power; - Expectations for banks to suffer flattest revenue growth since the last Depression; - Views for the Asian banking scenario in this context; See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Robert Baldock, CEO of Monument Mining, tells what he pays the Malaysian government in exchange for mining gold and owning mines in the country. He also explains the steps taken to ensure no contamination during the mining and waste disposal process, and justifies that gold mining can be done safely.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Life Inspired (Li) TV Asia General Manager Anne Chan discusses: - Capital needs; - Revenue model - profit share - Path to profitability - cash flow positivity; - Distribution - network condition; - Cost structure; - Long-term - network distribution - platforms; - Measat - Astro - working relationship; - Content selection - thinking process; - Local versus foreign content; - "Cutting the cord" - the coming 'death' of cable (pay-) TV; - Sale of majority 51 percent to Star Publications; - Expectations - Targets - Milestones.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dato Sri' Abdul Wahid Omar, President and CEO of Maybank, expects net interest margins will stabilise at about 2.4% in Malaysia and undervalued companies may take their companies private, thus providing a pipeline of business for investment banking despite an economic slowdown in Malaysia. He remains bullish on the Indonesian economy and expects net interest margins to stay at 5% despite key interest rate cuts. Added to this, its new subsidiary, Kim Eng will provide an international platform to expand Maybank's wholesale banking business. As for the RHB Capital deal, Wahid dispels rumours that Maybank abandoned talks with RHB due to interference by parties related to a top government official. On other acquisitions, he did not want to speculate if Maybank would want to acquire Public Bank if a competing Singaporean banking and insurance group launches a takeover offer. On productivity, he justifies why Maybank's operating revenue per employee is lower than some international banks with similarly strong regional presence, and explains the legal dispute between the bank and the National Union of Bank Employees (NUBE). He dismisses talk that Malay executives are preferred over non-Malays. Questions were also posed to Wahid regarding his remuneration package. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thorkil Sonne, founder of Specialisterne, tells how the social enterprise provides autistic people with gainful and meaningful employment as software testers See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Starbucks Malaysia MD Sydney Quays discusses:- Store count - roadmap for openings, relocation, closures - The definition of "changing demographics"; - Franchise structure; - Drive-thru strategy; - Premium coffee industry - market value - how segmented; - Starbucks Malaysia market share; - Coffee bean, milk and other raw material costs - impact; - Soaring prices of Arabica coffee futures - impact on prices; - Howard Schultz - speculators; - Hedging; - Buying ahead - hedged by US parent -  impact on Malaysia position; - Expected revenue growth - same store sales growth; - Relationship with Malaysia parent Berjaya. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Amway Malaysia Bhd Executive Director Paul Yee discusses: - Continuing relevance of the direct marketing model - competition - newer, local brands; - Distributor force - active - sales per distributor; - Malay distributor force - importance of this sector; - Comparative youth of agency force - 60 percent 35 years old and below - continuing proposition; - Product localisation; - Plans to convert Regional Distribution Centres to shops - reasons - philosophy; - New product launches - pipeline; - A&P expenses - outlook; - Distributor price increases; - Impact - global slowdown; - Effect - Amway's business; - Distributor productivity growth; - Dividends - payout policy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ahmad Rizan Ibrahim, newly appointed CEO of Dataprep Holdings, says the company is banking on overseas projects in China and Indochina to turnaround the company's fortunes. It has been reporting losses for the last three years and has accumulated losses of over RM30 million. The recent spike in its share price could have been due to the syndicates in the market as there is no material development that warrants disclosure. Having said that the company may be close to inking an overseas deal next year.     