West Atlas - Keppel Corporation

Teamwork thrives
While training onboard Uniquely Singapore,
the power of team spirit enabling a group of
ordinary people to achieve the extraordinary
became an unflinching reality for me.
Everyday, living on the little red boat showed me
the amazing feats that we can all achieve as one,
if we are proactive in contributing to a bigger and
organised effort aimed at achieving certain shared
goals.
How else can a group of novices, many of whom
had never before sailed in their lives, led by a single
skipper, operate and sail a 68-foot yacht out in
the open ocean, survive a force 10 gale storm and
navigate their way to the intended shore
destination safely?
Put that way, it almost seems a miracle the boat
was not driven ashore by us. But it was no miracle.
It was hard work put in by the team, as a team.
When the helmsman hollers, “Ready about, lee
ho,” ensuring a safely and speedily effected tack
requires well timed and coordinated executions by
several people, each responsible for different tasks.
If any of the roles were not fulfilled, the most basic
of manoeuvres as even a tack is virtually impossible.
As they say, Rome was not built in a single day.
Surely not by a single man too.
But team success relies not only upon plain and
simple teamwork. It goes beyond basic cooperation
– it harnesses loyalty to the team, shared
motivation towards achieving the common
purpose, faith in leadership, regard for each and
every teammate’s safety and well-being, and
forbearance towards differences.
Bridging diverse nationalities, cultures, languages
and backgrounds, the desire to sail Uniquely
Singapore with pride and passion formed the core
of the team’s identity. We shared one abode, one
destiny, food from one galley and fought with one
heart.
Editorial
Invisible but not intangible, team ethos was at the
helm – the guiding force that empowered and
energised our endeavours. Only then were our
individual thresholds breached and new horizons
for the entire team revealed.
The principle underlying it all is simple - the whole
is greater than the sum of its parts. I have realised
that the same is true even for Keppel.
With people and operations spread across 33
countries, our common values must be the guiding
compass wherever we do business – commitment
to deliver and the passion for quality and
excellence, that are synonymous with Keppel.
Our businesses leverage each other’s strengths,
resources and strategic advantages. This way, our
Group provides a more solid and secure growth
platform upon which Keppel’s commitment
towards enhancing long-term shareholder value
is consistently delivered.
I remember being horror-struck when first asked
to helm Uniquely Singapore. I blurted, “I am not
even licensed to drive on land. Can I do it?”
I obviously didn’t sink the boat, seeing that
Uniquely Singapore is now halfway across the
world racing hard towards Salvador, Brazil.
But I learnt to helm, and aspire to helm better each
time I am entrusted with it, because being part of
a team also means that when a teammate says
the helmsman is down, you cover for him or her.
That’s the beauty of being part of a team – you do
the best you can, and the rest does their best for
you too.
I now know too, that be it the toughest situations
at work or the roughest times on the Clipper race,
I will always be able to draw strength from a
formidable, all-star team behind me.
Keppelite I September 2007