MOH Permanent Secretary Chan Yeng Kit to be SPH Media’s new CEO from Jul 15

PERMANENT Secretary for Health Chan Yeng Kit will take over as SPH Media’s new chief executive officer from Jul 15.

The 59-year-old will succeed outgoing chief Teo Lay Lim, who is retiring from SPH Media after more than two years in the role.

Chan, who is a former chairman of the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), was recently appointed to SPH Media’s board of directors on Mar 15.

He “brings a wealth of experience from his extensive career in the public sector, the labour movement and the private sector”, the news organisation said in a statement on Monday (Apr 8).

SPH Media publishes The Business Times, The Straits Times and Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao, among other titles.

Chan, who has been in his current role at the Health Ministry since 2019, led efforts to formulate and coordinate plans for Covid-19 safe management measures. He was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal in 2022 for those efforts.

GET BT IN YOUR INBOX DAILY

Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.

Sign UpVIEW ALL

He also holds concurrent appointments as chairman of MOH Holdings and deputy chairman of the Central Provident Fund Board.

Prior to his appointment to SPH Media’s board, Chan served as IMDA chairman for nine years.

He had past stints as Permanent Secretary for Defence from 2013 to 2019, and Permanent Secretary for the then-Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts from 2008 to 2012.

“I am thankful for this opportunity to lead Singapore’s premier news organisation, one that has left an indelible impact on the lives of generations of Singaporeans,” said Chan.

In a separate release on Monday, the Public Service Division (PSD) announced that Lai Wei Lin will succeed Chan as the next Permanent Secretary for Health from Jul 15.

Lai, who is Permanent Secretary (Transport Development) at the Ministry of Transport and Second Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Finance, will relinquish these appointments from Jul 1, PSD said.

SPH Media Trust chairman Khaw Boon Wan said that Chan “will support the newsrooms to tap digital platforms to reach new audiences and build a sustainable commercial model”.

SPH Media Trust is the holding company of SPH Media.

Khaw added: “We are grateful to Lay Lim for kick-starting our organisation’s digital transformation. Yeng Kit will build upon the foundations that she has built.”

Formerly the chairman of Accenture Singapore, Teo joined SPH Media as CEO on Mar 1, 2022. This was shortly after the media business of Singapore Press Holdings was restructured into a company limited by guarantee.

Teo has laid a “solid foundation” for the company’s growth, SPH Media said.

Under her tenure, the news organisation’s digital transformation efforts have brought “steady progress” in areas such as digital integration, customer experience and talent development.

The 60-year-old also oversaw SPH Media’s data integration and analytics efforts, which provide its newsrooms with greater visibility and insights on their audiences.

Teo championed a culture of putting audiences and subscribers at the centre of SPH Media’s work – leading to developments such as the Tamil Murasu mobile app – and advocated for a mobile-first strategy, including the new shared video and audio facility Studio +65.

“Under her leadership, SPH Media also completed the acquisition of Tech in Asia which aimed to accelerate the regional growth of The Business Times,” SPH Media said.

Said Teo: “It has been a tremendous privilege to have served SPH Media in the first lap of its transformation journey. The digital foundation is now in place, and I am confident that Yeng Kit will adeptly navigate SPH Media through the next lap.”