See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Othman Omar, General Manager of PKNS, tells what he has done to clean up PKNS including upgrading its image, implementing open tenders for all contracts and signing the Transparency International pact. He also talks about his strategy for the group, namely to venture into overseas projects, rejuvenate old spaces, offload some properties into the Amanah REIT, and develop more commercial properties for recurring income. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Matias Mori, the Executive Vice-President of the Foreign Investment Committee of Chile, discusses: - The Malaysia-Chile Free Trade Agreement - upside; - FTA expansion - include investment - services; - Copper - salmon - wine - Chile's biggest industries - Malaysian demand; - Chile - Malaysia trade - favors Chile -- reasons - trade balance outlook; - Chile as a gateway to Latin America; - Reforms since Pinochet era; - Low perception of corruption in Chile; - Gini co-efficient - income inequality in Chile; - Deep discontent with the economic elite in Chile; - Chile financially sound - no sovereign debt - $20b in cash overseas; - Former Michelle Bachelet - fiscal discipline; - The environment - - copper - mining - environment - sustainablility; - Earthquake - repercussions; - Astronomy - life out there! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hua Yang Bhd CEO Ho Wen Yan discusses: - Positioning as an affordable developer - how and why; - Geographical positioning 70 percent in Selangor - 25% in Johor - why; - Average selling prices; - Urban startegy of service apartments on top of retail podiums - rural strategy of townships - how and why; - Malaysia's My First Home Scheme - challenges: loan servicing - potential default rate - whether quality suffers - defect liability period; - Whether potential for sub-prime problem as in US; - Bank Negara to impose lending rules that allowed loans to only be given on basis of net income; - Competition in the affordable segment - SP Setia and Mah Sing; - Global issues - possibility of a credit crunch; - Reasons for undervaluation; - Net margins - costs management; - Views of E&O and Sunrise and SP Setia; - Chairman as TS DS Ting Chew Peh.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Syarikat Takaful Malaysia Bhd MD Dato' Hassan Kamil discusses: - June earnings - forward view; - General and Family business outlook;- Impact Eurozone problems - Q3 investment performance; - Industry growth rate - role of Bank Negara; - Value of industry; - Syarikat Takaful ranking; - Takaful - penetration rate of overall insurance industry; - Target share of overall insurance industry; - Competition - four new licenses - challenges -- positioning; - Low adoption - lack of knowledge; - Talent Shortage; - Asset size - importance; - Investment assets - depth, breadth and quality; - M&A - impetus for consolidation - synergies sought. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

KONE Corporation Executive Vice President Asia Pacific Noud Veeger, discusses: - Its three business divisions, four geographical areas; - Business demand - job pipeline - four corners of the world; - World's biggest market for elevators - China - India; - Annual unit demand; - Breakdown of the business - region; - Asia-Pacific sales - growth - outlook; - China - growth - third- and fourth-tier cities - why; - Clients - China - government; - Business challenges; - China banking sector - concerns - NPLs; - Sustainability - regenerative lifts; - Eco-efficiency; - Price sensitivity; - Adoption rate in Asia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

UMNO Youth Chief Khairy Jamaluddin & DAP National Publicity Secretary Tony Pua discuss: - Education - brain drain; - TS Muhyidin - government's 'final' decision to teach Science and maths in Malay; - PAGE, the education NGO DAP has supported; - Education becoming highly politicised; - Times Higher Education World University Rankings - omission of Malaysian Universities;- One million Malaysians working and living abroad; - Court of Appeal - decision that the Universities and University Colleges Act (UUCA) was unconstitutional: i.e. in banning student politics; - Corruption - Public Sector governance;- Auditor-General's report; - MACC - opening 36 files in response; - DAP's Financial Accountability Mechanism; - Corporate fraud - E&O / Sime Darby; - Repeal for the PPPA - ISA - Banishment and Restricted Residence Acts; - Sessions Court - jail - financially penalty - Independent directors Transmile - Corporate Governance breaches; - Government promise - lowering the budget deficit to 4.7 percent of GDP from 5.4 percent currently; - Open tender - IPPs; - Mega-projects - KLIFD; - The middle income trap; - Elections - image consultants - public relations firms; - Lim Guan Eng - 'Komtar' projects - development-phobic Penang folk; - The sPICE project - sale of Turf Club land; - Gauging electoral support.     See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.