The Breakfast Grille
Episodes
All Systems Go for Malaysian Aerospace
26 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The newly-launched Malaysia Aerospace Industry Association aims to promote and develop Malaysia as the aerospace hub of choice in Asia. Pro-tem Presid...
The Best Outta Uda
25 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
This is the Grille that ties up a series of previous grilles. UDA Holdings is a well known name. It has business relationships with previous firms th...
Booking The Future
24 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Sasbadi is a household name in the education publishing sector. We pose some tough questions to co-founder and Managing Director, Law King Hui, and a...
For Growth, PChem has to Address the Olefin in the Room
23 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
It is challenging for a big company like Petronas Chemicals to deliver high growth as the company has become entrenched in the olefins and fertiliser...
Malaysia's Own Teh Tarik Price Index
20 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The volatile business environment has not only affected corporate Malaysia and large conglomerates. Smaller businesses are also feeling the pinch. The...
Pacific Alliance - Highway to Prosperity?
19 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Inaugurated with the Lima Declaration - promoting the free circulation of goods, services and people - the Pacific Alliance is a Latin American trad...
From Cooperative To Investment Company
18 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Dato' Ilyas Mohamed, Chairman of Koperasi Amanah Pelaburan Berhad (KAPB), explains how KAPB intends to transform this sleepy organization into a force...
Gunning For Profits
17 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The global defence industry is big business. We speak to Stephen Phipson, Head of UKTI-DSO, a body tasked with promoting British defence companies, th...
JAK, Sweden's Safest Bank
16 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Sweden-based JAK Members Bank is a member-owned, cooperative enterprise that operates on an interest-free savings and loan system. It's been called th...
Mueller: More Needs to be Done for Malaysia Airlines
13 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Christoph Mueller's concealed reasons for his resignation raises more questions about the restructuring and future of Malaysia Airlines. Certainly gre...
Securing Intellectual Property
12 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement brings about various changes to our IP laws, from copyrights, trademarks and patents, right down to the metho...
U Mobile: Channelling the Challenger Mindset
11 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
U Mobile is the smallest of the four mobile telco players and positions itself as a “challenger” to the Big Three incumbents - Maxis, Celc...
Never Lose Your Waze Again
10 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Waze is an Israel-based mapping and navigation company, which was acquired by Google in 2013 for over $1 billion. Malaysia is the biggest Waze market...
Sweetening The Conglomerate Business
09 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Briand Greer, President of Honeywell Southeast Asia joins us as we explore at length the business of Honeywell Asia. We discuss their aeronautics, ele...
EPF Diversification at the Crossroads
06 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
EPF has made great strides in diversifying into foreign assets as well as upping its equity allocation. But retirement adequacy is still a huge proble...
The Wakaf Way: Reengineering Wealth Distribution
05 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Tan Sri Muhammad Ali Hashim, Chairman of Awqaf Holdings is never shy about his opinions regarding the shortcomings of GLCs and "Malaysia Inc". He prop...
Exporting Singapore's City-Model Success
04 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Engineering firm Surbana Jurong has played a huge role in developing city master-plans for over 30 different countries including its home-base in Sing...
Utusan: Messenger to the Masses
03 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
In conjunction with World Press Freedom Day, we interview one of Malaysia's most influential press companies, Utusan Melayu Berhad on their thoughts o...
Gunning For Our Navy
29 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
BHIC Bofors Asia is a joint venture company between BAE Systems and Boustead Heavy Industries. Listen to their Deputy CEO, Nils Ove Gustaffson explain...
Visa Going Places
27 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Synonymous with credit cards, Visa is charting a new path as a payments solution company. Head of Products for Southeast Asia, James Lim discusses som...
A View From Singapore
26 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Singapore’s former Minister of Foreign Affairs, George Yeo is a veteran politician having served in 4 senior Cabinet positions after a career in...
Heineken Malaysia: Dampened Spirits?
25 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Heineken Malaysia Berhad, formerly known as Guinness Anchor Bhd (GAB), has been in sharp focus recently, following the government's move to change the...
New Security Frontiers On Cyber Defence
22 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The threat of cyber security is ever increasing. While BAE Systems is traditionally associated with military hardware, particularly their Typhoon Euro...
Unemployed Medical Grads a Symptom of Policy Breakdown
21 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
There are too many medical graduates but too few specialists leaving healthcare needs unfulfilled. Doctors and specialists are lured by lucrative posi...
Governing Islam
19 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
YB Senator Dato' Dr. Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki, the Deputy Minister in the PM's Department in charge of Religious Affairs, discusses the role of the governm...
