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fulfilling today's demands in the business
world, including high-speed and reliable
internet connectivity, professional phone
answering, reliable and capable staff, good
office management, comfortable working environment
and the list goes on… We check out today
the office of the one businesswoman, Mee
Kim, the President of CEO SUITE, who seems
to truly understand the demands of such
a fast-moving world.
On entering the Centre, one
is greeted by an environment predominantly
decorated in soft cream-color tone. Its
minimal, yet soothingly sophisticated designs,
are immediately obvious to anyone entering
the Centre. All facilities and set-up necessary
for a functional office seem to have been
provided and catered for under one roof
on this single level in CEO SUITE.
The tour would not have been
complete without the walk through the lively
Reception area, where guests are welcomed
and warmly greeted; ready-for-work executive
office suites of various sizes, fully furnished
with executive desks and leather chairs;
stately boardrooms well-equipped with facilities
for tele/video-conferencing sessions; lounges
obviously designed for convenience for traveling
business people, and finally, the stylish
cyber-cafe comparable to any coffee chain,
the ultimate luxury provided for in an otherwise
strictly business environment.
Our final destination was
the office of the woman behind the business.
Behind her letter-L-shaped desk in her office
suite with full-length glass window, Mee
Kim is interestingly absorbed in her work
behind her laptop, from which she supervises
work of her five centres around the Region
in Jakarta, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and
Shanghai. Her elegantly decorated office
offers a breathtaking beautiful and panoramic
city view, with a bird's eye view of all
the office buildings in the city. Accompanied
by a soft but chic music playing in the
background, and dressed in a soft colour
of a formal suit, we were immediately put
at ease as she strides forward to greet
us in all her friendliness.
Still around her office, Mee
Kim has two cabinets for her collection
of books, world-maps, VCDs and CDs. Pictures
of lighter-hearted moments of her with her
husband, Mr Joseph Siswanto, who is also
an entrepreneur like herself, are displayed
on the shelves of her cabinets. The two
golden-frame paintings of a roaster by the
famous painter, Popo Iskandar, completes
the entire mood of her office, set above
a grey sofa with littered cushions covered
with leopard-skin design cushion covers.
As we chatted, Mee Kim reveals
that she is both a golfer and a frequent
traveler, and it is important for her workplace
to be furnished for comfort. The Centre's
minimal-design concept extends even to her
own office suite; there is a classic touch
to her office with the variety of unique
and interesting furnishings such as table
accessories, ceramic souvenirs and paintings,
all of which have been carefully positioned
- no doubt all collections from her extensive
travels.
True to the feeling, Mee Kim's
intentional choice of a cream-dominated
color around her Centres is to create a
"homey" feeling for her clients
within their office. The overall office
design is meant to be "simple, yet
elegant", exclaims Mee Kim.
The mother of a 6-year old
boy, and born in Seoul, Korea, Mee Kim has
been successful in her establishment of
the instant-office business since the opening
of her first centre in 1997. Her previous
experience in this industry as an employee
(instead of the owner) has shed some lights,
and helped her accumulate precious experience
in anticipating the potential of the market,
and pre-empting the demands of her clients.
It would remain part of her corporate plan
to continue to expand her business into
Bangkok and Vietnam.
"We have our vision and
business plans established region-wide.
It remains our aim and mission to set ourselves
apart as the leading operator in this industry,
not just in a few markets, but our flag
in this business should be carried across
internationally. The same goes for our team
of human resources. Our IT-specialist, employed
in Jakarta, is now based in Singapore to
oversee all our Centres region-wide. In
today's business world, businesses should
no longer be limited by the borders of each
country. Our resources in all our Centres
are shared, and our strength comes from
this unity," enlightens Mee Kim.
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