The stillness of Temasek’s office at The Atrium@Orchard was broken by the rustle of paper and intermittent conversation coming from a 9th-floor room. Around a conference table, Amar Singh and his team meticulously wrapped packages in brown paper, labelling them with the names and home addresses of their overseas colleagues.

The packages that day were bound for the UK. Inside each one was a precious stash of masks and hand sanitisers, desperately needed supplies as COVID-19 swept across the globe.

As Temasek ramped up its efforts to help millions in Singapore and around the world – from providing test kits and ventilators to supporting vaccine development and joining swabbing teams on the ground – Amar and his small army of staff volunteers were in a race of their own – keeping Temasek staff safe while they were doing it.

“They needed everything, and they needed it now,” recalls the now-retired Assistant Vice President of Administration, who oversaw Security and Workplace Health & Safety during his time in Temasek.

As the world went into lockdown in 2020, Amar and his team joined 30 to 40 other representatives from various COVID-19 workstreams across Temasek’s offices in daily virtual meetings.

A new corporate outpost

After a lifetime spent in the military, Amar, then 55, was not entirely sure what to expect from his move to the corporate sector. When he joined Temasek in 2013, he was surprised to find that they shared a core value: building a resilient ecosystem.

“When I operated in the military, I was wearing a uniform and had a name tag. At Temasek, I did the same job, just without the uniform,” he says. “Keeping people safe is an operation, and you need to make sure that both the formal structures – the systems and processes – and the informal structures, from relationships to trust, are in place.”

Looking back at his first few weeks on the job, the former Senior Warrant Officer with the Singapore Armed Forces recalls how “strange” it felt. “I was a military guy in the corporate world. But I just tried to chit-chat with everyone so I would be approachable when things went wrong.”

Amar joined Temasek as it was restructuring its Business Continuity Management teams. Workplace safety and security were consolidated into a dedicated unit that would shield Temasek’s teams and operations from disruptions. 

Beyond daily tasks and supporting internal and external events, the team of three ensured contingency plans, like those created in the wake of the 2003 SARS epidemic and the 2009 H1N1 pandemic remained up to date. When transboundary haze choked the region in 2013 and again in 2015, they had N95 masks stockpiled and ready.

“Business continuity is like oxygen. You can't see it, taste it, smell it or feel it, but it's vital for survival,” he says.

The team also handled travel risks and logistics, and ensured that Temasek offices around the world maintained the same safety and security standards as its Singapore HQ. “Different countries have different protocols, cultures and regulations. We had to calibrate our plans to fit each environment so they could be deployed whenever the button was pushed,” explains Amar.

When COVID-19 hit, that button got quite a workout, and every protocol was put to the test, he recalls.

“We had checklists and recovery plans that Temasek had created with consultants that kicked into action.”

When everyone eventually returned to the office, Amar’s sturdy presence remained a familiar fixture, as he strode through corridors and meeting rooms with practised efficiency, his trained eye seeking out potential concerns or hazards, and ensuring spaces remained secure. 

Sometimes, Amar found himself handling things that weren’t quite his day job, including redirecting unexpected visitors who showed up at Temasek’s front door with their PR applications.

“It’s really all about finding solutions,” he says. “Whatever happens, you figured it out. How can you make big things small, and small things disappear? The key is never to let small problems turn into big fires.”

Where people come first

As he settles into “real retirement”, Amar says Temasek’s response to COVID-19 – a crisis that tested every country, company, and individual – is what will always remain with him. He goes back time and again to the “Staff Care Packs” he was charged with packing, and how they evolved as the pandemic lingered. 

“We started with a small pack – masks, sanitisers, test kits – then we started adding more to it. Even our former CEO, Ms Ho Ching, stepped in to make sure all staff got iodine gargle and pulse oximeters. From a small package, it became a hamper,” he laughs.

To him, it truly embodied the spirit of leaving no man behind.

“People really take top priority at Temasek. It’s a company that actually walks the talk – it means what it says, and then it really does it.”