Pecca Goes For Listing
18 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Listen to Michael Tan, Executive Director of Pecca Group Berhad, discuss the listing of the company on Bursa Malaysia. They are a leather upholstery m...
What Worries the Chief Economist of the EIU
14 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU) recently compiled a list of the top 10 risks to the global economy, which included the possibility of Donald Trum...
A Class Above The Rest?
13 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPAC) are still under scrutiny but can Reach Energy stay above the rest? Listen to their CEO, Ir. Shahul Hamid ...
Transboundary Pollution Act-ing On Paper
08 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) is one of the world's largest pulp and paper company. Tracing its origins from the Suharto regime in Indonesia, APP is now...
‘On Our Way to A Failed State’
07 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
In his postscript to his collection of columns and speeches titled “The Malaysia That Could Be” the former Editor-in-Chief of the New Stra...
OCK: Expanding Asean Footprint in Telecommunication Towers
06 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Tower sharing can greatly lower capex cost for telco players. OCK takes this proposition to other emerging Asean economies where mobile usage growth i...
Foreign Labour Policy: Getting It Right?
05 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
On February 18th, the Human Resources Ministry signed a MoU with Bangladesh to bring in 1.5 million workers, over the next three years.The very next d...
Taxing The Sin
04 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Japan Tobacco International (JTI) claims that sales of illicit cigarettes are on the rise. Listen to JTI's MD, Guilherme Silva explain why he thinks t...
Carl-Bek: Consumers Should Pay for Sustainable Planting
01 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Environmentalism has a price and can be funded easily if spread around all consumers according to Dato' Carl-Bek Nielsen, Chief Executive Director of ...
GE's Top Brass On Asia's Power
31 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Steve Bolze, the president and CEO of GE Power discusses the impact of low commodity prices on GE’s power generation technology businesses. We a...
Long Way to Go for IBS to Make Homes Affordable
30 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The industrial building system comprises prefabricated materials that are supposed to pave the way for cheaper homes. The CIDB estimates IBS homes are...
From Slot Machines To Casinos?
29 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
RGB International is a company that distributes slot machines to the various casinos here in Malaysia and in Asia. Listen to their COO, Datuk Steven L...
Timor Sea - Is Australia Bullying Timor Leste?
28 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The campaign for justice over the oil resources of the Timor Sea kicked off in earnest last week. The activist group calls itself the ‘Movement ...
1MDB's Mr Fixit
25 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
1MDB’s Mr Fixit‘It’s business challenge that’s been politicized,’ insists Arul Kanda Kandasamy, President and Group Exec...
Bison Consolidated: Bullish on MyNEWS.com
24 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
En route to Bursa Malaysia's main market, convenience store player Bison Consolidated operates the myNEWS.com outlets in Malaysia. It has aggressive e...
Making A Star Out Of Bukit Bintang
23 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Bukit Bintang City Centre Project is an ambitious development situated on none other than the former Pudu Jail site. The first phase of the project is...
Finding Quality In Assets
22 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
It's crunch time for Sona Petroleum. They must get at least 75% shareholders approval for a purchase on an oilfield in Australia, of which failu...
Can Touch 'n Go Replace Cash?
21 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
After 20 years in service and more than 15 million cards in circulation, Touch ‘n Go Sdn Bhd is seeking to move beyond travel and transit, by bu...
HeveaBoard: Assembling A Better Future
18 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
HeveaBoard Berhad, which manufactures and exports particleboard and ready-to-assemble furniture, has been a prime beneficiary of the strong US dollar ...
The Growing Business of International Islamic Schools
17 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Private international Islamic schools are becoming increasingly popular in Malaysia. The Breakfast Grille brings together a panel of Islamic school pr...
Reinventing A Japanese Legacy
16 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Fujitsu is a company that has been reinventing themselves recently. Listen to Philip Soh, President of Fujitsu Malaysia as he explains their expansion...
Forest City Combines Political Sway, Ideas and Capital
15 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The mammoth Forest City project is a JV between local partners led by the Sultan of Johor and giant Chinese property firm Country Garden. 700,000 resi...
For Crown & Country
14 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
As Australia’s first woman Governor-General, Dame Quentin crowned a career of several firsts as the country expanded access to women. Today, on ...
New Challenges in the Malaysian Capital Markets
11 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
SC has done a great job in ensuring a level playing field for fund raising and investment and trading. New ground will continue to be broken as seen i...
Expanding An Elastic Business Model
10 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
M.K Goh, CEO of the world's largest condom maker, Karex Bhd, joins us on the Breakfast Grille to discuss the company's move into the retail business, ...
