business operations and organisation - hong kong … corporation has also maintained frequent...

Business Operations and Organisation

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22 Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Corporation Annual Report 2012 -13


Marketing Divisions, Underwriting Divisions and Claims and Recoveries Division handle the Corporation’s

core business operations. The Marketing Divisions handle business acquisition, business retention, and

public relations activities. The Underwriting Divisions are responsible for risk assessment and monitoring,

reinsurance and international relations matters. The Claims and Recoveries Division handles activities

relating to loss minimisation, claims processing and debt recovery.

The powers, functions and duties of the Corporation may be exercised or performed in its name

and on its behalf by the Commissioner, who is appointed by the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong

Special Administrative Region.

As at 31 March 2013, the total number of the Corporation’s staff stood at 122 (31 March 2012: 121).

The senior management consisted of:

Walter Tse

Deputy General Manager

3

Amy Wai


4

Ralph Lai

Commissioner

1

Cynthia Chin

General Manager

2

Iyria Fan


5

4 21 3 5

Overview

Chairm

an's Foreword

Com

missioner's M

essageA

dvisory Board and the Sub-Com

mittees' M

embership

Looking Ahead

Five Years at a Glance

Business O

perations and O

rganisationThe Year in R

eviewThe Year in Pictures

23Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Corporation Annual Report 2012 -13


Quality Policy

We are committed to providing professional and customer-oriented services in support of Hong Kong’s

export trade, by upholding the principles of Total Quality Management and by fulfi lling all our legal and

customer requirements.

We encourage the concerted participation of staff at all levels to ensure continuous improvement in

service delivery of the highest quality, and to establish a reputation amongst our customers, Hong Kong’s

exporters, for excellence, value for money and constant innovation.

The comprehensive quality objectives underlying all our activities are regularly reviewed and improved

upon, based on the current and likely future needs of customers for a range of insurance cover and a

high standard of service.

Our quality policy takes the form of a quality management system developed on the basis of ISO 9001:2008

requirements. Implementing this is the responsibility of each staff member.

Corporate Governance

The Corporation is committed to high standards of corporate governance, which is the foundation for good

corporate performance and is essential to attaining sustainable growth in the long run. The Corporation

has worked to improve its internal control system over the past year with a view to achieving this

commitment. The Corporation’s Advisory Board and the two sub-committees, the Audit Committee and

the Investment Committee, have met regularly to monitor and tender advice on corporate matters,

including the annual budget, corporate and strategic plans, performance evaluations,

remuneration adjustments, internal control frameworks and investment fund management performance.

The Corporation has also maintained frequent two-way communication with the policy bureau,

the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau (CEDB), to ensure a high level of transparency.

Apart from making routine reports on financial and corporate matters, the Corporation has also

consulted the CEDB from time to time on new measures and services in relation to the discharge of

the public mission, and has sought its approval for the annual budget and the corporate plan.

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Regarding continual improvement in its internal control system, which is signifi ed by a well-established

organisational structure with clearly defi ned roles, responsibilities and authority, the Corporation was

open to accepting and implementing market best practices during the year, for instance in respect

of procurement activities, staff management and corporate governance. In addition, various internal

committees continued to perform regular reviews to ensure that established policies and procedures were

followed in daily operations, and that proper approval was obtained. Code of Conduct and operational

guidelines were reviewed and strengthened as appropriate when areas requiring improvement were

identifi ed.

Through having staff at all levels of the Corporation undertake to conduct business in a transparent,

fair and ethical manner, the Corporation believes there is reasonable assurance in achieving objectives,

effectiveness and effi ciency in its operations.

Corporate Culture and Human Resources

Corporate Culture

For years, the core values of openness and transparency have guided the Corporation’s management

and staff in their day-to-day work and long-term plans. Understanding that the corporate culture helps

shape the quality and behaviour of individual staff, the Corporation has made ongoing efforts to cultivate

a culture of honesty, reliability and constant improvement among its staff.

The Corporation always strives for excellence, continuous improvement and sustainable development

with a view to better serving the export community. It promotes staff engagement and team work,

encouraging ideas for innovation and improvement. During the year, the Corporation collected new insights

and suggestions from staff through various channels including the standing Suggestion Box, the annual

Staff Suggestion Campaign, and the annual staff survey on the Corporation’s level of transparency,

accountability, communication and welfare. The Corporation also provided its staff with a wide range of

training sessions, including external courses and internal cross-team sharing, to enable them to provide

ever-improving services for the export sector.

Overview

Chairm

an's Foreword

Com

missioner's M

essageA


mittees' M

embership

Looking Ahead


Business O

perations and O





Human Resources

Succession planning and staff retention remained the key focus, and the Corporation continued to

devote its resources to maintaining a stable, talented and motivated workforce. The number of staff has

remained stable over the year. As at 31 March 2013, the Corporation employed 122 staff members,

against 121 at the same time last year.

