MALAYSIA AIRLINES APPOINTS GRADUATE CHIEF STRATEGY OFFICER
01 August 2019
Malaysia’s national carrier – Malaysia Airlines Bhd – has appointed Queen’s graduate Bryan Foong as its group Chief Strategy Officer to help the airline’s turnaround plans.
Bryan Foong Chee Yeong graduated from Queen’s with a BEng in Mechanical Engineering in 1997 before completing a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) at Cranfield University School of Management.
Starting his career as an engineer in Proton in Selangor, Malaysia, where he worked on the vehicle R&D programme and safety/crash test simulations (1997-2000), Bryan moved to Mitsubishi Motors (from 2000-03) in Aichi, Japan where he worked in a similar role.
A brief period in management and business consulting projects in Hong Leong Bank and Ernst & Young preceded his first spell at Malaysian Airlines where he was Vice President, Transformation Management Office (2007-11) and then Vice President, Strategy (2011-12). As VP he was responsible for new business development and business restructuring projects and corporate planning.
In September 2012 he became General Manager, Group Strategy & Corporate Development at Sunway Group in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia where he was responsible for strategy and corporate development before taking on the role of Executive Vice President, Corporate Strategy & Business Development at Themed Attractions Resorts and Hotels Sdn Bhd in 2015 in Selangor, where he developed and operated leisure and tourism destinations and assets in Malaysia.
As group Chief Strategy Officer Bryan Foong will be responsible for translating the strategic vision of Malaysia Airlines board and CEO into strategic priorities and direction.
‘He will also lead the planning of network and fleet in deciding the future size and shape of Malaysia Airlines Group, reflecting the needs of customers, market and competitive environment’, according to an internal circular announcing his appointment to staff by group CEO Captain Izham Ismail.
Malaysia Airlines suffered huge financial losses after losing two planes in 2014 — Flight MH370 which vanished over the Indian Ocean and Flight MH17, which was shot down by surface-to-air missiles over Ukraine.
Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has previously said that the government was looking into proposals to either sell or have the airlines run by outside sources but no decision has yet been made.
Founded in 1947 and currently employing around 14,000 people, Malaysian Airlines operates a fleet of 81 aircraft and flies to 64 destinations around the world.
Malaysia has been sending students to Queen’s since the 1950s. Outside the UK and Ireland, it is the country boasting the greatest number of Queen’s graduates, with many holding – or having held – senior positions in Malaysia government and businesses, including the late Tun Dr Lim Keng Yaik, who was a Cabinet minister for 22 years, including Minister for Primary Industries and Tan Sri Rafiah Salim, who was the Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resource Management at the New York HQ of the United Nations from 1997-2002.
The University has a longstanding and active alumni network in Malaysia. QUAAM – Queen’s University Alumni Association, Malaysia – organises regular events, participates in recruitment activities and hosts University personnel on visits to the country.
For information on QUAAM visit the Association’s Facebook group, contact the QUAAM Committee 1st Vice-President Lee Hui Seng or get in touch with Queen’s Alumni Officer (Engagement), Stephen O’Reilly, telephone +44 (0)28 9097 1945.
To submit graduate news items, or for general enquiries about this story, please contact Gerry Power, Communications Officer, Development and Alumni Relations Office, Queen's University Belfast or telephone: +44 (0)28 9097 5321.
Photo credit: Main image by Arivaran Ravichantar from Pixabay
Back to Main News
Top of Page