06 May 2010
The year 2009 saw NTUC’s 12 Social Enterprises (SEs) banding together to help minimise the impact of the downturn on workers and their families. Looking ahead in 2010 and beyond, NTUC SEs will intensify their efforts to help customers and members live a better life.
Extraordinary year warranted extraordinary effort
2009 was an extraordinary year - a year when the world faced the worst recession in recent memory. It was also the year when all the 12 Social Enterprises (SEs) of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) banded more tightly than ever before and stepped up their collective effort to minimise the impact of the downturn for workers and their families.
Record contributions by NTUC SEs
The 12 NTUC SEs contributed a record sum of $107 million, a 41% increase in social contribution, to help workers and their families Upturn the Downturn in 2009. Out of the $107 million, 84% or close to $90 million was channelled to help members and their families manage the cost of living and stretch their dollar. Members benefited through various forms of savings which included rebates, discounts and Linkpoints issued to them.
In addition to the above, the SEs also collectively donated about $17 million to charitable causes, including about $11 million for the Labour Movement’s U Care Fund in 2009. With the strong support from the SEs, the U Care Fund benefited more than 170,000 Singaporeans. The SEs also contributed generously to causes beyond the Labour Movement. A total of $6 million worth of donations was given to charities such as the Community Chest, the Children’s Society and The Boys’ Brigade in 2009.
Virtuous cycle of Do Good to Do Well to Do More Good
The SEs have focused on their core mission of doing good to help working people of all collars, ages and nationalities live a better life. They will continue to expand their Do Good efforts by ensuring affordability, quality products and services, and accessibility of their products and services. By doing so, the SEs have attracted more customers, and have been able to Do Well and be competitive. This in turn has enabled the SEs to scale up and Do More Good.
NTUC Group Development Director, Adeline Sum said, ”In a recession year in 2009, when many families were operating on a tighter budget, the NTUC SEs stepped up their social mission to Do Good and keep prices affordable. Customers recognised the value they are getting from the SEs, and more became loyal customers. This helped the SEs to Do Well, and be competitive, thus creating a virtuous cycle which allowed them to Do More Good and increase their social impact and touch the lives of more customers, members, workers and their families, more deeply”.
Maintaining and expanding market share
Over the years, with the support of members and customers, six NTUC SEs have achieved market leadership position in their respective sectors. NTUC FairPrice, with more than 240 outlets island-wide, is the largest supermarket retailer in Singapore with 52% of the overall market share. NTUC Income is the largest life and motor insurer. It is also the largest provider of health (Shield) and annuity insurance. NTUC First Campus is the largest childcare provider with 10% of market share. NTUC LearningHub is the largest training provider for Singapore’s workforce, having trained more than 700,000 executives and workers since 2004. NTUC Link also manages the largest multi-merchant loyalty programme with one million members and 900 participating merchant outlets.
NTUC Club is the largest chalet and bowling operator in Singapore, and runs Downtown East, a one-stop recreation and lifestyle complex.
With Singapore’s economy once again gearing up for growth, the SEs will also be facing new challenges brought about by a new economy. Looking ahead, in line with the Labour Movement’s productivity and innovation mantra, the SEs will focus their efforts on becoming Cheaper Better Faster and Bigger so as to make a greater social impact.
SEs becoming Cheaper Better Faster
On being Cheaper, NTUC FairPrice will continue to keep prices affordable, especially for its Yellow Dot items, Every Low Price items and house brand items. It will also be looking at increasing the number of these items. NTUC Healthcare Unity pharmacies will continue to offer essential healthcare items at 2% to 6 % cheaper than competitors. NTUC First Campus will continue to keep its childcare fees affordable. At $580 per month, it is more than 10% lower than the national median of $670 per month. NTUC Foodfare will introduce new value set meals at all its foodcourts for union members at 10% - 15% discounts. All the above will help ensure affordability for members and customers and offer value for money and quality products and services
On being Better and Faster, Customers of NTUC Income has access to 24-hour contact centre and a network of branches operating on weekends. NTUC LearningHub will set up a new Productivity and Innovation Institute to share best practices, and introduce new training programmes for all segments of the workforce. NTUC Foodfare will be setting up a new state-of-the-art central kitchen to enhance its catering and support capabilities. NTUC First Campus, through its SEED Institute, has put in place a new professional development programme for its principals, and has developed a new Accelerated WSQ Professional Diploma in Early Childhood and Education (Childcare) that can be completed within 12 months.
SEs becoming Bigger to create greater social impact
Besides becoming Cheaper Better Faster, NTUC SEs also aim to be Bigger so as to be more accessible to customers, and offer them more choices and benefits. In this way, the SEs aim to make an even greater impact on the lives of working people and their families.
To be more accessible to customers, the SEs will aim to extend their market leadership and scale up their market share. For instance, by 2011, NTUC First Campus will expand the number of its childcare centres to about 100, from the current 55, hence serving more children and families. NTUC FairPrice, NTUC Foodfare and NTUC Healthcare will also expand the number of their retail outlets, while NTUC LearningHub will expand the number of its training places to 225,000 annually.
To offer more choices for customers, the SEs will offer a more diverse range of products and services, and reach customers through more channels. For instance, NTUC FairPrice will open two more Finest stores in 2010 which offer a greater range of products. FairPrice also aims to double the scale of its online sales compared to 2008. NTUC Income will continue to deepen its multi-channel strategy, so that its customers can purchase policies not only from agents, but also from its branches, business centres, internet and its bancassurance partners. NTUC LearningHub will partner with world class institutes to bring in new and innovative training programmes. NTUC Link will introduce new pre-paid options, e-coupons and e-vouchers for its members.
Lifelong engagement to deliver more benefits
Finally, the SEs will aim to create a lifelong engagement with their customers so as to provide more benefits for customers. In particular, different SEs will address customers’ needs at different stages of their life, and customers of one SE will be able to enjoy benefits from other SEs.
The core business of NTUC SEs is to create social impact for workers and their families. The SEs will continue to look for ways to increase their social impact to meet the changing needs of the population. With a changing demographic profile, as well as higher education levels and evolving aspirations of the Singapore population, NTUC SEs will intensify their efforts to meet these changing needs and help customers and members live a better life.
