The February restructuring resulted in 45 employees being laid off, mostly from corporate support units.
SingPost also appointed a new chairman of the board of directors in May.
Asked about how changes to the leadership have affected business or confidence, Mr Chong said the company is opening a “new chapter in SingPost history”.
“What you see is a new management team in front of you,” he said. The divestment of overseas units had helped SingPost’s financial position so it can explore options.
“We will focus on domestic operations for now, looking at service quality, getting competitive in a challenging industry,” he said.
On Monday, SingPost announced that its net profit for the first half of its financial year fell 17.1 per cent from a year ago, while revenue fell 27.4 per cent.
Looking ahead, e-commerce remains a growth driver for SingPost’s logistics business.
Chief operating officer Neo Su Yin noted that the company invested S$30 million (US$23 million) to expand its capacity to sort small parcels.
“We wouldn't put in this amount of investment that we didn't see that there's continued opportunities to grow in this particular area,” she said.
The facility will give SingPost an edge, she added.
“Given that Singapore is a very challenged market when it comes to manpower, the automation is going to be a huge cost-effective driver for us, as well as to improve our productivity,” said Ms Neo.
While there are challenges in cross-border e-commerce – which saw a 63 per cent decline in delivery volumes year-on-year – the numbers are continuing to grow domestically.
SingPost said it intends to focus on customer experience and service quality for its e-commerce business.
Post offices will also be part of the network to provide good service to customers, said Ms Neo.
"The core focus here is we want to continue to provide the highest level of service to our customers and the post offices continue to be an important touch point as part of our overall network to provide services for our customers."
She added SingPost will look at post offices as part of its overall strategic review, and noted that beyond post offices, the company has lockers and a partnership with convenience store Cheers, to grow its network and provide convenience for customers.
In its first-quarter update, SingPost said it initiated a one-off divestment of 10 Housing and Development Board (HDB) shophouses on a sale and leaseback basis.
"When we put up the 10 HDBs for divestment, it was with the intent that we will continue to run the 10 post offices," she said.
The units have reportedly been sold to the chairman of Union Gas.
SingPost also sold its Australian business, Freight Management Holdings, for US$504 million.
“We still own a number of operations in the region, and we are in process of selling those now as well,” said chief financial officer Isaac Mah, adding that the company has divested from three businesses and is in the process of winding up its joint venture with Alibaba.
“Once that is completed, we then will be focusing on organising our portfolio assets, positioning ourselves for future growth,” he said.
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SingPost also appointed a new chairman of the board of directors in May.
Asked about how changes to the leadership have affected business or confidence, Mr Chong said the company is opening a “new chapter in SingPost history”.
“What you see is a new management team in front of you,” he said. The divestment of overseas units had helped SingPost’s financial position so it can explore options.
“We will focus on domestic operations for now, looking at service quality, getting competitive in a challenging industry,” he said.
On Monday, SingPost announced that its net profit for the first half of its financial year fell 17.1 per cent from a year ago, while revenue fell 27.4 per cent.
OPPORTUNITIES IN E-COMMERCE
Looking ahead, e-commerce remains a growth driver for SingPost’s logistics business.
Chief operating officer Neo Su Yin noted that the company invested S$30 million (US$23 million) to expand its capacity to sort small parcels.
“We wouldn't put in this amount of investment that we didn't see that there's continued opportunities to grow in this particular area,” she said.
The facility will give SingPost an edge, she added.
“Given that Singapore is a very challenged market when it comes to manpower, the automation is going to be a huge cost-effective driver for us, as well as to improve our productivity,” said Ms Neo.
While there are challenges in cross-border e-commerce – which saw a 63 per cent decline in delivery volumes year-on-year – the numbers are continuing to grow domestically.
SingPost said it intends to focus on customer experience and service quality for its e-commerce business.
Post offices will also be part of the network to provide good service to customers, said Ms Neo.
"The core focus here is we want to continue to provide the highest level of service to our customers and the post offices continue to be an important touch point as part of our overall network to provide services for our customers."
She added SingPost will look at post offices as part of its overall strategic review, and noted that beyond post offices, the company has lockers and a partnership with convenience store Cheers, to grow its network and provide convenience for customers.
In its first-quarter update, SingPost said it initiated a one-off divestment of 10 Housing and Development Board (HDB) shophouses on a sale and leaseback basis.
"When we put up the 10 HDBs for divestment, it was with the intent that we will continue to run the 10 post offices," she said.
The units have reportedly been sold to the chairman of Union Gas.
SingPost also sold its Australian business, Freight Management Holdings, for US$504 million.
“We still own a number of operations in the region, and we are in process of selling those now as well,” said chief financial officer Isaac Mah, adding that the company has divested from three businesses and is in the process of winding up its joint venture with Alibaba.
“Once that is completed, we then will be focusing on organising our portfolio assets, positioning ourselves for future growth,” he said.
Continue reading...