Towards a Cashless Society
09 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Bank Negara is in the middle of a 10-year financial blueprint to ‘modernise the payment landscape’ by 2020. They want see greater use of d...
Indonesia Opens Up
08 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Professor Mari Elka Pangestu was Indonesia’s Minister of Trade from 2004 to 2011, before moving to a tourism post in a cabinet reshuffle. She co...
Bringing Building Materials To The Market
07 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Chin Hin Group Berhad is listing this week and it's IPO oversubscribed by eight times. Listen to their Managing Director, Chiau Haw Choon explain the ...
Freedom and the Turkish Dilemma
04 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Spanning East and West - that imaginary division of the classical world - Turkey’s social and political dilemmas as well as the responses to the...
Thong Guan: Going Back to its Roots
03 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Established in 1942 as a tea merchant under the popular 888 brand, Thong Guan Bhd started off with modest beginnings in the F&B sector. It subsequ...
Constructing Changes At Vivocom
02 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Vivocom Intl Holdings Bhd, previously known as Instacom, is in the midst of diversifying their business from being a telco tower builder to now, a con...
Powering Up Beyond Sarawak
01 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Sarawak Cable Berhad is powering up this year, setting itself a lofty target to achieve RM1bil in sales and to further penetrate the Indonesian market...
Making Kampung Bharu New Again
29 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Just a short distance from luxe KLCC and the financial/diplomatic enclave of Ampang lies Kg Bharu where much needs to be done to usher it into the 21s...
Just Flitto It
26 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Crowdsourced translation platform Flitto’s entire business proposition is premised on the argument that machine translation will never as accura...
Media Prima Deals with Cord-Cutting
25 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Viewers are not necessarily switching off TV3, NTV7, 8TV and TV9 for now. Media Prima is dealing with the competitive landscape by focusing on for ins...
Investing In Physical Gold
24 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Singapore Precious Metals Exchange (SGPMX) claims to be the world's first physical precious metals exchange that gives investors an online platform to...
Staying With the Times
23 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
In his third appearance on the Grille, Datuk Darrel Webber, CEO, Roundtable of Sustainable Palm Oil, discusses the RSPO's ongoing relevance, 'greenwas...
Bangladesh Migrant MOU - Who Benefits?
19 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Yesterday a Memorandum for Understanding was signed in Dhaka, between the Bangladesh’s Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Nur...
Tunnel Under Troubled Waters
18 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The RM6.3b Penang Undersea Tunnel project has courted much controversy with their high price tag, RM305m feasibility study and service bartered for la...
Ensuring Squabbles are Successfully Resolved
17 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Sujatha Sekhar Naik, Chief Executive Officer of the Securities Industry Dispute Resolution Center (SIDREC), discusses her role in providing a free ser...
Taking Loyalty Cards into the Future
16 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Victor Goon, General Manager of BonusKad Loyalty, discusses the business model and strategic plans for one of Malaysia's most-established loyalty card...
SAAB's Flying On A Jet Plane
15 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
SAAB intends to sell their Gripen fighter jets to Malaysia as replacements to the aging Russian MiG and Sukhoi jets. Listen to Thomas Lindén as...
The Price of Advice
12 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Is commission-based advisory conflicted because it opens the door to product pushing rather than aligning adviser-client interests? We discuss whether...
Atlas Copco Is Everywhere!
11 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Atlas Copco is a Swedish industrial giant whose products are found everywhere but whose name is not well known to the public. Listen to their General ...
Chinese Dilemmas, National Solutions
10 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
As the once politically and socially significant community deals with changes brought about by a dwindling population, migration, shifting political a...
Tag Heuer: Keeping Up With The Times
05 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The 155-year old Swiss watch brand, Tag Heuer, has seen a year of change. The company saw a leadership change; they readjusted their price positioning...
Lin: Reforms and Independence Needed
04 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Tan Sri Lin feels that Bank Negara's role in handling of the 1MDB saga is very well defined and limited to exchange controls. He also feels that Malay...
Training Day For HRDF
02 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Dato' CM Vignaesvaran, CEO of Human Resource Development Fund (HRDF) explains the role they play in the upskilling of the workforce in Malaysia.See om...
Think City: Rethinking Our Cities
01 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Think City is a subsidiary of Khazanah tasked to spearhead urban regeneration in Malaysia. Executive Director, Hamdan Majeed, discusses ThinkCity's ex...
The Business Potential of The Arab World
29 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Ahmed Tahoun, Vice President of the Arab-Malaysian Chamber of Commerce discusses AMCC's role in fostering business opportunities between Malaysia and ...