Training and Development

The Corporation has for a long time placed great value on its staff and their contributions. As part of the

efforts to support staff development and staff retention, the Corporation continued to allocate resources to

arrange training opportunities for staff in 2012-13. After analysing the training needs of staff gathered from

the annual training survey, the Corporation formulated a training plan and arranged different training courses

for staff to suit their specifi c job function requirements and/or to match their career development needs.

A total of 53 training courses were arranged in 2012-13.

These included both management training programmes

(such as effective meetings, business and social

etiquette, strategic thinking, Chinese wisdom on problem

solving and negotiation), and functional training courses

(such as bank credit and risk management, memo

& e-mail writing, effective presentation, information

technology, and human resources management).

Some staff members also attended overseas workshops

and conferences to build international relationships,

and to widen their international exposure. Besides the various training programmes, the Corporation also

arranged cross-division sharing sessions to facilitate knowledge exchange.

All of the training and learning opportunities arranged by the Corporation during the year have helped

develop an effi cient and professional workforce.

Management training programme

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In Pursuit of Quality

Since the upgrading of its quality management

system to ISO 9001:2008 in 2009, the Corporation

has been performing satisfactorily in complying

with the standards. This year, it again passed the

external and internal audits with encouraging results.

The Corporation’s unwavering commitment to the

pursuit of high standards will see Hong Kong’s

exporters enjoying services of ever-improving quality.

Corporate Social Responsibility

The Corporation has been actively participating in charity functions to honour its responsibility

towards the community. During the year, the Corporation took part in several charitable events to

raise staff awareness about caring for people in need. Besides continuing its support for the various

charity organisations, the Corporation joined different fundraising initiatives such as Po Leung Kuk’s

Flag Selling Day, the Community Chest’s Dress Casual Day, and Lok Sin Tong’s Mid-Autumn charity sale.

The Corporation also took part in other benevolent activities, including a book-recycling event. In addition,

the Corporation donated its written-off electronic and computer equipment to charities. The enthusiasm

and commitment demonstrated by its staff in the above events were encouraging.

The Corporation has continued to provide its staff with a green working

environment. It took steps to protect the environment through reducing,

reusing and recycling where appropriate. The Corporation adopted a

“Green Procurement” policy in its daily purchase of offi ce equipment

and machinery. In addition, targets were set for resources consumption.

Throughout the year, the Corporation promoted awareness among staff

about recycling and reducing energy consumption. Daily operations were

also reviewed periodically to identify areas for environmental protection.

All of the measures taken paved the way for establishing a green culture

within the Corporation.

Cross-division sharing session to facilitate

experience exchange

The Corporation adopted a

“Green Procurement” policy.

Overview

Chairm

an's Foreword

Com

missioner's M

essageA


mittees' M

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Looking Ahead


Business O

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International Relations

The Corporation is a member of the International Union of Credit & Investment Insurers (Berne Union),

the leading international association for the export credit and investment insurance industry. Today,

the Berne Union has 49 members comprising export credit agencies (ECAs), multilaterals, and private

insurers, which collectively insured USD 1.8 trillion of exports and foreign direct investment – more than

10% of international trade.

The Corporation actively participates in the

work of the Berne Union. It serves as a

member of the Management Committee

(for a two-year term from 2012 to 2013),

and the Commissioner serves as Chair

of the Short Term Committee (for a

one-year term for 2013). It also plays

an active role in the informal Regional

Cooperation Group (RCG), which consists

of Asian ECAs from Australia, Mainland

China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia,

Sri Lanka, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand

and Hong Kong.

ECIC Commissioner Ralph Lai (right), elected as the

Short Term Committee Chairman of the Berne Union,

and Vice Chairman Khemais El-Gazzah (left)

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During the year, the Corporation attended several meetings, including the Berne Union Spring Meeting in

Brussels, Belgium, the Annual General Meeting in Stockholm, Sweden, the RCG meetings which were held

concurrently with the Berne Union Meetings, and the Annual RCG CEO meeting in Habarana, Sri Lanka.

In these meetings, members exchanged professional views on various aspects related to international

trade, and shared experiences on underwriting specifi c industry sectors and countries.

Apart from the above mentioned

meetings, the Corporation

also participated in the RCG

Capacity Building Program in

Singapore, and the Annual

Exchange Meeting with China

Export & Credit Insurance

Corporation (SINOSURE) in

Zhejiang, China, where a broad

range of topics were discussed. In addition, the Corporation hosted a one-and-a-half day Berne Union

Claims and Recoveries Technical Meeting in Hong Kong, where experts shared and exchanged industry

information.

ECIC-SINOSURE Annual Exchange Meeting

Berne Union Annual Regional

Cooperation Group CEO

Meeting (Sri Lanka)

business operations and organisation - hong kong … corporation has also maintained frequent...

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