TPPA and Beyond
28 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
With the motion to sign and ratify the Trans Pacific Partnership agreement passed by the Dewan Rakyat, Malaysia's entry into the bloc is closer to bec...
Is Our Sovereignty At Stake?
27 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Professor Gurdial Singh Nijar from the Law Faculty of Universiti Malaya and Fifa Rahman, Policy Manager at the Malaysian AIDS Council discuss their ar...
Less About Trade and Much More About Geopolitics
26 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Wan Saiful Wan Jan, CEO of the think-tank IDEAS and YB Wong Chen, Member of Parliament, Kelana Jaya, discuss the controversial TPP bill in terms of it...
Sun, Sea, Sand and Surgery: Malaysian Medical Tourism
22 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Medical tourism is big business. And Malaysia, while already a name in the market, wants to secure a bigger piece of the pie. And so the Malaysia Heal...
From Bauxite to Borneo
21 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Five months and 21 days into his new Ministerial role following the July 2015 Cabinet reshuffle, Wan Junaidi has had to parry several tough environmen...
Jomo: TPP Debate Must Go Beyond Trade
20 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Projections from the United Nations Global Policy Model released recently showed that the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement will likely only bring m...
Judiciary On Trial: A Judge's Perspective
19 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Datuk Mohd Hishamudin Yunus last year retired as a Court of Appeal judge, after 23 years on the bench. Presiding over landmark cases such as the Negri...
Taiwan Elections Has Beijing On Edge
15 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Professor Kuan Chung-Ming, former minister of Taiwan's National Development Council discusses Taiwan's stalling economy and the potential shift in cro...
Let's Play On Demand With iFlix
14 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
When iFlix was launched in 2015, it was hailed as the Netflix of Asia. Now, with Netflix rolling out globally, we speak to iFlix Group COO on how they...
Iran at Its Crossroads: Oil, Religion and the Economy
12 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Professor Amin Saikal, Professor of Political Science at the Australian National University, discusses Iran's transition from a pro-Western democracy ...
Pakatan - Is There Hope?
11 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Over the weekend a new political formation was launched with a slew of initiatives to overcome the weakness of it precursor, Pakatan Rakyat. The launc...
Flex-ing Its Muscle In A Connected World
08 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Flex Malaysia, previously known as Flextronics, rose to prominence in the 1990s building personal computers, mobile phones and routers for companies l...
Not a Roman Holiday
07 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
On the cusp of being Malaysia’s first Resident Ambassador to The Vatican, we speak to the veteran Sabahan politician on the country’s inte...
Growth By Niche
06 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Leo Zanolini, Chief Executive Officer, QBE Insurance Malaysia, talks about his plan to grow this small(-ish) insurer in the country by focusing on nic...
Safeguarding Pension Funds
05 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
CEO of KWAP, Wan Kamaruzaman Wan Ahmad explains the sale of their London asset, the relationship KWAP has with the 1MDB linked company -SRC Internatio...
Transportation: Who's in the Driver's Seat?
04 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Affordability in public transportation has its genesis in creating fair contracts. If public transportation becomes too expensive, should the governme...
State of the Economy - Government in Business
31 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
1MDB has dramatically highlighted the extent of the long arm of the government in business and the economy. We continue with the second part of our se...
State of the Economy - 2015 Report Card
30 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
We take a look into how the government did in the past year after the ugly crash in the ringgit and the oil price. To what extent is the government to...
Media 2015 - Annus Horribilis?
29 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Was this the worst year for media freedoms? Did the short-lived suspension of The Edge send a chilling effect over the still nascent practice of inves...
Placing Trust in the Brooke Heritage
28 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Jason Brooke, the grandson of the last White Rajah, explains his family's continued work in the hornbill state of Sarawak.See omnystudio.com/listener ...
Evolving the Online Car Listings Model
23 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Eric Cheng, Co-founder and CEO of the Malaysian car buying Carsome site, discusses being a first-time entrepreneur, raising money, expansion plans, va...
Same World but More Wired
22 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Economic growth in most of the world may be stagnant but companies like EG Industries is getting a lot of business from increasing circuitry in househ...
Outsourcing the Future
21 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Kannal Outsourcing is among the biggest outsourcing companies in Malaysia. Listen to CEO Raymond Dass, as he explains how this sector intends to stay ...
Will Johor Go South?
18 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The Iskandar concept has been upon us for a decade now. Can it hold up to the test of going beyond property to solid long term economic development?Se...
On Track to Engineer Growth for Malaysia
17 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
CMC Engineering is at the heart of the rail industry in Malaysia. Listen to their CEO, Dato' Rahman Yusof how they plan to optimize their role in the ...